Bitpanda Pro, a popular Austrian-based crypto exchange, announced today (Wednesday) a rebranding and the successful completion of a financing round amounting to EUR 30 million. However, according to the information sent to customers, all the entity's assets have been sold, and the name has been changed to One Trading.
In addition, Reddit and Twitter users report that the launch did not go so smoothly. Trading was suspended. Also, withdrawals from the blockchain and via the Bitpanda Pro mobile application were not functioning properly.
Bitpanda Pro Becomes One Trading
Bitpanda Pro is a platform independent of Bitpanda retail brokerage, launched in 2019 to provide a regulated and secure place to exchange digital assets. Bitpanda decided to sell Bitpanda Pro to One Trading but will retain a minority stake in the venture. However, the value of this stake has not been disclosed.
"Since we first launched Bitpanda Pro, given its potential, we always knew and planned that its success would naturally make it evolve to become its own business," Eric Demuth, the CEO of Bitpanda, stated in a press release.
Nevertheless, today's (Wednesday) press release does not describe the move as an acquisition but as a rebranding. It also speaks of a successful funding round worth EUR 30 million, led by Valar Ventures, which was a venture capital co-founded by the well-known cryptocurrency entrepreneur Peter Thiel.
Our rebranding is a major step to strengthen our crypto asset offerings and addressing the lack of regulated venues in Europe ???????? we plan to launch various sophisticated products, like derivatives & more spot crypto assets, catering to both retail and institutional investors. ????
— One Trading (@onetrading_com) June 28, 2023
Although Bitpanda Pro has changed owners along with its name, its current CEO, Joshua Barraclough, will retain his position and will steer the new venture.
"We want to make crypto trading safe and accessible for all and bridge the gap to provide an institutional-grade platform for all customer types," Barraclough said.
Bitpanda will retain a stake in the business, but the new company will be fully separated from the main Bitpanda group and continue to develop advanced trading products for retail investors, professionals and institutional customers.Learn more: https://t.co/0RzqzmvsE2
— Bitpanda (@Bitpanda_global) June 28, 2023
One Trading has made significant changes to the existing Bitpanda Pro infrastructure, aiming to allow users to create and cancel orders in less than 250 microseconds. The company further promises low fees, deep order books, and liquidity protection. At the same time, it wants to offer a membership model rather than the traditional pay-per-transaction model.
Although the new Bitpanda Pro has made ambitious promises in its official communication, Reddit and Twitter users reported initial problems with One Trading's operation.
Users of Bitpanda Pro Cannot Withdraw Funds
In a Reddit thread, a user named 'gitarr' reported that Bitpanda Pro customers received emails about 'rebranding' on Wednesday. However, in reality, this turned out to be a sale of the exchange owned by Bitpanda to a new owner.
Comment by u/gitarr from discussion Bitpanda Pro Exchange is sold and rebranded to One Trading - Assets currently cannot be withdrawn in CryptoCurrency
The website 'exchange.bitpanda.com', which until now directed to Bitpanda Pro, now leads to 'exchange.onetrading.com' (One Trading). Although the site is now functioning normally, trading is still suspended, and users cannot withdraw funds. Neitherblockchain withdrawals nor the Bitpanda Pro mobile application is working. 'Gitarr' claims the exchange did not previously warn its users that it was planning to take such a step.
Another user, 'Goldbaerig', suggests that the move might have been dictated purely by regulatory issues. Bitpanda is registered in Austria, where the local government has required centralized crypto exchanges (CEXs) to settle taxes on their customers' behalf since 2024. On the other hand, One Trading is located in the Netherlands, where such regulations do not apply.
Comment by u/Goldbaerig from discussion Bitpanda Pro Exchange is sold and rebranded to One Trading - Assets currently cannot be withdrawn in CryptoCurrency
Bitpanda said it was tied up with Coinbase a month ago to help the cryptocurrency exchange with the European expansion. The American exchange is using Bitpanda's services to cater to non-US institutions.
This article was written by Damian Chmiel at www.financemagnates.com.
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