Pintu which is Indonesia’s first mobile native cryptocurrency wallet and trading platform raised $35 million from some of blockchain’s biggest venture funds putting the company on track to expand its team and product offerings in the near future.
The Series A was led by Lightspeed Venture Partners, a technology-focused investor with broad exposure to blockchain, fintech and data analytics. Several other high-profile venture funds also participated in the raise, including Alameda Ventures, Blockchain.com, Pantera Capital, Coinbase Ventures, Castle Island Ventures and Intudo Ventures.
Pintu plans to hire additional talent, roll out new product offerings and fuel future adoption of cryptocurrency in Indonesia.
Indonesia’s crypto industry is still in its early stages as more companies navigate a complex regulatory framework for buying and selling digital assets. The country’s Commodity Futures Trading Regulatory Agency, also known as BAPPEBTI, gave crypto the green light in February 2019, classifying the asset class as a speculative commodity.
Pintu is recognized as a licensed cryptocurrency broker under BAPPEBTI, which allows the company to serve retail investors. Currently, the broker offers 16 crypto currencies, including nonfungible tokens. Lawmakers in the country are mulling a new tax framework for cryptocurrency traders. In May of this year, a spokesperson for the Indonesian Directorate General of Taxes said crypto profits may soon be classified as capital gains.
