Investment Firm Arcane Crypto Plans Nasdaq Nordic Listing Through $32M Reverse Takeover

A successful reverse takeover of Vertical Ventures would allow the crypto investment firm to appeal to a broader investor base, the firm said.

AccessTimeIconJul 2, 2020 at 1:14 p.m. UTC
Updated May 9, 2023 at 3:09 a.m. UTC

Norwegian cryptocurrency investment firm Arcane Crypto is planning to list on Nasdaq Nordic's alternative stock exchange through a reverse takeover.

  • On paper, Arcane will be fully acquired by Swedish firm Vertical Ventures – which is listed on Nasdaq First North – for just under SEK 300 million (~$32 million).
  • However, Arcane will be the majority owners of Vertical Ventures, which will trade under the Arcane name.
  • To fund the $32 million takeover, Vertical Ventures will issue more than 6.6 billion new shares – each at half a U.S. cent.
  • In November, Arcane tapped Eric Wall, blockchain lead at Cinnober, which was acquired by Nasdaq in 2018, as its new CIO.
  • Arcane CEO Torbjorn Bull Jenssen said that if the listing is successful, the firm would appeal to a wider investor base.
  • The latest deal will have to be approved by shareholders; Nasdaq North will also have to sign off on the new company structure before it can be re-listed.
  • Vertical Ventures' shares have jumped on the news, and are up 53% since the market open.
  • Both sides are now performing due diligence, with the takeover expected to be completed in the second half of this year 2020.

EDIT (July 2, 13:40 UTC): A previous version of this article stated Arcane was a fund and that it had signed an LOI with Tongdow E-Commerce, this has now been corrected.

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