Media learn of online brokerage Monex’s plans to buy FTX Japan

The deal will allow the broker to expand its presence in Japan’s digital asset market

17.01.2023 - 14:00

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2 min

Monex Group Inc. is keen on the Japanese subsidiary of Sam Bankman-Fried’s crumbled FTX crypto empire that’s up for sale, according to the Tokyo-based online brokerage’s chief executive officer.

“Generally speaking, we naturally are interested,” Oki Matsumoto said in an interview, in response to questions about FTX Japan. While Matsumoto didn’t say if Monex is bidding for the business, the founder said it will be a “very good thing” if the number of crypto exchanges competing with his firm drops.

The Japanese unit is being auctioned as part of the US bankruptcy process for the sprawling group of companies, according to a court filing. About 41 parties have “expressed interest” in it, with 25 entering confidential agreements with debtors, the document states.

Matsumoto says Japan’s crypto market has potential partly because companies may start to buy digital coins as investments and use non-fungible tokens for marketing. Monex wants to establish itself as one of the “few choices” for customers when such a time comes, he said.

Tokyo-listed Monex has been expanding globally and into new areas of businesses. It bought Coincheck Inc., the crypto exchange that had fallen prey to hackers, in 2018 as it sought a new product to complement its offerings selling foreign exchange services and stocks.

There is no change in the firm’s plan to list Coincheck on the Nasdaq Exchange, said Matsumoto, a former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. partner.

FTX Japan had around 17.8 billion yen ($139 million) in cash and deposits as of Nov. 21, according to a release. It also held around 10 billion yen in net assets at the end of September, it said. The company plans to allow customers to withdraw their funds starting next month.

This material is taken from the website bloomberg.com.

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