According to the local outlet Edaily, South Korea's second-largest cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb is preparing for an initial public offering (IPO) listing. In the first instance, the focus lies on the KOSDAQ listing, but there is the possibility of changing the destination to the stock (KOPSI) market.
In conjunction with the IPO, former chairman Jung-hoon Lee, known as the largest shareholder, established Bithumb Holdings. He has recently returned to the board of directors to bolster responsible management.
On 12 November, the operator of Bithumb chose Samsung Securities as an underwriter and began work on its IPO, according to Investment Banking (IB) and the Bithumb.
In order to disrupt the market structure dominated by Upbit, which has a market share of around 85%, increasing trust in the company is seen as paramount. Bithumb has been involved in many scandals and is often investigated by regulatory authorities in South Korea.
Throughout this IPO, the work of improving the company’s structure has already begun. Bithumb appears to be hoping to increase market trust in its exchange business by improving government and management transparency.