Last week, there were a total of 39 public financing events in the cryptocurrency market, with a total financing of approximately $150 million. | Investment and Financing Weekly Report
Farcaster, a social client integration platform, has completed a $10 million financing round, with Electric Capital leading the investment and a16z Crypto, USV, and Variant Fund participating.
Compiled by: Biscuit, RootData
According to RootData's incomplete statistics, from May 6th to May 12th, 2024, there were a total of 39 public financing events in the blockchain and crypto industry, with a total financing of approximately $150 million.
Looking at the distribution of projects, the funded projects are mainly in the infrastructure sector, with a total of 17 financing events. Key projects include Web3 AI infrastructure Hemera, Bitcoin-native application platform Arch Network, and general proof aggregator Electron, among others.
In addition, in the social sector, Farcaster's integrated social client Kiosk completed a $10 million financing round, led by Electric Capital, with participation from a16z Crypto, USV, and Variant Fund. Recommended reading: "Web3 content veteran Mirror acquired, interpreting its transformation process and new social product Kiosk".
(List of projects with financing exceeding $5 million last week, data source: Rootdata )
I. Infrastructure
1. DePIN project MetaPhone completes $1 million financing, with JDI as investor
DePIN project MetaPhone announced the completion of a $1 million financing round, with JDI as the investor. Both parties are committed to building the TON DePIN ecosystem, creating a wide decentralized marketing network, and promoting the global adoption of Web3 in various fields. MetaPhone is collaborating with an advanced, leading 3C manufacturer to launch flagship devices. MetaPhone brings high-quality hardware, a simplified Android interface, and cutting-edge Web3 features, allowing users to handle everything they need on a smartphone. (Source link)
2. Bitcoin development startup Botanix Labs raises a total of $11.5 million, with Polychain Capital among the investors
According to The Block, the Bitcoin development startup Botanix Labs announced today that it has completed a total of $11.5 million in financing. This round of financing was led by Polychain Capital, Placeholder Capital, Valor Equity Partners, ABCDE, well-known angel investors Andrew Kang, Fiskantes, Dan Held, The Crypto Dog, Charlie Spears, Altcoin Sherpa, Dovey Wan, Jebus, Icebergy, Crypto ISO, Davis (also known as "KarbonBased") Walt Smith, and the creator of the BRC-20 token standard Domo participated in the $8.5 million seed round that ended in April.
In addition, Edessa Capital, Curiosity Capital, UTXO Management, XBTO Ventures, Blocmates, Eric Wall, and other investors participated in last year's pre-seed round.
It is reported that this funding will be used to build Spiderchain, the first Layer2 network on Bitcoin with full EVM equivalence. Since 2022, Botanix Labs has been working on building a decentralized financial system native to Bitcoin. In November 2023, they launched an early testnet version of the EVM Layer2 protocol, attracting over 200,000 active addresses and 10,000 experimental token releases. The first mainnet version of Spiderchain is expected to be released in early summer 2024. (Source link)
3. General zero-knowledge proof platform ZKM completes $5 million Pre-A round of financing, led by OKX Ventures
The general zero-knowledge proof platform ZKM completed a $5 million Pre-A round of financing, preparing to launch a second-layer network based on Bitcoin. OKX Ventures led the round, with participation from Amber Group, Metis Foundation, Crypto.com, and others.
It is reported that ZKM is a network based on zero-knowledge proofs, aimed at unifying blockchains and creating a settlement layer on Ethereum. As part of these efforts, ZKM is developing a special transaction processor network called "entangled rollups," starting from the upcoming L2, which the project claims is built on the Bitcoin blockchain. (Source link)
4. Solana ecosystem DePin project Ambient raises $2 million, led by Borderless Capital
The Solana-based DePIN project Ambient announced the completion of a $2 million seed round of financing, led by Borderless Capital, with participation from Solana Ventures, Parami Investors, Sonic Boom Ventures, Primal Capital, and others.
Ambient was established in January this year, acquired the Algorand-based environmental data project PlanetWatch in March, and decided to migrate to Solana. Ambient plans to launch on the Solana testnet this summer, followed by the introduction of its own token to incentivize users to contribute data. (Source link)
5. Lava Foundation raises $11 million, with participation from Animoca Brands and others
The Lava Foundation has raised $11 million before the launch of its network mainnet and token airdrop, with participation from Animoca Brands, Gate.io Ventures, CoinGecko Ventures, Polygon co-founder Sandeep Nailwal, Ash Crypto, CryptoLark, and media outlets Crypto Times Japan, Le Journal Du Coin, and The Rollup, among others.
