The cross-chain protocol raised funds at a $2.5 billion market valuation, finalizing its separation from Jump Trading which is downsizing crypto operations due to scrutiny.
Wormhole, a cross-chain bridge platform, raised $225 million at a $2.5 billion valuation from investors Coinbase Ventures, Multicoin Capital and Jump Trading which initially incubated the defi protocol under its digital asset division Jump Crypto.
Rather than equity, Wormhole issued token warrants to investors. These warrants guarantee that investors will receive an allocated supply of a crypto token launched by the protocol.
The fundraiser was the final step to settle Wormhole’s departure from Jump’s umbrella following regulatory scrutiny in the U.S. and security breaches suffered by the blockchain messaging tool. Additionally, Wormhole now operates under the administration of Wormhole Labs.
Wormhole itself is now completely separated from Jump.
Dan Reecer, Wormhole Foundation COO
Wormhole plans to deploy fresh capital toward bolstering its industry reputation and charting a new course after hackers siphoned roughly $320 million in 2022, one of the largest hacks ever. Jump Crypto stepped in at the time, providing emergency funds to cover a 120,000 Ether (ETH) shortfall created by the indecent.
The company would later recover Wormhole’s stolen assets with the help of Oasis, a defi service provider.
Jump Trading is also phasing out crypto endeavors after Terraform Labs collapsed in mid-2022, and ensuing legal actions claimed the firm generated $1.3 billion through inflating the price of Terra’s UST token.
Kanav Kariya, President of Jump Crypto, exercised his Fifth Amendment rights when deposed by Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) attorneys over the company’s role in Terra’s ecosystem.
An SEC complaint also pointed to an unnamed U.S. trading firm involved in UST’s price manipulation which supposedly spurred speculations of Jump being that company.
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