This is the third licensed Asian cryptocurrency exchange that Binance has increased its stake in as it expands its global reach; The company had shown signs of trouble.
According to local reports Dec. 19, Binance has increased its stake in Indonesian crypto-asset trader Tokocrypto.
The cash injection was confirmed in a tweet by Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ), who called the deal “just to inject more cash and increase our holdings a bit.” Changes are expected on the stock exchange.
Tokocrypto founder Pang Xue Kai would step down as CEO to be replaced by Yudhono Rawis as interim chief. Pang Xue Kai remains on the company’s board of directors.
CNBC quotes Pang Xue Kai as saying:
“This decision was made after careful consideration, and we decided that the best move for Tokocrypto was to leverage Binance’s capabilities to create a new physical trading platform for crypto assets.”
On December 6, reports surfaced that Binance was in talks with Tokocrypto, boosting the value of its TKO coin by 50%. It was also reported at the time that there would be a number of layoffs if the acquisition went ahead. Tokocrypto laid off 45 employees, or 20% of its workforce, in September. He also founded his community space T-Hub and non-fungible token marketplace TokoMall around that time.
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Binance first invested in the Indonesian company in 2020. In 2021, Tokocrypto was reportedly considering an IPO, although the offering never took place.
Launched in 2018, Tokocrypto was the first crypto exchange in Indonesia to receive approval from the country’s Commodity Futures Regulator (Bappebti) the following year. Approval from this authority has been mandatory for crypto exchanges ever since. By March of this year, 17 companies had received Bappebti approval.
Also See: Celebrity Tokens: Signs of Growing Crypto Adoption in Indonesia
Binance acquired Sakura, a licensed Japanese crypto exchange, in November and MX Global, a licensed Malaysian exchange, in March. By acquiring already licensed companies, Binance can operate without having to acquire a license itself.
Update 20 Dec 01:31 UTC: Changed title, previously implying that Binance had acquired 100% of Tokyocrypto.