It is reported that the Lava Foundation is a newly established non-profit organization dedicated to developing the modular blockchain network Lava. The Lava network focuses on providing data access services through remote procedure calls (RPC) and is currently in the testnet stage, with plans to officially launch the mainnet and LAVA token in the first half of 2024. The total supply of LAVA tokens is set at 1 billion, with some distributed to users through airdrops. (Source link)
6. General proof aggregator Electron completes $1 million seed round of financing, with participation from Polygon co-founders
The zero-knowledge-based general proof aggregator Electron announced the completion of a $1 million seed round of financing, with investors including Polygon co-founder Sandeep Nailwal, Gnosis co-founder Martin Köppelmann, Jaynti Kanani (former co-founder of Polygon), Avail co-founder Anurag Arjun, LambdaClass, Zephyrus Capital, Blue7, Interop, Router Protocol, and others.
Electron stated that this financing will be used to build a universal ZK proof aggregation layer for Ethereum. According to Web3 asset data platform RootData, Electron Labs is a closed cross-chain messaging protocol for L1. It uses light clients and zero-knowledge proofs to maintain decentralization. (Source link)
7. Web3 infrastructure startup Hemera raises $2.6 million in seed round, led by LIF Capital
Web3 infrastructure startup Hemera has completed a $2.6 million seed round of financing, with LIF Capital leading the round.
Ra announced the completion of a $2.6 million seed round of financing, with LIF Capital and Nomad Capital leading the investment, and participation from SNZ, Chainlink, Sending Labs, ZetaChain founders, and Microsoft's Senior Vice President and AI expert Harry Shum.It is reported that the company is building its decentralized protocol, which uses artificial intelligence to address on-chain data query issues plaguing multi-chain ecosystems. Following the completion of this round of financing, Hemera also announced the launch of the public test version of the Hemera protocol to support developers in creating Web3 large language model operating systems.
According to Web3 asset data platform RootData, the Hemera protocol is the LLM OS of Web3, dedicated to solving fragmentation issues in modular ecosystems. Web3-optimized LLM and account-centric indexing allow Hemera to interoperate on Web3, providing high-performance AI-Ready Data infrastructure and user-defined agents. (Source link)
8. Tether Makes Additional Investment in Payment Solution Company CityPay.io
Tether Operations Limited announced today that it will strengthen its business in Eastern Europe through additional investment in the payment solution company CityPay.io.
CityPay.io aims to provide customers and businesses with a seamless payment experience, enabling them to use cryptocurrencies for payments at places like Wendy's and Radisson Hotels. Over the next two years, CityPay.io plans to launch innovative e-wallet and bank card solutions, expected to attract over 400,000 users. The company also intends to establish over 500,000 crypto payment points in designated expansion areas. (Source link)
9. ZK-Provable Data Privacy Solution NuLink Completes $1.6 Million Strategic Financing, Led by DWF Labs
The ZK-provable data privacy solution NuLink has completed a $1.6 million strategic financing round, with DWF Labs, Poolz, and ViaBTC leading the investment, and participation from CheckPush, 0xwilds, Coinvestor, 0xbull, Alpha Capital, MNST Platform, and Aza Ventures, among others. In addition, NuLink recently raised approximately $5.3 million through Fjord's Liquidity Bootstrapping Pool (LBP). NuLink's total funding now reaches $11.4 million. (Source link)
10. Cryptocurrency Startup Lagrange Labs Completes $13.2 Million Financing, Led by Founders Fund
According to Coindesk, cryptocurrency startup Lagrange Labs has completed a $13.2 million financing round, led by Peter Thiel's Founders Fund, with participation from Archetype Ventures, 1kx, Maven11, Fenbushi Capital, Volt Capital, CMT Digital, Mantle, and Ecosystem. (Source link)
11. Gnosis Commits to Investing $2 Million in Zeal
Ethereum sidechain Gnosis has announced its collaboration with the creators of the comprehensive digital wallet Zeal to enhance the daily use of cryptocurrencies.According to the team, "This collaboration involves exploring simple solutions for daily self-custody of crypto transactions, similar to using cash. Gnosis also commits to investing $2 million in Zeal, increasing its total funding to $9 million following the previous $7 million seed round financing." (Source link)
12. Full-Chain Layer M Infrastructure Bmaker Announces Pre-Seed Financing from Singapore Crypto Fund Stratified Capital
Bmaker has built a secure permissionless verification channel based on the Bitcoin layer network, supporting multi-chain asset transactions in seconds; and has implemented BTC pledging, liquidation, and redemption on the layer network.
