Shakepay Raises $35M to Help Canadians Buy, Sell and Earn Bitcoin

Shakepay, a company that allows Canadians to buy, sell and earn bitcoin, has announced a C$44 million (US$35 million) Series A investment led by QED investors, a U.S.-based venture capital firm. The funding will be used to expand the business and launch new products. The valuation of the funding round was not disclosed.

• Shakepay is essentially a crypto-focused version of Block’s Cash App, allowing users to buy and sell bitcoin as well as send money to friends. In December, the company launched a beta version of its Shakepay Visa Prepaid Card to a group of 180,000 early-access customers. The card lets users earn cash-back rewards in bitcoin.
• “We believe in the widespread adoption of bitcoin,” Shakepay CEO Jean Amiouny told CoinDesk in an interview. “The adoption of bitcoin as a monetary standard will be better for the citizens of Canada and for the future.”
• Other participants in the round included Golden Ventures, Broadhaven, entrepreneurs Henri Machalani and Mike Murchison and several product leaders from e-commerce company Shopify.
• As part of the capital raise, QED Investors partner Matt Burton will join Shakepay’s board of directors.
• "Shakepay has been able to build a very passionate community and find product market fit on multiple product lines which is rare in today's competitive environment," said Burton in a press release.

Read More:Multichain Hack Worsens as Loss of Funds Reaches $3M: Report