Exclusive: TigerWit sold, rebranding as Calico
FNG Exclusive… FNG has learned that London based, FCA licensed Retail FX and CFDs broker TigerWit is planning to relaunch under a new name, Calico Capital. The rebranding and relaunch comes following a failed sale of the company in 2022, a successful sale now (to a different buyer) bringing in fresh capital, and a breakup with the company’s now-former Chinese partners who ran the offshore TigerWit brand out of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines for the past five years.
TigerWit background
TigerWit was founded about 10 years ago by Chinese entrepreneurs Summer Xu and Weilong Song, and initially focused on China and the Far East. In 2016 the company’s UK subsidiary TigerWit Limited (then named Mercor Index Limited) received an FCA license, with plans to expand in the UK and Europe. TigerWit UK also received an Electronic Money Institution authorisation from the FCA in 2021.
In 2018 control of TigerWit Limited (i.e. TigerWit UK) was taken over by Tim Hughes, who was previously Managing Director UK at leading London based online broker IG Group (LON:IGG). Mr. Hughes has since also acted as CEO of TigerWit UK. The UK, FCA licensed company has been operated separately (at website uk.tigerwit.com) from the offshore TigerWit LLC, a Saint Vincent and the Grenadines based company (at tigerwit.com), which continued to be managed by Summer Xu and Weilong Song under an agreement with Mr. Hughes to continue using the TigerWit brand for non-UK client CFD business.
Sale of TigerWit to FTX
TigerWit UK never really took off, with revenues topping out at £2.4 million in 2020. By 2022 revenues fell to £1.6 million, and the company posted a loss of £148K. During 2022 Tim Hughes came to an agreement to sell TigerWit to crypto exchange FTX – FTX initially took a minority interest in the company, with a binding agreement to take full control of TigerWit once necessary regulatory approvals were received. Note that we had been reporting exclusively at the time that FTX was also expanding in Cyprus and hiring FX and CFD industry personnel, with plans to expand in the sector.
FTX had also committed at the time to provide the necessary funding to keep TigerWit UK in operation for 12 months, or until the sale transaction was completed.
However when FTX filed for bankruptcy in late 2022, the deal with (and support from) FTX fell apart, with the minority interest returned to Tim Hughes. In March 2023 TigerWit UK halted operations, while the company “considered its options.”
New investor Jim Manczak
Enter a New Zealand based, Delaware domiciled investment company called Investor Limited, run by former FxPro executive Jim Manczak.
Jim Manczak and Investor Limited have agreed to acquire control of TigerWit Limited (subject to FCA regulatory approval which has been applied for) from Tim Hughes, and have agreed to inject new capital into the company. The company is changing its name to Calico Capital Limited, and plans to relaunch operations later this year using the Calico brand. (A placeholder website is already up at calico.capital). Initially the plan for Calico is to target the B2B and professional trader market, with an eye to expanding into retail in 2024.
Breakup with TigerWit offshore
New owners Jim Manczak and Investor Limited have decided to close down the global (i.e. offshore) TigerWit business, which apparently has led to some problems with the company’s former controlling shareholders Summer Xu and Weilong Song, who as per above had continued to run the TigerWit LLC offshore entity (and website tigerwit.com) under agreement with Mr. Hughes for the past five years. TigerWit LLC has apparently halted providing quotes to clients on MT4 (since, it appears, August 22), and has been refusing client attempts to withdraw cash.
Jim Manczak and his team have now launched a new website at tigerwitgroup.com, which warns that the offshore companies TigerWit Group Limited and TigerWit LLC “do NOT provide forex trading, brokerage or financial services. DO NOT TRADE WITH TIGERWIT.” Furthermore, the site states that “TigerWit Group Limited and TigerWit LLC (Saint Vincent) plus affiliated trading platforms have no authority or licensing to provide forex trading or brokerage services in China or any other jurisdiction. People wishing to raise a complaint are encouraged to contact their local authorities and register their concerns through the channels provided.”
In an FAQ page on that site, in response to a question “Is my money safe?”, the website states that “TigerWit has fully segregated funds to meet all client withdrawals in full accordance with our general practices. 100% of client deposits are safe and secure. To make a withdrawal, you should contact us by email support@tigerwitgroup.com.”
Jim Manczak and his team have also demanded that Messrs Xu and Song take down the tigerwit.com website, but for now it remains live.
We will continue to follow this story as it unfolds.