CoinDesk
Digital Asset, the developer behind the Canton Network blockchain, closed a $355 million funding round led by a16z crypto, beating its previously reported $300 million target at a $2 billion valuation. Global institutions including ABN Amro, Apollo Funds, BNP Paribas, Citadel Securities, HSBC, SBI Group and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority joined the round, with a16z crypto also committing development, policy and research support beyond the capital.
Why it matters
Canton was built specifically for regulated financial institutions to issue and trade tokenized real-world assets — bonds, loans, funds — on a shared ledger while preserving the privacy and compliance guardrails banks require. The raise sits inside a broader capital wave into institutional-grade chain infrastructure: Stripe and Paradigm's payments chain Tempo reportedly raised $500 million last year at a $5 billion valuation, while Circle's Arc blockchain drew $222 million at a $3 billion valuation with backing from BlackRock, Apollo, a16z crypto and ARK Invest. The pattern is consistent — TradFi is funding chains built to its own specifications rather than retrofitting public L1s.
Market impact
CEO Yuval Rooz framed the round around the operational demands institutions actually face: privacy, compliance, scale and interoperability. a16z crypto general partner Ali Yahya called Canton one of the clearest examples of blockchain product-market fit in regulated finance. The valuation step-up, combined with named participation from global systemically important banks, signals that institutional capital is now underwriting the infrastructure layer rather than waiting on it — a structural shift for the RWA tokenization thesis.
Frequently asked questions
-
What is the Canton Network and who built it?
Canton Network is a blockchain designed for regulated financial institutions to issue and trade tokenized real-world assets like bonds, loans and funds on a shared ledger while maintaining privacy and compliance. It was developed by Digital Asset.
-
How much did Digital Asset raise and at what valuation?
Digital Asset raised $355 million in a funding round led by a16z crypto, beating its previously reported $300 million target at a $2 billion valuation.
-
Which institutions participated in the round?
ABN Amro, Apollo Funds, BNP Paribas, Citadel Securities, HSBC, SBI Group and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority joined a16z crypto in backing Digital Asset's latest raise.
-
How does Canton compare to Stripe's Tempo and Circle's Arc?
All three target institutional and regulated-market use cases. Tempo, built by Stripe and Paradigm, reportedly raised $500 million at a $5 billion valuation, while Circle's Arc raised $222 million at a $3 billion valuation with backing from BlackRock, Apollo and ARK Invest.
-
What did a16z and Digital Asset say about the deal?
CEO Yuval Rooz said institutions need infrastructure with privacy, compliance, scale and interoperability built in from the start. a16z crypto's Ali Yahya called Canton one of the clearest examples of blockchain product-market fit in regulated finance.
Crypto Rank News
TheBlock
CryptoSlate
WuBlockchain
Crypto News
CoinTelegraph