The value of HT, Huobi cryptocurrency exchange’s native token, surged 79.4% over the past week reaching a four-month high of $7.60. Just a week ago, the same token was at 21-month lows.
The price gain comes as Justin Sun, the founder of the Tron network, revealed his new role as an advisor to the Huobi exchange. In an interview with Bloomberg TV last week, he said he would see himself as one of the biggest holders. Sun also highlighted that he hasn’t acquired a stake in the Chinese exchange. He believes the key to revitalizing Huobi is to empower HT and the native token can only thrive on Huobi. Sun said there will be many big moves around HT, in the future, including brand upgrades, business cooperation, and heavy empowerment.
He acknowledged that HT token is central to Huobi’s success, drawing parallels with Binance coin’s (BNB) pivotal role in establishing the platform as the leading crypto exchange. Sun noted that the success of BNB really benefits the Binance platform, as such in terms of operations, he will focus on HT. He plans to take Huobi back into China if regulation allows. The crypto exchange was one of the several crypto firms, that ran into a rough patch in 2021 following the China government’s implementation of a blanket ban on cryptocurrencies. It was looking at a 30% reduction in staff earlier this year to circumvent loss.
Now under the new ownership, Huobi is planning an international expansion. It will receive an injection of sufficient capital in the margin and risk provision fund. Ted Chen, the CEO of About Capital Management, described Huobi’s acquisition as a significant milestone for the crypto industry. He believes there is tremendous room for growth as the exchange is still in its early stage of development.
