Canadian WonderFi, Coinsquare, and Coinsmart Merge

<p>

Three cryptocurrency exchanges based in Canada, WonderFi,
CoinSmart, and Coinsquare, have reportedly completed a merger deal. The
combined entity plans to invest in SmartPay, a digital asset payments platform
launched by Coinsmart in 2020.</p><p>WonderFi is a public
company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange. The company operates several
brands, including Coinsquare and Coinsmart. Coinsquare is a crypto marketplace
that allows users to trade and manage their financial assets, while Coinsmart
provides digital asset services for institutional investors.</p><p>The new entity resulting
from the business combination will reportedly focus on consolidating <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/cryptocurrency/wonderfi-completes-bitbuy-acquisition-eyes-new-markets/" target="_blank" rel="follow">Bitbuy</a> and <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/cryptocurrency/coinsquare-acquires-coinsmart-plans-to-boost-presence-in-canada/" target="_blank" rel="follow">Coinsquare</a>, according to Binu Koshy, a spokesperson of the
companies quoted by the Financial Post.</p><p>Coinsmart Payment
Platform</p><p>Coinsmart launched
SmartPay, a platform that allows users to pay and receive <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/terms/p/payments/">payments</a> using
<a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/terms/c/cryptocurrencies/">cryptocurrencies</a>, in 2020. According to the information on its website,
SmartPay has transacted more than $500 million since it was created. The
platform is regulated by the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre
of Canada (FINTRAC).</p><p>According to the
statement issued by the parties involved in the business combination, the
entities affiliated with WonderFi have transacted more than $17 billion since
2017, have more than $600 million worth of assets under custody, and more than
1.5 million users in Canada.</p><p>Commenting on the
business combination, Kevin O'Leary, WonderFi's strategic partner, said:
"This is a major advantage as unregistered international exchanges can no
longer serve the Canadian market without adhering to the local regulations."</p><p>"Now more than
ever, investors are actively seeking trading platforms that operate in harmony
with the regulators," O'Leary added.</p><p>Defying Regulatory
Challenges</p><p>The business combination
arrives at a time smaller crypto trading platforms are filling the gap left by
the larger companies leaving Canada due to regulatory challenges. <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/cryptocurrency/canadas-csa-labels-stablecoins-as-securities-andor-derivatives/" target="_blank" rel="follow">Finance
Magnates</a> reported in
May that Binance was exiting Canada due to the <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/cryptocurrency/regulatory-hostility-pushes-binance-out-of-canada/" target="_blank" rel="follow">challenging
policies by the market regulator</a> in
the region.</p><p>Following
the collapse of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX, the Canadian Securities
Administrators <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/cryptocurrency/canadas-csa-labels-stablecoins-as-securities-andor-derivatives/" target="_blank" rel="follow">issued
a notice</a> that
classified stablecoins as securities. The move restricted the services of the
companies issuing digital assets in the region. Additionally, the regulators
issued a directive that all the cryptocurrency exchanges in the region should
be registered.</p>

This article was written by Jared Kirui at www.financemagnates.com.