Abstrat Chain Seeking New Funding Round : Pudgy Penguins CEO Luca Netz

Abstract Chain:- Pudgy Penguins’ $PENGU token has soared this past week, climbing over 35%. This has been driven by Coinbase’s X avatar change and the SEC’s acknowledgment of a Canary Capital PENGU ETF filing.

Beyond its market performance, the NFT brand is also making major business moves. Its consumer-focused Layer-2 network, Abstract Chain – the second major venture under parent company Igloo, alongside Pudgy Penguins – is now preparing to raise a new funding round.

In a recent podcast on 17 July, CEO Luca Netz said, “Our plan is to raise to take this whole thing [Abstract Chain] to the next level.” This comes as the consumer-centric chain hits $200M in TVL.

Though CEO Luca did not reveal the specific timeling for the funding round, the estimates are likely that it will be closed before the year ends.

If successful, this funding round would be the second such round after it secured an $11 million strategic funding for Abstract Chain in July 2024. The investors for its tesnet-focused round included Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund, 1kx among others.

On looking to raise again, Luca reasoned that, “because I think we have enough in the pipeline being built and enough on the platform that I think it’s time to go and activate the marketing machine.”

Abstract has just hit $200M of TVL.

No liquidity mining, no bought TVL, no backdoor deals, just fully organic growth.

Who knew Penguins could fly and L2s could build a real organic ecosystem? pic.twitter.com/U0t3Aierot

— 0xBeans (@0x_Beans) July 16, 2025

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Abstract Chain – The Web3’s Apple Store?

CEO Luca Netz who took over the Pudgy Penguins NFT project in 2022 has significantly expanded and turned the ecosystem into a consumer-brand model. The Ethereum Layer‑2 network incubated by Igloo Inc. – Abstract Chain is one part of it.

Since its public mainnet launch on January 27 this year, Abstract Chain has distinguished itself through a seamless onboarding experience. This includes simple email and social‑login wallet creation, sponsored gas fees, and account recovery via passkeys and social recovery mechanisms. Its core product is the “Portal” gateway which unlocks over 100 community‑built dApps without browser extensions, driving robust user adoption and transaction volume.

As of today, Abstract Chain reports over 1.5 million independent wallets and daily active wallets frequently exceeding 75,000.

Many consumers on social media have appreciated the platform for its easy-to handle interface. A X user called Nansem said, “Abstract Chain is the closest thing that we have to Apple‘s app store but on blockchain rails”.

abstract is the closest thing that we have to @Apple ‘s app store but on blockchain rails, it is trivially easy for users to get started with the @AbstractChain global wallet & easily get access to all of the apps in the @Abstract_Eco https://t.co/wKBJGFRkpm

— Ansem (@blknoiz06) July 16, 2025

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Competive Landscape Amid Positive VC Support

The Ethereum Layer‑2 ecosystem has become fiercely competitive with multiple rollup and modular designs vying for domination and capital.

As of this week, Ethereum’s Layer‑2 networks collectively secure $363.9 billion in total value locked, marking a 10.1 % increase over the prior week. According to L2BEAT data, the top chain leading the pack is Arbitrum One with $155.9 billion, followed by Base at $133 billion, OP Mainnet with $12.9 billion, and zkSync Era holding $10.8 billion.

Together, Arbitrum One and Base account for roughly 80% of the aggregate Layer‑2 TVL. However, CEO Luca Netz said he aims to make Abstract chain as the “only competitor to Base”.

Thus, with the new funding in horizon, the growth and development could perhaps accelerate and overcome the competition.

It is also interesting to note that while overall crypto VC  fundings has rebounded, capital dedicated purely to Layer‑1 and Layer‑2 infrastructure remains a more selective slice. For H1 2025, the total funding stands at $37 billion. Only $3.3 billion of this is dedicated to L1/L2 project specific funding deals in H1.

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