World’s 2nd largest cryptocurrency exchange to acquire Ledger X

FTX.US, a subsidiary of FTX, the world’s second largest cryptocurrency exchange, announced on August 31 (local time) the acquisition of Ledger Holdings Inc, the parent company of LedgerX, which provides cryptocurrency derivatives trading.

Founded in 2019, FTX is the world’s second largest cryptocurrency exchange after Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange. In July 2021, it successfully raised $900 million in financing from more than 60 investment groups, including SoftBank, and reached a corporate value of $19 billion.

In the midst of this, FTX.US, the US branch of FTX, announced the acquisition of Ledger Holdings, the parent company of Ledger X, which operates a cryptocurrency derivatives trading platform. Specific terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

New York-based Ledger X offers collateralized spot-settled bitcoin swaps and options trading, 24/7 for individual and institutional investors. In June 2019, it was approved as a designated contract market by the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and started offering Bitcoin futures in September 2020.

Brett Harrison, president of FTX.US, said the acquisition is an important milestone for its fast-growing U.S. business and an important part of its strategy to provide U.S. users with regulated crypto-asset derivatives to public institutions. With the acquisition of Ledger X, which has already received CFTC approval and provides a variety of derivatives, the number of products that FTX.US can provide increases, so this acquisition has a great strategic advantage.

Jack Dexter, CEO of LedgerX, said that US crypto asset derivatives required a lot of seed and resources to be done by publicly regulated businesses within the existing framework. He expressed the view that it is the responsibility of the industry as a whole to cooperate.

The combined entity will build partnerships with regulatory authorities, including the CFTC, to innovate while meeting financial industry standards. In addition, the acquisition does not affect the Leisure X business, and existing customers can trade Leisure X products as they are now. Related information can be found here.