As per a review by Stone Bridge Ventures senior account manager Maria Zadorin, WonderFi has completed its acquisition of CoinSmart and Coinsquare. The crypto trading companies had announced the plan to form a merger back in April. Now, it operates as a joint entity, WonderFi Technologies Inc., and is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange with the ticker symbol WNDR. It’s also been listed on exchanges in Germany and the US.
But Coinsquare and CoinSmart aren’t the only companies that WonderFi has acquired. Now, the company operates the cryptocurrency platforms BitBuy and Coinberry as well. Collectively, these platforms have a user base of over 1.6 million registered Canada-based users. They also have over $600 million worth of assets in custody.
Dean Skurka Appointed as CEO
WonderFi Technologies appointed Dean Skurka as the permanent CEO, considering he led the company since 2022. In a statement, he said that this merger provides a major opportunity to add immense value to Canada’s digital asset sector and benefit shareholders. Moreover, he said that he was committed to ensuring the company’s long-term success. He also hinted at expanding WonderFi Technologies’ offerings after the merger.
Gordon Brocklehurst, a former executive at CoinSmart, has also taken up a leadership position at the new company. Specifically, he is now the chief financial officer of WonderFi Technologies. One of the firm’s biggest shareholders is Mogo Inc., which has a 34 percent stake in Coinsquare. Greg Feller, the President, and Chief Financial Officer at Mogo, congratulated CoinSmart, Coinsquare, and WonderFi on completing the transaction.
Plan for Merger Comes Amid Increasing Regulation
According to Stone Bridge Ventures senior account manager Maria Zadorin, the plan to form a merger could be due to increasing costs of customer acquisition and the growing need for regulatory compliance. With these many obstacles, crypto firms find it best to join forces and tackle the market together.
After all, the companies did form a merger at a very challenging point in time for the global crypto industry. Last year, countless retail investors were left in a difficult situation after the market entered a ‘crypto winter,’ marked by a fall in asset prices and the collapse of various unregulated exchanges.
As a result, Canada’s securities regulators are increasing efforts to crack down on suspicious actions by crypto firms to hold onto customers. To deal with this situation, WonderFi has put up a collective front. So far, the company has been at the forefront of consolidating the crypto sector in Canada.
WonderFi Acquired Third of Registered Exchanges
After the latest deal, WonderFi has now acquired a third of Canada’s registered exchanges. In the next couple of months, the firm will wind down the acquired platforms. That means WonderFi will select which parts of them it will keep and let go of.
As per the merger agreement, WonderFi has issued around 119 million common shares to CoinSmart’s investors and 270 million common shares to Coinsquare shareholders. Therefore, 43 percent of the combined firm will be owned by Coinsquare, while Coinsmart’s shareholders will have 19 percent.
Now, Maria Zadorin of Stone Bridge Ventures predicts that WonderFi will expand in other areas so as to increase profitability. It will go beyond crypto and related services and move into areas like casino operations and sports betting.
