Decentralized finance startup Kuru Labs has secured $11.6 million in Series A funding to develop a hybrid central-limit order book (CLOB) and automated market maker (AMM) on the Monad blockchain. The round was led by Paradigm, the crypto-focused venture capital firm that also backed Monad with $225 million in 2023.
Kuru Labs aims to create a high-performance liquidity hub tailored for Monad, a high-speed, Ethereum-compatible blockchain. The project will introduce CLOB functionality to the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) for the first time, integrating a token launchpad, trading terminal, and liquidity provision tools for users and developers alike.
CLOBs are trading systems that match buy and sell orders based on time and price priority, commonly used in traditional finance. By combining this with AMM mechanics, Kuru Labs plans to deliver a composable and democratized trading experience that enhances both liquidity access and capital efficiency.
In addition to Paradigm, the round saw participation from notable angel investors including Viktor Bunin (Credibly Neutral), Zagabond, Tristan Yver, Alex Watts, Jordan Hagan, 3nes, Will Price, Shreyas Hariharan, Auri, and Joe Takayama.
“Kuru is committed to building the premier liquidity hub for Monad, unifying liquidity across the ecosystem through our hybrid CLOB-AMM model,” the team said in a blog post. Leveraging Monad’s decentralized and scalable architecture, Kuru aims to bring institutional-grade trading infrastructure to DeFi without compromising composability.
As competition grows in the modular blockchain space, Kuru’s innovative architecture could give Monad a significant edge by attracting liquidity and high-frequency trading activity. With fresh capital and a strong investor base, Kuru is positioned to become a cornerstone of Monad’s growing DeFi ecosystem.
