Polkadot-based DeFi project Acala raises $7 million in SAFT sale

Acala, a decentralized finance (DeFi) project building on top of Polkadot blockchain network, has raised $7 million in Series A through a simple agreement for future tokens (SAFT) sale.

In SAFT sales, startups that raise money, issue tokens to investors when their projects become operational. Acala’s SAFT sale was led by Pantera Capital, with participation from several investors, including Digital Currency Group, 1confirmation, Arrington XRP Capital, Polychain Capital, Altonomy and CMS Holdings, among others.

Acala is building various DeFi products, including a decentralized stablecoin called aUSD, a decentralized exchange and a staking derivative. Acala also has a governance token called Acala Network Token (ACA). Acala’s model can be likened to that of MakerDAO, which operates DAI stablecoin and has MKR as its governance token.

Acala said it reached $52 million in total value locked during a 3-week testnet campaign. Its mainnet will launch on Polkadot and Kusama.

“We have been early and large investors in Polkadot and are confident that Acala will become the DeFi hub for the entire ecosystem,” said Paul Veradittakit, partner at Pantera Capital. “The company will bring financial stability, liquidity, and accessibility, enabling a mainstream audience for financial freedom.”