BitFlyer Holdings has moved to acquire its rival cryptocurrency trading platform, FTX Japan.
FTX Japan is the local arm of Sam Bankman-Fried’s notorious crypto exchange.
BitFlyer Deal To Buy FTX Reportedly Worth 8 Figures
Established in January 2014, BitFlyer is among the most high-profile exchanges in Japan and across the broader crypto industry. In fact, Forbes named it the country’s most trusted digital asset platform in its June 2024 edition.
BitFlyer took to X yesterday, 20 June 2024, to announce that it had signed a share purchase agreement which will see it acquire 100% of FTX Japan’s shares. The deal is expected to be worth billions of yen, or tens of millions of dollars, according to local media outlets.
BitFlyer to acquire FTX Japan🇯🇵 focusing on crypto asset management for institutions after FTX's 2023 customer repayments post-collapse.
The deal expected to be worth billions of yen, or tens of millions of dollars.$FTT price surged by 7%📈 pic.twitter.com/mo08uT6r1r
— Ajay Kashyap (@EverythingAjay) June 20, 2024
“After going through the procedures of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, it will become a wholly owned subsidiary of BitFlyer Holdings.” BitFlyer said. “We will develop new services that leverage synergy between groups.”
In a document attached to its post on X, BitFlyer included its business policy for after the stock acquisition, according to which FTX Japan will have to change its name “as soon as possible.” The statement read, “The new company name has not been decided at this time, but in this announcement, the tentative name is Custody New Association”.
‘Custody New Association’ will register as a company and transfer the account to BitFlyer Co Ltd. This will be a part of the exchanges plans to develop a new crypto custody business that will be ready to offer spot asset ETFs “if the legal system in Japan is developed in the future”.
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History Of FTX In Japan Following Collapse Of FTX Global
After FTX Group entered bankruptcy back in November 2022, Japanese authorities suspended FTX Japans operating licence. Around the same time, the crypto platform also halted withdrawals.
Similar to other local arms of FTX, the Japanese branch argued that its customer assets were not part of the exchange’s bankruptcy proceedings. It was adamant that client funds were safe and would be returned in due course.
The FTX Japan resumed withdrawals in February 2023, although withdrawals were to be processed through the local crypto exchange Liquid. Prior to withdrawals being made available to customers, US Judge John Dorsey approved FTX’s motion to sell four units of its company. Those units were stock-clearing platform Embed, derivatives arm LedgerX, FTX Europe, and FTX Japan.
There were many parties interested in acquiring FTX Japan, with BitFlyer emerging as the winning candidate.
Disclaimer: Crypto is a high-risk asset class. This article is provided for informational purposes and does not constitute investment advice. You could lose all of your capital.
