coinfomania.com
Despite the massive dip of the crypto market, startups in the industry were able to raise record-breaking funds from institutional investors in Q2 2021.
According to data published by analyst giant CB Insights as reported by CNBC, blockchain and crypto-related companies successfully raised a whopping $4.38 billion in Q2 2021.
The amount is up by more than 50% compared to the previous quarter, and also increased by almost nine times during the same quarter in the previous year.
Circle and Ledger Take the Lead
Notably, the most significant funding round recorded in the period was from payments and cryptocurrency firm Circle.
The USDC stablecoin issuer raised $440 million during the period it was planning to go public at a $4.5 billion valuation with a publicly traded special purpose acquisition corporation (SPAC) known as Concord Acquisition Corp.
Per the report, the second-biggest funding round came from popular crypto hardware wallet developer Ledger, as investors rallied around to raise $380 million.
Increasing Institutional Demand for Crypto
Chris Bendtsen, senior analyst at CB Insights, told CNBC that with the rapid growth of blockchain-related funding, he is confident that the total funding for the year will surpass what was recorded in the previous year and would triple the total 2018 funding.
He added that the recent growth in blockchain funding is as a result of increased institutional interest in cryptocurrencies, adding:
“Despite short-term price volatility, VC firms are still bullish on crypto’s future as a mainstream asset class and blockchain’s potential to make financial markets more efficient, accessible, and secure.”
Investors Not Discouraged by Market Crash
The crypto market has suffered major losses since May, as over $1 trillion was wiped off the market, causing all cryptocurrencies to bleed from different angles.
Bitcoin (BTC), which set an all-time high (ATH) record of above $65,000 and has shreded 50% of its value since May. Other cryptocurrencies like Ether (ETH) and Bitcoin Cash (BCH), among others, were not left out of the massive dip.
Regardless, institutional clients are not deterred from investing in cryptocurrencies, as they continue to adopt alternative ways to gain exposure to the asset classes via the acquisition of stakes in crypto-related firms.
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