The CEO of the United States’ largest cryptocurrency exchange, Coinbase, has topped the list of global industry billionaires by China’s Hurun Research Institute. Issued on March 2, the latest Hurun report provides a brief overview of the world’s richest, stating that the number of global billionaires has surged nearly 50% to hit over 3,000 people over the past five years. The report includes 17 “blockchain billionaires,” or industry entrepreneurs who made their fortune “mainly from cryptocurrency” as of January 2021. According to the report, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong is the world’s biggest crypto billionaire, with his net worth surging ten-fold …

Iris Energy, an Australian firm that invests in Bitcoin (BTC) mining data centers powered by renewable energy sources, has doubled its second pre-initial public offering round. According to Bloomberg, a 13 million Australian dollar ($10 million) commitment from equity manager outfit Platinum Asset Management has seen Iris increase its second pre-IPO target to 40 million Australian dollars ($31 million) from the initial 20 million Australian dollars set earlier in mid-February. As reported by Financial Review back in December 2020, the Bitcoin miner secured $19.5 million in equity funding and $3.9 million in debt during its first pre-IPO funding round. Firms …

Some South Korean banks appear to be enjoying the benefits of increased crypto involvement with K bank reportedly eyeing an initial public offering in 2022. According to a report by The Korea Times on Wednesday, K bank CEO Lee Mun-whan revealed that the bank would be profitable by 2022, paving the way for the public listing. K bank — South Korea’s first internet-only bank — is the major Korean won on-ramp for Upbit; one of the “big four” crypto exchanges in the country. The expected positive revenue turnaround for K bank is coming after a tumultuous 2019 which saw Korea …

Every Friday, Law Decoded delivers analysis on the week’s critical stories in the realms of policy, regulation and law. Editor's note One day in the not-so-distant future, the curious experience of episodic television with its week-by-week gaps will be a weird thing that old people strain themselves not to talk about around the youths, until they eventually get, like, really old and stop caring and start turning all of the logistical inconveniences of their early memories into little moral parables. And by “they,” I mean me. And I’m looking forward to it. It’s possible that entertainment’s on-demand, all-the-time availability is …

United States-based cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase named Bitcoin creator Satoshi Nakamoto in its recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a direct listing on the stock market. According to the SEC filing, Coinbase sent copies of its S-1 registration statement — which, if approved, would bring the company closer to having its shares traded on U.S. stock exchanges — to legal team members at Coinbase Global and California law firm Fenwick & West. In addition, the exchange listed Satoshi Nakamoto and the Bitcoin (BTC) genesis block address as recipients of a copy of the SEC filing. The legendary Bitcoin …

As Coinbase plans to pursue a direct listing on the stock market, which would see its existing shares be traded on United States stock exchanges, the exchange has submitted an S-1 report to the Securities and Exchange Commissio, which details all the relevant data that would help investors conduct due diligence on the company. The document represents the first time that Coinbase publicly revealed sensitive details like revenue and ownership structure. The filing reveals that the exchange posted a direct revenue of $1.1 billion in 2020, a significant increase from $482 million in 2019. About 96% of this revenue is …

Major European Bitcoin (BTC) mining company Northern Data is reportedly considering going public in the United States. Germany-based Northern Data is planning to raise up to $500 million in an initial public offering, or IPO, Bloomberg reported on Monday. The company is working with Swiss investment bank Credit Suisse to proceed with the IPO, anonymous people familiar with the matter told the publication. According to the report, the company is considering conducting a sale of new shares later in 2021, intending to boost Northern Data’s shareholder base along with its global profile. Northern Data’s shareholders include investors like Galaxy Digital …

In what seems to be another anti-crypto move by regulators in India, initial public offering promoters may soon be forced to sell their crypto holdings before being allowed to participate in raising funds. According to a report by the Economic Times, the Securities Board of India may disqualify IPO promoters from raising funds if they hold cryptocurrencies. This move is reportedly an extension of SEBI’s instructions to securities lawyers, merchant banks and other stakeholders in the IPO ecosystem regarding cryptocurrencies. According to a securities lawyer quoted by the Economic Times, “There could be a direction from the government in this …

Caitlin Long, founder of Wyoming-based digital asset bank, Avanti Bank & Trust, has predicted Coinbase’s upcoming IPO will be a “watershed moment” for cryptocurrency regulation. Speaking alongside SEC commissioner Hester Peirce during BlockFi and Real Vision’s “Bitcoin in the Real World” event on Feb. 5, Long speculated the IPO of the United States’ leading crypto exchange is likely to “force” the SEC’s hand to establish a precedent for many outstanding regulatory issues key to the digital asset sector. Long emphasized the SEC will examine Coinbase’s prospectus with a “fine-tooth comb,” stating: “What the world is going to look at when …

Trading app Robinhood may have put its plans for an initial public offering on hold after public opinion turned against the company in the wake of its response to the short squeeze on GameStop (GME). According to Fox Business Network’s Charles Gasparino, sources inside Robinhood say the company’s only focus is surviving the fallout from the drama it currently finds itself engulfed in, and will pause its plans for an IPO launch for now. SCOOP: Ppl inside @RobinhoodApp tell @FoxBusiness plans for an IPO are on hold to focus on surviving the current drama over trading of stocks and settlement …

Coinbase, the U.S.-based cryptocurrency exchange, has made another strategic acquisition — this time in the critical field of blockchain infrastructure. The company announced Tuesday that it had acquired Bison Trails, a fully managed blockchain infrastructure provider, in a deal that provides a “foundational element” within its growing ecosystem of products. Coinbase said: “By joining forces, we aim to bring the advanced technology that the Bison Trails team has developed — and continues to develop — to more projects and more companies around the world.” Bison Trails will continue to operate as a standalone product, Coinbase said. Founded in 2018, Bison …

Renewed interest in the cryptocurrency market in recent months is seeing more United States-based cryptocurrency businesses consider going public. According to Bloomberg, Gemini co-founders Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss are mulling a public listing for the exchange, stating: “We are watching the market and we are also having internal discussions on whether it makes sense for us at this point in time. We are certainly open to it.” The Winklevoss twins will have multiple means to take Gemini public, including an initial public offering or by merging with a blank-check firm. Indeed, Bitcoin (BTC) futures exchange Bakkt recently utilized the latter …