Digital Asset, the development company behind the Canton Network (CC) blockchain used by major banks and trading companies, announced Thursday that it has closed a $355 million fundraising round to support its efforts to bring capital markets on-chain.
The investment was led by a16z, with participation from global institutions including ABN Amro, Apollo Funds, BNP Paribas, Citadel Securities, HSBC, SBI Group and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority through an affiliate.
The amount raised exceeded the $300 million goal, valued at $2 billion, announced last month.
This investment comes as traditional financial firms increasingly support blockchain infrastructure designed specifically for regulated markets. Tempo, the payments chain developed by Stripe and Paradigm, reportedly raised $500 million last year at a valuation of $5 billion. Circle Internet (CRCL), the stablecoin issuer behind USDC, has raised $222 million for its Arc blockchain at a valuation of $3 billion, with backing from BlackRock, Apollo Funds, a16z crypto and ARK Invest.
The Canton Network was designed to enable large financial institutions to issue and trade real-world tokenized assets, such as bonds, loans and funds, on a shared ledger while maintaining privacy and compliance with legal requirements. It combines the characteristics of public blockchains, such as decentralization, with the guarantees required by traditional finance.
“For capital markets to scale on-chain, institutions need infrastructure that reflects how they actually operate – with privacy, compliance, scalability and interoperability built in from the start,” said Yuval Rooz, co-founder and CEO of Digital Asset.
The company said the a16z crypto would also provide development, policy and research expertise beyond financial support.
“One of the most exciting blockchain opportunities is no longer theoretical; it is emerging as real-world assets and institutional workflows move on-chain,” Ali Yahya, general partner at a16z crypto, said in a statement. “Digital Asset has built one of the clearest examples of blockchain product-market fit in regulated finance.”
Read more: Why big banks are ignoring open ledgers to create their own private blockchains
