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Bitcoin mania triggers fundraising rush by Chinese players

  • As bitcoin prices surge, Chinese companies large and small are raising money and starting new ventures
  • Even though cryptocurrency trading is banned in China, companies based there can still list and raise funds internationally

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Chinese companies are jumping on the cryptocurrency bandwagon. Photo: Reuters
Reuters
Bitcoin mania has fuelled a surge in fundraising by Chinese companies seeking to expand their cryptocurrency operations or move into the red-hot sector.
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From large listed companies tapping public markets to smaller players raising funds from venture capitalists, a jump in cryptocurrency prices and signs of growing acceptance of the technology by mainstream institutions have fed the market boom.

Chinese bitcoin mining machine manufacturer, Ebang International Holdings, which debuted on Nasdaq in June, conducted two fundraising rounds in February alone, raking in $170 million, even after a previous offering in November.

Newcomer Code Chain New Continent Ltd, a Chinese waste recycling company, raised $25 million in February through a share placement to fund a foray into bitcoin mining.

In private markets, “competition is white hot and filled with sharp elbows,” said Jehan Chu, managing partner at Hong Kong-based blockchain venture capital firm Kenetic Capital. “Every good-quality funding round is oversubscribed within a week of it being announced.”

The market has flourished despite complicated official attitudes towards cryptocurrencies in China.

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