Vancouver-based WonderFi Technologies Inc (OTC:WONDF) said Wednesday it will become the first Canada-regulated digital asset exchange to be listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under ticker TSX: WNDR on June 22, 2022.
Here’s why it matters.
Equal Opportunities: WonderFi is exposing the masses to a finance model that removes expensive middlemen.
Leveraging something colloquially referred to as DeFi — decentralized finance — WonderFi taps into protocols written on top of cryptocurrency networks, like Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH), and allows users to lend, borrow and swap among each other.
For their liquidity taking or provision, these users pay or earn yields and trading revenues.
The goal, as co-founder and CEO Ben Samaroo explained to Benzinga in August 2021, is to make finance open for all.
“The current financial system doesn't provide equal opportunities for people, whether it's people from lower socioeconomic rungs, women, or visible minorities,” Samaroo said at the time. “It's all rooted in how the financial system is opaque and tightly controlled.”
That’s what also solicited the involvement of early backer Kevin O’Leary, who inspired the firm’s name change from DeFi Ventures Inc to WonderFi.
Making A Bigger Moat: The key for WonderFi is regional dominance, international offense and community development.
Accordingly, the brand engaged in several strategic acquisitions and partnerships to gain market share, as well as to position itself as the go-to on-ramp for exposure crypto, whether centralized or decentralized, NFTs, play-to-earn gaming and beyond.
“The big change in WonderFi that makes me more bullish as an investor is around customer acquisition cost,” O’Leary had said of WonderFi opting to keep the brands it acquires separate, all the while developing seamless sign-on experiences.
“If WonderFi acquires a customer through the decentralized [side], they can migrate that customer to open a wallet also on the centralized [side] without having to acquire the customer again and, perhaps, without having to go through the Know Your Customer (KYC) process.”
Why The Uplist Matters: An uplisting opens the door to investors of a higher caliber who want to allocate capital to these nascent but booming technologies.
“We’re honored that the TSX approached WonderFi to get listed on Canada’s oldest and largest exchange,” O’Leary said in a statement sent to Benzinga by his team.
The timing was perfect, he added.
“When the market turns and investors get excited about crypto again, WonderFi will be available on one of the world’s most prestigious exchanges.”
A Marathon, Not A Sprint: WonderFi has, at every stage of its growth, gone the extra mile with respect to technological and regulatory innovation. The team intends to not lose this focus.
Hence O’Leary’s part in an international offense alongside U.S. senators like Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) who previously invited him for his perspectives on a crypto bill.
“WonderFi is committed to ensuring customers in our network can transact crypto securely and confidently, without the concerns that might come from less developed platforms,” O'Leary said a statement to Benzinga.
“With regulatory interest in crypto rapidly increasing around the world, it is more important than ever for Web3 to embrace best-in-class compliance and risk management.”
Pictured: Influencer partner Josh Richards, left. Kevin O’Leary, middle. Ben Samaroo, right.
