TL;DR

Commonwealth Fusion raises $863M; ByteDance sets $330B buyback; CFTC opens U.S. to offshore crypto exchanges.

Highlights

• Commonwealth Fusion Systems raised $863M Series B2 led by Nvidia and Google , bringing total funding to ~$3B to complete its SPARC fusion reactor and advance commercial rollout 1.
• ByteDance set a $330B valuation in a new employee buyback, up 5.5% from March, amid 25% YoY revenue growth and ongoing U.S. TikTok regulatory pressure 2.
• Sycamore Partners completed its $10B take-private of Walgreens Boots Alliance , installing new leadership and focusing on core pharmacy and retail 3.
• Framer, an Amsterdam-based no-code website builder, raised $100M Series D at a $2B valuation, doubling ARR targets for 2026 4.
• Stablecoin card startup Rain raised $58M Series B led by Sapphire Ventures, accelerating stablecoin-linked payments for business clients 5.
• Swiss stablecoin infrastructure platform M0 raised $40M Series B led by Polychain and Ribbit, supporting compliant institutional stablecoin issuance 6.
• aPriori Network secured $20M to expand institutional-grade on-chain trading and staking tools, with backing from HashKey, Pantera, and others 7.
• The Clearing Company, launched by ex-Polymarket/Kalshi team, raised $15M seed led by USV and Coinbase Ventures to launch regulated on-chain prediction markets 8.
• Animoca’s The Sandbox cut 50% of staff and closed five offices, reflecting metaverse sector contraction and pivot toward memecoin infrastructure 9.
• CFTC will clarify Foreign Board of Trade rules, allowing offshore crypto exchanges to serve U.S. customers under new oversight 11.
• Madrona released its 2025 IA40 list, highlighting 40 top private AI startups across stages and infrastructure 10.
• American Bitcoin, backed by Trump family, to list on Nasdaq via Gryphon merger in September, targeting U.S. bitcoin mining leadership 15.
• Lombard launched a $1.5B yield-bearing bitcoin token (LBTC) on Solana , expanding DeFi collateral options 14.
• Apple pulled iTorrent from EU third-party store AltStore PAL, as regulatory scrutiny of App Store practices intensifies globally 13.

Commentary

Capital is flowing into infrastructure and compliance-driven plays across energy, fintech, and crypto. The $863M round for Commonwealth Fusion, led by both strategic and institutional investors including Nvidia and Google , demonstrates continued appetite for deep tech with clear commercialization milestones. The scale and syndicate diversity signal a maturing fusion sector, with corporates like Google not only investing but also securing offtake, hinting at future corporate-VC alignment in hard tech 1.

Fintech and digital asset infrastructure remain active. Rain’s and M0’s rounds highlight institutional demand for stablecoin payment rails and compliant issuance platforms, especially as U.S. regulatory frameworks clarify 56. The CFTC’s move to streamline offshore exchange access to U.S. customers could drive renewed activity in crypto trading infrastructure, M&A, and U.S.-focused product launches 11. aPriori and The Clearing Company’s funding rounds show that institutional-grade DeFi and on-chain prediction markets are gaining traction, with regulatory alignment increasingly a prerequisite for venture backing 78.

Software and AI continue to attract growth capital, as seen with Framer’s $2B valuation and Madrona’s IA40 list spotlighting high-potential AI startups 410. Late-stage SaaS is benefitting from improved public market comps, while productivity and infrastructure remain favored themes. In contrast, The Sandbox’s restructuring and layoffs reflect ongoing contraction in consumer-facing Web3 and metaverse, with capital shifting away from speculative virtual assets toward utility and compliance 9.

Late-stage private market dynamics are notable: ByteDance’s $330B buyback, funded internally amid regulatory headwinds, underscores the strength of private liquidity programs for large tech 2, while Walgreens ’ take-private by Sycamore signals continued PE interest in undervalued public assets with turnaround potential 3. The American Bitcoin SPAC listing and Lombard’s $1.5B bitcoin token launch point to continued innovation and capital formation in digital assets, despite regulatory complexity 1415.