FTX Enters Japan Crypto Market With Liquid Acquisition

Japanese crypto exchange, Liquid, now has a new owner in FTX Trading Ltd. The Bahamas-based exchange has acquired Liquid group and all its operating subsidiaries. 

According to the press statement from Liquid, the acquisition would be completed by March 2022 when all necessary conditions have been satisfied.

FTX Buys Liquid

The acquisition of all Liquid operations also means that FTX will own the Quoine Corporation and Quoine Pte. This deal represents a major one for FTX as it looks to expand its services and offerings. Already, Quoine is registered by financial regulators in Japan, giving FTX an easy entry into the country. 

In addition, the exchange plans to migrate all its Japanese users to Quoine while also integrating its products and services on the platform.

There is no official statement on how much the acquisition might have cost FTX.

Quoine is a legacy exchange, having been in operation since 2014. Japan FSA registered it in 2017 and, in 2021, granted it the Type 1 Financial Instruments Business registration. This means it can offer derivatives trading apart from its regular crypto trading services. 

On its part, Liquid has established itself as a leading fintech company. It has holdings in Vietnam, Japan, and Singapore. As of 2019, its annual trading volume was over 60 billion.

FTX is One of the Fastest Rising Crypto Firms

FTX was established in 2019 and within a short period, it has been able to establish itself as a household name in the space. According to available data, the crypto firm is the third-largest crypto exchange by trading volume.

FTX recently raised $400 million in a funding round led by SoftBank, which raised its valuation to $32 billion. This makes it one of the fastest-growing and most valuable companies in the crypto industry.

While FTX tries to expand its reach across the globe to cater to retail and institutional investors, the firm is also making inroads into the US.

Last year, it paid over $135 million and $17.5 million to get the naming rights for Miami Stadium and California Memorial Stadium. 

This year, it’s already secured a partnership with Coachella. All these point to a strategic move to strengthen its customer base in the US.

As of press time, FTX native token, FTT, is exchanging hands for $44.86 after rising by over 1% in 24 hours.