Robinhood announced Tuesday it was buying Canadian crypto leader Wonderfi for around $250 million (approximately $178.56 million).
Wonderfi operates two regulated cryptographic platforms, BitBuy and Coinsquare, detaining assets of more than $2.1 billion. The transaction is offered to Wonderfi shareholders at $0.36 per share at around $0.36, accounting for a 41% premium over our recent closing price. (Wonderfi was released in Canada in 2021 through a reverse acquisition.)
The partnership is bolstering its global expansion strategy following the $200 million purchase of Robinhood’s European Exchange Bit Stamp last year.
The Wonderfi team, including CEO Dean Skurka, will join Robinhood Crypto, with about 140 employees already added in Toronto.
The deal is expected to close later this year.
TechCrunch spoke with Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev in December about his enthusiasm for a new US administration that is far more friendly to the crypto industry, and Robinhood himself focuses on cryptography. “I think Crypto is next in line with a long line of technology innovations that have positively changed the infrastructure underlying the financial system,” Tenev said.