Lightspark is a developer of a crypto payment platform focused on enhancing the capabilities and utility of Bitcoin. The company aims to create an enterprise-ready infrastructure for open payments that can operate at scale on the internet. Its platform facilitates the acceptance of digital payments while allowing users to receive fiat currency immediately in exchange. By leveraging the lightning network, Lightspark enables businesses and developers to transform existing solutions and innovate new financial systems, services, and processes that are accessible to a broader audience.
FTX Trading LTD is a cryptocurrency derivatives exchange founded in 2017 and based in San Francisco, California. The platform caters to both professional traders and novices, offering features such as futures trading, leveraged tokens, and an over-the-counter portal. It supports a variety of financial products, including quarterly and perpetual futures for major cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, ether, and binance coin, as well as various altcoin and midcap indices. FTX was co-founded by Sam Bankman-Fried and Gary Wang, with initial backing from Alameda Research, which provided significant liquidity from the outset. The exchange aims to enhance the cryptocurrency trading experience and facilitate institutional adoption within the sector.
Developer of a crypto wallet designed for decentralized finance (Defi) and non-fungible tokens (NFTs). The company's platform works across multiple cryptocurrencies and blockchain platforms, which are based on transparent and secure digital ledger technology, enabling users a safe and easy to store, buy, send, receive, swap tokens, and collect NFTs on their platform.
Rain is a regulated cryptocurrency exchange based in the Middle East, providing a platform for buying, selling, and trading various digital currencies. The company operates within the framework of local regulations, ensuring compliance and security for its users. As a digital currency service provider, Rain aims to facilitate access to the growing cryptocurrency market, catering to both individual and institutional clients. Through its services, Rain supports the adoption of digital assets in the region, contributing to the overall development of the cryptocurrency ecosystem.
The AZTEC protocol uses cutting-edge zero-knowledge proofs to enable private transactions on Ethereum. This enables the logic of transactions to be validated, whilst keeping the values encrypted.
MoonPay is a financial technology company that specializes in creating payment infrastructure for the cryptocurrency sector. It offers a suite of products designed to facilitate the conversion between fiat currencies and cryptocurrencies, using various payment methods such as debit and credit cards, local bank transfers, and digital wallets like Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay. Operating in over 160 countries, MoonPay is recognized for its non-custodial payment system, which connects cryptocurrency exchange platforms with users, ensuring a streamlined transaction experience. The company is trusted by more than 250 leading wallets, websites, and applications to process payments and mitigate fraud, making it a key player in the crypto payments landscape.
BetDEX is a decentralized sports betting protocol that operates on a blockchain-based platform, allowing users to place bets on various sports using cryptocurrency. The protocol is designed to provide high speeds and low transaction costs while eliminating counterparty risk, ensuring a secure betting experience. As a permissionless platform, BetDEX enables developers to create their own applications on top of its infrastructure, fostering innovation in the sports betting space. By granting users control over their betting activities and allowing them to set their own prices, BetDEX offers a unique approach to engaging with sports and prediction markets.
CoinSwitch operates as a decentralized cryptocurrency exchange aggregator platform, offering users a streamlined experience for trading various cryptocurrencies. The platform lists over 250 coins and more than 6,000 currency pairs, allowing investors to easily compare prices and execute trades across multiple exchanges, including notable ones like Bittrex and Changelly. CoinSwitch enhances convenience by enabling users to buy cryptocurrencies with credit cards at competitive rates, consolidating all crypto transactions into a single interface. Since its inception, the platform has demonstrated significant trading volume, facilitating efficient and user-friendly cryptocurrency trading for its clientele.
Private Equity Round in 2021
Genesis Digital Assets is one of the world's largest and most experienced Bitcoin mining companies. Since 2013, the founders of the company have built over 20 industrial-scale mining farms, brought over 300,000 miners online, and mined over $1 billion in Bitcoin.
TaxBit is a company that specializes in cryptocurrency tax calculation and compliance services. It offers a software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform designed to assist investors, exchanges, and payment services with tax and accounting needs. The platform automates the collection and validation of financial information, integrates this data with existing financial systems, and supports robust examination processes. By streamlining digital asset accounting, TaxBit helps enterprises and government entities manage their tax obligations more efficiently.
