Crypto Venture Weekly: January 12-16, 2026

Introduction

29 projects raised $333 million this week, led by Alpaca ($150M), VelaFi ($20M), and Project Eleven ($20M), while Strategy, Strive, and DDC Enterprise announced a combined $2.42 billion in bitcoin treasury purchases. Polygon Labs acquired Coinme and Sequence, Bakkt agreed to acquire Distributed Technologies Research, and Animoca Brands acquired SOMO as infrastructure and payments-focused M&A accelerated. On Crypto Twitter, Meltem Demirors argued DePIN token models are structurally flawed, Dovey Wan positioned the 2025 cycle as a shift toward ETF- and institution-led Bitcoin ownership, and Logan Jastremski framed execution-optimized blockchains as the foundation for a global onchain exchange.

Key Highlights

• Notable Deals: Alpaca ($150M), VelaFi ($20M), Project Eleven ($20M), Konnex ($15M), XMAQUINA ($10M), Noise ($7.1M), Meld ($7M), and Neuramint ($5M).
• Digital Asset Treasuries: Strategy ($1.25 billion for BTC), Strive (~$1.15 billion for BTC), and DDC Enterprise ($17.8M for BTC).
• M&A Activity: Polygon Labs acquired Coinme and Sequence, Bakkt acquired Distributed Technologies Research, and Animoca Brands acquired SOMO.
• VC CT: Meltem Demirors argued that DePIN token models are structurally flawed; Dovey Wan positioned the 2025 cycle as a transition away from retail-driven speculation; and Logan Jastremski framed high-throughput, execution-optimized blockchains as the only viable foundation for a global onchain exchange.

Notable Deals

29 projects collectively raised $333 million this week. Here are the eight that stood out:

Alpaca

• The Pitch: Brokerage infrastructure offering APIs for partners such as Kraken and SBI Securities
• Round: $150 million Series D at $1.15 billion valuation
• Investors: Led by Drive Capital with participation from DRW Venture Capital, Portage Ventures, Social Leverage, Endeavor Catalyst, and more

VelaFi

• The Pitch: Stablecoin-powered financial infrastructure platform for global businesses
• Round: $20 million Series B
• Investors: Led by XVC and Ikuyo, with participation from BAI Capital, Alibaba, Planetree, and more

Project Eleven

• The Pitch: Building quantum-proofing technology for blockchains
• Round: $20 million Series A at a $120 million valuation
• Investors: Led by Castle Island Ventures with participation from Coinbase Ventures, Lattice Capital, Variant, Nascent, and more

Konnex

• The Pitch: Decentralized market protocol for autonomous systems and robotics
• Round: $15 million Strategic
• Investors: LD Capital, Cogitent Ventures, Leland Ventures, M77 Ventures, and more

XMAQUINA

• The Pitch: DAO-governed treasury that deploys capital into private robotics capital markets
• Round: $10 million Public Token Sale
• Investors: Borderless Capital, MH Ventures, Waterdrip Capital, MoonRock Capital, Fundamental Labs, and more

Noise

• The Pitch: A trading platform for relevance where users long and short trends, brands, and ideas
• Round: $7.1 million Seed
• Investors: Led by Paradigm with participation from GSR, Figment Capital, Anagram Crypto, and more

Meld

• The Pitch: Building the world's largest network of stablecoins and digital assets
• Round: $7 million Strategic
• Investors: Led by Lightspeed VP with participation from F-Prime Capital, Yolo Investments, and Scytale Digital

Neuramint

• The Pitch: AI agent platform for building and managing autonomous Web3 workflows
• Round: $5 million Seed
• Investors: Borderless Capital, Lattice Capital, Selini Capital, Symbolic Capital, Maelstrom, and more

Digital Asset Treasuries

Strategy

• The Pitch: Strategy (Nasdaq: MSTR) acquired 13,627 BTC (~$1.25 billion) at an average price of ~$91,519, increasing total holdings to 687,410 BTC. This marks the company’s largest bitcoin purchase since July 2025.
• Round: $1.25 billion Bitcoin purchase
• Investors: Public market investors

Strive

• The Pitch: Strive Asset Management (NASDAQ: ASST), co-founded by Vivek Ramaswamy, received shareholder approval to acquire Semler Scientific in an all-stock deal, adding 5,048 BTC to its treasury and pushing the combined entity’s bitcoin holdings past Tesla and Trump Media. Strive also disclosed a recent 123 BTC purchase at an average price of ~$91,561.
• Round: ~$1.15 billion Bitcoin purchase
• Investors: Public market investors

DDC Enterprise

• The Pitch: DDC Enterprise (NYSEAMERICAN: DDC) acquired 200 BTC (~$17.8 million) at an average cost of approximately $88,998, increasing total holdings to 1,383 BTC in its first corporate treasury purchase of 2026.
• Round: 200 BTC Bitcoin purchase (~$17.8 million)
• Investors: Public market investors

M&A Activity

Polygon acquired Coinme and Sequence

Polygon Labs acquired Coinme and Sequence in transactions totaling more than $250 million to build a vertically integrated, U.S.-regulated stablecoin payments stack. Coinme adds regulated money movement across 48 states, fiat on- and off-ramps, and access to more than 50,000 fiat-to-crypto locations in the U.S., while Sequence contributes wallet infrastructure and cross-chain transaction tooling enabling simplified onboarding and one-click crypto transactions. Together, the acquisitions underpin Polygon’s Open Money Stack, positioning the network as a regulated payments platform designed to move fiat and stablecoins seamlessly onchain and compete more directly with fintech incumbents like Stripe.

Bakkt acquired Distributed Technologies Research

Bakkt agreed to acquire Distributed Technologies Research, a global stablecoin payment infrastructure provider, in a stock-based transaction that would issue approximately 9.1 million Bakkt shares, representing roughly 31.5% of the agreed share consideration. The acquisition brings DTR’s stablecoin settlement and programmable payments technology in-house, supporting Bakkt’s strategy to reduce third-party dependencies and accelerate its stablecoin and banking product roadmap.

Animoca Brands acquired SOMO

Animoca Brands acquired SOMO, a crypto-native digital collectibles and gaming company, to expand its presence in blockchain-based gaming and digital ownership. SOMO brings a portfolio of interoperable titles, including SOMO Tap Tap Tripps, SOMO Duel, and SOMO Battleground, designed to make digital collectibles playable, streamable, and tradeable across games.

VC CT: What VCs are saying on Crypto Twitter

Meltem Demirors (Crucible Capital)

• Argued that DePIN token models are structurally flawed, while positioning crypto’s long-term opportunity in top-down infrastructure finance, where private capital uses stablecoins and smart contracts to fund and operate large-scale energy, compute, and industrial assets.

Dovey Wan (Primitive Ventures)

• Positioned the 2025 cycle as a transition away from retail-driven speculation toward ETF- and institution-led Bitcoin ownership, reducing volatility and limiting spillover into altcoins.

Logan Jastremski (Frictionless VC)

• Framed high-throughput, execution-optimized blockchains as the only viable foundation for a global onchain exchange, arguing that fragmented or low-throughput designs constrain liquidity and price discovery at scale.

Quick Recap

• Total Deals: 29
• Total Raised: $333M
• Digital Asset Treasuries: $2.42B
• Acquisitions: 6
• Newly Launched Funds: 0

That’s a wrap for this week’s Crypto Venture Weekly. Thanks for tuning in, and see you next week!

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