Amsterdam’s Amdax is planting a flag with AMBTS, a dedicated Bitcoin treasury company. Backed by $23 million, its goal is to build a EUR-based counterweight to global giants and secure a full 1% of the entire BTC supply for European markets.
Summary
- Amdax has launched AMBTS, a Bitcoin treasury firm backed by $23 million in initial funding, with a goal to secure 1% of BTC’s total supply.
- The spin-off plans a €30 million close by 2025 and a future Euronext Amsterdam listing to provide Europe with an equity-based Bitcoin vehicle.
On August 29, Amdax CEO Lucas Wensing announced that a cohort of investors had committed €20 million (about $23.3 million) to seed AMBTS B.V., a standalone Bitcoin (BTC) treasury company designed to accumulate the original cryptocurrency relentlessly.
The new entity, an independent spin-off from the regulated Dutch crypto asset service provider, has already met its minimum funding goal and is eyeing a final close of €30 million by September 2025. The capital will fuel an initial buying spree ahead of an intended public listing on Euronext Amsterdam, creating a novel, equity-based Bitcoin vehicle for the European market.
A late arrival to a crowded field?
According to the press release, AMBTS’s long-term goal is to accumulate a minimum of 210,000 bitcoin, effectively cornering one percent of the entire predetermined supply. The stash would position the nascent entity among the world’s largest corporate holders, a moonshot that underscores a profound belief in Bitcoin as a non-sovereign store of value.
The pivot from a service provider to a principal accumulator signals a strategic evolution for Amdax, leveraging its regulatory standing and operational expertise to execute a capital-intensive strategy it has long facilitated for others. Notably, AMBTS aims to fortify the region’s position in the global digital asset landscape.
“The appetite we have received for this initial financing round we believe indicates that investors welcome the initiative, providing them with an opportunity to participate in the rapidly developing market. With the establishment of AMBTS, we aim to strengthen the European autonomous digital asset industry and thereby potentially unlocking a compelling investment opportunity for institutional investors,” Amdax CEO Lucas Wensing said.
A crowded field with lingering risks
However, AMBTS is entering a field that is already densely populated and fiercely competitive. According to data from BitcoinTreasuries.net, approximately 178 publicly traded companies have already integrated Bitcoin into their treasury reserves, collectively holding nearly 990,000 BTC.
The space is dominated by Michael Saylor’s Strategy, which holds a colossal 632,457 BTC, effectively setting the standard for the corporate treasury strategy. Other significant players include Bitcoin Standard Treasury Company and Japan’s Metaplanet, which recently approved nearly a billion-dollar fundraising effort specifically for further BTC acquisition.
This strategy is not without its significant perils. Analysts at Standard Chartered have issued warnings, estimating that a sustained drop in Bitcoin’s price below $90,000 could render half of all corporate bitcoin treasuries underwater.
Such a scenario could trigger severe liquidity crises for companies that over-leveraged themselves to buy in at elevated prices. The inherent volatility of the asset class remains a fundamental risk that contrasts sharply with the stability of traditional treasury holdings.
