Layer-2 Ethereum scaling solution OMG Network gets acquired by a venture firm

Layer 1s • December 4, 2020, 5:20AM EST

UPDATED: December 4, 2020, 5:30AM EST

Layer-2 Ethereum scaling solution OMG Network has been acquired by Genesis Block Ventures (GBV).

GBV is a subsidiary of Genesis Block, a Hong Kong-based crypto over-the-counter (OTC) trading firm. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

As part of the deal, GBV plans to grow the adoption of OMG Network (formerly OmiseGo) in Asia and beyond. "A number of integrations and partnerships are in the works," said GBV, adding that it will work with OMG "to leverage resources and explore new directions, such as building lending and trading platforms, to achieve DeFi's massive adoption and growth potential."

GBV has acquired OMG from SYNQA, its former parent company, which raised $80 million in Series C in June. As a result of the acquisition, OMG's team and business will move from SYNQA to GBV.

The OMG network was first announced in 2017. Its mainnet went live in June of this year. The network claims to support "thousands of transactions per second at a third of the cost of the same transaction on Ethereum."

OMG was recently integrated with Tether (USDT) to help users of the stablecoin save time and cost on transactions.

The acquisition news has sent the price of the OMG token up by about 5% in the last 24 hours. The token is currently trading at about $4, according to CoinGecko.

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Yogita Khatri is a senior reporter at The Block, covering all things crypto. As one of the earliest team members, Yogita has played a pivotal role in breaking numerous stories, exclusives and scoops. With nearly 3,000 articles under her belt, Yogita holds the records as The Block's most-published and most-read author of all time. Prior to joining The Block, Yogita worked at crypto publication CoinDesk and The Economic Times, where she wrote on personal finance. To contact her, email: [email protected]. For her latest work, follow her on X @Yogita_Khatri5.