David Beckham-backed Prenetics Halts Bitcoin Purchases to Focus on IM8
Prenetics, the company backed by David Beckham, has stopped purchasing bitcoin and is shifting its focus to the digital health platform IM8 following a prolonged downturn in cryptocurrency markets.
The company will retain 510 bitcoin as a reserve asset, valued at nearly $45 million as of Tuesday afternoon ET, but halted new bitcoin purchases on December 4. Previously, Prenetics had planned to accumulate 1 bitcoin daily with a goal of reaching $1 billion in revenue and bitcoin holdings within five years.
IM8, launched about 11 months ago, has generated more than $100 million in annualized recurring revenue. Prenetics raised $48 million earlier this year, with a funding round on October 27 that included investors Kraken, Exodus, GPTX, and American Ventures to help scale IM8.
The company stated that IM8 offers the most promising path to shareholder value and it will not allocate new capital for bitcoin purchases, although it will hold its existing 510 BTC.
Prenetics shares have risen about 189% this year, contrasting with Bitcoin's price which is down roughly 5.6%, and Michael Saylor's MicroStrategy, which is down about 48% this year.
