Cryptocurrency exchange Huobi, a former 'big three' platform, plans to relaunch its operations in the US, nearly four months after a sudden decision to go offline and reshape itself according to US regulations.
"By working with a fully regulated local partner, we don't have to apply for licenses to run the businesses from every state. We will come back as Huobi Group and there will not be a separate legal entity like Huobi US anymore," Ciara Sun, Huobi Group's vice president of global business, told CoinDesk.
HBUS, the US-based affiliate of the Huobi Group exchange, ceased its operations back in December after a little more than a year in a business aimed at American customers. At the time, the FinCEN-registered entity blamed low Liquidity and demand that made HBUS, which was launched back in 2018, no longer a profitable venture.
Trading volume on the US platform has, over time, decreased to nearly $200,000 daily. This is quite low when compared to its global brand that has a daily volume of about $1.81 billion.
Now, the popular exchange plans to make a return in a more integrated way that would allow them to move forward with their business strategy in the United States. More specifically, the Singapore-based cryptocurrency exchange held a discussion with a crypto brokerage that could lead to Huobi buying a minority stake.
Huobi expands aggressively into new jurisdictions
The deal puts Huobi on a firmer regulatory footing with the Securities and Exchange Commission and positions it to offer a broader range of products, including asset management services and OTC brokerage. Both offerings will exclusively target US institutional investors.
Huobi is originally from China, but after outstaying its welcome there, it opened offices in Hong Kong, South Korea, and Singapore. Despite regulatory uncertainty, the firm has made inroads into the U.S. through a mutual rebranding with its exclusive US strategic partner HBUS. HBUS has licensed the Huobi brand and rebranded its retail Trading Platform from HBUS.com to Huobi.com.
In addition, Huobi has been expanding aggressively into trading services in many other jurisdictions around the world, including Argentina, Russia, or Korea, as well as setting up an office in London.
In addition to local branches, such as Huobi Argentina and Huobi (US), the exchange serves much of the rest of the world through its flagship exchange platform Huobi Global.
