Los Angeles-based software company, Merkle Manufactory, is reportedly close to concluding a funding round with a valuation of $1 billion. According to Bloomberg, the investment firm Paradigm is leading the round. Merkle is the creator of Farcaster, a decentralized social networking protocol built on the Ethereum blockchain. The platform allows users to create profiles, make posts called “casts,” and follow other users. It also enables users to showcase non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and use them as profile pictures by verifying ownership of an Ethereum address. Dan Romero, co-founder of Farcaster, confirmed the funding round on the social media app Warpcast, but did not disclose the exact valuation. He also mentioned that Farcaster achieved a record-breaking 77,000 daily active users over the weekend. Merkle Manufactory previously raised $30 million in a funding round led by a16 Crypto.
