Circle, a Boston-based digital assets company, is buying SeedInvest, an equity crowdfunding platform based in New York. Founded in 2012, SeedInvest has connected thousands of startups with more than 2
Circle, a Boston-based digital assets company, is buying SeedInvest, an equity crowdfunding platform based in New York. Founded in 2012, SeedInvest has connected thousands of startups with more than 200,000 investors. The SEC and FINRA license SeedInvest as a broker-dealer, and Inc. Magazine ranks it as the fourth fastest-growing financial services company in the U.S.
The acquisition follows Circle's purchase of Poloniex and fits with Circle's vision of a "robust multi-sided distributed marketplace" for tokens. Once regulators approve the deal, private companies will be able to issue tokens and trade them on Circle's platforms.
Circle plans to offer a comprehensive service package that includes startup due diligence, securities issuance, investor accreditation, payments, and custody of the tokens.
Jeremy Allaire, Circle's chief executive, sees security tokens as a major new asset class. "Crypto securities are going to become a major new category of securities that ultimately every business is going to adopt, just like every business has a website," he told Bloomberg.
Most trading platforms have avoided listing tokens that might count as securities. The SEC treats initial coin offering assets as securities, requiring platforms and issuers to register and comply with federal law before trading.
Circle said earlier this year it would seek a federal banking license and register with the SEC as a brokerage and trading venue, which would let customers buy and sell security tokens. The acquisition adds about 30 employees to Circle's staff.
