Huobi launches DeFi incubator, sets aside 'tens of millions of dollars' for investments

Huobi Group has announced the launch of Huobi DeFi Labs, a research and incubation platform focused on decentralized finance applications and projects.

According to the announcement, Huobi's DeFi-centric arm will focus on research, investments and the incubation of DeFi initiatives. Huobi Group itself will "allocate tens of millions of dollars to an initial investment fund, which will be managed by Huobi DeFi Labs," according to the press statement.

The initial team will comprise four research and investment staffers. The initiative will be led by Huobi's chief investment officer Sharlyn Wu, who previously led the blockchain department at China Merchant Bank International (CMBI). 

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"It is exciting to see the power of permissionless economy unleashed at global scale. However, there are still many problems to be solved at theoretical and technical level," Wu said. 

The launch of the fund comes at a time when VC firms are increasingly investing in DeFi ventures. Last week, Injective Protocol raised $2.6 million in seed funding to work on its decentralized derivatives exchange. 

The DeFi space is also seeing growing activity. As The Block reported, decentralized exchanges, or DEXs, saw more than $4 billion in trade volume during July.

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Saniya More (pronounced: Saan-ya Mo-ray) is a quadrilingual journalist at The Block. She got her master’s degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and did her undergraduate degree at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, Syracuse University. Her work has appeared in CBS News, Bangkok Post, Thai Enquirer, Globalists, Byline Times and other publications. When she’s not chasing a story, you will most likely find her biking, tweeting, taking photos or creating Spotify playlists for every occasion.