Decentralized finance (DeFi) derivatives exchange SynFutures raised $14 million in a Series A funding round led by Polychain Capital, the firm announced Wednesday.
As DeFi continues to gain in popularity, investors look to capture niche spaces of the industry. SynFutures said it will focus its entire platform on derivatives, which are financial instruments like futures contracts or options. The round comes fresh on the heels of a $65 million raise for fellow DeFi derivatives exchange dYdX.
The Singapore-based SynFutures said it wants to eliminate entry barriers to the derivatives market for smaller investors for different products, including large cryptocurrencies, altcoins, equities, metals and indices.
Other investors include Framework, Pantera Capital, Bybit, Wintermute, CMS, Kronos and IOSG Ventures.
“We’re aiming to level the playing field for the average investor by cultivating a free and open market for derivatives trading,” SynFutures CEO Rachel Lin said in a press release.
Lin said her ultimate goal is to “democratize the futures market,” following a growing sentiment for increased accessibility in the DeFi space.
SynFutures will support a variety of assets, including ERC-20 tokens and cross-chain assets. To avoid price volatility, SynFutures uses a rigid modeling and risk management system to protect users’ positions, Lin said. The company hopes to use best practices from traditional finance to add stability to the DeFi space.
SynFutures’ users are currently in a closed alpha. But the company plans to open the platform to all users next month as a result of the new funding. It also plans to release a series of new products aimed at improving user experience, which include a hash rate derivative and the capabilities for cross margining.
“We look forward to supporting such a strong founding team with extensive experience spanning both traditional finance and blockchain technology, a rarity in the industry, as they bring synthetic derivatives to new users across the globe,” Polychain Capital CEO Olaf Carlson-Wee said of the investment in a press release.
Source: Coindesk
