China’s 500.com Expands Crypto Presence with the Acquisition of BTC.com

500.com, a leading Chinese sports lottery service provider, announced today that the company has entered into a shares exchange agreement with Blockchain Alliance Technologies. The Shenzhen-based firm will acquire BTC.com, one of the largest crypto mining pools in the world.

According to the official press release, 500.com will acquire the domain name BTC.com and its cryptocurrency wallet. The first transaction under the agreement is expected to occur on or before 15 April 2021.

500.com is a company listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). The company has a market cap of more than $860 million. The sports lottery provider has accelerated efforts to expand its crypto presence in recent days. As of writing, the shares of the company are up more than 70% in the pre-market trading.

“The Company and Blockchain Alliance also agreed that, if the BTC.com Pool Businesses record net operating profit in the fiscal year ending December 31, 2021, the Company shall issue additional Class A Ordinary Shares to Blockchain Alliance at par value. Assuming such net operating profit is no less than US$20 million, a maximum of 22,176,718 additional Class A Ordinary Shares shall be issuable, which additional Class A Ordinary Shares represent approximately 5% of the Company’s outstanding shares as of January 31, 2021. BTC.com Pool is a multi-currency integrated mining pool established in 2016 that has a hash rate of around 17 EH/s and supports various cryptocurrencies, including BTC, BCH, ETH, and LTC,” the official announcement states.

China’s Crypto Mining Industry

China is a leader in the global crypto mining space and it is home to some of the leading Bitcoin mining pools in the world. The country accounts for more than 50% of the global hash rate. The recent announcement by 500.com shows that Chinese firms are accelerating their efforts to enter the crypto mining industry. Despite some challenges, China’s Bitcoin mining industry is still generating billions of dollars in revenues.

“500.com is actively developing its blockchain-related business, including Bitcoin mining, mining pool business as well as mine construction and operation,” the company mentioned in the announcement.

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