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Naspers-backed cryptocurrency exchange Luno has been acquired by Digital Currency Group (DCG), a US-based blockchain investor, for an undisclosed sum.
Founded in SA by CEO Marcus Swanepoel and CTO Timothy Stranex in 2013, Luno has grown to become the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the country, competing with firms such as VALR and AltCoinTrader. Luno has five million customers in 40 countries and nearly 400 employees based in London, Singapore and South Africa.
According to startup specialist Crunchbase, Luno has raised around $ 13.8 million (R233 million) in funding over four investment rounds.
DCG builds, buys and invests in blockchain companies around the world, supporting more than 160 companies in 35 countries and investing directly in digital currencies. The firm first invested in Luno, which allows users to buy and sell cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and ethereum, in its seed round in 2013.
Two years later, the exchange attracted around $ 4 million in funding led by tech investor Naspers. Local backing also comes from Rand Merchant Investment Holdings (RMI) through its fintech investment arm, AlphaCode. Other investors include the Southeast Asia-focused venture firm Venturra Capital and Balderton Capital of Europe.
As part of this latest transaction, Naspers and RMI have sold their shares in Luno to DCG. RMI said it sold its stake in Luno for cash to DCG “at an attractive price.”
In a sentence, Dominique Collett, RMI Senior Investment Executive and Director of AlphaCode, said: “We are delighted with this transaction as it is AlphaCode’s first exit and well above our target IRR of 25% -35% for our fintech investments. We have enjoyed working with the Luno team and still believe in the potential of cryptocurrencies and Luno’s strong growth potential. “
The funds will be used to expand Luno’s presence internationally, and the company says it will maintain key regional offices in Johannesburg, Cape Town, Kuala Lumpur, Lagos and Jakarta, and has “developed an aggressive roadmap for future growth and will ultimately compete with financial services companies around the world. Luno is hiring for several key positions. ”
“The past seven years have been an incredibly exciting journey for Luno, helping millions of our clients gain access to crypto for the first time,” said Swanepoel.
He said this was an important milestone for Luno, “but more importantly, it will significantly accelerate our ability to reach our goal of helping one billion people have a better financial system by 2030.”
