KAIO, a tokenization firm regulated by Abu Dhabi, announced on Monday that it had secured $8 million in funding from a strategic round led by Tether and other prominent crypto and institutional investors. This investment brings KAIO's total funding to $19 million, with new investors including Systemic Ventures and returning investors such as Further Ventures, Laser Digital, and Brevan Howard Digital.
KAIO is focused on creating infrastructure that enables asset managers to distribute their funds on the blockchain. The firm has developed tokens for products from companies like BlackRock, Brevan Howard, and Hamilton Lane, making them accessible through blockchain-based systems. With this new investment, KAIO plans to expand its offerings to include credit, structured investments, and exchange-traded funds, including the launch of an on-chain fund in partnership with Mubadala Capital, an Emirati private equity firm with $385 billion in assets under management. By tokenizing institutional funds, KAIO aims to reduce the barriers to entry for investors, with minimum investments starting at $100 for eligible users, significantly lower than the typical thresholds for institutional funds.
Tether's involvement in this investment ties into the potential for stablecoin flows, with the goal of channeling liquidity into regulated investment products. According to Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino, 'KAIO's unique position opens up new pathways for capital formation and investment by bringing institutional-grade assets onto the blockchain and making them more accessible, which helps expand participation in global financial markets.' KAIO's platform is designed with compliance in mind, supporting regulated distribution frameworks in jurisdictions such as Abu Dhabi, the Cayman Islands, and Singapore. To date, the company has tokenized approximately $100 million in assets and processed over $500 million in transactions.