The big split of Bitmain starts: Zhan Ketuan returns, Wu Jihan exits with cash from Pool B (Bitmain Series 26)

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Wu said blockchain exclusively learned from multiple insiders that on the evening of December 16, Zhan Ketuan and Wu Jihan officially reached an agreement, and the result of the agreement was that Zhan Ketuan temporarily mortgaged his shares and borrowed 600 million US dollars from Bitmain to buy Wu Jihan's shares. Zhan Ketuan officially returned, and the coordinator was rumored to be Sequoia Capital's Shen Nanpeng and others.

Wu said blockchain learned that BTC.com, BitDeer and overseas mining farms were split at a valuation of US$90 million and belonged to Wu Jihan's team, while other businesses of Bitmain (mining machines, AI, Ant Mining Pool, domestic mining farms, etc.) belonged to Zhan Ketuan. The shareholders' meeting will be held on December 28, but the slight possibility of changes cannot be ruled out.

Wu Blockchain also learned that according to the agreement, Zhan Ketuan promised to complete a qualified listing on the U.S. stock market before December 31, 2022. The minimum valuation for a qualified listing is US$5.5 billion and the listing financing is no less than US$500 million. If this cannot be completed, it may be necessary to repurchase from investors and pay interest.

Previously, Wu said that the blockchain had reported six possibilities for the negotiations between the two parties.

1. Wu Zhan withdraws, and the management team acquires the shares of both parties

2. Both parties narrowed their disputes and focused on listing

3. The company repurchases the shares of Zhan or Wu

4. External investors support Zhan’s acquisition of Wu’s shares

5. External investors support Wu’s acquisition of Zhan shares

6. The company split into AI and blockchain

At present, the agreement reached by both parties is the third one, that is, the company uses cash to acquire most of the shares of Wu Jihan's team, but the valuation is less than 4 billion US dollars. Whether there will be changes in the end, or even a reversal, is currently unknown, but several insiders pointed out to Wu Blockchain that the probability of another change is small. Both parties have promised to properly place employees and smoothly transition, and some businesses have begun to start handover.

Previously, there were several rumors about the negotiations between the two parties. In early November, it was rumored that the two parties reached an agreement on "Zhan's return and Wu's withdrawal", but the negotiations came to a deadlock due to the sharp rise in the price of the currency and the increase in valuation; then it was reported again that Zhan agreed to Wu Jihan's acquisition of his shares; but in the end, it still returned to the first version. It is said that Zhan once expressed his intention to independently manufacture Bitcoin mining machines, and Wu Jihan chose to compromise in order to avoid the emergence of "the second Yang Zuoxing".

An investor related to Bitmain revealed to WuShuoBlockchain that after the agreement was reached on December 16, Wu Jihan also sent an invitation letter to the shareholders' meeting, saying that the company's short-term debt repayment ability has greatly improved (it was on the verge of bankruptcy due to insufficient debt repayment ability in 2019), and the S19 series has returned to the same industry competitiveness as the S9, but internal disputes are more fatal than external challenges. In March, he and Zhan tried to solve the problem and were close to reaching an agreement that requires shareholder approval. This agreement can help the company go public as soon as possible and allow investors to get returns. It is reported that the shareholders' meeting will be held in Beijing on December 28.