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Major crypto wallet maker Ledger announced its Series C funding round, raising $108.8 million.
Chairman and CEO of the Paris-based company, Pascal Gauthier, announced the round on Thursday, saying that both the long-term investors as well as some new ones participated in the round.
Gauthier said that the funds will be used to "accelerate our mission to bring a new generation of secure consumer devices" to millions of users who are "exploring critical digital assets and blockchain-enabled technology."
The CEO did not name the participants nor say how much was raised. However, per TechCrunch, the company raised €100 million, or $108.8 million.
New investors include True Global Ventures, Digital Finance Group, and VaynerFund, while existing investors include 10T, Cité Gestion Private Bank, Cap Horn, Morgan Creek, Cathay Innovation, Korelya Capital, and Molten Ventures, said the report.
Bloomberg reported that Goldman Sachs Bank Europe SE acted as the placement agent, with Jones Day as legal advisors.
Ledger raised $387.4 million in 2021, and it is valued at $1.42 billion.
According to Bloomberg, citing the company, Ledger will have a second close for the funding round in mid-April and a third will likely follow due to high investor interest.
Trouble for some is good fortune for others
The latest round comes despite the current difficult funding environment, prompted by the regulatory and legal issues the industry is facing. However, the collapse of several major centralized companies prompted many digital asset owners to seek safety in cold wallets.
"Suddenly people were like 'wow, to leave crypto on an exchange is actually dangerous,'" Gauthier said in an interview, as quoted by Bloomberg. "And 2023 is even better for us because now you can’t even leave money at a Swiss bank."
The CEO noted in the Thursday announcement too that the crypto industry has experienced quite a turmoil over the past year, saying that 2022 was "a trying year" for the industry, including the collapse of major crypto exchanges and shifting macroeconomic conditions.
According to Bloomberg, citing Gauthier, the company saw its best sales month in November, setting daily records in the week after the FTX collapse, while revenue for Ledger Live grew 200% year-on-year. Furthermore, Ledger now stores more than 20% of the world’s crypto and 30% of the world’s non-fungible tokens (NFTs), he said.
Plans for the new generation
Meanwhile, the CEO argued that,
"Within the next five to ten years, my conviction is that the rise of the Internet of Value will reshape how billions of people own and manage their assets, redefining how we interact with the Internet, the role of intermediaries, the global economy, and every industry."
And for this, Gauthier argued, a new generation of hardware is needed. That is why, the company unveiled its Ledger Stax in December, designed by Tony Fadell, the co-inventor and designer of the iPod and iPhone.
Ledger's future plans include regularly upgrading software as the top priority, as well as integrating new coins, blockchains, services, and features into Ledger Live, said the CEO.
Ledger Enterprise, the branch dedicated to businesses, will enable "an increasing range of corporations to leverage digital value," Gauthier added.
Per the Chairman, as the Internet of Value gradually goes mainstream, Ledger devices will allow users to "manage an ever-expanding range of tokenized assets, including your value, identity, data, stocks, and much more, enabling you to connect with complete ownership."
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