PwC: Two-Thirds of Crypto M&A Deals in Asia and Europe
Asia and Europe dominated crypto-related mergers and acquisitions in the second quarter of 2019, according to a recent PwC report, with former leader U.S. taking a significant dip.
Europe and Asia made up 41 and 26 percent of all deals in the sector, with the U.S. representing just 28 percent compared to 51 percent in the same period last year, according to the report released at the recent «CoinDesk’s Invest: Asia» event.
However, the number of deals and their overall value has seen a major drop with the first and second quarter totaling $166 million and $250 million, respectively. This is compared to $408 million in the first quarter of 2018 alone.
Sub-Sector Shift
One significant observation is the shift in sub-sector demand within the industry away from cryptocurrency mining.
«Since the first half of 2018, we have seen the investment in the mining sector has been consolidating while healthy activity remains in blockchain, exchanges and trading infrastructure,» said Lucy Gazmararian, senior manager of PwC’s fintech and crypto team.
Despite the total deal value decrease, Gazmararian expressed optimism, highlighting the recent bitcoin price rebound as a positive indicator.
«The price of bitcoin is the bellwether for the industry and for the sentiment of investors,» she explained. «As the price of bitcoin has recovered, we see the sentiment has become more positive and have seen more activities in fundraising and M&A activities.»
