BlockFi Logo PNG
BlockFi offered customers dollar loans secured by cryptocurrency, letting them keep ownership of their digital assets. Customers encountering this service also became familiar with the BlockFi logo, which represented the cryptocurrency lending platform. Customers typically used assets held in digital wallets or on trading platforms as collateral.
BlockFi was founded in August 2017 in Jersey City, New Jersey, by Zac Prince and Flori Marquez. Prince came from consumer lending, while Marquez, the daughter of Argentine immigrants, had worked in traditional finance. They focused on a market gap: crypto holders kept Bitcoin and Ethereum in wallets without yield. At the same time, banks did not accept these assets as collateral.
In January 2018, BlockFi launched crypto-backed loans for U.S. residents. A month later, it raised $1.55 million in seed funding from ConsenSys Ventures, SoFi, and Kenetic Capital. In spring 2019, the company introduced the BlockFi Interest Account, allowing users to earn interest on Bitcoin, Ethereum, and stablecoins, with rates at times reaching 8.6% for stablecoins and 6% for Bitcoin.
Growth accelerated in 2020, when the client base rose tenfold. In August 2020, BlockFi raised $50 million at a $450 million valuation. In March 2021, a $350 million Series D round valued the company at $3 billion, with Bain Capital Ventures and Tiger Global Management among the investors. By then, BlockFi managed over $10 billion in assets, served more than one million verified users in over 100 countries, opened institutional offices in London and Singapore, and launched a Bitcoin rewards credit card.
In 2022, regulators and market failures increased pressure. In February, the SEC and more than 30 state regulators ordered BlockFi to pay $100 million over its interest accounts. After losses tied to Three Arrows Capital, Celsius Network’s bankruptcy, and heavy withdrawals, FTX offered a $400 million credit line in July. When FTX collapsed on November 11, BlockFi lost its primary source of liquidity. On November 28, 2022, it filed for Chapter 11 in New Jersey, listing over 100,000 creditors and assets and liabilities between $1 billion and $10 billion.
Meaning and History
What is BlockFi?
This is a fintech startup that combines cryptocurrencies and traditional financial services. The company offers products such as cryptocurrency trading, interest accounts for digital assets, and crypto-backed loans. Users can earn interest on cryptocurrency assets, similar to a savings account, often with higher returns. They can borrow fiat currency using their crypto assets as collateral without selling them.
2017 – 2019
BlockFi began by offering loans backed by digital assets, allowing cryptocurrency holders to borrow dollars while keeping their bitcoin. Zac Prince and Flori Marquez founded the U.S. financial services company in 2017, and it began lending in January 2018. The company used the name BlockFi from its early days, and it has kept it as its range of services has expanded.
The horizontal logo placed a colored emblem to the left of the black BlockFi wordmark. The name appeared as a single word with an uppercase “B” and “F.” The bold sans-serif typeface featured rounded counters in the “B” and “o,” an open “c,” and a short curve at the bottom of the “l.” The square dot above the “i” echoed the squared-off stroke endings.
The early emblem resembled a diamond-shaped tile with a dark, recessed inset. It consisted of two nested squares with rounded corners, both rotated 45 degrees in the same direction. The outer square was turquoise, with a lighter area in the upper left that transitioned to a deeper shade in the lower right. A small dark blue square sat inside, surrounded by a shaded border that made it look recessed.
A later revision flattened the emblem. The outer shape became a vivid blue, and white negative space replaced the dark inset. The symbol now resembled a thick, closed frame with rounded outer and inner corners. The wordmark’s position, capitalization, and bold weight remained unchanged.
2019 – 2023
BlockFi’s visual identity was adapted for digital products in 2019. The company brought in RocketAir, whose team worked with BlockFi’s engineers and leadership. The studio developed a minimalist design based on interviews with company representatives and competitor research. It created a unified design system with light and dark versions, brought the company’s products into a consistent visual style, and built a component library to support future development.
The name and the combined emblem and wordmark were registered separately as U.S. trademarks. The BLOCKFI wordmark was registered first on February 18, 2020, covering financial services and software. The combined logo was registered on November 15, 2022. Its description specified a hollow diamond-shaped frame with rounded corners to the left of the BlockFi name, with an uppercase “B” and “F” in the lettering.
The logo was registered during the month of the company’s crisis. In November 2022, after FTX announced its bankruptcy, BlockFi suspended withdrawals from its platform. On November 14, it disclosed substantial exposure to FTX. The following day, The Wall Street Journal reported that BlockFi was expected to file for bankruptcy. Subsequent reporting by Bloomberg News supported that assessment. On November 28, the company announced that it had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
In October 2023, BlockFi emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy and announced plans to wind down all operations.