Binance Taps Co-Founder Yi He to Head $7.5B Venture Arm

Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has appointed co-founder Yi He to oversee its venture capital arm, Binance Labs, two months after it raised $500 million for a new fund focused on Web3 and blockchain investments.

• Binance Labs, which focuses on early-stage investments, manages $7.5 billion in total assets across more than 200 portfolio projects, according to a press release. Portfolio companies include Ethereum sidechain Polygon, crypto exchange FTX and security firm CertiK.
• Yi, who joined Binance just before its launch in 2017, will oversee global strategy and day-to-day operations of Binance Labs with a particular focus on supporting infrastructure projects and improving utility in crypto and blockchain projects.
• She will continue her work with the parent company, including institutional businesses, marketing, Binance P2P and Earn.
• During a CNN appearance on Wednesday, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao said Yi is "very aggressive" and that Binance would be making "quite a lot of investments" in the near term. He also said Binance as a whole plans to continue hiring, with a target of expanding headcount from the current 6,000 to 8,000 by the end of the year.

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