It is reported that Bmaker aims to become a super middle-layer protocol, serving as a decentralized bridge connecting mainstream public chains, L2, and financial products. (Source link)
13. Solana Ecosystem Zero-Knowledge Privacy Protocol Arcium Completes $5.5 Million Strategic Financing, Led by Greenfield Capital
The Solana ecosystem zero-knowledge privacy protocol Arcium has announced the completion of a $5.5 million strategic financing round, led by Greenfield Capital. Coinbase, Heartcore Capital, Longhash VC, L2 Iterative Ventures, Stake Facilities, Smape Capital, Everstake, as well as Solana co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko and Monad co-founder Keone Han, prominent angel investors, participated in the investment.
Arcium plans to use this round of financing to provide developers and blockchain applications with a trust-minimized and configurable cryptographic computing framework. (Source link)
14. Bitcoin Native Application Platform Arch Network Completes $7 Million Seed Round Financing, Led by Multicoin Capital
The Bitcoin native application platform Arch Network has completed a $7 million seed round financing, led by Multicoin Capital, with participation from OKX Ventures, Big Brain Holdings, Portal Ventures, CMS Holdings, Tangent.
According to Web3 asset data platform RootData, Arch introduces smart contract functionality directly into Bitcoin through a novel architecture that utilizes the Rust-based zero-knowledge virtual machine ArchVM, paired with a decentralized validator network. (Source link)
15. Cross-Chain Liquidity Infrastructure Company Euclid Completes $600,000 Pre-Seed Round Financing, Led by Kahuna Network
Cross-chain liquidity infrastructure company Euclid has completed a $600,000 pre-seed round financing, led by technology investment firm Kahuna Network and angel investor Tomoaki Sato, with participation from angel investors related to Lavender Five, Andromeda, and Nibiru. The funds will be used for architecture and project development, as well as business development, auditing, and marketing. (Source link)
16. Decentralized Settlement Protocol Kima Finance Completes New Financing Round, with Participation from HVS Ventures
The decentralized settlement protocol Kima Finance has announced the completion of a new financing round, with participation from HVS Ventures. Specific funding amounts and valuation data have not been disclosed yet. HVS Ventures, in addition to providing financial support, will also be involved in its operations and strategic development.
Kima Finance utilizes its blockchain-based decentralized settlement protocol to provide a settlement layer supporting multi-ecosystem payments, peer-to-peer commerce, CeFi/DeFi services, cross-chain DEX exchanges, and all-channel wallets, aiming to address fragmentation issues in the cryptocurrency and broader financial sectors. (Source link)
17. Cross-Chain Messaging Protocol Glacis Labs Completes $2.1 Million Seed Round Financing, Led by Arrington Capital and Paper Ventures
Cross-chain messaging protocol Glacis Labs has completed a $2.1 million seed round financing, led by Arrington Capital and Paper Ventures.X platform announced the completion of a $2.1 million seed round of financing, led by Arrington Capital and Paper Ventures, with participation from Bitscale Capital, Protagonist, Edessa Capital, as well as angel investors such as Collion Myers, Luke Youngblood.eth, and Steven Kokinos. The valuation information has not been disclosed. According to RootData, a Web3 asset data platform, Glacis is a protocol that enables developers to simplify, protect, and manage their cross-chain applications. Developers are transitioning from single-chain deployments to multi-chain deployments to reach as many users as possible. By leveraging Glacis to aggregate cross-chain General Message Passing (GMP) protocols, such as Axelar, Wormhole, and LayerZero (commonly referred to as bridges), developers can define routing and security logic for their cross-chain applications. (Source link) CeFi: 1. Institutional tokenization solution DwellFi completes a $3 million seed round of financing DwellFi, an institutional tokenization solution, announced the completion of a $3 million seed round of financing, with participation from E1 Ventures, Stanford Blockchain, Hustle Fund, Blockchain Coinvestors, and Fortified Ventures. DwellFi primarily utilizes artificial intelligence, blockchain, and tokenization technology to assist its clients in asset management, ensuring that its cutting-edge solutions not only meet current regulatory standards. Its clients mainly include PE/RE/VC funds, hedge funds, fund managers, and limited partners. (Source link) 2. Crypto primary market trading firm Arbelos completes a $28 million financing round, led by Dragonfly According to Fortune, Arbelos has completed a $28 million financing