2TM Group, the holding company of Brazil’s first crypto brokerage Mercado Bitcoin, has ended its merger and acquisition talks with the leading US-based cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, Bloomberg reported Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.
Coinbase and 2TM End Buyout Talks
According to the report, Coinbase intended to acquire a majority or minority stake in 2TM. CryptoPotato reported in March that takeover talks began late last year and that the potential acquisition was nearing its final stage.
Although 2TM declined to comment on the matter, the Brazilian company had hired Wall Street powerhouse JPMorgan Chase & Co. to advise on the operation back in March.
Last week, Coinbase hired Fábio Tonetto Plein, a former Uber and PicPay executive, to lead the company’s business in Brazil. Plein was tasked with overseeing negotiations with 2TM.
It is still uncertain why the talks ended without a deal or whether both firms would return to the table in the future.
In December, 2TM raised $50 million from industry investors to expand its expansion into other parts of Latin America. Following the fundraising, the company reportedly acquired a majority stake in Portuguese digital asset exchange CriptoLoja.
Coinbase Seeks Global Expansion
Coinbase, whose market cap stood at nearly $27.5 billion on Wednesday, has been shopping for mergers and acquisitions that would help it expand its global presence and onboard more users to the crypto industry.
Company CEO Brian Armstrong estimates that the total number of crypto users worldwide will hit one billion in the next 10-20 years, and Coinbase intends to play its part in making that a reality.
Last month, CryptoPotato reported that Coinbase is also in discussion with Turkish crypto exchange BtcTurk for a potential buyout worth $3.2 billion.
In March, the company announced plans to launch its NFT marketplace to promote the adoption of non-fungible tokens. The platform is currently live in beta and users are allowed to use the marketplace without paying transaction fees for a “limited time”.
