VALR, a South African cryptocurrency exchange, chooses Poland as its destination for expansion in Europe.
VALR, a cryptocurrency exchange backed by Pantera, is expanding its services to Poland as part of its global expansion efforts. The South African exchange has chosen Poland as its first destination outside of Africa to increase its client base beyond the African continent. VALR’s CEO, Farzam Ehsani, stated in an interview with Reuters that the exchange aims to attract more customers from outside of South Africa, as currently 75% of its clients are from Africa. VALR recently received approval to offer crypto services in Poland after initial approval from Dubai’s crypto regulator VARA. The exchange is also looking to obtain a license in Mauritius. Despite offering services across Africa, VALR has decided not to expand its operations to Nigeria due to the Nigerian authorities’ crackdown on crypto exchanges, citing concerns over their alleged involvement in a black market for foreign exchange. VALR was founded in 2018 and achieved a valuation of $240 million in 2022 after a successful fundraising round led by Pantera Capital. Other investors, including Alameda Research, Cadenza, CMT Digital, Coinbase Ventures, Distributed Global, GSR, Third Prime, and Avon Ventures, also participated in the funding. The exchange has appointed Ben Caselin as CMO for its global expansion plans.
