A new CEO has big plans for Coins.ph

Sign up for the Daily Newsletter, sent exclusively to our Premium subscribers. We break down the big and messy topics of Asia’s tech and startup community. Get the newsletter in your inbox everyday with a Premium subscription.

Hello reader,

I believe that for most kids, the concept of leadership doesn’t really sink in.

I say this because even if they take on leadership roles, the consequences and responsibilities of being a leader can’t be experienced as a teenager, as the adults are often there to take care of them at the end of the day.

Once you’ve passed that point, however, everything changes. And if you’re the leader of a business, shouldering the burden of making a company succeed without any safety nets of your own, that can be a herculean task.

In today’s story, we explore how Wei Zhou, the former CFO of Binance, has taken the helm at Coins.ph, and what that means for the formerly Gojek-owned business.

Today we look at:

• Wei Zhou’s plans for Coins.ph
• A US$2.4 million pre-series A round for a Vietnam-based edtech startup
• Other newsy highlights such as Nexo’s potential acquisition of Vauld and a possible US$9 billion raise for four new funds for the Chinese unit of Sequoia Capital.

Premium summary

What’s in store for Coins.ph?

Image credit: Timmy Loen

Binance might be the biggest crypto exchange in the world, but that didn’t stop its former CFO Wei Zhou from leaving his position in May last year. For Zhou, his departure was a welcome change of pace. The exec started looking for a regional company to acquire and build up, and he’s found the answer: Coins.ph.

• Goodbye Gojek: Coins.ph was originally a crypto wallet and trading platform that was purchased by Indonesia-based super app Gojek in 2019 for an estimated US$95 million. Zhou led a consortium with Joffre Capital, a technology buyout fund with offices in Los Angeles and Singapore, and purchased the company from Gojek for US$200 million in April. Shortly after, he was named Coins.ph’s CEO.

• Back to its roots: Under Gojek’s management, Coins.ph focused on digital payment services, which meant that the crypto side of the business ceased to dominate. Zhou, however, plans to bring crypto back into focus for the firm. The company raised US$30 million in series C funding in May to cover the cost of its expansion into Web3.

• A coin to call its own: Zhou also has plans to develop a Coins.ph coin, and the company is currently exploring different blockchains for the token. According to the CEO, the coin could come as early as later this year and be used as a rewards token for users who trade on the platform.

Teaching them the ropes

Quick bytes