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Goldman, Thomas Bravo back blockchain intelligence firm TRM Labs

blockchain analysis forensics

TRM Labs, the blockchain intelligence firm, announced its Series B round has expanded from $60 million to $130 million.

While Tiger Global led the first part of the round in December 2021, this extension was led by private equity firm Thomas Bravo with Goldman Sachs as a new investor. The extension includes existing investors such as PayPal Ventures, Amex Ventures, Citi Ventures, and others.  JP Morgan invested in February.

The company’s clients are a mix of government organizations such as law enforcement and tax authorities, as well as private sector clients. Its tools are used by authorities to investigate cryptocurrency-related fraud and crime. It serves a similar purpose for private companies but, in addition, provides anti-money laundering vetting services.

“In a rapidly evolving regulatory landscape, TRM’s capabilities are ever more critical to helping organizations scale and adapt risk management needs,” said Christine Kang, a Principal at Thoma Bravo.

Private sector clients include stablecoin issuer Circle, Shopify, OpenSea and Uniswap. Announcements last year mentioned cryptocurrency exchanges FTX.US and Binance as customers. Perhaps it was not seen as appropriate to mention them today, given the sudden acquisition of FTX.com following liquidity issues.

“Demand has never been stronger for solutions that help protect crypto users, impede illicit actors, and support blockchain-based innovation,” said Esteban Castaño, co-founder and CEO of TRM. 

The company has grown revenues almost four-fold annually since its founding in 2018 and now has 150 staff.

Chainalysis is the most significant player in the blockchain analytics space after raising $170 million in May at an $8.6 billion valuation, bringing its funding to $520 million. BNY Mellon is a customer. UK-headquartered Elliptic is another player, and Mastercard bought Ciphertrace last year.


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