In the Daily: Fidelity Investments, London Stock Exchange Group, Sofi

In this edition of The Daily we feature a number of traditional financial companies that are stepping into the crypto assets world. Fidelity Investments backs Coin Metrics, London Stock Exchange Group funds tokenization platform Nivaura and Sofi is set to add crypto support.



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Fidelity Investments Backs Coin Metrics

Coin Metrics Inc, a provider of crypto market and network data, has announced it closed a $1.9 million seed round of venture funding. The financing came from Fidelity Investments, Highland Capital Partners and Dragonfly Capital, with Castle Island Ventures leading the round. “All of our investors are bought into the idea that the next phase of cryptoasset investing requires robust comprehensive data and infrastructure. Having this premier group as investors is a great vote of confidence,” said Tim Rice, CEO of Coin Metrics.

The Fidelity Digital Assets team explained in a Medium post about the matter that good data sets are critical factors in the ability to analyze trends, visualize the growth of networks, and spot challenges, adding that many of the institutional investors they talk with also require a clear understanding of which data to consider as they explore crypto assets.

LSEG Funds Tokenization Platform

London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) has revealed it led a $20 million strategic investment round in the tokenisation platform Nivaura. The startup’s focus is on the deployment of digital investment banking solutions for banks, exchanges and other financial institutions. LSEG’s head of international development told Reuters that the group was seeking to leverage the technology to develop new products, boost efficiency and support growth.

Nivaura automates the issuance and administration of instruments such bonds, loans, equity, and structured products, which the company claims can reduce time to market by as much as 60-80 percent. This new $20m investment is meant to allow it to expand its leadership, business development and technical teams. It also plans to enter new jurisdictions and to cover new asset classes.

$4 Billion Fintech Startup Sofi to Add Crypto Support

Sofi is a company valued at over $4 billion which is focusing on providing millennials with student loan refinancing, personal loans, mortgages and other wealth management and financial services. It is now planning to enter the crypto assets market by enabling its users to follow and buy coins via a partnership with crypto exchange Coinbase. These new features will reportedly be made available to users in the second quarter of 2019.

“Our target audience wants to see what the price of cryptocurrency is, and to buy it,” CEO Anthony Noto told reporters at Sofi’s New York office, according to CNBC. “They have a desire to do that and in many cases they already are.”

What do you think about today’s news tidbits? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

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