Huobi acquires Latin American Crypto Exchange Bitex

Huobi reported Thursday that Huobi bought Bitex, a Latin American crypto exchange, from China’s crypto exchange Huobi. This acquisition will allow Huobi to grow its presence in Latin America.

Huobi plans to integrate Bitex’s exchange platform with its global platform, the company said in a statement. Francisco Buero, Bitex CEO, stated that Bitex will continue to operate under the current name and management team.

Bitex was established in 2014 in Argentina, Chile and Paraguay. It is about to launch operations in Peru and plans to expand “soon” to other undisclosed Latin American countries, according to Buero. Brazil is not on that list.

Buero explained that Bitex currently has more than 200,000 accounts open and is available to individuals, corporate customers and high-net-worth clients.

In February, Huobi said it was planning to re-enter the U.S. market after it shut down its business in China to comply with a local ban on crypto-related transactions. From last September through December, Huobi lost about a third of its revenue, company co-founder Du Jun said recently.