Blockchain Interoperability Protocol Connext Labs Raises $7.5M at a $250M Valuation
In Brief
Connext Labs has raised $7.5 million at a valuation of $250 million.
Polychain Capital, NGC Ventures, Polygon Ventures, Coinbase Ventures, and others joined the round.
The newly raised funds will go towards the setup and operation of the Connext Foundation.
Connext, the pioneering blockchain interoperability protocol, today announced that it has raised $7.5 million in a strategic round, valuing the company at $250 million. The latest round brings Connext’s total funding to $23.2 million.
The round was joined by Polychain Capital, NGC Ventures, Polygon Ventures, IOSG Ventures, Fenbushi Capital, KXVC, a_capital, No Limit Holdings, Factor, and Dokia Capital. Other Connext investors include Coinbase Ventures, Ethereal Ventures, 1k(x), #Hashed, and Scalar Capital.
The newly raised funds will go towards the setup and operation of the Connext Foundation, which will oversee the protocol’s development and growth of the Connext ecosystem through development grants and funding for community-led initiatives.
Described as “the HTTP of web3,” the underlying technology of Connext serves as a communication layer on top of existing blockchain infrastructure, enabling developers to build interchain applications that can be accessed from any network and interact with tokens and data across multiple blockchains simultaneously.
“In 2020, we realized that the future of web3 was going to look a lot like the internet does today: thousands of independent blockchain networks communicating with one another to create a single interconnected experience,” said Connext founder Arjun Bhuptani in a statement. “We pivoted our focus towards building this future as a public good. Today, Connext enables a new era of decentralized applications that, similar to applications on the web, can interact with users, data, and funds on many blockchains all at once.”
Connext was founded in 2017. To date, over 1.2 million crosschain transactions have gone through Connext’s network. Since the launch of its V2 in late February, the network has added over 20,000 new users in the last month, and 35 companies actively building on top of the protocol, including Metamask, Planet IX, and DODO.
In 2018, Connext built the first payment-focused Layer-2 scalability system on Ethereum, used by Metamask, The Graph, and others. The team also played a role in developing MolochDAO in 2019. It is one of the earliest and widely adopted DAO frameworks, and has garnered support from notable figures in web3 like Vitalik Buterin and Joe Lubin, among others.
“The Connext protocol not only revolutionizes how developers build Web3 applications but also addresses one of the most pressing issues in the blockchain landscape – security across chains,” said Joseph Lubin, Chairman at Ethereal Ventures and ConsenSys Mesh.
Read more:
- DeFi 2.0: An introduction to the next wave of protocols (2023)
- What are DApps? How are they used?(2023)
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About The Author
Cindy is a journalist at Metaverse Post, covering topics related to web3, NFT, metaverse and AI, with a focus on interviews with Web3 industry players. She has spoken to over 30 C-level execs and counting, bringing their valuable insights to readers. Originally from Singapore, Cindy is now based in Tbilisi, Georgia. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Communications & Media Studies from the University of South Australia and has a decade of experience in journalism and writing. Get in touch with her via cindy@mpost.io with press pitches, announcements and interview opportunities.
More articles
Cindy is a journalist at Metaverse Post, covering topics related to web3, NFT, metaverse and AI, with a focus on interviews with Web3 industry players. She has spoken to over 30 C-level execs and counting, bringing their valuable insights to readers. Originally from Singapore, Cindy is now based in Tbilisi, Georgia. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Communications & Media Studies from the University of South Australia and has a decade of experience in journalism and writing. Get in touch with her via cindy@mpost.io with press pitches, announcements and interview opportunities.
