Ledger has raised almost €100 million

Ledger has raised almost €100 million
Hardware cryptocurrency wallet maker Ledger has raised the bulk of its €100 million fundraising target from investors
Hardware cryptocurrency wallet maker sees increased interest in its products from cryptocurrency owners and investors due to problems with banks

Cryptocurrency wallet maker Ledger has raised the bulk of its €100 million ($109 million) target, closing its first round of funding, Bloomberg reported. The company is valued by investors at €1.3 billion ($1.4 billion).

The company's plans to raise at least $100 million became known last August. Prior to that, in the summer of 2021, the firm received $380 million from investors at a valuation of $1.5 billion. The second round of funding will take place in April, and then due to the high interest of investors, the third round may follow, Ledger said.

Ledger's hardware cryptocurrency wallets allow users to store assets in a safe place. Demand for them increased significantly in 2022 amid bankruptcies in the industry and multiple hacks of cryptocurrencies. The problems of traditional banks have further increased the interest of cryptocurrency owners in physical devices to store digital money.

"All of a sudden, people thought leaving cryptocurrency in exchange was actually dangerous. 2023 is even better for us because now you can't even leave money in a Swiss bank," Ledger CEO Pascal Gauthier told the publication.

According to him, Ledger had its best sales in November 2022 after the collapse of FTX. Revenue from Ledger Live, a cryptocurrency buying and selling app, grew 200 percent year over year. According to Ledger, it now holds more than 20 percent of the world's cryptocurrencies and 30 percent of NFTs on its devices.

The company will use the funds raised to grow its business, expand its distribution network, increase productivity, and improve its products, Gauthier said.