Li Lin's Private Trading Operation to be Absorbed by Hong Kong-Listed Wealth Management Firm

The private trading empire of Chinese cryptocurrency billionaire Li Lin is poised to be integrated into a Hong Kong-listed company under his control, catering to the increasing demand for digital assets from investors. The Hong Kong-listed firm in question is Bitfire, a wealth management company in which Li holds the largest share. According to a statement released on Wednesday, Bitfire has agreed to pay $1.6 million to acquire a trading system and investment team from Li's family office, Avenir Group, as reported by Reuters. Although the deal is structured as an acquisition, it effectively transfers a portion of Li's in-house cryptocurrency operations to a publicly traded entity, providing a clearer path for attracting institutional investors. The move is reflective of a broader shift in the region, as mainland China has prohibited cryptocurrency trading since 2021, while Hong Kong is positioning itself as a regulated hub for digital assets, attracting firms seeking a compliant base. Recently, Hong Kong granted stablecoin licenses to HSBC and Standard Chartered. By acquiring Avenir's capabilities, Bitfire plans to launch a bitcoin-focused strategy called 'Alpha BTC', aiming to manage over 10,000 bitcoins, valued at approximately $760 million in assets within a year. The strategy will seek returns through derivatives trading, including options tied to bitcoin and products like the IBIT. Avenir has established a significant position in bitcoin ETFs, holding 18.3 million shares of IBIT, issued by BlackRock, valued at about $908 million as of the end of 2025, according to the company's regulatory filing. Li founded Huobi, now known as HTX, and transformed it into one of the world's largest cryptocurrency exchanges before selling a controlling stake to Justin Sun for approximately $1 billion in 2022. Since then, he has focused on managing investments through Avenir.