The founder of The Smarter Web Company, the South West tech firm pioneering the adoption of Bitcoin payments, today spoke of his pride in seeing the firm’s shares make their debut on the London Stock Exchange’s main market.
Andrew Webley, who launched the firm in Bristol in 2009, said the move not only showed how far the business had come but its current “strength, discipline and maturity”.
The Smarter Web Company, which specialises in web design, web development and online marketing services, adopted a policy two years ago of accepting payment in Bitcoin, saying it believed the cryptocurrency would form a core part of the future of the global financial system.
Today it is the UK’s largest publicly traded company holding Bitcoin on its balance sheet.
Last year it announced it was to move from the Aquis Stock Exchange Growth Market to the London Stock Exchange’s Main Market. Trading in its 350m shares began at 8am today.
Webley, now the firm’s CEO, spent just over 10 years working in e-commerce and online sales at Bristol-based stockbroking group Hargreaves Lansdown, said ahead of the debut: “Seeing our UK-born business commence trading on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange will be a milestone of which I am immensely proud.
“It reflects not only how far we have come since our start-up days, but also the strength, discipline and maturity of the company today.
“We remain committed to building a British success story that contributes meaningfully to the UK economy, showcases the ambition of the UK’s entrepreneurial spirit, and demonstrates the role that Bitcoin, as a form of digital capital, can play in supporting the growth of modern businesses.”
The Smarter Web Company’s shares will continue to trade on the OTCQB Venture Market in the US and will remain accessible to German investors through its unsponsored depositary receipt listing on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.