World Foundation, the nonprofit organization behind the World protocol, has raised $52.5 million in new funding through a strategic sale of its WLD token, with all purchased tokens subject to a one-year lockup.
The "first close" of the token sale was led by Pantera Capital and included Bain Capital Crypto, WLD treasury company Eightco Holdings (Nasdaq: ORBS), Selini Capital, Susquehanna Crypto and other investors, World Foundation said Friday. It is not clear whether the foundation plans additional token sales beyond the first close. A spokesperson declined to comment to The Block when asked.
Notably, the foundation said the WLD tokens sold in the transaction "are intended for use within World Network and do not represent investment interest or rights to profits or returns." The spokesperson said this means the WLD purchased by investors does not represent an equity interest in Tools for Humanity, the for-profit company behind the World project.
The new funding will be used to expand World ID technology for organizations, consumers and AI agents globally, the foundation said.
Scaling World ID
