Sleek closes $5M raise to launch tokenized knowledge marketplace

The Hong Kong-based company’s seed round drew participation from Binance Labs and Shima Capital

article-image

WindAwake/Shutterstock modified by Blockworks

share

The Web3 social company Sleek announced a $5 million seed round — alongside plans for a platform where experts can tokenize their knowledge.

Sleek’s is at least the fourth crypto social startup fundraise announced this week, per CryptoRank. Sleek previously drew funding from Binance Labs through its incubation program in 2022.

Earlier this year, Sleek debuted business cards that can share Telegram contact info and display NFTs when put in proximity to a phone. The company has been on an apparent crypto conference tour in 2023, sharing its in-person networking tool.

With the fresh funding, Sleek says it is releasing a marketplace for domain experts in the first half of 2024.

The company told Blockworks that Sleek hopes to capitalize on the proliferation of online educational content by turning online creators’ knowledge into “liquid and accessible assets.”

Sleek’s platform will create bonding curves a la Friend.tech for video content or calls with creators. The company believes its platform will be preferable for educational creators because of the high time investment involved in producing long-form content on other platforms.

The forthcoming platform represents another SocialFi attempt to more efficiently monetize the creator economy. Social apps Phaver and RepubliK recently closed seed rounds with similar ambitions.

Read more: What is SocialFi? Unpacking crypto’s answer to social media

“Knowledge-based businesses like research firms and expert networks generate $100B+ of revenue per year, along with a new wave of creators who monetize their time by converting knowledge into online courses, [YouTube] videos, expert calls and content through subscription platforms like Patreon,” Sleek said.

“However, the market is fragmented and inefficient with a lack of discovery and distribution channels to people with domain expertise in tech, arts or business.”

Updated Nov. 17, 2023 at 9:42 am ET: Clarified that Binance’s investment in Sleek came through an incubation program rather than its seed round.


Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

Tags

Decoding crypto and the markets. Daily, with Byron Gilliam.

Upcoming Events

Old Billingsgate

Mon - Wed, October 13 - 15, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

recent research

Unlocked by Template (11).png

Research

Union’s technical design brings measured improvements to crosschain interoperability. By combining a consensus-verified hub with novel constructs like state lenses and ZK proofs for client updates, Union achieves an interoperability protocol that is highly performant, trust-minimized, and scalable.

article-image

Meanwhile Sharps Technology pursues its own $400M Solana treasury strategy

article-image

The SEC is still working on a framework for token sales.

article-image

Bubbles are how markets create the future

article-image

21Shares files for active crypto ETF, leveraged funds to “deliver strategies that adapt in real time to a rapidly evolving market”

article-image

Supporters call the proposal a credit line to scale crvUSD, but critics warn it could set a dangerous precedent

article-image

New PeerDAS design raises throughput ahead of Fusaka upgrade