Binance Considers Valuation of $200 Billion to Obtain Government Fund Investment and Protection

Editor's note: This article is from Wushuo Blockchain (ID: wushuotech), author Colin Wu.

Multiple sources told Wu that the blockchain said Binance Global is considering a valuation of 200 billion to 300 billion U.S. dollars to absorb investment from sovereign funds controlled by governments in Singapore and other places in exchange for better protection. Binance did not respond to requests for comment.

Although investors such as Collin Capital and Chen Weixing invested in equity at extremely low prices in the early days, the actual equity and control of Binance are in the hands of founder Zhao Changpeng and co-founder He Yi. Wu said that the blockchain has learned that Zhao Changpeng and He Yi's shareholding ratio is about 92% to 8% (it is also said that He Yi's shareholding is even less). Earlier, The Times also disclosed that Changpeng Zhao’s shareholding ratio in Binance US exceeded 90%.

At present, due to its status as the world's largest exchange, Binance has become the focus of regulatory authorities in various countries. In recent months, it has been warned by financial regulatory authorities in more than 10 countries. Binance announced the transition from passive compliance to active compliance, mandatory KYC for all users, and reduced the maximum leverage from 125x to 20x.

The founder and main team of Binance are currently located in Singapore. Binance Singapore (rather than Binance Global) has previously received capital injection from Vertex Ventures, a subsidiary of Singapore's sovereign wealth fund Temasek. It is “natural” that Binance Global continues to receive investment from relevant government funds in Singapore.

On August 23, Binance Singapore announced the appointment of Richard Teng, former Chief Regulatory Officer of Singapore Exchange (SGX), as CEO. Prior to joining SGX, Teng spent 13 years as director of corporate finance at the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). According to his LinkedIn profile, he spearheaded the development and management of Singapore's securities and futures laws.

After rejecting the investment from Sequoia Capital, Changpeng Zhao made it clear that Binance does not need external funds, and he is only interested in cooperating with venture capital firms that can help the exchange cooperate with regulators and obtain operating licenses.

Binance US is also raising funds. According to TheBlock, Binance US CEO Brian Brooks, who announced his resignation in early August, referred to "strategic direction differences" on Twitter, including failing to raise $100 million in venture capital capital, mainly due to regulatory factors, making It's hard for American investors to feel confident. However, Binance US is still trying to raise $100 million, which may end as early as next month. At the same time, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao confirmed that Binance US plans to complete the listing, but the specific time has not been determined.

According to the calculation of BNB destruction, Binance’s profit in the second quarter was about 1.95 billion US dollars, and the profit in the first quarter may be close to 3 billion US dollars. Coinbase’s profit in the first quarter was about 800 million US dollars, and the profit in the second quarter was 1.6 billion US dollars. The current market value is 54.2 billion US dollars. Therefore, Binance's valuation of 200 billion to 300 billion US dollars may be in the normal range.

Analysts pointed out that in addition to Singapore, which is the most likely option for Binance to absorb investment, Dubai and other options are also possible options. In addition, regional exchanges around Binance may also invest in cooperation with local VCs who “can help cooperate with regulators.”