Gauntlet Closes $125 Million Series C Led by SBI Holdings

NEW YORK, NEW YORK — July 09, 2026 — Gauntlet Networks, Inc. ("Gauntlet"), a leading digital asset risk and optimization firm, today announced the close of a $125 million Series C financing led by SBI Holdings, Inc. (TOKYO: 8473) through its U.S. subsidiary, SBI Holdings USA, Inc. The investment will support Gauntlet's continued development into a global organization operating across the markets and financial institutions shaping the on-chain economy.

This financing will support Gauntlet's near-term focus across three priorities. First, scaling the infrastructure that broadens its role across traditional capital markets, including expanded stablecoin coverage beyond USD and EUR to MXN, JPY and more foreign stablecoins to follow. Second, growing the global team, with an AI-supported approach to operational scale. Third, strategically deploying new capital to bootstrap and accelerate new onchain offerings.

While Gauntlet operates vaults across the largest digital asset markets in the world, curating over $1.5B in supplied assets, its broader mandate extends across the entire onchain finance ecosystem. The firm serves as a critical economic risk and optimization engine, setting the terms under which billions of dollars in protocol and institutional capital operate. By partnering with leading issuers, originators, and financial platforms, Gauntlet provides the necessary quantitative guardrails to scale onchain capital deployment safely, serving retail participants and institutional allocators alike.

"Vaults have proven themselves to be the next major revolution in financial markets. Much like ETFs increased equity participation in the US equities market, we expect tokenization and vaults to increase the size of the DeFi market faster than overall stablecoin growth in the next few years. And we've raised these funds to help further our mission to make that happen globally as the world moves on-chain. With the support of a large, traditional public company with a track record of blending traditional finance with crypto like SBI, we believe we are in the best place to take our years of research and development to help bring institutions on-chain.” - Tarun Chitra, Co-Founder & CEO of Gauntlet

For SBI Holdings, leading this financing aligns with a long-term vision to seamlessly bridge traditional financial services with next-generation digital infrastructure. With the global market cap of digital assets surpassing $3.5 trillion, SBI views these developments as foundational pillars of modern finance rather than isolated trends. SBI's strategic roadmap deliberately balances the diversification of traditional markets with the steady integration of digital assets. This includes the planned rollout of a yen-denominated stablecoin in the second half of 2026 and complete operational readiness for digital asset investment trusts and exchange-traded products as global regulatory frameworks mature.

“As traditional finance makes an irreversible transition toward on-chain finance, ensuring the reliability and transparency that allows investors to enter the market with peace of mind is our highest priority. The advanced risk management and optimization technologies possessed by Gauntlet will be indispensable functions in our goal to popularize digital assets. As regulatory clarity progresses in the U.S. with the GENIUS Act and the CLARITY Act, we look forward to working with Gauntlet to build next-generation financial infrastructure that spans Japan, Asia, and the world.” Yoshitaka Kitao, Representative Director, Chairman, and President, SBI Holdings

This transition is occurring amid significant regulatory progress worldwide. In the United States, the establishment of a federal framework for dollar-denominated stablecoins under the GENIUS Act and the advancement of the CLARITY Act represent a substantial movement toward comprehensive clarity for digital assets. As global capital markets across Japan, Europe, and the Americas position themselves in response, the standards under which capital deploys will define the next era of financial market infrastructure. 

Moving forward, Gauntlet will also leverage SBI’s extensive international reach to scale its coverage, extending its platform further to support fintech, traditional finance, and tokenization initiatives globally.

Financial Technology Partners served as the exclusive strategic and financial advisor to Gauntlet.

About Gauntlet

Gauntlet is crypto's premier yield curator, delivering data-driven strategies that help capital allocators, fintechs, financial institutions, and stablecoin issuers put capital to work onchain. In DeFi since 2018, Gauntlet integrates with 150+ fintechs and institutions and curates over $1.5B in supplied assets across its vaults. To learn more, visit www.gauntlet.xyz.