Last week, there were a total of 11 public financing events in the cryptocurrency market, with a significant decrease in both the financing rounds and total amount | Investment and Financing Weekly Report

Organizer: Cookies, RootData

According to incomplete statistics from RootData, during the period from October 30 to November 5, 2023, there were a total of 13 publicly announced financing events in the blockchain and cryptocurrency industry, with a cumulative financing amount of approximately $74.66 million, marking a significant decline in both the number of financing rounds and total amounts.

From the perspective of sector distribution, the projects that received financing were mainly concentrated in the infrastructure sector. Notable projects include blockchain infrastructure and tools company Kana Labs, which completed a $2 million seed round financing with participation from Klaytn; Modulus Labs, which completed a $6.3 million seed round led by Variant and 1kx; and decentralized derivatives platform Surf Protocol, which completed a $3 million financing led by ABCDE Capital.

In addition, Silicon Valley venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) plans to raise approximately $3.4 billion for its next core early-stage and seed fund, with fundraising activities expected to start around the end of the year, aiming for a final closing in the first half of 2024, and plans to raise new growth, cryptocurrency, and biotech investment tools in 2025.

Venture fund Ex/Ante completed a $33 million financing round, which will be invested in AI, Web3, digital identity, and other fields. Its founder and managing partner Zoe Weinberg has previously served on the U.S. National Artificial Intelligence Security Commission and at Google AI. Partner Michael Mosier was a top lawyer for cryptocurrency startups Espresso Systems and Chainalysis, and a former senior official at the U.S. Treasury and Justice Departments.

*（List of projects that completed financing last week, data source: * Rootdata）

1. Infrastructure

1. Blockchain infrastructure and tools company Kana Labs completed $2 million seed round financing, with participation from Klaytn
Blockchain infrastructure and tools company Kana Labs has completed a $2 million seed round financing, with participation from NetMarble subsidiary MarbleX, Nexus One, Klaytn, and Gate.io. This round of financing will be used to enhance products such as smart wallets and Web3 middleware toolkits, user acquisition, and international expansion, with a particular focus on the Asia-Pacific region, including South Korea, Japan, Hong Kong, and Taiwan.

It is reported that prior to this round of financing, Kana Labs conducted an oversubscribed pre-seed round financing, with a valuation of $21 million. (Source link)

2. Waterfall Network completed $2 million financing, led by ByteTrade Lab
Decentralized smart contract platform Waterfall Network announced the completion of a $2 million Pre-A round financing, led by ByteTrade Lab. The company plans to use this new funding to drive the launch of its mainnet in the first quarter of 2024.

The EVM-compatible decentralized smart contract network currently being built by Waterfall Network allows any device (including low-cost laptops and mobile phones) to run validator nodes, while also providing users with greater access and complete control over their data, promoting true on-chain decentralized governance. (Source link)

3. Modulus Labs completed $6.3 million seed round financing, led by Variant and 1kx
Zero-knowledge proof-based AI startup Modulus Labs announced the completion of $6.3 million in seed round financing, led by Variant and 1kx, with participation from Inflection, Bankless, Stanford, and angel investors including the Ethereum Foundation, Worldcoin, Polygon, Celestia, and Solana. This funding will be used to help develop Modulus products.

It is reported that Modulus utilizes ZKML combined with ZK proofs of AI models, focusing on using zero-knowledge proofs to demonstrate that AI models are executed correctly. (Source link)

4. zkRollup network Intmax announced completion of strategic financing, with participation from LD Capital
The zkRollup-based Layer 2 network project Intmax announced the completion of strategic financing and the launch of its digital wallet "INTMAX Wallet." Participants include LD Capital, KX, GMO Web3, and Kepple Africa Ventures, with the financing amount not yet disclosed. Additionally, Intmax stated that its mainnet will launch in the first quarter of 2024.

According to Web3 asset data platform RootData, Intmax completed a $5 million seed round financing, with participation from HashKey Capital. (Source link)

5. Layer N announced strategic investment from BlackPine
Modular L2 protocol Layer N announced a strategic investment from BlackPine. The team stated that this investment marks Layer N's official entry into the Asian market, aiming to expand the native Web3 products available in the region.

