DeFi risk management and blockchain infrastructure company gauntlet I raised it $125 million in Series C funding round Led by Japan-based financial services group SBI HoldingsThis is the company’s largest funding since its founding in 2018.
According to the company’s announcement, the investment in SBI Holdings was completed in June. Financial terms in excess of the amount raised, including Gauntlet’s most recent valuation. The company previously raised almost all of its $24 million in Series B round in 2022Led by Ribbit Capital, the reported valuation is approximately 1 billion dollars.
The latest funding comes as institutional investors continue to direct capital toward infrastructure companies that support decentralized finance rather than consumer-facing crypto products. Risk management, tokenized assets, and regulated stablecoin services are increasingly areas of focus as banks and asset managers expand their blockchain efforts.
Closed $125 million Series C led by SBI Holdings.
This capital will support building infrastructure across traditional capital markets, expanding stablecoin coverage, and accelerating new on-chain offerings.
As institutions move on-chain, we are providing quantitative information…
— Gauntlet (@gauntlet_xyz) July 9, 2026
Gauntlet announced the completion of a $125 million Series C funding round backed by SBI Holdings. This investment will fund expansion into traditional capital markets, increase support for stablecoins, and accelerate the rollout of new on-chain services for institutional customers.
Funds will support infrastructure and stablecoin expansion
Gauntlett said the new funding will be used to expand infrastructure to support institutional participation in on-chain financial markets.
The company plans to focus on several areas including:
- Expanding infrastructure designed to connect traditional capital markets with decentralized finance.
- Enhances support for stablecoins beyond USD and EUR-denominated assets, including additional regional currencies.
- Accelerate the development of new on-chain financial products.
- Expand your global operations with more AI-powered workflows.
Gauntlet currently provides risk modeling and capital optimization services for decentralized finance protocols, fintech companies, stablecoin issuers, and institutional investors. According to the company, its Vault ecosystem manages: $1.5 billion in supply assets.
Business strategy moves beyond protocol risk analysis
Founded by a former quantitative researcher Tarun ChitraGauntlet originally specialized in economic modeling and stress testing for decentralized finance protocols, helping developers assess risks associated with lending markets and the liquidity of digital assets.
As institutional investor participation in digital assets increases, the company has expanded into yield infrastructure and developed quantitative strategies to help allocate capital across DeFi lending and liquidity markets while monitoring portfolio risk.
This shift reflects a broader shift in decentralized finance, with institutional investors increasingly preferring professionally managed investment infrastructure to the governance-driven financial management models that were common during DeFi’s early growth stages.
Gauntlet customers include organizations such as: apollo, coinbaseand circledemonstrating the growing demand for institutional-level risk management tools within blockchain-based financial markets.
Gauntlet Funding History
Since its founding in 2018, Gauntlet has completed multiple funding rounds backed by leading crypto and venture capital firms, reflecting growing investor confidence in the institutional blockchain infrastructure business.
- July 9, 2026: raised $125 million in Series C Funding round led by SBI GroupThis was the company’s largest funding to date.
- March 14, 2022: raised $23.8 million in Series B round Valuation of $1 billionled by polychain capitalwith participation from Rivit Capital and paradigm.
- June 4, 2021: safe $13.63 million in Series A Funding round led by polychain capital.
- October 8, 2020: raised $4.3 million In a private funding round led by paradigmwith participation from Polychain Capital, Standard Crypto, First Round Capital, IA Ventures, and Miyuki Matsumoto.
- October 25, 2018: closed $2.9 million seed round led by First round capitalwith support from Polychain Capital, Coinbase Ventures, Dragonfly, IA Ventures, and Miyuki Matsumoto.
SBI expands digital asset investment portfolio
This transaction also adds to SBI Holdings’ expanding digital asset investment portfolio. The Tokyo-listed financial group has invested in several blockchain and cryptocurrency companies in recent years, including: ripple, circleand decentralized lending protocols Morpho. SBI also outlined plans to expand its digital asset investment products with the introduction of SBI Holdings’ stablecoin, a yen-denominated digital asset, as regulatory frameworks continue to evolve in Japan and other markets.
This investment is in line with a broader trend of traditional financial institutions increasing their exposure to blockchain infrastructure while improving regulatory clarity across major jurisdictions. The move comes as SBI’s acquisition of BitBank further underlines the company’s expanding commitment to digital asset infrastructure and the broader crypto ecosystem.
Institutional investors continue to invest in market infrastructure
Gauntlet’s funding comes during a period of selective venture investing across the crypto industry. Although overall cryptocurrency venture activity remains below the highs recorded during the previous market cycle, companies developing infrastructure for institutional implementation continue to attract significant funding.
As financial institutions explore blockchain-based services, market participants are increasingly turning their attention to businesses that support tokenization, stablecoin issuance, custody, compliance, payments, and risk management.
The funding is expected to strengthen Gauntlet’s position within that segment, as financial institutions seek technology providers that can support larger volumes of on-chain capital while managing financial and operational risks across decentralized markets.
