Building a crypto exchange following the collapse of FTX and the regulatory penalties of Binance undoubtedly draws additional scrutiny for Backpack. But it also provides a roadmap of what not to do—and Backpack co-founder Armani Ferrante tells Decrypt that he welcomes the opportunity to avoid the usual industry pitfalls.
“We really want to be one of these bastions of integrity and build one of these next-generation exchanges that sets a gold standard for security, for safety, and for trust,” he said.
To aid in that goal, Backpack announced Wednesday that it raised $17 million in a Series A funding round led by Placeholder VC, which values the startup at $120 million. Other backers include Jump Crypto, Delphi Digital, Wintermute, Hashed, Robot Ventures, Selini Capital, Amber Group, and various angel investors.
Ferrante—who previously worked for FTX’s sister company Alameda Research before departing to start his own…
