Temur Durrani

Multi-Platform Writer

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Vancouver-based WonderFi Technologies Inc. is acquiring Toronto-based First Ledger Corp., the parent company of cryptocurrency platform Bitbuy, which was the first approved crypto marketplace in Canada. 

According to the terms of agreement announced Tuesday, the deal has an aggregate transaction value of $206 million. It’s expected to be finalized in the first quarter of 2022, pending shareholder and regulatory approvals.

This acquisition makes WonderFi one of Canada’s largest publicly-traded consumer platform for people seeking access to crypto and decentralized finance. The company is backed by Canadian businessman and Shark Tank personality Kevin O’Leary. 

In a press release, O’Leary said the deal is “a combination of two management teams with excellent executional skills that now have the bandwidth, assets and licenses to provide an institutional grade compliant crypto platform to investors interested in exposure to centralized and decentralized financial services.” 

Founded in 2016, Bitbuy has provided services to over 375,000 Canadian clients, with more than $4.4 billion transacted through the platform. It generated over $31 million in revenue last year, the company said. 

“The integration of Bitbuy’s product suite will accelerate and expand the reach and scope that WonderFi can offer to the market,” said Ben Samaroo, WonderFi’s chief executive officer, in a release. 

WonderFi trades on the Toronto-based NEO stock exchange. Shares closed higher by just over seven per cent on Tuesday.