Republic Raises $12M from Binance Labs to Tokenize Startup Investing

Blockchain Technology 1 min, 59 sec READ

by Tom Nyarunda

Enthusiasm in crypto assets has moved startup investing from a localized ecosystem for select people to a global interconnected community.

Republic, a blockchain-based startup investment platform, has announced the closing of a successful $12M funding round to finance the tokenization of its platform and the development of a security token. 

The aim of this funding round is to give Republic clients an incentive to use the platform via a Republican Token that has functional uses as well as economic value. The firm will also tokenize its financial products to enhance liquidity and transferability.

Republic CEO Kendrick Nguyen described the company's goals as follows, 

Underlying our goal of becoming the marketplace for private investing is our mission to promote broad, diverse participation in all forms of entrepreneurship. The global crypto fever has moved the needle forward almost overnight, but it has also introduced new regulatory and business complexities. --Kendrick Nguyen, CEO of Republic.

Nguyen launched Republic in 2016 as an investment platform to give retail investors globally compliant access to curated blockchain and startup projects. The company started curating and offering token sales late last year under the Republic Crypto brand to accredited and non-accredited investors.

Binance Labs Backing 

Binance Labs, a "blockchain incubator" launched by the Binance Exchange, which funds pre-ICO startups, led the Republic funding initiative alongside NGC ECO Fund, Oyster Ventures, East Chain Co, FBG Capital, and Zhen Fund, among others. 

Binance, among the world's largest cryptocurrency exchanges, announced in June that it was launching a $1 billion “Social Impact Fund” to enhance the growth of cryptocurrency and blockchain startups via Binance Labs. The head of the Binance Labs incubator program, Ella Zhang, said the exchange would pour $1 billion, (in ten $100 million phases), into a fund for investing in other promising startups in the blockchain realm. 

In a statement, Zhang described Binance and Republic as two initiatives with shared values. 

Republic brings new investment opportunities for retail investors to participate in well-curated startups. Binance and Labs team are working towards the freedom of value-exchange, and Republic’s democratization of access to startup investing aligns with our values.

The announcement of this Republic and Binance Labs partnership is a step towards a future where traditional and crypto-enabled investments and entrepreneurship are open to people across all income brackets.