Binance is all set to re-enter the South Korean market through its investment in the Gopax exchange, enabling customers to withdraw funds.
As the crypto industry gradually recovers, Binance continues on its mission to expand globally. Binance had to bid farewell to the South Korean market due to low usage and volume in Jan. 2021. The exchange also faced pressure from the nation’s regulatory authorities.
Since then, the exchange has been trying to re-enter the market but has faced challenges from local authorities. Binance finally marked its return by acquiring a significant stake in Gopax, one of the largest South Korean exchanges.
Binance Acquires Majority Equity Position in Gopax
Yibo Ling, the Chief Business Officer at Binance, told Bloomberg they acquired a “meaningful” equity stake in Binance. The Binance team has not yet revealed the terms of the agreement and the size of their Gopax investments.
However, a South Korean publication reported in Jan. that Binance acquired a 41.2% stake from Lee Jun-hang, the largest shareholder of Gopax.
This acquisition comes from the $1 billion Binance Industry Recovery initiative, which was announced post the collapse of FTX. The initiative aimed to help the crypto industry recover from the FTX contagion.
Acquisition Will Help Gopax Customers Withdraw Funds
Gopax paused customer withdrawals from certain products such as GoFi. This is because the South Korean exchange is impacted by the turmoils of Genesis Global and its parent Digital Currency Group (DCG). Genesis filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last month.
Genesis partnered with GoFi to offer yields on crypto lending. The parent company of Gopax, Streami Inc., is one of the 10 largest creditors of Genesis. Also, DCG is a key business partner and the second-largest shareholder of the South Korean exchange.
Yibo Ling said: “The fundamental thrust of this deal was to support customers and make sure that any customers who want to withdraw their assets have the ability to do so.”
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