Crypto Venture Capital Drought and Plummeting Trading Volumes: Brine Fi Secures $16.5 Million at $100 Million Valuation
Decentralized exchange (DEX) Brine Fi has recently accomplished a remarkable feat in the crypto space by raising $16.5 million in a funding round that valued the company at $100 million. This significant investment round, spearheaded by Pantera Capital, showcases its resilience at a time when venture capital for digital asset firms has markedly dried up. According to Crunchbase’s July report, cryptocurrency and blockchain startups received a staggering 76% less investment in Q2 2023 compared to the same period the previous year.
Paul Veradittakit, Managing Partner at Pantera Capital, expressed his enthusiasm, stating, “Brine Fi is addressing some of the most critical obstacles hindering institutional and mainstream user adoption in DeFi. There is a pressing demand for a self-custodial execution layer that is not only faster and more reliable but also user-friendly and cost-effective.”
The crypto bear market has reached a point of apathy this summer, leading to a significant decline in trading volumes. DEXs, which briefly saw an uptick in trading volumes earlier in the year, have now witnessed a sharp drop, averaging just above $1 billion per day recently, as reported by DefiLlama data. Interestingly, the bulk of the trading volume remains concentrated on centralized platforms such as Binance and Coinbase, with daily trading volumes approaching $11 billion, according to data from The Block.
Brine Fi, which operates on the Ethereum scaling system StarkWare, is a non-custodial, decentralized orderbook that prioritizes privacy in trading positions through zero-knowledge proofs. This innovative approach allows traders to place large orders without concerns about front-running or causing market disturbances. Additionally, the platform boasts high-speed trade execution and commenced operations for traders in May. It has recently been executing daily trading volumes ranging from $3 million to $4 million, solidifying its presence in the DeFi landscape.
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