Animoca Brands suspends Currenc merger talks, keeps public listing plan

Animoca Brands has suspended talks on its proposed reverse merger with Nasdaq listed Currenc Group after the companies determined that the expected closing timeline no longer fit…

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Animoca Brands has suspended talks on its proposed reverse merger with Nasdaq listed Currenc Group after the companies determined that the expected closing timeline no longer fit their short and medium term plans.

Summary

• Animoca Brands and Currenc Group suspended reverse merger talks after projected closing timelines no longer matched their strategic goals.
• Animoca remains committed to a major public exchange listing and is preparing its audited fiscal 2024 financial statements.
• The proposed deal would have left Animoca shareholders with approximately 95% of the combined company.
• Both companies may resume merger discussions if market conditions and their strategic priorities permit.

According to Animoca Brands, the decision was made mutually after the companies reviewed the time needed to complete the transaction and changing market conditions. The companies could reopen discussions if conditions permit, while Animoca said it remains committed to returning to a major public exchange.

The decision puts on hold a transaction that would have given the web3 and AI investor a route back into public markets more than six years after its shares stopped trading on the Australian Securities Exchange.

Animoca Brands keeps public listing plans in place

Animoca co founder and executive chairman Yat Siu said the company continues to work through the audit and compliance requirements needed for a listing, even as it steps away from the Currenc transaction.

“While we hold our proposed merger with Currenc Group in high regard, our corporate agility must take precedence,” Siu said.

“As we advance the comprehensive audit processes required to meet the rigorous compliance standards of a major public exchange, we will continue to pursue optimal routes to a public listing,” he added.

The company published its audited fiscal 2023 financial statements on July 17, its second set of audited financial statements released in 2026. Work on its fiscal 2024 audited accounts is underway, with Animoca describing completion of the reports as important milestones in its financial compliance roadmap.

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Animoca’s investor relations records show that it has been clearing a backlog of financial statements over several years. Its 2022 annual report was released in January 2026, while reports for 2021, 2020 and 2019 were issued in June 2025, June 2023 and July 2022, respectively.

The company was previously listed on the ASX before being delisted in 2020 following scrutiny of its involvement in cryptocurrency related activities. In 2022, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission convicted and fined Animoca over failures to lodge annual reports for 2019 through 2021 and certain half year reports.

Despite remaining privately held, Animoca has continued expanding its exposure to digital assets, tokenization and artificial intelligence. In June, crypto.news previously reported on its investment in AllScale, where the companies agreed to explore stablecoin payments, treasury services and AI agent commerce. AllScale said at the time that its infrastructure supported more than 1.5 million registered wallets.

Animoca has remained active in crypto venture investing as well. Data covering the first half of 2026 placed the company among the industry’s most active investors, with 19 startup investments during the period.

Currenc deal would have handed Animoca shareholders 95% ownership

The proposed reverse merger was first disclosed in November 2025 under a non binding term sheet that called for Currenc to acquire all of Animoca Brands through an Australian scheme of arrangement.

Under the proposed structure, Animoca shareholders would have collectively owned approximately 95% of the combined company, leaving existing Currenc shareholders with the remaining 5%. The resulting company was expected to operate under the Animoca Brands name.

The original Nasdaq listing plan was expected to close in 2026, subject to regulatory approvals in the United States and Australia as well as the completion of required audited financial statements.

Progress continued into May, when Currenc and Animoca extended their exclusivity period through June 30. At that stage, the companies said due diligence and preparation of definitive transaction documents were advancing, with closing targeted for the third quarter of 2026.

The arrangement carried a Dec. 31 long stop date that could have been extended by another six months through mutual agreement.

Tuesday’s announcement did not identify a replacement transaction or exchange for Animoca’s planned listing. The company instead said it would continue looking for routes to the public market while completing its financial compliance work.

Animoca has expanded beyond its gaming roots

Animoca’s operations have continued to develop during the period in which it worked toward a public market return.

The company has built a portfolio spanning web3, digital assets, gaming, tokenization and AI. In May, Siu said he expected AI agents to become major users of blockchain infrastructure as Animoca introduced an investment program of up to $10 million for developers building applications through its Minds platform.

Its real world asset activity has expanded through NUVA, a marketplace co created with NUVA Labs. The platform launched on Ethereum in May with access to institutional grade assets originating from Figure Technologies, whose blockchain based lending ecosystem had processed billions of dollars in loans.

Animoca has made changes to its gaming holdings at the same time. Alpha Compute completed its majority acquisition of GAMEE in May 2026, taking a 60% controlling interest in the mobile and Telegram based gaming business from Animoca at an implied valuation of $18 million.

The transaction followed an earlier agreement under which AlphaTON Capital had planned to acquire control of GAMEE and make related equity and token investments.

Currenc continues its tokenization business

Currenc, meanwhile, has continued developing its AI and tokenization operations separately from the proposed Animoca transaction.

The Singapore based fintech operates AI services for financial institutions alongside digital remittance infrastructure. In April, the company became one of the first Nasdaq listed companies to tokenize its own ordinary shares, putting representations of its equity on Ethereum and Solana through Securitize.

Currenc Capital, its wholly owned subsidiary, has since moved to provide similar infrastructure to other listed companies.

Earlier in September, Currenc Capital entered a binding consulting agreement with Nasdaq listed Mint Incorporation to support the issuer sponsored tokenization of a portion of Mint’s Class A ordinary shares on Ethereum and Solana.

Under the agreement, Currenc Capital will provide advisory and facilitation services for the planned tokenization. Mint said no trading market for the tokens currently exists and gave no assurance that one would develop or receive permission to operate.

The project comes as activity in tokenized equities has increased during 2026. Onchain real world assets reached $34.18 billion by Sept. 15, up 85.2% since the beginning of the year, while the value of tokenized equities had increased 390.4% over the same period.

Currenc’s work with Mint follows its own April share tokenization, which placed its Nasdaq listed ordinary shares on Ethereum and Solana while the company was still pursuing the proposed combination with Animoca.

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