Thesis, Inc. is a cryptocurrency venture studio that specializes in developing and funding decentralized products and protocols. Founded in 2014 and based in San Francisco, California, the company aims to bridge the gap between Bitcoin and real-world purchases while facilitating the use of private data on public blockchains. One of its notable developments is the tBTC protocol, which operates on the Keep network. Through its initiatives, Thesis seeks to empower individuals by creating innovative solutions within the cryptocurrency and decentralized technology sectors.
FTX Trading LTD is a cryptocurrency derivatives exchange founded in 2017 and based in San Francisco, California. The platform caters to both professional traders and novices, offering features such as futures trading, leveraged tokens, and an over-the-counter portal. It supports a variety of financial products, including quarterly and perpetual futures for major cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, ether, and binance coin, as well as various altcoin and midcap indices. FTX was co-founded by Sam Bankman-Fried and Gary Wang, with initial backing from Alameda Research, which provided significant liquidity from the outset. The exchange aims to enhance the cryptocurrency trading experience and facilitate institutional adoption within the sector.
Bitso SAPI de CV is a prominent online trading platform based in Mexico City, founded in 2014, that facilitates the buying and selling of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. As Mexico's first Bitcoin exchange, Bitso allows users to trade Bitcoin with the Mexican Peso, providing a secure and professional environment for cryptocurrency transactions. Users can fund their accounts through various options, including in-person deposits at designated locations across Mexico. The platform operates with a central limit order book, similar to traditional currency exchanges, ensuring efficient trade execution. Additionally, Bitso offers an API that enables third-party applications, such as trading and charting tools, to integrate with its platform, along with a dedicated mobile application for seamless trading activities.
Gitcoin is a platform founded in 2017, based in Boulder, Colorado, that enables open source developers to monetize their work effectively. It allows developers proficient in various programming languages, including Python, Rust, Ruby, JavaScript, Solidity, HTML, and CSS, to receive compensation when their contributions are utilized. Built on the Ethereum network, Gitcoin employs smart contracts to align incentives among participants in the ecosystem, facilitating value creation without reliance on traditional legal mechanisms. The platform fosters collaboration between developers, repo maintainers, and financiers, emphasizing the importance of community in enhancing the success of open source projects. By integrating the local tech community's #givefirst ethos with financial incentives, Gitcoin aims to advance the development of open source software and strengthen community ties.
Chainalysis Inc. is a blockchain analysis company that specializes in anti-money laundering software tailored for cryptocurrency businesses. Founded in 2014 and headquartered in New York, the company offers a range of products aimed at enhancing compliance and mitigating risks associated with cryptocurrency transactions. Key offerings include REACTOR, an interactive investigation tool that identifies offenders and visualizes data, and an API that provides transaction-based risk scoring by analyzing the sources and destinations of funds. Additionally, Chainalysis provides activity monitoring reports and diligence tools to help financial institutions assess emerging threats and estimate criminal revenues. Its services cater to government agencies, banks, exchanges, insurance companies, and cryptocurrency businesses, facilitating safer interactions within the decentralized financial landscape. The company also has offices in Copenhagen, Tokyo, and Singapore.
BlockFi, Inc. is a financial services company focused on providing wealth management products for cryptocurrency investors. Established in 2017 and headquartered in New York, it offers a range of services including the BlockFi Interest Account, which allows clients to earn interest on their holdings of Bitcoin, Ether, and Gemini Dollar. The company also facilitates secured loans in U.S. dollars, backed by clients' cryptocurrency assets, thereby enhancing liquidity in the blockchain asset market. In addition to lending and interest-earning accounts, BlockFi provides a trading platform for exchanging various cryptocurrency pairs and offers services tailored for institutional clients. By holding clients' digital assets with a registered custodian, BlockFi aims to deliver transparency and efficiency in digital financial markets. The company's mission is to address the evolving needs of both individual and institutional investors in the cryptocurrency space.
BlockFi is a secured non-bank lender that offers USD loans to crypto-asset owners who collateralize the loan with their crypto-assets. Their products bring additional liquidity to the blockchain asset sector and meet the needs of both individuals and institutions holding blockchain assets. BlockFi holds clients' Bitcoin and Ether with a registered custodian and issues loans in USD to their bank accounts. Currently operating in beta launch, lending in 35 US states to retail investors and companies. BlockFi’s mission is to provide liquidity, transparency, and efficiency to digital financial markets by creating products that meet the needs of consumers and corporations across the globe. They leverage a sophisticated infrastructure that integrates with multiple blockchains, they plan to expand their product set based on their retail and institutional client's needs.
