Fireblocks to Acquire Crypto Payment Platform for a Reported $100 Million – Featured Bitcoin News

Fireblocks announced the acquisition of First Digital, an Israeli-based digital asset custodian service, for $100 millions. The acquisition, which is said to be Fireblocks’ first, comes less than three weeks after the company revealed it raised $550 million in Series E funding.

Fireblocks’ $8 Billion Valuation

According to a report, Fireblocks is expected to purchase First Digital, the stablecoin payment system, for $100 million. Fireblocks’ current payment platform will benefit from the acquisition.

Calcalist reported that Fireblocks would be able do this through enabling acquirers and payment service providers to accept crypto payments, as well to pay out in digital currencies.

The custody firm’s purchase of the Israeli fintech startup comes a few weeks after Fireblocks was reported to have raised $550 million in Series E funding. Fireblocks’ valuation rose to $8 billion after this series of funding, which saw the value total raised reach $1 billion.

Fireblocks are not focused on further acquisitions

Meanwhile, the report quotes Fireblocks’ CEO, Michael Shaulov, who lists some of the reasons for this acquisition. He stated:

Their team is one of the most powerful in crypto payments and product, so they can complement ours. First’s significant advantage is that like Fireblocks, they built a technological platform that easily connects to the different payment providers and allows them to easily receive payments in cryptocurrencies.

While the acquisition is set to become Fireblocks’ first, Shaulov is quoted insisting that his firm’s objective now is not to go out and make more acquisitions. Rather, the focus is “to integrate First [Digital]’s team who have capabilities in many sectors.”

Ran Goldstein, First Digital’s CEO, is quoted in the Calcalist Report explaining how the company was forced to lay off 90% of its workforce in 2018. It would be in the latter half of 2021 when First Digital’s gambit finally paid off.

“I think our gamble paid off as at the end of 2021 we attracted a lot of interest from many payments companies who wanted to add crypto payments to their offering and from crypto companies who wanted to branch out beyond trading,” Goldstein is quoted explaining.

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Terence Zimwara

Terence Zimwara was a Zimbabwe award-winning journalist and author. His writings have covered the economic problems of several African countries and how digital currency can offer an escape route.