Secretive Silicon Valley Bitcoin Startup Raises US$116m In Funding

One of the main goals for Bitcoin is achieving a global reach in the near future. The more people know about Bitcoin, the better chance we all have of more people using the technology and currency in their daily lives. Bitcoin startup “21 Inc.” is hinting at some form of mass consumer adoption after unveiling their funding numbers.

Bitcoin Startup 21 Inc. – A Well-kept Silicon Valley Secret

Until this very day, hardly anyone had heard about a Bitcoin startup called “21 Inc.”, let alone know of their whereabouts in Silicon Valley. But that doesn’t mean this startup has been sitting on their hands in the meantime, as the team managed to convince several big names in the venture capital space to back their efforts. Their venture? Turning the Bitcoin technology into something usable for mass-marketed purposes.

Speaking of convincing big names in the venture capital space, 21 Inc. managed to raise a whopping US$116 million in venture funding, which shatters any and all records previously set by other digital currency-related companies. However, the exact operations of “21 Inc.” remain unclear at this point in time. Matthew Pauker, Co-founder and CEO of 21 Inc said we would see “several interesting developments over the coming weeks and months.”

All of that mystery was enough to convince big investor names such as Andreessen Horowitz, RRE Ventures; a Chinese private-equity firm called Yuan Capital, and a strategic stake is going to Qualcomm. That last name will ring a bell for most people, as Qualcomm makes chips that we can find in most everyday devices such as smartphones and tablets.

But the list does not end there, as more investor names have been revealed. Khosla Ventures, Data Collective, Paypal co-founders Max Levchin and Peter Thiel, Ebay Inc. co-founder Jeff Skoll, Expedia Inc. CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, Zynga Inc. co-founder Mark Pincus and Dropbox Inc. CEO Drew Houston have all backed the efforts of 21 Inc.

Qualcomm – A Key Investor

Judging from that list of investors, there is only one name that doesn’t seem to fit the profile: Qualcomm. Mr. Pauker hopes to put Qualcomm’s mass-marketing and production capabilities to good use in order to come up with electronic devices using blockchain technology. Rumours are already spreading about 21 Inc. aiming to create some form of hardware component to promote the “The Internet of Things” idea.

Most electronic gadgets we have in our possession this very day are gathering a ton of personal and sensitive information about the people using them. Seeing as how the blockchain is free from any governmental oversight in regards to who owns or controls the data, the risk information manipulation could become a non-issue in the future.

One of the main reasons why Bitcoin has failed to gain a large foothold in the everyday lives of the global population is because of the lack of proper education. Most people still see Bitcoin as a weak digital currency alternative to fiat currency. Bitcoin enthusiasts are well aware of the technological advancements Bitcoin can bring to the world population, but the question remains whether or not this technology is far ahead of its time.

“None of this will matter if bitcoin doesn’t achieve mass adoption. Bitcoin is going to change the way that people and businesses and even machines interact with each other. But for bitcoin to realize that vision we need mass adoption. It can’t just be for Silicon Valley,” Matthew Pauker told BTCFeed.

Source : http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2015/03/10/secretive-bitcoin-startup-21-reveals-record-funds-hints-at-mass-consumer-play/