Investor confidence in the digital asset space held firm as crypto VC funding totaled $293.2 million during the week of April 13-19, 2025, even amidst a relatively stable market backdrop. Infrastructure, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and Decentralized Finance (DeFi) projects attracted significant capital across various investment stages.
The standout deal involved Auradine securing a massive $153 million Series C, signaling strong belief in foundational blockchain technology. However, several other ventures also landed substantial funding to accelerate their roadmaps.
Here’s a closer look at the significant crypto funding rounds finalized during this period:
Auradine: $153 Million Series C
Based in Santa Clara, California, Auradine announced an oversubscribed $153 million Series C financing round. StepStone Group spearheaded the investment, joined by prominent backers like Samsung Catalyst Fund, Qualcomm Ventures, and Premji Invest.
This latest infusion brings Auradine’s total capital raised since its 2022 inception to over $300 million. Concurrently, the company unveiled AuraLinks AI, a new business unit dedicated to developing open-standard networking solutions aimed at addressing the escalating bandwidth and cooling needs of next-generation AI data centers. The AuraLinks team boasts experienced professionals from industry giants such as Cisco, Google, and Microsoft.
LayerZero: $55 Million Token Acquisition
Venture capital heavyweight a16z Crypto deepened its commitment to LayerZero by acquiring an additional $55 million worth of the protocol’s native ZRO tokens. Demonstrating a long-term strategic view, these newly acquired tokens are bound by a three-year lockup period.
This move follows a16z Crypto’s previous leadership in LayerZero’s Series A+ and Series B rounds, underscoring sustained conviction in the project’s vision. LayerZero has accumulated $318.3 million in funding to date.
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World Liberty Financial: $25 Million Token Deal
Web3 investment entity DWF Labs purchased $25 million in World Liberty Financial (WLFI) tokens, associated with the Trump family. Simultaneously, WLFI deployed its USD1 stablecoin on both the Ethereum and Binance Smart Chain networks.
The USD1 stablecoin is reportedly backed by U.S. Treasuries, cash, and equivalents, with BitGo acting as the custodian for reserves. This launch, however, has drawn attention and concern from some lawmakers and financial observers regarding its potential implications and regulatory oversight, particularly highlighted during recent congressional hearings on stablecoin regulation.
Optimum: $11 Million Seed Funding
A tech startup aiming to create pioneering high-performance memory infrastructure for blockchains, Optimum, secured $11 million in seed funding. The round was led by 1kx, with contributions from Robot Ventures, Spartan, Animoca, GSR, and Finality Capital Partners.
The funds are earmarked for advancing Optimum’s technology, which utilizes Random Linear Network Coding, and for expanding its team.
Resolv Labs: $10 Million Seed Round
Resolv Labs successfully closed a $10 million Seed funding round. The investment was co-led by Cyber Fund and Maven11, attracting support from established players like Coinbase Ventures, Arrington Capital, and Gumi Cryptos.
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Ventures Securing Under $10 Million
Several other projects also received backing:
- ORO AI: Raised $6 million in Seed funding for its AI, data service, and infrastructure initiatives.
- Neutri: Secured a $5 million Seed round to develop its DApp, DeFi, derivatives, and stablecoin offerings.
- Rekord AG: Received a $4.5 million Seed investment for projects spanning API, data services, identity, infrastructure, and IoT.
- Glider: Obtained $4 million in an undisclosed round for its AI, DeFi, portfolio management, and trading solutions.
- Embr Labs: Closed a $1.8 million Pre-seed round focusing on gaming, the Injta ecosystem, and meme categories.
These investments highlight the continued flow of capital into diverse sectors of the blockchain and crypto economy, fueling innovation from early-stage concepts to established platforms.