This week, 17 blockchain startups raised a total of $78.9 million in funding. Three projects received pre-seed and seed round investments, and 13 projects received other rounds of financing. Data from Rootdata.
This week’s largest funding rounds
Balance
Balance, developed by the E-PAL team, has raised $30 million in a round of funding from Andreessen Horowitz (a16z crypto), Galaxy Interactive, Animoca Brands, K5 Global, Cultural Leadership Fund (CLF), MBK, Amber Group, MARBLEX Corp., Aptos Labs, IOBC Capital, Leland Ventures, Halcyon Capital, UpHonest Capital, Taisu Ventures, Gate Labs, DWF Ventures, Bing Ventures, WAGMI Ventures, Steve Chen, Marc Merrill, and Thomas Vu .
Balance is a Web3 gaming platform that aims to revolutionize the gaming industry through blockchain and artificial intelligence technologies. With a traffic pool of 2.4 million Web2 users, the platform is committed to creating an open, inclusive and fair gaming ecosystem. It allows developers to build and promote games more efficiently, while providing players with a diverse and personalized experience, driving growth in the Web3 gaming sector.
Related reading: From companion games to the Web3 gaming revolution: A16Z leads $30 million investment in the future of gaming platform Balance
Pre-seed and seed investments
Blabla
Blabla has raised an undisclosed amount in a seed round with participation from Nebula Investments, the Blockchain Association of Europe (BCAEU), and Hopechain.
BlaBla is a SocialFi project founded by former TikTok and Meta team members. The project is powered by Morse and serves as the first decentralized application in the Morse ecosystem. BlaBla aims to transform traditional video platforms by incorporating a decentralized model and a transparent reward system. Users earn tokens by watching, interacting, and sharing content, while creators receive tips directly from users, ensuring that all participants are paid fairly.
Puffpaw
Puffpaw raised $6 million in a seed round with participation from Lemniscap*, Volt Capital, The Spartan Group, Folius Ventures, Karatage, Seed Club Ventures, Hypersphere, Panga Capital, Everest Ventures Group (EVG), Corner Ventures, Social Graph Ventures, Nonce Classic, Meltem Demirors, Santiago R. Santos, and David Phelps .
Puffpaw is a dePIN (decentralized physical infrastructure network) project on Berachain that aims to incentivize smoking cessation by putting smoking activities on-chain. Puffpaw solves two key problems in the e-cigarette industry: unregulated nicotine use and inflated prices due to middlemen. By developing a unique e-cigarette device that tracks usage, Puffpaw transforms the smoking experience into a gamification platform. This combination of real-world assets (RWA) and blockchain gaming provides a novel approach to developing healthier habits.
IDA (HKDA)
IDA (HKDA) raised $6 million in a seed round of funding from CMCC Global, Hashed, Hack VC, Anagram, GSR Markets LTD, Protagonist, Brinc, Chorus One, Kenetic, SNZ Holding, Yolo Investments, and Raj Gokal.
IDA is a digital asset technology company focused on building a bridge between Web2 and Web3 for enterprises. Its first product, HKDA, is a fiat-pegged stablecoin based on a public blockchain protocol, designed to facilitate seamless, 24/7 business and payment activities between Hong Kong and global markets.
Other investment rounds
Arris
Arris raised an undisclosed amount in a funding round that included participation from Cryptogram Venture (CGV), K24 Ventures, Dmail, and Alco Holdings.
Arris is a comprehensive airdrop protocol designed to simplify Web3 on-chain interactions. It provides users with a more efficient experience by solving common challenges such as long cycles and traffic creation. With Arris AI, it optimizes interaction returns through the OiEarn model, which rewards users with points through monthly airdrops that increase trading volume and listing on mainstream exchanges. The task and reward system further incentivizes user participation.
Dropnest
Dropnest has raised an undisclosed amount in a funding round participated by Manta Network.
Dropnest is an intuitive application that simplifies airdrop farming by providing a user-friendly one-click solution. It selects high-yield and credible airdrop projects for users and ensures security through thorough due diligence and whitelisting system. Dropnest automates the farming process by transferring users' funds to a secure smart vault and returns the initial investment and a portion of the rewards when the airdrop is released. This makes complex farming within the reach of all users while providing a personalized dashboard for real-time updates.
Cycle Network
Cycle Network has raised an undisclosed amount in a funding round participated by Manta Network.
Cycle Network is a trustless Omni-chain ledger protocol using Omni Distributed Ledger Technology (ODLT) as well as OSCI and TCCP. It coordinates blockchain networks and solves challenges such as user experience and dApp development complexity. Cycle enables secure, efficient and low-cost interactions between different blockchain architectures, promotes interoperability and drives innovation centered on decentralized applications.
Vanilla Finance
Vanilla Finance has raised an undisclosed amount in a funding round participated by HTX Ventures (formerly Huobi Ventures).
Vanilla Finance is a decentralized trading platform that allows users to own 1 Bitcoin for $10, while providing up to 10,000x leverage without worrying about liquidation risk. Its innovative "third-generation contract product" simplifies cryptocurrency trading, enabling users to profit by predicting small price changes in the short term. With flexible token options, holding periods, and target prices, Vanilla Finance provides an easily accessible trading experience.
