BitGold: Turning Digital Currency into Gold?

Jean-Philippe Vergne; Brady Burke

Product #:9B15M129_P

Supplier:Ivey

Discipline:Entrepreneurship, General Management, International Business

Setting:Canada, 2015

Details:Case (PDF) • 12 pages • 2015-12-23

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In April 2015, BitGold, an international savings and payments service, was undergoing the final steps towards its historic initial public offering, which would take place on Canada's TSX Venture Exchange and sought to raise between $10 million to $20 million in funding. With its blending of blockchain technology and aspects of digital currencies like bitcoin, BitGold was paving the way to the legitimation of future FinTech startups by going public. The important questions include: How can BitGold continue to maintain its legitimacy and growth on the heels of a tumultuous year for digital currencies, blockchain technology and bitcoin? Given the complexity of the regulatory landscape, how can BitGold build its customer base and expand internationally?

Learning Objectives

This case can be used for class discussions in courses involving strategy, financial services or marketing. Objectives are:

To assess the potential of a FinTech startup.
To identify the difficulties inherent in expanding into a new location, culture or regulatory environment.
To construct solutions for BitGold’s entrance into the United States.
To assess the role of regulation in the financial industry.
To create a user acquisition plan to build BitGold’s business.
To discuss the balance between regulation and innovation, particularly as it relates to financial technology, digital currencies such as bitcoin, and the blockchain.
To assess the value and meaning of currency.

BitGold: Turning Digital Currency into Gold?

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Learning Objectives