Weekly Summary: Focus on Real World Asset Tokenisation as Ondo Finance and Pantera Launch $250M Fund Dedicated to RWA Investing
In this edition, RWA tokenisation takes centre stage as Ondo Finance and Pantera Capital launch a $250 million fund dedicated to the sector, while Kraken and Bybit add support for tokenised stocks.
💲💲Real World Assets are Coming to the Blockchain
Real-world asset tokenisation this week went up another gear as Kraken, Gemini and Bybit joined a growing list of exchange platforms that now offer tokenised U.S. stocks.
The industry has been growing rapidly over the past twelve months, surpassing $24 billion, according to RWA tokenisation tracking platform RWA.xyz.
Although private credit continues to dominate the numbers with over $14.4 billion, followed at a distant second by U.S. treasuries with $7.42 billion, stocks have the potential to take a major foothold in the portfolio, given their estimated global value of more than $50 trillion.
Backed Finance and Dinari are the two leading platforms tokenising stocks. While Gemini chose to offer on-chain stocks tokenised by Dinari, Backed Finance is powering Kraken’s, Bybits, Raydium’s and Jupiter’s listings.
Bitrue, a diversified digital asset exchange platform, is also offering tokenised stocks via Backed Finance’s xStocks.
But more than the story about tokenised stocks, the real-world asset tokenisation sector also received a boost later in the week after Ondo Finance and Pantera Capital teamed up to launch a $250 million fund dedicated to the sector.
Ondo Finance and Pantera Capital Launch $250M Fund Focused on RWA Tokenisation
Ondo chief strategy officer Ian De Bode said the fund plans to invest in both equity and token projects in the real-world asset tokenisation space, according to Axios.
The announcement comes as tokenised real-world assets become more popular amid rising interest from crypto companies to tokenise treasuries, stocks and private credit.
The value of on-chain tokenised real-world assets has already surpassed $24 billion, up from about $10 billion in April last year, according to RWA.xyz.
Commenting on the announcement, De Bode told Axios: “Traditional financial markets don’t work 24/7 — but crypto markets do. The types of services that you would want to see on chain … requires a little bit of rewiring of how some of these DeFi protocols are built.”
Race to Bring Stock Markets to the Blockchain Heats Up as Kraken, Bybit, and Gemini Join Up
Backed Finance became the latest to join the race, launching tokenised stocks across multiple exchange platforms and DeFi protocols.
Kraken also announced that tokenised stocks are now available on its platform.
Last week, Dinari secured U.S. regulation to offer tokenised securities, while Gemini launched tokenised securities for EU traders.
Coinbase’s legal chief, Paul Grewal, earlier this month said the crypto exchange company was seeking approval from the SEC to offer tokenised stocks trading services.
“We believe access to financial opportunity should be a universal right, not a privilege determined by geography or restricted by outdated infrastructure. Crypto adoption is reshaping global finance, tearing down long-standing barriers to capital markets,” Kraken wrote in a blog post. “This marks a major milestone in our ambition to democratize investing, while leveraging the power of crypto innovation to reimagine the future of investing.”
“With xStocks, we’re not launching a novelty. We’re unlocking something foundational,” said Arjun Sethi, Kraken co-CEO. “For the first time, people all over the world can own and use a share of a tokenised stock like they would use money. You can move it, hold it, spend it or borrow against it. All from your wallet, with no intermediaries, no borders and no delays.”
💵Crypto Fundraising News
EverQuest Co-creator John Smedley Bags $30.5M in Funding for New Shooter Game
The company plans to utilise the capital to develop and launch an AAA-level shooter game, set for release on the Epic Games Store and Steam.
BitKraft Ventures and Brevan Howard Digital said they co-led the round, with participation from The Tezos Foundation, Hashed, Delphi Ventures, Shima Capital, North Island Ventures, and Decasonic.
Distinct Possibility Studios said the game will be built on the Tezos-based EVM-compatible layer-2 network, Etherlink.
“We believe that often in games, the magic happens at the intersection of two genres. We think Distinct Possibility Studios is a great example of this thesis,” Bitkraft Ventures General Partner Carlos Pereira said. “We see that magic happening with their Open-World Persistent Shooter ‘Reaper Actual’, which mixes the MMORPG and FPS genres in a truly unique way.”
