Huobi Global – a former China-based exchange – expands its continental footprint by purchasing Bitex, a crypto platform that built the first Bitcoin exchange in Latin America. However, both parties did not release any financial details regarding the acquisition.
- Huobi Global announced that it had acquired Latin America-based exchange Bitex, but the Asian giant did not disclose details regarding the purchase.
- Bitex, founded in 2014, operates in Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay. The company will join Huobi’s
- platform, allowing its customers to trade on Huobi’s platform, according to the official release. Meanwhile, Bitex will keep its own branding and management team after the integration.
- The release highlighted the move as a critical step in entering the Latin American market since the region – accounting for between 8 – 10% of global crypto activity – has experienced tremendous growth in adopting digital assets in the past years. A study by blockchain analyst firm Chainalysis has shown that the use of cryptocurrencies rose by 1,370% from 2019 to 2021.
- Caleb Lim, Senior Investment Manager at Huobi Group, commented on the new acquisition as a new opportunity to offer financial services to unbanked individuals in the region. Huobi will add more local currencies to support users’ needs and work with local partners, he said.
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“Currently, only about half of Latin American’s population own bank accounts. Through this acquisition, Huobi Global hopes to meet this growing appetite for alternative financial services through blockchain technology.”
- Bitex CEO Francisco Buero said the new partnership will facilitate its expansion, as its users will be able to access a variety of digital assets on Huobi’s platform.
