PolySign Nets $53M To Improve Services for Institutions, Asset Managers

Cowen Digital, Brevan Howard and GSR among the firms backing the blockchain-focused fintech company

article-image

Blockworks exclusive art by axel rangel

share

key takeaways

  • PolySign plans to launch settlement layer PolyNet in the first quarter of 2023
  • The funding round follows the company’s raise of $53 million in May 2021

Blockchain infrastructure provider PolySign has raised an additional $53 million as it seeks to eventually offer instant and automatic settlements for a range of cryptoassets.

Participants in the round included hedge fund Brevan Howard, crypto market maker GSR and Cowen Digital. The latter business, which financial services firm Cowen launched in March, offers custody solutions via Cowen’s partnership with PolySign subsidiary Standard Custody and Trust Company.

The capital was primarily used for the acquisition of fund administrator MG Stover, which the firm revealed in April. The purchase of the company, which had $40 billion in digital assets under administration at the time, accelerates the company’s product development service enhancements for institutional investors and asset managers, PolySign said in a statement.

PolySign CEO Jack McDonald told Blockworks the Series C round funding would also enable the company to add engineers, accountants and client service teams, as well as accelerate its technology spend.

In the short term, PolySign seeks to continue focusing on its custody offerings through Standard Custody and Trust Company as well as its fund administration business through MG Stover. Its third core product, McDonald said, is PolyNet, a settlement layer that would offer instant and automatic settlement for a range of assets. PolySign expects to launch the latter offering in the first quarter of next year.

PolySign has also secured a $25 million credit facility with Boathouse Capital, it said Tuesday.

Emphasizing the importance of institutional investors in the digital asset space, McDonald said in a statement, “A better platform for custody and fund administration is necessary to serve their unique needs and help expand the market.”

The funding round follows PolySign’s raise of $53 million in May 2021. Cowen led that Series B round with a $25 million strategic investment and was joined by Blockchain.com, Race Capital, Sandia Holdings and PilotRock Investments.

McDonald declined to comment on PolySign’s valuations after each round, but according to private-markets data provider Pitchbook, the latest raise pushed the firm’s valuation over $500 million.


Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

Tags

Decoding crypto and the markets. Daily, with Byron Gilliam.

Upcoming Events

Old Billingsgate

Mon - Wed, October 13 - 15, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

Industry City | Brooklyn, NY

TUES - THURS, JUNE 24 - 26, 2025

Permissionless IV serves as the definitive gathering for crypto’s technical founders, developers, and builders to come together and create the future.If you’re ready to shape the future of crypto, Permissionless IV is where it happens.

Brooklyn, NY

SUN - MON, JUN. 22 - 23, 2025

Blockworks and Cracked Labs are teaming up for the third installment of the Permissionless Hackathon, happening June 22–23, 2025 in Brooklyn, NY. This is a 36-hour IRL builder sprint where developers, designers, and creatives ship real projects solving real problems across […]

recent research

Research Report Templates (19).png

Research

Suilend has grown into the top money market and liquid staking provider on Sui. STEAMM, Suilend’s Superfluid AMM, presents a compelling avenue for growing market share within Sui’s DEX landscape and revenue generation for the protocol. Suilend’s multi-product suite position it well for owning market share across key verticals. While current metrics across the Sui ecosystem are likely inflated due to Sui Foundation incentive programs, SEND trades at amongst the lowest multiples in the lend/borrow sector, suggesting that a bull case for continued growth in the ecosystem may be mispriced.

article-image

Silk Road founder Ulbricht made a triumphant return to the Bitcoin Conference, 10 years on from sentencing

article-image

A Blockworks Research report looked at who could take up some of the marketshare in the launchpad space

article-image

Business-to-business stablecoin payments are on the rise, per a report from Artemis, Dragonfly and Castle Island

article-image

Crypto continues to do its thing: incentivizing behavior

article-image

Kraken will soon offer Backed ‘xStocks’ as Solana tokens

article-image

In a unanimous decision, the US Court of International Trade has ruled that Trump’s IEEPA tariffs are unlawful