This week, blockchain startups and various cryptocurrency projects have collectively raised more than $100 million in venture capital (VC).
Below is a summary of funding activities between June 16 and 22. The activity reflects a growing interest in diverse blockchain applications, from gaming and social networking to advanced cryptographic security.
PQShield raises $37 million in second round
Security startup PQShield emerged as the biggest winner this week. It has closed a $37 million Series B round to advance post-quantum crypto solutions.
Led by the addition, the funding round also included new investors such as Braavos Capital, Legal & General and Chevron Technology Ventures.
PQShield technology aims to protect future cryptosystems against quantum computer-based hacks, with notable customers including Nvidia and AMD.
The company's founder, Dr. Ali Al-Qaafrani, said PQShield will use the new funds to employ more people and facilitate closer working relationships with its partners and clients.
Renzo received $17 million in the first round
The second largest funding amount of the week went to Ethereum (ETH) recovery protocol, Renzo.
It secured $17 million in a seed round led by Galaxy Ventures and Brevan Howard Digital Nova Fund. Earlier in January, the platform raised $3.2 million in a seed round led by Maven 11.
Renzo enables users to repossess various Ethereum assets, providing them with ezETH, a liquid repository token that can be used across decentralized finance (defi) platforms. Data from DefiLlama Offers It currently has a market capitalization of approximately $115 million and a total locked value of over $3.6 billion.
Particle mesh bags $15 million
Particle Network, a modular blockchain developer, also performed well this week. The company has raised $15 million in a seed round co-led by The Spartan Group and Gumi Cryptos Capital.
Round, as well mentioned By The Block, it was designed as a simple futures token agreement and included participation from SevenX Ventures, Flow Traders, and HashKey Capital, among others.
Previously, Particle raised $10 million in three funding rounds, bringing the total amount raised to $25 million.
According to the company's founder, Pengyu Wang, Particle will use the funds to support its chain stripping technology work as well as expand its operations.
Sonic closes $12 million round
Elsewhere, Sonic Network, a gaming-focused Solana Layer 2 (SOL) network, raised $12 million in a Series A round led by Bitkraft Ventures. Other venture capital firms that participated in the round include Galaxy Interactive and Big Brain Holdings.
The venture has raised $16 million in total, following a $4 million round in 2022, giving it a fully diluted valuation of $100 million.
The funds will support Sonic's mission to simplify the complexities of Web3 gaming and integrate with different game genres.
ZKX raises $7.6 million
On June 19, ZKX, a decentralized exchange for permanent social trading (DEX), Announce It has secured $7.6 million in total funding, including a recent $6.3 million seed round.
Investors such as Flowdesk, GCR, and DeWhales backed the initiative, which aims to enhance perpetual swaps through social trading features and cross-chain interoperability.
The company said in its announcement that it will use the new capital to introduce new features to the ZKX protocol, including social copy trading pools as well as expanding cross-chain interoperability to make perpetual swaps globally available.
The platform also launched its native ZKX token on three major exchanges: Bitget, Gate.io, and KuCoin.
Gudchain closes $5 million investment round
Another gaming-focused project that had great success at this week's crypto VC event was Gudchain, a layer 2 blockchain based on OP-stack.
It received $5 million in funding, led by Mechanism Capital. Other participants in the round include Manifold, Skyvision Capital and Morningstar Ventures.
The blockchain aims to simplify access to web3 for gamers and will serve as the foundation for Highstreet Market's products. The platform also has pas they say Five major games have been signed, and the team plans to release them on the series within six months.
Another notable financing
Several startups also received smaller but significant funding rounds during the week:
- ZEC, a $3 million financing round: The decentralized social collaboration network has raised $3 million from investors, including OKX Ventures and Animoca Brands.
- Wasabi, $3 million in seed funding: The cryptocurrency and non-fungible token (NFT) leveraged trading protocol has secured $3 million, led by Electric Capital, to bolster its decentralized offerings.
- Bitwise, initial investment of $2.5 million: Bitwise has updated its S-1 form, revealing a $2.5 million seed investment for its ETF, with Pantera Capital showing interest in further investments.
- Farworld Labs, $1.75 million pre-funding round: Original gaming company Farcaster has closed a $1.75 million pre-funding round to develop its Farcade platform.
- Ordinox, $1 million in pre-seed funding: Cosmos-based automated marketplace for BRC20s and Runes received $1 million led by DACM to support development and security audits.
