Axis, a quantitative yield protocol, has raised $5 million in a private funding round led by Galaxy Ventures. The round was four times oversubscribed, attracting investment from OKX Ventures, FalconX, GSR, Maven 11, CMS Holdings, and Aave Chan Initiative founder Marc Zeller. The project did not disclose its valuation. The capital will be used to advance its mission of bringing institutional-grade, market-neutral yield infrastructure to public blockchains.
The protocol is developing an onchain yield engine designed to generate returns uncorrelated with market direction across three asset classes: USD, bitcoin, and gold. During its closed beta, Axis deployed $100 million in private capital from existing partners to stress-test its delta-neutral arbitrage engine. The company reports the engine achieved a Sharpe ratio of 4.9, maintaining performance stability through volatile swings in major assets like bitcoin, ether, and gold.
A key differentiator for Axis is its emphasis on transparency. The team is building a verifiable, onchain infrastructure to allow users to track performance in real time, contrasting with opaque offchain trading desks. The first product will be USDx, a dollar-linked digital asset offering stable value and yield. Bitcoin- and gold-based versions will follow, all powered by the same neutral-yield model.
The protocol will launch on the Plasma blockchain, a Bitfinex-backed network built for stablecoin settlement, chosen for its lower operating costs to enhance net yields. Axis has partnered with Veda for custody and vault infrastructure, Accountable for independent auditing, and Chainlink for Proof of Reserves and data feeds.
Looking ahead, Axis plans to open its first public vault, the Origin Vault, later this year, targeting up to $1 billion in deposits. A public token sale and full protocol launch are scheduled for early 2026. The project aims to serve both institutional allocators and retail participants, positioning itself as a major player in the evolving DeFi yield landscape.
