Blythe Masters, who was known as the most powerful woman on Wall Street during her 27-year tenure at JPMorgan, is raising a $35 million fundraising round at a $100 million valuation for her blockchain startup Digital Asset Holdings (DAH), according to the New York Post.
Quartz has reached out to DAH, and will update this post when they respond.
DAH was founded in 2014 and Masters became the CEO in March 2015. The startup is using the underlying technology behind bitcoin, known as the blockchain, to revamp the world of settlements. While financial institutions have made it easier to make trades, actually exchanging securities and money between the two parties, a process known as settlement, takes days.
Both major financial institutions and experienced bankers think the blockchain can be used to make that process instantaneous, and cheaper. Goldman Sachs recently applied for a patent that would create a new digital currency, called SETLCoin, for the “instantaneous execution and settlement” for trades. UBS has talked openly about a similar initiative. (Here’s an explainer on how blockchains can be used for financial transactions, including settlements.)
The Post reports that the startup was hoping to close the funding round by Christmas Eve. JPMorgan, Masters’ ex-employer, will be putting in $7.5 million and leading the round, according to four sources who spoke to The Post. Santander, where Masters serves as a non-executive chairman, will also reportedly be investing $3 million.
Masters, an experienced banker, seems to be fully invested in DAH and blockchain technology—Reuters reported earlier this month that Masters rejected an offer to run the investment banking division at Barclays.