UPDATED 12:58 EDT / OCTOBER 12 2021

BLOCKCHAIN

At $3B+ valuation, Celsius Network raises $400M in funding for crypto lending

The cryptocurrency lending firm Celsius Network LLC raised $400 million in new equity funding today as regulators in the U.S. continue to increase scrutiny on the crypto industry and especially lending.

The investment, at more than a $3 billion valuation, was led by growth equity firm WestCap Group and Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, a global investment group and Canada’s second-largest pension fund.

This funding comes weeks after regulators from Texas and New Jersey sought to determine if Celsius was engaged in offering and selling unregistered securities as part of its crypto lending offerings.

In an interview with Financial Times, Celsius Chief Executive Alex Mashinsky said he hoped that the new funding would reassure regulators of the company’s stability and its attention to compliance with the law as well as increase adoption.

“It’s not the $400 million,” he said. “It’s the credibility that comes with the people who wrote those cheques.”

Celsius intends to use the funding to continue expanding its products and services, focusing especially on institutional-grade offerings. Part of the proceeds would be used to double its team size from 486 employees to nearly 1,000 and expand globally through fuel strategic acquisitions. 

The company reported that as of Oct. 8, its total assets passed $25 billion and were held by more than 1 million registered customers on the platform. Celsius has paid more than $850 million in interest to users through its Earn product in just over three years.

Celsius is not alone in drawing regulatory attention with its products. BlockFi, another crypto lending company, was served cease and desist orders from three different states during July alone, including New Jersey, Alabama and Texas.

The Securities and Exchange Commission also threatened to sue Coinbase Inc., a crypto wallet and exchange,  in September over its intent to launch an interest-bearing product, Coinbase Lend.

Image: Pixabay

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