thecoinrepublic.com
- Lately, Goldman Sachs has been paying attention to cryptocurrency
- Goldman Sachs backing institutional firm Blockdaemon
- Funds to be used to broaden node facilities and services
Goldman Sachs has contributed $28 million to Blockdaemon’s Series A fundraising round and has invested $5 million in the blockchain infrastructure startup. Blockdaemon, a blockchain infrastructure business, has received $28 million in Series A financing from Goldman Sachs. Greenspring Associates spearheaded the fundraising, which featured participation from crypto lending startup BlockFi and crypto-asset dealer Voyager Digital Ltd, as well as a $5 million investment from Goldman Sachs.
Goldman Sachs attention to Cryptocurrency
Goldman Sachs is a global investment bank based in the United States with a net value of $131 billion. The financial behemoth looks to be paying close attention to cryptocurrency recently. Goldman Sachs led a $15 million funding round in blockchain analytics business Coin Metrics in May, and the company also began Bitcoin futures trading for institutional clients the same month. The financial behemoth looks to be paying close attention to cryptocurrency recently.
Services of Blockdaemon for its clients
For large clients like Goldman Sachs, Blockdaemon provides staking and node infrastructure. According to the business, it has averaged moreover $5 billion in staked assets over the last year and expects that amount to exceed $50 billion by the end of 2021. Through the Blockdaemon marketplace, the business provides institutional clients with access to networks like ETH 2.0, Bitcoin, Polkadot, and different protocols such as Dfinity and Near.
Blockdaemon will utilize the funds to expand node infrastructure services and hire more personnel and developers, according to a June 8 statement. Goldman Sachs’ North America head of digital assets, Oli Harris, stated that they are thrilled to join them as they continue to give institutional-grade blockchain technology to anybody who wants to use it.
Despite its investments and expanding services, the investment bank has taken an equivocal posture to cryptocurrency in the media.
What is the future of Blockdaemon?
They plan to double their headcount to 100 people and make several acquisitions with the proceeds of their Series A. Blockdaemon will be able to profit even more on the spectacular growth they’ve seen, along with the rest of the crypto sector, over the last year by adding money to their already solid balance sheet.
CEO and Founder Konstantin Richter said that Blockdaemon has reached a significant milestone with this funding. This round will allow them to expand our node infrastructure services, add to our growing team, and strengthen our presence in emerging markets around the world while deepening our existing strategic relationships with global financial institutions, thanks to investment from industry-leading financial technology providers and VC firms. Blockdaemon simplifies the complicated, time-consuming, and costly node management process for financial institutions of all sizes by providing enterprises with the best-fit node configurations that allow them to rapidly scale up operations.
This is the latest boost for the cryptocurrency market, which has recently seen an influx of institutional investors and nation-states. Bitcoin is quickly becoming mainstream, with many Central and South American countries adopting it. Furthermore, after a failed move during the 2017 bull run, Goldman Sachs has been dipping their toes in the crypto waters again this year.
Reports of Goldman Sachs survey
According to a survey conducted by Goldman Sachs, Bitcoin was the least preferred investment class among 25 Asian hedge fund CIOs.Jeff Currie, the global head of commodities research at Goldman Sachs, debunked claims that Bitcoin is digital gold earlier this month when he classified Bitcoin as a risk-on asset similar to copper.
Following the recent crypto collapse, Goldman Sachs analyst Will Nance argued in May that investing in Coinbase stock was the greatest method to obtain exposure to the crypto sector while avoiding its volatility.