IQ Protocol, a project which creates both fungible token and NFT lending & renting market frameworks, has announced a successful fundraising round that includes backing from over 30 blue-chip VCs and private investors.
IQ Protocol’s framework of wrapped expirable assets allows risk-free renting without the need for collateral. The framework supports both fungible tokens, creating sound tokenized subscription models, and NFTs, allowing users to rent GameFi and metaverse assets (such as weapons, characters, and skins) for a fixed period.
Bobby Bao, Managing Director of Crypto.com Capital, said:
“IQ Protocol’s wrapped expirable versions of digital assets are an innovative solution that enables collateral-less utility loans. We’re proud to co-lead IQ Protocol’s latest fundraising round and help pioneer new products alongside them.”
IQ Protocol has been publicly active since mid-2021 providing token staking pools for projects such as PARSIQ and Mysterium with several more set to launch in the coming months. Since the announcement of the NFT rental functionality, the team has secured partnerships with prominent GameFi projects including Nyan Heroes, Battle Saga, Space Sip, Zone of Avoidance, and Spark Era, amongst other Esports and Metaverse projects.
Brian Johnson, Head of Operations at Republic Capital said:
“IQ Protocol is a game changer for digital asset space by creating a subscription and ‘rent-to-own’ model to NFTs. At Republic Capital, we are very excited for what this means for the ecosystem.”
Alongside a roster of prominent VCs, IQ Protocol was also backed by a group of angel investors, including Sandeep Nailwal (Founder, Polygon), Richmond Theo (Founder, PAXOS), Mike Zajko (Head of Partnerships, Coinlist), Sarutobi Sasuke (Head of Partnerships, Yield Guild Games), Priyanka Gill (Founder, Good Glamm Group), and Antony Lewis (Founder, Temasek).
David Cai, Co-Head of Kronos Ambrosia Fund said:
“IQ Protocol offers a unique way for the lending and borrowing of NFTs in a decentralized and permissionless manner. We see many use cases in the financial and gaming NFT space, and we are excited to help support IQ Protocol on its future endeavors.”
List of institutional investors: Crypto.com Capital, Republic Capital, Kronos Research, GSR, Axia8 Ventures, Wave7, Double Peak Group, Petrock Capital, LVT Capital, One Block Capital, Wealth Union, Solar Eco Fund, Genblock Capital, Argo Labs, Warpspeed Capital, Alpha Crypto Group, ZBS Capital, Cryptology AG, Mission Ventures, Influence Capital, AU21 Capital, NGC, GBV, FBG, Digital Strategies, Contango Digital Assets, Criterion VC, Cipholio, MEXC Global, 7 oClock Capital, Pluto Digital, Starlaunch, Oddiyana Ventures, Vespertine Capital, M77 Ventures, LuaVentures, Parachain Ventures, Perridon Holdings, Parastate Labs, DAO Capital, CryptoRoundTable, Rainmaker Games, Chainmyth, Firework Games, DefiYieldApp, Solarpunk Ventures, DAOSquare, BreederDAO, Play-It-Forward, Unix Gaming, and Cryptomeria Capital.
List of angel investors: Mike Zajko (CoinList), Richmond Theo (PAXOS founder), Sandeep Nailwal (Polygon founder), Rahul Dalmia, Sarutobi Sasuke (Yield Guild Games), Waleed Rassuli (Tezos), Priyanka Gill (Good Glamm Group founder), Heslin Kim (Supra-Oracles founder), Yuen Wong (Labs Group founder), and Bekar Goletiani (Red Bull).
IQ Labs CEO, Tom Tirman, said:
“We’re delighted at the tremendous response IQ Protocol has received. We were extremely fortunate to be highly oversubscribed, and therefore able to select long-term strategic partnerships to best position us for success. We stand to gain significant benefit from the depth and diversity of experience which encompass exchanges, launchpads, guilds, blockchains, and TradFi, which will bring great synergy to the IQ Protocol roadmap. We’d like to take this opportunity to thank our backers and look forward to an exciting journey ahead.”
The $IQT token is set to launch in the coming months. For more information on the token launch, whitelist, and airdrops, please visit iq.space and follow IQ Labs social media channels.
About IQ Protocol
IQ Protocol is a decentralized money market for digital asset renting and on-chain subscriptions. The next money lego that allows users to rent wrapped expirable versions of digital assets without collateral for their utility while allowing holders to earn by providing liquidity without risk.
IQ Protocol: Blog, Twitter, Discord, Telegram, Reddit.