Ribbit Capital Leads $28.5M Series A Round for TON Developer The Open Platform
The fundraising brings the total raised to $70 million and values the Telegram-based blockchain startup at $1 billion.
The funding also attracted participation from reputable crypto venture firm Pantera Capital.
Approximately 5% of the funding was in the form of equity without cryptocurrency allocation.
The company plans to use the fresh capital to expand its Telegram-based wallet into the U.S. and Europe.
“This investment supports our long-term strategy to scale the adoption of blockchain-based products by leveraging the power of Telegram as a distribution channel,” The Open Platform CEO and founder, Andrew Rogozov, said in a statement. “By combining TON blockchain with Telegram’s global reach, we’re building both the infrastructure and the consumer-facing apps needed to onboard a billion users to crypto.”
💱Strategic Digital Asset Treasuries
BitMine Immersion Doubles Down on Digital Asset Strategy with $250M Private Placement
The company has signed the private placement for the purchase and sale of 55,555,556 shares of common stock at $4.50 per share, raising $250 million before deducting transaction costs.
The new funds will be used to start a new digital asset treasury focused on acquiring ether (ETH).
MOZAYYX led the round with participation from Founders Fund, Pantera, FalconX, Republic Digital, Kraken, Galaxy Digital, DCG, Diametric Capital and Occam Crest Management.
Jonathan Bates, CEO of BitMine, commented: “The private placement will accelerate BitMine’s treasury holdings shortly after its first treasury purchase on June 9, 2025. FalconX, Kraken, and Galaxy Digital plan to partner with the Company to grow a world-class Ethereum treasury strategy alongside existing custody partners, BitGo and Fidelity Digital.”
Trump-Backed American Bitcoin Eyes More Bitcoin Purchase in New $220M Private Placement
The Bitcoin mining firm sold around 11 million shares of common stock in a private placement, according to an SEC filing from Hut 8, which holds a majority stake in the company.
American Bitcoin plans to use the funds to buy more Bitcoin and crypto mining equipment.
The company sold around $10 million in shares for Bitcoin instead of cash, at an average BTC price of $104,000.
American Bitcoin plans to list on Nasdaq via a SPAC with Gryphon Digital Mining in the second half of the year.
Bit Digital Secures $163 Million from Share Offering to Fund Ethereum Treasury Strategy
The company said Tuesday it raised an additional $21.4 million in an extended share offering, bringing the net proceeds from the offering to $162.9 million.
The additional funds came from underwriters who chose to exercise their options to buy 11,250,000 shares.
In total, Bit Digital issued and sold 86,250,000 ordinary shares in the underwritten public offering.
“The net proceeds to the Company from the underwritten public offering, including the full exercise of the underwriters’ option to purchase additional ordinary shares, are approximately $162.9 million, after deducting the underwriting discount and estimated offering expenses payable by us,” Bit Digital wrote in a statement.
🔊More News
Zodia Custody Completes Tungsten Custody Acquisition to Cement UAE Presence
The announcement comes just two months after the Standard Chartered-backed digital asset custody service provider revealed plans for the acquisition.
The acquisition enhances Zodia Custody’s ability to secure digital assets in the UAE, one of the jurisdictions seen as leading the transition to a new age in digital finance.
The company plans to continue pursuing Tungsten’s push for a full Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) license from Dubai’s Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA).
Swyftx Goes on Acquisition Binge as It Buys Caleb & Brown for $65.8 Million
The announcement follows Swyftx’s merger with New Zealand-based Easy Crypto to form “an Australasian crypto powerhouse.”
The acquisition gives Swyftx access to the U.S. market through Caleb & Brown’s private client brokerage model.
The deal is reportedly worth AU$100 million (more than US$65.8 million), according to anonymous sources.
Bitget Wallet Taps Mastercard and Immersve to Launch New Zero-Fee Crypto Card
The card allows users to make payments directly from their crypto wallets at more than 150 million merchants that accept Mastercard globally.
It will be available through the Bitget Wallet App and supports real-time funding via on-chain swaps and deposits.
The card can be used at both physical and online merchants once linked to a mobile wallet.
It also comes with optional incentives, including transaction-based rewards, yield on idle balances in the wallet, and one-time bonuses for completing identity verification.
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