After the Chinese crackdown on cryptocurrency-related business in the country, many companies moved abroad or closed shop. Now, Huobi nets BitTrade as it expands into Japan after finding new home in Singapore.
As TechInAsia reports, the company had initial plans to launch in Japan but the deal failed. Houbi had plans to set up two crypto exchanges in Japan in a joint effort with SBI Group. However, at the last minute of the deal, the Japanese financial conglomerate wanted out. Huobi operated in Singapore as it made inquiries about deals that could get it in Japan. Along came BitTrade.
Huobi nets BitTrade as it becomes majority shareholder
According to e27, an online news outlet, Huobi Global is now the controlling shareholder of BitTrade. The cryptocurrency exchange is one of the few operating in Japan. Wholly under the ownership of Eric Cheng, the exchange allows Huobi Global to operate an exchange in Japan. Huobi Japan Holdings, a Huobi Global subsidiary, completed the deal. However, the details of the deal are not yet clear.
During the new partnership, the companies “intend to aggressively scale up the platform.” The goal is to raise the platform’s standard to international levels where it can attract professional cryptocurrency investors.
Commenting on the deal, Eric Cheng said:
“Together, we will leverage on Huobi’s global footprint, excellent management team and advanced security systems to grow Bit Trade into a market-leading position in Japan. Having a long-term partnership with an established brand such as Huobi is the right step for Bit Trade as we look to continue our rapid growth trajectory.”
Leverage for expansion
Huobi intends to build on the existing relations that BitTrade commands and hopes to exploit the market fully. As Huobi nets BitTrade,the company will leverage the experience and reputation of BitTrade to expand further into Japan.
Chris Lee, Board Secretary and Chief Financial Officer for Huobi, believes the partnership will bolster their market dominant player strategy. He says, “Leveraging on BitTrade’s leadership team and its Japanese government-approved license, this is just the beginning as we look to grow BitTrade into the most dominant player in the Japanese cryptocurrency market.”