According to the RootData page, Layer N completed a $5 million seed round financing in September this year, led by Founders Fund and dao5. (Source link)

2. CeFi

1. Cryptocurrency ETP issuer Valour completed $2.16 million private placement financing
Decentralized finance investment company DeFi Technologies announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary Valour has completed a private placement financing of 3 million Canadian dollars (approximately $2.16 million) through unsecured convertible notes. It is reported that the related financing notes issued will bear an annual interest rate of 8% and will mature on October 31, 2025.

Valour currently offers a variety of cryptocurrency exchange-traded products (ETPs), including Valour Polkadot (DOT) EUR, Valour Cardano (ADA) EUR, Valor Uniswap (UNI), Cardano (ADA), Polkadot (DOT), and Solana (SOL) ETPs, as well as Valour's flagship Bitcoin Zero and Valor Ethereum Zero products. (Source link)

2. Mining company Quantum Blockchain completed £2 million financing through new share placement
London Stock Exchange-listed mining company Quantum Blockchain announced that it has completed £2 million financing through a new share placement. The funds will be used to advance its Bitcoin mining research and development plans through increased hiring, new hardware, and enhanced software development, and may establish cloud service infrastructure in North America. (Source link)

3. Bitcoin miner Northern Data secured €575 million debt financing facility from Tether
Bitcoin miner Northern Data has signed a loan agreement with Tether to secure a €575 million debt financing facility, provided under standard market conditions, maturing on January 1, 2030. This will enable Northern Data to make further investments across its three main business areas: Taiga Cloud, Ardent Data Centers, and Peak Mining.

The new funds will also be used to expand Northern Data's data center investment portfolio through Tether's data center infrastructure business, Ardent Data Centers, and enhance existing operations.

Finally, Tether also plans to use this financing to further expand its Bitcoin mining operations and adopt specially designed liquid-cooled mining technology. (Source link)

3. DeFi

1. Decentralized derivatives platform Surf Protocol announced completion of $3 million financing, led by ABCDE Capital
Decentralized derivatives exchange Surf Protocol announced the completion of $3 million financing, led by ABCDE Capital, with participation from OP Crypto and C2 Ventures. The new funds will be used to develop a permissionless Perp DEX (perpetual contract decentralized exchange) based on the Base network.

It is reported that Surf Protocol is developing a solution to address the limited range of tradable assets in the Perp DEX market. The liquidity provision framework created by Surf Protocol, with its unique AMM structure, offers liquidity providers (LPs) more options to balance returns and risks. (Source link)

2. Zero-knowledge proof interoperability protocol Topos completed $5 million expansion seed round financing, with participation from Polygon co-founder
Zero-knowledge cryptography company Toposware (Topos) announced the completion of $5 million in expansion seed round financing, with participation from Evolution Equity Partners, Triatomic Capital, K2 Access Fund, and Polygon co-founder Sandeep Nailwal.

According to the RootData page, Topos is an interoperability protocol that utilizes zero-knowledge proofs and reliable broadcasting, allowing various public and private blockchains to communicate with each other. Zero-knowledge proofs allow blockchains to prove the validity of their state transitions without compromising internal information such as account addresses and balances. Topos previously completed a financing round of 750 million yen in 2021. (Source link)

4. Tools

1. On-chain copyright platform Trips completed $2.5 million Pre-Seed round financing, with participation from Shima Capital
On-chain copyright platform Trips announced the completion of $2.5 million in Pre-Seed round financing, with participation from Shima Capital, Animal Capital, Blackwood Ventures, Serafund, and Calligraphy Digital, as well as the Avalanche ecosystem fund Blizzard.

Trips is built on the Avalanche Evergreen subnet and helps content creators establish copyrights on the blockchain, providing each creator with the tools needed for content protection, authentication, and monetization. Its services currently support video streaming platform YouTube. (Source link)

5. Others

1. Cryptocurrency anti-fraud company Vaas completed approximately $2 million Pre-Seed round financing, led by ABSeed
Brazilian cryptocurrency anti-fraud company Vaas announced the completion of 10 million Brazilian reais (approximately $2 million) in Pre-Seed round financing, led by ABSeed, with participation from Fuse Capital and Honey Island under 4UM.

The solution launched by Vaas supports tracking the entire history of assets within cryptocurrency wallets and identifying some unconventional or suspicious transactions. The new funds will be used to develop new products and expand business into traditional financial sectors such as banking. (Source link)