One of the leading blockchain companies, Digital Currency Group, or DCG, has recently acquired the British based crypto exchange, Luno.
DCG had initially bought a stake in Luno by investing in the exchange’s seed round in 2014. Since then, the exchange has spread its roots across 40 countries and currently boasts of more than five million registered users on its platform.
American based DCG will be making a significant financial commitment to support Luno expand worldwide including where Luno currently operates and beyond. Financial terms of the deal were however not disclosed.
DCG Founder and CEO Barry Silbert spoke on the recent deal. He said, “We are proud to have supported Luno as an early investor, and we recognize a shared commitment to building mission-driven companies that can help transform traditional financial services and improve economic freedom for people all over the world.”
“Luno is a high growth, global business and there is a massive opportunity to expand organically and through acquisitions,” he added.
DCG stated that Luno will keep operating as an independent organization under the leadership of its CEO while DCG will provide leadership, partnership, and investment capital to help the exchange scale its business.
Luno has become a digital asset powerhouse in many emerging and frontier markets, providing digital asset education, knowledge, and investment tools for individuals in Africa, Asia, and Europe.
Luno has helped broaden the global crypto investment community and the company has seen record growth of its customer base in 2020.
In Africa, the company saw more than 550,000 new users on its platform in Q2 2020 and contributes the largest share of cryptocurrency trading volume on the continent across non-P2P exchanges.
Luno is a leading exchange in several countries that have the highest percentage of cryptocurrency ownership, including South Africa (third-highest of its citizens owning digital currencies), Nigeria (fifth-highest), Indonesia (sixth-highest), and Malaysia (tenth-highest)