Dec 27, 2022 08:55

Troubled Crypto Lender Vauld Calls Off Acquisition by Nexo

<p>Singapore-based troubled crypto lender, Vauld has confirmed the termination of the talks for acquisition by rival Nexo for failure in responding to due diligence requests for a <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/terms/s/solvency/" target="_blank" id="d4466a77-4dda-4663-9fb4-a2aced6106ec_1" class="terms__secondary-term">solvency</a> assessment that would assure creditors.</p><p>"We were previously exploring a potential <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/terms/a/acquisition/" target="_blank" id="3180494d-8751-4a02-9476-86dc1cd4d2e2_2" class="terms__main-term">acquisition</a> by Nexo as part of the proposed restructuring plan," Vauld told crypto-focused publication Coindesk in a private Twitter message. "To provide a very brief summary, our discussions with Nexo have unfortunately not come to fruition."</p><p>Further, <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/institutional-forex/nexo-prime-enhances-service-with-onezeros-institutional-hub-integration/" target="_blank" rel="follow">Nexo's </a>decision to phase out services in the United States would have jeopardized the fate of Vauld customers with their claims if the acquisition deal had materialized. Additionally, Nexo reportedly failed to offer Vauld customers an exit option which was crucial for restructuring.</p><p>The deal ended only five months after Nexo and Vauld signed an initial agreement to explore the possibility of the acquisition. Though Vauld did not highlight the impact of the deal termination on its ongoing restructuring, it fell through less than a month from its <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/cryptocurrency/news/crypto-lender-vauld-gets-three-months-protection-against-creditors/" target="_blank" rel="follow">deadline to come up with a restructuring plan</a>.</p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/Nexo?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@nexo</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/AntoniNexo?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AntoniNexo</a> nexo aquisiation proposal rejected by vauld. Reason is nexo failed to respond for a comprehensive due diligence on them ,including solvency assesment of nexo. Celcius rejected nexo’s proposal.Blockfi rejected nexo’s proposal.Now vauld rejected . <a href="https://t.co/VhLBDyzZbI">pic.twitter.com/VhLBDyzZbI</a></p>— dhruv gupta? | TechnicalAnalyst ? | Traveller ?? (@Dhruvforreal) <a href="https://twitter.com/Dhruvforreal/status/1607281774106931201?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 26, 2022</a></blockquote><p>Nexo Still Wants to Acquire Vauld</p><p>However, Nexo is not quitting its attempts at this acquisition as of yet. "Nexo has not given up on its attempt to save Vauld and help its creditors recover the maximum possible platform funds," Nexo's Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Kalin Metodiev, wrote in an email sent to the crypto publication.</p><p>The two companies reportedly did not mutually agree to end the deal, which is necessary for a formal termination.</p><p>The troubles of Vauld were exposed when the platform <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/cryptocurrency/news/crypto-lending-platform-vauld-suspends-withdrawals-trading-and-deposits/" target="_blank" rel="follow">suspended all activities</a>, including withdrawals, trading, and deposits, in early July, citing financial challenges and looking for restructuring options. Later, the company filed for a moratorium order for protection against creditors in a Singapore court and received one for three months.</p><p>Check out the recent London Summit session on the question "Will Crypto Fizzle Out or Here to Stay?"</p><p>Founded in 2018, Vauld claimed to offer the highest interest rates on major cryptocurrency deposits. It offered borrowing against cryptocurrencies and several other trading-related services.</p><p>According to a court filing in July, Vauld owed $402 million to its creditors, and 90 percent of that debt originated from retail investors. Furthermore, the company's troubles continued as the Indian authorities froze its assets worth about $46.4 million only a month after filing for creditor protection.</p> This article was written by Arnab Shome at www.financemagnates.com.

Aug 19, 2022 12:25

Abrdn Acquires Stake in Archax

<p>In an official announcement on 12 August, Archax confirmed that abrdn has signed a deal with the company to become its largest external shareholder. Archax has been established to facilitate institutional investors who are interested in blockchain-based digital assets.</p><p>Archax was established four years ago. The company has secured approval from the <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/tag/fca/" target="_blank">Financial Conduct Authority</a> (FCA). With the recent collaboration, Archax aims to drive the adoption of blockchain technology in the financial sector.</p><p>The CEO of abrdn, Stephen Bird, <a href="https://archax.com/news/abrdn_takes_stake_in_digital_exchange" target="_blank">commented</a>: “Blockchain technologies are inevitably going to form a big part of the future of financial markets. There is the potential to offer greater transparency, greater speed, and less trading friction by using these nascent digital technologies. Archax is one of the most promising UK players in this next expected high-growth area in finance – the use of digital and tokenized securities with same-day settlement. In that sense, the growth of the digital investment market is about much more than cryptocurrencies.”</p><p>“With Archax, we will have a meaningful footprint in this fast-developing market, which is likely to evolve in a multitude of different ways that are relevant to our core businesses. This investment not only provides an opportunity for substantial financial benefits, but it also creates a partnership with some of the leading thinkers in an area that has the potential to play a substantial role in the future of finance,” Bird added.</p><p>Blockchain Technology</p><p>Institutional adoption of blockchain technology has increased sharply in the past few years. Despite the latest <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/cryptocurrency/" target="_blank">crypto</a> market correction, organizations are still interested in entering the growing space of digital assets. Graham Rodford, the Chief Executive Officer of Archax, believes that abrdn’s support as a strategic investor is a major boost for the company.</p><p>“We look forward to working with abrdn closely to provide a new universe of users with access to our services, as well as creating new innovative tokenized products that will trade on our marketplace,” Rodford added.</p> This article was written by Bilal Jafar at www.financemagnates.com.

