Bitpanda raised collective brows in European fintech corridors by opting out of public UK listings. But why did Bitpanda snap the UK as a potential listing venue?

The Vienna-based fintech platform, backed by billionaire Peter Thiel, has found it cited low liquidity on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) as the main reason for opting out of its original plan.

According to a report published by the Financial Times on August 26, 2025, Bitpanda CEO Eric Demuth said the company will instead focus on the venue of choice when either Frankfurt or New York proceeds to hold the public offering.

The timeline is not official, but London is definitely off the list.

bity bitpanda, a crypto exchange backed by billionaire investor Peter Thiel, has become the latest company to rule out London’s listings and avoid the UK’s capital markets due to lack of liquidity in stock trading. pic.twitter.com/go14oxx4x2

– Marcel van Oust (@OOST_MARCEL) August 26, 2025

Dems confirmed that it wasn’t just the company that shelved its London plans. According to Demuth, many companies are moving away from LSE.

He pointed out British fintech Wise and recently moved his major list to New York after a shareholder vote. British Fintech has moved primarily due to deeper capital pools and requirements for increasing market liquidity.

In addition to this, he acknowledged the London Bulls’ ongoing struggle to attract adequate trading volume and investor depth.

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London’s trading scene looks dry: British IPO market plunges to the lowest point in 30 years

Given that London is struggling to maintain its position as a major IPO destination, the Bitpanda UK exit appears to be a fair business decision.

The UK IPO market plunged to the lowest point raised in the first half of 2025, from just £160 million to £162.8 million (2267.8m).

The funding environment remains weak even after considering secondary provision.

Demuth explained that while Bitpanda recently entered the UK market, it still draws its main source of revenue from the European continent.

At the beginning of June, Carie Osman, founder and CEO of Growth Consultancy company Cruxy, repeatedly fell in LSE.

According to OSMAN, there are several reasons why companies are delisting from LSE. There are structural ones, but the main issue is lack of fluidity.

Her remarks came after Qualcomm’s acquisition of UK-based semiconductor company Alphawave Semi.

She said the UK’s weaker investment culture is hindering LSE compared to the US, where people often invest through the 401(k) plan.

On GlobalData’s Instant Insights Podcast, she said: “I was looking at some facts. I thought it was very interesting in the UK, for example, that about 23% of adults have stocks and stakes. If you compare that to the US, it’s 62%.”

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Bitpanda UK’s departure reflects broader industry trends

Bitpanda SideSteping UK shows a wide range of industry trends where businesses are moving to greener pastures in search of greater liquidity, regulatory clarity and investor depth.

The US and continental Europe have emerged as public hotspots due to the receptive regulatory environment and institutional interest.

The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and NASDAQ have become magnets for native crypto companies due to friendly policies and institutional capital inflows under the Trump administration.

Earlier this year, USDC Stablecoin publisher Circle raised $1.05 billion in NYSE at a $8 billion valuation. Gemini and Bitgo follow suit to list them in the US. Meanwhile, this month is another Tiel support exchange that was released on the NYSE.

The contrast with the LSE is severe. The UK aims to lead fintechs, but the IPO market continues to struggle with thin trading volumes and low investor appetite, raising questions about the viability of high-growth tech companies.

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Tanzeel Akhtar

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Tanzeel Akhtar

About Author

Tanzeel Akhtar is a seasoned journalist who has been reporting on cryptocurrency and blockchain technology since 2015. Her work has appeared in leading publications including The Wall Street Journal,…

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August 14, 2025

Bitpanda, Europe’s leading cryptoasset platform, announced on Thursday that it has officially launched in the UK, giving British investors access to more than 600 cryptoassets.

In a press release shared with CryptoNews, the firm said UK-based users will be able to trade a range of assets, from major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum to emerging tokens and stablecoins.

“The UK is a global financial hub, and home to investors who are financially literate and tech-savvy,” said Eric Demuth, co-founder and CEO of Bitpanda.

“Demand for cryptoassets is rising rapidly, and we’re here to meet it. We believe the UK will grow to be one of our largest markets in the next two years. Today’s launch is just the beginning,” Demuth added.

A Platform for Investors of All Levels

Bitpanda said its platform is designed to focus on security, simplicity, and a user-first experience and seeks to set a new standard for cryptoasset investing in the UK.

In addition to its retail services, Bitpanda said it is introducing its B2B infrastructure arm, Bitpanda Technology Solutions (BTS), to the UK market.

BTS allows banks, fintechs, and cryptoasset platforms to develop and offer their own cryptoasset products through white-label integration. The tech is being used by institutional partners, including Deutsche Bank, Société Générale, Raiffeisen, and LBBW.

Local Leadership and Market Expansion

Bitpanda also appointed Pantelis Kotopoulos as UK country director. Backed by a local team, Kotopoulos will focus on building Bitpanda’s market share and improving its user experience for British customers.

“UK investors deserve a platform that matches their ambition,” Kotopoulos said. “At Bitpanda, we’ve built a platform that does exactly that—with more assets, a better and more intuitive user experience.”

