Discover the latest trends in global monthly funding data, with a unique focus on companies’ domain name choices, in our monthly funding reports.

Overview

January’s funding landscape saw a notable increase in the number of deals and the total amount raised compared to December. While pre-seed funding experienced a slight dip, early-stage rounds saw significant growth, including Seed, Series A, B, and C.

Series A nearly doubled in the number of deals, increasing from 87 to 132. Still, the total amount raised did not grow at the same rate, suggesting that more early-stage startups secured funding but with smaller individual investments, indicating a cautious capital allocation. In contrast, Series C funding almost doubled in total amount raised. At the same time, the number of deals saw only a slight increase, reflecting a trend where later-stage companies attracted larger investments, possibly due to stronger market positions and proven business models.

The Series E funding round saw a considerable increase in the amount raised, climbing from $65 million in December to $597 million in January. Series B also experienced steady growth, while Series D saw a sharp decline in both deals and capital raised. The trend highlights a preference for backing startups with high growth potential while being selective with later-stage investments.

By funds raised/ Total funding $51,451,081,892

By number of deals/Total number of deals 613

Political and Economic Influences on January’s Funding Landscape

Political Influences

United States

In January 2025, the re-election of President Donald Trump led to significant policy shifts affecting domestic and international funding landscapes. The administration implemented a near-total freeze on foreign aid, disrupting numerous global health initiatives. This action impacted programs combating diseases such as HIV, polio, and avian flu, leading to clinic closures and halting critical prevention efforts. The suspension of funding for the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) jeopardised treatment and prevention services in 50 countries. The World Health Organization emphasised the severe negative impact of these U.S. 

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued a memorandum in January 2025, ordering a temporary pause on the disbursement of federal grants and loans. This pause aimed to reassess funding allocations, mainly targeting programs associated with diversity, equity, inclusion, and environmental initiatives. Although the memo was later withdrawn following legal challenges, the initial uncertainty disrupted funding flows to various sectors, including nonprofits and social services.

Global Landscape

Uncertainty surrounding trade policies, regulatory shifts, and diplomatic tensions influenced investor sentiment and cross-border capital flows. Key factors included evolving trade agreements, economic policies in major markets like China and the European Union, and geopolitical instability in Eastern Europe and the Middle East. Shifting monetary policies by global central banks, including interest rate adjustments, impacted funding availability and investment strategies across sectors.

Economic Influences

United States

Economically, the U.S. faced rising borrowing costs and inflationary pressures. The yield on 10-year Treasury bonds increased, reflecting concerns over fiscal policies and potential budget deficits. These factors constrained the government’s fiscal flexibility, impacting its ability to fund various programs and initiatives. Consequently, sectors reliant on federal funding, including infrastructure and social services, experienced delays or 

Global Landscape

Globally, central banks grappled with economic uncertainties. While some, like the European Central Bank and the Bank of England, opted to cut interest rates to stimulate growth, others, such as the U.S. Federal Reserve, maintained a cautious stance, keeping rates unchanged. These varied monetary policies influenced global capital flows, affecting regional funding availability. Concerns over high debt levels and political fragmentation in various countries added to the economic challenges, further complicating the international funding landscape. 

Key Investment Sectors in January 2025

January 2025’s key investment sectors focused on AI, finance, healthcare, and clean energy. AI remained a top priority, with funding in generative AI, machine learning, and AI-driven applications in healthcare, gaming, and media. Finance and fintech saw substantial investments in banking, trading platforms, lending, and insurance. Healthcare and biotechnology continued to attract funding, covering pharmaceuticals, clinical trials, health diagnostics, and medical devices. Clean and renewable energy gained momentum with investments in solar, energy management, battery technology, and environmental engineering. Space, quantum computing, cybersecurity, and SaaS emerged as growing sectors, reflecting investor confidence in advanced technologies and digital transformation.

Domain Names Highlights

The .com extension remains the top choice among the monthly funding companies, with 416 using it for its global recognition, trust, and ease of access, making it the preferred option for businesses aiming for credibility and market leadership.

The .ai and .io extensions, used by 60 and 39 companies, respectively, are popular among tech and AI-driven startups. Check out our article for a deeper dive into the benefits and risks of owning country-code domain extensions.

With 17 companies opting for .co, this extension serves as an alternative to .com but often leads to traffic loss due to user confusion with its more widely recognised counterpart.

Exact Brand Match (EBM) domains, chosen by 296 companies, highlight the importance of brand consistency, direct traffic, and eliminating confusion, strengthening digital presence and long-term positioning.

The 17 companies use a dash in their domains. Dashes are often included with two-word brand names or with added words when the business has to compromise on their domain if the exact brand match name is taken/not within reach. 

Namepicks

Clay

Industry: Artificial Intelligence (AI), Developer Tools, Information Technology, Productivity Tools, Software

Funds Raised: $40,000,000 Series B

Clay provides a GTM (Go-to-Market) development environment that helps businesses streamline their growth efforts by integrating data sourcing, enrichment, and activation into a unified platform. Clay enables companies to turn growth ideas into scalable revenue systems by combining over 100 integrations and AI-driven automation, 

In January 2025, Clay raised $40 million in a pre-emptive Series B expansion round, bringing its valuation to $1.25 billion. The funding, led by Meritech, follows 6x revenue growth in 2024, with over 5,000 customers, including OpenAI, Canva, Anthropic, Ramp, and Rippling. Clay’s platform has gained traction as companies seek more efficient ways to enrich CRM data, personalise outreach, and automate sales workflows.

The company has also expanded through its first acquisition of Avenue, enhancing its ability to provide real-time intent signals and first-party data. With growing industry adoption, Clay is positioning itself as a leader in GTM automation, supporting businesses in executing and scaling high-impact growth strategies more efficiently.

