Crypto project Bakkt secures $182.5M in first funding round

Bakkt, the digital assets platform developed by Intercontinental Exchange – the operator of New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), has secured $182.5 million in its first round of funding.

According to the official announcement, the funding round saw participation from Boston Consulting Group, CMT Digital, Eagle Seven, Galaxy Digital, Goldfinch Partners, Alan Howard, Horizons Ventures, Intercontinental Exchange, Microsoft’s venture capital arm, M12, Pantera Capital, PayU, the fintech arm of Naspers, and Protocol Ventures.

In its efforts to offer an institutional grade regulated exchange, clearing and warehousing services for physical delivery and storage, Bakkt said it has been working with U.S. regulatory authorities, particularly the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

“At an industry level, regulatory approval for physically delivered and warehoused bitcoin will establish and amplify the voice of U.S. authorities as the digital asset market evolves globally,” it said.

“We have filed our applications and the timing for approval is now based on the regulatory review process.”

ICE announced Bakkt in August 2018, saying that the platform would “leverage Microsoft cloud solutions to create an open and regulated, global ecosystem for digital assets.”

In the latest update regarding the platform’s launch, ICE said that it expects to provide an updated timeline in early 2019 for “the trading, clearing and warehousing of the Bakkt Bitcoin (USD) Daily Futures Contract.” It added that the previous launch date of January 24, 2019, will be amended pursuant to the CFTC’s process and timeline.