chepicap.com
Block.one, the company behind EOS, has announced that it will be attempting a buyback of stock. CoinTelegraph reports that the company is seeking to regain around 10 percent of its stock, and backers stand to get a significant return on their investment.
The buyback will reflect a new valuation of the company, which is currently judged to be worth around $2.3 billion, compared to $40 million in its 2017 seed round. Block.one is offering investors $1,500 per share, for shares that were purchased for around $22.50 - a return of over 6500%. Mike Novogratz's Galaxy Digital was the first major investor to sell back its shares in Block.one, after receiving an offer back in April.
Other investors who could profit from this deal include PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel, Bitmain co-founder Jihan Wu and leading hedge fund managers Alan Howard and Louis Bacon. They all bought into EOS back in July 2018, around the time of its mainnet launch.
Block.one has previously attempted to repurchase 15% of its outstanding shares. At the time they were priced at $1,200 each, and the company reportedly succeeded in buying back 13.8% at a total cost of around $300 million.
These buybacks have been met with criticism from some observers. According to Nic Carter of blockchain investment firm Castle Island Ventures, "private buyback of this sort signals to me that the company believes that there are few growth opportunities in sight, or badly wants to consolidate ownership and avoid outside scrutiny".