Tether Leads $8M Funding Round for UAE-Based KAIO to Tokenize Traditional Funds

KAIO, a tokenization firm regulated in Abu Dhabi, has secured $8 million in a funding round backed by Tether and 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 and Laser Digital. Existing backers, including Brevan Howard Digital, also participated. KAIO is focused on creating infrastructure that enables asset managers to distribute their funds on blockchain rails, having already tokenized products from major firms like BlackRock, Brevan Howard, and Hamilton Lane. These tokens are then made 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 company is also set to launch an on-chain fund in collaboration with Mubadala Capital, a private equity firm based in the UAE with $385 billion in assets under management. By tokenizing institutional funds, KAIO aims to significantly lower the barriers to entry for investors, with minimum investment requirements starting at $100 for eligible users. This is substantially lower than the typical thresholds for accessing institutional funds. Tether's involvement in KAIO's funding round highlights the potential for stablecoin flows to be channeled into regulated investment products. As the most widely used stablecoin with a supply of $185 billion, USDT plays a crucial role in cross-border transactions, especially in emerging markets. KAIO seeks to leverage this liquidity to support regulated investment products. According to Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether, 'KAIO's innovative approach unlocks new pathways for capital formation and investment by bringing institutional-grade assets on-chain and making them more broadly accessible, thereby expanding participation in global financial markets.' KAIO's platform is designed with compliance in mind, embedding regulatory requirements into its system and 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.