Novogratz’s Galaxy Digital Leads $52.5 Mln Fundraising Round for Crypto-Lending Firm

Crypto-focused merchant bank Galaxy Digital has recently led a $52.5 million fundraising round for crypto-lending firm BlockFi, according a blog post by the company July 24.

Galaxy Digital CEO and founder Mike Novogratz confirmed in a tweet that he is, “excited to get into the crypto lending business.” With the new round of investment, the startup will reportedly be able to expand its business outside the U.S. and to support more cryptocurrencies.

BlockFi, featuring “loans backed by your cryptoassets,” offers corporate and retail loans on their digital asset holdings. BlockFi currently offers loans on Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH).

The New York-based firm was launched in January 2018 by Zac Prince, a former senior vice president of lease payments operator Cognical, according to Business Insider. BlockFi raised money in two rounds this year, receiving $1.55 million from ConsenSys Ventures, SoFi, and Kenetic Capital in February.

Prince stated that the recent investment by Novogratz is a “strategic step towards BlockFi delivering credit across the crypto ecosystem,” stressing the company has faced a high demand on crypto-lending services.

“The support we’ve seen from existing clients and investors highlight the strong demand for leveraging Bitcoin or Ether for low-cost USD loans. We look forward to expanding our services to support more cryptocurrencies and more geographic markets in the near future.”

Last week, Novogratz predicted that mass adoption of crypto and blockchain is “still five to six years away.” The Wall Street exec said that more institutions will enter the industry “in the next two to three years,” claiming that “without that, we will be running in circles.”