F|T: The FinTech Times – Who is Changpeng Zhao, Canada’s crypto king?

Changpeng Zhao
Plus: Bolt's $1.5 billion deal to buy Wyre dies.

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With $20 million, Goldsky aims to make blockchain data easy to use (BETAKIT)

The data infrastructure platform for crypto teams intends to use the financing to rapidly scale its team.

Goldsky hopes its technology will enable it to capitalize on reading and processing crypto data quickly and efficiently, something the startup claims is currently an issue for companies.


Bolt's $1.5 billion deal to buy Wyre dies (AXIOS)

"Bolt and Wyre have mutually agreed to continue their partnership as independent businesses," the companies said in a statement. "Operating as independent organizations while remaining partners will allow both parties to focus on their respective core competencies to deliver value to customers."


Insurtech ProNavigator secures $10 million to power US expansion (BETAKIT)

Having secured the capital throughout this year, with a final close on September 1, ProNavigator has been working to accelerate its growth south of the border by opening a US headquarters in Raleigh, North Carolina.


Who is Changpeng Zhao, Canada’s crypto king? (MACLEAN'S)

Crypto entrepreneur Changpeng Zhao was named the richest Canadian in early 2022, with a net worth of $125 billion. But as his empire grew, so did his troubles. Then came the crash.


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Composer secures $6 million USD to help retail investors adopt sophisticated trading strategies (BETAKIT)

The all-equity round, which closed in August, was supported by a slew of existing, United States-based investors in First Round Capital, Alumni Ventures Group (AVG) Basecamp, Draft Ventures, and Packy McCormick’s Not Boring Capital. The fresh capital brings Composer’s total venture funding to date to over $11 million, from a group that also includes Toronto-based Golden Ventures.


Ratio bags $411M in equity, credit for flexible subscription payment models (TECHCRUNCH)

Co-founder and CEO Ashish Srimal founded Ratio in 2021 with CTO Mason Blake, and they have been heads down ever since working on the company’s concept, which is to help SaaS and technology companies tap into the $1.5 trillion subscription market for recurring revenue.


Indigenous venture firm Raven Capital eyes US market as it secures $46 million for second fund (BETAKIT)

“This is a really tough environment to raise [in], and a lot of investors are slowing down right now across the board,” Raven Capital managing partner Paul Lacerte told BetaKit in an interview.

“What we’ve found is sort of a unique value proposition [as the] first to market, and a pretty significant untapped desire on the part of investors to find ways to deploy capital into the Indigenous space, both in Canada and in the US.”


The consensus for crypto-specific regulation is growing (AXIOS)

"One of the recommendations was that regulators will issue new rules and guidance to resolve confusion, and close gaps related to existing financial regulations application to cryptocurrency. So that's a recognition that we see work needed in this space," a senior administration official said. "That's a clear recommendation coming out of the studies that were done."


Startup syllabus: how Dal Innovates embraced innovation education in Atlantic Canada (BETAKIT)

Halifax’s Dalhousie University (“Dal”), through its award-winning program Dal Innovates, is working to provide this education with multiple programs that encourage and support academics considering or otherwise joining the innovation economy.


Denim, a fintech platform for freight brokers, raises $126M in equity and debt (TECHCRUNCH)

“We witnessed a significant gap in the freight broker market, where legacy systems — i.e. paper checks, physical filing — were still in place, and developed an intuitive payments technology to help streamline broker operations and attract the best carrier relationships through the platform,” said CEO and co-founder Bharath Krishnamoorthy.


Open banking working group failing to address critical governance, standards issues (BETAKIT)

Working group participants from the FinTech community and those familiar with the talks expressed concern that delaying governance decisions could hamstring the system, leaving Canadians without recourse if their data or accounts are compromised. FinTech participants are also concerned they would be left without recourse in disputes with other financial institutions.

In response, Two FinTech industry associations have moved to address those concerns by developing or submitting their own reports on future governance options, BetaKit has learned.


Where Is Do Kwon? Terra Ecosytem Founder Isn’t in Singapore (BNN BLOOMBERG)

Do Kwon, along with five others, is facing arrest in South Korea. As recently as Sept. 14, the prosecutor’s office in Seoul said he and the others, who are accused of violations of capital markets law, were all in Singapore. After local police issued a statement Saturday, Kwon tweeted that he doesn’t have anything to hide and is in “full cooperation” with government agencies.


Southeast Asian fintech Fazz raises $100M Series C to serve businesses of all sizes (TECHCRUNCH)

The equity investment came from returning investors Tiger Global, DST Global Partners, B Capital, Insignia Ventures Partners and ACE & Company, with participation from Ilham Ltd, EDBI, InterVest, Y Combinator managing director Michael Seibel and GGV Capital managing partner Hans Tung. The debt facility is from Lendable.


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