Usual Labs and Binance Labs Team Up to Reshape the DeFi Ecosystem via Community-First Stablecoin Approach

Usual, the RWA-backed stablecoin issuer that uses its USUAL token to distribute value and ownership, revealed the fundraising via X on Dec.

Decentralized fiat-backed real-world assets (RWA) stablecoin issuer Usual has secured $10 million in Series A funding, to be used to further its community-oriented Web3 stablecoin initiative.

Announced on Dec. 23, Usual’s latest funding round was led by the venture capital arms of crypto exchange Binance and Kraken, Binance Labs and Kraken Ventures, respectively.

Other participants in the Series A funding round included Galaxy Digital, OKX Ventures, Wintermute and Amber Group. The funding will be used to advance Usual’s stablecoin, which is designed to be fully decentralized and backed by a broad range of fiat-denominated RWAs.

The stablecoin issuer also announced a strategic alliance with Ethena Labs and Securitize on Dec. 18. The partnership aims to combine the strengths of decentralized finance with the benefits of liquidity, yield and composability for users.

Binance Labs investment strategy

Binance Labs stated in a blog post on Dec. 23 that its investment in Usual is part of its strategy to support projects that are reshaping the DeFi ecosystem and expanding the broader Web3 landscape.

The venture capital arm of Binance also noted Usual's shared rewards model and its aim to redefine the role of stablecoins in driving the adoption of DeFi and RWAs at large.

“At Binance Labs, we seek out projects that drive meaningful innovation and expand the ecosystem, and we are excited to support Usual’s mission to push the boundaries of what stablecoins can achieve,” Alex Odagiu, investment director at Binance Labs, said in a statement.

Binance Labs has backed several promising projects in recent months, including Solana-based stablecoin infrastructure protocol Perena, multi-asset liquidity platform Astherus and decentralized science research and investment platform BIO Protocol.

It also invested in Bitcoin liquid staking project Lombard in November 2024. Notably, Binance was the first exchange to list USUAL in November.

According to Usual Labs CEO Pierre Person, the project will continue to expand its collaboration with Binance Labs.

“In the months ahead, Binance Labs and Usual Labs will continue to collaborate to ensure that the stablecoin market remains at the forefront of innovation and becomes even more community-centric,” Person said.