Crypto financial services firm Babel Finance raises $40 million in Series A funding

Babel Finance, the Asia-based, crypto-focused financial services firm, announced Monday that it raised $40 million in Series A funding.

Participants in the round included Tiger Global Management, Zoo Capital, Sequoia Capital China, Dragonfly Capital, BAI Capital and Bertelsmann, according to a press statement. Babel said that some of the firm's existing investors all took part. 

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"The alliance with our new investors from traditional finance is a critical step for us to offer more innovative products, strengthen compliance controls, and ultimately provide a full suite of reliable services to meet the growing demand from mainstream investors who are keen to add crypto assets in their portfolio," Flex Yang, CEO of Babel Finance, said in a statement.

As noted by Reuters, the deal appears less focused on solidifying cash flow than aligning Babel and the broader Asia crypto sector with traditional finance players such as Sequoia and Tiger Global. 

Other efforts to draw traditional finance participants into Asia's crypto makers have taken shape in recent days. Late last month, an affiliate of Huobi launched passive bitcoin and ether funds for institutional investors.