Japan's second-largest cryptocurrency exchange, Coincheck, has officially landed on the Nasdaq in the United States, becoming the second cryptocurrency exchange to successfully go public in the U.S. after Coinbase. Through the merger with Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC) Thunder Bridge Capital, Coincheck has opened a new chapter in its globalization development, also writing history for Japan's cryptocurrency industry.
The winding path to listing
Coincheck's listing plan began in 2022, when the exchange was valued at $1.25 billion through a SPAC merger agreement. However, due to the United States tightening its review regulations on SPAC listings, the listing process has been repeatedly delayed.
In May this year, Coincheck finally submitted the revised final documents to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and received approval in November, paving the way for the listing.
Coincheck's parent company Monex Group stated that the newly merged company would be named 'Coincheck Group N.V.' with the stock trading symbol 'CNCK', and the initial market value is estimated to be around $1.3 billion.
Coincheck mentioned in a statement that listing on Nasdaq would not only attract international investors but also allow the listed stock to be used as a 'weapon' for global mergers and attracting top international talent, further promoting the expansion of cryptocurrency business.
Bitcoin's surge drives industry boom
Coincheck chose this time to go public, coinciding with the booming cryptocurrency industry, especially as Bitcoin's recent price has soared, once again attracting the attention of investors and institutional funds.
Coincheck views the listing as an important step towards globalization, stating, 'Listing allows us to accelerate our international layout and further strengthen our position in the global cryptocurrency market.'
Looking back at the history of Coincheck, the development of this exchange has not been smooth sailing. In 2018, Coincheck suffered one of the largest cryptocurrency exchange hacks in the world, losing up to $530 million worth of NEM tokens. However, Coincheck demonstrated strong resilience by fully compensating 260,000 affected users with its own funds and underwent comprehensive reforms, becoming an important driver of reform in Japan's cryptocurrency industry. This crisis also laid the solid foundation for Coincheck today.
The SPAC merger is a key pathway for Coincheck's listing. This model allows unlisted companies to go public quickly through a merger with a Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC). The SPAC for this transaction - Thunder Bridge IV - raised $230 million in an IPO back in June 2021, paving the way for this merger.
After acquiring Coincheck for 3.6 billion yen (approximately $33.6 million) in 2018, Monex Group has continued to support the development of the exchange and has appointed J.P. Morgan Securities as the exclusive financial advisor for this transaction, while Thunder has received support from several institutions, including Galaxy Digital, Barclays Capital, and Cantor Fitzgerald.
"Japan's Coincheck boldly ventures into Nasdaq! Becoming the second listed cryptocurrency exchange in the U.S." This article was first published on (Block Tempo).
