Aleo offers a blockchain platform for building fully private decentralized applications. Today, Aleo announced it has raised $200 million in its Series B funding round, bringing its valuation to $1.45 billion.
The funding round was led by Kora Management LP and SoftBank Vision Fund 2. The startup also received backing from top industry investors including Tiger Global, Sea Capital, Slow Ventures, Samsung Next, and Andreessen Horowitz (a16z).
The latest cash injection comes 10 months after Aleo had previously raised $28 million in its Series A funding led by a16z.
Unlike mainstream blockchain platforms, Aleo enables private, scalable, and secure decentralized applications with the use of Zero-Knowledge protocol – a method of authenticating transactions without revealing private and personal information. The network is still in its testnet phase and the team is currently working on releasing its mainnet.
While its team is still working on the mainnet launch, the platform noted that it will use this fresh capital to develop its ecosystem that will enable developers to build on its network.
Howard Wu, CEO and CTO of Aleo, said in the announcement:
Our goal at Aleo is to build the foundations for the next generation of decentralized web applications… We want to use technologies, such as zero-knowledge proofs and blockchains, to create an ecosystem for developers that enriches and empowers users’ capabilities on the web.
Aaron Wong, investor at SoftBank Investment Advisers, reiterated the firm’s belief that “Aleo is building a foundational layer that will ensure that the future of Web3 is scalable, safe and secure, enabling a range of applications such as gaming and financial transactions.”
Aleo’s focus on providing a scalable and secure system may be of great benefit to the decentralized finance (DeFi) space which has been a playground for hackers in recent times. Just recently, cross-chain protocol Wormhole lost over $318 million to attackers in a security bridge exploit.
