Detail from BTC China’s banner.
Litecoin insiders are hardly surprised by the move, as Litecoin was invented by Charles Lee, the younger brother of BTC China’s CEO Bobby Lee. The site’s banner ad gives a nod to this, reading “Brothers Reunited,” working as much for the Lee siblings as it does for BTC and LTC.
Speaking with CoinDesk, Bobby Lee noted:
“My brother has been a big advocate. We really hope to spark the market for litecoin trading in China. So for those people who know, that phrase is a play on words, because in some sense, litecoin is also bitcoin’s younger sibling when it comes to cryptocurrency. Dual meanings.”
“When we did a user survey back in November last year, litecoin trading was the most highly requested feature, the number one request.”
Lee created Litecoin as the “silver to Bitcoin’s gold” in 2011, and his creation is perhaps the best known virtual currency after Bitcoin. Until this week, when it was outpaced by Iceland’s Auroracoin, it was the third largest virtual currency by total market capitalization, with just under half a billion dollars total market cap.
There is clearly demand for Litecoin in China. Prices have risen nearly 20% since yesterday, while Bitcoin has meandered slightly down. Prior to the announcement by BTC China, Litecoin was trading at around $14. At present, it is trading at $17.50, with an early spike reaching nearly $19.
