Singapore-founded cryptocurrency startup Luno raises $9m series B

Photo credit: Luno.

Cryptocurrency startup Luno – previously known as BitX – has landed US$9 million in series B funding, it announced today. London-based Balderton Capital led the the round, with Alphacode – the fintech-focused arm of South Africa’s Rand Merchant Investment Holdings – and Digital Currency Group (DCG) also participating.

The company also announced its expansion into 35 European countries, meaning that its services are now available in a total of 40 markets worldwide.

Luno said in a statement that the funding will be used for product development, including the introduction of a number of new features. The money will also go towards new hires, with a company blog post indicating it will “at the very least be doubling our existing team of 70” to bring in additional engineering, business development, product development, compliance, and customer support talent.

Tech in Asia has reached out to Luno for additional comment.

Luno – founded and registered in Singapore, but now headquartered in London with satellite offices in the city-state and Cape Town – offers an ewallet for storing, converting, and transacting bitcoin. It also facilitates purchase and sale of bitcoin and provides an exchange for trading digital currencies, as well as enterprise services including merchant integration and open APIs for developers.

Luno Wallet and Luno’s bitcoin buying and selling features will be available in Europe, though its exchange service will not.

Today’s series B injection follows an undisclosed investment from Singapore’s Venturra Capital in December 2015, and a series A round six months earlier, which saw South African media company Naspers lead a US$4 million investment also joined by DCG. Luno had previously raised US$800,000 from backers including Ariadne Capital and Bitcoin Opportunity Corp.