[Alpha Biz=(Chicago) Reporter Kim Jisun] Related stocks of Bithumb, a local virtual asset exchange, are on the verge of delisting.
Bithumb's largest shareholder, Vidente, Inbiogen, the largest shareholder of Vidente, and Bucket Studio, which holds stakes in Inbiogen and Bithumb, have all been suspended from trading on the Korea Exchange.
This is because Kang Jong-hyun, known as the real owner of Bithumb, was arrested on charges of embezzlement and other charges.
According to each company's disclosure on the 4th, Vidente is actually the largest shareholder of Bithumb, with a 10.22% stake in Bithumb Korea and a 34.22% stake in Bithumb Korea's holding company. Inbiogen owns a 18.58% stake in Vidente, and a company called Bucket Studio owns a 45.22% stake in Inbiogen. This is why the three companies are tied up as so-called Bithumb partners.
The KOSDAQ Market Headquarters of the Korea Exchange said the reason for the delisting occurred when an accounting firm in charge of external audits of Vidente expressed its rejection of the audit opinion on the 31st of last month. As a result, Vident was suspended from trading the previous day.
If a listed company is denied an audit opinion on its financial statements or is judged inappropriate, it falls under the requirement for delisting. It can be delisted if it is not reviewed during the improvement period of the next year. Inbiogen is expected to undergo a re-audit this month.
The biggest holding company's delisting crisis is expected to have a negative impact on Bithumb, Korea's second-largest virtual asset exchange.
AlphaBIZ 김지선(stockmk2020@alphabiz.co.kr)