As part of its UK launch, Bitpanda said it has entered into a global multi-year partnership with Arsenal Football Club, becoming the club’s Official Crypto Trading Partner.

This collaboration will focus on raising awareness and understanding of digital assets among Arsenal’s fan base, providing education and tools to help supporters engage with their finances securely and responsibly.

Binance Reopens Earn Products to UK Users

Earlier today, Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, announced that it has restored access to its full suite of Binance Earn products for qualifying UK Professional Users.

This follows clarification in UK financial regulation, confirming that staking is exempt from being classed as a collective investment scheme, and a review of how exemptions under the Financial Promotions Order and the Promotion of Collective Investment Scheme Order apply.

June 12th, 2025 – Vienna, Austria

Vision: One token to connect it all

• The Vision (VSN) token, launching on July 16, will power Bitpanda’s onchain infrastructure – connecting wallets, trading, cross-chain liquidity, and tokenised assets.
• The launch is the first puzzle piece of Bitpanda’s ambition to build a user-first, fully compliant Web3 ecosystem – rooted in real utility and designed to make Web3 accessible for everyone.

Kicking off Bitpanda’s Web3 product suite is Vision (VSN), the utility and governance token at the heart of the ecosystem. Launching on July 16, from a merge of Bitpanda’s two existing tokens, BEST and Pantos, it launches with deep, native integration across Bitpanda’s platform and upcoming Web3 products, unlocking real-world value and a clear path to mass adoption.

What users can do with VSN:

• Save on fees: 20% fee discounts on Bitpanda.com and Bitpanda’s DeFi Wallet.
• Staking Rewards: Earn up to 10% APY on staked VSN.
• Governance: Vote on upgrades, reward rates, token emissions and protocol changes.
• Launchpad Access: Early entry into vetted Web3 token launches.
• Loyalty & Airdrops: Participate in exclusive token drops and reward programmes.

Lukas Enzersdorfer-Konrad, Deputy CEO at Bitpanda, commented: “Vision is the engine behind everything we’re building in Web3, like electricity is for many things in modern life. It fuels the ecosystem, connects our products, and rewards users for engaging with the tools we’re building. This includes fee savings and staking, as well as governance and loyalty, which turn into benefits for everyone in the Bitpanda ecosystem and beyond.”

The Bitpanda Web3 ecosystem

While many Web3 projects remain experimental, Bitpanda’s approach is grounded in real utility. Its new ecosystem is built for everyday users and will enable millions of people to enter Web3, designed to enable Web3 to reach the mainstream. With nearly 7 million users, Bitpanda’s aim is to give everyone access in a compliant and secure way, without sacrificing on the user experience.

In addition to Vision (VSN), Bitpanda’s Web3 product suite contains the following components:

Bitpanda DeFi Wallet: The consumer-grade entry point

An intuitive smart wallet providing everything users need to trade, earn, and manage assets onchain across major blockchain networks, all from a single, intuitive app. Designed for both crypto natives and newcomers, the wallet allows users to trade, earn, and manage assets with institutional-grade security. At launch, the wallet will support over 5,000 tokens across Ethereum, Solana, Polygon, BNB Chain, Avalanche, Optimism, Base, and Arbitrum.

Vision Protocol: Frictionless, cross-chain trading

Vision Protocol is the underlying liquidity engine of the ecosystem. It aggregates top decentralised exchanges and bridges like 1inch, Jupiter, and Rango to deliver seamless swaps across chains – fully embedded into the Bitpanda DeFi Wallet.

Vision Chain: Europe’s compliant Layer 2

A dedicated Ethereum Layer 2 network designed for tokenising real-world assets. Vision Chain serves as the compliant backbone for Europe’s onchain finance, bringing securities, commodities, and fiat onchain in one unified layer. 

Bitpanda Launchpad: Onramping innovation

A platform for launching curated, high-quality crypto projects. Bitpanda Launchpad ensures investor protection, project legitimacy, and fast-track access to promising teams and listing on Bitpanda and their partners. For investors, it provides early access to the cutting edge of DeFi innovation, creating a true win-win for builders and users alike.

Eric Demuth, Co-Founder and CEO at Bitpanda, commented: “We are highly committed to build the onchain future in a compliant, secure and simple to use way. Just like Apple did with Smartphones. Therefore we have hired a strong team of Web3 industry experts – and this has just been the start for our ambitious plans.”

About Bitpanda

Bitpanda was founded in Vienna in 2014 and is the leading European crypto platform. With a selection of over 3,200 digital assets, including more than 600 crypto assets and numerous stocks*, ETFs*, precious metals, and commodities, the Austrian fintech unicorn offers one of the most comprehensive ranges of digital assets available in Europe. Already trusted by over 6.5 million users and dozens of institutional partners, Bitpanda holds licences in several countries and has a proven track record of working with local regulators to keep assets safe and secure. This makes Bitpanda one of the safest and most strictly regulated trading platforms in the industry. In addition to its headquarters in Vienna, Bitpanda has offices in Amsterdam, Barcelona, Berlin, and Bucharest.

Contact

Director, Corporate Communications
Paul Wolter
Bitpanda
paul.wolter@bitpanda.com