Kyo Finance has secured a strategic investment and ecosystem partnership from Startale Ventures, the venture arm of Startale Group.

Kyo Finance, a decentralized exchange infrastructure platform built on the Soneium network, launched on January 14, 2025 alongside the debut of the Soneium mainnet.

The company said it reached over US$55 million in peak total value locked and US$530 million in cumulative trading volume since launch.

Kyo Finance was selected as the winner of the Soneium Spark Incubation Program, receiving both funding and technical support.

Startale Ventures will provide Kyo Finance with access to its network of institutional partners and integration opportunities across Soneium and the Optimism Superchain.

The partnership aims to help Kyo Finance address liquidity fragmentation in decentralized finance and expand its infrastructure across multiple blockchain networks.

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🔗 Source: Kyo Finance

🧠 Food for thought

1️⃣ Recent U.S. regulatory shifts create unprecedented clarity for institutional DeFi adoption

The timing of Kyo’s investment aligns with a major regulatory transformation that’s creating new opportunities for compliant DeFi platforms.

The SEC’s “Project Crypto” initiative, launched just days ago, represents a shift from enforcement-heavy tactics to structured market frameworks that encourage digital asset innovation1.

Chairman Paul Atkins stated the goal of making the U.S. a leader in blockchain and crypto technology, marking a departure from previous regulatory approaches1.

This initiative includes nine specific regulatory modernization measures designed to provide clarity for token issuers and streamline compliance processes2.

The regulatory changes extend beyond just SEC policy. The CFTC is simultaneously expanding oversight of crypto derivatives with new transparency guidelines, while the IRS is implementing clearer cryptocurrency reporting requirements3.

This multi-agency coordination creates the type of regulatory certainty that institutional investors have been waiting for before committing significant capital to DeFi infrastructure.

2️⃣ Regulatory clarity accelerates the shift from enforcement to structured innovation frameworks

The broader crypto regulatory environment is experiencing its most significant transformation since the sector’s inception, moving from hostile to pragmatic oversight approaches.

Countries like Switzerland have demonstrated that favorable regulatory environments can attract crypto entrepreneurs and foster innovation, setting a competitive benchmark for other nations4.

The new U.S. approach differentiates between digital assets classified as securities (SEC jurisdiction) and non-securities (CFTC jurisdiction), providing the jurisdictional clarity that has been missing for years5.

This regulatory modernization includes approximately 100 policy recommendations across five key areas, representing a comprehensive digital asset framework proposed by a U.S. administration5.

The shift reflects growing government recognition that attempting to ban decentralized digital networks has proven ineffective, leading to a more pragmatic stance focused on regulation rather than prohibition4.

For DeFi platforms like Kyo, this regulatory clarity reduces legal risks and compliance uncertainties that have historically deterred institutional participation in decentralized finance protocols.

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