Nasdaq Stocks Leap Therapeutics: Trading Volatility Leads to Halts Despite 550% Jump
The stock of Leap Therapeutics (Nasdaq: LPTX) has experienced repeated halts in trading following the company's recent private placement funding, led by Winklevoss Capital. The halt was due to the sudden surge of almost 550% on November 12, with the stock reaching an intraday high of $2.48.
Leap Therapeutics recently secured a significant investment of $58.88 million in a private placement led by Winklevoss Capital, founded in 2012 by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, Bitcoin billionaires. The twins have been involved in various ventures since their establishment of Gemini cryptocurrency exchange in 2014. They also had a notable copyright lawsuit with Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg.
Following the investment, Leap Therapeutics announced its transformation into Cypherpunk Technologies Inc., focusing on accumulating Zcash's native coin, ZEC. This significant shift was made possible by using $50 million of the private placement proceeds to purchase 203,775.27 ZEC at an average price of $245.37 per coin.
The Investment in Zcash
Cameron Winklevoss explained that the LPTX stock has been halted due to volatility, leaving traders wondering about the reasons behind this high volatility and sudden jump in trading value. "TradFi trying to hold us back!" he stated, highlighting the possible motives behind the company's recent decisions.
The company, as a result of its private placement funding led by Winklevoss Capital, initiated a significant change in its path. It has since shifted focus toward crypto treasury operations, specifically accumulating Zcash native coins. The purchase cost exceeded $49 million, with ZEC being bought at nearly $50 million average price.
Investor Confidence and Market Trends
As more details emerged surrounding Leap Therapeutics decision to abandon their traditional biotech business for a crypto-centric path, the news garnered substantial attention within investor communities worldwide. Analysts, market observers and commentators had started monitoring this major development, considering potential impacts of this shift.
Although initially trading under scrutiny, due in part to extreme volatility, it appears that Leap Therapeutics has successfully adapted its model and continues evolving as an entity operating mainly with cryptocurrency operations including, but not limited, ZEC.