Written by Elizabeth Howcroft
LONDON (Reuters) – Cryptocurrency company Tether has invested $200 million in BlackRock Neurotech, taking a majority stake in the U.S. brain implant company, it said in a statement on Monday.
BlackRock Neurotech makes brain-computer interfaces, including neural implants that allow people to control computers and prosthetic arms without moving, the company's website says. It has no relationship with the asset management company BlackRock.
The deal, closed Friday after months of due diligence, values BlackRock Neurotech at about $350 million and makes it Tether's largest shareholder, Tether's chief executive officer ( CEO) Paolo Ardoino told Reuters.
The $200 million from Tether will primarily fund the commercialization and deployment of BlackRock Neurotech's technology, which is used by more than 40 individuals, Tether said in a statement.
In recent years, various device companies, including Elon Musk's Neuralink, have begun testing human brain implants.
Tether issues a cryptocurrency pegged to the dollar and has grown rapidly in recent years, reaching $100 billion in circulation in March. The tokens are said to be backed by dollar-denominated reserves.
Ardoino said Tether has made about $1.7 billion in venture capital investments to date using money raised from profits, but its reserves remain untouched.
According to its website, Tether invests in areas such as sustainable energy, artificial intelligence and peer-to-peer technology. The arm, which was invested in BlackRock Neurotech, is called Tether Evo and is “dedicated to propelling humanity into a future where technology and human capabilities converge in unprecedented ways,” the website says. It is written in
BlackRock Neurotech did not immediately respond to questions from Reuters about the acquisition.
(Reporting by Elizabeth Howcroft; Editing by Michael Ehrman)
