The Australian capital-raising platform STAX has announced that its client the West Coast Aquaculture Group (WCA) is to become the country’s first business to launch an initial public offering (IPO) that will accept a blockchain-powered token, the stablecoin tether (USDT), as part of its fundraising drive.
WCA is set to be listed on the Sydney Stock Exchange (SSX), with the first shares in the company set to be traded on or around November 19.
In a press release, STAX wrote,
“USDT was chosen over bitcoin (BTC) and ethereum (ETH) due to the stability of pricing and the velocity at which it is traded.”
Michael Go, the CEO of the SSX, commented that the move to accept tether was “a first, and historic development in the Australian market which will dictate the future of capital raising, particularly for growth companies.”
Kenny Lee, the CEO of STAX added that the “acceptance of USDT in an IPO is a transformative move in Australia and a significant step forward for crypto adoption in general”.
Australia’s leading stock exchange, the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX), has attracted criticism from a number of investors after adopting an apparently unfriendly stance toward crypto-related businesses. Earlier this year, it moved to delist companies involved in the crypto and blockchain technology fields, such as Byte Power and First Growth Funds.
The latest development could indicate that the SSX is taking the opposite route, and is instead looking to strengthen its position as the preferred venue for Australian crypto-related businesses.
Based in Melbourne, WCA operates marine farming operations in Malaysia, and sells fish and other seafood to wholesale and retail customers located in Malaysia, Hong Kong, and Singapore.
The funds the company aims to raise through the IPO will be used to finance WCA’s expansion, according to its prospectus.
The business is offering a maximum of 14m shares priced at USD 0.35 which means the IPO could raise up to AUD 5 million. The company said it hopes to raise at least USD 3.5m in the listing. As of UTC 10 am, the firm has raised just under USD 0.5m.
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