Crypto platform Apifiny confirms 2021 go-public plan and names FBI veteran to board

• Cryptocurrency platform Apifiny announced Thursday that former FBI Deputy Director Timothy Murphy is joining its board as the company confirmed plans to go public this year.
• Apifiny said in a statement that Murphy will serve on the board’s audit committee and chair its compensation committee “to help the company with its planned public offering in 2021.”
• That’s the first confirmation that Apifiny is planning a 2021 go-public move. The company had said in February that it was “considering going public,” then said last week in announcing a FINRA broker-dealer license that it was moving “toward a public offering” without saying when.
• But Thursday, the company said its go-public plans would benefit from the addition of Murphy to Apifiny’s board.
• “Tim brings outstanding value in global operations, compliance and regulatory knowledge and a proven track record guiding public and private global companies,” company CEO Haohan Xu said. “His executive global operations and compliance leadership in private and public global companies will bring exceptional value to our team, our customers, and the broader market.”
• Murphy spent 23 years with the FBI, retiring in 2011 and deputy director. His previous roles with the agency included chief financial officer and chief operating officer.
• The former G-man currently serves as president and CEO of cybersecurity and networking company Consortium Networks. Prior to that, Murphy served as president of Thomson Reuters Special Services, a consulting group that helps companies with risk management and intelligence collection. Murphy also serves on the boards of Western Union and the nonprofit National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
• Murphy’s background should bolster Apifiny’s image at a time when crypto firms are angling for wider acceptance from investors and the public at large.
• The company’s go-public move is coming shortly after rival crypto firm Coinbase Global went public via an eagerly anticipated direct listing.
• COIN popped as much as 72% from a $250 reference price on its first trading day last month to reach $429.54 intraday, but has been mostly pulling back since then. The stock closed Wednesday at $273, down 2.7% on the session and 36.4% from its first-day peak.
• As for Apifiny, the firm has yet to say whether it expects to go public via a direct listing, a merger with a special purpose acquisition company or just a traditional initial public offering.
• The company’s Apifiny Connect platform gives institutional traders access to multiple crypto markets around the world at once, which the firm says allows clients to get the best pricing. The 24 exchanges that it has partnered with to date include Crypto.com, Huobi Global, OKEx, Kucoin, BitMax and HBTC.