Crypto Fundraising weekly
Dates: 21 – 27, Jan 2024

This week's biggest funding round

Sygnum raised $40M in a Strategic funding round from Azimut*.

Sygnum is a global digital asset bank with Swiss and Singapore heritage, offering banking and asset management services for institutional and private investors to participate in the digital asset economy with trust. With licenses in Switzerland and Singapore, Sygnum enables clients to use traditional currencies to invest in leading digital assets.

Pre-seed and Seed investment rounds

B² Network raised undisclosed amount in a Seed funding round from Hashkey Capital, OKX Ventures (ex OKEx Blockdream Ventures), IDG Capital, KuCoin Ventures, ABCDE Capital, Waterdrip Capital, Antalpha Ventures.

B² Network is a practical Bitcoin Layer-2 solution, utilizing zero-knowledge proof verification commitment rollup technology. It enhances transaction speed, reduces costs, and broadens application diversity, including compatibility with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM). The network envisions a future where Bitcoin becomes a versatile platform, interacting seamlessly with various financial services and decentralized applications, reviving a builder culture through active contribution and innovation.

BitFlow raised $1.3M in a Pre-seed funding round from Portal Ventures*, Big Brain Holdings, Bitcoin Frontier Fund, Newman Capital, Genblock Capital, Tykhe Block Ventures, Bitcoin Startup Lab, Insignius Capital, Side Door Ventures, Spicy Capital, SkyVision Capital.

BitFlow is a decentralized exchange (DEX) focused on Bitcoin, utilizing technologies like PSBTs, Atomic Swaps, and Layer-2 smart contracts. It provides Bitcoiners with the ability to trade and earn with BTC while addressing liquidity challenges across the Bitcoin ecosystem, offering a user-friendly platform built on Bitcoin rails.

Synonym Finance raised $1.5M in a Seed funding round from Borderless Capital*, Robot Ventures, Big Brain Holdings, Cross-Chain Ecosystem Fund, Veris Ventures, Marshland Capital, SerDAO.

Synonym is a universal cross-chain credit layer for DeFi professionals, providing a seamless experience for borrowing, lending, and earning across different chains. Built on the Wormhole cross-chain technology stack, Synonym allows users to access liquidity and borrow volumes in various ecosystems, addressing the underdeveloped state of the cross-chain lending sector.

KEKKAI raised $1.5M in a Seed funding round from Decima, Bixin Ventures, Sora Ventures, Plug and Play Ventures, FLICKSHOT, Mask Network, Stratified Capital, MZ Web3 Fund, Presto Labs, GoPlus Security, DoraHacks.

KEKKAI is a security company specializing in Web3 anti-fraud products, providing a mobile app that creates a secure and efficient portal for exploring the Web3 world. With a focus on transaction simulation, KEKKAI proactively detects complex smart contracts, triggers instant danger alerts, and acts as a digital guardian to ensure a safe and enjoyable Web3 experience, offering effective security services for crypto transactions.

Masa raised $5.4M in a Seed funding round from Anagram*, Blizzard, Digital Currency Group (DCG), Golden Tree.

Masa is building a decentralized Zk-data marketplace and network, envisioning a "decentralized Google" for the AI era. With a focus on privacy, Masa aims to build an open and incentivized economy for personal data, offering features like Masa Analytics for cookieless insights, Masa Growth campaigns for community engagement, and a developer hub for building privacy-preserving decentralized applications and AI models on their zk-data network.

The Bagel Network raised $3.1M in a Pre-seed funding round from CoinFund*, Protocol Labs, Borderless Capital, Maven 11 Capital, Graph Paper Capital (GPC), Breed VC.

Bagel Network is a decentralized data platform dedicated to supporting machine learning (ML) models by addressing the issue of concentrated data ownership in the ML domain. It aims to establish a marketplace where data scientists and AI engineers can efficiently exchange and license verifiable datasets in a privacy-preserving manner, fostering collaboration and accessibility in the machine learning community. The platform operates as a standalone chain, utilizing zero-knowledge commitments, reputation mechanisms, and staked tokens to ensure data integrity and quality.

Ingonyama raised $21M in a Seed funding round from IOSG Ventures*, Walden Catalyst*, Geometry*, RockawayX, Maven 11 Capital, IOBC Capital, Mirana Ventures, Samsung Next, BlueYard Capital, Starkware.