Yooldo
Yooldo has raised an undisclosed amount in a funding round that included participation from ConsenSys.
Yooldo is a multiverse Play-to-Earn (P2E) gaming platform inspired by classic Korean novels, providing gamers with a metaverse to build their own careers. The platform aims to create a sustainable P2E ecosystem with enjoyable experience, social and financial benefits. It has partnered with the Cyber Galz NFT project to launch the game "Trouble Punk: Cyber Galz", a casual action game with combat elements that allows players to participate in various game modes and activities in the Yooldo ecosystem.
Crypto Hunter World
Crypto Hunter World raised $2.8 million in a private round of funding with participation from IOST Foundation, HG Ventures, Mindfulness Capital, Big Candle Capital, and Layer-OTC.
Crypto Hunter World is a blockchain-based collectible RPG game that combines Move-to-Earn (M2E) and Play-to-Earn (P2E) mechanisms. Players explore a world full of unknown creatures, Cryptids, and earn rewards by walking in the real world (with the help of GPS function). The game ensures a fair and secure environment through innovative anti-cheating systems and token economics to prevent hyperinflation.
Hypernative
Hypernative raised $16 million in Series A funding with participation from Quantstamp*, Bloccelerate, Boldstart Ventures, Borderless Capital, IBI Tech Fund, CMT Digital, Knollwood Investment Advisory, and Re7 Capital.
Hypernative is a Web3 security platform that provides real-time monitoring and risk management tools to protect blockchain projects from potential threats. It uses artificial intelligence and machine learning techniques to analyze on-chain and off-chain data to detect more than 200 risk types, including smart contract vulnerabilities, bridge security flaws, and market manipulation. By identifying risks before they escalate, Hypernative enables developers and organizations to take proactive measures to ensure the security and stability of decentralized applications.
UXLINK
UXLINK has raised an undisclosed amount in a funding round participated by Animoca Brands.
UXLINK is a Web3 social platform designed for mass adoption, providing users with the ability to create social assets and participate in cryptocurrency transactions. This innovative platform includes a series of modular Dapps covering user onboarding, social network formation, group tools and socialized transactions.
Onocoy
Onocoy raised $900,000 in a private funding round with participation from Smart Island Capital.
Onocoy is a community-driven GNSS reference station network that provides high-quality real-time kinematic differential corrections for ultra-precise positioning. By incentivizing operators with rewards, Onocoy ensures data reliability and is rapidly growing into the densest global GNSS network. This shared infrastructure powered by blockchain technology provides professional-grade GNSS data with global coverage and cost-effectiveness. Onocoy's decentralized platform supports multiple industries including agriculture, construction, land management, and autonomous systems.
Treble Technologies
Treble Technologies has raised $12.2 million in a Series A funding round with participation from Kompas VC*, Frumtak Ventures, the European Investment Bank (EIB), and Omega Venture Partners.
Treble Technologies is an Icelandic sound simulation startup focused on creating immersive audio experiences for multiple industries including architecture, automotive, gaming, and the metaverse. The company has developed the world's first cloud-based sound simulation platform, enabling accurate and efficient sound design for architectural, automotive, and technology products. Treble's proprietary technology allows users to explore spatial audio in virtual environments, bringing a transformative experience to sound simulation.
Kroma
Kroma raised an undisclosed amount in a Series A round led by Gate Ventures, Imagine Creation Combinator (ICC), Planetarium, Presto Labs, RFD Capital, Taisu Ventures, The Spartan Group, Waterdrip Capital, Iskra, Overtake, Wellxy, Xstar, and Owlto Finance.
Kroma is a Layer 2 scaling solution focused on developing a generalized ZK Rollup based on the Optimism Bedrock architecture. Currently, it runs as an optimistic Rollup with ZK fault proofs using zkEVM. The project aims to transition to a full ZK Rollup when generating ZK proofs becomes more cost-effective and faster. Kroma aims to provide enhanced scalability and security for Ethereum-based applications, and is continuously tested and optimized on the Sepolia testnet.
Pencils Protocol (PenPad)
Pencils Protocol (PenPad) has raised an undisclosed amount in a strategic financing round with participation from Taisu Ventures*, DePIN X, and Bing Ventures.
Pencils Protocol is an innovative auction platform and yield aggregator on Scroll. By integrating zero-knowledge rollups, human-proof logins, and on-chain verifiable randomness, Pencils Protocol provides a fair launchpad, offering builders a comprehensive toolkit of Zk solutions that leverage Scroll's native capabilities to enhance functionality and security.
TrendX
TrendX raised $5 million in a Series A round of funding with participation from AZH, Coinstash, Frontier Research, Tido Capital, Promontory Technologies, Coresky, and BullPerks.
TrendX is an AI-driven Web3 platform designed to track trends and facilitate smart trading. TrendX uses advanced algorithms to provide trend discovery, sentiment analysis, and primary and secondary market trading opportunities to provide information support for investment strategies.
