Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao told Bloomberg that the Bitcoin exchange plans to earmark more than $1 billion for investments in and acquisitions of crypto-industry companies in 2022.
“We have watched many lenders in recent months, because there are problems in this segment. Many of them simply take user funds and lend them to someone else. There isn’t much intrinsic value in that. In that case, what should we acquire? We want to see real products that are used by people,” he explained.
According to Zhao, in 2022 Binance has already allocated $325 million for 67 projects, compared with $140 million for 73 companies last year. The figure does not include $200 million invested in Forbes and $500 million financing to Elon Musk for the acquisition of Twitter.
The Binance CEO also said that the company remained profitable in 2022, but did not provide specific figures.
“During a bear cycle we will see more market consolidation. A lot of risk and a lot of pain, but also a lot of opportunities,” Zhao said.
He added that the company has a $7 billion fund and a team of 30 people dedicated to mergers and acquisitions.
Back in June Zhao promised to help ‘good’ crypto projects weather the crisis. He said that weaker firms and products will be replaced by more successful ones, so there is no need to rescue them.
In July the CEO of Binance said that the Bitcoin exchange is in ‘rescue talks’ with more than 50 firms.
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