Whalesbook
Pharos Network Secures $44M Series A
Pharos Network, a layer 1 blockchain built for tokenizing real-world assets (RWAs), has raised $44 million in a Series A funding round, achieving a $1 billion valuation. The significant funding was co-led by traditional finance and crypto investors, including Sumitomo Corporation's venture arm, SNZ Holding, Chainlink, and Flow Traders. Several other major global finance players also participated.
Institutional Demand Fuels RWA Growth
This funding highlights growing institutional interest in bringing assets like sovereign bonds, energy projects, and private credit onto blockchain infrastructure. Pharos says its platform is an "asset-native" network designed for large-scale, regulated financial activity. Its architecture uses parallel processing for high transaction volumes and includes compliance features like audit trails and identity verification to meet institutional needs.
Targeting a $50 Trillion Market
Pharos is targeting a vast $50 trillion market opportunity in asset tokenization. The sector, though still developing, has seen rapid growth, with the value of real-world assets on-chain hitting $24.3 billion, up from $14 billion at the start of 2024. Pharos reported strong testnet activity, with millions of users and unique addresses. It also partnered with GCL for solar-backed assets. Investors will watch these pre-launch metrics closely, as performance can be incentivized.
Preparing for Mainnet Launch
This Series A round follows an $8 million seed round co-led by Lightspeed Faction and Hack VC. It builds on a recent investment from GCL New Energy that valued the firm near its current $1 billion mark. Pharos Network plans to launch its mainnet soon, aiming to capture a significant share of the expanding tokenization market.