According to incomplete statistics from Odaily Planet Daily, from January 5 to January 11, 2025, a total of 7 funding events were disclosed in the global blockchain field, showing a slight increase compared to the 4 events from the previous week; the total funding amount reached $332 million, a significant increase from the $27.7 million of the previous week. Funding activities have returned to normal this week.
The largest single funding round this week was the stablecoin company Rain announcing a $250 million funding round at a valuation of $1.95 billion; followed by the AI data exchange platform Protege announcing the completion of a $30 million Series A funding round.
Below are the specific funding events (Note: 1. Sorted by the announced amount; 2. * indicates "traditional" companies with partial business involving blockchain):
Stablecoin company Rain raised $250 million at a $1.95 billion valuation, led by ICONIQ
On January 9, stablecoin company Rain announced the completion of a $250 million funding round at a valuation of $1.95 billion, 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 presence 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 round, 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 through authorized aggregated datasets, data cleaning, anonymization, and formatting for training/evaluation, and helps data suppliers obtain revenue sharing.
RuneSoul completes $30 million strategic funding, fully transitioning to a Web3 game aggregation launch platform
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 funding will be specifically used 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 aggregation launch platform (Aggregator & Launchpad).
RuneSoul will be committed to building a one-stop, full-link service system from asset issuance, user growth, incentive mechanisms, on-chain data analysis to final settlement, aiming to become the "Steam + Publishing Middle Office" in the Web3 field.
Babylon completes $15 million funding round, with participation from a16z Crypto
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 raises over $10 million in total funding, 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, aiming to connect asset issuers with qualified users.
HabitTrade completes nearly $10 million Series A funding round, led by Newborn Town Inc.
On January 8, HabitTrade announced on the X platform the completion of 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 funding marks HabitTrade's entry into the next stage from infrastructure construction to scaling expansion. HabitTrade will use the funds to expand its 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, the 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.
Digital finance and payment infrastructure PhotonPay completes tens of millions of dollars in Series B funding, led by IDG Capital
On January 9, digital finance and payment infrastructure PhotonPay announced the completion of a Series B funding round of tens of millions of dollars, led by IDG Capital, with participation from Gaoling Ventures (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 and reduce transaction friction and circulation costs, while enhancing AML (Anti-Money Laundering) and anti-fraud systems.
