Cryptocurrency exchange Bakkt goes public

The prominent cryptocurrency exchange platform, Bakkt has gone public. Earlier in the week, it was reported to be in preliminary talks with VPC Impact Acquitision Holdings. In a statement released today, it was noted that they have entered into an agreement for a merger that will result in Bakkt becoming a publicly-traded company with an enterprise value of approximately $2.1 billion. According to the press statement, the combined company will be renamed Bakkt Holdings, Inc. and will be listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

Bakkt, the Digital Asset Marketplace Launched by Intercontinental Exchange in 2018, to Become a Publicly Traded Company via Merger with VPC Impact Acquisition Holdings https://t.co/7Ut9iaeX3w

— Bakkt (@Bakkt) January 11, 2021

Bakkt, owned by Intercontinental Exchange Inc., may go public through a merger with the blank-check firm, as per Bloomberg’s sources. The transaction is set to value the combined entity at more than $2 billion.

As per reports, the SPAC [Special Purpose Acquisition Companies] is affiliated with Victory Park Capital and its foundation was laid in 2020 and is led by John Martin, former co-CEO of Antares Capital. As per Martin, its value-creation strategy is to “identify, partner with and help grow a business in the fintech sector.”

Bakkt launched the fully-regulated Bitcoin derivatives market in 2019 and it was creating a lot of buzz even before its launch. The exchange’s futures trading volume was driven higher over the past week and hit $286 million. Ever since its launch, Bakkt has been proactively working to maintain high interest and it recently rolled out an app where customers can track all of their digital assets from loyal points to gift cards.

In March 2020, it raised $300 million in Capital from ICE and other investors and acquired Bridge2Solutions, a leading rewards and loyalty points provider, which enabled the development of the aforementioned app. This application also allowed its users to get liquidity from a variety of loyalty programs including Chase, Jetblue, and Chipotle.

According to the cryptocurrency exchange’s data on loyalty programs, the digital assets market could be over $1.2 trillion. This included loyalty programs, crypto markets, gift cards, and video game digital assets.