(Reuters) – LayerZero Labs said on Tuesday that it has raised $120 million in an early stage funding round, that has tripled the blockchain messaging protocol’s valuation to $3 billion.
The Series B fund-raise saw participation from 33 investors, including a16z crypto, Christie’s, Circle Ventures, OpenSea Ventures, Samsung Next, and Sequoia Capital, amongst others.
The fund-raise underscores a growing affinity for companies to tap private investors at a time turbulent markets and a risk-off sentiment has throttled appetite for public listings.
In February, Via said it bagged a valuation of $3.5 billion after a funding round led by 83North.
LayerZero plans to use the funds to increase headcount as well as deepen its presence in the APAC region, according to its statement.
Last year, the New York-based blockchain infrastructure provider had raised $135 million in a funding round led by Sequoia Capital, FTX Ventures among others that valued it at $1 billion.
LayerZero Labs allows decentralized apps build across multiple blockchains. It has received backing from some of the strongest crypto-focused companies in the entire world, including Binance, Blockdaemon, Christie’s, Circle Ventures, Coinbase, OpenSea Ventures, and many more.
(Reporting by Mehnaz Yasmin and Siddarth S in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)
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