Karla Barker 
Between Aug. 16 and Aug. 22, 2026, crypto and blockchain companies announced about $1.298 billion in disclosed financing. Most of that number is not cash. ZeroStack accounted for $1 billion through a noncash token contribution. Ripple Prime raised $275 million through debt. The remaining disclosed rounds came to about $23 million across AI trading, privacy infrastructure, decentralized lending, and physical infrastructure networks. One strategic investment without a disclosed value was excluded.
A $1 billion token deal
ZeroStack, a Nasdaq-listed company, agreed to receive $1 billion in MemeCore tokens from Puple AI and Blockcat. The deal involves about 925.9 million M tokens, not a cash investment. In exchange, ZeroStack will issue 3.5 million common shares and pre-funded warrants for up to 36.2 million additional shares. Those securities were valued at $25.19 per share, over 12 times ZeroStack’s recent trading price.
Warrant exercise still requires shareholder approval under Nasdaq rules. Shares carry lockups of up to 10 years. MemeCore principal Rudy Rong is expected to become ZeroStack’s president. The company says the deal expands its digital asset treasury strategy. But the $1 billion value depends on the assigned token price, so this is not fresh operating cash.
Ripple Prime’s $275 million debt raise
Ripple Prime raised $275 million through an upsized private offering of senior unsecured notes to institutional investors. Ripple did not disclose the interest rate, maturity date, or investors. Proceeds will support the U.S. expansion of its prime brokerage, including financing and clearing for digital and traditional assets. Ripple built this business through its $1.25 billion acquisition of Hidden Road. The note offering follows a $200 million credit facility from Neuberger Berman funds in May, giving the brokerage $475 million in added capacity. That credit facility falls outside this reporting period. This is debt, not venture capital.
NeoSoul leads early-stage cash deals
NeoSoul raised $11 million in a pre-Series A round with participation from MH Ventures, Amber Group, ArkStream Capital, 0G Foundation, Kirin Capital, CatcherVC, and New Oak International. No lead investor or valuation was disclosed. The company will use the funds for NeoTrade, an AI-based trading platform where users configure agents to analyze markets and execute trades under defined controls. It also plans to improve trading infrastructure and expand in Southeast Asia. This was the week’s largest disclosed early-stage cash investment.
Blueprint Finance completed an undisclosed strategic round led by Polychain Capital. Bullish, Keyrock, BitGo, FalconX, G-20, Flowdesk, JPEG Trading, Sentient Capital, Andes, and 2Square participated. Blueprint will expand Concrete, its non-custodial vault infrastructure for institutions and asset managers. The deal is excluded from the total because the amount was not disclosed.
The weekly figures were compiled from DefiLlama, company announcements, regulatory filings, and crypto.news reporting. Because the total includes debt and a noncash token contribution, it should not be read as $1.298 billion in conventional venture capital.