Japanese financial services company Monex Group plans to buy FTX Japan, the Japanese subsidiary of Sam Bankman-Fried’s beleaguered crypto exchange FTX. The move comes after the bankruptcy court approved the sale of subsidiaries, including FTX Japan and FTX Europe last week.
Monex Group To Buy FTX Japan
Monex Group Inc. expressed interest in buying FTX’s Japanese subsidiary FTX Japan, reported Bloomberg on January 16. The financial services firm has shareholders including Michael Novogratz’s Galaxy Digital, Oasis Management, Nomura Asset Management, Invesco, and The Vanguard Group.
During an interview, Monex Group CEO Oki Matsumoto revealed that the company is interested in buying FTX Japan. He said it is always a “very good thing” if the number of crypto exchanges competing against his crypto exchange Coincheck declines. However, he didn’t disclose if Monex is bidding for FTX’s Japanese subsidiary.
FTX received court approval to sell its Japanese and European subsidiaries, as well as other businesses, to return money to its creditors. According to a court filing, 41 parties have expressed interest in FTX Japan, with 25 entering confidential agreements with debtors.
As Japan continues to ease crypto regulations, Japan’s crypto market could grow massively with an increase in adoption. Moreover, companies may start to buy digital coins as investments and use non-fungible tokens for marketing.
Monex has been expanding globally and into new areas of business. It also owns Coincheck, Japan’s one of the top crypto exchanges, which is preparing to list on the Nasdaq Exchange.
FTX Japan Plans To Return Customer Funds
Meanwhile, FTX Japan had around $139 million in cash and deposits as of November 21. The exchange plans to return customer funds in February with the help of affiliated exchange Liquid Japan.
Customers will be able to withdraw their crypto assets from Liquid Japan after opening a new account. However, withdrawal may face delays due to a security audit, incorporating controls, reconciliation, and reviews.
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