CoinSwitch operates as a decentralized cryptocurrency exchange aggregator platform, offering users a streamlined experience for trading various cryptocurrencies. The platform lists over 250 coins and more than 6,000 currency pairs, allowing investors to easily compare prices and execute trades across multiple exchanges, including notable ones like Bittrex and Changelly. CoinSwitch enhances convenience by enabling users to buy cryptocurrencies with credit cards at competitive rates, consolidating all crypto transactions into a single interface. Since its inception, the platform has demonstrated significant trading volume, facilitating efficient and user-friendly cryptocurrency trading for its clientele.
TaxBit is a company that specializes in cryptocurrency tax calculation and compliance services. It offers a software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform designed to assist investors, exchanges, and payment services with tax and accounting needs. The platform automates the collection and validation of financial information, integrates this data with existing financial systems, and supports robust examination processes. By streamlining digital asset accounting, TaxBit helps enterprises and government entities manage their tax obligations more efficiently.
Diem is an independent, not-for-profit membership organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, focused on developing a global currency and financial infrastructure. Founded in 2019, Diem aims to empower individuals worldwide by creating a simple and accessible global currency. The organization works to evolve and scale its network while managing a reserve to support its currency. In addition to its financial objectives, Diem is committed to social impact, running a grant-making program that promotes financial inclusion efforts globally. To achieve its mission, Diem collaborates with the global community and partners with policymakers to address the challenges of financial access and promote economic empowerment.
Amber Group is a prominent cryptocurrency financial services provider headquartered in Hong Kong, established in 2017 by finance professionals with backgrounds from major institutions. The company facilitates the buying and selling of cryptocurrency products and offers a range of services including yield enhancement, collateralized lending, decentralized finance, execution services, and electronic market making. Operating globally, Amber Group serves over 200 institutional clients, engaging in significant trading activity across numerous electronic exchanges with an average daily trading volume between $100 million and $200 million. The firm is dedicated to optimizing investment flexibility and maximizing returns for its clients by leveraging advanced technology and quantitative research, thereby enhancing the overall crypto finance experience. In 2019, Amber Group secured $28 million in a Series A funding round, attracting investment from notable players in the cryptocurrency sector.
Matrixport is a comprehensive platform that facilitates the trading, custody, investment, and borrowing of cryptocurrency assets. Headquartered in Singapore, the company leverages advanced technology and industry expertise to provide a range of services, including digital currency trading, institutional custody, and cryptocurrency lending. Matrixport's mission is to foster a more open and equitable financial system by utilizing blockchain technologies. With a focus on client empowerment, the platform aims to offer innovative financial products to users worldwide, thereby enabling them to take control of their finances and capital.
O(1) Labs is a software development company working on Mina Protocol, a tiny, portable blockchain. The company uses cryptography and cryptocurrency to build computing systems that put people back in control of their digital lives. It addresses one of the fundamental challenges in cryptocurrency by creating the first succinct blockchain that enables decentralization at scale. O(1) Labs was founded in 2017 and is headquartered in San Francisco, California by Evan Shapiro and Izaak Meckler.
Tagomi Trading, LLC is a cryptocurrency trading platform focused on providing institutional clients with enhanced trade execution capabilities. Established in 2018 and headquartered in Albany, New York, with additional offices in New Jersey, Chicago, San Francisco, and London, the company utilizes sophisticated routing techniques and execution algorithms. These tools analyze both real-time and historical data to optimize trading decisions, allowing clients to minimize costs and maximize their returns. By prioritizing better execution, Tagomi aims to support its clients in achieving more efficient trading outcomes in the cryptocurrency market.
Coinbase, Inc. is an online platform that enables merchants, consumers, and traders to buy, sell, and store digital currencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin. Founded in 2012 and based in San Francisco, California, Coinbase provides various products and services, such as a user-friendly website for transactions, digital wallets, and merchant payment processing tools. The platform allows users to connect their bank accounts to facilitate the buying and selling of cryptocurrencies. Additionally, Coinbase Ventures serves as the company's investment arm, focusing on early-stage startups in the cryptocurrency and blockchain sectors. With a mission to create an open financial system for the world, Coinbase has positioned itself as a significant player in the digital currency market.