The hardware wallet provider, Ledger, has raised €100 million ($109 million) in a fundraising campaign extending its Series C funding cycle. Bloomberg reported on March 30th that Ledger’s valuation had reached €1.3 billion ($1.4 billion), the same as its previous valuation from June 2021. This fundraising round is the first of three investment phases.
This New Funding Will Expand Ledger’s Operations
Bloomberg’s report states that Ledger has planned a second fundraising campaign in April, and depending on investor interest, a third round may be held later. The funding will be used to expand the startup’s distribution network, increase production, and develop new products. Ledger already has many investors, including Morgan Creek, Cathay Innovation, Draper Dragon, and Cap Horn, with more expected to join in this round, such as VaynerFund, Cité Gestion SPV, True Global Ventures, and Digital Finance Group.
During Paris Blockchain Week, Ledger’s CEO, Pascal Gauthier, spoke with Cointelegraph and noted that bankruptcies of crypto exchange platforms and the current American banking crisis have caused users to be more cautious about self-holding their crypto tokens. He added that during times of market crisis, people tend to rush into crypto and Ledger to protect their savings.
Volatility in the Crypto Market Helps Ledger
Ledger has benefited greatly from the cryptocurrency crisis, especially after the November bankruptcy of FTX, a significant cryptocurrency exchange platform. According to the French startup, its turnover has surpassed its previous record, with the revenue of its cryptocurrency trading application, Ledger Live, experiencing a 200% increase. However, Ledger is not the only company to benefit from the FTX platform’s setbacks; Trezor, another hardware wallet provider, has also seen its turnover increase by 300% due to FTX investors seeking ways to save and store their funds.
Ledger claims to store more than 20% of the cryptocurrencies in circulation and 30% of non-fungible tokens (NFTs). To expand its offerings, the company has recruited Tony Fadell, one of the designers of the iPhone, to design a new version of its hardware wallet.
