The latest funding round propels Babel Finance into the ranks of the world’s most valuable crypto financial services companies in the institutional services sector
Babel Finance, the world’s leading wholesale crypto financial services provider, announced the completion of a US$80 million Series B financing round at a valuation of US$2 billion. The main investors in this round include Jeneration Capital and 10T Holdings, as well as existing shareholders Dragonfly Capital and BAI Capital. Other investors include Circle Ventures and a number of family offices in the Asia-Pacific region.
Babel Finance is one of the largest service providers to institutions in the crypto financial markets. The company limits its business to BTC, ETH and stablecoins, and serves a select clientele of about 500 customers. At the end of 2021, the firm had an outstanding loan balance of more than US$3 billion, an average monthly trading volume of US$800 million in derivatives, and had structured and traded more than US$20 billion in options products.
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The company’s major businesses are crypto lending and trading, with a focus on serving institutional clients, including crypto-native institutions, traditional financial institutions such as banks and investment funds, as well as ultra-high-net-worth accredited investors and family offices. Since its establishment in 2018, Babel Finance has been committed to the development of crypto financial services infrastructure, and has become an important participant and builder of the crypto financial interest rate market and derivatives trading market.
“The crypto financial market is full of opportunities and hidden risks. From the perspective of short-term profits, the retail market and Altcoins may have higher profit margins, but we pay more attention to the long-term development of the industry and aim to lead in institutional financial services and innovation,” said Del Wang, co-founder and CEO of Babel Finance. “This not only helps to overcome the many uncertainties in the early stage of the industry, including regulatory and market uncertainties, it also protects our customers to the greatest extent.”
“As the crypto financial industry becomes more institutionalized, our mission at Babel Finance is to explore and participate in the building of the fundamental financial order and rules for the industry,” added Wang. “By doing so, we contribute to its long-term development as we ourselves grow.”
Commenting on the decision to invest in Babel Finance’s Series B financing round, Jason Tan, Partner and Chief Investment Officer of Jeneration Capital, said: “The institutional investor market is in its early stages of participating in the crypto asset class. It requires both commitment to risk management and professionalism to build trust in the ecosystem. Babel Finance is becoming an important node in the crypto ecosystem, enabling existing and new participants to thrive in this flourishing asset class.”
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“Babel Finance has opened up a market with high barriers to entry and great value in the emerging field of institutional investor services in crypto,” said 10T CEO and Managing Partner Dan Tapiero. “Babel Finance has built a laudable reputation as a highly specialized and trusted crypto financial institution, maintaining its leading position among the institutional client-focused market.”
“Babel Finance is in the right place at the right time with the right products, serving the groundswell of demand from institutional investors and family offices for sophisticated digital asset products and services,” said William Zhao, Partner of BAI Capital. “Babel Finance differentiates itself from the competition with a focus on the corporate and wealth segments of digital assets. The firm has found the sweet spot of offering local access and knowledge of a dynamic region to globally minded institutional investors.”
Since the firm’s US$40 million Series A funding in May 2021, Babel Finance’s team has grown from around 50 people to over 170 currently. The firm has opened a new office in Singapore and applied for relevant licenses in Hong Kong, Luxembourg, the United Kingdom, and other countries and regions around the world, and has obtained business qualifications in many jurisdictions.
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