Weekly Roundup: More Public Trade for Crypto, High Stakes for Circle

This past week saw crypto further make its way into publicly traded circles. As Barry Silbert’s Bitcoin Investment Trust (BIT) awaits launch any day now, a previously unknown offering from Sweden was approved. The offerings aim to give investors direct exposure to bitcoin prices on regulated trading venues. The Sweden-based offering, launched by a KnC-subsidiary XBT Provider, was approved for trade on the Stockholm Stock Exchange, to launch May 18.

Israel-based bitcoin mining hardware maker, Spondoolies-Tech, may also grant public exposure to investors following a proposed merger with Bitcoin Shop, already traded on the OTC markets.

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Overstock.com, already publicly traded and one of crypto’s strongest advocates, made a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) outlining its proposed sale of $500 million in company securities, possibly in the form of “digital securities”. These aim to use blockchain technology to replace traditional securities issuance and clearing processes.

The state of crypto in the UK got a boost as well. Coinbase opened up its services to the region, including its exchange, as did Bitcoin-friendly Germany-based Fidor Bank.

The TradeBlock-BitGo-Genesis Trading loop was completed. TradeBlock, an in-depth market data provider, and Genesis Trading, the broker-dealer division of Barry Silbert’s Digital Currency Group, had both previously partnered with BitGo for enterprise-grade multisignature bitcoin storage. The two teamed up to combine their market analytics and execution platforms.

Circle Internet Financial secured $50 million in funding, the third highest round this year in the industry. Investors are confident as the startup looks to roll out its USD wallets and expand to China. Another startup, Hedgy, got $1.2 million to fund its blockchain-based derivative platform geared toward bitcoin miners.

Bitcoin prices ended the week higher, near $235, amid some turbulent trade on BTC-e.