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DeFi funding: 7 of 15 rounds went to perps, no VC led twice

By NAUT Research · · 6 min read

7 of 15 DeFi funding rounds went to perps teams, 21 July to 19 October 2026, and $40.5M of the money. Logos: Entropy, Vest Exchange, Antarctic, PERPTools, InfiniFi, Spout Finance, functionSPACE, Imperial, Polaris, Tenor Finance, Fluid, Saturn, Concrete, HertzFlow, XStable.

DeFi funding from 21 July to 19 October 2026 came to at least $48.2M across the 9 of 15 rounds that disclosed an amount. 7 of the 15 rounds went to perpetual futures teams, and they raised $40.5M of that, 84%.

Data as of 19 October 2026, from NAUT's funding records. The scope is venture and strategic rounds into onchain protocols: perps, lending, yield, synthetic dollars and prediction markets. That is 15 of the 190 deals NAUT records for this window. The rest include M&A, incubator cheques, payments and tokenised-fund companies, and public-company raises. Each round is checked against 2 sources, such as the company's own post and a news report, listed under Sources. NAUT Research wrote this report; no one paid for it.

Which DeFi funding rounds closed, and who led each?

Date Company Round Raised Led by
22 Jul Seed Not disclosed
30 Jul Strategic Not disclosed None named
13 Aug Strategic Not disclosed None named
19 Aug Strategic Not disclosed
24 Aug Angel Not disclosed None named
24 Aug Not stated $14M
3 Sep Angel $1M None named
7 Sep SAFE and token $7M None named
22 Sep Not stated Not disclosed None named
23 Sep Seed $3M+
24 Sep Pre-seed $1.7M ,
1 Oct Seed $5M None named
6 Oct Seed $1.5M
7 Oct Seed $13M
15 Oct Strategic $2M None named

Not counted: on 31 August Bloomberg reported that Polymarket is raising $1B, led by 1789 Capital. Polymarket has not announced it, and every other report repeats Bloomberg's, so it is outside the 15.

Who runs each company, and who backed it?

Perps teams first, then lending and yield, then prediction markets.

How much DeFi funding did each startup raise?

Raised per round, the 9 that disclosed an amount
  1. Entropy$14M
  2. Vest Exchange$13M
  3. Antarctic$7M
  4. PERPTools$5M
  5. InfiniFi$3M
  6. Spout Finance$2M
  7. functionSPACE$1.7M
  8. Imperial$1.5M
  9. Polaris$1M

Entropy and Vest Exchange raised $27M, 56% of the $48.2M. InfiniFi said it raised more than $3M, so the total is a floor. 6 of the 15 rounds did not disclose an amount.

How much DeFi funding went to perps teams?

What this tells a BD team

  • Most of these teams are early. 6 of the 15 rounds were seed or pre-seed, and 2 more were angel rounds.
  • 7 newly funded perps teams will need liquidity, market makers, listings and audits. They span Hyperliquid, Solana, BNB Chain and Orderly Network.
How a BD team can work this list
  1. Start with the perps teams7 of the 15 rounds, from Entropy on Hyperliquid to Imperial on Solana.
  2. Sort by round sizeEntropy and Vest Exchange raised $27M of the $48.2M disclosed.
  3. Find the decision makerMost companies' NAUT pages list the team, such as CEO Justin Ma at Vest Exchange.
  4. Reach out after the roundContact them from their NAUT page while they are spending what they raised.

What this tells a DeFi founder

How a founder can use this list
  1. See who leads at your stageFoundation Capital led Imperial's $1.5M seed, Electric Capital led InfiniFi's seed and Portal Ventures led Vest Exchange's $13M seed.
  2. Shortlist repeat backers2Square backed 3 of these rounds and Taisu Ventures backed 2.
  3. Ask a trading firm5 trading firms joined these rounds, such as Keyrock and Flow Traders.
  4. Reach the partnerEach investor's NAUT page lists its team and the people to contact.

How to reach the decision makers

Every company, investor and person above links to their NAUT page, which lists the team, the backers and the decision makers to contact. The firms counted as "more" above have no NAUT page yet.

DeFi funding FAQ

How much did DeFi startups raise from July to October 2026?

At least $48.2M, across the 9 of 15 DeFi rounds that disclosed an amount between 21 July and 19 October 2026. Perps teams raised $40.5M of it.

Who invested in DeFi startups from July to October 2026?

8 firms led the 7 DeFi rounds that named a lead between 21 July and 19 October 2026: Ribbit Capital, Portal Ventures, Electric Capital, Maven 11 Capital, Blockwall, Foundation Capital, Polychain Capital and Variant. None led twice.

Which DeFi startup raised the most?

Entropy raised the most from 21 July to 19 October 2026: $14M led by Ribbit Capital on 24 August. Vest Exchange was next, with a $13M seed led by Portal Ventures.

How much did perps teams raise from July to October 2026?

7 perps teams announced rounds between 21 July and 19 October 2026, and the 5 that disclosed raised $40.5M: Entropy $14M, Vest Exchange $13M, Antarctic $7M, PERPTools $5M and Imperial $1.5M.

Which investors backed more than 1 DeFi startup?

In DeFi rounds from 21 July to 19 October 2026, 2Square backed 3: Concrete, InfiniFi and Spout Finance. Taisu Ventures backed 2, XStable and Spout Finance.

Sources