Crypto analytics platform Messari plots raise at $300 million valuation

Messari, a crypto-focused data analytics business, plans to raise fresh financing.

The startup is in the process of raising capital at a valuation of $300 million and has pitched potential investors, according to two people familiar with the matter. One of those sources said the company is looking to raise $35 million. 

That would be significantly more than what Messari banked from investors in August last year, when Steve Cohen’s Point72 Ventures — the venture arm of a hedge fund that manages $24 billion in assets — led a $21 million Series A fundraise. It would also roughly triple the company’s valuation.

Messari’s founder and CEO Ryan Selkis declined to comment on the raise, but said via Twitter message: “We’re continuing to build crypto’s largest subscription information business, and are focused on getting ready to release a slate of new products at Mainnet [a conference organized by Messari] this September! More news to share then.”

He added that the startup does not need money and has “never spent a dime of investor capital while scaling to 130 people.”

News of the raise comes just a week after Messari announced the acquisition of Dove Metrics, which tracks fundraising and M&A activity in the crypto sector. The terms of that deal were not disclosed.  

Rich data

Messari is a part of a small cadre of increasingly well-capitalized startups whose mission is to arm institutions dabbling in crypto with the analytics tools and research needed to navigate the space. Its rivals include the likes of Kaiko, Delphi Digital, Nansen, Dune Analytics, and The Block’s own Research unit. Paris-based Kaiko raised $53 million in a Series B round in June, Dune Analytics announced a $69 million raise in February and Nansen banked $75 million in December last year.

Founded in 2018, Messari’s product is built around analytics tools and a disclosures library for clients such as Coinbase, Gemini, BlockTower and Chainalysis. The proceeds of the company’s $21 million round went towards expanding its institutional footprint, in part by scaling a research tool that helps institutional clients with onbarding, integration and support for new crypto assets. Kraken Ventures, Alameda Capital and CMS Ventures were also among its Series A backers.

Messari’s boss Selkis was part of the founding team behind Barry Silbert’s Digital Currency Group (DCG), where he managed the firm’s seed investments, before moving to DCG-owned CoinDesk in the role of managing director.

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