Crypto startup Chia Network files confidentially for IPO

CRYPTO startup Chia Network indicated on Friday (Apr 14) that it has moved a step closer to a US initial public offering (IPO). The company said that it has confidentially submitted a draft registration statement to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

The company, which was valued at about US$500 million in 2021, said in the announcement that the size and price range for the proposed IPO have not been determined yet. Chia didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Gene Hoffman, who was appointed as chief executive officer of Chia this year, told Bloomberg in January that the startup didn’t plan on going public in 2023 because it didn’t think the market would be “open” for them.

Chia joins other digital asset companies angling to go public. Jesse Powell, the co-founder of cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, said that his company was positioning itself for a potential public listing when he announced that he was stepping down as CEO. Bitcoin miner Bitdeer Technologies Holding started trading on the Nasdaq on Friday, after completing a merger with a special-purpose acquisition company.

But crypto-related companies that have gone public have faced numerous challenges. Coinbase Global, which received a notice from the SEC in March that declared the regulator’s intentions to bring an enforcement action against the crypto exchange, has seen its stock price fall by more than 70 per cent since its direct listing. Core Scientific, Marathon Digital Holdings and Riot Platforms – the top three publicly traded Bitcoin miners – had combined losses of more than US$1 billion during the second quarter of last year. Some miners have even turned to stock sales in order to raise money.

Chia, based in South San Francisco, California, has positioned itself as the developer of a more environmentally friendly, less energy-intensive blockchain that relies on hard drives, including recycled ones, for data storage. BLOOMBERG