US-based financial technology provider Digital Asset has raised more than $50m in a funding round backed by 13 corporates from the financial sector, including CME Ventures, the investment vehicle of futures company CME.
The round also included securities exchange operators ASX and Deutsche Börse Group; Dutch state-owned bank ABN Amro; management consultancy firm Accenture; business process outsourcing firm Broadridge Financial Solutions; dealer broker Icap; and post-trade financial services provider Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation (DTCC).
Financial services firms BNP Paribas, Citi, JP Morgan, PNC Financial Services Group and Santander, which invested through its InnoVentures unit, also contributed funds.
Founded in 2015, Digital Asset has developed software that relies on blockchain technology for secure straight-through processing (STP). STP enables trading to be conducted fully electronically without the need for manual intervention.
The money will help Digital Asset expand further and boost its customer service capabilities.
Catherine Flax, BNP Paribas’ head of commodity derivatives, foreign exchange and local markets for the Americas; Ashwin Kumar, group head of product development at Deutsche Börse; Sanoke Viswanathan, chief administrative officer of JP Morgan’s corporate and investment bank; and Mike Bodson, president and CEO of DTCC, will join Digital Asset’s board of directors.
Blythe Masters, chief executive of Digital Asset, said: “These investments represent a tremendous endorsement of Digital Asset from banks, exchanges, settlement and clearing firms, central securities depositories, and market infrastructure and professional services providers.
“Our strategic investors have come together from across the financial services industry to help drive global adoption of transformative solutions which enhance the vital services that they provide.”