Institutional Roundup: FalconX Bitcoin Exchange Raises $210 Million, TaxBit Becomes a Unicorn

The cryptocurrency industry is attracting an increasing number of institutional players. This is reflected in new investments in infrastructure and the growing attention companies devote to Bitcoin as an asset class. The most important events of the past weeks are in ForkLog’s roundup.

Fintech company Chime raised $750 million at a $25 billion valuation

The fintech company Chime Financial, which provides free mobile banking, raised $750 million in a new round of financing. The company’s valuation reached $25 billion.

The funding round was led by Sequoia Capital Global Equities, with participation from SoftBank, Tiger Global, General Atlantic and Dragoneer. To date, the company has raised $2.3 billion in financing.

The funds will help Chime Financial conduct an initial public offering (IPO) in the first half of 2022.

Infrastructure company Fireblocks raises $310 million at a $2 billion valuation

Institutional-focused infrastructure company Fireblocks raised $310 million in a Series D round. Investors valued it at over $2 billion.

Fireblocks was backed by leading investors: Sequoia Capital, Stripes, Spark Capital, Coatue, DRW and SCB 10X—the venture arm of Thailand’s oldest bank, Siam Commercial Bank.

The funds will be used to preserve independence, develop the platform, and build an ‘industry-standard backend for digital assets for traditional financial institutions’.

FalconX Bitcoin exchange raises $210 million at a $3.75 billion valuation

The institutional-focused cryptocurrency exchange FalconX raised $210 million in a Series C round. The company’s market valuation reached $3.75 billion.

The round was led by Altimeter Capital, Sapphire Ventures, B Capital Group and Tiger Global Management, with participation from Mirae Asset and Amex Ventures.

The funds will be used to launch new products, explore potential acquisitions, and hire new staff, including key executives.

TaxBit becomes a unicorn after $130 million Series B round

The TaxBit company, a developer of software for tax calculation and crypto accounting automation, raised $130 million in a Series B round. The startup joined the unicorn club with a valuation of $1.33 billion.

The round was led by venture firms IVP and Insight Partners. Participants included Tiger Global, Paradigm, 9Yards Capital, Sapphire Ventures, Madrona Venture Group, and Morgan Creek Digital co-founder Anthony Pompliano.

The funds will be used to scale the ecosystem of tax and accounting offerings for corporate, consumer and government sectors.

Genesis Digital Assets raises $125 million

The American mining company Genesis Digital Assets raised $125 million in equity financing to support expanding its business in the United States and in Northern Europe.

The funds will be used to purchase equipment and build data centres in the United States and Nordic countries.

Matrixport, led by Jihan Wu, raises $100 million at a $1 billion valuation

The crypto-financial firm Matrixport raised $100 million in a Series C round. Its valuation exceeded $1 billion.

The round was led by C Ventures and K3 Ventures. Investors also included Qiming, CE Innovation Capital, Tiger Global, Cachet Group, Palm Drive Capital, Foresight Ventures and A&T Capital.

The funds will be used to enhance the product lineup and improve user experience on the platform.

CoinDCX Bitcoin exchange raises $90 million

The CoinDCX Bitcoin exchange raised 6.7 billion rupees (about $90 million), becoming India’s first cryptocurrency unicorn. With the new investment, the company is valued at $1.1 billion.

The funding round was led by B Capital Group, co-founded by Eduardo Saverin. Other investors include Coinbase Ventures, Polychain Capital, Block.one and Jump Capital.

A portion of the funds will be allocated to expanding the workforce over the next six months.

Prime Trust raises $64 million

Based in Nevada, the crypto custodian and fintech infrastructure provider Prime Trust raised $64 million in a Series A round.

Investors included Mercato Partners, Samsung Next, Nationwide, Commerce Ventures, Ayon Capital, Kraken Ventures, STCAP, s20 Capital, Seven Peaks Ventures, Diverse Angels, University Growth Fund and Nevcaut Ventures.

Eco raises $60 million

The fintech startup Eco from the United States raised $60 million in a funding round led by Activant Capital and L Catterton.

The round also included participation from Andreessen Horowitz, Lightspeed Venture Partners, LionTree Partners, Valor Equity Partners and others.

The funds will be used to double headcount in the coming six months. The team currently comprises 25 employees.

NFT marketplace MakersPlace raises $30 million

The non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace MakersPlace closed a Series A round worth $30 million. It was led by Bessemer Venture Partners and Pantera Capital.

The round also included participation from Uncork Capital, Draper Dragon Digital Assets, 9Yards Capital, Coinbase Ventures, Sony Music Entertainment and others.

The funds will be used to expand the team, recruit new artists, and pursue international expansion.

Peter Thiel’s Fund Leads Vauld’s $25 Million Round

The India-based cryptocurrency startup Vauld raised $25 million in a Series A round. It was led by Valar Ventures, the PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel’s firm.

Joining the round were Pantera Capital, Coinbase Ventures, CMT Digital, Gumi Cryptos, Compound founder Robert Leshner and Cadenza Capital.

The funds will be used to scale the team, obtain licenses in various countries, and expand services.

Live streaming service Livepeer on the Ethereum blockchain raises $20 million

The decentralized video streaming platform Livepeer, built on the Ethereum blockchain, raised $20 million in a Series B round.

It was led by Digital Currency Group’s Barry Silbert, with participants including Northzone, Coinbase Ventures, CoinFund, Animal Ventures and 6th Man Ventures.

The funds will be used to accelerate go-to-market, expand technical capabilities, support other blockchains, and grow the team from 18 to roughly 30 people by the end of 2021.

Billionaire Steve Cohen invests in Messari in a $21 million round

The venture firm Point72 Ventures, founded by billionaire Steve Cohen, led a $21 million Series A round for Messari.

Participants included Coinbase Ventures, Alameda Capital, Blockchain Ventures, Galaxy Digital, Gemini Frontier Fund, Kraken Ventures, as well as crypto funds CMS Holdings, Nascent and Underscore VC. The individual investor was Diogo Monica, president of Anchorage crypto bank.

The funds will be used to expand the business beyond the United States, grow the team and the number of DAO partners to deepen analytics in the space.

Also on ForkLog:

• PwC noted consolidation of venture capital in the crypto industry.
• In 2021, gaming crypto companies raised $476 million.
• Bank of America and Coinbase Ventures became strategic investors in Paxos.

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