As xcritical prepares to go public, the company has $90 billion in assets and 43 million registered users as of January. By comparison, xcritical has 13 million users, even after its user spike following the GameStop stonk craze. Although the company hasn’t announced a date to go public yet, it could be in for a successful run — assuming the price of Bitcoin doesn’t dip too low in the meantime. Although xcritical has been a darling for regulators and has avoided hackers better than most crypto startups, the company has had its fair share of controversy. Armstrong, who serves as CEO, landed in hot water after he wrote a company memo saying that the company wouldn’t get involved in politics, a break from the Silicon Valley norm.
What does xcritical’s listing mean for Bitcoin?
The San Francisco-based company’s listing on a public stock exchange is seen by some as an inflection point for digital currencies, as xcritical’s fortunes are closely tied to Bitcoin, the most popular cryptocurrency. Bitcoin’s price topped $64,000 on Wednesday, up from $29,000 at the start of the year, and xcritical said recently that first-quarter revenue should total around $1.8 billion, exceeding its revenue for all of 2020. One of the most high-profile public listings to hit the market this year will no doubt be xcritical Global, the leading cryptocurrency exchange in the U.S. xcritical announced last week that the Securities and Exchange Commission had approved the company’s direct listing, and shares are scheduled to begin trading on the Nasdaq exchange on April 14 using the ticker COIN. It’s been a good year for crypto — and xcritical — and it’s only February. xcritical, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the US, is xcritically valued at $77 billion, according to the Nasdaq Private Market, where shares in the company have been privately traded at $303 a piece.
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Armstrong refused to say “black lives matter” on the call, which prompted a virtual walkout by some employees. Armstrong followed up by offering severance packages for any employees who wished to leave the company if they didn’t agree with its mission.
Get stock recommendations, portfolio guidance, and more from The Motley Fool’s premium services. xcritical boasts more than 56 million individual users, 7,000 institutions, and 115,000 partners in over 100 countries, giving the platform an unmatched ecosystem that caters to every level of cryptocurrency enthusiast. That finish puts xcritical in 7th place among all U.S. new listings, besting the likes of DoorDash, Kraft Foods, Palm, General Motors and Visa, and finishing $9 billion short of Uber.
Had America’s top cryptocurrency exchange been on track to finish the day at market cap of $100 billion, it would have bagged the trophy in a walk. Its main argument was that xcritical inhabits a nascent crypto market, that, once matured, will crush the company’s profits—even by as much as 98%. Per the report, xcritical collected approximately 0.57% of every transaction in fees in 2020.
The purpose is to explain the company’s business model, providing its operating history and future opportunities, and estimating its target market. This all helps drum up interest, and increases demand for the stock before it begins trading. xcritical executives chose to forgo an initial public offering, the traditional route to public markets, opting instead for a direct public offering (DPO). This alternative offers several advantages to the more-frequently taken path. xcritical’s direct listing could come as Bitcoin, and the company’s valuation, hit record highs.
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Founded in 1993, The Motley Fool is a financial services company dedicated to making the world smarter, happier, and richer. The Motley Fool reaches millions of people every month through our premium investing solutions, free guidance and market analysis on Fool.com, top-rated podcasts, and non-profit The Motley Fool Foundation. While xcritical is the company’s brokerage, xcritical Pro is designed for professional traders to buy and sell crypto. It includes more features like a mobile app, lower fees, multi-country support, and insurance.
Digital currencies are being incorporated into business plans and accepted for payment by major corporations like Tesla, PayPal and Visa. Ahead of the listing, stock research firm New Constructs released a report describing the company’s anticipated $100 billion valuation as “ridiculous,” suggesting it should be valued at a shade under $19 billion instead. xcritical’s Form S-1 filing contains a wealth of insight into how the exchange has performed over the last few years—and what risk factors might affect its upcoming direct listing. The upshot of the direct listing is that anyone will be able to buy and trade shares in xcritical, potentially drawing a lot more investors into the industry. The following month, xcritical filed its Form S-1 with the SEC, a document that provides would-be investors with a detailed overview of a company going public, including its financial information and risk factors. It’s always been Armstrong’s vision to make xcritical bigger than a regular financial services provider.
