“Bitcoin prices give us a unique opportunity to start mining,” said one of Code Chain’s CEOs.
The bitcoin craze has taken on a new dimension in China in recent times, with a number of companies raising capital to expand their crypto currency activities or entering the field for the first time.
Whether it is large listed companies that raise capital through stock exchanges or smaller players funded by corporate holdings, the explosive market growth is driven by a jump in crypto currency prices and signs of greater acceptance by institutional investors.
Target bitcoin mining machines
According to Reuters, Chinese bitcoin mining company Ebang International Holdings, which debuted on the Nasdaq in June, has made two capital increases in February alone, raising $170 million. Ebang plans to use its new funds to mine crypto currencies on its own account, open cryptocurrency exchanges in Singapore and Canada, and launch a new bitcoin trading platform similar to Robinhood.
“Ebang’s growth history is very attractive to institutional investors; fundraising from industry players is on the rise due to the high rise of bitcoin,” said Univest Securities, chief financial officer of Ebang, which has raised capital money from several other Chinese companies in the field of crypto-assets.
Code Chain New Continent, a Chinese waste recycling company, secured $25 million in placement in February to finance its entry into bitcoin mining. “Bitcoin prices give us a unique opportunity to start mining,” said one of the CEOs of Code Chain, which has ordered 10,000 bitcoin mining machines.
Canaan, another Chinese bitcoin mining machine maker listed on the Nasdaq, is also expanding into mining, where powerful computers are used to verify bitcoin transactions.
The attitude of the Chinese state is ambiguous
The market is booming despite the Chinese state’s ambiguous attitude towards cryptocurrencies. Cryptocurrency exchanges are banned and mining is condemned, while on the other hand there is strong public support for the development of blockchain technology, which supports cryptocurrencies and is crucial for new innovations in areas such as transaction finance and fraud prevention.
This complicated relationship has led to the emergence of attractive crypto-asset schemes in China, investors say, although many companies are still listing their shares for trading and raising money from abroad.
