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Canadian Crypto Exchange Coinsquare Launches TV Ad Campaign Ahead of September IPO

Last Updated March 4, 2021 5:06 PM
Josiah Wilmoth
Last Updated March 4, 2021 5:06 PM

Canadian cryptocurrency exchange Coinsquare has unveiled its first television commercial as it seeks to build out its customer base before going public later this year.

The exchange — often described as “Canada’s Coinbase” — on Monday released an advertisement that will begin running on television later this week.

The ad, which describes Coinsquare as “Canada’s most secure platform” for trading cryptocurrencies, attempts to establish the exchange’s reputation as a trustworthy alternative to the numerous scams and other cautionary tales that unfortunately pervade the space.

The timing of the ad campaign is notable, given that consumer interest in cryptocurrencies has faded in recent months in tandem with the market’s descent into a recession. However, it correlates with Coinsquare’s ambitious plans to pursue an international expansion and an initial public offering (IPO).

Earlier this year, Coinsquare revealed that it plans to go public in September through a listing on the Toronto Stock Exchange. The company hopes to raise approximately $120 million (C$150 million) and then use those funds to finance expansion into the US and UK.

“The United States and the UK market are next,” Coinsquare Chief Executive Officer Cole Diamond told Bloomberg  in January. “We believe that we will be a strong competitor to Coinbase and other exchanges in the US by the end of the year.”

But while Coinsquare hopes to be a strong competitor to Coinbase in the near future, it currently processes much less trading volume than its counterpart south of the border.

At present, Coinsquare ranks as the world’s 95th-largest exchange, with daily volumes of about $1.7 million, according to CoinMarketCap data. Among exchanges that offer CAD trading pairs, it ranks third, behind LakeBTC and QuadrigaCX.

Though not the first cryptocurrency company to go public, Coinsquare will be one of the first to do so through traditional means, which feature a lengthy regulatory review process.

Most others have done so through reverse takeovers (RTOs), where a firm merges with a company that is already listed on an exchange and then updates its name and ticker symbol.

Featured image from Shutterstock.