KAIO, a tokenization firm regulated by the Abu Dhabi authorities, has secured $8 million in funding from a strategic investment round led by Tether and other prominent crypto and institutional investors. This funding brings the company's total investment to $19 million, with new investors such as Systemic Ventures joining the round, alongside existing investors like Further Ventures, Laser Digital, and Brevan Howard Digital. KAIO is focused on developing infrastructure that enables asset managers to distribute their funds via blockchain technology. The company has created tokens for products from well-known firms 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, and is set to launch 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 lower 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 the investment round highlights the potential for stablecoin flows to be channeled into regulated investment products. As the most widely used stablecoin with a $185 billion supply, USDT is often utilized for cross-border transactions, particularly in emerging markets.
KAIO's goal is to tap into this liquidity and direct it towards regulated investment products. According to Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino, 'KAIO's unique position in the market unlocks new pathways for capital formation and investment by bringing institutional-grade assets onto the blockchain and making them more broadly accessible, which in turn helps to expand participation in global financial markets.' KAIO's platform incorporates compliance into its system and supports regulated distribution frameworks in several jurisdictions, including 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.