Catenaa, Sunday, May 03, 2025 – Bithumb, one of South Korea’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, announced it will spin off its non-exchange operations into a separate entity as it accelerates plans for an initial public offering slated for the second half of 2025.
The restructuring, confirmed in a Monday filing with Korea’s DART disclosure system, is scheduled for July 31. The new unit, tentatively named Bithumb A, will hold approximately 44% of the company’s assets, with the remaining 56% retained by the core exchange business. An official English name has not yet been announced.
The move is intended to insulate Bithumb’s core trading operations from risk exposure linked to its other business divisions, while also boosting corporate efficiency through specialization. “By establishing independent accountability for each business division, the spin-off fundamentally prevents risks originating from non-exchange businesses from spreading to the exchange business,” the firm said.
The exchange reported $110 million in net profit in 2024, a 560% increase year-over-year, driven by the late-2024 crypto bull market. Rival Upbit, the largest exchange in South Korea, posted $671 million in profits during the same period.
Bithumb has tapped Samsung Securities as underwriter for its IPO on the local stock exchange. The company is also weighing a potential dual listing on the Nasdaq but has not made a final decision.
The spin-off marks a strategic step toward strengthening investor confidence and ensuring regulatory clarity ahead of its planned public debut.