Clay has invested in the Exact Brand Match (EBM) dictionary domain Clay.com. The company benefits from the clarity and trust of an authoritative four-letter domain that reinforces its brand identity, simplifies customer connections, and signals a long-term vision while strengthening market positioning and brand recall.

Databricks

Industry: Analytics, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Information Technology, Machine Learning

Funds Raised: $5,000,000,000 Debt Financing

Databricks, a leading AI and data intelligence company, has secured $5 billion in its largest debt financing. The funding, arranged by JPMorgan Chase, includes contributions from major lenders such as Blackstone, Apollo Global Management, and Blue Owl Capital. The company plans to use these funds to manage tax obligations related to employee stock sales.

This follows Databricks’ $10 billion Series J funding round in December, which brought its valuation to $62 billion. The company has been experiencing rapid growth, with its annualised revenue expected to surpass $3 billion by the end of January. The funds from its latest equity and debt raises will support new AI product development, acquisitions, and international expansion.

Enterprises across industries use Databricks’ AI-powered Data Intelligence Platform to process and analyse data for AI and machine learning applications. CEO Ali Ghodsi emphasised that the company is still in the early stages of AI and is committed to helping businesses unlock the full potential of data intelligence.

These are still the early days of AI. We are positioning the Databricks Data Intelligence Platform to deliver long-term value for our customers, and our team is committed to helping companies across every industry build data intelligence.

Ali Ghodsi, Databricks Co-Founder and CEO  

The company’s name combines “Data” and “Bricks,” reflecting its foundation in data management and structured analytics. An exact brand match name like Databricks.com is the natural choice of most internet users, ensuring brand consistency and making the company’s marketing most effective across all channels.

MINISO

Industry: Fashion, Retail

Funds Raised: $550,000,000 Post-IPO Debt

MINISO Group (NYSE: MNSO; HKEX: 9896) is a global retailer specialising in lifestyle and consumer products. Founded in 2013 and headquartered in China, the company operates an extensive network of stores worldwide, offering affordable and stylish products across categories such as home goods, beauty, electronics, and toys.

Known for its fast-moving retail model, MINISO combines quality with accessibility, targeting young consumers with trendy and cost-effective items. The brand emphasises an innovative, design-driven approach, collaborating with IPs like Disney and Marvel to enhance its appeal. With a strong presence in international markets, MINISO continues expanding through company-owned and franchised stores.

MINISO completed a US$550 million offering of equity-linked securities due in 2032. The company plans to use 50% of the funding for overseas store expansion, supply chain improvements, brand promotion, and general corporate purposes. The remaining 50% will go toward share repurchases, reinforcing confidence in its growth and shareholder value.

MINISO has chosen a domain name corresponding to its global ambitions and communicating its vision, Miniso.com. With 6,868 stores across Asia, Europe, Oceania, Africa, North America, and South America, the company ensures a seamless and consistent customer experience worldwide. Owning an Exact Brand Match (EBM) domain strengthens brand recognition, enhances trust, and improves accessibility, making it easier for customers to connect with the brand in any market.

OnPay

Industry: Bookkeeping and Payroll, Employee Benefits, Financial Services, FinTech, Human Resources, SaaS, Software

Funds Raised: $100,000,000 Series B and Debt Financing

OnPay is an Atlanta-based company that provides payroll, HR, and benefits solutions to over 25,000 small and medium-sized businesses across the United States. Its platform simplifies payroll processing, tax compliance, benefits administration, and HR management, offering tools that were once only accessible to large enterprises.

The company has raised over $100 million in a funding round led by Carrick Capital Partners, with participation from AB Private Credit Investors and existing investors. A debt facility from MC Credit Partners also supported the financing. OnPay plans to use the funds to scale operations, enhance product development, expand partnerships and integrations, strengthen customer support, and accelerate its go-to-market strategy. 

Operating on OnPay.com gives the company a direct, professional, and easily recognisable online presence, ensuring businesses can quickly find and trust its payroll and HR solutions. The Exact Brand Match (EBM) domain reinforces credibility, improves search visibility, and strengthens brand consistency as OnPay continues to expand its reach.

Phantom

Industry: Bitcoin, Cryptocurrency, Decentralized Finance (DeFi), Finance, Financial Services, FinTech, Non-Fungible Token (NFT)

Funds Raised: $150,000,000Series C

Phantom, a digital asset wallet provider, raised $150 million in a Series C round led by Sequoia Capital and Paradigm, with Andreessen Horowitz and Variant participating. This brings its valuation to $3 billion, up 150% from $1.2 billion in 2022.

Founded in 2021, Phantom supports Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and Sui, serving 15 million monthly users and handling $20 billion in annual swap volume. CEO Brandon Millman stated the funding will enhance security, simplify payments, and modernise consumer finance.

In late 2024, Phantom outperformed Coinbase Wallet and MetaMask, briefly ranking second in the Apple App Store’s utilities section. While rumours swirled, Phantom confirmed it has no plans for a token launch but will introduce a social discovery feature in 2025.

Phantom has upgraded from the Phantom.app to the EBM domain Phantom.com, enhancing security, reducing the risk of traffic and email leaks, and minimising user confusion. With scams and security breaches prevalent in the industry, owning Phantom.com strengthens trust, improves visibility, and streamlines marketing efforts. The name “Phantom” is widely used across industries, but securing the premium domain cements Phantom’s identity as a leading crypto wallet, ensuring a stronger connection with users and a more authoritative online presence.

While we make every effort to ensure the data on our site is accurate, complete, and up-to-date, we cannot guarantee its reliability. Our data is provided for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as legal, financial, or other advice. We strongly recommend that you independently verify any information before relying on it.

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