The total value of mergers and acquisitions in the crypto industry skyrocketed nearly 5,000% in 2021 compared with the previous year, according to a new report from PwC, one of the biggest accounting firms in the U.S., and first reported by Bloomberg.
Companies struck M&A deals more than three times the size of those in 2020. The average size of a merger or acquisition in the sector jumped to about $180 million in 2021, compared with an average of about $52 million a year prior, driven in part by the 2021 special purpose acquisition company or SPAC boom, Bloomberg reported.
Around 51% of those deals took place in the Americas.
One of the biggest deals last year included crypto asset manager Galaxy Digital’s $1.2 billion acquisition of BitGo, a digital asset trust and security company. Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase was also a major buyer in 2021, snapping up crypto wallet company BRD and Israel-based Unbound Security, which developed ways to more securely transfer crypto tokens. Coinbase acquired at least 13 companies last year, Bloomberg reported in November.
Some of these acquisitions have been funded by money pouring into the crypto industry from venture capital firms. Globally, venture capital sank $30 billion into crypto investments in 2021, according to PitchBook, $7 billion of which was spent in the U.S.
And the future of crypto mergers looks like more of the same, according to PwC.
“We expect a continued acceleration in crypto-related IPOs and acquisitions in 2022 across trading platforms, digital payment applications, and related products,” the accounting firm wrote in its 2022 outlook, Global M&A Trends in Technology, Media & Telecommunications.
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