Liquid Ties with Virtual Currency Partners, Plans US Expansion

by Arnab Shome
  • The firm recently gained the status of a Unicorn startup
Liquid Ties with Virtual Currency Partners, Plans US Expansion
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Japanese crypto Trading Platform Liquid.com and Virtual Currency Partners (VCP) joined hands to form a joint venture - Liquid Financial USA Inc. (Liquid USA) - to enter the US market.

The joint venture has already registered with FinCEN and established offices in two cities in the country - New York and Georgia. The company is now pushing to get approvals from various US regulators to start its services in all states in the country.

Commenting on the expansion, Mike Kayamori, Liquid’s co-founder and CEO, said: “The US is one of the world's largest markets for cryptocurrency and we have received widespread expressions of interest from our community, corporate and institutional customers to serve the US market.”

Launched in 2014, Liquid is a subsidiary of Japanese fintech giant Quoine. The platform allows its users to access a global network of cryptocurrency exchanges.

“This joint venture and the acquisition of IQX represents our commitment to expand in the US, and we look forward to working closely with Virtual Currency Partners to accelerate our platform growth. I am personally honored and excited to be working again with Barry Schiffman, the Co-founder and former Executive Managing Director at Globespan Capital Partners, a mentor of mine from my days at Globespan dating back to 2003,” Kayamori added.

A strategic partnership

The partnership with VCP will also boost the company’s aim of expansion in the new market. Barry Schiffman, the chairman of VCP, has over 30 years of experience in investing in high-growth companies. He served as the executive managing director of JAFCO Ventures, the US arm of leading Japan venture capital fund JAFCO, before co-founding Globespan Capital Partners.

“After nearly a year of studying the cryptocurrency space and researching a number of players, we were extremely impressed with Liquid and the strong foundation it built for itself as Japan's first FSA-approved cryptocurrency exchange and one of the top 5 cryptocurrency exchanges in the world,” Schiffman said.

Earlier this month, the Liquid revealed that it has closed its Series C funding round which took its valuation to a billion. With this, the Japanese company has become one of a handful of crypto-related startups to gain a “Unicorn ” status.

Japanese crypto Trading Platform Liquid.com and Virtual Currency Partners (VCP) joined hands to form a joint venture - Liquid Financial USA Inc. (Liquid USA) - to enter the US market.

The joint venture has already registered with FinCEN and established offices in two cities in the country - New York and Georgia. The company is now pushing to get approvals from various US regulators to start its services in all states in the country.

Commenting on the expansion, Mike Kayamori, Liquid’s co-founder and CEO, said: “The US is one of the world's largest markets for cryptocurrency and we have received widespread expressions of interest from our community, corporate and institutional customers to serve the US market.”

Launched in 2014, Liquid is a subsidiary of Japanese fintech giant Quoine. The platform allows its users to access a global network of cryptocurrency exchanges.

“This joint venture and the acquisition of IQX represents our commitment to expand in the US, and we look forward to working closely with Virtual Currency Partners to accelerate our platform growth. I am personally honored and excited to be working again with Barry Schiffman, the Co-founder and former Executive Managing Director at Globespan Capital Partners, a mentor of mine from my days at Globespan dating back to 2003,” Kayamori added.

A strategic partnership

The partnership with VCP will also boost the company’s aim of expansion in the new market. Barry Schiffman, the chairman of VCP, has over 30 years of experience in investing in high-growth companies. He served as the executive managing director of JAFCO Ventures, the US arm of leading Japan venture capital fund JAFCO, before co-founding Globespan Capital Partners.

“After nearly a year of studying the cryptocurrency space and researching a number of players, we were extremely impressed with Liquid and the strong foundation it built for itself as Japan's first FSA-approved cryptocurrency exchange and one of the top 5 cryptocurrency exchanges in the world,” Schiffman said.

Earlier this month, the Liquid revealed that it has closed its Series C funding round which took its valuation to a billion. With this, the Japanese company has become one of a handful of crypto-related startups to gain a “Unicorn ” status.

About the Author: Arnab Shome
Arnab Shome
  • 6251 Articles
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About the Author: Arnab Shome
Arnab is an electronics engineer-turned-financial editor. He entered the industry covering the cryptocurrency market for Finance Magnates and later expanded his reach to forex as well. He is passionate about the changing regulatory landscape on financial markets and keenly follows the disruptions in the industry with new-age technologies.
  • 6251 Articles
  • 79 Followers

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