Latest news with #BMN2
Business Wire
6 days ago
- Business
- Business Wire
STOKR Surpasses US$1 Billion in Tokenized Asset Volume, Powering the Rise of Capital Markets Built on Bitcoin
LUXEMBOURG--(BUSINESS WIRE)--STOKR, the European tokenization platform for financial assets, has surpassed US$1 billion in tokenized asset volume, marking a breakthrough moment for real-world assets (RWAs) and reinforcing Bitcoin's role as the foundation for modern financial infrastructure. European tokenization platform STOKR surpasses US$1B in tokenized asset volume, marking a milestone moment in the evolution of capital moments built on Bitcoin. First announced last week at Bitcoin 2025 in Las Vegas, the milestone highlights STOKR's leadership in delivering compliant, blockchain-based investment products—particularly those built on the Liquid Network, Bitcoin's most resilient sidechain, purpose-built for institutional-grade confidentiality, scalability and settlement efficiency. 'Crossing the US$1 billion mark is a powerful validation of our long-term vision of Bitcoin being not just sound money but the foundation of new and improved capital markets,' said Arnab Naskar, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of STOKR. 'As a US$2 trillion network, Bitcoin is more than ready to support hundreds of billions in institutional-grade capital market products. With the right assets and compliant tokenization frameworks in place, this milestone is just the start. Our sights are already set on US$10 billion—and we're picking up speed.' BMN2 Ranks as Second-Largest RWA Globally STOKR's billion-dollar milestone was driven by a broad suite of tokenized securities, including equity, debt, fund units and products anchored in Bitcoin infrastructure. Among the top performers is the Blockstream Mining Note 2 (BMN2), issued by Blockstream Mining, which now ranks as the second-largest RWA by volume globally, valued at US$790 million as of May 12, 2025. BMN2 follows the success of BMN1, which matured in July 2024 with a record 1,212 BTC payout, delivering up to 103% cash-on-cash return—one of the highest in RWA history. STOKR is also at the forefront of fixed-income miner financing, having originated over US$400 million in hashrate-backed debt products to date. These offerings enable miners to raise capital using future hashrate as collateral, expanding the use of Bitcoin infrastructure as a productive financial layer and attracting increasing interest from professional investors. Institutional Strategy Accelerates with Key Appointments As demand for compliant tokenized assets grows, STOKR has appointed Federico Demicheli as Director of Institutional Partnerships and Egor Sukhanov as Head of Product for its API-driven Tokenization-as-a-Service (TaaS) platform. Federico Demicheli, a former investment banker with years of experience at Barclays and UBS, will lead strategic partnerships with asset managers and financial institutions. Egor Sukhanov, who spent over seven years at Solarisbank, will oversee the development of STOKR's TaaS infrastructure to support scalable issuance and investor onboarding for institutional clients. Post-Funding Growth Positions STOKR for Next Phase of Expansion Following a successful US$7.4 million funding round in 2024 led by Fulgur Ventures, STOKR has significantly expanded its operations, adding new product lines, nurturing strategic partnerships with industry leaders such as Blockstream and Medad Holding, as well as creating one of Europe's first corporate Bitcoin treasuries. With over US$1 billion in tokenized assets, STOKR is now scaling Bitcoin's capital markets stack—spanning tokenized funds, equities, bonds, and real-world asset-backed products. To learn more about STOKR or to explore investment opportunities, please visit About STOKR STOKR is at the forefront of transforming capital markets for the digital era. As a leading digital investment platform, STOKR helps asset managers, fund managers, and issuers to tokenize and manage a diverse range of financial assets. STOKR operates across two core business lines: a full-service, end-to-end tokenization solution for issuers seeking comprehensive support in structuring, launching, and managing full life-cycle of tokenized securities; and an API-first solution (Tokenization-as-a-Service, or TaaS) designed for financial institutions and regulated issuers looking to integrate tokenization directly into their own systems. In 2025, STOKR surpassed US$1 billion in total tokenized asset volume, reinforcing its leadership in the real-world asset (RWA) space and its pivotal role in reinforcing Bitcoin's role as the foundation for modern financial infrastructure. With over six years of experience in the tokenization space, STOKR merges cutting-edge technology with regulatory robustness to support the institutional shift toward digital assets. As a Virtual Assets Service Provider (VASP) registered with the CSSF in Luxembourg, STOKR is committed to the highest standards of regulatory compliance, ensuring a reliable and trustworthy platform for all stakeholders.
