Blockchain company Securitize raises $48m in series B round

The series B round was co-led by Blockchain Capital and investment funds managed by Morgan Stanley Tactical Value

Securitize has raised $48 million from new and existing investors during an oversubscribed series B funding round.

The series B funding round comes ahead of the anticipated launch of Securitize Markets, a marketplace designed for the trading of digital asset securities, providing a path to liquidity for the private capital markets.

The series B round was co-led by leaders of venture capital and asset management, including Securitize’s largest investor, Blockchain Capital, and investment funds managed by Morgan Stanley Tactical Value.

They were joined by new investors including Ava Labs, IDC Ventures, Migration Capital, NTT Data and Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank.

The round also included strong interest from existing investors wishing to increase their investments in Securitize, with Blockchain Ventures, Borderless Capital, Global Brain, Mouro Capital, Ripio, Ripple and SPiCE VC participating.

Participants in the series B round, as well as previous and existing Securitize investors, will receive their shares in the form of digital asset securities issued by the blockchain company’s platform.

These investors will then join the community of more than 300,000 verified investors on Securitize’s platform who have, in just four years, supported over 150 companies.

Building on the successful capital raise, Securitize will add Pedro Teixeira, co-head of Morgan Stanley Tactical Value, to its board, where he will join Securitize co-founder and chief executive officer Carlos Domingo and co-founder and president Jamie Finn, as well as SPiCE VC co-founder and managing partner Tal Elyashiv, and Blockchain Capital co-founder and managing partner Brad Stephens.

Securitize is a leader in digital asset securities, bringing together businesses seeking to raise capital with individuals and institutions seeking to invest in the private capital markets.

To bring investors and opportunities together, Securitize has developed a fully-digital, regulatory compliant, end-to-end platform for issuing digital asset securities, managing them and facilitating their trading to provide liquidity.

The successful series B fundraising builds on Securitize’s recent launch of an asset management subsidiary, Securitize Capital, and its two inaugural cryptocurrency yield funds.

The round also follows Securitize enabling digital wallet company Exodus to raise a record $75 million in series A funding, and a build-out of new executive hires across sales, marketing, operations, and legal/compliance.

Domingo says: “Securitize developed incredible partners during our series A round last year, both in venture capital and at major European and Japanese financial institutions. That they have been joined in our series B by a major US investment bank and the largest trust bank in Japan, as well as additional top VCs, demonstrates that confidence in the adoption of digital asset securities is increasingly mainstream.”

Stephens says: “Blockchain Capital has been a believer in digital asset securities ever since we issued one of the first security tokens in 2017 and Securitize, who we were an early investor in, has emerged as the unquestioned leader in this growing space.”

“Blockchain Capital is proud to build upon our early investment in Securitize and to partner with Morgan Stanley and other leaders who understand the central role Securitize will play in the future of alternative assets and digital asset securities.”

Teixeira comments: “Our first investment in the blockchain industry is the leading digital asset securities firm, Securitize. Securitize is well-recognised for pioneering the securitisation of digital asset securities on the blockchain, and for its fully-compliant and fully-digital end-to-end solution that enables private companies to raise capital, and for investors to find a path to liquidity.”

“We make long-term investments in businesses and asset classes that are ahead of the curve. Our investment in Securitize is a sign that we believe in the growth and adoption of digital asset securities.”

Kazuteru Wakao, executive officer and general manager of the wholesale business planning department at Japan’s Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank, adds: “On top of the security token issuance we announced in March, our investment in Securitize further strengthens our partnership with one of the most commercially-used and technologically-advanced digital asset security solutions.”

“A stronger relationship with Securitize positions Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank well to lead the digitisation of financial services in Japan and beyond, as well as to bring cutting-edge, highly value-added products and services to our customers.”

Image: Securitize

Mark Dugdale