Ethereum blockchain software company ConsenSys today announced the completion of a US$200 million funding round, bringing the company’s valuation to US$3.2 billion as it seeks to spearhead the growth of Web 3.0.
Fast facts
- ConsenSys’ announcement comes as the number of monthly active users of its MetaMask non-custodial wallet product exceeded 21 million — a 38-fold increase from 2020 — alongside the explosive growth of the Ethereum ecosystem from decentralized finance (DeFi), stablecoins and non-fungible tokens (NFTs). MetaMask, which is a mobile app and browser extension, allows users to manage their own private keys without the need for a third party or custodian.
- Investors in the round comprised traditional and crypto firms including investment firms Marshall Wace and Third Point, Singapore-based DeFi-focused venture fund DeFiance Capital, Hong Kong-based blockchain gaming unicorn Animoca Brands and HSBC.
- Founded in 2014 by Joseph Lubin, ConsenSys’ suite of products includes Codefi for building blockchain applications, Diligence for Ethereum smart contract audits and security, Infura for developer API access to Ethereum, Quorum blockchain service for enterprise Ethereum-based applications and Truffle developer tools in addition to MetaMask. ConsenSys’ Quorum is in use by 10 different central bank digital currency (CBDC) projects around the world.
- ConsenSys said the fresh funding would be used to support the expansion of MetaMask and Infura as well as the creation of 400 new roles globally. The New York-based company, which has employees in over 30 countries today, intends to nearly double its workforce in 2022 from over 500 employees currently. The vast majority of open positions will be remote first, and employees can be based almost anywhere in Asia or the world, ConsenSys told Forkast.News in an email. The company intends to expand its presence in Asia, a strategic region of growth for the company, where adoption rates of DeFi and NFTs are on the rise.
- “The paradigm shift to a world running on decentralized protocols is in full gear. The pace of adoption is now so rapid that we’ve more than doubled many of our core KPIs since this deal was struck over the summer,” stated Lubin. “We are honored to partner with some of the top financial and strategic investors from both traditional and next generation economies to accelerate the realization of Web3.”
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