Blockchain
SafeGraph Raises $45M Series B to Become the Ultimate Destination for Physical Places Data

SafeGraph, a data-as-a-service company focused on being the source of truth for data on physical places, announced today a $45 million Series B fundraise, led by Sapphire Ventures.
This investment follows a year of incredible growth for SafeGraph. While the market for accurate geospatial data was already accelerating pre-pandemic, the unique challenges posed by COVID-19 led many organizations to rely heavily on places data. SafeGraph’s points of interest and mobility datasets proved invaluable to organizations looking to understand how local landscapes continue to change, and how this impacted behaviors such as travel, leisure and shopping. During these uncertain times, many organizations such as Ares Management, Sysco and Choice Hotels have turned to SafeGraph as a truth set for the physical world.
In response to the impact of the pandemic, SafeGraph created a community of more than 7,000 data scientists who have been collaborating on numerous geospatial projects, resulting in over 300 academic papers published featuring data from SafeGraph and coverage from data journalists at major news outlets such as USA Today, Fortune and the Washington Post. During this time, SafeGraph doubled its year-over-year revenue while improving efficiency metrics, such as revenue per employee.
Over the past year, SafeGraph saw accelerated demand for places data among its traditional customer segments, including retail and GIS technology providers. As consumer demand and behavior shifted dramatically during the pandemic, the greatest increase in demand has come from the logistics industry. “From the beginning of our data sourcing process, SafeGraph provided the most comprehensive and actionable POI dataset,” said Ben Anderson, Senior Manager of Market, Customer, and Competitive Intelligence at Sysco. “Their coverage of the top 1,000 restaurants is unmatched and invaluable.”
“We’re incredibly excited to partner with Cathy Gao and the Sapphire Ventures team,” said SafeGraph CEO Auren Hoffman. “Cathy brings a wealth of knowledge to the table that will be invaluable while navigating and discovering new markets of data buyers. And Sapphire has deep experience in investing in data businesses. Their team understands what it takes to build category-defining companies.”
With this investment, SafeGraph plans to capitalize on the expanding market of data buyers and offer new ways for customers to buy data. As the market for places data increases, customer needs become more diverse. SafeGraph plans to adapt its model to meet these new demands. Through a growing partner network, new data delivery mechanisms and international expansion, SafeGraph will enable all interested parties to access the exact data they need, wherever they need it.
Multiple investors from previous funding rounds also participated in this Series B. Those include Alex Rosen of Ridge Ventures, DNX Ventures, and Peter Thiel. Investors are attracted to SafeGraph because they believe the company is well-positioned to lead a growing industry.
“What stands out about SafeGraph is how they’ve been able to quickly position themselves into a major player in the geospatial data industry,” said Cathy Gao, Partner at Sapphire Ventures. “By singularly focusing on providing the highest-quality places data to data science teams, they’ve earned the trust of some of the largest public and private institutions. The efficient growth to-date is a strong indicator of where we think the company is going and Auren’s track record of building consequential data businesses speaks for itself.”
Today, SafeGraph offers business listing, foot traffic and building polygon data for the United States and Canada, with a United Kingdom launch planned for April of 2021. With this Series B funding, SafeGraph intends to become the source of truth for data on all physical places in the world.
Blockchain
Blocks & Headlines: Today in Blockchain – April 25, 2025 | BitNile, Dutch Blockchain Week, Citigroup, Philippine Blockchain Week, D.O.G.E Foundation

Blockchain’s metamorphosis from niche ledger technology to the backbone of Web3 has never been more evident. Today, we cover five stories that illustrate the evolving ecosystem: a gaming platform issuing its own token on Solana; Europe’s marquee Web3 summit; a major bank forecasting a “ChatGPT moment” for blockchain; a Southeast Asian conference aimed at busting crypto myths; and a foundation rebuilding blockchain from the ground up to solve scalability. Each development—whether product launch, industry gathering, macro forecast, educational initiative, or infrastructure innovation—offers a window into the trends shaping decentralized finance, NFTs, DeFi, and beyond.
1. BitNile.com to Launch Nile Coin on Solana
News Summary
Hyperscale Data’s subsidiary BitNile.com will introduce the Nile Coin on Solana starting May 1, 2025. The U.S.–based social gaming site chose Solana for its high throughput and low fees, aiming to enhance in-game economies, reward engagement, and deliver seamless micro-transactions. Details on tokenomics and governance are forthcoming, but management touts Nile Coin as a cornerstone of future gaming experiences.
Source: CoinTrus
Analysis & Commentary
Launching a proprietary token underscores two converging trends: the gamification of finance and finance-ification of gaming. By minting Nile Coin, BitNile.com taps into DeFi mechanics—staking, liquidity pools, NFT rewards—while leveraging Solana’s scalability. Strategically, BitNile.com positions itself for partnerships with NFT marketplaces and DeFi protocols, potentially opening secondary markets for in-game assets and generating new revenue streams beyond ad sales or subscription fees.
