Ava Labs Set to Raise $350M at $5B Valuation: Report

Ava Labs, builder of the Avalanche blockchain, is raising a funding round that would give it a $5.25 billion valuation, according to a Bloomberg report Thursday.

• The Brooklyn, N.Y.-headquartered startup is raising $350 million, according to the report, which cited people familiar with the discussions.
• A $5.25 billion valuation would place Ava Labs in the upper echelons of most valuable crypto startups in the world, though it would be still some ways behind the likes of Ethereum scaler Polygon, which is worth $20 billion as of its recent funding round, and USDC stablecoin backer Circle, which was valued at $9 billion in February.
• Like several other blockchains, Avalanche is looking to draw projects and applications away from the Ethereum blockchain with the promise of high speeds and low transaction fees. Specifically, Avalanche offers "subnet" functionality, where application-specific blockchains can be spun up at scale.
• Ava Labs didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

Read more: Avalanche-Based Blockbuster Game Shrapnel Completes $7M Token Sale