Weekly Funding Roundup | 7 Projects Secure Funding, Total Amount Reaches $332 Million (1.05-1.11)
- Core View: Blockchain funding sees a recovery, with stablecoin and AI sectors favored.
- Key Elements:
- Weekly funding amount of $332 million, showing significant growth month-on-month.
- Stablecoin company Rain secures a large $250 million funding round.
- AI data platform Protege secures $30 million led by a16z.
- Market Impact: Boosts market confidence, with capital concentrating on infrastructure and emerging applications.
- Timeliness Note: Short-term impact.
According to incomplete statistics from Odaily, from January 5 to January 11, 2025, a total of 7 financing events were disclosed in the global blockchain sector, a slight increase from the 4 events in the previous week; the total financing amount reached $332 million, a significant increase from the $27.7 million in the previous week. Investment and financing activities have returned to normal this week.
The largest single financing round this week was stablecoin company Rain announcing a $250 million funding round at a $1.95 billion valuation; followed by AI data exchange platform Protege announcing the completion of a $30 million Series A funding round.
The following are the specific financing events (Note: 1. Sorted by the announced amount; 2. * indicates "traditional" sector companies with some business involving blockchain):
Stablecoin Company Rain Completes $250 Million Funding at $1.95 Billion Valuation, Led by ICONIQ
On January 9, stablecoin company Rain announced the completion of a $250 million funding round at a $1.95 billion valuation, led by ICONIQ, with participation from Sapphire Ventures, Dragonfly, Bessemer, Lightspeed, and Galaxy Ventures, among others. To date, the company's total funding has exceeded $338 million. Rain helps clients launch stablecoin cards on the Visa network. The company plans to use this capital to expand its footprint in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, and Africa markets, and will also use the funds to help adapt to the rapidly changing global regulatory environment.
AI Data Exchange Platform Protege Completes $30 Million Series A Funding, Led by a16z
On January 8, AI data exchange platform Protege announced the completion of a $30 million Series A funding round, led by a16z, with participation from Footwork, CRV, Bloomberg Beta, and others. To date, the company's total funding has reached $65 million. Protege supports AI optimization, data cleaning, anonymization, and formatting of aggregated datasets via authorization for training/evaluation, and helps data suppliers earn revenue shares.
On December 31, the Web3 gaming ecosystem project RuneSoul officially announced the completion of a $30 million strategic funding round. It is reported that this round of capital will be specifically allocated for the platform's underlying architecture reconstruction and brand strategy upgrade, marking RuneSoul's official transition from a GameFi gaming project to a Web3 game aggregator and launchpad.
RuneSoul will be dedicated to building a one-stop, full-chain service system covering asset issuance, user growth, incentive mechanisms, on-chain data analysis, and final settlement, aiming to become the "Steam + Publishing Middle Office" in the Web3 space.
Babylon Completes $15 Million Funding, a16z Crypto Participates
On January 7, the Bitcoin ecosystem decentralized protocol Babylon announced the completion of a $15 million funding round, with participation from a16z Crypto. Specific valuation data has not been disclosed. It is reported that Babylon's competitors are centralized service providers such as Coinbase, Kraken, and Tether. It is expected to integrate its technology with the lending protocol Aave in the second quarter of this year. The company currently has over 40 employees.
RWA Distribution Infrastructure TBook's Total Funding Exceeds $10 Million, Led by SevenX Ventures
On January 9, RWA distribution infrastructure TBook announced the completion of a new funding round, led by SevenX Ventures, with participation from KuCoin Ventures, Mask Network, HT Capital, VistaLabs, Blofin, Bonfire Union, LYVC, GoPlus, and others. The company stated that its total funding has exceeded $10 million. It is currently building an embedded RWA liquidity layer aimed at connecting asset issuers with qualified users.
HabitTrade Completes Nearly $10 Million Series A Funding, Led by Newborn Town Inc.
On January 8, HabitTrade posted on platform X that it has completed a nearly $10 million Series A funding round. This round was led by Newborn Town Inc., with participation from Bright Venture Capital, StableStock, and other investors. This financing marks HabitTrade's entry into the next stage from infrastructure building to scaled expansion. HabitTrade will use these funds to expand regulated brokerage infrastructure globally and accelerate the integration of traditional capital markets with on-chain finance.
KOLECT Completes $1.2 Million Pre-Seed Funding, Led by Amber Group's amber.ac
On January 10, trading strategy platform KOLECT announced the recent completion of a $1.2 million Pre-Seed funding round. The round was led by Amber Group's Web3 accelerator program amber.ac, with follow-on investment from Wonder Capital Group and GC Capital.
On January 9, digital finance and payment infrastructure PhotonPay announced the completion of a Series B funding round worth tens of millions of US dollars, led by IDG Capital, with participation from GL Ventures, Enlight Capital, Lightspeed Faction, and Shoplazza. The new funds will support its deployment of blockchain-driven next-generation payment infrastructure, using smart contracts to reshape the automation and transparency of global settlements, reduce transaction friction and circulation costs, and enhance AML (Anti-Money Laundering) and anti-fraud systems.
