Kraken Ventures, the independent investment arm of Kraken exchange, has disclosed the closure of its latest fundraising round in which it realized $65m. The funds will be used to invest in crypto platforms and blockchain-related start-ups.

Access To Many Funding Sources

Projects and networks related to Web3.0, DeFi, and blockchain have attracted and will continue to attract investments from several funding sources. Recent examples include a $200m launch by Binance Smart Chain and Animoca brands to fund their latest crypto gaming project. Also, Solana ventures recently raised funds for new Web3.0 projects.

Similarly, Paradigm and Kucoin labs raised $2.5B and $100m last month to fund their metaverse-related projects. On November 17, Brandon Gath, Kraken ventures CEO, announced that the firm had raised $65m, which it intends to invest in crypto start-ups and projects that require not more than $2m in seed investments.

Asides from Web3.0, Gath disclosed that the funds would also be invested in crypto projects related to DeF. The Kraken ventures CEO said, “we are excited about the success of our first fundraising. Hence, we are sure that we can achieve our long-term goal of developing a world-class investment platform that would be of huge positive impact globally and highly profitable for our investors.”

New Appointments

Part of the announcement revealed that the fund has a new head for its European projects. His name is Laurens De Poorter, and he would oversee Kraken’s expansion into the fast-rising European crypto sector.

Commenting on his appointment, the new head said, “the integration of digital asset and FinTech promises to be hugely profitable in the coming years as more institutional investors foray into the crypto sector, and various crypto policies are implemented globally.”

Crypto Can Be Linked To Several Sectors – Clayton

On Friday, former SEC chief, Jay Clayton, was on CNBC’s Squawk Show. There, he shared his insights regarding the crypto industry. Clayton clarified that he firmly believes in blockchain technology and the crypto industry as it has many potentials. Still, he stated that there is a need for proper regulation regarding the industry.

He added that authorities (within and outside us) must incorporate blockchain technology into their financial system to ensure transparency in running the system. Clayton also supported his successor Gary Gensler that the sec should perform oversight functions over the crypto industry since the digital asset industry can be linked with several sectors of the economy.

“Our financial rules are clear; any firm whose project involves capital injection and utilization must be registered with the SEC – same as trading securities. However, the rules are silent on the categorization of stablecoins as securities, making it unclear whether they fall under the SEC’s purview.” Strangely, Gensler and not Clayton approved a crypto ETP despite Clayton’s claims to love the crypto industry and blockchain technology. World’s financial regulators (notably the IMF) agree with Clayton that there is a need for proper crypto regulation.