Jun 10, 2022 12:30

Coinbase Decides Against Full Acquisition of Singapore-based Zipmex

Coinbase, an American cryptocurrency exchange, has opted to place strategic investment in Singapore-headquartered cryptocurrency exchange, Zipmex, instead of full acquisition, The Block reports.

 

The investment will be part of the Series B+ fundraising round the Southeast Asian exchange is currently working on.

 

The round, through which it reportedly has plans to raise $40 million, could value the exchange at $400 million.

 

Coinbase has previously discussed full acquisition with Zipmex. 

 

Zipmex, which also has strong footing in Thailand, previously raised $52 million from its Series B funding round. 

 

The exchange raised $41 million in September 2021 and $11 million six months later. 

Some of its investors in the rounds included B Capital, V Ventures, MindWorks Capital and Master Ad, among others. 

 

Recent Coinbase Moves  

Coinbase recently committed $1 million for digital public goods in partnership with Gitcoin, a community of builders, creators and protocols at the center of open web ecosystems.

 

Digital public goods are open-source software that support open-source protocols.

 

Coinbase said the monetary support is “one of the largest single donations to the public goods treasury in Gitcoin history.”

 

Coinbase last month also launched the Coinbase Institute, a global crypto-native think tank.

 

The exchange selected Hermine Wong as the Director of the Institute. Wong is a former US government official who worked with the Executive Office of the President’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA).

 

Meanwhile,  a Bitcoin address recently transferred 2,457 BTC from Coinbase as selling pressure pushed the price of the crypto asset to its lowest level in more than 12 months. 

 

On-chain analytics platform, Whale Alert, said the BTCs were moved to an unknown wallet on 20 May at 16:49 UTC. 

 

Whale Alert further disclosed that the coins were worth more than $70 million. The BTC balance on the cryptocurrency exchange took a major hit as a result. 

This article was written by Solomon Oladipupo at www.financemagnates.com.

May 05, 2022 05:10

Binance, 18 Investors Commit $7.1 Billion to Elon Musk’s Twitter Takeover

Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange in terms of daily trading volume, and 18 other equity investors committed over $7.

Mar 15, 2022 12:35

Binance Signed a Memorandum of Understanding to Acquire Sim;Paul Investimentos

Binance signed a a Memorandum of Understanding to consider the acquisition of Brazilian Sim;paul Investimentos. Binance is striving to obtain a foothold in Brazil through the acquisition.

Feb 18, 2022 08:50

Cryptocurrency Firm Fireblocks Acquires First Digital

One of the fastest-growing cryptocurrency companies, Fireblocks announced the acquisition of First Digital today. The acquisition will facilitate the expansion of the company’s payment offering.

Feb 13, 2022 08:55

Crypto M&A Activities Increase 4,846% in 2021

PwC, one of the world’s largest professional services networks, recently published a report on the global crypto M&A and fundraising space.

Feb 02, 2022 08:45

Cryptocurrency Exchange FTX Acquires Liquid

One of the world’s fastest-growing cryptocurrency trading platforms, FTX today announced that it has acquired crypto firm Liquid. The acquisition includes all the operating subsidiaries of Liquid G...

Feb 14, 2024 12:25

Ripple Expands Crypto Solutions with Standard Custody & Trust Acquisition

Ripple made an announcement of its agreement to acquireStandard Custody & Trust Company, a regulated platform specializing indigital assets. By integrating Standard Custody's limited purpose trust charterand money transmitter licenses into its repertoire, Ripple aims to fortify itsportfolio of regulatory licenses.

Ripple's Diverse License Holdings Strengthen Market Position

The surge in institutional adoption of cryptocurrencies andblockchain technology can be attributed to the emergence of mature and highlysecure products in the market.

Ripple, along with its subsidiaries, holds an array oflicenses, including a New York BitLicense, nearly 40 money transmitter licensesacross the US, a Major Payment Institution License from the Monetary Authorityof Singapore, and a Virtual Asset Service Provider registration with theCentral Bank of Ireland.

Commenting on the acquisition, Jack McDonald, the CEO ofStandard Custody, highlighted the company's commitment to providing financialinstitutions with the confidence and platform to safeguard their digitalassets. McDonald expressed optimism about the collaboration with Ripple, citingthe latter's deep crypto expertise, financial institution relationships, androbust product offerings in both payments and custody solutions.

Regulatory Approval Pending for Standard Custody Acquisition

This acquisition follows Ripple's strategic move last yearto acquire Metaco, a custody solution favored by banks globally. Additionally,Ripple recently announced custody partnerships with banks such as HSBC, BBVA,and Zodia Custody, as well as expanded its Ripple Payments offering to newterritories like Africa.

Today, were excited to announce that Ripple has signed a deal to acquire @StandardCustody, strengthening our product offerings and adding to our growing portfolio of regulatory licenses around the world. Learn more about our latest acquisition: https://t.co/JJp51mEabL

Ripple (@Ripple) February 13, 2024

The transaction's completion is contingent upon regulatoryapproval and standard closing conditions. Monica Long, Ripple's President, emphasized the company'sfocus on expanding product offerings and supporting innovativeinitiatives. Long stated: "We will continue to leverage our strongfinancial standing to expand our product offerings, support new initiatives onthe product roadmap and serve a broader segment of customers."

This article was written by Tareq Sikder at www.financemagnates.com.