Bitget Agrees to Buy Licensed Thai Exchange From GMO Internet

Bitget intends to reach Thai users through a company that already holds local licenses. The exchange said on Oct. 20 that it plans to acquire GMO-Z.com Cryptonomics (Thailand) Co., Ltd., a licensed Bangkok digital asset exchange and brokerage owned by Japan's GMO Internet, and use it to offer its trading platform in Thailand. Completion depends on Thai regulatory approval of the change of control, among other conditions.

According to Bitget's announcement, the purchase runs through its interest in BTGT Management (Thailand) Ltd. Bitget has not said how large its stake in BTGT is. GMO Internet's Sept. 24 filing to the Tokyo Stock Exchange did not name Bitget as the buyer. It described BTGT only as a company "newly established for the purpose of acquiring the business in question," set up on Sept. 22 with share capital of 2 million Thai baht.

GMO Internet holds 49% of the target directly, and its Thai holding company holds 50.94%. All 7,349,446 shares are set to change hands. The price was withheld "at the request of the buyer," and GMO expects a "minimal" effect on its 2026 results. The filing lists Oct. 31 as the expected effective date of the share transfer, though no regulatory approval had been announced as of Oct. 20.

"Building a presence in a market requires local expertise, an understanding of the regulatory environment, and a long-term commitment to the market."

Gracy Chen, Bitget CEO

Bitget plans to launch for Thai users only after closing.

The asset is licensed but struggling. The target launched its Z.com EX exchange on Feb. 22, 2021, with authorization from Thailand's SEC and Ministry of Finance. GMO Internet said in March it would exit the Thai digital asset business. The unit posted a net loss of about 87.6 million baht in 2025 on net sales of about 11 million baht, and also lost money in 2023 and 2024.

Bitget's own standing with the Thai regulator is a separate matter. A Thai SEC investor alert listing Bitget as an unlicensed digital asset business remained in place with an Oct. 19 update. The target's licenses are distinct from Bitget's status, so the acquisition offers a potential route to locally operated services without changing how the regulator currently classifies Bitget itself.

The announcement comes less than four weeks after a Sept. 24 breach of Bitget's hot and warm wallets, with an estimated loss of about $388 million. Withdrawals began restoring in phases on Sept. 28. Bitget attributes the attack to a third-party security vulnerability and says customer balances were unaffected, with the Bitget Protection Fund covering the losses.

The Thai market has been tightening around unlicensed operators. Thailand scheduled access blocks against five unlicensed exchanges (Bybit, 1000X, Coinex, OKX and XT.COM) for June 28, 2025. Separately, new bitcoin and ether ETF rules took effect on Oct. 16, though asset managers still need SEC approval for each fund. Open questions remain: whether the regulator will approve a change of control to a buyer backed by an exchange on its own warning list, what the price is, and how large Bitget's stake in BTGT is.