Key Highlights
- Weekly blockchain funding surpasses $572 million.
- Significant investments in DeFi, including Paxos' acquisition of Fordefi.
- Strategic funding for decentralized AI networks like Gonka AI.
- Focus on secure blockchain computing infrastructure, such as SpaceComputer.
Blockchain Funding Overview (Nov 24-30)
According to PANews' incomplete statistics, last week (Nov. 24-Nov. 30) there were 11 global blockchain investment and financing events, with a total funding scale of over $572 million; in addition, listed companies' cryptocurrency asset reserve financing totaled over $235 million. An overview is as follows:
DeFi Funding
Four investment and financing events were announced in the DeFi sector, with Paxos announcing the acquisition of New York-based DeFi wallet startup Fordefi for over $100 million.
Web3 + AI Funding
One investment and financing event was announced in the Web3 + AI sector, with decentralized AI computing network Gonka AI receiving a $12 million strategic investment from Bitfury.
Infrastructure & Tools Funding
Three investment and financing events were announced in the infrastructure & tools sector, with SpaceComputer completing a $10 million seed round to operate secure blockchain computing from space.
Centralized Finance Funding
One investment and financing event was announced in the centralized finance sector, with Exodus acquiring W3C Corp, the parent company of Baanx and Monavate, for $175 million.
Other Web3 Applications Funding
Two investment and financing events were announced in other Web3 applications, with decentralized job marketplace and workforce automation protocol WorkQuest announcing the completion of a $1.16 million seed round.
Listed Company Funding
In addition, two listed companies announced plans to raise funds for cryptocurrency treasury strategies: Upexi plans to raise $23 million through a private placement to strengthen its SOL vault strategy.
Notable Funding Deals
Paxos Acquires Fordefi for Over $100 Million
Paxos announced the acquisition of New York-based DeFi wallet startup Fordefi for over $100 million. Fordefi was founded in 2021, has approximately 40 employees and 300 customers, and was valued at $83 million in its previous round. Fordefi will continue to operate independently after the acquisition, and Paxos plans to integrate its technology into its own system. This transaction is Paxos' second acquisition in a year, following its acquisition of EU stablecoin issuer Membrane Finance in February to comply with MiCA regulations and expand its reach.
Nexton Solutions Completes $4 Million Strategic Funding
Nexton Solutions, a native AI restaking and arbitrage execution protocol, completed $4 million in strategic funding led by Korean payment company Danal, with participation from Amber Group, Value Systems, Metalabs Ventures, Vista Labs, Outlier Ventures, Kaia Foundation, TON Foundation, STON.fi, and PayProtocol. Nexton is building a unified AI execution layer that includes two core components: the Nexton-ai cross-DEX/CEX arbitrage routing engine, and the Nexton-re automated restaking module.
Pruv Finance Raises $3 Million Pre-A Round
Pruv Finance raised approximately $3 million in a Pre-A round led by UOB Venture Management, with participation from Saison Capital, Taisu Ventures, Ascent, Spiral Ventures, and Royal Group. Pruv aims to build a compliant and tradable on-chain RWA distribution infrastructure. Pruv claims to be the first digital finance platform to be approved by the Indonesian Financial Services Authority (OJK) regulatory sandbox, addressing the conflict between "compliance and liquidity" in RWA, supporting asset whitelist blocking, free cross-chain transfer, and native compatibility with DeFi.
CreatorFi Receives $2 Million Strategic Investment
CreatorFi, a digital asset lending platform, announced a strategic partnership with the Aptos Foundation and Aptos Labs. As part of the partnership, CreatorFi will launch its platform on Aptos and receive a total of $2 million in strategic funding to accelerate its development. According to reports, CreatorFi, developed by Insomnia Labs, is a fintech platform that transforms digital media income into lendable assets, providing creators, studios, and media companies with risk-adjusted pre-approved financing.
Gonka AI Receives $12 Million Strategic Investment from Bitfury
Global leading cryptocurrency mining company Bitfury Group recently completed a $12 million strategic investment in decentralized AI computing network Gonka.ai, purchasing 20 million GNK tokens at a price of $0.6 per token. Founded by serial entrepreneurs the Lieberman brothers, Gonka.ai aims to build a blockchain-based distributed GPU computing power market. This investment is Bitfury's first public investment after establishing a $1 billion ethical AI fund, demonstrating that traditional mining companies are systematically laying out the decentralized AI infrastructure sector. According to publicly available data, Gonka already has over 5000 Nvidia H100 series GPU equivalent computing power across the network and supports access to nearly 20 mainstream AI devices such as 3080, 4090, H100, and H200, forming a distributed computing cluster.
Bridgepoint Acquires Majority Stake in ht.digital for Approximately £200 Million
London-listed private equity investment company Bridgepoint announced that it would acquire a majority stake in digital asset audit and technology service provider ht.digital for approximately £200 million. HT has more than 700 customers, including major global cryptocurrency exchanges, asset managers, and banks, and benefits from rising institutional demand for cryptocurrency asset allocation.
SpaceComputer Completes $10 Million Seed Round
Space computing startup SpaceComputer completed a $10 million seed round led by Maven11 and Lattice, with participation from Superscrypt, the Arbitrum Foundation, Nascent, Offchain Labs, Hashkey, and Chorus One. SpaceComputer will use the funds to launch a satellite network that provides secure computing services for blockchains from space. The company is known for conducting satellite tests on SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket and is currently working with universities such as the Technical University of Munich and Cornell Tech to explore extraterrestrial blockchain computing.
Exodus to Acquire W3C Corp
Exodus Movement (NYSE American: EXOD), a cryptocurrency wallet company, is acquiring W3C Corp, the parent company of cryptocurrency card and payment companies Baanx and Monavate, for $175 million. The transaction is funded by the company's existing cash and financing provided by Galaxy Digital secured by Bitcoin held by Exodus.
WorkQuest Completes $1.16 Million Seed Round
WorkQuest, a decentralized job marketplace and workforce automation protocol, announced the completion of a $1.16 million seed round led by Black Dragon Capital, with participation from Prometeus Labs, TrustDAO Capital, Chain Ridge Capital, Kyros Ventures, Magnus Capital, Titans Ventures, and Matrix Ventures. The new funds will be used to upgrade its platform, allowing employers to invest in smart contracts, stable employees, and credit ratings.
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