Circle Pay Closes On Acquisition Of SeedInvest

Circle, the payments startup backed by Goldman Sachs, announced on Monday (March 4) it closed on its acquisition of SeedInvest, an equity crowdfunding platform that operates a registered broker-dealer.

The completion of the deal comes as talk abounds that the company wants to raise $250 million in fresh capital.

In a blog post, the company said the deal, which was announced in October, received the blessing of FINRA, enabling it to close the acquisition.

“We are incredibly excited to welcome the SeedInvest family of employees, startups and investors into Circle,” wrote Co-founders Sean Neville and Jeremy Allaire. The executives said the acquisition is another step in realizing their vision of a more open, global, connected and inclusive financial system.

“As a crowdfunding pioneer in the United States, SeedInvest helped to shape the JOBS Act. Today, they are at the forefront of enabling startups to raise capital directly from investors over the internet – creating new capital formation options for startups and growth companies, and giving average retail investors the opportunity to invest directly into innovative private companies,” wrote the Circle executives. They said the company is focused on bringing the breakthroughs of blockchain technology to traditional forms of financial contracts, including equities and other securities.

As for SeedInvest, the executives said its team will join Circle’s workforce of more than 300.

The company will continue to operate as it is currently, but with additional support from Circle. The two will also explore other opportunities for the tokenization of other assets, working closely with regulators such as the SEC and FINRA, Circle said in the blog post.

News of the deal comes after news broke over the weekend that Circle was seeking more capital. According to The Next Web, The Information reported that Circle is looking at a fundraising round that would enable it to raise a combination of equity and debt funding.

The company is looking to raise cash after the descent of the cryptocurrency market, a crash that has forced several digital token-focused companies out of business.