Ingonyama is a semiconductor collective designing accelerators for advanced cryptography, with a focus on Zero Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs). Their mission is to lead in providing the foundation for applications requiring ZK performance, enhancing speed and scale. The company is developing hardware accelerators for ZKPs to significantly improve their performance and scalability, expanding the applications of this cryptographic technique.

Dinari raised $10M in a Seed funding round from 500 Startups (500 Global), Balaji Srinivasan, Alchemy Ventures, Version One Ventures, Sancus Ventures.

Dinari aims to provide access to real-world asset backed tokens through of its dShare Platform. The platform offers access to securities such as Apple or Tesla stock using a wallet on the Arbitrum network. The dShare Platform is designed to provide transparent blockchain transactions, immutable proof of ownership, the ability to transact with your crypto wallet, composability with other blockchain products, and instant settlement.

Friends With Benefits (FBW) raised $3M in a Seed funding round from Andreessen Horowitz (a16z crypto)*.

Friends With Benefits (FWB) is a global community of cultural creators, thinkers, and builders in the web3 space, collaborating both digitally and in person to shape the future of Web3. Through holding $FWB tokens, members collectively fund and govern community initiatives, establishing a unique intersection between technology and culture communities. FWB is a multifaceted social network, combining online and offline experiences, and is now supported by the newly formed Scene Infrastructure Company (SIC) to explore novel ways of connecting physical and digital experiences within Web3 ecosystems.

Zorp (Nockchain) raised $5M in a Seed funding round from Delphi Digital*, North Island Ventures (NIV), CMCC Global, Portal Ventures, Champion Hill Ventures, Breed VC, Octu Ventures, Labyrinth DAO.

Zorp is the company associated with Nock, addressing cyber risk at the civilization level through zero-knowledge proofs. Leveraging Nock's simplicity, Zorp built the first combinator-based virtual machine compatible with Zero-Knowledge Proofs. Nockchain is a proof-of-useful-work blockchain that utilizes the novel ZKVM. Positioned as civilization-grade infrastructure, Nockchain evolves from an experimental stage to support a parallel world economy emphasizing provable security, understandable personal technologies, and computational freedom. It aims to provide high-throughput capabilities with proofs of computation, storage, and a new namespace.

Other investment rounds

​​Meson Network raised undisclosed amount in a Strategic  funding round from Presto Labs*.

Meson Network is a decentralized network known for its "DePIN" project, which has gained substantial support from a community of 340,000 miners. With over 100,000 active nodes in 150 countries and a bandwidth capacity of approximately 20 Tb/s, Meson Network facilitates decentralized infrastructure networks, offering user-friendly technology for various hardware and establishing an economic cycle connecting idle resources with business demand.

Web3Intelligence (Dopamine) raised $4.5M in a  funding round from DAO Maker, Shima Capital, Gate Labs.

Web3Intelligence is the developer of the Web3 investment app Dopamine, which serves millions of requests daily, providing on-chain solutions for DeFi builders and institutions seeking standardized financial pass certification. Dopamine, described as the "crypto super app," utilizes the utility token $DOPE for a gamified experience in decentralized finance (DeFi) investment, and institutions holding DOPE gain access to Web3Intelligence's anti-money laundering infrastructure.

Struct Finance raised $1M in a  funding round from Avalanche Rush*.

Struct Finance is a decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol offering customizable interest rate instruments and options, expanding the range of on-chain structured products. By decentralizing structured finance in DeFi, Struct Finance aims to bridge the demands of institutional and retail investors with off-chain and real-world assets, envisioning a future where decentralized finance becomes a cornerstone of global financial operations.

Axiom raised $20M in a Series A  funding round from Paradigm*, Standard Crypto*, Robot Ventures, Ethereal Ventures, Stephen Tong, Sreeram Kannan, Hasu, Ye Zhang, Zachary Williamson, Haichen Shen, Joe Andrews, Lakshman Sankar, Brendan Farmer, Liam Horne, Daniel Lubarov, Sandy Peng, Jasraj Bedi, Collin Myers, Alex Atallah.

Axiom is a protocol enabling smart contracts to access and compute over the entire history of Ethereum using zero-knowledge proofs (ZK proofs). It allows developers to send on-chain queries, which are fulfilled with ZK-verified results, providing a secure and efficient way to access historical data without additional trust assumptions in smart contract applications.

