Crypto VC Funding: Surging Investments Powering DeFi, AI, and Hybrid Exchanges

Despite a challenging macroeconomic climate that has seen some venture capital firms face difficulties, investment in the crypto industry is showing resilience. While overall funding may have seen stagnation compared to peak markets, strategic capital continues to flow into key areas driving the sector’s evolution. This month’s VC Roundup highlights significant deals across decentralized finance (DeFi), artificial intelligence (AI), and innovative trading platforms, underscoring investor confidence in core technological advancements within the digital asset space.
Blockchain Infrastructure Remains a Core Focus
Investment continues to target the foundational layers of the crypto ecosystem. Industry experts note that Blockchain Infrastructure remains a primary focus for venture capitalists. This includes projects building essential networks, protocols, and tools that enable wider adoption and functionality. Alongside infrastructure, other themes attracting significant capital include:
- AI integration within crypto
- Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Networks (DePIN)
- Tokenization of assets
- Payments solutions
- Real-World Assets (RWAs)
Several notable funding rounds in June reflect this sustained interest, demonstrating that capital is available for projects addressing real needs and opportunities in the market.
Significant DeFi Funding and Hybrid Exchange Innovations
The decentralized finance sector continues to evolve, attracting substantial investment. One key area is the development of platforms bridging the gap between centralized efficiency and decentralized control. Hybrid Exchanges represent a notable trend, aiming to offer the speed and user experience of centralized platforms while allowing users to retain custody of their assets.
Key deals in this space include:
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Rails: Secured $20 million across two rounds. Backed by Kraken and Slow Ventures, Rails is building a hybrid perpetual exchange designed for professional traders.
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Blueprint Finance: A multichain DeFi infrastructure developer, raised an additional $9.5 million. This funding supports expanding its product suite, including Ethereum-based yield platform Concrete and Solana-based Glow Finance.
These investments signal confidence in the future of DeFi, particularly in solutions that enhance user experience, capital efficiency, and security.
What’s Driving AI Crypto Investments?
The intersection of artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency is rapidly becoming a hotbed for innovation and investment. The potential to combine decentralized networks with advanced AI capabilities is attracting significant venture capital interest. AI Crypto projects are exploring areas like decentralized AI runtimes, AI evaluation platforms, and cryptographic methods for validating AI outputs.
Recent funding rounds highlight this trend:
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Yupp: Raised a substantial $33 million seed round led by a16z Crypto. Yupp is developing a blockchain-powered platform where users can compare AI model outputs and earn crypto rewards for their evaluations.
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Inference Labs: Secured $6.3 million to build a cryptographic trust layer for AI agents using zero-knowledge proofs. They recently launched a testnet with integrations.
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Gradient Network: Received $10 million in seed funding led by Pantera and Multicoin Capital. Gradient is building a decentralized AI runtime on Solana, launching protocols like Lattica and Parallax.
These investments underscore the belief that decentralized AI solutions can offer enhanced transparency, security, and censorship resistance compared to traditional models.
Broader Crypto VC Funding Landscape
Beyond DeFi and AI, venture capital is supporting a diverse range of projects addressing various needs within the crypto ecosystem. The continued flow of Crypto VC Funding indicates a strategic long-term view from investors, focusing on areas with potential for significant growth and adoption.
Other notable deals this month include:
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Beam: The stablecoin payment service provider closed a $7 million round to expand compliance and network capabilities, bridging digital assets and traditional finance. Beam is already integrated with major payment systems like Visa Direct and Mastercard Send.
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Frachtis: Debuted a $20 million pre-seed crypto-native fund, backed by Theta Capital and RockawayX, to support early-stage founders building decentralized AI, infrastructure, and consumer applications.
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OKX and Story: Launched a $10 million ecosystem fund to support startups innovating in intellectual property (IP) onchain, treating IP as an asset class using Story’s IP token.
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Units Network: Secured $10 million to scale its blockchain ecosystem built on the Waves protocol, focusing on scalability, decentralization, and its AI roadmap.
This diverse set of investments highlights the multifaceted nature of the crypto market’s development, with capital deployed across foundational technology, specific use cases like payments and IP, and forward-looking areas like AI.
Summary: Investment Resilience in Key Crypto Sectors
June’s venture capital activity demonstrates that despite macro pressures and seasonal factors that can impact dealmaking, investment in the crypto industry remains robust in strategic areas. Significant rounds for projects focusing on Blockchain Infrastructure, DeFi Funding, AI Crypto integrations, and Hybrid Exchanges showcase continued confidence in the long-term potential of decentralized technologies. The focus is clearly on building scalable, secure, and innovative platforms that can drive the next phase of crypto adoption and functionality.