Crypto VC funding: Celestia, Infinex, Pencils Protocol score backing

In this week’s venture capital update, more than $253 million flowed into the crypto startup world, although the bulk of that funding went to the blockchain network Celestia Foundation.

Crypto.news perused social media and tapped the latest data from Crypto Fundraising to determine that over a dozen companies raised capital between Sept. 22 and Sept. 28. Here they are:

Celestia Foundation, $100 million

The Liechtenstein-based non-profit organization, known for building Celestia (TIA), raised $100 million from major crypto-focused venture capital firms, led by Bain Capital Crypto.

Infinex, $65.29 million

Infinex, a decentralized exchange, secured $65.29 million via a non-fungible token, or NFT, sale. Framework Ventures, Solana Ventures, Wintermute, Eden Block, Moonrock Capital and Bankless VC each participated in the effort.

Pencils Protocol, $30 million

Pencils Protocol, an auction platform and yield aggregator on Scroll, raised an additional $30 million. DePIN X, Taisu Ventures, Black GM Capital and Bing Ventures are among its strategic investors.

Initia, $14 million

Initia clinched $14 million in a Series A round. Tomasz Tunguz and Spencer Farrar from Theory VC led the effort. Delphi Ventures and Hack VC also participate.d.

Mawari Network, $10.8 million

The spatial computing company, which leverages the Solana DePIN infrastructure, raised $10.8 million in strategic funding.

Mind Network, $10 million

Mind Network raised $10 million in a pre-A funding round. Investors in the effort included Animoca Brands, Arkstream Capital, Cogitent VC, MH Ventures, Moonhill Capital, SwissBorg, IBC Group, Master VC, and others.

Darkbright, $6 million

Bitkraft Ventures led an oversubscribed $6 million seed round for Darkbright, the web3 studio behind the Smolbound role-playing game.

Daylight, $6 million

Union Square Ventures and 1kx Network co-led a $6-million seed funding round in crypto platform Daylight. The startup is known for its transaction recommendation API.

Gunzilla Games, $6 million

Delphi Ventures invested in Gunzilla Games, its largest gaming investment to date. Gunzilla’s GUNZ blockchain is a key component of the studio’s upcoming Web3 game, “Off The Grid.”

AminoChain, $5 million

AminoChain, a decentralized biobank and Layer 2 network, remained relatively quiet over the past two years. That is, until, a16z crypto led a $5 million seed funding round for the startup. This brought total funding to $7 million. The deal marks a16z’s first investment in DeSci, or decentralized science.

Funding rounds < $5 million

• Eigenpie: The restaking SubDAO designed to maximize earning potential for liquid staking token holders raised $4 million.
• Meshmap: The open and decentralized platform received $4 million from a16z, Colosseum, Lattice, Escape Velocity, GSR and other institutions.
• Meridian: ParaFi Capital, Borderless Capital, Amber Group, Saison Capital, Interop Ventures, and Oak Grove Ventures pooled $4 million for the Hong Kong-based decentralized liquidity marketplace.
• Helixlabs: The startup nabbed $2 million in a pre-seed funding round from Tribe Capital, EMURGO Ventures, Taureon Capital, LD Capital, and Double Peak Group. Its valuation hovers at around $40 million.
• EarthFast: Nascent led a $1.4 million pre-seed funding round; The General Partnership also participated alongside Kain Warwick, Roneil Rumburg, Bodhi Ventures

For last week’s column, click here.