Luno launches early-stage investment arm

Cryptocurrency company, Luno, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Digital Currency Group (“DCG”), has launched Luno Expeditions, a global, early-stage investment arm to support fintech and crypto/web3 founders on their journeys to build the next generation of financial services.

Building on DCG’s seven year track record in early stage crypto investing, Luno Expeditions will now spearhead all of DCG’s early stage investing (seed and pre-seed). The dedicated team will scale up investments (targeting 200-300 per year) and expand the focus beyond crypto into the broader fintech space, globally.

The global cryptocurrency market size was valued at $1.49 billion in 2020, and is projected to reach $4.94 billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 12.8% from 2021 to 2030.

Luno Expeditions will be led by Jocelyn Cheng, who takes on the role of CEO. Speaking about her new role Cheng said: “I am thrilled to join Luno Expeditions as Chief Executive. These are incredibly exciting times in cryptocurrency and the broader fintech ecosystem. We’ve got ambitious plans to build a leading fund designed around the needs of early stage founders. It will be a privilege to work with ambitious entrepreneurs from all over the world, all intent on solving problems and building the next generation of financial service companies.”

Marcus Swanepoel, Luno co-founder and CEO commented: “We know how hard it is to build a company, especially in the fintech space, and with our deep experience building, scaling and operating fintech businesses in some of the hardest markets in the world, we’re looking to support a new generation of entrepreneurs from all over the world do the same.”

Whilst in stealth mode over the past few months, Luno Expeditions has already invested in over 20 leading crypto and fintech companies globally, including a crypto compliance solution in Israel, an NFT marketplace in the United States, a bank dedicated to women in Pakistan and a ground-breaking remittance solution in Tanzania.

Barry Silbert, founder and CEO of DCG, and Marcus Swanepoel, co-founder and CEO of Luno, are both closely involved in the initiative and will be part of the Investment Committee.

Read more: Luno adds Chainlink and Uniswap to crypto portfolio

Featured image: Supplied