Cryptocurrency platform will use funds to develop a decentralized finance (DeFi) product-as-a-service it has been building
Cryptocurrency activity across Asia has been affected by crackdowns on digital asset platforms and related businesses in South Korea and by restrictions on miners in China. Still, investors have continued to back firms operating in the region. Singapore-based digital asset custody and management platform Cobo announced yesterday that it has closed a $40 million Series B funding round, without disclosing its valuation.
The fundraising round was led by A&T Capital, IMO Ventures and DST Global. It follows a $13 million Series A round completed in October 2018 that was led by DHVC and Wu Capital. Cobo said it will direct the new capital toward expanding its decentralized finance (DeFi) offering, which the company describes as a comprehensive point of service for institutional investors.
According to the asset manager, the new product will give institutions access to DeFi protocols and enable them to earn returns in a compliant yet straightforward manner. Cobo emphasized that institutional clients would not need to grapple with the complexities involved in gaining exposure to DeFi projects.
Having started as a blockchain infrastructure provider, Cobo is in the process of fully relocating its headquarters from China’s capital to Singapore. The company said part of the funding will go toward obtaining licenses and approvals required to bring the product to market. The financing will also help Cobo meet regulatory requirements, including anti-money-laundering guidelines.
“With growing interest in the crypto revolution across Asia, now is the right time to expand blockchain infrastructure to meet rising demand, especially as we see increasing enthusiasm from institutions,” said Mao Shixing, Cobo’s co-founder. “We have witnessed the evolution of crypto applications from Bitcoin to DeFi and now to NFTs. I even foresee metaverses emerging on-chain in due course. Looking ahead, we already have the foundational infrastructure to serve thousands of institutional investors.”
Cobo’s offering is intended to be the first DeFi-as-a-Service (DaaS) product. The company also provides a range of services, including crypto custody, staking and trading. It currently serves more than 300 institutional clients across the Asia-Pacific region. Some of its clients include mining pool F2Pool, digital asset derivatives exchange Deribit and digital asset trading platform BitMart. Since its founding in 2017, Cobo has processed transactions totaling $20 billion and currently holds nearly $1 billion in assets under custody.