2. Dutch Blockchain Week 2025 Gears Up in Amsterdam
News Summary
From May 19–25, Amsterdam will host the sixth annual Dutch Blockchain Week, culminating in the two-day summit (May 21–22) at De Meervaart. Tier 1 exchanges (Bitvavo, Kraken, Coinbase), Web3 pioneers (WOW.ai, Blockrise), regulators (European Commission, De Nederlandsche Bank), and industry partners (Mastercard, Deloitte) will convene. Side events range from AI-powered hackathons tackling compliance to padel networking meetups—underscoring the event’s blend of technology, policy, and community.
Source: Dutch Blockchain Week
Analysis & Commentary
Dutch Blockchain Week typifies the maturation of blockchain conferences into multidisciplinary forums. Beyond token talk and yield farming, panels on regulation, institutional adoption, and security reflect Web3’s integration into mainstream finance. Anticipate announcements on CBDC pilots, DeFi compliance frameworks, and cross-chain interoperability projects that may emerge from the Block & Order Hackathon.
3. Citigroup Predicts Blockchain’s “ChatGPT Moment”
News Summary
In an April 23 report, Citigroup analysts argue that 2025 could be blockchain’s “ChatGPT moment,” driven by regulatory clarity around stablecoins and integration with traditional financial systems. They forecast stablecoin market capitalization ballooning to $1.6 trillion (base case) or as much as $3.7 trillion (bull case) by 2030—anchored by dollar-denominated issuers and collateralized with U.S. Treasuries. Regulatory frameworks like the GENIUS Act could catalyze adoption among banks and fintechs.
Source: Cointelegraph
Analysis & Commentary
Drawing parallels to generative AI’s explosive growth, Citigroup envisions a tipping point where blockchain moves from experimental to essential infrastructure. Successful integration will hinge on robust compliance tools, auditability, and clear governance models. Enterprise blockchain vendors should prepare for surging demand in tokenized payments, on-chain settlements, and embedded DeFi rails within legacy systems.
4. Philippine Blockchain Week 2025 Debunks Crypto Myths
News Summary
Scheduled for June 10–11 at SMX Convention Center Manila, Philippine Blockchain Week (PBW) 2025 will tackle misinformation and spotlight real-world use cases. Highlights include “Crypto, Unpacked” sessions demystifying the technology; “Smart Regulation” panels uniting policymakers and innovators; and “Blockchain for Impact” showcases on remittances, disaster relief, and digital identity. Founding President Donald Lim emphasizes government support and public–private collaboration to spur inclusive growth.
Source: UseTheBitcoin
Analysis & Commentary
PBW exemplifies how emerging markets leverage education to accelerate Web3 adoption responsibly. By engaging regulators early, PBW can shape balanced frameworks that encourage innovation while protecting consumers—an instructive model for markets wrestling with both hype and skepticism.
5. D.O.G.E Foundation Launches New Blockchain, Opens Seed Round
News Summary
The D.O.G.E Foundation announced a ground-up blockchain rebuild designed to solve the scalability and reliability challenges plaguing existing networks. This modular architecture separates validation from execution to enable parallel transaction processing—targeting real-time gaming, DeFi under high load, and AI-driven applications. A seed funding round is now open to investors who share the vision of a performant, decentralized infrastructure.
Source: D.O.G.E Altcoin GlobeNewswire
Analysis & Commentary
As layer-1 congestion and high gas fees persist, new entrants must justify a “why now” with clear architectural advantages. If the D.O.G.E blockchain delivers real-world throughput and maintains decentralization, it could spur a renaissance of high-performance DeFi protocols and NFT platforms hungry for cost-effective base layers.
Conclusion & Key Takeaways
-
Tokenization of Entertainment: BitNile’s Nile Coin on Solana highlights blockchain’s expansion into gaming economies and NFT reward systems.
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Convergence of Tech, Policy & Community: Dutch Blockchain Week showcases Web3’s evolution into an ecosystem engaging regulators, enterprises, and developers under one roof.
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Mainstream Inflection Point: Citigroup’s “ChatGPT moment” thesis suggests blockchain is poised for exponential adoption given regulatory support.
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Education as Catalyst: Philippine Blockchain Week’s myth-busting curriculum underscores the importance of public–private dialogue in emerging markets.
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Infrastructure Innovation: The D.O.G.E Foundation’s modular, high-throughput chain exemplifies the next wave of layer-1 networks addressing real-time, real-world use cases.
Today’s stories convey that blockchain’s next chapter will be written through strategic token launches, global convenings, regulatory clarity, educational outreach, and radical infrastructure redesign. By tracking these threads, industry participants can anticipate opportunities in DeFi, NFTs, Web3 games, and enterprise integration. Stay tuned for tomorrow’s Blocks & Headlines, where we’ll continue to decode the innovations shaping decentralized finance.
The post Blocks & Headlines: Today in Blockchain – April 25, 2025 | BitNile, Dutch Blockchain Week, Citigroup, Philippine Blockchain Week, D.O.G.E Foundation appeared first on News, Events, Advertising Options.
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