General Catalyst, Jump Trading pile on as crypto startups raise $155 million

Venture capitalists poured another $155 million into 14 crypto startups this week, bringing total investment to nearly $25 billion this year, according to DefiLlama data.

That’s a 160% uptick from last year — far above analysts’ expectations.

This week’s power players include tech-focused firms General Catalyst, Jump Trading, Coinbase Ventures, Wintermute Ventures, and GSR, as well as more traditional financial institutions, including BNY Mellon, Nasdaq Ventures, iCapital, and S&P Global.

Investors these days are paying closer attention to real revenue and infrastructure, Thiago Rüdiger, chief executive at blockchain infrastructure firm Tanssi, told DL News.

“Infrastructure, [layer 1s] and stablecoin issuers are attracting the largest share of capital because these teams can show real demand, clear business models and measurable traction,” Rüdiger said.

“They operate the financial and technical plumbing that the rest of the industry depends on, which makes their growth easier to underwrite.”

Here are the crypto companies that raised the most money in the first week of December.

Canton Network, $50 million

Canton Network has raised $50 million in a strategic round backed by BNY Mellon, Nasdaq Ventures, iCapital, and S&P Global, marking one of the largest institutional blockchain funding rounds of the year.

The layer-1 blockchain aims to power tokenised assets such as bonds and cash through atomic, cross-application transactions that preserve data privacy and meet regulatory standards.

The funding underscores Wall Street’s deepening commitment to building compliant, high-performance digital asset infrastructure for institutional markets.

Portal, $25 million

Portal, a Bitcoin-focused non-custodial exchange and wallet, has raised $25 million in a round led by JTSA Global.

The company’s technology enables layer-2 atomic swaps across multiple blockchains without intermediaries or wrapped assets. The approach is designed to extend Bitcoin’s utility beyond store-of-value status into DeFi use cases.

The company said it will use the funding for Portal’s rollout of its trust-minimised, cross-chain trading infrastructure, supporting seamless and private digital asset exchanges across ecosystems.

Ostium Labs, $20 million

Ostium Labs has secured $20 million in a Series A led by General Catalyst, with participation from Jump Trading, Coinbase Ventures, Wintermute Ventures, and GSR.

The decentralised exchange offers perpetual futures on real-world assets, including commodities, forex, and equities, enabling traders to take leveraged positions without expiry and with sub-second price updates.

Ostium’s platform bridges traditional financial markets and decentralised finance, offering global 24/7 access to tokenised exposure on mainstream assets.

You’re reading the latest instalment of The Weekly Raise, our column covering fundraising deals across the crypto and DeFi spaces, powered by DefiLlama.

Lance Datskoluo is DL News’ Europe-based markets correspondent. Got a tip? Email at [e-mail].