round, with Dragonfly leading the round and participation from FalcolnX, Circle, Paxos, Polygon, and Deribit. Arbelos Markets will focus primarily on derivatives and over-the-counter trading for institutional participants, providing trading liquidity for companies such as hedge funds and venture capital firms, serving as counterparties for popular products like options and futures. The financing round concluded in mid-2023. (Source link) 3. Web3 incubation service provider BlockBooster completes a $1.5 million seed round of financing, led by OKX Ventures Web3 incubation service provider BlockBooster announced the completion of a $1.5 million seed round of financing, led by OKX Ventures, with participation from Conflux Network, Neighbor Capital Series, IceRiver Venture, and Bitcoin Lab, among others. BlockBooster's incubation model focuses on Web3 infrastructure, social, and gaming sectors, providing comprehensive support to high-quality projects to increase their success rate and shorten the development cycle. (Source link) DeFi: 1. UXUY completes a $7 million Pre-A round of financing, with participation from Binance Labs and Bitcoin Magazine Bitcoin Asia 2024 unveiled, with the next-generation decentralized multi-chain trading platform UXUY, incubated by Binance Labs, announcing the completion of a $7 million Pre-A round of financing in Hong Kong. Since its inception, its total financing amount has exceeded $10 million. UXUY is a key builder in the Bitcoin ecosystem, with over 100,000 traders using Bitcoin Lightning Network services through UXUY. UXUY's current round of financing received investments from well-known institutions from Asia, North America, and Europe, including Binance Labs, JDI Ventures, UTXO Management (Bitcoin Magazine), Bixin Ventures, SWC Global, Comma3 Ventures, CMS Holdings, Matrix Partners, Satoshi Labs, Dewhales Capital, YBB Capital, GBV Capital, Web3 Vision, Pentos Ventures, Absoluta Digital, PAKA, DefinanceX, Dreamlabs, Greythorn Asset Management, NGC Ventures, Longrun Capital, Metalpha, GSR, and others. (Source link) 2. Intent-centric cross-chain interoperability protocol Owlto Finance completes an $8 million strategic round of financing, co-led by Bixin Ventures and CE Innovation Capital Intent-centric cross-chain interoperability protocol Owlto Finance announced the completion of an $8 million strategic round of financing, co-led by Bixin Ventures and CE Innovation Capital, with participation from Presto, Hailstone Labs, Skyland Ventures, Blocore, SNZ Capital, BESTO, Kroma, Coinseeker.co, Stratified Capital, X21 Digital, Maxx Capital, Incubate Fund, GSR, CatcherVC, and others. (Source link) 3. Scroll ecosystem project PenPad receives investment from crypto investment firm Presto Labs PenPad, a Scroll ecosystem project, announced on social media that it has received investment from well-known crypto investment firm Presto Labs. As a native revenue aggregator & Launchpad for Scroll, PenPad has received strong support from Scroll and various ecosystem projects since its establishment, and PenPad will also be a long-term builder in the Scroll ecosystem. (Source link) 4. Cross-chain DEX Xswap completes a strategic round of financing, with participation from P2 Ventures and others Cross-chain DEX Xswap recently announced the completion of a strategic round of financing on social media, with the specific financing amount undisclosed. The participating institutions and investors include P2 Ventures, MH Ventures, Maven Capital, OIG Capital, Cogitent Ventures, WWVentures, ZBS Capital, Pragma Ventures, Zephyrus Capital, Ivan Liljeqvist, Ash Crypto, ...Gainzy, Satoshi Stacker, and Michael Gu. According to reports, XSwap is a cross-chain DEX based on Chainlink CCIP. (Source link) 5. Solana's tokenization platform AgriDex completes a $5 million financing round, led by Endeavor Ventures. Solana's tokenization platform AgriDex has completed a $5 million financing round, with Endeavor Ventures leading the investment. African Crops Limited, Oldenburg Vineyards, and former executives from Goldman Sachs and Citadel, including Hank Oberoi, also participated in this round of financing. AgriDex is expected to launch its platform and token AGRI in the third quarter of this year. AgriDex co-founder and CEO Herry Duckworth stated that this round of financing was completed in the form of equity financing, with a valuation of $18 million. As part of the transaction, Bill Cunningham, co-founder and CEO of Endeavor Ventures, also joined the board of AgriDex. AgriDex is a platform based on Solana that tokenizes agricultural products and supports the trading of these tokenized commodities. Each transaction on AgriDex is represented by minting non-fungible tokens (NFTs), which permanently record all product, pricing, payment, and other detailed information. (Source link) 6. Multi-chain staking platform