According to Thursday’s announcement crypto custodian, BitGo acquired Lumina, an institutional-grade portfolio management company for crypto tax and accounting solutions, and strengthened its already expansive range of crypto offerings.
When crypto custodian BitGo took form in 2011, it occupied a tiny niche with customers looking for custody services for their digital asset holdings. Today, it has gained a stronger foothold in the market with enormous capital boosts from the likes of Goldman Sachs and Michael Novogratz, partnerships with leading cryptocurrency exchanges like Bitstamp and a series of acquisitions.
Lumina, on the other hand, is supported by prominent investors like Bain Capital Ventures and Dragonfly Capital Partners and trusted by millions of retail and institutional-grade investors across the globe. The firm also managed to raise around $4 million in a seed round conducted in 2018.
Crypto Custodian BitGo finalizes yet another deal
On 16th April 2020, both these companies got together to finalize a noteworthy deal, pricing details of which are still not disclosed. Following the acquisition, BitGo will now expand its range of crypto offerings to its clients, most of which purchase digital assets from multiple exchanges and introduce a dashboard for seamless management of digital assets.
The deal will also enable BitGo to offer guidance on cryptocurrency tax and accounting-related queries. The service is touted to do immense value addition to its platform, given the complex nature of cryptocurrency taxation.
The announcement also confirms that Lumina’s CEO, Chen Fang, will join the BitGo team as the chief product officer.
For BitGo, it is another feather in the cap
BitGo has had an impressive run so far. The Lumina acquisition comes shortly after the firm acquired another startup called Hedge, in October 2019, with an aim to tap into a lucrative area in the cryptocurrency domain – staking. It also purchased Harbor, a tokenization platform, in February 2020 in an attempt to expand its wings into digital securities space.
According to the crypto custodian firm’s CEO, Mike Belshe, these acquisitions are helping BitGo with capturing a larger market share and emerge as a significant player in the industry. We want to fast-track our way up the financial services ladder and become a comprehensive, end-to-end financial services provider, Belshe confirmed.
Belshe is thrilled to have the expertise and knowledge of the Lumina experts on board but believes that it has come a long way from its humble vision of being merely a custodian for digital asset holders – a much-in-demand service that is expected to drive cryptocurrency adoption in the time to come.
