Binance Makes First Chinese Investment in Crypto Media Startup

World’s leading cryptocurrency exchange by trade volume, Binance has made an undisclosed amount investment in Chinese crypto media firm Mars Finance. 

According to a report by Bloomberg today the latest funding round of the crypto media startup has boosted the firm’s value to $200 million, although the amount it received from Binance remains undisclosed.

Notably, Binance was not the only investor in the funding round as the Chinese media firm also received funding from other investors, such as Ceyuan Ventures and Matrixport, a financial services startup founded by the co-founder of bitcoin mining firm Bitmain, Jihan Wu.

Per the report, the Mars Finance latest funding was Binance’s first strategic investment in China since the country pronounced a ban on cryptocurrencies.

Meanwhile, the latest funding round is not the only funding the crypto media firm has ventured into, as Bloomberg stated in the report that the firm has hitherto raised funds from other series, which featured investors, including IDG Capital and the venture arms of exchange operators OKCoin, and Huobi. 

Interestingly, this implies that Mars Finance is currently being backed by the three most famous Chinese crypto exchanges – OKEx, Huobi, and Binance. Mars Finance also runs its own Venture Capital (VC) fund dubbed the Consensus Lab, which has seen the firm provide financial backing for Hong Kong-based Coinsuper.

Binance Growth Continues

Since the beginning of the year, Binance has not slowed down in its quest of staying ahead of its competitors, by rolling out new services that are beneficial to the crypto community. 

Last month the firm launched its lending service named the Binance lending. The service was designed to offer interest-earning opportunities for three cryptocurrencies, including, Binance Coin (BNB), Ethereum Classic (ETC) and stablecoin Tether (USDT).  

The news latest news also comes after Binance acquired JEX, a crypto platform that offers spot and derivatives trading for crypto assets.