Australian Miner Bitcoin Group’s Shares To Begin Trading On February 2nd

Bitcoin Group, an Australia-based bitcoin miner, will finally make its share market debut next month, after months of delays. It is the world’s first cryptocurrency miner to offer shares through an initial public offering, which started on December 24. Bitcoin Group shares are due to commence trading on February 2.

According to an article published on the Australian Financial Review, the company is offering investors 100 million shares at 20 cents each to raise $20 million in the IPO, which is scheduled to close on January 25. A major amount of funds raised from the IPO – around $18 million – will be spent on more computers to boost the group's mining power.

Bitcoin Group lodged its first prospectus last July and has revised the document 3 times on orders from the Australian Securities and Investment Commission to clarify some details, the AFR noted.

Chief executive Sam Lee said the steps were expected for a company setting a precedent in new industries, and a goal of the ASX float was to give the entire bitcoin industry some accountability and transparency.

Lee said that an IPO was a far better option than entering the ASX via a reverse takeover, Zdnet reported. Although he did not disclose the progress made so far, he said the Bitcoin Group has the necessary spread and amount in order to satisfy listing requirements.

"An IPO gives you more control, and escrow provisions prevent the executive team and early stage investors from selling their shares which means that there is a limited amount of shares that can be sold on first day of trade”, he said. "I'm not concerned with the final amount raised as having proven our business model to be profitable ensures we have the runway necessary to grow the company at a sustainable pace”.