{"id":389525,"date":"2019-07-11T14:11:18","date_gmt":"2019-07-11T14:11:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wncen.com\/?p=389525"},"modified":"2019-07-11T14:11:18","modified_gmt":"2019-07-11T14:11:18","slug":"visa-invest-40-million-in-crypto-startup-is-mainstream-acceptance-here","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wncen.com\/news\/visa-invest-40-million-in-crypto-startup-is-mainstream-acceptance-here\/","title":{"rendered":"Visa Invest $40 Million in Crypto Startup, is Mainstream Acceptance Here?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Electronic payments giant, Visa<\/a>, along with VC firm, Blockchain Capital<\/a>, have raised $40 million for a Series B funding round at digital asset custodians, Anchorage<\/a>. The little-known startup seeks to advance institutional participation in cryptocurrencies. And this latest round of funding brings a total of $57 million invested since 2017.<\/p>\n

While Anchorage is a relative newcomer to the space, both Visa and Anchorage are participating companies in Facebook’s Libra project. And despite the criticisms<\/a> that beset Libra, that hasn’t stopped them, as well as a host of others, from wanting to get in on the crypto game.<\/p>\n

Anchorage Provides Custodial Services With A Difference<\/h3>\n
The goal of Anchorage is straightforward. They intend to bring institutional investors to the space by providing secure custodial solutions. Co-founders, Diogo M\u00f3nica and Nathan McCauley wrote<\/a>:<\/p>\n
“We\u2019ve started with solving the biggest problem facing our industry: making it safe for institutions to hold and use crypto. Since starting down this path in 2017, we\u2019ve built the most secure digital asset custody solution on the market, and on-boarded some of the leading institutional investors in the space as clients, including Blockchain Capital, Polychain, Paradigm, and a16z crypto.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Custodial services are nothing new. But Anchorage differentiates itself on a number of fronts, including participation features such as offering returns for staking and inflation, as well as support for on-chain governance.<\/p>\n
But perhaps the most pertinent difference lies in their next generation cold storage solution. It relies on biometric software, as well as multiple approval systems, including human review, to secure the digital assets of clients. According to M\u00f3nica<\/a>, this is particularly advantageous because:<\/p>\n
“…investors gain greater access to and control over their holdings, enabling them to freely and actively participate in cryptocurrency networks.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
In this respect, the co-founders draw parallels with Visa, in that, Visa also provides “financial plumbing.” To which SVP and Head of Fintech at Visa, Terry Angelos, said:<\/p>\n
“This investment is consistent with Visa\u2019s global strategy to partner with and invest in emerging fintech companies…We\u2019re pleased to add Anchorage to our growing investment portfolio.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Visa’s Investment Indicates Growing Mainstream Acceptance<\/h3>\n
Not so long ago, legacy US financial organizations, including Citibank, JPMorgan, and Bank of America, moved to ban<\/a> crypto related transactions. This had a trickle-down effect of smearing cryptocurrency in the minds of no-coiners.<\/p>\n
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Yesterday in Congress Rep. Sherman called for a bill to ban all #cryptocurrencies<\/a>, due to concerns about illegal activities. This doesn\u2019t surprise us, as his top campaign donations are coming from banks and credit card companies. #crypto<\/a><\/p>\n
— Weiss Crypto (@WeissCrypto) May 10, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n