Crypto exchange KuCoin raises US$150 million to expand Web3 presence

Highlights

• Cryptocurrency exchange KuCoin has raised US$150 million in a Series B funding. 
• The funding drive was led by Jump Crypto, giving KuCoin a valuation of US$10 billion.
• The cryptocurrency exchange plans to use the funding to expand its Web3 presence.

Seychelles-based cryptocurrency exchange KuCoin raised US$150 million in a Series B funding on Tuesday. 

The funding was led by Jump Crypto, giving KuCoin a valuation of US$10 billion. Other participants included Circle Ventures, IDG Capitals and Matric Partners. 

KuCoin plans to use the funds to expand its Web3 presence. Its products include wallets, DeFi, and NFT platforms. Its investment arms are KuCoin Labs and KuCoin Ventures.

The company provides services like futures and margin trading, staking, lending, and passive yield generation. KuCoin is the fifth largest crypto exchange by trading volume, as per coinmarketcap.com. In November 2018, it secured US$20 million in Round A funding.

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The KuCoin’s news came when the global market was trading lower on Tuesday. The funding may suggest investors’ continued confidence in the market, which plunged around 27% in the last three months and declined 35.77% year-to-date.

Major cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin, were also down on Tuesday. Bitcoin (BTC) fell 4.32% to US$31,666.12, Terra (LUNA) fell 45.59% to US$32.50, and Ethereum (ETH) slid 0.11% to US$2,401.21 at 8:00 am ET.

Also Read: Why is the crypto market down?

The KuCoin crypto exchange was founded in 2017. It has a presence in more than 200 countries with over 18 million users. The exchange has listed more than 600 coins, with an Accumulated Trading Volume (ATV) of US$800 billion. It started its operations in Turkey in April.

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Despite the funding, the KuCoin token (KCS) fell 1.19% to US$14.86 at 8:15 am ET on Tuesday. The ERC-20 token has a circulating supply of US$98.38 million and a total supply of 145.88 million.

Also Read: Why Ampleforth Governance Token’s (FORTH) trading volume surged 2000%?

Bottom line:

According to Reuters, around US$10 billion in venture capital investment flowed into crypto projects globally in Q1, 2022. The current slump in the market coincided with various negative economic factors, including inflation, tight monetary policy, etc., that reduced investors’ appetite for speculative investments. 

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