China’s beauty app maker Meitu boasts first bitcoin and ether investment for a Hong Kong-listed company
- The Chinese selfie app maker said it bought US$40 million worth of cryptocurrencies
- Tesla, Square and other US tech companies have made similar forays into cryptocurrencies in recent months
Chinese tech company Meitu, best known for its apps that let users make themselves look slimmer or fairer in their selfies, announced on Sunday that it bought US$22.1 million worth of ether and US$17.9 million worth of bitcoin, a move that its co-founder boasted as unprecedented for a Hong Kong-listed company.
Meitu said the purchases were part of a cryptocurrency investment plan previously approved by the company’s board of directors, which allows it to make a net purchase of up to US$100 million worth of cryptocurrencies.
“Subsequent purchases or sales of cryptocurrencies pursuant to the cryptocurrency investment plan will be executed at the board’s discretion according to market conditions,” the company said.
Mike Cai Wensheng, Meitu’s co-founder and chairman, wrote on Chinese social media platform WeChat that his company is the first Hong Kong-listed firm to hold bitcoin and the world’s first listed company to hold ether in its treasury.
Shares of Meitu in Hong Kong rose by 14 per cent Monday morning before falling by over 6 per cent at market close.
Investing in bitcoin, which Meitu calls a potentially “superior form to other alternative stores of value such as gold, precious stone and real estate”, has become a fashionable treasury management strategy for tech firms.