Binance.US, the American arm of the crypto exchange giant, is looking to raise up to $50 million in additional funding at a $4.5 billion valuation in what would be a continuation of the exchange’s seed round, according to people familiar with the matter.
The company previously closed a $200 million seed round at a $4.5 billion valuation in April. The raise will target "strategic partners" and would not represent a new Series A round, the people said. Binance.US declined to comment.
Since April, cryptocurrency markets have seen a sharp downturn, fueled by several high-profile blowups, liquidity crises and macroeconomic events.
Binance.US’s raise comes on the heels of last month’s unraveling of Terra’s UST stablecoin, as well as two high-profile events this month – crypto lender Celsius halting customer withdrawals and crypto investment firm Three Arrows Capital facing rumored insolvency.
Binance.US CEO Brian Shroder told tech outlet Protocol last week that the soon-to-be-announced fundraise will have the company “entering the crypto winter from a position of strength.”
“Investors are not scared from investing in us further,” Shroder added.
Investors in Binance.US’s seed round included Circle Ventures, VanEck and RRE Ventures, according to the April announcement and Crunchbase data.
Crypto companies have become more cash-conscious in the bear market and some are taking up opportunities to bulk up their war chests.
Competing crypto exchanges Coinbase (COIN), Gemini and Crypto.com have taken on cost-cutting measures, with Coinbase laying off 18% of its staff, Gemini cutting 10% of its workforce and Crypto.com downsizing 5% of employees.