BitGo raised undisclosed amount in a Strategic  funding round from Brink’s*.

BitGo is a digital asset security company trusted by some of the largest institutions in the world, specializing in safeguarding cryptocurrency for institutional clients. Their comprehensive solutions, including custody services and cybersecurity measures, cater to the needs of institutions like banks, hedge funds, and exchanges.

AirDAO raised $500K in a Grants  funding round from DWF Labs*.

AirDAO is a community-governed layer-one blockchain and Web3 dApp ecosystem powered by the AMB token. It focuses on scalability, security, and usability. AirDAO's mission is to provide an accessible and decentralized Web3 ecosystem, with a strong emphasis on user-centric design and continuous platform enhancements.

PECland raised $600K in a  funding round from Icetea Labs, Spark Digital Capital, Moonrock Capital, Morningstar Ventures, Basics Capital, Onemax Capital, Crypto Banter, TradeCoinVN, HG Ventures, Moonboots Capital, ZBS Capital.

Pecland is a multifaceted Web3 project offering a MetaFi playground and NFT hub within the BRC20 UGC open world. Users engage in social party games, earn rewards, and explore the NFT space with a strong emphasis on community building, fostering a dynamic metaverse experience that connects users through various activities and opportunities.

Polymer Labs raised $23M in a Series A  funding round from Blockchain Capital*, Distributed Global*, Maven 11 Capital*, Coinbase Ventures, Placeholder, North Island Ventures (NIV), Cosmostation, Digital Currency Group (DCG), Figment, Informal Systems, Basis Set Ventures, Tane.

Polymer Labs is constructing an Ethereum interoperability hub, focusing on Ethereum Layer 2 networks and utilizing the Inter-Blockchain Communication Protocol (IBC). This initiative aims to enhance the security and expand the interoperability of the Ethereum ecosystem, facilitating efficient and secure communication between different blockchains without introducing new trust assumptions.

EDX Markets raised undisclosed amount in a Series B  funding round from Pantera Capital*, Sequoia Capital*.

EDX Markets is a platform that provides a trusted, efficient, and liquid trading experience for cryptocurrencies and other digital assets, incorporating best practices from traditional finance to offer competitive quotes and a unique non-custodial model.

Arcade2Earn raised $4.8M in a  funding round from Crypto com Capital*, Solana Ventures, Shima Capital, KuCoin Labs, GSR Markets LTD, NxGen.

Arcade2Earn is the Solana-based gaming platform doesn’t require players to own NFTs, while still reaping rewards.

STAN raised $2.7M in a  funding round from Aptos Labs, Maelstrom, GFR Fund, CoinDCX, Climber Capital, TDV Partners, CoinSwitch.

STAN is a fan engagement platform tailored for esports enthusiasts, offering a space for collecting, playing, and interacting with favorite esports and gaming collectibles. Users can build and upgrade their collections, trade with other fans, and engage with celebrities, earning perks and rewards such as signed merchandise, streamer bootcamps, and more through this immersive esports fan experience.

Scallop raised undisclosed amount in a Strategic  funding round from Cetus Protocol*.

Scallop is the pioneering Next Generation peer-to-peer Money Market for the Sui ecosystem and is also the first DeFi protocol to receive an official grant from the Sui Foundation. By emphasizing institutional-grade quality, enhanced composability, and robust security, we are dedicated to building a dynamic money market that offers high-interest lending, low-fee borrowing, AMM, and digital asset self-administration tool on a unified platform and offering an SDK for professional traders.


Cadence Protocol raised undisclosed amount in a Strategic  funding round from Dewhales Capital, CSP DAO, Four Moons, Scott Lewis, Aniket Jindal, Boz Menzalji, DeFiDad, Nomatic, Bluntz Capital, Ryon Nixon, Stephen Tong.

Cadence Protocol is an intent-centric perpetuals aggregator, set to become the flagship perpetuals protocol on Canto. With a focus on integrating Real World Assets (RWAs), Contract-Secured Revenue (CSR), and Liquid Staking Derivatives (LSDs), Cadence aims to address liquidity fragmentation and enhance the DeFi ecosystem by revolutionizing DApp user experience and introducing novel backend architecture designs. The protocol utilizes intent-based trading architecture for unified liquidity, lower fees, and improved scalability, aiming to solve issues related to liquidity sourcing, pathfinding, and the overall user experience in on-chain derivatives trading.

* fund, that lead investment round