Highlights of this issue
According to incomplete statistics from PANews, there were 30 blockchain investment and financing events around the world last week (February 27-March 5), with a total financing scale of approximately US$156 million, which was a decrease compared to the previous week. The overview is as follows:
The DeFi track continues to heat up, with 6 investment and financing events announced; among them, DigiFT, a decentralized security token exchange, announced the completion of a $10.5 million Pre-A round of financing, led by Shanda Group;
The popularity of chain games dropped, with three events announced, including the metaverse game platform Avalon Corp completing a new round of financing of US$13 million, with four institutions including Bitkraft Ventures co-leading the investment;
The NFT and Metaverse fields have become more popular, with 9 financings announced. Among them, Few and Far, an NEAR ecosystem NFT market, announced the completion of a $10.5 million financing, led by Pantera Capital;
The infrastructure and tools track cooled down slightly, with 10 events announced. Decentralized mobile network service provider REALLY announced the completion of a $18 million seed round of financing, led by Polychain;
In terms of other Web3/crypto-related projects, two events were announced, among which Web3 content creation platform REPUBLIK completed a $3.7 million seed round of financing, with a post-investment valuation of $75 million;
No investment or financing events were announced in the centralized financial sector.
Let’s take a comprehensive look at last week’s investment and financing events.
DeFi
Decentralized exchange DigiFT completes $10.5 million Pre-A round of financing, with HashKey Capital and others participating
Decentralized security token exchange DigiFT announced the completion of a $10.5 million Pre-A round of financing, led by Shanda Group, with participation from HashKey Capital, Hash global, Xin Enterprise Pte. Ltd, and North Beta Capital. The new funds will support the growth of the exchange and the recruitment of more new employees. DigiFT was founded in 2020 by Henry Zhang, formerly CEO of East West Bank Greater China and Deputy CEO of Citibank and Standard Chartered Bank China. DigiFT has been registered in the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) Fintech Regulatory Sandbox and aims to provide regulated decentralized financial solutions for Ethereum public blockchain products, an automated market-making (AMM) mechanism that facilitates secondary trading liquidity for security tokens backed by financial assets such as bonds and stocks.
Decentralized exchange Mangrove completes $7.4 million Series A financing
Decentralized exchange Mangrove has completed a $7.4 million Series A financing round, led by Cumberland and Greenfield Capital, with participation from CMT and Gumi Crypto Capital (gCC). The funds raised will be used to provide functionality and research on the exchange. It is reported that Mangrove provides liquidity through its "Offer-is-code" approach to build its order book-based decentralized exchange. Mangrove will first be released on Polygon and will be promoted to multiple Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) compatible chains this year. Mangrove completed a $2.7 million seed round of financing in 2021.
Non-custodial liquidity staking platform Ether.Fi completes $5.3 million in financing
Decentralized non-custodial liquidity staking platform Ether.Fi has completed $5.3 million in financing, led by North Island Ventures, Chapter One and Node Capital, with participation from BitMex founder Arthur Hayes. The protocol is scheduled to launch at ETHDenver on March 4. The Ether.Fi team said their goal is to stake 100,000 ETH by mid-2023. Ether.Fi allows users to maintain control of their keys while delegating Ethereum validator operations to node operators.
Fixed income project Term Labs completes $2.5 million seed round of financing
Term Labs, the developer of the DeFi protocol Term Finance for fixed-rate borrowing, has completed a $2.5 million seed round of financing, led by Electric Capital, followed by Coinbase Ventures, Circle Ventures, Robot Ventures and MEXC Ventures. The new funds will be used to build the Term Finance protocol, which is scheduled to go live around the end of March.
DEX developer DX25 Labs completes $750,000 seed round of financing and will launch unilateral liquidity DEX on MultiversX
DEX developer DX25 Labs announced the completion of a $750,000 seed round of financing. It is reported that DX25 Labs is the DeFi development department of Tacans AG, a Swiss-based Web3 venture capital company. The team is about to launch a DEX based on the MultiversX blockchain. DX25 is a one-sided liquidity DEX that will provide users with an intuitive and easy-to-use interface with features such as centralized liquidity, multiple fee levels, real margin, and derivatives trading.
