Bakkt to receive up to $25M from Intercontinental Exchange

Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), the parent company of the New-York Stock Exchange, considers investing about $25 million in the development of in the platform for Bitcoin futures Bakkt.

Speaking during teleconference devoted to the financial results of the 4th quarter of 2018, the Financial Director of ICE Scott Hill mentioned that the company would spend $20-$25 million to support the platform.

Meanwhile, according to ICE’s CEO Jeff Sperker, Bakkt is an ambitious project for ICE, because it is so different from its typical projects. He also mentioned that Bakkt secured partnership deals with such heavyweights as the Microsoft venture fund and Starbucks.

Bakkt’s launch was scheduled on January 24. However, It was postponed for an indefinite period. Sperker failed to clarify this question, which means that investors and traders are still in the dark as to where they can start trading Bitcoin futures with physical delivery.

At the end of December Bakkt closed the first financing round and raised $182.5M. In January, the company acquired assets of futures broker Rosenthal Collins Group and hired new employees.

Also earlier we reported that scammers tried to trick investors of their money by impersonating Bakkt’s website. They invited them to participate in the second financing round and declared that the platform would be put into operation on March 15.