Bitkub Online Co., a startup based in Thailand bagged the unicorn status after gaining a whopping valuation of over $1 billion. This was after selling a majority stake to the nation’s biggest bank. Following the announcement of the deal, Bitkub’s coin witnesses a triple surge in its value.
The What and How
On Thursday, an announcement was made by Siam Commercial Bank Pcl concerning the partial acquisition of Bitkub’s stake. The largest shareholder of Siam Commercial Bank Pcl is the king himself. As per the announcement, it was made clear that the acquisition will cover about 51 percent of Bitkub’s stakes for a whopping 17.85 baht which is approximately equal to $535 million. The acquisition proved to be a rather good step for Bitkub as the value of its coin witnessed a notable surge following the announcement of the deal. The surge amounted to a whopping 200 percent. The shares of Siam Commercial also saw a rise of up to 3.5 percent. The acquisition also means that Siam Commercial will be able to explore new areas of growth, while also helping the bank meet new consumer needs.
In Thailand which is the second-largest economy in Southeast Asia, the demand for cryptocurrencies is on the rise with young investors seeking better returns from saving in the midst of an economic slowdown. Although crypto entails a major factor of risk, it has not stopped young investors from stepping into these risky waters in hopes of better returns. After all, without risk, there is zero chance for growth and development. On one side, policymakers and regulators are busy warning investors about the inherent risk of investing in crypto, while on the other side major institutions like Siam Commercial are expanding into digital assets. Now that is a rather complicated balance and only time can tell which of the two will be canceled out in the long run.
This is what Jirayut Srupsrisopa had to say about the acquisition. Srupsrisopa is the executive officer and a founder at Bitkub,
“Bitkub has reached a milestone by becoming an important part of Thailand’s digital economic infrastructure. Bitkub is no longer just a startup and is now becoming a necessary part of the infrastructure critical for Thailand’s financial industry.”
Bitkub was founded in the year 2018, and it was able to spin out a notable profit of 1.53 billion baht during the first nine months of 2021. Its trading turnover amounted to 1.03 baht which is roughly equal to 92 percent of the total turnover of all licensed crypto exchange operators based in Thailand.
