FTX To Acquire SoKor’s Bithumb?
- FTX is in late-stage talks with South Korean exchange Bithumb and plans to acquire it
- The firm has also struck a joint venture with Voyager Digital to provide early liquidity to the platform’s customers
South Korea is known for imposing restrictions on all exchanges in the country, reducing the market to only four major cryptocurrency exchanges in the country. One of the biggest exchanges out of the Big Four is Bithumb, which was founded in 2014 to cater to the crypto needs of the region.
According to a report from Bloomberg, Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX might be planning to acquire the Bithumb exchange amidst a weak market. The report states that the crypto exchange is in late stage talks with Bithumb and there is a potential scenario of acquisition.
The conversation has been in progress for “several months,” states the Bloomberg report. Furthermore, FTX is also raising funds and is aggressively expanding amidst the bearish market.
Bankman-Fried has invested close to $1 billion in acquisitions and financial support for cryptocurrency companies through Alameda and FTX. While the market has been hit hard by the bears, SBF has been giving a helping hand to firms to enable them to get through the current situation.
Recently, FTX also acquired a Canadian cryptocurrency exchange called Bitvo, and the goal was to “expand FTX’s global reach.”
“Our expansion into Canada is another step in proactively working with cryptocurrency regulators in different geographies across the globe,”
Bankman-Fried added
On the other hand, the cryptocurrency exchange’s plan to acquire Bithumb could be another step towards expansion as South Korea’s 90% crypto trading volume is situation in UPbit.
Early liquidity to Voyager Digital’s customers
Interestingly, FTX released a press statement wherein the firm revealed that it will be offering early liquidity to the customers of Voyager Digital, the firm that recently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Also, people who get money right away will have the option to sign up for FTX’s services for exchanging cryptocurrencies.
Furthermore, the cryptocurrency exchange “hopes to close the transaction as promptly as possible, preferably in early August, subject to the requirements of the Chapter 11 process and the need for court approval.”
“The goal of our joint proposal is to help establish a better way to resolve an insolvent crypto business – a way that allows customers to obtain early liquidity and reclaim a portion of their assets without forcing them to speculate on bankruptcy outcomes and take one-sided risks,”
said SBF in the press release.
A crypto journalist with over 3 years of experience in DeFi, NFT, metaverse, etc. Parth has worked with major media outlets in the crypto and finance world and has gained experience and expertise in crypto culture after surviving bear and bull markets over the years.
