Cryptocurrency exchange operator Binance Holdings Ltd. has announced a $200 million investment in Forbes Media LLC, the publisher of Forbes magazine. Forbes is looking to list on the New York Stock Exchange through a merger with Magnum Opus, a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), under the ticker symbol “FRBS.” It appears that Binance will assume half of the $400 million investment, effectively making it one of the two biggest owners of the publication. As part of the deal, Patrick Hillmann, chief communications officer at Binance, and Bill Chin, head of Binance Labs, will join the Forbes board of directors. The latest investment is an indication that the crypto company will help advise Forbes on its digital asset and Web3 strategy, as Binance CEO Zhao believes that content generation will be a growth area for Web 3.0 development. “As Web3 and blockchain technologies move forward and the crypto market comes of age we know that media is an essential element to build widespread consumer understanding and education,” Binance CEO and founder Changpeng Zhao said in a statement. In 2020, Binance sued Forbes over defamation charges after the media outlet published leaked documents which revealed that a suit of corporations and subsidiaries would allow Binance to generate revenue without directly operating in the US In fact, the plan outlined in the documents appeared similar to the actual structure employed by Binance.US, the ...
