on the crypto
Hong Kong-based Diginex has announced that it will join EQUOS.io with Singapore's 8i Enterprises Acquisition Corp - a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC) listed on the Nasdaq.
The first publicly traded crypto exchange
SPACs are shell companies that use funds from initial public offering (IPO) to acquire target companies, making them public through the "backdoor". Since the 90s, they have experienced a sort of renaissance, reaching a record total of $ 13,6 billion in 2019 - more than four times the $ 3,2 billion in 2016.
Diginex CEO Richard Byworth said that SPACs are faster and cheaper than traditional quotes. In addition, they set the ratings upfront, avoiding the possibility of last-minute write-downs, he noted.
EQUOS.io will be the first publicly traded cryptocurrency exchange in the United States once the acquisition is complete in September, said Byworth.
EQUOS.io
EQUOS.io is a new institution-oriented exchange with a team from the traditional derivatives space. The ambition is to expand the scene of newly born crypto derivatives up to hundreds of times the size of the spot market, just like traditional markets.
Diginex had planned to proceed with the listing much earlier. The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved the acquisition in late February with a shareholder vote that confirmed the deal scheduled for March 20, during the period when global stock markets were in crisis.
"It was the day the S&P 500 fell 12,5%," said Byworth, "so in conclusion it was probably not the best day to go to market." EQUOS.io is not the only crypto company oriented towards the public market.
Ant Group, one of the main issuers of the Chinese digital yuan, announced a double listing in Hong Kong and Shanghai earlier this month. Coinbase is also rumored to be considering a direct listing for 2021. Chinese mining chip maker Canaan Creative also launched a $ 100 million IPO in November 2019.
Long-term prospects
Since the time of listing, the share price has fallen by two thirds, from $ 9 to $ 3 as of press time. After another move with the SEC and a new approval in June, everything now seems ready for the Nasdaq listing.
Although U.S. citizens will be able to purchase EQUOS.io shares, Byworth said the exchange will not actually operate in the country. So why enter Nasdaq? "The Nasdaq listing is more about credibility and trust," said Byworth, adding that it remains the main stock exchange for tech stocks anywhere in the world.
With the race to the top of the technological stocks that show no signs of slowing down, and being one of the very first cryptocurrency companies to negotiate on the Nasdaq sharesDiginex will have a convincing investment argument for its derivative exchange, he said.
