On September 20, 2022 Chinese crypto billionaire, Jihan Wu bought Le Freeport, a high-security storage and display facility in Singapore. As per the people with knowledge of the matter, Bitdeer Technologies Holdings spent $40 Million on the vault, dubbed Asia’s Fort Knox.
Wu Acquires Yves Bouvier’s Le Freeport
Le Freeport was previously owned by the Swiss Art Dealer, Yves Bouvier. He then sold his Singapore freeport at a fire sale price of $28.4 Million, which is less than half of his investments.
However, Bouvier’s spokesperson refused to comment over this. On the other hand Wu confirmed the transaction in a text message to answer queries from Bloomberg News. This purchase took place in July 2022, as per the accounting regulator records.
Moreover, Bloomberg’s news reporters detail that Bouvier and other shareholders of Freeport “got nearly S$5 Million from the sale.” And, there is no update on what Bitdeer would aim to do with the facility.
It must be noted that Wu has long-term residency in Singapore and is one of the most influential people in the digital asset markets. He also co-founded the world’s largest miner, Bitmain Technologies.
The price at which Wu purchased the freeport shows a sharp discount to the $100 Million that cost to build the facility, situated on a large tract of government land along the direct access to the runways of Changi Airport.
Additionally, Wu is “fully committed” to support the Group of Freeport and expand the facilities along with the services. The Chief Executive Officer of Freeport, Lincoln Ng signed a letter that represents no disruptions.