[Reporter’s Notebook] Gopax Acquisition Reportedly Imminent, But When Will Investor Anxiety Be Eased?

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Jung-yoon] The enthusiasm for virtual assets remained high even during the Lunar New Year holiday. Rumors spread that Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, is nearing the final stages of acquisition talks with the domestic exchange Gopax. Investors who entrusted their virtual assets to Gopax's coin management service, Gopai, were particularly pleased. Although they were unable to retrieve their coins due to the bankruptcy of the global exchange FTX, hopeful responses such as "Finally, there is hope" and "Let's trust and wait" emerged. However, anxiety persists as speculation continues to run rampant.

The Gopai withdrawal suspension incident occurred in November last year. Since then, Gopax announced a goal to normalize operations within six weeks, but the issue remains unresolved. On the 14th, Gopax posted its seventh notice, but it contained only fundamental information. A Gopax representative explained, "Currently, after due diligence by the world's largest blockchain infrastructure company, we are proceeding with administrative procedures along with legal counsel. Once all negotiations are completed, Gopai funds will be paid sequentially according to the withdrawal application date, including the principal and interest for the delayed period."

Binance is expected to acquire Gopax by purchasing about 40% of shares from CEO Lee Jun-haeng of Gopax. If it is a simple equity investment, the process could proceed smoothly. In the case of exchanges, changes in shareholders are not subject to financial authorities' reporting requirements. However, if the purpose is management participation through share acquisition, the situation differs. Gopax and Jeonbuk Bank have a real-name account partnership contract, which is an essential condition for operating the KRW market. If Binance acquires Gopax and participates in management such as business restructuring, the 'identity' of the business entity at the time of the partnership contract would be broken. In the worst case, this could lead to contract termination.

Moreover, basic information such as Binance's headquarters location remains unclear. Even if Binance acquires Gopax, sharing the order book that connects bids and asks between exchanges to enable trading is expected to be difficult. Additionally, Binance's strength in derivatives products cannot be introduced domestically.

As negotiations drag on amid numerous obstacles, investors who entrusted their coins to Gopai are growing increasingly anxious. They worry about when they will be able to retrieve their coins and whether the value of the entrusted coins will fall further. Nevertheless, Gopax continues to explain that it is difficult to disclose information until the contract is finalized due to confidentiality clauses. It is a critical time when Gopax must take actions to reassure investors who trusted and entrusted their coins, rather than merely asking them to wait.