Crypto ETP Firm 21Share is Parent Raises USD 25m, pushing valuation to USD 2b
Cryptocurrency investment product company 21.co raised USD 25 million in a funding round that gave it a valuation of USD 2 billion and the necessary cash to develop more Cryptocurrency product offerings and expand its geographic reach after a recent foray into the U.S. markets.
The Zurich, Switzerland-based cryptocurrency firm is the newly formed parent company of 21Shares, one of the largest Cryptocurrency Exchange-traded product (ETP) issuers. 21.co also owns Onyx, a proprietary technology software used to issue and operate ETPs. 21Shares is affiliated with token provider Amun.
The round, led by hedge fund Marshall Wace, comes as the Cryptocurrency Market faces what some analysts are calling a Cryptocurrency Winter. The overall Digital Currency Market capitalization has slumped to less than USD 1 trillion from about USD 3 trillion in November and bitcoin (BTC), the largest crypto, has dropped 59% this year. Cryptocurrency related firms grappling with lower crypto prices have been forced to cut costs, with casualties including investment fund Three Arrows Capital and crypto lender Celsius Network.
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Despite that environment, profitability, sales generation and growth in assets under management (AUM) all allowed for the latest fundraising, told 21Shares co-founders Hany Rashwan and Ophelia Snyder. The cryptocurrency firm wants to expand outside of Europe and Australia and into the Middle East. It reached a peak AUM of USD 3 billion in November 2021, before Cryptocurrency is retreat.
“We discovered bear markets to be incredible times to build,” Rashwan said in an interview.
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Other investors in the round include Collab+Currency, Quiet Ventures, ETFS Capital and Valor Equity Partners.
In May, 21Shares launched two Cryptocurrency ETPs in the U.S. to capitalize on global demand. 21Shares has also teamed up with Cathie Wood is Ark Investment Management in optimisms of listing a spot Bitcoin Exchange-traded fund (ETF) in the United States.
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