National Post
30-04-2025
- Business
- National Post
Blockstream Shares Key Strategic Update on Growth & Expansion in 2025
Article content Article content MONTREAL, Quebec — Blockstream, the global leader in Bitcoin-powered financial infrastructure, has shared a key strategic update today highlighting several recent milestones, as the company looks to unveil several new innovations to expand Bitcoin's role in institutional finance and everyday user experience later this year. As announced previously, Blockstream raised $210 million in a financing round led by Fulgur Ventures in October 2024, and has already significantly expanded development and investment across its infrastructure and software offerings in 2025. Article content 'We are at a pivotal moment for Bitcoin's growth,' said Blockstream Co-Founder and CEO Dr. Adam Back. 'Spot ETFs have opened the floodgates, institutions are rushing to engage with Bitcoin, and individual interest is accelerating. As we look ahead, we will continue to explore ways to deliver the greatest impact with a focus on building the financial rails and infrastructure to help secure Bitcoin's success long term.' Article content As part of this broader expansion strategy Blockstream Mining, which becomes a newly independent company and will continue to operate under the well-established 'Blockstream Mining' brand, has also entered a new phase of growth, with over $350 million raised through a combination of equity and debt financing, alongside investments in its latest Blockstream Mining Note (BMN2). Article content Former President of Blockstream Mining Chris Cook, who launched and led the division, will serve as CEO of the newly independent company, bringing deep operational expertise and continuity of leadership. Article content Blockstream Co-Founder and CEO Dr. Adam Back, whose technical leadership and long-term vision were instrumental in shaping the mining business, will continue to support the company in an advisory role. Blockstream Satellite, which has long provided global Bitcoin data broadcast coverage, will also transition under the remit of the new mining entity. Article content Blockstream is additionally spinning out its ASIC division as a separate company with Assaf Gilboa as CEO (formerly EVP of Blockstream's Hardware Division), which will include a follow-on investment round and second in-progress round with the use of capital focused on ASIC R&D, including foundry services. Article content Key focus areas for Blockstream will continue to include development on Bitcoin layer-2 networks such as Liquid and Lightning, self-custody solutions like Blockstream Green and Jade, including the all-new Jade Plus, and institutional-grade custody tools. Article content Several new products aimed at creating a more streamlined and integrated user experience across Blockstream's technology stack are set to be unveiled at Bitcoin 2025 – Las Vegas in May. Article content To meet growing institutional demand, Blockstream launched Blockstream Asset Management (BAM) in February 2025, a new division focused on developing Bitcoin investment products for pensions, endowments, foundations and other sophisticated investors. Led by recently appointed CIO Sean Bill, a thirty-year hedge fund industry veteran, BAM reflects Blockstream's strategy to deliver end-to-end Bitcoin solutions built on Blockstream's full technology stack. Article content In January, Blockstream Capital Partners also completed a $75 million strategic investment into Komainu, a regulated digital asset custodian backed by Nomura's Laser Digital. The investment supports the integration of Blockstream's Liquid Network, Asset Management Platform (AMP) and enterprise-grade hardware security module (HSM) into Komainu's custody and off-exchange settlement systems, helping to raise the bar for institutional-grade infrastructure within the Bitcoin ecosystem. Article content Blockstream's long-term commitment to Bitcoin R&D remains at the heart of its vision. In November 2024, the company launched a dedicated research center in Lugano, Switzerland, focused on accelerating product development for the Liquid and Lightning networks and fostering collaboration with startups and academic institutions across Europe. Article content To further support its global expansion, Blockstream also opened a new office in Tokyo in early 2025, strengthening its presence in Asia and expanding collaboration with partners and developers in the region. Article content These efforts reinforce Bitcoin's role as a global financial and settlement layer, while supporting the next wave of decentralized innovation. Article content Founded in 2014, Blockstream is a global leader in Bitcoin and blockchain infrastructure, with offices and team members distributed around the world. Article content Serving as the technology provider for the Liquid Network, Blockstream offers a sidechain solution that enables secure, trustless Bitcoin swap settlements and robust smart contracts, empowering financial institutions to tokenize assets efficiently. Article content The companyʼs Core Lightning is a leading implementation of the open Lightning Network protocol, widely adopted for enterprise Bitcoin Lightning Network deployments. Article content Blockstream Jade, an open-source hardware wallet, delivers advanced security for Bitcoin and Liquid assets in an easy-to-use form factor. Article content Article content Article content Article content Article content
Associated Press
30-04-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
Blockstream Shares Key Strategic Update on Growth & Expansion in 2025