DeFi strategy protocol Ammalgam completes $750,000 Pre-seed round of financing, with Synthetix founder and Compound founder participating
DeFi strategy protocol Ammalgam announced that it has completed a $750,000 Pre-seed round of financing in the third quarter of 2022. Synthetix founder Kain Warwick, Compound founder Robert Leshner, Anton, Sergej, Mikhail, Tarun Chitra, Santiago RSantos, Bodhi Ventures, BootNode, Marin Ventures, Kevin Zhou, Factor and Zeal Capital participated in the investment. Ammalgam unlocks more DeFi functions by combining lending and trading into one protocol. This combination constitutes a source of income while improving capital efficiency and providing more strategies for market makers.
Chain Games
Metaverse gaming platform Avalon completes $13 million in financing, led by Hashed and others
Metaverse gaming platform Avalon Corp has completed a new round of financing of US$13 million, led by Bitkraft Ventures, Hashed, Delphi Digital and Mechanism Capital, with participation from Coinbase Ventures, Yield Guild Games, Merit Circle, Avocado Guild and Morning Star Ventures. It is reported that Avalon Corp, headquartered in Florida, will build an interoperable digital world through game engines and blockchain technology, including solving problems such as real-time interaction and scalability.
Web3 shooting game Lowlife Forms completes $3 million pre-seed round of financing
VitalXP, the developer of Web3 shooting game Lowlife Forms, has completed a $3 million pre-seed round of financing led by Streamlined Ventures and Marbruck Investments.
GameFi social platform BEBO LAB completes $2.3 million in financing
GameFi social interaction platform BEBO LAB announced that it has completed a $2.3 million financing led by Hash9 Fund and ACF Fund. This round of financing will be used to launch the BEBO NFT project and develop the BEBO Social+GameFi platform. BEBO NFT is expected to be open for minting on March 17.
NFT & Metaverse
3D technology company Hexa completes $20.5 million Series A financing, with participation from Point72 Ventures and others
Hexa, a 3D asset visualization and management platform, announced the completion of a $20.5 million Series A financing round, with participation from Point72 Ventures, Samurai Incubate, Sarona Partners and mobile phone manufacturer HTC. To date, Hexa's total financing has reached $27.2 million. It is reported that the 3D metaverse asset model created by Hexa for customers can provide storage, management, distribution and analysis services. Currently, companies such as Amazon and Unity are producing, managing and deploying 3D assets on the Hexa platform, and related models can be easily migrated to web pages, social media sites or game engines.
NFT Marketplace Few and Far Completes $10.5 Million Funding, Pantera Capital Leads Investment
NEAR ecosystem NFT market Few and Far announced the completion of a $10.5 million financing, led by Pantera Capital, with participation from Cypher Capital, Huobi Ventures, Hypersphere, Metaweb, Mantis Partners, K5 Global, etc. The new funds will help expand the platform's capabilities, enhance user experience, and increase the number of Web3 developers. IP owners will also benefit from the platform.
NFT startup Orange Comet completes over $7 million in equity financing
NFT startup Orange Comet has completed over $7 million in equity financing. The round of financing was disclosed in a document submitted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on February 23, which showed that Orange Comet raised $7,243,539 of its $20 million target by selling equity and securities. It is reported that Orange Comet was co-founded in 2021 by TV and film producer Dave Broome, National Football League (NFL) Hall of Fame member Kurt Warner, and musicians Gloria and Emilio Estefan.
Mapxus, the parent company of Metaverse project platform Honio, completes $5 million Series B financing, led by Kawasaki Heavy Industries
Mapxus, the parent company of the Metaverse Project Platform Honio, has completed a $5 million Series B financing round, led by Kawasaki Heavy Industries. Mapxus is a Hong Kong-based indoor map system R&D company that has partnered with NOIZChain to launch the GameFi Metaverse platform Honio based on indoor positioning. Honio aims to connect the virtual and physical worlds through a mobile app, rewarding users for the time they spend in physical stores. It is expected to be launched in Japan by 2023 and in other Southeast Asian markets by 2024.
NFT communication transmission protocol Redeem completes $2.5 million Pre-Seed round of financing
NFT communication transmission protocol Redeem has completed a $2.5 million Pre-Seed round of financing, led by Kenetic, with participation from VC3 DAO, CMT Digital, Flyover Capital, etc. The financing funds will be used to continue building its core feature set before the release of strategic partnerships in the second quarter. It is reported that Redeem was founded by Toby Rush, a former Alibaba executive and founder of biometric startup EyeVerify. Redeem hopes to provide an infrastructure that enables individuals to participate in Web3 using only a phone number and transfer NFTs via text messages.
