Chinese insurance industry giant OneConnect applies for IPO in the United States, continuing to invest in the blockchain field.

OneConnect, supported by SoftBank, is currently the financial technology arm of China's largest insurance company. It was recently reported that they have applied for an initial public offering (IPO) with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

As reported by Bloomberg on 11/13, OneConnect focuses on blockchain and artificial intelligence. The company has filed documents with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to raise $100 million in its IPO, a figure that could be higher.

According to a September report by Reuters, OneConnect changed its listing location from Hong Kong to New York a few months ago in hopes of achieving a higher valuation. The company was aiming to raise $1 billion through the IPO to reach an $8 billion valuation, as per the report.

The company reported revenue of $217.5 million and a net loss of $147 million for the first nine months of 2019. Its previous 2018 IPO raised $750 million, valuing the company at $7.5 billion, with underwriters including Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, and HSBC.

According to Ping An's annual report, the company has applied for the second-largest number of blockchain patents in China, totaling 274 patents as of the first half of 2019. The report states that OneConnect will allocate 1% of its annual revenue to blockchain development.

In line with an earlier report, as of September this year, OneConnect has provided services to over 200 banks, 200,000 enterprises, and 500 banks. The company launched its blockchain platform in 2018, focusing on solutions for finance, real estate, automotive, healthcare, and smart city infrastructure.

The whitepaper details its eight dedicated research institutes and 50 tech labs, with its FiMax blockchain network enhancing data sharing and privacy processes. It envisions current and future projects in trade financing, asset securitization, and supply chain finance, applicable not only to the banking sector but also to industries like healthcare, real estate, and smart city management, outlining 14 use cases.

In addition to OneConnect's IPO plans in the U.S., Chinese Bitcoin mining giant Canaan Creative, also known as Canaan Inc., recently announced its conditions for an initial public offering in the U.S., aiming to raise $100 million by issuing 10 million American depositary shares priced between $9 and $11, expected to value the company at about $1.6 billion.

Another mining giant in the global crypto hardware market, Bitmain, which holds a 75% market share, initially attempted an IPO in Hong Kong that failed and is now pursuing a public sale in the U.S.

Further Reading

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• Twitter CEO to Focus on Bitcoin Market Development in Africa

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