Crypto News Site The Block Bought by Foresight Ventures in $70M Deal

The crypto data and news site plans to expand in Asia and the Middle East.

AccessTimeIconNov 13, 2023 at 1:30 p.m. UTC
Updated Nov 13, 2023 at 3:59 p.m. UTC
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Crypto news and data provider The Block said Singapore-based Foresight Ventures had completed an acquisition of the majority of its shares.

The purchase was completed at a $70 million valuation, and the company plans to “build out new exciting products” and expand into Asia and the Middle East, CEO Larry Cermak said in an X post on Monday.

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  • "Excited to see the company move forward on a stronger ground as we continue to expand our news, research and data offerings," Editor in Chief Tim Copeland told CoinDesk.

    Most of the capital was used to buy out former CEO Mike McCaffrey's stake. McCaffrey resigned in December, 2022 after informing The Block's editorial team that the website had secretly been funded since 2020 by Sam Bankman-Fried’s Alameda Research. Bankman-Fried has since been found guilty of seven charges of fraud.

    The Block laid off 27 staff, about a third of its workforce, in March in a leadership shake-up that saw Cermak, the website's head of research, become CEO.

    UPDATE (Nov. 13, 13:35 UTC): Adds sentence on The Block's layoffs in March.

    UPDATE (Nov. 13, 13:41 UTC): Adds comment from Tim Copeland.

    UPDATE (Nov. 13, 15:51 UTC): Amends fourth paragraph to demonstrate a timeline of McCaffery's resignation; rewrites headline.

    Edited by Oliver Knight.


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    CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. In November 2023, CoinDesk was acquired by the Bullish group, owner of Bullish, a regulated, digital assets exchange. The Bullish group is majority-owned by Block.one; both companies have interests in a variety of blockchain and digital asset businesses and significant holdings of digital assets, including bitcoin. CoinDesk operates as an independent subsidiary with an editorial committee to protect journalistic independence. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive options in the Bullish group as part of their compensation.

    Oliver Knight

    Oliver Knight is a CoinDesk reporter based between London and Lisbon. He does not own any crypto.

    Shaurya Malwa

    Shaurya is the Deputy Managing Editor for the Data & Tokens team, focusing on decentralized finance, markets, on-chain data, and governance across all major and minor blockchains.


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