Insrt Labs Completes $2.2 Million Financing Through SAFT, Led by Hashkey Capital and Infinite Capital
Insrt Labs, a core contributor to the NFT financial protocol Insrt Finance, has raised $2.2 million in a pre-seed round of financing. Hashkey Capital and Infinite Capital co-led the investment, followed by Sky9 Capital, Hamzah Khan, head of DeFi at Polygon, and others. The funding was achieved through a simple agreement for future tokens (SAFT). The Insrt token is expected to be launched in the third quarter of this year. The Insrt Finance protocol went live in December last year, allowing users to gain NFT exposure and earn returns. Insrt Finance is built on Ethereum, but plans to support other blockchains in the near future.
NFT certification protocol Wakweli completes $1.1 million seed round of financing, with Summit and others participating
NFT certification protocol Wakweli announced the completion of a $1.1 million seed round of financing, with participation from blockchain investment companies Summit, Funfair Ventures, and a group of angel investors. It is reported that Wakweli's goal is to increase Web3 trust with the support of the community and partners, and to detect the authenticity of NFTs through its "Proof-of-Democracy" (PoD) consensus algorithm, so that NFT markets, buyers, and creators can benefit from the provability of NFTs and other tokenized assets.
Fashion NFT platform OWND completes $750,000 Pre Seed round of financing, led by Founders and Skyfall
Fashion NFT platform OWND announced the completion of a $750,000 Pre Seed round of financing, led by Nordic venture capital firms Founders and Skyfall, and participated by SteelDAO, a blockchain technology community backed by Bessemer Venture Partners. The OWND platform is scheduled to be launched in April this year and will support customers to use Apple Pay or credit cards to purchase NFTs launched by market brands such as Nike, Adidas, and Gucci.
Web3 fashion startup DE Star completes $700,000 in seed funding
Web3 fashion startup DE Star has raised $700,000 in seed funding to close the gap between customers and brands by leveraging Web3 technology. DE Star is about to airdrop NFTs, giving holders access to future airdrops, airdrop benefits, voting rights, and phygital exclusive events.
Infrastructure & Tools
Decentralized mobile network REALLY completes $18 million seed round of financing, led by Polychain
Decentralized mobile network service provider REALLY announced the completion of $18 million in seed round financing, led by Polychain, with participation from Floodgate founding partner Mike Maples Jr. and other strategic partners. REALLY will launch a new phone service powered by the decentralized mobile network (DeWi). Its phone plan comparison tool REALLY.com launched today allows individuals to compare 56 operators and 379 plans and switch to the service that suits them.
Crypto wallet ZenGo completes $10 million Series A extension financing, valuation remains at $100 million
Crypto wallet ZenGo has completed a $10 million Series A extension financing by issuing convertible bonds, and plans to conduct a Series B financing later this year. After the Series A extension financing, ZenGo's valuation was $100 million, the same as after the completion of the Series A financing two years ago. ZenGo completed a $20 million Series A financing in April 2021, with investors including Insight Partners, Austin Rief Ventures and Samsung Next. It is reported that ZenGo currently has more than 800,000 registered users, and this year's goal is to increase the number of users to 2 million and achieve annual revenue of $1 million to $2 million.
Decentralized cloud platform Impossible Cloud completes $7 million seed round of financing
Impossible Cloud, a decentralized cloud platform based in Germany, has raised $7 million in seed funding led by HV Capital and 1kx, with participation from Protocol Labs, TS Ventures, and Very Early Ventures. The company will primarily use the funds to fund its cloud storage solutions, add more employees, and register in the United States. Impossible Cloud hopes to provide decentralized cloud services to B2B customers who want to delve deeper into web3 technology. The startup began fundraising at the end of the third quarter of last year, and this round of equity financing closed last month.
