Bitkub Capital Group Holdings, the owner of the biggest cryptocurrency exchange in Thailand, is in the process of hiring financial advisors to assist with its upcoming initial public offering (IPO) listing.
Bitkub, as per CEO Jirayut Srupsrisopa’s statement to Bloomberg on April 1, aims to become a public company on the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) by 2025. The primary objective of this forthcoming public listing is to generate fresh capital and raise Bitkub’s market visibility.
Alongside engaging advisors, Bitkub is actively expanding its workforce despite a 6% reduction in headcount in both 2022 and 2023. Jirayut disclosed that the Thai exchange plans to hire an additional 1,000 employees by 2025, effectively doubling the current workforce of 2,000 individuals.
Bitkub had announced its plans to launch an IPO in Thailand back in 2023 through a shareholder letter, but specific details had not been shared. The exchange, headquartered in Bangkok, holds the largest market share in Thailand, standing at 77% as of December 2023, according to HashKey data. Bitkub processes approximately $30 million in daily trading volume.
Other significant cryptocurrency exchanges in Thailand include Upbit, which was established in 2021, as well as Bitazza and Zipmex. However, Zipmex halted trading operations in November 2023 following regulatory pressure.
Thailand has emerged as a prominent player in the cryptocurrency space, boasting over 13 million crypto users as of 2023, representing about 18% of the total population, based on Statista data. This figure is anticipated to reach 17.7 million users by 2028.
With the increasing adoption of cryptocurrency, competitors are vying to capture market share from Bitkub in Thailand. Binance, a major global rival, launched its local subsidiary in January 2024 and is gearing up for a public launch later in the year. Moreover, Kasikornbank, one of Thailand’s largest banks, acquired a majority stake in the Satang crypto exchange in October 2023.
The latest developments regarding Bitkub’s planned IPO follow the sale of a 9.2% stake in its crypto exchange unit, Bitkub Online, to tech holding company Asphere Innovations in July 2023. This stake, valued at 600 million baht or $16.5 million at the time, is anticipated to bolster Bitkub Online’s valuation as trading volumes on the platform approach levels not seen since the 2021 crypto bull market. Bitkub Online contributes approximately 80% of Bitkub Capital’s earnings.
In 2022, SCB X, a financial firm that holds the largest bank in Thailand by market value, shelved plans to purchase a 51% stake in Bitkub Online worth 17.85 billion baht due to heightened regulatory scrutiny.
In related news, KuCoin’s recent $10 million airdrop and a single tweet raising $37 million for a memecoin were featured in Asia Express magazine.