Billionaire Steve Cohen Helps NFT Firm Reach $333 Million Valuation

(Bloomberg) --

The non-fungible token company, Recur, has reached a $333 million valuation after a funding round led by an investment platform backed by billionaire Steve Cohen’s family office.

The Series A round, which raised $50 million, was led by metaverse investment platform Digital, according to a statement. Recur, which was founded by Zach Bruch and Trevor George, will use the funds to support licensing rights and partnerships, and to build out its team. Cohen, the owner of Point72 Asset Management, will serve on Recur’s board as Digital’s initial designated director.

“Our engineers built the infrastructure to power millions of micro-transactions between fiat currencies and cryptocurrencies,” Bruch and George wrote in emailed comments. They said they plan to offer “a seamless experience from purchase, to trade, to withdrawal.”

NFTs have exploded in popularity this year, with a few high-profile sales in the millions of dollars, and many in the tens or hundreds of thousands. The tokens allow holders of digital art, collectibles and all manner of other items to track ownership. Daily sales reached an all-time high late last month, according to data compiled by NonFungible.com.

Point72

Cohen has started exploring cryptocurrencies in recent months, with Point72 Ventures leading a Series A funding round for analytics firm Messari Inc. that closed at $21 million. In July, Point72 Asset Management was reported to be seeking a head of cryptocurrencies. In May, Point72 AM had sent a letter to investors saying it was exploring opportunities around blockchain technology.

Recur had announced a $5 million fundraising in March that attracted investments from the likes of Ethereum co-founder Joe Lubin, Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss’s Gemini, JST Capital and Defi Alliance. 

Recur is also partnering with artificial-intelligence company Veritone Inc. and collegiate trademark licensing company CLC, according to the statement. As the exclusive content licensing partner for the Pac-12 Networks, Veritone will license Recur-approved Pac-12 moments across all sports available for NFT creation. Recur is introducing NFTU, a marketplace that will allow sports fans to own highlights from college sports, starting with the Pac-12.

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