Crypto Exchange Bithumb Restructures Ahead of Potential IPO

Hey FinTech Fanatic!
Bithumb, South Korea’s second-largest exchange, is quietly setting the groundwork that could redefine its trajectory. On July 31, it will carve out its non-exchange operations into a separate entity, temporarily named “Bithumb A.”
The structure may seem complex, but the purpose is straightforward: to shield its core trading business from risks tied to other ventures and streamline operations ahead of a potential IPO.
The numbers tell their own story. After a relatively quiet stretch, Bithumb posted $110 million in net profit for 2024—a 5x increase YoY. While still behind Upbit’s figures, the rebound marks a notable shift and sets the stage for a possible listing on the Korean Exchange—or, as hinted last year, the Nasdaq.
Samsung Securities is set to lead the underwriting. Still, uncertainties remain—beyond valuation and listing venue, regulatory scrutiny looms large. The exchange has recently come under fire for KYC shortcomings and service disruptions during periods of political unrest.
Yet, the strategy seems deliberate. With compliance under the spotlight and investor expectations rising, Bithumb’s restructuring looks less like an internal reshuffle and more like a calculated step toward global relevance—one foot in Seoul, the other eyeing Wall Street.
Read more global FinTech industry updates below 👇 and I'll be back with more tomorrow!
Cheers,
INSIGHTS
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PAYMENTS NEWS
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DIGITAL BANKING NEWS
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BLOCKCHAIN/CRYPTO NEWS
🇺🇸 Oregon AG Rayfield files lawsuit against Coinbase for promoting high-risk cryptocurrencies. The complaint states that Coinbase has generated substantial revenues from transaction fees while Oregonians have faced severe losses from investments deemed risky and difficult to navigate.
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🇺🇸 Deutsche Bank and Standard Chartered eye U.S. crypto expansion. The timing of this move coincides with the significant policy shift under President Donald Trump’s renewed administration. Keep reading
🇬🇧 Paydify launches to enable businesses worldwide to accept crypto payments. Built to simplify fragmented blockchain infrastructure, Paydify turns complex crypto payments into a smooth checkout experience, with real-time stablecoin settlement and zero transaction fees.
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PARTNERSHIPS
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DONEDEAL FUNDING NEWS
💰 Over the last week, there were 10 FinTech deals in Europe, raising a total of €93 million in equity, 4 deals in the UK, 2 deals in France, and one deal in each of Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and Ireland.

M&A
🌍 Pointsharp acquires Vemendo to advance its growth strategy in Europe. Through this move, Pointsharp aims to improve its capabilities in the European IAM software market, as the synergy complements and strengthens the company’s offerings, further solidifying its position in the Nordics and beyond in Europe.
🇪🇺 Capgemini acquires Delta Capita. Through this acquisition, Capgemini is addressing the critical industry need for integrated risk management and regulatory compliance solutions. This transaction, finalised on April 16, marks Capgemini’s second acquisition in the FCC sector in the past 18 months.
🇺🇸 Clearwater Analytics finalizes $1.5 billion acquisition of Enfusion to deliver a unified cloud-native investment platform. This strategic combination positions Clearwater as the industry’s first single-instance, multi-tenant, cloud-native platform to unify front, middle, and back-office investment operations.
MOVERS AND SHAKERS
🇬🇧 Ecommpay strengthens leadership team for European growth with appointment of Roy Blokker. Roy will be particularly focused on engaging with large, complex, and globally focused merchants to build strategic partnerships. He will also lead the development of tailored solutions that deliver optimal payment performance.
🇬🇧 Finalto alum Neil Wilson joins Saxo Bank as UK Investor Strategist. Wilson had served as Chief Market Analyst at Retail FX and CFDs broker Markets.com since 2018, and was also B2B Chief Market Analyst at Markets. com’s parent company, Finalto, since 2022, before leaving the group at the end of last year.
🇺🇸 Coinbase vet Daniel Harrison joins Phantom as comms head. Harrison expressed strong confidence in the company's mission and product, stating that the more he learned, the more convinced he became that Phantom offers the best solution in one of the most critical categories in the crypto industry.
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