CoinMENA CEO explains that the sale of the crypto exchange was an exit before regulatory premium eroded
In an interview with Wamda, Talal Tabaa clarified the reason for the sale noting that it was a deliberate decision to exit before the crypto exchanges’ regulatory premium eroded. As such the sale was not a scale driven outcome but a capital structure decision.
CoinMENA’s sale to Paribu with a reported valuation of up to $240 million after raising roughly $20 million in total funding without closing Series A, at a time when regulatory licenses have become more common and competition has intensified. Today the UAE has more than 40 licensed entities, when CoinMENA was licensed there was just a handful.
In the interview Tabaa states, “My job as CEO is towards my shareholders. They trusted me with their money, and my responsibility is to maximize value for them.”
“We had the option of doing a pretty big Series A with one of the leading companies in crypto,” Tabbaa said. “But we decided not to do it. We were in a unique position to get a win for the team, a win for the investors, and a win for the buyer.”
That decision was underpinned by restraint. CoinMENA never allowed its valuation to drift into speculative territory. “The highest valuation we ever did was less than $100 million,” Tabbaa said, noting that this discipline ultimately expanded the pool of credible acquirers and allowed the deal to be structured around revenue multiples rather than future promises.
All investors exited in cash, employees benefited from a sizeable ESOP allocation representing roughly 18% of the company, and the buyer avoided inheriting a distorted cap table.
Talal will continue to oversee the operations of CoinMENA as CEO. The platform serves 1.5 million users in 45 countries and supports 50 cryptocurrencies. Tabbaa expects consolidation in digital assets to broaden beyond exchanges into payments, brokerage infrastructure, and regulated financial services. As institutional flows and stablecoin usage accelerate across emerging markets, infrastructure—not hype—is likely to attract the next wave of capital.
