KAIO, a tokenization firm based in Abu Dhabi, announced on Monday that it has raised $8 million in a funding round backed by Tether and several other prominent crypto and institutional investors. This strategic investment brings KAIO's total funding to $19 million, with new investors such as Systemic Ventures joining the round, alongside returning investors like Further Ventures, Laser Digital, and Brevan Howard Digital. KAIO's primary focus is on developing infrastructure that enables asset managers to distribute their funds on the blockchain.
The company has already created tokens for products from renowned 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.
The firm is also set to launch an on-chain fund in collaboration with Mubadala Capital, a private equity firm from the UAE 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 just $100 for eligible users, significantly lower than the typical thresholds for institutional funds.
Tether's involvement in the funding round is expected to facilitate the integration of stablecoin flows, with USDT being the most widely used stablecoin, boasting a supply of $185 billion. KAIO intends to channel this liquidity into regulated investment products. According to Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino, 'KAIO's unique position unlocks new pathways for capital formation and investment by bringing institutional-grade assets on-chain and making them more broadly accessible, helping expand participation in global financial markets.' KAIO's platform is designed to embed compliance into its system, supporting regulated distribution frameworks in various 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.