Binance to acquire South Korea's Gopax

It is believed that the deal was originally set to be announced in 2022 but was delayed due to consultations over equity value calculations.

Binance purchased a stake in Gopax’s largest shareholder, Lee Jun-hang, who owns 41.2% of the company. However, it is reported that Binance plans to maintain this representative system for the time begin for stable management.

Gopax is one of five major South Korean exchanges and reportedly saw success and expansion in domestic business through 2022 until hitting a liquidity crisis as a result of the FTX bankruptcy. Binance has sought entry into the Korean market but has faced regulatory barriers and restrictions on virtual asset service providers in order to prevent money laundering and protect investors. The acquisition of Gopax allows Binance to indirectly enter the market.

The acquisition is expected to change the composition of the Korean cryptocurrency market, as Binance and Gopax will bring more options for investors and opportunities for domestic projects to expand internationally.

However, the entry of Binance and Gopax into the market could also lead to increased competition and market fluctuations, as experts suggest.

Binance keeps expanding

In late December 2022 Binance.US revealed plans to acquire bankrupt crypto lender Voyager Digital, which, at the time, was valued at about USD 1 billion. However, since Voyager’s valuation is made up largely of its liabilities to its clients, Binance.US will not pay this sum in order to take over the company. Instead, Binance.US will make a deposit of USD 10 million and will reimburse Voyager for certain expenses up to USD 15 million. 

Representatives from Binance.US revealed that Voyager users will be able to access their crypto directly from Binance.US’s platform once the deal goes through. They also revealed their plans to return users their cryptocurrency on the fastest timeline possible.

Previously, the company finalised its acquisition of Indonesian crypto trading company Tokocrypt, for which they have been a major shareholder from the very beginning. As representatives say, the decision was made after careful consideration. The parties decided that the best step for Tokocrypto going forward is to utilize Binance's capabilities to build a further physical trading platform for crypto assets. This move adds more cash and increases Binance’s shareholding power.

Binance’s expansion also meant that the company launched its crypto payment service in US in December. The company introduced its Pay service in US, allowing users to send, request and receive crypto with instant settlement and no fees. The feature has previously been available outside the country.