Euroclear, a major securities settlement house based in Belgium, has entered Asia by acquiring a “strategic stake” in Marketnode, a Singapore-based operator specializing in blockchain for financial market infrastructure.
Euroclear announced on Thursday that this is the firm’s first strategic investment in Asia and it aims to participate in the establishment of a market infrastructure in Asia Pacific “designed to simplify the management of funds flows and reduce settlement times by using new technology.”
While the European clearing house declined to disclose the investment size, the firm said it joins Marketnode’s major shareholders, including SGX Group, Temasek and HSBC. In May 2024, Marketnode closed its series A financing round, led by HSBC.
Founded in 2021 by SGX and Temasek, Marketnode mainly operates two platforms — Gateway and Fundnode. Gateway serves as an end-to-end platform that leverages tokenization, and Fundnode runs Singapore’s investment fund infrastructure on blockchain, according to the firm’s statement. Euroclear added that it intends to bolster the growth of Euroclear FundsPlace’s fund offering with the new investment.
“This first strategic investment in Asia also reinforces the region’s importance to Euroclear’s positioning and business growth,” said Philippe Laurensy, CEO of Asia Pacific markets at Euroclear. “We are excited to join Marketnode’s pioneering journey in the rapidly growing area of digital assets and support the company’s international service expansion.”
Pradyumna Agrawal, managing director of investment at Temasek, said that Euroclear’s partnership can provide Marketnode with expertise and access to a broader ecosystem, “reinforcing Singapore’s position as a leading financial hub for funds.”
Euroclear appears to have identified blockchain as a critical investment area. For example, it has invested multiple rounds in Fnality, a London-based blockchain payments firm, in 2022 and 2023.
Disclaimer: The Block is an independent media outlet that delivers news, research, and data. As of November 2023, Foresight Ventures is a majority investor of The Block. Foresight Ventures invests in other companies in the crypto space. Crypto exchange Bitget is an anchor LP for Foresight Ventures. The Block continues to operate independently to deliver objective, impactful, and timely information about the crypto industry. Here are our current financial disclosures.
© 2024 The Block. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
免责声明：本文章仅代表作者个人观点，不代表本平台的立场和观点。本文章仅供信息分享，不构成对任何人的任何投资建议。用户与作者之间的任何争议，与本平台无关。如网页中刊载的文章或图片涉及侵权，请提供相关的权利证明和身份证明发送邮件到support@aicoin.com，本平台相关工作人员将会进行核查。
