Digital Asset has expanded its previously announced $355 million funding round with the addition of Shinhan Financial Group and SC Ventures by Standard Chartered. The oversubscribed round was led by Andreessen Horowitz’s a16z crypto fund and included investors from traditional and decentralized finance.
The amount contributed by each new investor was not disclosed. Their participation broadens Digital Asset’s institutional network and supports the company’s effort to establish Canton as infrastructure for regulated financial markets.
Digital Asset created the Canton Network, a public layer-one blockchain designed to provide institutional-grade privacy. The platform allows financial institutions to place assets, applications and regulated workflows onchain while maintaining control over who can access transaction information.
Privacy is a major consideration for banks and other regulated institutions because public blockchains can expose transaction details to all network participants. Canton is designed to support shared infrastructure while preserving the confidentiality, compliance and operational controls required by financial markets.
The platform also enables different financial applications and assets to interact across a common network. Digital Asset believes this interoperability can reduce fragmentation and support more efficient transactions between institutions.
Shinhan Financial Group is expected to support discussions around institutional adoption in South Korea and other Asian markets. Its participation complements Digital Asset’s recently announced partnership with Hanwha.
SC Ventures builds and invests in financial technology businesses for Standard Chartered. Digital Asset expects the relationship to provide additional connections across banking, digital assets and regulated financial markets globally.
Financial institutions are exploring blockchain technology for applications including asset tokenization, collateral mobility, settlement and payments. Tokenization involves creating digital representations of financial or physical assets that can be issued, transferred and managed through blockchain infrastructure.
Collateral mobility refers to the ability to move eligible assets more efficiently between institutions and financial platforms. Faster movement and settlement could help firms reduce operational friction and use capital more effectively.
Digital Asset said Canton was developed to address one of the main barriers preventing wider blockchain adoption in regulated finance. The network is intended to let institutions use shared digital infrastructure without sacrificing transaction privacy, regulatory compliance or internal control.
The company plans to use the funding to expand products and services across the Canton ecosystem. It will also deepen its engagement with developers and financial institutions while adding more assets, applications and participants to the network.
Founded in 2014, Digital Asset develops blockchain technology for traditional and digital financial markets. The company is also a founding member of the Canton Foundation, which supports the development and governance of the Canton ecosystem.
KEY QUOTES:
“Blockchain adoption in financial markets will be driven by institutions that are ready to move beyond experimentation and into production.”
“The addition of Shinhan Financial Group and Standard Chartered to our investor base brings further global reach, market expertise, and ecosystem connectivity at an important moment for both Digital Asset and Canton. Their participation reinforces the need for infrastructure that enables regulated financial institutions to operate on shared networks without compromising privacy, compliance, or control.”
Yuval Rooz, Co-Founder and CEO of Digital Asset
“SC Ventures builds, partners and invests in technologies and infrastructure that are underpinning the next generation of digital financial markets. Our investment in Digital Asset’s Canton ecosystem reflects our conviction that trusted, institutional-grade market infrastructure will be fundamental to enabling scaling digital asset adoption across regulated financial services.”
“We look forward to supporting the company’s continued innovation as financial markets evolve.”
Alex Manson, CEO of SC Ventures
“Digital Asset has built infrastructure that aligns with the operational, regulatory, and privacy requirements of global financial institutions.”
“As institutional interest in digital assets continues to grow across Asia, we see significant opportunity to support the development of trusted onchain financial infrastructure in South Korea and the broader region.”
Seonghun Hong, Investment Manager at Shinhan Financial Group
