BANGKOK -- Thailand's oldest lender, Siam Commercial Bank, is ramping up its drive into fintech with the acquisition of a 51% controlling stake in local cryptocurrency exchange operator Bitkub Online for 17.85 billion baht ($535 million).
The deal estimates Bitkub's total valuation at 35 billion baht ($1.05 billion), making it the latest unicorn in a country once seen as barren in terms of startups. "Unicorn" describes a private company with a valuation of $1 billion or more.
