BlockBeats news: On May 13, Matt Hougan, Chief Investment Officer at Bitwise, stated that as stablecoins and asset tokenization enter mainstream finance, "privacy" is becoming a central focus in the competition for crypto infrastructure. Recently, three blockchains focused on stablecoins and tokenization—Arc, Canton, and Tempo—have collectively raised over $1 billion, with a combined valuation exceeding $10 billion.
Among them, Arc, a subsidiary of Circle, raised $222 million at a valuation of approximately $3 billion; Digital Asset is seeking $300 million in funding for its Canton blockchain at a valuation of around $2 billion; and Tempo, backed by Stripe and Paradigm, previously raised $500 million at a $5 billion valuation.
Hougan noted in his blog that this wave of fundraising reflects three major trends: a gradually clearer U.S. regulatory environment, rising demand for privacy-focused blockchains, and intensifying competition among enterprise-backed crypto networks.
He believes that traditional public blockchains have long faced trade-offs among speed, cost, and security, while stablecoins and RWA tokenization scenarios demand higher standards for "privacy, compliance, and security." Compared to fully transparent public blockchains, institutions prefer that transaction data not be publicly exposed.
“If a company broadcasts every transaction to the world before the trade is completed, or if employee salaries can be viewed by any blockchain explorer, then transparency is not an advantage—it’s a flaw,” said Hougan.
He also noted that confidence in investing in crypto infrastructure has significantly strengthened since the U.S. Congress passed the GENIUS Act in 2025, with greater regulatory clarity driving more traditional capital into on-chain financial markets.