Crypto Exchange Becomes Unicorn, Coin Rises 200% After Banking Giant Buying Stake

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Bitkub Online Co. has become the latest Thai startup to reach a valuation of over $ 1 billion after selling a controlling stake to the country’s largest bank by market value. Bitkub’s coin tripled in value after the deal was announced.

Siam Commercial Bank Pcl, of which the country’s king is the main shareholder, announced on Tuesday evening that it would acquire 51% of Bitkub for 17.85 billion baht ($ 535 million), valuing the largest exchange operator of the country’s cryptocurrency to around 35 billion baht.

Bitkub’s coin jumped 200% to a record $ 2.85 on Tuesday night in Asia, from 98 cents earlier today, according to prices from CoinGecko. Siam Commercial shares rose 3.5% to a six-week high.

Demand for risky assets such as cryptocurrencies and equity products has exploded in Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy, as young investors seek better returns on their savings amid rising interest rates. low interest and economic downturn. Siam Commercial’s expansion into digital assets comes even as policymakers and regulators warn investors about the risks of crypto assets.

“Bitkub has taken an important step in becoming an important part of Thailand’s digital economic infrastructure,” Jirayut Srupsrisopa, 31-year-old CEO and founder of Bitkub Capital Group Holdings Co., which operates Bitkub, said in a statement sent. by e-mail. “Bitkub is no longer just a startup and is now becoming a necessary piece of critical infrastructure for the Thai financial sector.”

Bitkub’s investment “will help SCB Group to create new long-term growth value in a new financial world,” said Arthid Nanthawithaya, chief executive of the bank. It will also help the bank meet new consumer needs and enter a “new competitive arena that will emerge very quickly over the next three to five years”.

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Thailand saw revenue from locally licensed crypto exchanges peak at 217 billion baht in May, up from 18 billion baht in November 2020, according to data from Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission. It has since fallen and averaged around 100 billion baht per month during the August-October period.

Bitkub, which was founded in 2018, made a profit of around 1.53 billion baht in the first nine months of 2021 on revenue of 3.28 billion baht, Siam Commercial said. It achieved around baht 1.03 trillion in revenue during the January-September period, which is 92% of the total revenue of all licensed cryptocurrency exchange operators in Thailand.

24-hour revenue of $ 282 million ranked Bitkub 79th out of more than 300 exchanges globally as ranked by CoinMarketCap.

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