Crypto-focused merchant bank Galaxy Digital recently led a fundraising around for crypto-lending firm BlockFi. The funds accrued were $52.5 million. Mike Novogratz, the CEO of Galaxy Digital confirmed his excitement in a tweet. He said” With the new round of investment, the startup will reportedly be able to expand its business outside the U.S. and to support more cryptocurrencies. Blockfi offers corporate and retail loans on their digital asset holdings. The firm was launched in January 2018 by Zac Prince, former Senior Vice President of lease payments operator Cognical.It received funds of $1.55 million from Kenetic Capital, ConsenSyns Ventures, and SoFi in February.
Prince stated that company had faced a high demand for crypto lending services. The investment by Novogratz is a strategic step towards BlockFI delivering credit access across the crypto ecosystem. He further elaborated “ “The support we’ve seen from existing clients and investors highlight the strong demand for leveraging Bitcoin or Ether for low-cost USD loans. We look forward to expanding our services to support more cryptocurrencies and more geographic markets in the near future.”
Novogratz has also predicted that mass adoption of blockchain and crypto is still five to six years away. The Wall Street exec said that more institutions would enter the industry “in the next two to three years,” claiming that “without that, we will be running in circles.”
