The world's first Bitcoin mortgage mortgage! Crypto lending Ledn receives US$70 million in financing

Cryptocurrency lending industry Ledn announced on December 15 that it has raised US$70 million in Series B financing, which brings the company's valuation to US$540 million. On the same day, Ledn announced the launch of a new bitcoin mortgage-guaranteed mortgage product, allowing users to use their bitcoins as collateral to borrow money to buy houses. This round

The world's first Bitcoin mortgage mortgage! Crypto lending Ledn receives US$70 million in financing

Cryptocurrency lending industry Ledn announced on December 15 that it has raised US$70 million in Series B financing, which brings the company's valuation to US$540 million. On the same day, Ledn announced the launch of a new bitcoin mortgage-guaranteed mortgage product, allowing users to use their bitcoins as collateral to borrow money to buy houses.

The leading investor in this round of fundraising is 10T Holdings of Dan Tapiero, a venture capitalist. As one of the conditions to provide financing transactions, Dan Tapiero will join Ledn's board of directors.

Other new investors in this round of funding include Golden Tree Asset Management, Raptor Group and FJLabs. Existing investors include Coinbase Ventures, Alan Howard, ParaFi Capital and Susquehanna private equity investment company.

Ledn said that the company's business has grown substantially in the golden years, with significant growth in both lending and asset (collateral guarantees for loans and savings account balances) businesses.

Mauricio Di Bartolomeo, co-founder of Ledn, said: Since its inception, Ledn has issued more than US$450 million in loans, of which 90% of the loans will be made in 2021.

Regarding the asset business, the scale has exceeded 1.7 billion U.S. dollars, an increase of 4,000% from the scale in the third quarter of last year. Mauricio Di Bartolomeo said: There are now 100,000 registered customers in 127 countries around the world, a 10-fold increase from the third quarter of 2020. The company provides services to both retail and institutional customers.

Ledn's main products include Bitcoin and USDC interest savings accounts, Bitcoin and U.S. dollar loans, and Bitcoin exchange for USDC transactions.

On the same day, Ledn announced the launch of a new bitcoin mortgage-guaranteed mortgage product, allowing users to use their bitcoins as collateral to borrow money to buy houses.

Ledn co-founder and CEO Adam Reeds said: Most people hold a lot of wealth in the form of Bitcoin, but still can't use their assets to borrow loans from the bank. This is why we launched this product to provide those who choose to invest outside the mainstream of traditional banks with access to key financial products.

Bitcoin mortgage products are currently in test mode and are expected to be widely launched in the United States and Canada in early 2022. Ledn said that the goal is to provide more than $100 million in bitcoin mortgage loans by the end of the first quarter of next year.

Ledn plans to use the new funds to further expand the team. The number of team members has increased from 8 to more than 65. It is expected that the number of employees will double next year.

Although Ledn provides services similar to those provided by banks, it has not yet been regulated. Mauricio Di Bartolomeo stated that Ledn has applied to the Ontario Securities Regulatory Commission to register as an investment trader in Canada in accordance with Canada's cryptocurrency regulatory system.

He also said that Ledn has been registered as a money service company with the Canadian Financial Transaction and Reporting Analysis Center (FINTRAC) and the US Financial Crimes Enforcement Agency (FINCEN), so it will comply with the anti-money laundering and know-your-customer regulations in Canada and the United States.

This B round of funding brings the total funds raised by Ledn so far to 103.8 million U.S. dollars, including the 30 million U.S. dollars raised in the A round of financing in May. Ledn expects to raise more funds next year.