INX, which is partly owned by the former Anyoption CEO Shy Datika, is planning to raise up to $129.5 million via an initial public offering (IPO) in the United States.
The Gibraltar-based company's plan was revealed on Monday through a draft prospectus filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to seek permission for its token sale to both retail and institutional investors.
The crypto exchange is offering to sell 130 million INX tokens, which are developed on the ERC-20 standards. According to the SEC filing, the token holders will be entitled to 40 percent of the company’s cash flow. However, they will not be the equity holders of the firm.
Resembling preferred shareholders, the token holders will have the priority to receive payment in the event of liquidation of the company.
Though categorized as a security token, INX tokens can be used on the platform for utility purposes including payment of transactional fees.
Becoming an all-in-one crypto exchange
“Our vision is to establish two trading platforms and a security token that provide regulatory clarity to the Blockchain asset industry. We plan to achieve this [in part] by differentiating between security and non-security blockchain asset classes and providing trading opportunities for each class,” the exchange noted in the prospectus.
Led by Alan Silbert, the exchange is also seeking to receive a money transmitting license in the United States for its registration as an alternative trading system (ATS).
In addition, INX also has major future plans and wants to offer an array of crypto-related services to compete with big players in the industry.
“In the future, we intend to establish a platform for the trading of derivatives such as futures, options, and swaps,” the company stated.
INX subsidiaries
“When fully operational, we expect to offer professional traders and institutional investors trading platforms with established practices common in other regulated financial services markets, such as customary trading, clearing, and settlement procedures, regulatory compliance, capital and Liquidity reserves, and operational transparency.”
INX is among the few crypto companies choosing to raise funds via an IPO. Although tokens like Stacks and Props also received the SEC approval, they took Reg A+ route instead of a full-fledged IPO.
Big names in finance
The crypto exchange is also backed and advised by prominent financial industry leaders.
Datika, the co-founder of Anyoption, is one of the co-founders of the exchange and owns 29 percent of it. He led his previous venture Anyoption for ten years and also invested in an array of companies including Axilion, Cambiu, and Atidot.
The exchange is also backed by Riccardo Spagni, the project lead of Monero, and Litecoin founder Charlee Lee.
The advisory board of the crypto exchange also include bitcoin security stalwart Jameson Lopp; Samson Mow, chief strategy officer at Blockstream; and Mark Yusko, CEO of Morgan Creek Capital Management.
The board of the exchange added figures like former Nasdaq vice-chairman David Weild and Thomas K. Lewis, former CEO of TD Ameritrade.
