Animoca Brands and Currenc Group have mutually suspended talks on their proposed reverse merger, with both companies saying on Tuesday that the time still needed to close the deal no longer fits their near-term plans.

A reverse merger allows a private company to go public by combining with an already-listed company rather than pursuing a traditional initial public offering.

In a joint statement published on Animoca's website, the companies said the suspension followed a review that found the timeline required to complete the transaction no longer aligned with what they described as "evolving market conditions." Both sides left the door open, however, saying they may revisit the merger "if and when conditions permit." For now, the suspension leaves Animoca privately held and Currenc trading as an independent Nasdaq-listed company.

Why the Animoca–Currenc deal was suspended

Animoca was delisted from the Australian Securities Exchange in 2020 after regulators scrutinized its crypto activities and has been privately held since. The merger with Currenc (NASDAQ: CURR) was an opportunity for the company to fast-track its reentry into the market.

The deal was first announced on 3 November 2025 through a non-binding term sheet — an agreement in principle that does not legally obligate either party to complete the deal. Under the proposed structure, Currenc was to acquire all of Animoca's shares via an Australian scheme of arrangement, a formal restructuring mechanism under Australian corporate law that requires shareholder approval and court sign-off. According to the original filing, Animoca shareholders would have ended up holding roughly 95% of the combined company, leaving existing Currenc investors with about 5%. The merged entity would have kept the Animoca Brands name, giving NASDAQ investors exposure to a portfolio of more than 600 digital-asset companies.

In May, a Currenc statement confirmed that closing was targeted for the third quarter, after both companies extended an exclusivity window through 30 June 2026 and set a long stop date of 31 December — an outside deadline for completing the transaction.

Will Animoca eventually be relisted?

Yat Siu, Animoca's co-founder and executive chairman, has said that the company will "continue to pursue optimal routes to a public listing" as it works to satisfy the audit and compliance steps a major exchange demands.

Animoca published an audit of its 2023 financial statements on 17 July, its second such release of 2026, and said preparation for the audit of its 2024 financial statements is underway. Notably, in 2022, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission convicted and fined the company over unlodged annual reports covering 2019 through 2021.

Meanwhile, in April, Cryptopolitan reported that Currenc became one of the first Nasdaq-listed firms to put its own ordinary shares on-chain, tokenizing CURR stock on Ethereum and Solana through Securitize. Earlier this month, its Currenc Capital subsidiary signed a consulting agreement to help Nasdaq-listed Mint tokenize a slice of its shares.