Crypto’s Institutional Rally: $575M Raised, A Bull Market Ignites

Crypto’s Institutional Rally: $575M Raised, A Bull Market Ignites

Alen

BTC has reclaimed $105K, $ETH at $2.6K, the China-U.S. trade war is cooling down, more and more institutional players are coming to crypto, everything is setting up for a massive bull to rally. 

The fundraising market is also responding positively to the current conditions. So, what’s driving all this momentum? Let’s find out.

1. DeFi for Institutional Layer Sentora raised $25M 

DeFi asset management platform - Sentora has raised $25M in a Series A funding round led by New Form Capital, with participation from Joint Effects, Tribe Capital, Ripple, UDHC, Curved Ventures, Bankai Ventures.

IntoTheBlock, a financial analytics platform tailored for institutional DeFi investors, has merged with Trident Digital, a firm offering services ranging from lending to advisory. Together, they will now operate under the new name Sentora. 

Sentora’s mission is to create a unified institutional layer for DeFi, one that empowers a broad range of actors, from crypto-native DAOs to traditional asset managers and financial institutions. 

Trident’s Anthony DeMartino (former head of risk strategies at Coinbase) will lead Sentora, as IntoTheBlock’s CEO Jesús Rodríguez will take the helm as CTO of Sentora.

2. Blockchain layer 1 T-REX raised $17M

L1 blockchain for entertainment - T-Rex has raised $17M in a Pre-seed funding round from Portal Ventures, North Island Ventures (NIV), Framework Ventures, Arbitrum Gaming Ventures, ArkStream Capital, Mindfulness Capital, Hypersphere, SNZ Holding, Arche Fund).

T-Rex is a specialized blockchain designed exclusively for consumer applications, not a general-purpose chain. Its architecture prioritizes discoverability and engagement through a unique network of co-publishers, enabling on-chain applications to be surfaced more effectively. At the core of this ecosystem is the T-Rex Chrome extension, which acts as a publishing and engagement engine, driving traffic and activity across the network.

T-Rex introduces a proof-of-engagement model that rewards users with crypto for interacting with content on platforms like X, TikTok, and YouTube. This model relies on users downloading the browser extension, which uses zero-knowledge transport layer security (zkTLS) to verify engagement data between web2 and web3 without compromising user privacy.

The $17M raised will be use for:

  • Build: Dead-simple UX, consumer-grade.
  • Distribute: Surface viral content + dApps.
  • Incubate: Help creators + devs scale instantly.
  • Reward: Make attention a currency.

3. GoQuant raised $4M from GSR

Low latency trading infrastructure - GoQuant has raised $4M in a Seed funding round led by GSR Markets LTD, with participation from Copper co, Lombard Odier, Capital Union Bank, TYR Capital, FRNT Financial.

GoQuant delivers high-performance trading infrastructure tailored for the complexities of modern digital asset markets. Designed specifically for institutional traders, GoQuant combines ultra-low latency execution with deep counterparty connectivity, comprehensive market data coverage, and robust risk and portfolio management tools.

The platform features smart order routing across centralized exchanges, decentralized platforms, and OTC desks, ensuring optimal execution across all venues. Institutions benefit from real-time and historical market data, seamless OTC workflows, detailed trade cost analysis (TCA), and integrated risk management. Built-in compliance tools help enforce trading limits and exposure thresholds, giving firms the precision, speed, and control they need to operate effectively in today’s fast-paced crypto environment.

4. DogeOS raised $6.9M from Polychain Capital

App layer for Dogecoin ecosystem - DogeOS has raised $6.90M in a funding round led by Polychain Capital.

DogeOS is the innovative application layer built on the Dogecoin blockchain, designed to transform Dogecoin from a meme coin into a powerful, user-centric digital economy. DogeOS provides developers with a flexible platform to build consumer-facing apps across gaming, AI, DeFi, and more, using any language or VM. 

With over 10 million Dogecoin holders, the ecosystem now benefits from a fun, accessible, and inclusive platform that empowers both builders and users. DogeOS unlocks new capabilities such as native DOGE yield, DeFi tools, and stablecoin integration, giving users the ability to earn rewards and participate in decentralized finance directly with their Dogecoin.

The $6.9 million raised will be allocated to launching the DogeOS platform, expanding developer tools, and forging partnerships to drive adoption.

5. Dopple raised $35M from a16z crypto

Digital risk protection platform - Doppel has raised $35M in a Series B funding round at $205M valuation led by Bessemer Venture Partners, with participation from 9Yards Capital, Sozo Ventures, a16z crypto, South Park Commons, Strategic Cyber Ventures (SCV), Script Capital, Sabrina Hahn.

Doppel is an AI-powered digital risk protection platform designed to defend organizations against social engineering threats such as phishing, impersonation, and deepfake fraud.

Its flagship product, Doppel Vision, integrates generative AI with expert human analysis to detect and dismantle malicious digital infrastructures across various channels, including email, social media, web domains, NFT, crypto, and mobile applications.

Since its Series A in January 2024, Doppel has experienced rapid and sustained growth, achieving a 400% increase in enterprise customers, 90% overall customer growth, 3X annual recurring revenue, and 8X expansion revenue, while maintaining a 230% CAGR since 2022. In addition, Doppel has collaborated with OpenAI to fine-tune AI models on thousands of expert decisions, resulting in the first cybersecurity AI agent capable of autonomously detecting and neutralizing obscure social engineering threats at scale.

Conclusion

This week saw 16 funding rounds, half the number of last week, but they raised a total of $575M, four times more than the previous week's total. This surge is largely driven by increased participation from institutional players entering the crypto space. Besides Sentora & GoQuant deals above, some projects that aiming to the institutional investors are:

  • Fuze Finance, a payment infra for MENA institutional investors ($12.2M round)
  • BVNK, a stablecoin payment infrastructure (Funding from Visa)
  • Xweave, a real-time blockchain payment platform ($3M round)

These kinds of projects won’t attract much attention from the crypto community, but above that, they play a crucial role in strengthening the industry by attracting liquidity from traditional Web2 institutions.