Crypto.com announces $400 million strategic investment from Citadel Securities

Crypto.com said it received a $400 million strategic investment from Citadel Securities in a deal that values the digital asset platform at $20 billion. The company described the transaction as its first institutional funding round and said it will use the capital to expand digital asset infrastructure tied to tokenized securities, derivatives, real-world assets and 24/7 trading. The investment also underscores Citadel Securities’ broader push into crypto exchange infrastructure. The firm previously invested $200 million in Kraken in November 2025 at the same $20 billion valuation, extending a pattern of taking stakes in major digital asset venues as traditional market makers deepen their involvement in the sector. Crypto.com, founded in 2016 and largely self-funded until now, traces its early history to the 2017 ICO of its original Monaco token. Following the announcement, CRO, Crypto.com’s native token, rose as much as 25%. The funding landed alongside a wider wave of infrastructure and market expansion across the crypto sector on July 16. MoonPay acquired crypto deposits startup Glide, which it said will bolster its payments stack as it moves beyond fiat on-ramps. Founded in 2023, Glide processes more than $100 million in annualized volume across over 100 tokens and 30 blockchain networks. Bybit launched Bybit Indonesia as a locally operated exchange after its majority acquisition of PT Enkripsi Teknologi Handal, formerly NOBI. The platform will operate under the supervision of Indonesia’s Financial Services Authority, or OJK, and initially offer more than 500 trading pairs. Kraken also expanded into crypto options, launching European-style, cash-settled Bitcoin and Ether contracts on Kraken Pro through a request-for-quote model, with weekly, monthly, quarterly and semi-annual expiries. Institutional demand also remained visible in exchange-traded products. Lookonchain said U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded net inflows of 1,632 BTC, about $105.1 million, on July 16, led by BlackRock’s IBIT with 1,246 BTC. Spot Ethereum ETFs added 23,567 ETH, about $44.2 million, with BlackRock’s ETHA accounting for 23,542 ETH. Bitcoin funds were still in net seven-day outflows, while Ethereum products stayed positive over the same period. Bitcoin traded at $64,175, down 1.04% over 24 hours, while Ethereum fell 2.55% to $1,873, according to CoinMarketCap. Separately, 1inch co-founder Anton Bukov said he is no longer involved in the protocol’s operations, product architecture or security oversight, though he remains a 50% shareholder, and announced a new blockchain infrastructure project called Second Tier.