Bitget Plans Thai Exchange Acquisition Despite Restrictions on Serving Local Users

Bitget plans to acquire GMO-Z.com Cryptonomics, a Bangkok-based digital asset exchange and brokerage licensed in Thailand, the crypto exchange said on Tuesday, 20 October 2026. The transaction involves BTGT Management (Thailand), a company in which Bitget says it already holds an interest. GMO Internet, the Japanese parent of the target business, disclosed the proposed sale in a filing earlier this month, with completion targeted for the end of October. The deal remains subject to regulatory approval and other conditions.

Bitget CEO Gracy Chen said the acquisition would support the company's plans to establish local operations in Thailand. The exchange has not disclosed the size of its ownership interest in BTGT Management, nor the financial terms of the proposed sale.

The move sits awkwardly alongside Bitget's own jurisdictional rules. Terms of use updated earlier this month list Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Thailand among the countries where Bitget's services are prohibited, and the exchange recently said it would discontinue services for certain users in what it described as a "one-off exercise." Buying a locally licensed operator could offer a route into the Thai market, but Bitget has not explained whether the deal would alter its existing restrictions or how it would structure its offering in the country.

Licensed operator with a short history

GMO-Z.com Cryptonomics runs Z.com EX, which launched in 2021 and appears on the Thai Securities and Exchange Commission's register of licensed digital asset exchange operators. Acquiring a regulated local platform would give Bitget an onshore foothold in a market it currently blocks, rather than relying on cross-border access.

The acquisition plan also follows a security incident disclosed last month, in which attackers exploited a vulnerability in a third-party security product to issue fraudulent withdrawal commands, affecting its hot and warm wallets to the tune of approximately $388 million. Bitget said customer account balances were unaffected, and it completed the phased restoration of withdrawal services earlier this month. The company has not drawn a link between the incident and the Thai transaction.