"The era of institutional DeFi opens… DWF Labs bets $75 million"

Crypto market maker DWF Labs has declared the 'institutional phase' of DeFi and is launching a new $75 million fund. The strategy is to concentrate investments on on-chain infrastructure projects capable of handling institutional demand.

According to Cointelegraph on the 27th (local time), DWF Labs said the fund will prioritize DeFi projects with institution-friendly structures such as dark-pool-based perpetual derivatives decentralized exchanges, on-chain money markets, and fixed-income/interest-bearing products that can absorb large orders. The company explained, "As on-chain liquidity movement expands structurally, practical infrastructure that can drive large-scale adoption is needed."

Andrey Gritchev, managing partner at DWF Labs, said, "DeFi has now entered the institutional phase," adding, "Infrastructure is required that can handle large operational capital, protect order flow, and provide sustainable returns." He emphasized that the fund is designed with market usability in mind.

Target chains include Ethereum, BNB Smart Chain, Solana, and Coinbase's Base (Base). Beyond capital support, DWF Labs plans to concurrently provide operational and market expansion support such as TVL and liquidity provision, go-to-market strategy development, and connections to partner exchanges and market-maker networks.

DeFi's total value locked (TVL) is currently about $120 billion, approaching the peak of $175 billion formed during the 2021 'DeFi summer.' Last month it had recovered to around $166 billion before the market correction, and industry observers cite regulatory clarity and infrastructure advancement as key factors that will determine the pace of future adoption.

Chainlink co-founder Sergey Nazarov recently said in an interview, "DeFi is already at 30%, and if regulations are organized it will reach the 50% level of mainstreaming, and if technology and infrastructure are simplified it could expand to the 70% level." The industry expects increased institutional participation to accelerate DeFi's mainstream adoption.