FTX US rises $400 million in Series A round and is valued at $8 billion

Cryptocurrency exchange FTX US has raised $400 million in its first funding round from investors, including Japan’s SoftBank Group Corp and Singapore’s Temasek Holdings, reaching the market value at $8 billion.

The investment gives FTX US a valuation of $8 billion, placing it among the world’s most valuable private crypto firms. Investors in the round include Temasek, the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board, and SoftBank’s Vision Fund 2.

As Reuters reported, the Series A funding also includes investments from crypto investment firm Paradigm, Multicoin Capital, Tribe Capital, Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board, Greenoaks Capital, Steadview Capital, and Lightspeed Venture Partners, according to the company’s statement.

“What this raise means to us is that we are officially establishing ourselves on the stage of the largest competitors of cryptocurrency exchanges in the US and signaling to the world that we are going to continue to expand very rapidly,” FTX US President Brett Harrison said.

With the cryptocurrency market growing, surpassing $3 trillion in November, venture capital investors are increasingly looking to put down stakes in the industry.

Venture capital firms invested $30 billion in crypto in 2021, according to research firm PitchBook.

Chicago-based FTX US was launched in 2020 by former Wall Street high-frequency trading executives, and it competes with leading crypto exchanges Coinbase and Binance.

In October, FTX US acquired LedgerX to expand into crypto futures and options trading.

FTX US had an average daily volume of about $360 million in the third quarter, according to the company. In addition, its users increased by 52% quarter over quarter, though the company has declined to share its overall number of users.

FTX US said it intends to use the funds to grow its user base, launch new business lines, and consider strategic investments and acquisitions.

It also plans to expand its 100-strong staff, said Harrison, previously working at Citadel Securities.

“By having this capital, we’re able to go out and be competitive and hire the best people,” he said.

FTX US is a US-regulated cryptocurrency exchange built from the ground up. Its mission is for FTX US to grow the digital currency ecosystem, offer US and international traders a platform that inspires their loyalty, and become a market-leading US-regulated cryptocurrency exchange.