Institutional Bulletin: HashKey Group Secures $100 Million, Flowdesk Raises $50 Million

The cryptocurrency industry is attracting 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. ForkLog reviews the most significant events of recent weeks.

HashKey Group Valued at $1.2 Billion Following $100 Million Funding Round

Hong Kong-based HashKey Group completed a Series A funding round, raising $100 million.

The group, which includes a licensed SFC crypto exchange, asset management, staking services, tokenization, and NFTs, was valued at $1.2 billion.

The company announced the addition of new shareholders, including well-known institutional investors, leading Web3 institutions, and strategic partners.

The funds will be used to strengthen the ecosystem, accelerate the diversification of the trading platform’s products, and foster innovative development.

The press release states that four months after its launch, the crypto exchange attracted 155,000 users. The organization established strategic partnerships with more than ten brokers and six public companies.

Market Maker Flowdesk Secures $50 Million from Ripple and Other Investors

French cryptocurrency market maker Flowdesk closed a Series B funding round, raising $50 million. The round was led by Cathay Innovation with participation from Cathay Ledger Fund, Eurazeo, ISAI, Speedinvest, BPI, and Ripple.‍

The funds will be used to increase staff from 100 to 150, expand the range of services offered, and obtain regulatory licenses in Singapore and the United States.

Flowdesk CEO Guilhem Chaumont reported significant growth in trading volumes and revenues for the market maker in recent months amid a revival in the cryptocurrency market.

According to him, the company supports about 130 digital asset platforms and trades between $150 million and $400 million daily. He declined to disclose specific revenue figures.

Crypto Bank Sygnum Raises $40 Million at a $900 Million Valuation

Swiss regulated cryptocurrency bank Sygnum raised over $40 million in an interim strategic funding round led by Milan-based asset manager Azimut Holding.

Investors valued the project at $900 million.

Gerald Goh, CEO and co-founder of Sygnum’s Singapore branch, expressed confidence that the industry is “waking up” after the crypto winter, with market participants increasingly seeking partnerships with reliable and well-managed financial institutions. 

The company will use the funds to explore new markets and further develop regulated products, including those aimed at interbank interactions with digital assets.

In addition to Switzerland and Singapore, Sygnum holds licenses to operate in Abu Dhabi and Luxembourg. The company manages over $4 billion in assets, serving more than 1,700 clients from 60 countries. 

L2 Project Polymer Labs Raises $23 Million

Startup Polymer Labs, specializing in interoperability and L2 solutions, raised $23 million in a Series A round led by Blockchain Capital, Maven 11, and Distributed Global.

Other investors include Coinbase Ventures, Placeholder, Digital Currency Group, North Island Ventures, and Figment Capital. The project’s valuation was not disclosed. 

The project is creating an “interoperability hub,” aiming to connect the Ethereum network and its rollups with other blockchains to build the “next-generation Internet.”

The platform’s infrastructure is still under development. The testnet launch is scheduled for March. 

According to developers, existing L2 networks and cross-chain bridges are widely used but vulnerable to hacks. The startup’s solutions will allow various protocols to “interact without introducing new trust assumptions, expanding the functionality of a wide range of blockchains.” 

Polymer Labs uses Inter-Blockchain Communication technology from Cosmos and the OP Stack architecture from Optimism. Project representatives emphasized that any Web3 developer, regardless of the network used, will be able to utilize the interoperability tools they are creating. 

The team will use the funds to expand its staff. The mainnet launch is also planned for this year.

Staking Platform Kiln Raises $17 Million

The institution-focused staking platform Kiln closed a $17 million funding round led by 1kx.

Other investors include Crypto.com, IOSG, Wintermute Ventures, KXVC, LBank, Kraken Ventures, GSR, and Avon Ventures — a venture fund affiliated with FMR LLC (the parent company of Fidelity Investments). 

The company’s valuation was not disclosed. However, developers reported that the volume of assets in staking grew more than fivefold in 2023, reaching $4.2 billion. The platform also integrated with numerous custodial solutions, wallets, and exchanges.

Kiln will use the funds for global expansion, including opening a division in the Asia-Pacific region and a regional headquarters in Singapore. The funds will also be invested in further product development.

RWA Project Dinari Raises $10 Million in Seed Round

The platform for tokenizing “real-world assets” (RWA) Dinari closed a $10 million seed funding round.

The startup completed the fundraising in the fourth quarter of 2023. Investors include 500 Global, Version One, Sancus Ventures, Alchemy, and former Coinbase CTO Balaji Srinivasan.

Previously, the team launched two dozen tokenized dShare products on Arbitrum, representing stocks, exchange products, real estate, and other assets.

Dinari announced the addition of tools based on the securities of American mining company Riot Platforms, Jack Dorsey’s payment firm Block, and 10 spot bitcoin ETFs registered in January.

Ethereum Restaking Protocol Renzo Raises $3.2 Million at $25 Million Valuation

Based on EigenLayer, the restaking protocol Renzo raised $3.2 million in seed investments.

The round was led by Maven11 Capital. Other participants include Figment Capital, SevenX Ventures, and IOSG Ventures. Investors valued the project, founded in August last year, at $25 million. 

The project team will use the funds for additional audits, increasing rewards in its bounty program on the Immunefi platform, integrations with other DeFi protocols, and staff expansion.