Praxis Secures $525 Million for AI and Cryptocurrency-Friendly City

The Praxis project has secured $525 million to establish a new city with minimal regulatory barriers, aimed at fostering breakthroughs in AI, cryptocurrencies, biotechnology, energy, and advanced manufacturing.

Investors include Arch Lending, GEM Digital, Manifold Trading, Farcaster CEO Dan Romero, Dragonfly CEO Tom Schmidt, Dragonfly General Partner Rob Hadyk, Worldcoin co-founder Max Novendstern, among others.

“Raising capital for the city has become a central focus for Praxis, as it enhances the speed and quality of deals with governments and landowners. […] We have developed a crypto-native mechanism for financing large-scale projects using tokenized real assets […]” the announcement states.

The city aims to attract entrepreneurs while promoting the culture of traditional Western civilization values. The international architectural firm Zaha Hadid Architects has designed the concept.

According to WSJ, GEM Digital is contributing the lion’s share of the funds—$500 million. In return, Praxis will issue tokens representing ownership rights to future real estate. To access the capital, the organization must list the crypto assets on a public exchange.

The funds will be disbursed gradually upon reaching key milestones such as obtaining construction permits from local authorities, purchasing land for development, tokenizing land ownership rights, commencing construction, and populating the city. An additional $25 million will come from Arch Lending.

Project leader Dryden Brown told the publication that they are considering implementing the initiative in Latin America or the Mediterranean. The final location is expected to be chosen in the first quarter of 2025.

Back in February 2022, British crypto investor Anthony Welch purchased the 300-hectare Lataro Island and renamed it Satoshi. He plans to build a smart city there for digital asset enthusiasts.