Cryptocurrency Firm FTX Trading's Valuation Rises to $18 Billion After $900-Million Investment

FTX Trading said on Tuesday its valuation had risen to $18 billion (roughly Rs. 1,34,280 crores) after a $900-million (roughly Rs. 6,710 crores) funding round that included SoftBank Group and was one of the biggest fundraisers for a cryptocurrency company.

The round saw participation from more than 60 investors, including venture capital firm Sequoia Capital, private equity giant Thoma Bravo, Daniel Loeb's Third Point, the Paul Tudor Jones family, and British hedge fund manager Alan Howard.

The latest funding comes as investor sentiment towards cryptocurrencies has somewhat soured after an initial euphoria earlier this year due to mounting regulatory concerns globally.

Binance, another major cryptocurrency exchange, has faced scrutiny from regulators in Britain, Germany, Japan, and Hong Kong. The United States is also investigating the exchange, according to a media report.

The tightening scrutiny has weighed on Bitcoin's price, with the most popular cryptocurrency on Tuesday falling below $30,000 (roughly Rs. 22 lakhs) for the first time in a month. Bitcoin price in India stood at Rs. 23 lakhs as of 1:30pm IST on July 21.

Founded and led by Sam Bankman-Fried, a 29-year-old crypto billionaire, FTX is the owner and operator of the FTX.COM cryptocurrency exchange.

The two-year-old company said it has more than 1 million users and averages about $10 billion (roughly Rs.74,570 crores) in trading volume per day, with revenue surging more than tenfold this year.

FTX, which also counts celebrity couple Tom Brady and Gisele Bundchen among its backers, caters to a wide variety of traders, including retail investors, family offices and institutional traders.

It plans to use the fresh infusion of funds to expand its product offerings and for other investments.

Coinbase Ventures, the venture arm of recently listed cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase Global, also participated in the funding round.

© Thomson Reuters 2021