Dispersion Holdings - Launch of AQRU Platform

Press Release

1 December 2021

Dispersion Holdings PLC

("Dispersion" or "The Company") 

Launch of AQRU Platform

Dispersion (AQSE: DEFI), an incubator specialising in decentralised finance ("DeFi"), is pleased to announce today's launch of AQRU, an innovative platform which enables simple access to the competitive crypto yields available in DeFi.

AQRU is a consumer-facing platform that opens up the DeFi markets to the everyday investor. The platform, which will also be open to institutional investors, offers the trading of major cryptocurrencies Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) as well as three USD-pegged digital assets (USDT, USDC and DAI). It makes the conversion of fiat to cryptocurrency simple and understandable while also paying market-leading yields of up to 12% on held assets. The AQRU platform's wallet infrastructure is secured by Fireblocks, the industry leader in digital asset security.

AQRU was developed by Accru Finance Ltd, which was purchased by Dispersion in October 2021, for a consideration of £8.75 million by way of the issue of 250 million shares in the Company. This was Dispersion Holdings' biggest investment since its IPO and is aimed at providing Dispersion with a significant exposure to the rapidly developing market for yield farming from digital assets.

AQRU will operate as a retail DeFi arm of the Company. Returns generated on cryptocurrency remain high, as market participants are willing to pay high levels of interest to borrow assets they struggle to access by traditional means.

The AQRU online platform has been launched to provide investors with a one-stop facility to hold, trade as well as generate attractive yields from their digital assets by lending these out through AQRU's fully insured facility.

The service has been launched to a global audience, with some regulatory exclusions, and offers a yield-generating service for Bitcoin, Ethereum and US Dollar Stablecoin.  No services will be offered in any territory where it would be unlawful to do so. The platform will not be open to UK based investors until approval from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to operate in the UK has been granted. An anti-money laundering registration was filed with the FCA in April and an application with the Central Bank of Ireland is underway to further expand AQRU's regulatory footprint.   

Philip Blows, Chief Executive, commented: "We are delighted to launch our AQRU platform, which allows consumers to benefit from the trading and yield farming of cryptocurrencies. We believe there is strong global demand for a simple to use and transparent service that enables investors to generate additional returns from their cryptocurrency assets.

"With nothing more than a smartphone, users will have access to the decentralised markets with none of the complexity and expense that has been the case until now. We are thrilled to streamline and democratise finance by providing a service that will be at the cutting edge of the DeFi revolution."

This announcement contains information which, prior to its disclosure, was inside information as stipulated under Regulation 11 of the Market Abuse (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019/310 (as amended).

The directors of Dispersion Holdings plc accept responsibility for this announcement.

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About Dispersion Holdings PLC:

Dispersion Holdings is an incubator specialising in opportunities in decentralised finance (DeFi), a disruptive technology using blockchain and cryptocurrencies to remove financial intermediaries from transactions, creating a cheaper, more efficient and more secure way of providing financial services. Listed on the Aquis Exchange in London, we apply our expertise to the business operations and strategic plans of FinTech companies in the UK, USA and Canada, and act as an accelerator for start-ups and early-stage companies. www.dispersionholdings.com

Notes to Editors:

Yield farming: Also known as liquidity mining, yield farming is the process of staking cryptocurrency assets into unique smart contracts/DeFi protocols with the goal of earning interest yield on the deposited asset, as well as "mining" reward tokens, often referred to as governance tokens. These smart contracts, sometimes referred to as liquidity pools, lend or provide the necessary liquidity to facilitate DeFi applications, like decentralized exchanges, and in turn receive a percentage of the fees, as well as incentive rewards. Yield is most commonly generated through lending and automated market making.

Staking: Most often refers to the process of validating transactions through Proof-Of-Stake mining (POS) on POS blockchains. POS mining typically involves locking funds in a smart contract or node to receive staking rewards for supporting the security and operations of a blockchain network.