The crypto venture capital landscape remains subdued in the fourth quarter, with fewer high-profile funding rounds closed compared to the start of the year.
Kaden Stadelmann, chief technology officer at Komodo Platform, told Cointelegraph that “the crypto industry is facing pressure from many angles,” noting that AI has siphoned off considerable demand for crypto and that “venture capital investment in AI far exceeds venture capital investment in crypto.”
Stadelmann also cited macroeconomic uncertainty as a reason why venture capital firms are taking a more cautious approach.
At the same time, much of the remaining activity has shifted to the core Bitcoin (BTC) trading ecosystem, which often does not rely on traditional venture financing.
“Bitcoin-focused businesses can get off the ground through community and network support rather than venture capital,” said Gabe Salinas, CEO of Alamo Labs and founder of the San Antonio Bitcoin Club.
Despite the slowdown, capital continues to selectively flow into projects that strengthen the digital asset economy, particularly in areas such as stablecoins, payment infrastructure, and decentralized trading platforms.
The latest edition of VC Roundup explores the funding rounds of Telcoin, Hercle, Momentum, Temple Digital Group and Ark Research.
Telcoin Closes $25M Funding Round to Create Digital Asset Bank
Telcoin, a fintech company developing blockchain-based financial services, has raised $25 million in an ongoing pre-Series A funding round to advance the launch of its digital asset bank, which is expected later this year.
The funding is part of Telcoin’s capitalization requirements under its conditionally approved Nebraska Digital Asset Depository Institution (N-DADI) charter – a special state-level banking framework that allows institutions to custody digital assets and offer blockchain-based financial services under U.S. banking supervision.
This increase also supports Telcoin’s plans to enter the stablecoin market with the launch of eUSD, a new US dollar-pegged stablecoin designed for use by consumers within the Telcoin ecosystem. The eUSD token will prioritize usability for payments and remittances rather than serving primarily as a trading instrument.
Related: Circle comments on the implementation of the GENIUS law: “simple and solid rules”
F-Prime backs Hercle’s $60 million raise
Hercle, a digital assets and stablecoin infrastructure company, has raised a total of $60 million in funding to accelerate its global expansion and develop institutional-grade stablecoin infrastructure for faster cross-border payments.
The raise includes a $10 million equity investment led by F-Prime, with participation from Fulgur Ventures and Exponential Science, as well as a $50 million credit line to support liquidity.
Hercle says its platform has processed more than $20 billion in transactions for more than 200 institutional clients, including financial institutions, payment providers and exchanges. The company reports that 90% of transactions settle in less than five minutes, underscoring the company’s focus on speed and scalability in high-value global payments.
Sui DEX Momentum raises $10 million
Momentum, the largest decentralized exchange (DEX) on the Sui blockchain, has raised $10 million in a new funding round at a fully diluted valuation of $350 million. The round was led by HashKey Capital, with participation from Anchorage Digital and other institutional investors.
Founded by Wendy Fu, a former Libra and Amazon engineer, Momentum has become the leading DeFi protocol on Sui, based on total value locked (TVL), user base and cumulative trading volume. The platform has 2.1 million users and over $22 billion in cumulative trading volume.
Momentum said it plans to use the new capital to expand beyond the Sui ecosystem through cross-chain integrations and to develop institutional-grade compliance features that will enable regulated integration for professional investors.
Related: Commonware secures $25 million from Tempo as Stripe and Paradigm deepen their blockchain bet
Temple Digital raises $5M to build institutional trading infrastructure
Temple Digital Group, an infrastructure developer leveraging the institutionally-focused Canton Network, has raised $5 million in seed funding led by Paper Ventures, with participation from more than a dozen other investment firms.
Temple is developing a privacy and compliance-focused trading stack that combines traditional market functionality, such as order books and post-trade reporting, with blockchain-based capabilities, including tokenization, instant settlement, and digital wallets.
The company said it will use the new funding to expand its product line and implement additional integrations across the Canton network.
The Canton network has attracted the attention of major financial institutions. Its developer, Digital Asset, recently raised $135 million from investors including Goldman Sachs and BNP Paribas to accelerate the network’s development.
Arx Research Raises $6.1M to Drive Stablecoin Merchant Adoption
Arx Research, a hardware and software provider focused on digital payments, has raised $6.1 million from investors including Castle Island Ventures, Placeholder, 1kx and Inflection. The funding will be used to scale up manufacturing and prepare for the commercial launch of its products early next year.
The company is developing Burner Capital, a portable point-of-sale (PoS) device that allows merchants to accept both stablecoin and traditional payments on a single terminal. The device integrates with Flexa, allowing merchants to accept multiple cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ether (ETH), and Solana (SOL), alongside stablecoins.
Related: Tempo, Stripe’s New Blockchain, Hits $5 Billion Valuation in $500 Million Funding Round
