$1.1B Public Sale & $82M for Story Protocol: Crypto VC Funding Goes Full Bull Mode in Q3 2025

Crypto's money faucet isn't just dripping—it's gushing. Venture capitalists just dumped $1.1 billion into a single public sale while Story Protocol locked down $82 million, proving even Web3's scribes get golden shovels in this bull run.

The Big Spenders Playbook

That nine-figure public sale wasn't some cautious test—it was a grenade tossed at bear market PTSD. Meanwhile, Story Protocol's haul suggests VCs will fund anything with 'blockchain' and a PowerPoint these days (just kidding... mostly).

The Cynic's Corner

Let's be real—half these deals will vaporize faster than a memecoin rug pull. But when the music's playing, you either dance or watch from the sidelines wearing your 'I told you so' t-shirt.

Bullish

• Bullish priced its IPO at $37 per share, above expectations, giving the crypto exchange a $5.4 billion valuation with backing from JPMorgan, Jefferies, and Citigroup.
• The upsized $1.1 billion raise sold 30 million shares, buoyed by strong demand from investors, including BlackRock and Cathie Wood’s Ark Invest.
• Trading under ticker BLSH on the NYSE, the deal marks a comeback for Bullish after its 2022 SPAC collapse, now backed by Peter Thiel and led by ex-NYSE chief Tom Farley.

Story Protocol (PIP Labs)

• Heritage Distilling (Nasdaq: CASK) became the first U.S.-listed company to adopt Story Protocol’s IP token as a reserve asset, holding about 52.5 million tokens worth $361 million.
• The move includes a $220 million private placement of cash and tokens, with $82 million allocated to purchase IP directly from Story Foundation at $3.40 per token.
• Heritage will also raise $100 million via stock and warrants, with added token contributions from strategic partners and major crypto investors.

1Kosmos

• 1Kosmos raised $57 million in a Series B round
• Investors include Forgepoint Capital, Silvertech Ventures, and Daher Capital
• The project is a cybersecurity platform that offers identity-first authentication solutions

1Kosmos has raised $57M in Series B funding, bringing our total to $72M!

We’re accelerating innovation in AI-powered fraud detection, privacy-first digital wallets & cross-platform credential portability.

Read more 👉 https://t.co/eY5dHm8BfA pic.twitter.com/Ry19rlePJj

Sui (Mysten Labs)

• Gathered $20 million in an Unknown round
• The investment was backed by Hill City Ventures
• Sui (SUI) has raised $415.45 million so far

Neon Machine (Shrapnel)

• Neon Machine raised $19.5 million in an Unknown round
• Investors include Gala Games, Griffin Gaming Partners, and Polychain Capital
• The project has raised $57 million so far

Shrapnel Raises $19.5M to Fuel Global Launch (via @decryptmedia) ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/o1r29qxHoD

Transak

• Secured $16 million in a Strategic round
• Transak is a web3 payments infrastructure provider
• The investment was backed by IDG Capital, Tether, and Prism Capital

Money is changing and we’re enabling it!

Thrilled to announce our $16M strategic round to scale stablecoin payments, led by @Tether_to and @IDGCapital

Read more on our blog 👉 https://t.co/bcqavJZ99m pic.twitter.com/cG7K5IMKMM

Projects > $15 million

• USD AI (Permian Labs), $13.4 million in a Series A round
• Mesh (ex Front Finance), $9.5 million
• Hyperbeat, $5.2 million in a Seed round
• Bitlayer, $5 million in a Public sale
• HoneyCoin, $4.9 million
• HackQuest, $4.1 million in a Series A round
• HolmesAI, $3 million in a Seed round
• Riva Money, $3 million in a Pre-seed round
• PublicAI, $2 million in a Public sale with $70 million fully diluted valuation
• XMAQUINA, $315,000 in a Public sale with $45 million fully diluted valuation
• ODX (ex Ordinox), $260,640
• Silo Labs, $122,500