Cryptocurrency lending firm BlockFi Lending LLC announced today it has raised $350 million in new funding on a valuation of $3 billion to add features to its product suite, accelerate expansion into new markets and provide capital for select acquisition opportunities.
The Series D round was led by Bain Capital Ventures, DST Global, Pomp Investments and Tiger Global and included Susquehanna Government Products, LLLP, Bracket Capital, Paradigm, Valar Ventures, Morgan Creek Digital, Akuna Capital, PJC, Hudson River Trading, ParaFi Capital, Jump Capital, Pacific Century Group, Gaingels, Third Prime, Kenetic, CMS Holdings, Breyer Capital, The Venture Collective and Castle Island Ventures
Founded in 2017, BlockFi is a nonbank lender that offers crypto-backed loans, allowing investors to borrow against their cryptocurrency holdings as equity. The loans allow applicants to unlock up to 50% of the value of their assets in U.S. dollars and can be used for any purpose, from paying off credit card debt to buying a home.
The money lent by BlockFi comes from investors who deposit their cryptocurrency holdings in an interest-bearing account that promises returns of up t0 8.6% annually.
BlockFi offers a exchange service that allows users to buy and sell digital assets directly with support for bitcoin, Ethereum, Link, Litecoin, PaxG and multiple stablecoins. In addition, the company offers a bitcoin rewards credit card, an investment trust and private client services in Asia.
With cryptocurrencies, led by bitcoin, currently booming, so to have BlockFi’s fortunes. The company’s client base grew by a multiple of 10 times year-over-year in 2020 and has doubled again since the end of 2020. The company now has 225,000 clients, monthly revenue of $50 million and has more than $15 billion in assets on its platform with a zero loss rate across its lending platform.
The investor interest in BlockFi has also been ongoing. This funding follows rounds of $50 million in August and $30 million in February.
“Digital assets will continue to democratize finance, serve as a hedge against inflation and expansionary monetary policy and promote innovation in financial technology and accessibility to financial services,” Zac Prince, co-founder and chief executive officer of BlockFi said in a statement.
Including the new round, BlockFi has raised $508.7 million to date, according to Crunchbase.
Image: BlockFi
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