BlockFi Raises $50M Series C Led by Morgan Creek Digital

BlockFi is excited to announce today that it has raised $50 million in Series C funding led by Morgan Creek Digital. Other participating investors include Valar Ventures – the lead investor in BlockFi’s Series A and B – CMT Digital, Castle Island Ventures, Winklevoss Capital, SCB 10X, Avon Ventures, Purple Arch Ventures, Kenetic Capital, HashKey, Michael Antonov, NBA player Matthew Dellavedova, and two prestigious university endowments.

This latest round of funding is the third in the past 12 months, coming on the heels of Series A and Series B rounds. A testament to BlockFi’s rapid ongoing growth, the newly secured funds will be used to grow the team and further expand BlockFi’s business lines, including the upcoming release of a bitcoin rewards-based credit card and support for additional assets and currencies.

BlockFi’s Series C comes amid turbulence in world markets, with many retail and institutional investors reassessing their portfolios to better hedge against ongoing economic uncertainty. As many are starting to embrace bitcoin as an uncorrelated asset from equities and other commodities, BlockFi has uniquely capitalized on macroeconomic trends.

“BlockFi’s platform offers investors unparalleled capabilities in the digital asset ecosystem. We’re excited to back this world-class team as they continue to add new products and expand into incremental areas that are disrupting traditional finance,” said Anthony Pompliano, Co-Founder and Partner at Morgan Creek Digital. Pompliano has also joined BlockFi’s Board of Directors.

BlockFi’s revenue has grown ten-fold over the past year, putting the company on pace to reach $100M in revenue over the next 12 months. The company now boasts more than $1.5B in assets on the platform, with a 0% loss rate across its lending portfolio since inception.

“The past 12 months at BlockFi have been nothing short of amazing, and if anything, it’s a testament to the staying power of bitcoin and other digital assets,” said Zac Prince, CEO and Founder, BlockFi. “With the support from our partners, we’re creating a platform for investors where they aren’t investing in just digital assets anymore—they’re investing in the future, greater financial empowerment and accessibility.”

Today’s announcement adds to the firm’s momentum as it continues to expand its offerings as a full-service investment platform for cryptocurrencies. BlockFi recently bolstered its leadership team with new hires from a number of prestigious institutions, including a new Chief Growth Officer Wittney Rachlin (American Express, Prudential), Chief Security Officer Adam Healy (Bakkt, Palantir, various U.S. government offices), General Counsel Jonathan Mayers (Renaissance Technologies, Barclays, Deutsche Bank), and Europe/APAC Managing Director David Olsson (Credit Suisse, Merrill Lynch). In June, BlockFi released iOS and Android mobile app versions of its platform.

“Bitcoin, Ether, digital assets, cryptocurrency, blockchain – words that years ago were considered a pipedream are now more acceptable investment options to safeguard wealth at a time when traditional market performance doesn’t even make sense to analysts,” said Flori Marquez, SVP of Operations and Co-Founder, BlockFi. “We’re a driving force in bringing cryptocurrencies mainstream, and I can’t wait to see how the market is going to respond to what we’re working on next.”

Scaling up operations and bringing new talent onboard are critical steps in driving BlockFi’s innovations across the fintech industry. This expansion is geared toward improving the retail and institutional client experience, while enabling BlockFi to broaden the appeal of crypto-based investment.

“BlockFi is a market-leading company that is building products and services to allow retail investors and institutions the ability to engage with blockchain-based assets. We are proud to be increasing our commitment to the company,” said Matt Walsh, General Partner at Castle Island Ventures.

“Since launch, BlockFi has demonstrated an incredible ability to build crypto-focused fintech products that resonate with both retail and institutional customers. We look forward to supporting the BlockFi team as they launch their next iteration of products and continue to drive mainstream adoption, firmly cementing crypto at the core of the future of finance,” stated Sterling Witzke, Partner at Winklevoss Capital.

The rapid adoption of crypto investments has led to a mounting need for core financial services that serve the community, and has led to a dramatic expansion of BlockFi’s global presence.

“BlockFi’s crypto wealth management platform demonstrates the best values and massive potential of the new digital asset economy, and as one of the earliest investors, we are excited to support their expansion across Asia and Europe,” said Jehan Chu, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Kenetic Capital.

Growth has been particularly strong in Asian markets. Thanks to a range of strategic partnerships, BlockFi has been able to scale up its offerings across the region.

“BlockFi has the characteristics to make it an exciting financial institution of the future. We are proud to be part of BlockFi’s expansion to Asia where cryptocurrency is seeing the fastest growth,” said Mukaya (Tai) Panich, Chief Venture and Investment Officer at SCB 10X.

This global expansion is not only adding more opportunities for retail clients, but also institutional investors who serve a critical role in driving new business.

“BlockFi is one of the most innovative and capable companies we’ve ever seen. HashKey is pleased to collaborate with BlockFi and witness its success in global markets, and be able to contribute to its institutional level services into the Asian Market.” –  HashKey.

Another testament to BlockFi’s continued success is the fact that many of the company’s backers are also users of the platform—and they’re excited about their prospects for the future.

“BlockFi is quickly becoming one of the most innovative and important crypto companies in the world. I’m a very happy user and supporter,” said Alexander Pack, former Managing Partner at Dragonfly Capital.

As Marquez noted, one of BlockFi’s major focuses is bringing cryptocurrencies mainstream: today, it is the only crypto company to offer a suite of financial products that seamlessly interact with one another. These products include crypto-based interest accounts providing a high annual percentage yield on bitcoin, ether, and stablecoins; crypto-backed loans that allow investors to access liquidity up to 50% of an asset’s value in USD; and zero-fee trading.

“I’m really excited by Zac and the team’s explosive growth in a growing space. To be able to earn interest on crypto is going to be attractive for a lot of people in a low yield environment,” explained Matthew Dellavedova, NBA player with the Cleveland Cavaliers.