News

• Fold offers a cashback debit card which provides bitcoin rewards instead of traditional rewards one would expect from other products.
• The company is aiming to go public through a merger with SPAC Emerald Acquisition.

Bitcoin rewards app Fold is planning a public listing on Nasdaq through a merger with special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Emerald Acquisition Corp. (EMLD).

New York-based Fold offers a cashback debit card which provides bitcoin rewards instead of traditional rewards one would expect from other related products. Fold's cards have processed over $2 billion in volume and distributed more than $45 million worth of rewards, according to an announcement on Wednesday .

The transaction, which has been unanimously approved by the boards of both firms, will have a pre-money equity valuation of $365 million. The post-transaction entity will also have more than 1,000 BTC ($67 million) on its balance sheet.

Fold has not yet disclosed the expected closing of the merger nor the ticker it will trader under on Nasdaq.

SPACs were a popular way for crypto firms to attain public listings during the last bull cycle. However, the onset of the crypto winter in 2022 saw several muted SPACs cancelled .

It is unclear as yet whether this bull cycle will see more of such deals come to fruition. Bitcoin financial services firm Swan cancelled its SPAC plans on Monday , amid a reorganization which also saw it discontinued its managed mining unit and cut staff across several units.

Read More: Crypto-Friendly Bank Revolut Plans to Sell $500M of Employee Shares at $45B Valuation: WSJ