Digital asset manager Amber Group has raised over $200 Million in a funding round led by Singapore’s investment firm Temasek, bringing its valuation to over $3 Billion. The firm that the investments would be used to hire in Europe and Americas and expand its mobile app’s services.
The funding round included contributions from California-based venture capitalists Sequoia Capital and the investment arm of Coinbase, Coinbase Ventures. Additionally, the deal comes during a time when Amber Group is pushing for global expansion.
In 2020, CEO and Co-Founder Michael Wu said the cryptocurrency investment firm is looking to go public in the United States within the next two years. The firm is also expanding its licenses after securing regulatory approvals from financial authorities in Australia, the UK, Japan, and Switzerland.
The latest cash injection is a significant follow-up from a $100 Million funding secured in June to expand its range of financial service offerings. After securing the earlier funding, Michael Wu said,
“Since stepping up our on-screen presence, we now account for 2-3% of total trading volumes in major spot and derivative markets and are continuing to see growth. Our cumulative trading volumes have doubled from $250 billion since the beginning of the year to over $500 billion.”
The rapidly growing cryptocurrency industry has defined Amber Group’s success. Founded initially in Hong Kong in 2017, the firm established its presence as a liquidity provider and now offers a wide range of services including trading, lending, staking, and even managing mining services.
The firm currently manages over $5 billion in digital assets, with a cumulative transaction volume of over $1 trillion. Its valuation has tripled to $3 Billion since 2021 – a record-breaking year for the cryptocurrencies, led by Bitcoin’s advancement to an ATH of nearly $70,000 in November.
Furthermore, Michael Wu has been vocal about crypto opportunities in South East Asia, with the firm shifting its headquarters to Singapore to capitalize on the nation’s crypto advancements. In November, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) Managing Direction, Ravi Menon, said that the country is working on a regulatory framework and tax regime around cryptocurrencies in order to be able to reap maximum benefits.
However, a large degree of FUD still resides, with the MAS also discouraging cryptocurrency service providers to promote their services to the general public.