VC Roundup: ZK proofs, DeFi protocol and longevity DAO attract investment

cointelegraph.com:

2023 is off to a tepid start for crypto venture capital, as the industry continues to emerge from a prolonged bear market. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t deals. In January, Cointelegraph reported a $125 million raise from Blockstream, a $60 million allocation to QuickNode and pair of ecosystem funds from Injective and SSV worth $150 million and $50 million, respectively. 

The latest edition of VC Roundup brings you seven smaller venture deals that may have slipped through the cracks.

Related: Venture capital investments into blockchain continue to free-fall: Report

In January, Polygon Capital led a $22 million funding round for =nil; Foundation, an Ethereum development company focused on zero-knowledge (ZK) proofs. The capital raise valued =nil; Foundation at $220 million and will be used to help the firm expand its ZK proofs marketplace. The company's Proof Market is a data accessibility protocol that enables layer-1 and layer-2 blockchains to generate ZK proofs on demand without relying on centralized intermediaries. Proof Market has been developed to provide secure data transfer between Ethereum and public protocols, according to =nil; Foundation co-founder Konstantin Lomashuk.

Related: Top crypto funding stories of 2022

Web3 infrastructure company Blocknative has raised $15 million to support its continued growth in the Ethereum and public blockchain marketplace. The company, which provides real-time transaction monitoring that enables validators to optimize staking rewards, is positioning itself as a block builder for post-Merge Ethereum. The funding round involved several venture firms, including Blockchain Capital, Foundry Group, Fenbushi Capital, Hack VC and IOSG Ventures. Blocknative has raised $34 million in