BlockFi Valuation Sinks to $1B in Latest Funding Round: Report
BlockFi raised $350 million at a larger valuation of $3 billion in March last year.
Jun 7, 2022 at 8:13 a.m. UTCUpdated May 11, 2023 at 6:51 p.m. UTC
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Crypto lender BlockFi is set to close a funding round at a lower valuation than its previous raises, according to a report by The Block.
- The round will value the New Jersey-based firm at $1 billion, according to the report, which cites sources with knowledge of the matter.
- The funding, known as a "down round," occurs when a company seeks to raise more capital and discovers that its valuation is lower than during a previous financing.
- BlockFi raised $350 million at a larger valuation of $3 billion in March last year. It was reportedly set to raise a further $500 million, valuing it at nearly $5 billion, in late July and had also been making known its plans to go public.
- The lower valuation points to the more challenging atmosphere in the crypto industry at present as well as regulatory uncertainty surrounding firms such as BlockFi, which offers high-interest payouts against crypto holdings.
- In February, the firm agreed to pay a total of $100 million in penalties to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and several state regulators as part of a settlement in an investigation into whether its high-yield lending product was a securities offering.
- When contacted by CoinDesk regarding the news, BlockFi responded that it does not comment on market rumors.
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UPDATE (13:35 UTC June 7): Adds comment from BlockFi
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Jamie Crawley is a CoinDesk news reporter based in London.