StakedGain completes a $500,000 seed financing round. Multi-chain staking platform StakedGain announced the completion of a $500,000 seed financing round, with the identity of the investors yet to be disclosed. StakedGain currently supports over 10 blockchains, including EVM-compatible chains and Layer 2 solutions, to help users achieve cross-chain DeFi staking and enhance liquidity efficiency. (Source link) 7. AI-integrated DeFi platform 0xGen completes strategic financing, with Principle68, X Labs, and others participating. AI-integrated DeFi platform 0xGen has completed strategic financing, with investments from Principle68, Bella Protocol, Phoenix Chain, Tensor Investment Corporation, and X Labs, among other investment institutions. These investors will provide important advice and support for its development. According to the RootData platform, 0xGen uses large language models (LLMs) to identify user intent and allocate tasks through smart contracts, aiming to optimize the DeFi experience. Its unique Dex and cross-chain bridge aggregation technology help users find the best trading path while enabling cross-chain swaps. (Source link) Four. Games 1. Web3 game "Blade of God X" secures multi-million dollar financing, with participation from Delphi Ventures and OKX Ventures. Web3 game "Blade of God X," developed by Void Labs, announced securing multi-million dollar financing, with investors including Delphi Ventures, OKX Ventures, Yield Guild Games, Longhash Capital, Newman Capital, KingRiver Capital/Inevitable Game Funds, BreederDAO, Eden Ventures, Gabby Dizzon, and Giulio. According to RootData, Blade of God X is a dark Norse-style hardcore action role-playing game and the official sequel to the Blade of God series. In the game, players take on the role of legendary heroes from mythology, bearing the burdens of hardship, sorrow, and an ordinary identity. They embark on an adventure, traversing the vast and mysterious lands of the North, battling the "sacrifices" who have lost their "destiny," while seeking their own path to redemption. (Source link) 2. Web3 community-driven game ecosystem SlingShot DAO completes a $3 million financing round, with Alphabit Fund participating. Web3 community-driven game ecosystem SlingShot DAO announced the completion of a $3 million financing round, with participation from Alphabit Fund. According to RootData, SlingShot helps coordinate community members to turn simple ideas into creative experiences and then into real experiences. Community members use the SlingShot application interface to submit ideas for new and exciting games and experiences. They vote for their favorite game ideas on the leaderboard. Members receive rewards for their participation (submitting ideas and voting). Talented individuals, small teams, and studios can also receive support from the SlingShot DAO Treasury to build winning ideas. (Source link) 3. Web3 game developer Seeds Labs completes a $12 million seed financing round, with participation from the Solana Foundation and others. Web3 game developer Seeds Labs announced the completion of a $12 million seed financing round, with participation from Avalanche's Blizzard Fund, the Solana Foundation, Krust, Hashkey Capital, UOB Ventures, Signum Capital, IVC, and Emoote, among others. (Source link) 4. Web3 game BAC Games announces the completion of a $1.5 million seed financing round, with participation from Hash Global and others. Web3 game BAC Games has announced the completion of a $1.5 million seed financing round. The investment institutions in this round include Hash Global, Matr1x, Gate Ventures, Stratified Capital, W Labs, and Nothing Research. Individual investors participating in this round include Ash, BTCdayu, Joseph A.C. Lloyd (Head of Gaming Research at Delphi Digital), Laobai (ABCDE Investment & Research Partner), Piers Kicks (Founding Partner of Delphi Ventures), Saku (Co-founder & CEO Matr1x), and Victor (Head of WEB3 at GGV). According to RootData, BAC Games is a Web3 racing game based on the Blast blockchain, emphasizing social interaction and teamwork, with rewards using the $BAC token. (Source link)
Five, NFT
1. Web3 platform Galaxis completes a $10 million financing round with participation from Chainlink and others
Singapore Web3 platform Galaxis announced that it has completed a $10 million financing round before its token issuance. Participants in this round of financing include Chainlink, ENS, Rarestone Capital, Taisu Ventures, and ENS co-founder Nick Johnson.
Galaxis claims to be a "post-hype era NFT utility platform" and has previously launched NFT series for celebrities such as DJ Steve Aoki and actor Val Kilmer. The platform has sold over 225,000 NFTs, generating over 32,000 ETH (approximately $100 million) in sales on the secondary market, and is currently preparing for "large-scale distribution." (Source link)
