December 24, 2024
French DeFi Firm Usual Raises $10M in Series A for Stablecoin Expansion
Paris, France –
Usual, an issuer of secure and decentralized fiat-backed stablecoin, has raised $10M USD in a Series A funding round. Leading the investment were Binance Labs and Kraken Ventures, joined by prominent backers including Ondo, Coinbase Ventures, IOSG, OKX Ventures, Galaxy Ventures, Ethena, Symbolic Capital, Amber, GSR, and Psalion. Announced on December 23, 2024, the funding will fuel Usual’s efforts to scale its DeFi solutions and broaden its reach within the global financial ecosystem.
About the company
Founded in 2022, Usual operates a fully compliant DeFi protocol offering seamless access to decentralized financial services. Its flagship stablecoin, USD0, is backed 1:1 by real-world assets, primarily U.S. Treasuries. Launched in early 2024, USD0 has rapidly gained popularity, achieving a $1 billion market capitalization and ranking as the world’s seventh-largest stablecoin.
Governed by the USUAL token, the platform rewards holders with reserve-backed profits, delivering real yields. This summer, Usual emerged as the fastest-growing stablecoin on Ethereum, achieving unprecedented hypergrowth for a fiat-backed stablecoin. Through collaborations with projects like Ethena and Securitize (BlackRock BUIDL tokenizer), Usual is paving the way for mature stablecoins that offer users opportunities beyond traditional yield generation.
Purpose of financing
The fresh capital will be utilized to enhance Usuals’ infrastructure, expand its portfolio of real-world assets backing USD0, and develop new features for the protocol. The company also plans to invest in regulatory compliance to strengthen its position as a trusted DeFi platform globally.
CEO’s Vision
Pierre Person, CEO of Usual, said:
"Our goal is to redefine stablecoin models by prioritizing transparency and equitable value distribution, aligning with the foundational ethos of web3. This funding will accelerate our mission to deliver a stablecoin ecosystem that rewards users fairly while maintaining robust compliance standards."
Investor Perspective
Alex Odagiu, Investment Director at Binance Labs, stated:
"This funding round underscores Usual’s position as one of the most promising projects in the 2024 stablecoin and DeFi ecosystems. With this milestone, Usual is poised to expand its reach from DeFi into CeFi, supported by a strong network of committed backers reshaping the stablecoin landscape."
Looking Ahead
Other investors, such as White Loop Capital and decentralized crowdfunding platform Echo, praised Usual’s leadership and vision. They highlighted the platform’s potential to set new benchmarks in the DeFi space with its DeFi-first approach and innovative model of redistributing ownership to users.
Usual aims to stand out with a DeFi-first spirit and an innovative model of redistributing ownership to its users. It represents a turning point for fiat-backed stablecoins, blending the security of real-world assets (RWAs) with DeFi’s composability and liquidity.
For updates, visit Usual on LinkedIn.