Glacis Labs, the startup behind crypto clearing platform ZeroDelta, raised $6.8 million in a seed funding round that closed in March after fundraising began late last year. Lightspeed Faction led the round, with participation from Franklin Templeton, Coinbase Ventures, A.GAIN (formerly IDC Ventures), Protein Capital, and Techni Ventures. The funding supports the expansion of ZeroDelta, a multichain clearing platform that matches, nets, and settles digital asset transfers across blockchains, as the platform emerges from stealth mode. The round was structured as equity with token warrants, according to Jacob Blish, co-founder and CEO of Glacis Labs. The crypto clearing infrastructure market has seen increased institutional interest, with EDX Markets raising a $76 million Series C round last week for its institutional-only crypto trading platform with a central clearinghouse.
Lightspeed Faction Leads $6.8 Million Seed Round
Lightspeed Faction led the $6.8 million seed round for Glacis Labs, with Franklin Templeton, Coinbase Ventures, A.GAIN (formerly IDC Ventures), Protein Capital, and Techni Ventures participating as investors. The round was raised as a single tranche after fundraising began late last year and closed in March, according to Jacob Blish. The funding was structured as equity with token warrants, though Blish declined to disclose Glacis Labs' valuation. As part of the deal, Lightspeed Faction received a non-voting board observer seat, Blish said, declining to disclose who from the venture firm would hold the position.
ZeroDelta Platform Clears Over $1 Billion in Transaction Volume
Founded in January 2024, Glacis Labs built ZeroDelta, a multichain clearing platform that matches, nets, and settles digital asset transfers across blockchains. The platform is built on Glacis Core, the startup's cross-chain messaging layer, and AirLift, its token transport layer. ZeroDelta has cleared more than $1 billion in transaction volume and operates at a $1.5 billion annualized run rate, according to Glacis Labs. Blish said that figure represents the dollar value of transactions across Glacis' live transport rails, with roughly 90% consisting of stablecoins.
ZeroDelta currently supports Circle's USDC, Tether's USDT, and Ethena's synthetic dollar USDe. The platform plans to expand into tokenized securities, real-world assets, and foreign exchange. Blish said the company is starting with stablecoins because that is where the market is, noting that real-world assets remain nascent and require significantly more work around compliance and user onboarding. Glacis Labs is already integrating a number of real-world assets from issuers, which will be announced soon, and has begun conversations with foreign exchange issuers outside the U.S., Blish said.
Blish said ZeroDelta differs from EDX Markets in that both platforms share the same core idea that matching transactions before settlement reduces costs and lowers counterparty risk. While EDX clears obligations inside a single trading venue, ZeroDelta continuously clears asset flows across multiple blockchains and venues before settling the remaining balance onchain, making the two businesses more complementary than competitive, according to Blish. He said platforms such as Circle's Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol (CCTP), LayerZero, Across, and CoW Protocol overlap with parts of Glacis' technology stack, and many are expected to become partners or customers rather than direct competitors.
Glacis Labs Targets Institutional Market Makers and Dealers
ZeroDelta's customers are all institutional, falling into three groups, according to Blish. Those include market makers and dealers that frequently rebalance assets across blockchains, aggregators and solver networks seeking lower-cost settlement routes, and stablecoin issuers and tokenization platforms that require around-the-clock liquidity.
Glacis currently has a team of 10 employees working remotely, primarily across New York and Europe, Blish said. The startup plans to hire additional staff across engineering, compliance, and go-to-market functions over the coming year.
Platform Operates at $1.5 Billion Annualized Run Rate
Glacis Labs generates revenue by charging fees on transaction volume cleared across its network, Blish said. ZeroDelta operates at a $1.5 billion annualized run rate, representing the dollar value of transactions across Glacis' live transport rails, with roughly 90% of that volume consisting of stablecoins.
Blish said the biggest challenge will be building enough transaction flow for the clearing engine to become increasingly efficient while also meeting the slower onboarding requirements of institutional customers. He added that investors such as Franklin Templeton and Coinbase Ventures can help by bringing distribution and liquidity alongside capital.
FAQ
What is Glacis Labs' ZeroDelta platform?
ZeroDelta is a multichain clearing platform built by Glacis Labs that matches, nets, and settles digital asset transfers across blockchains. The platform is built on Glacis Core, the startup's cross-chain messaging layer, and AirLift, its token transport layer. ZeroDelta currently supports Circle's USDC, Tether's USDT, and Ethena's synthetic dollar USDe.
How much funding did Glacis Labs raise?
Glacis Labs raised $6.8 million in a seed funding round that closed in March after fundraising began late last year. Lightspeed Faction led the round, with participation from Franklin Templeton, Coinbase Ventures, A.GAIN (formerly IDC Ventures), Protein Capital, and Techni Ventures. The round was structured as equity with token warrants.
What transaction volume has ZeroDelta processed?
ZeroDelta has cleared more than $1 billion in transaction volume and operates at a $1.5 billion annualized run rate, according to Glacis Labs. Roughly 90% of that volume consists of stablecoins, with the dollar value representing transactions across Glacis' live transport rails.
