The crypto platform of the operator of the NY Stock Exchange Bakkt is estimated at approximately $740 mill after successfully closing the fundraising round in December, The Block reports.
The company collected $ 182.5 million of primary financing for the development of a platform through which it expects to attract institutional investors to digital assets. The capitalization of $ 740 million suggests that the owner of Bakkt, Intercontinental Exchange company, could sell up to 25% of shares to outside investors, including Galaxy, Pantera, Microsoft and Starbucks - the latter did not make any cash investments in the platform.
Today the most pressing issue for investors is that they expected to generate income from investments in this business, the launch of which is delayed (already couple of time) due to regulatory uncertainty. According to some sources, Bakkt will have to make a lot of effort to ensure sufficient cash flow and to justify the funds received. Otherwise, investors may exercise the right to redeem shares, as provided for in the documents filed with the US SEC, and withdraw from the deal.
Bakkt may raise its valuation to $1 billion by the next Funding round, but this time the investors will probably want to see what they are investing their money into.
“If I wanted to acquire a stake in the new regulated American digital asset derivatives platform, I would look at cheaper alternatives, which have now been able to move forward. They were paid too much,” one of the investors commented showing his concern.
At the same time, Dan Berkowitz from CFTC, assures that his department is actively working on the Bakkt proposal. In a conversation with BLOCKTV on March 19, he stated that CFTC is not opposed to crypto and is aiming at eradicating fraud and market manipulation. Berkowitz also noted that the blockchain technology, which provides opportunities for decentralized interaction of market participants, carries with it a number of unique challenges not characteristic of other new technologies.
“We work diligently with all the proposals that came to us for review, including this one,” - he said, commenting on the Bakkt application, but declined to disclose more detailed information about the current status.