BIGG Digital Assets, NEL ASA, BYD: The Bitcoin Crypto Rally Continues!

BIGG Digital Assets - Crypto trading volume is exploding

Canadian security and IT firm BIGG Digital Assets can only celebrate at the moment. For one thing, demand for its forensic security software is growing rapidly as more and more governments look to get on top of the crypto activity. Although most transactions are probably clean, there is considerable criminal energy in ripping off unsophisticated investors, especially in the altcoin sector. Bitcoin always serves as the payment currency here, and its paths document the actions of the new players.

But the Canadian crypto platform Netcoins, acquired in 2020, is also increasingly fun. Yesterday the revenue figures for December came in and, as expected, a new sequential revenue record of USD 33 million was set, an increase of over 1000% year-on-year and, plus 42% month-on-month. Active users were also outstanding, up 883% year-on-year, with assets under management increasing thirty-fold.

Mitchell Demeter, President of Netcoins, commented, "December was an excellent month for Netcoins trading as we experienced significant month-over-month growth across all major metrics on the back of a record-setting November. We continued to expand our marketing efforts with great success, reaching more potential Canadian crypto traders and investors each day."

And here's the kicker: US-based Coinbase, the largest crypto platform in the world, is currently having its numbers reviewed by the SEC with the goal of a listing soon. If Coinbase manages to do this, it will mean an immediate boost in the value of the Netcoins stake within the BIGG Group. From this perspective, a valuation of CAD 70 million seems ridiculous. We wouldn't be surprised if this makes BIGG the top pick of 2021. Current price CAD 0.50 - a few pieces should be collected here in passing!

NEL ASA - Faster, higher, further

Another deal with its own subsidiary. Norway's NEL ASA has been awarded a contract to supply a 20 MW electrolyzer. The customer is the Danish Company Everfuel A/S. The green hydrogen production plant will be built next to the Fredericia refinery in Denmark. It will have a production capacity of up to 8 tons of green hydrogen per day, produced from renewable wind power. Storage capacity will be a phenomenal 10 tons, making it one of the most extensive H2 storage facilities built to date.

"This is an important step towards building our green hydrogen production with the HySynergy electrolyzer in Fredericia, in close cooperation with Shell's refinery operations. It will feed hydrogen directly into the Everfuel value chain, which combines renewable energy production and hydrogen electrolysis with distribution to service stations and end-users. This is the core of our ambition to commercialize the green hydrogen value chain for zero-emission mobility," says Jacob Krogsgaard, CEO of Everfuel.

The agreement with Everfuel is still subject to board approval and is valued at EUR 7.2 million. Separately, Everfuel and NEL have signed the joint venture's final agreement to develop the hydrogen fuel market for retail and truck customers in Norway. Everfuel will acquire 51% of the shares in H2Fuel Norway AS, which will be renamed Everfuel Norway Retail AS from the beginning of 2021, and NEL will hold the remaining 49% of the shares. In turn, Norway's NEL ASA itself has a 19.9% stake in Everfuel. The NEL share currently knows only one direction: northward! Yesterday, the share reached a new high of EUR 2.94 - the market capitalization is thus a hefty EUR 4.1 billion for less than EUR 200 million in sales, corresponding to a factor of 20 and a negative P/E ratio. A hot ride!

BYD - Two pieces of good news at the same time for the new year

The Chinese high-tech Company BYD Company Ltd. has IT, automotive and renewable energy as its core business. BYD is one of the largest manufacturers of rechargeable batteries and housings for cell phones and has one of the world's highest market shares of nickel batteries, Li-ion batteries and chargers for cell phones.

BYD is also a benchmark Company in the e-mobility sector. The BYD Auto brand achieved a growth rate of over 100 percent for the fifth year in a row. In the electric car sector, BYD develops and produces all the necessary technologies. The Company launched green products early on, such as electric bicycles, energy storage solutions and solar power stations. Now, when Chinese e-car manufacturers come up with big numbers, BYD is among them. Three of the country's electric car makers posted significant gains in 2020: Nio, Li Auto and Xpeng. For example, Nio sold 43,728 electric cars last year, double the number it sold in 2019, an increase Tesla could not match.

But BYD is also in the game for buses. After Turin transport operator GTT cancelled a contract with Chinese manufacturer Yutong to supply 100 electric buses, BYD has now won the contract. The first 50 of these e-buses have already been firmly ordered from BYD and will be delivered to Turin in April 2021. The total value of the framework agreement now concluded is EUR 72 million. The batteries installed are reportedly designed for 400,000 kilometers, which corresponds to a useful life of eight years at an annual mileage of 50,000 kilometers - but the vehicles are to remain in service for at least ten years.

BYD was able to come up with a real hammer announcement yesterday. At the board meeting on December 30, it was decided that the holding subsidiary BYD Semiconductor Corporation plans to spin off and begin preparations for an independent stock market listing. A further boost for the share of +12% on yesterday alone, which already performed well last year - please watch out here for a possible short-term overheating of the BYD share!