BlocksInform
Alfred Cang
Sarah Zheng
Singaporean state investment firm Temasek Holdings Pte was among investors in a funding round that valued cryptocurrency-trading platform Amber Group at $3 billion, just weeks after the city-state cracked down on marketing by crypto firms.
Existing shareholders whose sequoia china, pantera capital and tiger global management also participated in the financing of 200 million dollars, amber based in Singapore said in a statement Tuesday. The company, founded in 2018 by five former Morgan Stanley traders, has seen its valuation triple since mid-2021.
Singapore is one of the hottest markets in Asia for crypto startups, and temasek and its subsidiaries have made several investments in the industry over the last year. Amber has extended its funding cycle to series b, originally announced in June, specifically to bring temasek as an investor, said managing director michael wu.
"They're very strategic, so we made a special effort to get them in," Wu said in an interview.
Amber will use the proceeds from hiring in Europe and the Americas and expand the coverage of a mobile application it launched last year globally, according to the statement.
Marketing Clampdown
Wu said amber could continue another funding cycle later this year before an initial public offering that could take place as early as the second half of 2023, very likely in the united states.
The agreement comes as Singapore tries to crack down on the more speculative aspects of cryptography while encouraging institutional participation. In January, the central bank told industry businesses to severely limit marketing to the general public, citing the risk of volatile digital chips.
Read more: Crypto ATMs Halted in Singapore After Marketing Clampdown
Some 180 companies have applied for permits to operate a regulated cryptocurrency business in the wealthiest country in Southeast Asia; as of January, only five had obtained approvals in principle. Amber refused to comment on whether she requested a licence.
Senior executives, including Wu, have moved from Hong Kong to Singapore in the last few months, highlighting the emergence of the city-state as a hub for the cryptography industry. In September, Amber said she hired former executives from Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to help her expand.
Read more: Ex-Goldman, Morgan Stanley Execs Join Crypto Unicorn
— With assistance by Zheping Huang
