Estonian crypto exchange Coinmetro raises $7 million to expand its business
Estonian cryptocurrency exchange Coinmetro said today it raised 7 million euros, or about $7 million, in a strategic funding round that valued the startup at $180 million.
Founded in 2018, Coinmetro operates a full-service crypto exchange with an intuitive user interface licensed to operate in the EU and also the US, Canada and Australia. The company plans to use the funding to expand its operations in the US, UK and Europe.
This funding is part of a precursor to a Series A round that the company said is planned to take place in early 2023. It came from three angel investors and more than 100 existing stakeholders. To date, Coinmetro has raised $18 million to date.
“After a strange year for cryptocurrencies, as indeed for most currencies, we expect further volatility ahead, but there is growth to be had for those who understand market dynamics and can see where the next phase of crypto evolution will come from,” said Coinmetro CEO Kevin Murcko.
As a cryptocurrency exchange startup, Coinmetro is building new features into a depressed crypto market dubbed “crypto winter” by industry analysts. Cryptocurrency markets, particularly bitcoin, the largest currency by market capitalization, fell more than 65% from their November 2021 all-time high of $69,000 to around $20,000. The same crash happened to the rest of the crypto market mostly with Ethereum, Litecoin, Polygon and other cryptocurrencies, which saw similar falls.
“We have no shortage of ideas and look forward to making them real for our growing community in the coming months and years,” Murcko added. “This latest round of funding gives us the financial leverage to do just that. It’s a testament to our vision that we’ve succeeded in doing so during a bear market.”
According to the company, its focus on customer-first features and an intuitive interface has driven a 300% growth rate in the US since its seed funding round last year, although it did not provide further details.
As Coinmetro works to expand into Europe and the US, it will compete with major exchanges in the same regions such as eToro, Coinbase, Crypto.com and Binance, which is the largest exchange by trading volume.
Aside from expanding its business, Coinmetro intends to use the funds to add new services such as passive income products to help customers combat high inflation and interest rates. This will be in addition to the exchange’s current offer of normal exchange operations such as low fees, margin trading and copying of trades to professional traders.
