OKX Expands to the Netherlands With New Crypto Exchange & Wallet

Hi NoRamp Community,

Daily News:

1) OKX Expands to the Netherlands With New Crypto Exchange & Wallet

2) Tether Purchases $100M Worth of Shares in Bitcoin Miner Bitdeer

3) Babylon Announces $70M Raise Led By Paradigm

4) Paytech Startup Forward Lands $16M Seed Round

5) Quantee Partners With Zurich to Drive Innovation in Pricing

 OKX Expands to the Netherlands With New Crypto Exchange & Wallet:

• OKX is launching in the Netherlands, introducing a local trading platform and Web3 wallet. The centralized crypto exchange (CEX) will enable Dutch customers to trade around 150 cryptocurrencies and offer at least 60 euro trading pairs. OKX has integrated with the local payment system iDeal for seamless euro deposits and withdrawals, available free of charge, as well as through the SEPA payment system.

• The OKX CEX will provide Dutch residents with access to spot cryptocurrency trading, staking, and other services. The OKX Wallet will allow users to hold full custody of their own crypto. OKX Europe general manager Erald Ghoos highlighted the significance of this launch, emphasizing the company's long-term commitment to the Netherlands, local team expertise, and user feedback in product design.

• OKX’s launch in the Netherlands follows its rebranding from Okcoin Europe in April. OKX began serving Dutch users in 2021, registered as a crypto services provider with the central bank of the Netherlands and holding a virtual financial asset service provider license in Malta. Dutch residents can sign up for OKX through the website or app, with a new user bonus of up to 50 euros for those who sign up by July 3. Recently, OKX withdrew its Hong Kong Virtual Asset Licensing Regime license application alongside other exchanges.

Tether Purchases $100M Worth of Shares in Bitcoin Miner Bitdeer:

• Bitcoin mining and AI cloud solutions firm Bitdeer Technologies Group has entered into an agreement with Tether for the private sale of up to $150 million of its shares. The Nasdaq-listed firm raised $100 million through the private placement of 18,587,360 Class A ordinary shares, with a warrant for Tether to buy up to 5 million more shares at $10 per share, potentially raising an additional $50 million.

• The raised capital will be used by Bitdeer to fund the expansion of its data center, develop ASIC-based mining, and for general corporate purposes. Bitdeer’s Chief Business Officer Linghui Kong highlighted Tether's investment as a demonstration of confidence in the company's vision and global operations. Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino mentioned plans for close collaboration with Bitdeer on key infrastructure areas.

• This investment follows Bitdeer's successful test of its home-designed bitcoin mining chip, the SEAL01, announced two months ago. The SEAL01 chip is claimed to enhance mining performance while minimizing power consumption, leading to lower operating costs and a reduced environmental footprint for miners.

  

  Source: Blockworks

Babylon Announces $70M Raise Led By Paradigm - Other Funding:

• Bitcoin staking protocol Babylon raised $70 million led by Paradigm, with participation from Bullish Capital, Polychain Capital, and Galaxy. This funding will accelerate Babylon’s mission to enable a Bitcoin-secured decentralized economy, allowing PoS systems to acquire staking capital from Bitcoin.

• Neynar, a platform for building social applications on Farcaster, raised $11 million from Haun Ventures and Coinbase. Other notable funding rounds include OpenSocial securing $5 million in seed funding and DeFi platform Aperture raising $12 million in Series A, bringing its valuation to $250 million.

• Swiss-based crypto asset financial services company Scrypt announced a $5 million strategic funding round led by Braza Bank. PitchBook analyst Robert Le noted that infrastructure projects will likely attract more venture capital due to the current underdevelopment of blockchain infrastructure.

Paytech Startup Forward Lands $16M Seed Round:

• Texas-based paytech Forward secured $16 million in seed funding co-led by Elefund, Commerce Ventures, and Fiserv. Founded in 2022 by former Fiserv executive Brandon Lloyd, Forward aims to help SaaS firms increase their revenue through the integration of payments as a product.

• The newly acquired funds will be used to expand Forward’s customer base and advance its technology development, with plans to integrate machine learning and AI into its solutions. Co-founder and CTO Derek Victory emphasized that payments should feel like an extension of the SaaS firms' brand.

• Dan Rosen, founder and managing partner of Commerce Ventures, praised Forward’s product for its potential to redefine the category and its dedication to helping SaaS companies succeed in their payments journey.

Quantee Partners With Zurich to Drive Innovation in Pricing:

• Quantee, a leading InsurTech firm, has partnered with Zurich Insurance Company to enhance Zurich's pricing strategies using Quantee's next-generation pricing platform, which combines traditional and AI-driven techniques.

• This collaboration aligns with Zurich's commitment to technological excellence and innovation, aiming to improve customer experience through sophisticated pricing models and deliver enhanced value to customers and stakeholders through refined and adaptive pricing strategies.

• Zurich Insurance Group, with over $70 billion in global gross written premiums in 2023, continues to lead the insurance industry by integrating cutting-edge technology into its operations. Quantee's platform will support Zurich’s end-to-end user journeys and align with its technology roadmap to meet current and future business needs.

NoRamp:

NoRamp is building Web2’s favorite Web3 apps on our lightning-fast payment infra. Join our discord, dive into our our docs, or check out our website to learn more.