Finblox, a High-Yield Digital Asset Savings Platform by Y Combinator Alum and Coins.ph CTO, Raises Seven-Digit Round From Sequoia Capital India, MSA, Venturra, Coinfund, Saison

HONG KONG--(BUSINESS WIRE)--#blockchain--Finblox, a global crypto investment platform, has announced seven-digit funding from Sequoia Capital India, MSA Capital, Venturra Discovery, Coinfund, Saison Capital, Ratio Ventures and First Check Ventures. The round was closed in August and also saw the participation from 13 other investors including notable angels like Xinshu Dong (Partner at IOSG and previously Co-Founder of Zilliqa), Ron Hose (Founder of Coins.ph), James Simpson (Founder and CEO of mStable), Quentin Vanoekel (Co-Founder of Helicap), Binh Tran (Co-founder of Klout and Partner at Ascend Vietnam Ventures) and Eddie Thai (early investor in Axie Infinity and Partner at Ascend Vietnam Ventures).

Only a small fraction of the global population has had exposure to crypto - in Southeast Asia, that fraction is 2%. A bridge between cryptocurrencies and traditional financial and wealth management products is required to onboard individual investors into the overall digital asset ecosystem.

Finblox is a high yield savings app powered by the digital assets - users are able to earn yield on their idle crypto holdings such as Bitcoin and USDC stablecoin. Currently, the app offers up to 10% Annual Percentage Yield on USD Coin and BTC, with payouts distributed daily. The returns are enabled through Finblox’s partnership with the financial institutions who borrow the crypto against posted collateral and trusted decentralized finance protocols.

The company was founded by startup veterans Peter Hoang and Dmitriy Paunin. Peter previously Co-founded Gotrade, a zero-commission stock trading app backed by Y Combinator and Dmitriy Paunin was a Chief Technology Officer at Coins.ph, Southeast Asia’s largest cryptocurrency exchange based in the Philippines that amassed over 16 million users.

Finblox will deploy the funds to product development and also to build the global footprint with initial regional focus in Southeast Asia. “Our vision is to help the next 1 billion people build their wealth with crypto. Finblox enables investors from over 180 countries to easily on-ramp into crypto and empowers them to hold the assets long-term with the savings product. What we’re able to offer is stability with more consistent rates and no lock-in periods associated with other DeFi platforms. Our core focus is to build an accessible and modern product that will help our users accumulate wealth over the long term and build the financial blocks for their future,” said Peter Hoang, CEO of Finblox.

User assets are secured by Fireblocks Inc. ("Fireblocks"), a SOC 2 Type II certified digital assets custodian with bank-grade security.

Taking into account deep Information Security expertise in the fintech sector, the team has built a platform resilient to most of the problems that customers can face while working with digital assets. Processes and risk management that are based on the international standards (such as ISO-27001, PCI-DSS) allow the company to stand out in the crypto asset management space. Finblox works with the world-leading companies to assure security and accessibility of the assets.

Dmitriy Paunin, CTO of Finblox: “I'm incredibly proud of how quickly we have brought a top-class team of engineers and professionals onboard to develop systems that utilize the power of the blockchain technology and most trusted institutional partners, such as Fireblocks for asset management, Coincover for high-level industry digital assets security. Running a fast but secure platform is the main objective for us, and we will always put the needs and safety of our customers on the top of our priorities.”

The team is actively building new product features requested by users and working to introduce new assets and exciting protocols such as Solana and Avalanche.

Another step to make the crypto asset class more widely adopted is clarity on regulation. “We are actively looking into acquiring licenses globally in the more established jurisdictions including the European Union, Singapore and also developing markets such Vietnam, Indonesia to establish our regulatory footprint. We believe crypto will become a number one asset class globally in the foreseeable future and regulation would bring a lot to the table in terms of taking it into the mainstream,” said Peter Hoang.

Currently in alpha, Finblox is available on both App Store and Play Store for iOS users and Android users respectively.

Investor statements
"We believe crypto has the unique power to democratize finance and enable low-cost access to wealth preservation and creation for individuals underserved by traditional institutions. As global fintech investors, we're actively backing the shift towards crypto-embedded fintech across all regions and see Southeast Asia as a highly attractive geography. Peter and Dmitriy have the experience, drive, and complementary skill sets to build the next breakout winner," said Tim Chen, Investor at MSA Capital.

"Being able to protect your savings from inflation continues to be a major challenge for most people in South East Asia, and an alternative digital asset savings product has a huge potential to change that. I am excited to see the Finblox team taking this head on," said Ron Hose, angel investor and Founder of Coins.ph.

About Finblox
Finblox is a venture-backed startup with remote teams based out of Vietnam, Russia, Indonesia, Hong Kong and Singapore. The core product is a simple and secure app that allows users to passively earn yield on their crypto assets that have no limits on deposit and can be withdrawn anytime. Finblox is inspired by the words "Finance" and "Blockchain". The company, being supported by industry leaders such as Sequoia, Coinfund, MSA, Venturra, Saison, and more, is determined to create a crypto community on a platform that is well regulated and compliant with the laws of relevant jurisdictions.

Investors

About MSA Capital
MSA Capital is an independent global private equity and venture capital firm with over $1.7 billion under management. Their portfolio includes global sector leaders such as Nubank, Klarna, Meituan, Nio, and Animoca Brands.

About Sequoia Capital India
Sequoia helps daring founders build legendary companies, from idea to IPO and beyond. Sequoia India operates in Southeast Asia and India where they actively partner with founders from a wide range of companies, across categories, including BYJUs, Carousell, Druva, Gojek, OYO Rooms, Tokopedia, Truecaller, Zilingo, Zomato and more. They spur founders to push the boundaries of what’s possible. In partnering with Sequoia, startups benefit from over 49 years of tribal knowledge and lessons learned working with companies like Airbnb, Alibaba, Apple, Dropbox, Google, LinkedIn and Stripe early on. From the beginning, universities, endowments and other non-profits have been the backbone of their investor base, which means founders’ accomplishments make a meaningful difference. Click here for more information on Sequoia’s work in India and SE Asia.

About Coinfund
CoinFund partners with the creators behind the digital assets, key enabling infrastructure, and decentralization technologies shaping the future of blockchain. Their portfolio includes Dapper Labs (CryptoKitties, Flow), Coinlist and Dfinity.

About Venturra Discovery
Venturra Discovery is a Southeast Asia-focused venture capital firm investing in early-stage high-growth businesses. The firm’s primary investment focus is in internet companies that are ready to expand internationally, in sectors including e-commerce, financial technology, marketplaces, healthcare, and education.

About Saison Capital
Saison Capital is a corporate venture capital arm of Credit Saison, a Tokyo-listed $30B AUM consumer finance company and one of the largest credit card issuers in Japan. The fund invests in Pre-Seed to Series B companies globally.

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