MONTREAL, Quebec--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apr 30, 2025-- Blockstream, the global leader in Bitcoin-powered financial infrastructure, has shared a key strategic update today highlighting several recent milestones, as the company looks to unveil several new innovations to expand Bitcoin's role in institutional finance and everyday user experience later this year. As announced previously, Blockstream raised $210 million in a financing round led by Fulgur Ventures in October 2024, and has already significantly expanded development and investment across its infrastructure and software offerings in 2025. 'We are at a pivotal moment for Bitcoin's growth,' said Blockstream Co-Founder and CEO Dr. Adam Back . 'Spot ETFs have opened the floodgates, institutions are rushing to engage with Bitcoin, and individual interest is accelerating. As we look ahead, we will continue to explore ways to deliver the greatest impact with a focus on building the financial rails and infrastructure to help secure Bitcoin's success long term.' As part of this broader expansion strategy Blockstream Mining, which becomes a newly independent company and will continue to operate under the well-established 'Blockstream Mining' brand, has also entered a new phase of growth, with over $350 million raised through a combination of equity and debt financing, alongside investments in its latest Blockstream Mining Note (BMN2). Former President of Blockstream Mining Chris Cook, who launched and led the division, will serve as CEO of the newly independent company, bringing deep operational expertise and continuity of leadership. Blockstream Co-Founder and CEO Dr. Adam Back, whose technical leadership and long-term vision were instrumental in shaping the mining business, will continue to support the company in an advisory role. Blockstream Satellite, which has long provided global Bitcoin data broadcast coverage, will also transition under the remit of the new mining entity. Blockstream is additionally spinning out its ASIC division as a separate company with Assaf Gilboa as CEO (formerly EVP of Blockstream's Hardware Division), which will include a follow-on investment round and second in-progress round with the use of capital focused on ASIC R&D, including foundry services. Expanding Blockstream's Infrastructure, Layer-2 Development & Institutional Offerings Key focus areas for Blockstream will continue to include development on Bitcoin layer-2 networks such as Liquid and Lightning, self-custody solutions like Blockstream Green and Jade, including the all-new Jade Plus, and institutional-grade custody tools. Several new products aimed at creating a more streamlined and integrated user experience across Blockstream's technology stack are set to be unveiled at Bitcoin 2025 - Las Vegas in May. To meet growing institutional demand, Blockstream launched Blockstream Asset Management (BAM) in February 2025, a new division focused on developing Bitcoin investment products for pensions, endowments, foundations and other sophisticated investors. Led by recently appointed CIO Sean Bill, a thirty-year hedge fund industry veteran, BAM reflects Blockstream's strategy to deliver end-to-end Bitcoin solutions built on Blockstream's full technology stack. In January, Blockstream Capital Partners also completed a $75 million strategic investment into Komainu, a regulated digital asset custodian backed by Nomura's Laser Digital. The investment supports the integration of Blockstream's Liquid Network, Asset Management Platform (AMP) and enterprise-grade hardware security module (HSM) into Komainu's custody and off-exchange settlement systems, helping to raise the bar for institutional-grade infrastructure within the Bitcoin ecosystem. A Future Centered on Bitcoin Innovation Blockstream's long-term commitment to Bitcoin R&D remains at the heart of its vision. In November 2024, the company launched a dedicated research center in Lugano, Switzerland, focused on accelerating product development for the Liquid and Lightning networks and fostering collaboration with startups and academic institutions across Europe. To further support its global expansion, Blockstream also opened a new office in Tokyo in early 2025, strengthening its presence in Asia and expanding collaboration with partners and developers in the region. These efforts reinforce Bitcoin's role as a global financial and settlement layer, while supporting the next wave of decentralized innovation. For media enquiries, please contact Edward Moore, Blockstream Head of Public Relations ( [email protected] ) About Blockstream Founded in 2014, Blockstream is a global leader in Bitcoin and blockchain infrastructure, with offices and team members distributed around the world. Serving as the technology provider for the Liquid Network, Blockstream offers a sidechain solution that enables secure, trustless Bitcoin swap settlements and robust smart contracts, empowering financial institutions to tokenize assets efficiently. The companyʼs Core Lightning is a leading implementation of the open Lightning Network protocol, widely adopted for enterprise Bitcoin Lightning Network deployments. Blockstream Jade, an open-source hardware wallet, delivers advanced security for Bitcoin and Liquid assets in an easy-to-use form factor. Blockstream Green serves as a gateway to Blockstreamʼs cutting-edge technology suite, seamlessly integrating with Jade, Core Lightning, Bitcoin, and a rapidly-growing portfolio of tokenized assets on Liquid, offering a comprehensive solution for self-custody. View source version on CONTACT: Edward Moore Blockstream Head of Public Relations [email protected] KEYWORD: NORTH AMERICA CANADA INDUSTRY KEYWORD: PROFESSIONAL SERVICES OTHER PROFESSIONAL SERVICES BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGY CRYPTOCURRENCY OTHER TECHNOLOGY DIGITAL CASH MANAGEMENT/DIGITAL ASSETS SOURCE: Blockstream Copyright Business Wire 2025. PUB: 04/30/2025 10:00 AM/DISC: 04/30/2025 10:02 AM
