After concluding its first-ever funding round, FTX.US, FTX’s American affiliate, has joined the crypto unicorn club. The crypto exchange, which launched in the United States in May 2020. So, revealed on Wednesday that it has received $400 million in outside financing at a $8 billion valuation. Thereby, making it one of the most valuable private crypto companies in the frothy market. FTX finished its own $420 million financing at a $25 billion value late last year. Of course, with billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried as a prominent partner. It is in the midst of raising a new round of financing. Of course, that may value the company at more than $30 billion.
Paradigm, Multicoin Capital, SoftBank, Lightspeed Venture Partners, and Temasek were among the investors in the round. So, which included both crypto and traditional venture capitalists.
FTX is one of several startups riding the retail trading wave to crypto riches. That’s, led by former Citadel Securities executive and current FTX.US President Brett Harrison. Since its beginnings, the company has grown to a user base of over 1 million users. That’s, with volume reaching $67 billion in 2021.
FTX.US, however, competes in a crowded market. Coinbase, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the United States, has a monthly volume of about $100 billion.
By the end of 2022, Harrison wants to have eaten into the volumes of competitors like Coinbase and increased FTX.US’s market share to a double-digit percentage.
Stocks and crypto derivatives, he believes, will help to boost that growth. The company formed FTX.US Derivatives after acquiring LedgerX, and it has openly stated interest in enabling stock trading, which is presently dominated by retail-focused Robinhood.
“They have a massive user base,” Harrison said of Robinhood. He explained that the popularity of the prominent trading app company demonstrates that clients demand a one-stop shop for all of their trading requirements.
“No one wants to deal with numerous banks and wire money between accounts,” he said. “It doesn’t have to be extremely profitable in stocks to be worthwhile.”
The number of crypto unicorns has been rapidly increasing, spurred in part by venture capitalists looking for possibilities in the space. FTX announced a $2 billion venture fund in early 2022, following in the footsteps of a16z and Paradigm, which both launched multibillion-dollar venture funds in 2021.
Related Posts – Ex-SEC Chair, Jay Clayton Believes Cryptocurrency Industry Is For Long Haul
A Digital European Project In Works With Italian Payments Provider Nexi
