OpenSea, one of Silicon Valley’s hottest blockchain startups, hastily funded $ 300 million in new venture capital on Tuesday to fund cryptocurrency startups. Said it became the latest company to procure.
With a new funding round led by investment companies Paradigm and Coatue Management, startups will be valued at an astonishing $ 13.3 billion in just four years. According to data provided by the company, OpenSea had previously raised more than $ 100 million from a number of investors, including investment firm Andreessen Horowitz and actor Ashton Kutcher.
Founded in 2017, OpenSea was created as a marketplace for buying and selling so-called NFTs, or non-fungible tokens, a unique digital code backed by blockchain technology.
NFT items vary, but the most popular tokens are digital art created by artists auctioning on the OpenSea site, as well as listings on eBay. The winning bid can reach hundreds of thousands of dollars for Ethereum, a popular cryptocurrency and blockchain technology connected to most types of NFTs.
With crypto-focused start-ups gaining popularity in recent months, OpenSea has become a central place for enthusiasts to trade NFTs. It has attracted the attention of investors enthusiastic about making bigger and bigger bets in the busy cryptocurrency space.
Over $ 3 Billion in Private Investment To an NFT company In 2021, according to data compiled by PitchBook, a company that tracks private investment. Overall, investors spent more than $ 28 billion on cryptocurrencies and NFT start-ups around the world last year, PitchBook said.
“In 2021, the world awakened to the potential of NFTs and unleashed utilities and economic empowerment across a vast number of industries, communities and creative categories,” said Devin Finzer, one of the founders and chief executive officers of OpenSea. Says. “Our vision is to be a destination for these new open digital economies to thrive.”
Still, many crypto critics believe that the enthusiasm for NFTs and blockchain technology is epidemic and plagued by suspicious activity. There was a brief controversy surrounding OpenSea last week after one of OpenSea’s patrons claimed: $ 2.2 million worth of NFTs stolen From him. (OpenSea later frozen the stolen assets and banned the trading of items on the site.)
Those worries did not stop the technician.Start-ups focusing on cryptocurrencies and NFTs Recruiting a large number of employees from big tech companies Seduce them by promising to work on new and potentially lucrative technologies like Meta, Google and Amazon. Last year, Lyft’s former Chief Financial Officer, Brian Roberts, left the ride-hailing company and joined OpenSea as the first Chief Financial Officer. The company recently hired Meta’s former Vice President of Commerce, Shiva Rajaraman, as Vice President of Products.
The company said it plans to use the new funds to add more than 90 employees while doubling the size of its trust and safety team. The company also plans to invest heavily in product development to make blockchain technology accessible to mainstream consumers, and will soon launch a funding program to support NFT space creators and blockchain builders. increase.
The news that OpenSea was asking for funding was old report By a newcomer to the technical newsletter.