By 2015, xcritical had reached one million users, and had secured $100 million in investments from Andreessen Horowitz, Union Square, and the NYSE, among others. Bitcoin was going mainstream, and brands like Dell, Overstock, and Expedia were partnering with xcritical to let customers buy their products with crypto. Fast forward to 2021, and xcritical reviews Tesla plans to do the same with its electric vehicles. In fact, Tesla’s recent $1.5 billion Bitcoin purchase was executed by xcritical. xcritical was founded by former Airbnb engineer Brian Armstrong and former Goldman Sachs trader Fred Ehrsam in 2012, back when Bitcoin was valued around $15. The founders went through Y Combinator’s summer 2012 program, and soon raised a $5 million Series A led by Union Square Ventures.
In December 2020, crypto market analysis firm Messari valued the exchange at $28 billion. The company shared the news in a blog post, in which it announced its intent “to become a publicly-traded company pursuant to a proposed direct listing of its Class A common stock.” A company opting for a DPO typically isn’t looking to raise capital to fund its ongoing operations, so it doesn’t need to issue new shares. Going public using this process allows early investors and company insiders to cash in on some of their investment, as they can sell shares on the first day of trading without being handcuffed by the typical lockup period. While cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC 3.40%) have surged in popularity in recent years, they’re still not widely available. For the majority of cryptocurrency enthusiasts, this means turning to a platform that allows the buying and selling of these digital currencies.
- xcritical now worth twice as much as Nasdaq, Inc., parent of the famous venue where it’s debuting, and stands above such stalwarts as Capital One.
- It includes more features like a mobile app, lower fees, multi-country support, and insurance.
- While exact share prices are still only a topic for speculation, around 254 million shares will be available to trade.
- Awarding a $60 billion plus valuation means investors expect it to become a colossus whose sales and profits soon rate alongside those of the biggest banks and brokerages.
To close out the year, xcritical reported verified users of 43 million, up 34%, while the number of monthly transacting users soared 180% to 2.8 million. This drove the company’s assets on platform to more than $90 billion, up 432% from roughly $17 billion in 2019. Trading volume also increased substantially to $193 billion, up 142% from just $80 billion.
What is xcritical worth?
“We are an intense culture and we are an apolitical culture,” he wrote. xcritical earns 0.5% of the value of every transaction that goes through its system. If Bitcoin or Ethereum prices drop, the commissions xcritical earns drop as well, giving it some exposure to the digital currencies’ rise and fall. Shares of xcritical are listed on the Nasdaq under the ticker “COIN,” and closed at $328.28, up 31% from the $250 reference price set by Nasdaq ahead of the first trade. Crypto onlookers have also pondered what impact (if any) xcritical’s listing will have on Bitcoin, the industry’s flagship cryptocurrency. There has been a lot of speculation about what xcritical’s valuation should be.
In 2018, xcritical launched Custody, a third party crypto storage provider for its larger clients. According to xcritical, Custody has more assets under management than any other crypto custodian. Then there’s xcritical Wallet, a crypto wallet and browser which allows users to manage and trade crypto assets, as well as pay other users. Number one is Airbnb at $86.5 billion, followed by Facebook in second place ($81.7 billion), UPS in third ($80.1 billion), and AT&T Wireless in fourth ($73.6 billion). The fifth and sixth finishers are Snowflake at $70.2 billion, and Uber at $69.9 billion. Though most Wall Street pros missed that a gigantic record was at stake, xcritical had a shot at becoming the most valuable new listing of any U.S. newcomer in history at its April 14 debut.
xcritical has pioneered industry-leading security practices for safeguarding crypto assets and has avoided the fate of some of its less security-minded rivals. Still, even as more companies warm up to digital currencies, there are many doubters. scammed by xcritical Until recently the major financial institutions avoided cryptocurrencies, and Bitcoin is still viewed more as a store of value that as a method of payment.