Circle Completes SeedInvest Purchase, Paving the Way for Tokenized Equities
Cryptocurrency exchange startup Circle has closed its acquisition of equity crowdfunding platform SeedInvest.
:format(jpg)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/coindesk/PC5XQDQA5VGXZMUPF6OKU7VNWQ.jpg)
Image of Circle's booth at Consensus Singapore 2018 via CoinDesk archives
Crypto startup Circle has closed its acquisition of the equity crowdfunding platform SeedInvest, paving the way for the company to tokenize securities in the future.
"The acquisition is a further step toward realizing our vision of a more open, global, connected, and inclusive financial system," they wrote. "Today [SeedInvest] are at the forefront of enabling startups to raise capital directly from investors over the internet — creating new capital formation options for startups and growth companies, and giving average retail investors the opportunity to invest directly into innovative private companies."
Although in the near term, it'll be business as usual at SeedInvest, over time "we will also explore future opportunities enabled by tokenization," Neville and Allaire wrote, explaining:
Dry powder
Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. The entire SeedInvest team joined Circle, including the two co-founders, chief executive officer Ryan M. Feit and chief operating officer James Han. They also published a joint post on SeedInvest's webpage, emphasizing that after the acquisition, the company will keep working as usual, "focused on democratizing startup investing, just with greater resources."
Those resources would include the $250 million Circle is reportedly seeking to raise, on top of the $246 million it has cumulatively raised from investors like Goldman Sachs, IDG Capital, Accel, CICC, General Catalyst, Bitmain and Jim Breyer.
"We are confident that we can achieve significantly more and at a higher velocity with Circle," SeedInvest's co-founders wrote.
SeedInvest was founded in 2012 by Han and Feit, alumni of Morgan Stanley and Lehman Brothers, to help smaller U.S. companies raise capital. Over the seven years of its existence, the company led more than 220 fundraising campaigns with an average investment of $500,000, according to SeedInvest. The company was featured last year in Inc. Magazine's 5,000 fastest-growing private companies in the U.S., placed in the 117th position.
Circle made its previous large acquisition one year ago, purchasing the cryptocurrency exchange Poloniex for about $400 million.
Image of Circle's booth at Consensus Singapore 2018 via CoinDesk archives
DISCLOSURE
Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information has been updated.
The leader in news and information on cryptocurrency, digital assets and the future of money, CoinDesk is a media outlet that strives for the highest journalistic standards and abides by a strict set of editorial policies. CoinDesk is an independent operating subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, which invests in cryptocurrencies and blockchain startups. As part of their compensation, certain CoinDesk employees, including editorial employees, may receive exposure to DCG equity in the form of stock appreciation rights, which vest over a multi-year period. CoinDesk journalists are not allowed to purchase stock outright in DCG.
Learn more about Consensus 2024, CoinDesk’s longest-running and most influential event that brings together all sides of crypto, blockchain and Web3. Head to consensus.coindesk.com to register and buy your pass now.