Crypto Payments Firm BCB Group Has Received Takeover Interest: Sources

As a seasoned fintech researcher with years of experience tracking the crypto and banking sectors, I find this latest development involving BCB Group particularly intriguing. The fact that a takeover approach was made while the company was exploring Series B funding is quite unusual, to say the least. It seems like the London-based firm’s strategic moves are generating significant interest in the market.

It’s been reported by three sources close to the situation that BCB Group, a company specializing in connecting cryptocurrency businesses with traditional banking, has received a potential acquisition offer from an interested investor

As a researcher, I came across information suggesting that during our pursuit for Series B funding, a potential acquirer expressed their interest in a buyout. However, since this matter is confidential, the sources chose to remain anonymous when sharing this information with me

The business is not formally up for sale, and there are no negotiations taking place, one of the people said.

BCB declined to comment.

In recent times, there’s been a surge of mergers and acquisitions in the U.K.’s cryptocurrency sector. Just last July, Elwood Technologies, a platform specializing in crypto trade execution and risk management that is backed by billionaire hedge fund manager Alan Howard, sold its over-the-counter trading arm to Zodia Markets, which is supported by Standard Chartered

In January 2022, BCB successfully completed a Series A funding round worth $60 million. This round was jointly led by Foundation Capital, with additional investments coming from BACKED VC, PayU (part of Prosus), Digital Currency Group, Nexo, Wintermute, Menai Financial Group, Circle, Tokentus Investment, Cowa, Profluent Ventures, and LAUNCHub Ventures

As a crypto investor, I’m proud to be part of a collective that includes esteemed entities like North Island Ventures, Blockchain.com Ventures, Rockaway Blockchain Fund, Pantera, and L1 Digital. Together, we all contributed to the Series A round of investment

In April, a payments company received approval from France’s ACPR and AMF, the country’s main financial regulatory bodies, to operate as both an Electronic Money Institution (EMI) and a Digital Assets Services Provider (DASP). They announced that France would be their primary regulatory hub within Europe

As an analyst, I find myself reporting that I, previously serving as CEO at BCB, have chosen to move on to fresh endeavors, leaving the company in November. My departure was followed by the appointment of Oliver Tonkin as my successor. It’s worth noting that this transition occurred merely five months after Noah Sharp, our Deputy CEO, decided to step down from the business, a decision likely influenced by the unsuccessful acquisition of Sutor Bank in Germany