Key takeaways:
- Brazilian news outlet Estadão has reported that Coinbase could be acquiring 2TM, the holding company of Mercado Bitcoin
- Mercado Bitcoin is the largest Latin American cryptocurrency exchange, with more than 3 million users
- According to local reports, the acquisition deal could be finalized by April
According to a report by a local news outlet Estadão, Coinbase is planning to acquire Brazilan crypto-focused company 2TM, the owner and operator of Latin America’s largest cryptocurrency exchange Mercado Bitcoin.
Last November, 2TM raised more than $50 million in a second closing of its Series B funding round, which increased the company’s valuation to $2.1 billion. At the time, the holding company for Mercado Bitcoin noted that the exchange had 3.2 million users, the most out of any Latin America-based crypto brokerages.
With the acquisition of 2TM, Coinbase would further expand its presence in of the most quickly growing markets in the world. According to data curated by Triple-A, Brazil is home to the 12th largest share of crypto owners, with close to 5% of the 212 million populace owning some crypto assets.
According to local reports, 2TM and Coinbase have been in talks since the beginning of 2022. The final acquisition terms could be finalized by April.
Shares of Coinbase (COIN) have experienced considerable growth over the past two weeks. After falling to an all-time low of $153 on March 14, COIN’s price increased by roughly 32% in the 14 days since. At press time, COIN was changing hands at approximately $201, which translates to a $44.2 billion market cap for the sole publicly traded US crypto exchange.
