Republic snaps up UK's Seedrs following blocked merger

Republic has acquired UK crowdfunding platform Seedrs in a bid to create a cross-Atlantic investment platform, according to an announcement.

The deal valued Seedrs at approximately $100 million and follows the US investment platform's recent $150 million Series B. 

The news comes after the Competition & Markets Authority, the UK competition watchdog, forced Seedrs to terminate its planned merger with local rival Crowdcube earlier this year. 

"In working with Seedrs, we have admired their technological capabilities, the strength of their team and their strong presence in the UK and soon Europe," says Kendrick Nguyen, Republic founder and CEO. "We anticipate further developing the strengths of both companies from retail, secondaries, crypto, and communities to create a clear industry leader." 

The acquisition also follows a series of changes to crowdfunding regulations in the EU. On November 10, the European Commission enacted new legislation to enforce uniform rules across the bloc.

Payments infrastructure company Circle recently dipped its toes into European crowdfunding by leading a $13.5 million round into Crowdcube.