During the week of April 13-19, 2025, total crypto VC funding amounts to $293.2 million, largely propelled by Auradine’s $153 million Series C. Other noteworthy investments include LayerZero’s $55 million and World Liberty Financial’s $25 million token sale. Several smaller projects also secured funding, supporting continued growth in infrastructure, AI, and DeFi sectors.
In the week of April 13-19, 2025, total crypto venture capital (VC) funding reached $293.2 million, with Auradine’s $153 million Series C funding round taking the lead. Various sectors, including infrastructure, AI, and DeFi, attracted significant investments, contributing to the overall capital flow amid a steady crypto market environment.
Auradine raised $153 million through an oversubscribed Series C round, with StepStone Group leading the investment, supported by firms such as Samsung Catalyst Fund and Qualcomm Ventures. Established in 2022, Auradine has raised a total of over $300 million, introducing a new unit, AuraLinks AI, aimed at developing open-standard networking for next-generation AI data centres with a team comprised of veterans from prominent tech enterprises like Cisco and Google.
LayerZero received an additional $55 million from a16z Crypto, who locked the newly acquired native tokens, ZRO, for three years, affirming their long-term investment commitment. LayerZero’s total funding now amounts to $318.3 million, building upon previous funding rounds led by a16z, including Series A+ and Series B.
World Liberty Financial (WLFI) sold $25 million worth of tokens to DWF Labs, while also launching its USD1 stablecoin, which trades on Ethereum and Binance Smart Chain. This stablecoin is backed by U.S. Treasuries and raised concerns from lawmakers about potential implications for the U.S. dollar.
Optimum, aiming to create innovative memory infrastructure for blockchain technology, secured $11 million in seed funding. The round was led by 1kx and included participation from various investors, and will drive the development of technology based on Random Linear Network Coding.
Resolv Labs successfully raised $10 million in a Seed round with contributions from Cyber Fund, Maven11, and Coinbase Ventures.
Projects raising under $10 million include: ORO AI ($6 million), focused on AI and data services; Neutri ($5 million) for DApp and DeFi development; Rekord AG ($4.5 million) in APIs and IoT; Glider ($4 million) for AI and portfolio management; and Embr Labs ($1.8 million) for gaming and meme-related initiatives.
