BitGo announced yesterday that it is acquiring Lumia, the popular service institutional investors rely on for managing their cryptocurrency portfolios and tracking tax obligations. Neither Lumia nor BitGo disclosed the cost of the acquisition, but Lumia did raise $4 million in the autumn of 2018 through a seed investment.
BitGo was founded in 2011 to help customers safeguard their bitcoins. Today the firm is best known for their full suite of digital currency custody services and support for more than 200 different cryptocurrency tokens.
When the acquisition of Lumia is complete, BitGo will be able to provide tax and accounting support for their cryptocurrency customers. This is particularly useful given the Internal Revenue Service’s arcane regulations for blockchain assets. BitGo clients will also effectively have a dashboard to manage their various cryptocurrency holdings. When the deal is finalized, BitGo CEO Mike Belshe will remain as chief executive officer, while current Lumina CEO will become the chief product officer at BitGo.
BitGo’s purchase of Lumia follows their acquisition of Hedge last year. Hedge is in the business of staking, which is a type of cryptocurrency lending. Last month, BitGo also acquired the security token company Harbor. These deals, along with the launch of their lending and insurance businesses, are helping BitGo become a full-service provider and overall bigger player in the burgeoning cryptocurrency space.
As the industry continues to consolidate, a growing number of Institutional Investors such as TrustToken and Pantera now rely on BitGo’s services. All three of the BitGo acquisitions mentioned in this article are linked to PayPal founder COO David Oliver Sacks. The tech entrepreneur has investments in these firms either directly or through his Craft Ventures capital fund.
More information about how BitGo is transforming the financial system can be found at BitGo.com.
