Brendan Blumer, known as one of the creators of the EOS blockchain and one of the richest people in the crypto space, has bought a 9.3% stake in the crypto-friendly bank Silvergate Capital, a new SEC filing has revealed.
The large stake taken by Blumer means that the Hong Kong-based crypto entrepreneur now is Silvergate’s largest shareholder.
The purchase of Blumer’s stake comes in addition to a 7.5% stake acquired by Block.one, the EOS development firm that Blumer heads.
Combined, Blumer and his company now control close to 17% of Silvergate Capital.
In a press release sent out by Block.one, Silvergate was described as a company with a “proven track record of maintaining a liquid and conservative balance sheet investment portfolio.”
Block.one added that they see Silvergate as a currently undervalued investment opportunity.
“We believe Silvergate’s current equity prices do not accurately reflect their strong balance sheet, their strategic positioning, or their market-defiant growth trajectory, and therefore offers a unique investment opportunity. We are excited to be a new passive shareholder,” the crypto firm wrote.
Shares of Silvergate have suffered since the collapse of FTX, with the market worrying about the bank’s exposure to the now-bankrupt crypto exchange. Since the beginning of November, the share price is down by about 52%, despite a jump of more than 11% yesterday on the news that Blumer has become the largest shareholder.
It is known that FTX had at least $1bn in deposits with Silvergate, but that bank said in a statement that this represents less then 10% of the total deposits from its customers in the crypto industry.
Among other prominent clients of Silvergate is Michael Saylor’s company MicroStrategy, which took a
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