In 2020, Wealthsimple dipped its toes into crypto by offering Bitcoin and Ethereum trading. Now, the online investment platform is fully embracing crypto by including capabilities like hosted wallets and several other coin options to trade. Of course, Wealthsimple isn’t the first financial services company to embrace crypto, signaling that digital currencies are becoming more and more mainstream. WealthSimple CEO Mike Katchen urged Canadian policymakers to “plant a flag” in the crypto world. The tides are already turning in regards to regulation, with BitBuy recently becoming Canada’s first regulated crypto trading platform. With regulators and corporations working together, and self-regulation within the space already in the works, companies at the forefront of crypto and blockchain technology developments like WonderFi Technologies, Coinbase, MicroStrategy, DMG Blockchain Solutions Inc., and Galaxy Digital Holdings Ltd. could soon see accelerated growth.
WonderFi Technologies is a technology company backed by Kevin O’ Leary that provides us with an easy gateway to DeFi. On January 4th, WonderFi announced that it had entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the parent company of BitBuy (First Ledger Corp.).
“The integration of WonderFi and Bitbuy is a huge step forward in our mission of democratizing finance through easy and secure access to DeFi and crypto,” said Ben Samaroo, CEO of WonderFi. “A licensed marketplace serves as a crucial gateway to the digital asset economy, and facilitates a robust end-to-end, unified client experience. The integration of Bitbuy’s product suite will accelerate and expand the reach and scope that WonderFi can offer to the market, and will drive long-term growth and value for the Company.”
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As mentioned, BitBuy became the first crypto platform that was regulated as a marketplace in Canada, thereby establishing WonderFi as a leading consumer platform for people who are interested in accessing regulated cryptocurrency and decentralized finance (DeFi).
Kevin O’Leary, a globally-renowned investor and one of WonderFi biggest backers, said: “this is a combination of two management teams with excellent executional skills that now have the bandwidth, assets and licenses to provide an institutional grade compliant crypto platform to investors interested in exposure to centralized and decentralized financial services.”
In addition, WonderFi just announced that it has closed its previously announced upsized bought deal public offering led by Canaccord for a total of $45 million pursuant to the bought deal at a price of $2.40 per unit. The company intends to use the net proceeds to partially fund the purchase of the previously announced acquisition of First Ledger and to fund future growth initiatives including global expansion of the WonderFi and Bitbuy brands
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DeFi Companies Make Early Moves In 2022
Coinbase, one of the biggest US cryptocurrency exchanges, has added Tobias “Tobi” Lütke, the CEO of e-commerce company Shopify Inc., to its board of directors. This appointment comes at a time when Coinbase is aiming to expand its e-commerce capabilities and create a marketplace for digital art – non-fungible tokens (NFT). The Shopify platform lets merchants set up online stores and sell their products to consumers, and it accepts cryptocurrency payments via Coinbase.
MicroStrategy, the largest independent publicly-traded business intelligence company, recently announced its Q4 2021 financial results. Total revenues for Q4 2021 were $134.5 million, a 2.4% increase from the Q4 of 2020 and is the first time since 2014 MicroStrategy achieved positive revenue growth in 2021, according to its CEO.
DMG Blockchain Solutions Inc. was informed by the British Columbia Securities Commission on January 28th that it has accepted the company’s application for a management cease trade order to be granted in connection with the late filing of its audited annual financial statements for the year ended September 30, 2021, and the related management’s discussion and analysis, as well as the CEO and CFO certifications, to be delivered in connection with the 2021 Annual Financial Statements.
Galaxy Digital Holdings Ltd., a financial services and investment management innovator in the digital asset, cryptocurrency, and blockchain technology sectors, recently announced that it has publicly filed a registration statement on Form S-4 with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). This matter concerns the proposed reorganization of Galaxy Digital from the Cayman Islands to Delaware, and the proposed Nasdaq listing of the Class A common stock of Galaxy Digital under the ticker symbol “GLXY”.
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