Cryptocurrency exchange MaiCoin Ltd (現代財富科技) is planning an initial public offering (IPO) on Taiwan Stock Exchange’s Taiwan Innovation Board (TIB) in the next one or two years, it said.
If realized, the plan would make MaiCoin the nation’s first crypto firm to go public.
The company on Wednesday signed on SinoPac Securities Co (永豐金證券) as its securities underwriter.
Photo: CNA
The reason for going public is to connect with retail investors and formalize the firm’s position on domestic capital markets, as it would be monitored by regulators and disclose financial information, MaiCoin CEO Alex Liu (劉世偉) told the Taipei Times by telephone yesterday.
MaiCoin is Taiwan’s first cryptocurrency exchange to submit an anti-money laundering compliance statement to the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC), Liu said.
It has been active in corporate governance, and its listing would help enhance investors’ awareness and confidence in the firm, he said.
The TIB is the best place for MaiCoin, as the board emphasizes innovation and is friendly to companies with novel business models, Liu said.
Although the TIB places strict requirements on investors — it is open only to institutional investors and retail investors with two years of experience in stock trading and net assets of more than NT$5 million (US$164,144) — MaiCoin is not concerned about the requirement, Liu said.
“This is the beginning. We believe that the TIB, as it develops, will lower the threshold for investors as its South Korean counterpart has done,” he said.
An IPO would mark a new beginning for MaiCoin to enable digital assets, such as cryptocurrency and non-fungible tokens, to enter mainstream society, the company said.
MaiCoin this year started to allow users to trade with US dollars. It has about 1 million accounts and the largest market share in crypto trading in Taiwan, the company said.
It would focus on crypto payment solutions to expand the application of cryptocurrencies, it said.
The FSC, which first implemented regulations on the cryptocurrency business in 2019, yesterday said that it would announce nine more rules governing information disclosure by exchanges, asset management by clients, and the management of “cold” and “hot” wallets.
As cryptocurrency firms do not need a license, it is not known how many operate in the nation, but 25 have reported their activities to the FSC, it said.
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