Solana Veterans Raise $17M For 'Backpack' Crypto Wallet, Exchange
Backpack, founded by Solana contributor Armani Ferrante, raised $17 million in a funding round led by Placeholder VC at a $120 million valuation. The company, co-founded by Tristan Yver, aims to fill the gap left by FTX's collapse and has launched an exchange product with significant trading volume. The funding will cover compliance costs and expansion into new jurisdictions. Backpack uses a system similar to a permissioned blockchain to record transactions and trades, ensuring transparency with regulators. Before the funding, Backpack relied on a $1.4 million financial leash from the sale of the Mad Lads NFT, which popularized its wallet app. The exchange also ranks traders based on trading volume, with speculations about token drops for higher-ranked traders. Yver emphasized the team's warnings against needlessly amassing trading fees.
