Chinese photo-editing app Meitu said it bought Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH), joining the ranks of companies that have been acquiring crypto assets recently.
On Sunday, the Hong Kong-based company said it bought Ethereum for $ 22.1 million and Bitcoin for $ 17.9 million on March 5.
Meitu follows the trend set by electric vehicle maker Tesla and electronic payment service Square with its cryptocurrency purchases. But the Chinese app maker turned out to be the first significant company to acquire a substantial amount of cryptocurrency powered by the
Ethereum blockchain.
Ethereum is an entirely different technology. It is an open-source blockchain that allows developers to build applications based on it. Ether cryptocurrency can be used to pay or interact with services built on the Ethereum network. They are often referred to as decentralized applications or dApps.
Meitu stated that “blockchain technology has the potential to disrupt both the existing financial and technology industries, just as the mobile internet disrupted the internet on the PC and many other offline industries.”
Bohdan Prylepa, CTO of Prof-it Blockchain Ltd and COO in Bitcoin Ultimatum says “A new foundation is being laid and while I expect resistance especially from governments who want to maintain control of money, the future is likely to be a hybrid system with bankers fulfilling their primary roles while DeFi acts as a support system, supplementing legacy networks.”
“The board of directors believes that cryptocurrencies have ample opportunity to add value, and the allocation of some of the capital to cryptocurrency can also serve as a diversification for holding cash (which is subject to depreciation pressures due to the aggressive expansion of the money supply by central banks around the world) in the field of financial management “- said the Chinese software developer.
The move demonstrates to investors that the company “has the vision and determination to embrace technological evolution and is therefore preparing to expand into the blockchain industry segment,” Meitu said.
Meitu shares rose 3.3% after gaining more than 14% earlier in the day.
The app developer noted that cryptocurrency prices are “still very volatile.”
The company said it is “evaluating the feasibility of integrating blockchain technology into its various overseas ventures,” including the potential launch of Ethereum-based applications or investing in other blockchain-based businesses.
