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Crypto Trading Firm Amber Group Raises $300M Series C After FTX Contagion

The collapse of FTX had impacted some of the trading firm's products and customers, increasing the need to quickly raise additional capital.

Updated May 9, 2023, 4:04 a.m. Published Dec 16, 2022, 6:13 a.m.

Crypto trading firm Amber Group changed its fundraising strategy to raise a $300 million Series C round, as a reaction to the collapse of crypto exchange FTX.

The round was led by Fenbushi Capital U.S., and other crypto investors and family offices, the firm said on Twitter. Singapore's investment fund Temasek, heavyweight venture capital firm Sequoia Capital China and Coinbase Ventures have previously invested in Amber Group, according to information platform Crunchbase.

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While less than 10% of Amber Group's trading capital was with the defunct FTX when it imploded, there were certain products that "would have experienced significant drawdowns as an aftermath of the FTX default" unless they could find better ways to protect customers, the trading firm tweeted on Friday.

The trading firm decided to move from its efforts to raise a Series B+ round at a $3 billion valuation in favor of a Series C. "Post the FTX collapse, we paused [the series B+ fundraise] after a partial closing and instead moved forward on Series C," Amber Group said.

The trading firm had reportedly laid off 40% of its staff, 300 employees, restricted employee benefits and terminated a $25 million sponsorship deal with Chelsea Football Club, following the FTX collapse.

In the tweet thread announcing the fundraise, Amber Group admitted that it had to "say goodbye" to "many" colleagues as it decided to scale down "mass consumer efforts and non-essential business lines." The Series C investors "came on board" understanding that the firm would be "laser-focused."

As the layoffs were announced, Amber Group was also spending. The crypto trader reportedly bought a Singapore-regulated crypto platform.

The bankruptcy of crypto exchange FTX has spread through the industry, exacerbating an already bleak market. Numerous companies, including majors like Bybit, have slashed employee counts amid a market downturn that has lasted several months.

Amber Group Fundraising Series C Singapore FTX

Eliza Gkritsi

Eliza Gkritsi is a CoinDesk contributor focused on the intersection of crypto and AI, having previously covered mining for two years. She previously worked at TechNode in Shanghai and has graduated from the London School of Economics, Fudan University, and the University of York. She owns 25 WLD. She tweets as @egreechee.