Identity verification platform Vouched completes $6.3 million Series A financing, led by BHG VC and SpringRock Ventures LLC
Vouched, an AI-based fintech identity verification platform, announced the completion of a $6.3 million Series A round of financing, led by BHG VC and SpringRock Ventures LLC, with participation from Darrell Cavens and Mark Vadon, bringing its total financing to $18 million. According to Vouched's official website, the company provides KYC identity verification services for cryptocurrency investors, helping crypto companies and exchanges to securely attract new customers and establish a trust baseline. In addition, its services have now expanded to more than 300 banks and fintech companies.
Web3 wallet startup Portal completes $5.3 million in financing, with participation from Haun Ventures and others
Web3 wallet infrastructure startup Portal announced the completion of a $5.3 million financing round, with participation from Slow Ventures, Haun Ventures, Acrew Capital, Chapter One, and angel investors. It is reported that Portal CEO Raj Parekh once led Visa's global crypto product division. Portal provides wallet infrastructure and decentralized application (dApp) stores, making projects Web3-enabled applications. The developer toolkit helps portal partners easily connect to protocols and dApps directly or from a mobile or desktop browser. Portal's embedded wallet uses multi-party computing (MPC).
Web3 gaming and NFT analytics platform Helika completes $4 million in funding
Web3 game and NFT analysis platform Helika has completed a $4 million financing round, led by Diagram Ventures, with participation from Sfermion, Sparkle Ventures, Big Brain Holdings, Fenbushi and Builder Capital. The new funds will be used to expand the team and improve products, and connect more data sources from other blockchains. It is reported that Helika is a Web3 technology platform that provides real-time analysis and increases user acquisition and engagement for game studios and NFT projects. Helika focuses on comprehensive analysis of Web2, in-game, on-chain and social media data.
Amwal, a fintech company based on multi-device authentication tokens, completes $2.5 million pre-seed round of financing
Amwal, a fintech company based on multi-device authentication tokens, announced the completion of a $2.5 million pre-seed round of financing, with participation from Shorooq Partners, Outliers Venture Capital, and several angel investors. Amwal hopes to integrate functions such as device identification, fraud prevention, and payment tokens into a standalone application programming interface (API) to provide a cryptographic biometric settlement solution using multi-device authentication tokens.
Blockchain traceability service company Verofax completes $750,000 in financing
Verofax, a blockchain traceability service company, announced that it has completed a $750,000 financing, which was conducted through Beban Crowdfunding, a crowdfunding platform licensed and regulated by the Central Bank of Bahrain. Verofax is a startup that uses blockchain to build innovative traceability services, using technologies such as blockchain and artificial intelligence to help brands ensure that the supply chain is compliant and sustainable. The company completed a Pre-Seed round of financing of an undisclosed amount in 2020.
Crypto payment startup FLUUS completes $600,000 pre-seed round of financing, with participation from FHS Capital and others
Crypto payment startup FLUUS announced the completion of a $600,000 pre-seed round of financing, with participation from FHS Capital, Encryptus.io and a group of angel investors. It is reported that FLUUS is about to release a Beta version, aiming to help more consumers access Web3 services such as Token staking and Swap.
AI encryption project Omniapp.ai completes Pre Seed round of financing, with participation from Meldstone Capital and others
AI encryption project Omniapp.ai announced the completion of the Pre Seed round of financing, with participation from Meldstone Capital and others. Omniapp.ai will release artificial intelligence applications, Telegram and discord robots powered by OMP utility tokens in the coming weeks.
other
Web3 content creation platform REPUBLIK completes $3.7 million seed round financing
Web3 content creation platform REPUBLIK has completed a $3.7 million seed round of financing, with a post-investment valuation of $75 million. According to reports, REPUBLIK provides a platform for content creators and will be launched in November 2022. Content creators can connect with their audiences through the platform and use built-in smart contracts to handle the monetization process. It also allows viewers to receive rewards and use them to support creators or recommend friends.
Arbitrum Ecosystem Healthy Lifestyle App Gosleep Completes $2 Million Funding, Led by Foresight Ventures
Gosleep, a healthy lifestyle app from the Arbitrum ecosystem, announced the completion of a $2 million financing round, led by Foresight Ventures, with participation from CCC Capital, Amber Group, SevenX Ventures, KuCoin Ventures and Gate Labs. It is reported that Gosleep aims to motivate players to pursue a healthy lifestyle and help them gradually develop healthy sleeping habits through personalized sleep recommendations for sleep patterns.