Institutional Bulletin: Morpho Raises $50 Million, Andrena Secures $18 Million

The cryptocurrency industry continues to attract an increasing number of institutional players. This is evidenced by new investments in infrastructure and the growing attention companies are paying to bitcoin as an asset class. The most significant events of recent weeks are reviewed by ForkLog.

Lending Protocol Morpho Raises $50 Million

The developer of the decentralized lending protocol Morpho has closed a $50 million funding round.

We’re excited to announce that Morpho has secured $50M, led by Ribbit Capital!

The funding from Ribbit and other strategic partners further enhances Morpho’s decentralization and supports its mission to make financial infrastructure a public good. pic.twitter.com/9coxxRKKwn

— Morpho Labs ? (@MorphoLabs) August 1, 2024

The round was led by Ribbit Capital with participation from a16z crypto, Coinbase Ventures, Variant, Pantera, Brevan Howard, BlockTower, Kraken Ventures, Hack VC, IOSG, Rockaway, L1D, Semantic, and others.

DePIN Project Andrena Raises $18 Million for DAWN Development

The developer of the Solana-based DePIN protocol DAWN — Andrena — has closed a Series A funding round of $18 million, as reported by The Block.

The round was led by Dragonfly with participation from CMT Digital, Castle Island Ventures, Wintermute Ventures, 6th Man Ventures, and ParaFi.

According to Andrena co-founder Neil Chatterjee, the round was “significantly oversubscribed” — initially, they planned to raise $5 million. The total funding for the project has reached $38 million, with its valuation undisclosed.

DEX Aggregator Aidatify Raises $17.5 Million at $150 Million Valuation

The AI-based decentralized exchange data aggregator Aidatify has closed a Series A funding round of $17.5 million, reaching a valuation of $150 million, according to a press release.

The round was led by SM Capital with participation from other strategic investors. The funds will be used to expand the ecosystem and product lineup.

Aidatify employs advanced AI technologies to analyze large volumes of blockchain data and provide financial services.

DeFi Betting Platform DuelNow Raises $11 Million

The decentralized sports betting platform DuelNow has closed a funding round of $11 million, led by GEM Digital Limited.

? DuelNow has secured an $11M investment.
? Stay tuned for more updates.
? Thank you to our investors.

? @MorningstarInc#CryptoNews #CryptoCommunity #CryptoInvestors pic.twitter.com/YO58AfiQVO

— DuelNow (@getduelnow) August 2, 2024

The peer-to-peer platform based on Arbitrum focuses on reducing fees to achieve higher payouts. According to a press release, DuelNow currently serves fans of the NBA, MMA, NFL, and MLB.

Blockchain-Based AI Firm Hyperbolic Raises $7 Million

The blockchain-based AI firm Hyperbolic has closed a seed funding round of $7 million.

We are thrilled to announce a $7M raise to become the leading Open-Access AI Cloud ???️

At Hyperbolic, we’re building an open AI ecosystem and economy where everyone who contributes is rewarded. Our goal is not to merely optimize AI performance to compete with traditional Web2… pic.twitter.com/pXTvmK98yO

— Hyperbolic (@hyperbolic_labs) July 30, 2024

The round was led by Polychain Capital and Lightspeed Faction with participation from Chapter One, LongHash, Bankless Ventures, Republic Digital, Nomad Capital, CoinSummer Labs, Third Earth Capital, and angel investors.

Hyperbolic uses blockchain to ensure the security and reliability of its network operations. The firm aims to reduce resource consumption for AI computations by aggregating computing power from graphics processors.

Web3 Gaming Studio Curio Raises $5.7 Million

The Web3 gaming studio Curio has closed a seed funding round of $5.7 million, as reported by The Block.

The investment round was led by Bain Capital Crypto and SevenX Ventures with participation from OKX Ventures.

The total funding for the project has reached $8.7 million. The funds will be used to expand the team.

Curio has also launched the social-strategy online game Duper. The rules require five players to conspire and deceive the team. The studio stated that Duper is “as fun as poker, if not more.” 

Also on ForkLog:

• Binance Labs selected four startups for funding. And then — three more.