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 set to be integrated into a Hong Kong-listed company under his control, in a strategic move aimed at meeting the increasing demand from investors for digital assets. The Hong Kong-listed firm in question is Bitfire, a wealth management company in which Li holds the largest stake. As reported by Reuters, Bitfire announced on Wednesday that it will be acquiring a trading system and investment team from Li's family office, Avenir Group, for a sum of $1.6 million. Although structured as a purchase, the deal effectively transfers a portion of Li's in-house cryptocurrency operation to a publicly traded entity, providing a clearer path for attracting institutional investors. This development reflects 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, thereby attracting interest from firms seeking a compliant base. Recently, Hong Kong awarded stablecoin licenses to major banks such as HSBC and Standard Chartered. Following the acquisition of Avenir's capabilities, Bitfire plans to launch a bitcoin-focused strategy known as 'Alpha BTC', with the aim of managing over 10,000 bitcoins, valued at approximately $760 million in assets within a year. The strategy will seek to generate 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 around $908 million as of the end of 2025, according to the company's regulatory filing. Li, who 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, has since focused on managing investments through Avenir.