The SCBX Group financial conglomerate has pulled out of the deal to acquire the Bitkub cryptocurrency exchange for $500 million. The owner of Thailand’s oldest bank, Siam Commercial Bank, cited regulatory reasons, according to Kaohoon.
“Bitkub is currently addressing various issues in line with the recommendations and orders of the Thai Securities and Exchange Commission, with unclear timelines for remedying the deficiencies,” the SCBX statement said.
The deal was for 51% of Bitkub’s shares for 17.85 billion Thai baht (about $536 million at the time) announced in November 2021. The parties had planned to close the deal in the first quarter of the current year, with SCB Securities (SCBS) acting as the buyer.
The company said that in recent months it had carried out a comprehensive review of Bitkub, recognised the platform’s potential, and identified possible directions for a joint business venture.
During the inspection, SCBS did not identify material issues that could not be resolved. However, taking into account the regulator’s complaints against the exchange, the parties agreed to terminate the deal.
Following the news, the Bitkub Coin (KUB) token fell from above $2 to $1.62 — down more than 20%. After a rebound, the coin trades around $1.76 (CoinGekco). The asset’s market cap is about $159 million, ranking 199th overall by market cap.
In July, the Huobi exchange unit ceased operations in Thailand. The platform has not been able to bring its activities into line with regulator requirements.
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