Nasdaq has decided to take a step forward in the push for blockchain technologies and adoption of cryptocurrencies, investing a substantial amount of money recently in the financing of a startup that develops Enterprise blockchain solutions. According to an official press release, Symbiont successfully closed a $20m Series B funding round. Nasdaq Ventures led the round which also included investors such as Mike Novogratz’s Galaxy Digital, Citi and Raptor Group among others. The money will be used to promote the growth of Assembly, a blockchain platform created by the company with support for Smart contracts and tokenization solutions. Symbiont CEO and Co-founder Mark Smith expressed his enthusiasm after the success of having obtained the support of such important sponsors: “Closing this round of funding enables us to accelerate investments in our platform and team … Leveraging our financial markets and blockchain technology experience, our anchor partners like Vanguard, Lewis Ranieri, and Nasdaq will benefit from developing new distributed applications on Assembly, our enterprise blockchain and smart contract platform. Assembly provides the opportunity for new participants to enter the digital asset market and offers existing participants a superior infrastructure on which to build the future of financial markets.” Nasdaq also expressed its optimism and confidence in Symbiont’s success. For Gary Offner, Head of Nasdaq Ventures, products like Assembly can contribute to the economic growth of many companies on a global scale: “We are committed to discovering and investing in innovative technologies to help build our future market infrastructure used by more than 100 marketplaces around the world … Our investment will also include the integration of Symbiont’s enterprise blockchain and smart contract platform into the Nasdaq Financial Framework. We are pleased to support this important, growing area for creating unique institutional applications of blockchain technology.” Despite the bearish behavior of the crypto market in 2018 and the pessimism of many, Adena Friedman, President, and CEO of Nasdaq remains optimistic about the impact of the cryptocurrencies in the future. She is also determined to launch Bitcoin Futures and maybe an exchange if conditions are favorable. She recently addressed her followers on LinkedIn commenting on her impressions: “It is difficult to ignore the huge amount that investors, including some of the most sophisticated global investors, have poured into digital currencies in recent years. The invention itself is a tremendous demonstration of genius and creativity, and it deserves an opportunity to find a sustainable future in our economy … At Nasdaq, we are working to help cryptocurrencies gain investors’ trust by offering our technology for trade matching, clearing, and trade integrity to start-up exchanges. We have also invested in ErisX, an institutional marketplace for cryptocurrency spot and futures. While this year will be another proving ground for cryptocurrencies, we believe digital currencies will have a role in the future. The extent of its impact will depend on the evolution of regulation and broader institutional adoption.
Nasdaq Ventures led a $20m investment in blockchain company Symbiont. The firm has also invested heavily in the bitcoin and cryptocurrency space, including its own digital currency, called Bitcoin. Symbiont aims to use the funding to help the growth of its blockchain platform, Assembly. Providing support for Smart contracts and tokenisation solutions, it is intended to be used by both experienced digital asset market participants and those looking to get involved. Nasdaq highlighted cryptocurrencies’ growth and said the investment was part of its strategy to develop innovative technologies that will help further its future market infrastructure.