Circle invests $10.5 million in Crowdcube, paid in USDC
Circle, through its startup fundraising platform, SeedInvest, has announced that it has participated in a $13.5 million funding round of Crowdcube by investing $10.5 million in the fundraising platform.
Circle is the principal operator of the stablecoin USDC which has been growing in popularity in recent times with several billion in circulation at this time. It contributes 23.5% to the entire stablecoin market which is second only to USDT which is a sign of growth for the company and also for crypto in general. It is interesting to note that Circle has chosen to invest in the fundraising platform Crowdcube in the UK as it may be a sign that the company is looking towards supporting new startups and businesses that are looking to raise funds in different stages.
It is also interesting to note that the investment has been made in terms of USDC which is probably the biggest deal made for a non-crypto platform like Crowdcube and this could also mark the first of many such investments not only from Circle but from other crypto companies into non-crypto platforms as they seek to grow and expand.
“Combining Circle’s strategic investment with our decade of knowledge and experience of capital raising in Europe, Crowdcube is extremely well-positioned to capitalize on our first-mover advantage into Europe’s high growth investment market,” said Darren Westlake, Crowdcube CEO, and co-founder. “In the first instance, we’re considering a crowd round to offer Crowdcube’s community of investors to participate in our round, alongside Circle, supporting our growth as Europe’s preferred private investment marketplace.”
Crowdcube is likely to use these funds to fuel its global expansion plans as it also looks to get itself regulated in the UK and Europe as a fundraising platform according to the new framework. It would also help the platform to get access to the investors with Circle and also from the crypto industry as well which would create a win-win situation for all. For Circle, it provides an entry into the European market and it can use this investment to get access to many startups in this market and can also invest in them through USDC whose growth is an indication of the massive size of the digital assets market and how it can be tapped in the right manner for the benefit of crypto and non-crypto platforms.
