Matrixport expands into Europe via CFAM acquisition
Matrixport, a Singapore-headquartered digital assets financial services firm, announced the acquisition of Switzerland-based Crypto Finance Asset Management (CFAM), a regulated crypto fund management firm.
The acquisition, completed by way of an all-cash deal, signifies Matrixport’s expansion into the European market. The company announced the deal via a blog post published on the Matrixport website on Sept. 30.
CFAM rebrand
As part of the acquisition, CFAM will be rebranded to Matrixport Asset Management AG (MAM), providing institutional-grade crypto investment solutions, while continuing to act as a crypto market infrastructure provider.
CFAM CEO Stijn Vander Straeten stated that the company’s strategy focused on “trading, custody and staking as well as other post-trade services.” He added, “This move allows us to put all our focus on expanding our core services within the digital asset ecosystem in Switzerland, Germany and across the European markets.”
CFAM had formed part of the Crypto Finance Group, an entity part-owned by the Deutsche Börse Group.
Regulatory complaint acquisition
In its press release, Matrixport outlined that the acquisition has been completed with regulatory approval having been granted by the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA), the Swiss independent financial markets regulator, which supervises banks, insurance companies and financial institutions in Switzerland. CFAM became the first FINMA-approved manager of a crypto fund in Switzerland.
Commenting on the acquisition, Matrixport Co-Founder and CEO John Ge, stated:
“We are delighted with the establishment of MAM and warmly welcome the team to the Matrixport family. The acquisition enables clients access to the most innovative, compliant crypto asset management products, and aligns with our strategy to further expand services in Europe.”
Personnel changes
A number of personnel changes have been made as part of the acquisition. Stefan Schwitter has been appointed as CEO of MAM. Schwitter previously held the role of head of asset management at CFAM. The executive claimed that the complementary strengths of Matrixport and CFAM “will add value to the existing and future client base of Matrixport Group on a global level.”
Matrixport was established in 2019 and currently holds over $6 billion in assets under management (AUM). Its founders include Jihan Wu, the co-founder of Chinese crypto miner manufacturer Bitmain and Singapore-based crypto cloud mining company Bitdeer. The firm is licensed as a money services business (MSB) in the United States, while also being licensed to trade in Hong Kong as a trust or company service provider (TCSP) and as a money lender.
Matrixport offers its accredited investor and institutional clients over-the-counter (OTC) services, prime brokerage services, digital asset custody through qualified custodian Cactus Custody, asset management and access to real-world asset (RWA) tokenization. In September, the company offered tokenized RWA access in the form of XAUm, a gold-backed token, via its subsidiary company, Matrixdock.
It emerged earlier this year that Matrixport had been listed on the Global Unicorn Index, a list of companies compiled by the Huron Research Institute, believed to have a valuation in excess of $1 billion while not yet listed on a public exchange.
