Today in Crypto: CoinShares Acquires Napoleon Asset Management; Crypto Lender Vauld Suspends Withdrawals as Customers Yanked $200M

Digital asset investment firm CoinShares is acquiring Napoleon Asset Management, one of the first ever digital asset managers, CoinShares announced Monday (July 4).

The purchase follows CoinShares’ acquisition of Napoleon Group in December, with the company looking to become a more varied full-service digital asset group with a greater focus on regulatory framework.

CoinShares has advocated for digital asset regulation, and this includes the Alternative Investment Fund Manager (AIFM) license, which is important for the company’s goals to bolster its status in the field.

The AIFM license will come along with a passporting regime, letting it provide services throughout the European Union. It will also give CoinShares a way to leverage active investment strategies through algorithmic trading and artificial intelligence (AI).

“After the recent events in the digital asset sector, it has never been more clear that strong regulation is needed for crypto to thrive,” said Jean-Marie Mognetti, CEO of CoinShares. “As such we are very pleased to have received this approval from the AMF to acquire Napoleon Asset Management. Bringing the company into our group is a further step in the right direction towards investor protection.

“We are proud to be one of the most regulated digital asset investment firms in the industry. Our regulated status in a growing number of jurisdictions is one of CoinShares’ principal strengths; it reassures our clients and demonstrates our plans to lead Europe’s digital asset sector.”

In other news, Vauld, a crypto lender backed by both Coinbase and investor Peter Thiel, announced Monday that it has suspended withdrawals, citing the crisis on the digital asset market.

The lender, which had previously offered clients annualized returns of up to 40% to lend out their crypto tokens, said customers had withdrawn nearly $200 million from the Vauld platform since mid-June.

Read more: Crypto Lender Vauld Suspends Withdrawals as Customers Yanked $200M

Sign up here for daily updates on all of PYMNTS’ crypto coverage.