Hong Kong-Listed Firm Set to Acquire Li Lin's Private Trading Arm

Crypto billionaire Li Lin is set to relocate his private trading operations to a Hong Kong-listed wealth management company, Bitfire, in which he holds the largest stake. The company has agreed to pay $1.6 million to acquire a trading system and investment team from Li's family office, Avenir Group. This strategic move effectively shifts part of Li's in-house crypto trading into a publicly listed entity, providing a clearer path to attracting institutional investors. The acquisition is part of a broader trend in the region, where Hong Kong is emerging as a regulated hub for digital assets, following mainland China's ban on crypto trading in 2021. Bitfire plans to launch a bitcoin-focused strategy, 'Alpha BTC', aiming to manage over $760 million in assets within a year. The strategy will involve derivatives trading, including options tied to bitcoin. Li, the founder of Huobi, has been focusing on investment management through Avenir since selling a controlling stake in Huobi to Justin Sun in 2022.