9 July 2025 – Velvet Capital, a decentralised finance trading and portfolio management platform powered by artificial intelligence and intent-based architecture, has secured $3.7 million in fresh funding. The capital raise will support Velvet’s ambition to simplify on-chain portfolio management for funds, DAOs, and individual traders. It will also drive the launch of its governance and utility token, VELVET.
The funding round saw participation from leading Web3 and venture capital investors including YZi Labs, Blockchain Founders Fund, FunFair Ventures, Selini Capital, Mucker Capital, and DWF Ventures. Other contributors included PAKA, LucidBlue, Mindfulness Capital, SkyVision Capital, Gate Labs, Poolz Ventures, NexGen, Accelerator, Gains Associates, Rarestone, and Echo.
AI-Powered DeFi Stack for Smarter Asset Management
Velvet has introduced a vertically integrated AI operating system specifically tailored for DeFi. The platform uses a multi-agent framework that helps users discover market opportunities, get technical analysis insights, and make trades or other DeFi actions simply through natural language input.
Its trading terminal allows real-time exploration of trending tokens, yield opportunities, and high-volume trades. All transactions, including analysis and execution, are done directly through users’ wallets.
In addition, Velvet offers a comprehensive portfolio management suite. Users can set up personal or community-managed vaults, with the flexibility to whitelist wallet access or make the vaults open to all.
The system also includes APIs that allow developers or institutions to spin up branded apps under their own domains, helping them maintain direct relationships with clients while leveraging Velvet’s infrastructure.
Positive Feedback from Early Adopters
Institutional partners have already begun using Velvet’s infrastructure. Jake Seltzer, Managing Director at Quantix Capital, praised the vault system, saying, “We’ve been managing both our private investments and native token through Velvet’s vaults. The experience has been seamless, from deposits to swaps. The contracts are reliable and we’re eager to continue building alongside the Velvet team.”
Blockchain Founders Fund Managing Partner Aly Madhavji added, “Velvet is taking the complexity out of DeFi portfolio creation. Their stack lets teams deploy, automate, and scale on-chain strategies without needing to rebuild infrastructure. We believe they will play a vital role in the future of crypto asset management.”
VELVET and veVELVET Tokens to Power Governance and Rewards
The new capital will also support the rollout of VELVET, the ecosystem’s native token. Users can stake their tokens as veVELVET (vote-escrowed VELVET) by locking them for up to four years. The longer the lock, the higher the veVELVET balance received, although these balances decay linearly over time. This model encourages ongoing engagement and staking renewals.
Stakers benefit from several incentives including a share of the platform’s revenue, which is used to buy VELVET on the market and distribute it back to veVELVET holders. They also gain access to additional token emissions based on platform usage, tiered trading fee discounts, enhanced referral rewards, and airdrops from partner projects.
Importantly, veVELVET holders also gain governance rights, allowing them to vote on platform decisions, integrations, and fee structures.
VELVET Public Listing and Ecosystem Access
The public will soon be able to purchase VELVET through both centralised exchanges and directly via the Velvet App. Early buyers and stakers will gain exclusive access to governance features, fee discounts, and platform revenue rewards.
Michael O’Connor, Partner at FunFair Ventures, said, “FunFair shares Velvet Capital’s belief that the future of asset management should be trustless, transparent, and on-chain. Velvet combines security with a user-friendly interface, laying strong foundations for the next wave of financial innovation.”
About Velvet Capital
Velvet Capital is building a next-generation AI-powered DeFi operating system for trading and portfolio management. With a live application, plug-and-play APIs, and a DeFAI OS that enables agents to interact seamlessly with blockchain protocols, Velvet aims to redefine decentralised asset management by making it more efficient, accessible, and intelligent.
