Japan's Sumitomo backs $44m series A of UK blockchain firm

Pharos Network, a layer 1 blockchain for tokenized real-world assets, said it raised US$44 million in a series A round backed by Sumitomo Corporation’s venture arm, SNZ Holding, Chainlink, and Flow Traders.

The company will use the funding to build a network for regulated financial activity, as interest rises in putting assets like bonds and private credit on blockchain.

Industry data shows real-world assets onchain have risen to US$24.3 billion from US$14 billion at the start of the year.

Pharos previously raised US$8 million in a seed round co-led by Lightspeed Faction and Hack VC, and said its mainnet is expected to debut in the near future.

🔗 Source: CoinDesk

🧠 Food for thought

Implications, context, and why it matters.

The funding is anchored by a strategic investment tied to a public company

The US$44 million round valued Pharos at nearly US$1 billion. GCL New Energy, a solar energy company listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, backed the round as a strategic investor 1.
In an uncommon step for a blockchain project, the Pharos Foundation bought a 10.71% stake in GCL New Energy for about US$34.2 million 2.
The arrangement may set up a direct route to tokenize real-world assets. Early candidates include GCL’s solar production metrics and carbon offsets, using Pharos’s Data Asset Token (DAT) framework, a system for turning data into blockchain-based tokens 2.
The team’s background includes building financial and blockchain infrastructure at Ant Group, the Chinese fintech company behind Alipay. That experience shapes Pharos’s focus on financial-grade infrastructure 3.

Pharos’s playbook points to a new model for blockchain adoption

Pharos ties its buildout to a publicly traded partner through GCL New Energy’s strategic investment. The goal is a large, concrete use case before the mainnet launch, rather than waiting for outside developers to create one 1.
The closer financial link may serve as a template for blockchain infrastructure projects that target enterprise-grade assets, with incentives aligned through ownership and capital, not only agreements 1.
The plan includes tokenizing energy data for auditable Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) metrics. It adds another category to real-world assets 2.
Verified data could attract institutional investors that need reliable information for portfolio decisions. That would widen the real-world asset market beyond financial instruments to corporate data assets 2.