Libre Capital Rebrands to KAIO @KAIO_xyz KAIO: Building the Future of On-Chain Capital Markets A quiet revolution is taking place at the intersection of traditional finance (TradFi) and decentralized finance (DeFi). The platform Libre Capital, which has been tokenizing regulated investment funds, has rebranded to KAIO. This is not just a superficial change; it signifies a fundamental shift towards building infrastructure that makes institutional capital programmable and composable on public blockchains. Additionally, KAIO is tokenizing a $100 million Bitcoin yield fund to bridge the gap between TradFi and DeFi. This fund is managed by Nomura's digital asset division, Laser Digital Middle East, and holds a license from the Dubai Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA). We will explore why this announcement is significant, how to leverage the growing momentum of real-world asset (RWA) tokenization, and what it means for capital markets. From Libre to KAIO - A Bold New Direction In less than two years, Libre Capital has tokenized over $200 million in assets from BlackRock, Brevan Howard, Hamilton Lane, and Laser Digital. The platform serves as a foundation for the issuance, redemption, and transfer of tokenized funds, allowing accredited investors to subscribe using fiat or stablecoins and move positions across blockchains. The rebranding to KAIO reflects greater ambitions. Beyond merely replicating traditional funds on-chain, KAIO aims to transform them into DeFi-ready primitives. This means creating tokens that can be integrated into lending, borrowing, and yield protocols, enabling new strategies and liquidity channels. KAIO's COO, Olivier Dang, described this in the announcement as the "RWA 2.0" vision, emphasizing that it is strategy-focused rather than merely storage. The goal is to create an interoperable space where real-world assets and crypto yields coexist and enhance each other. Institutional Yield Tokenization - Partnership with Laser Digital At the core of KAIO's strategy is a deep partnership with Laser Digital, Nomura's digital asset division. Laser Digital connects traditional finance with the crypto market and has received a license from Dubai VARA to provide virtual asset broker-dealer, management, and investment services. In February 2025, Libre and Sui announced that institutional investors on the Sui network would have access to tokenized funds, including the Laser Carry Fund (LCF). LCF employs a market-neutral strategy that captures funding rates and yield opportunities in the digital asset market, leveraging Laser Digital's capital markets and risk management expertise to maintain regulatory compliance while generating enhanced returns. Cross-Chain Interoperability - LayerZero, Chainlink, and More For true composability, assets must move seamlessly across blockchains. In April 2025, Libre announced integration with LayerZero's omnichain messaging infrastructure. This will allow future institutional funds issued by Libre to exist with a single supply across more than 120 blockchains. LayerZero's Omnichain Fungible Token standard eliminates liquidity fragmentation, enabling institutions to deploy, transfer, and manage assets safely and efficiently. KAIO has also partnered with Chainlink. By utilizing Chainlink's CCIP (Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol), Proof of Reserve, and Smart Data products, KAIO supports tokenized funds that provide exposure to assets managed by BlackRock and Laser Digital. Chainlink's infrastructure provides on-chain reserve and net asset value (NAV) data, allowing DeFi protocols to build on verified information. This integration makes KAIO's tokens true omnichain and regulatory-compliant tokens that can circulate across multiple networks, including Ethereum, Solana, and Aptos. Partner Portfolio - Building On-Chain Capital Markets In addition to Laser Digital, KAIO has built partnerships across the blockchain ecosystem: - Polygon @0xPolygon, Solana, NEAR, Aptos - Ecosystem Expansion: KAIO collaborates with privacy-focused zero-knowledge projects, cross-chain liquidity providers, and high-performance L1s to build an open, regulatory-compliant, and programmable capital market. - Sui Network - On-Chain Fund Access: In February 2025, Sui and Libre opened institutional access to real-world assets on-chain. Investors can now natively verify fund positions on Sui, marking a significant milestone in expanding transparency and accessibility in decentralized markets. This collaboration lays the groundwork for future composable use cases, such as collateralized lending and capital-efficient DeFi integrations through the Libre Gateway. - TON - Tokenized Telegram Bond Fund: In April 2025, Libre and the TON Foundation announced a $500 million tokenized Telegram bond fund. Managed by Libre's regulated fund manager, this fund provides on-chain exposure to Telegram's outstanding bonds and is used as collateral for on-chain borrowing. - Avalanche - High-Performance Tokenization: In May 2025, the integration brought the Laser Carry Fund to the Avalanche network, joining existing tokenized funds from BlackRock, Hamilton Lane, and Brevan Howard. Avalanche's speed and sub-second finality provide a scalable foundation for DeFi strategies. - Chainlink - Trusted Data and Interoperability: Chainlink's CCIP and Proof of Reserve services provide the data infrastructure needed for institutional adoption. - LayerZero - Omnichain Connectivity: Through LayerZero's messaging and Omnichain Fungible Token standard, KAIO maintains a single supply across more than 120 chains. - RISC Zero - zkVM-Based Privacy: On-chain credentials can be issued while keeping investor information private and complying with regulatory standards. Why It Matters - The Rise of RWA 2.0 Institutional investors have cautiously navigated digital assets for years. Surveys indicate that most investors believe tokenization can revolutionize asset management. However, connecting regulatory requirements, risk management, and DeFi composability has remained a challenge. KAIO's approach addresses these challenges: 1. Regulated Access: By collaborating with licensed fund managers like Laser Digital, KAIO ensures that funds meet regulatory standards. 2. Cross-Chain Liquidity: With LayerZero and Chainlink integration, KAIO's tokens can move across networks without friction. 3. Composability: Tokenized funds can be used as collateral for loans, yield optimization, and components of synthetic products. 4. Real-World Yields: By tokenizing corporate bonds such as money market funds, private loans, and Telegram bond funds, KAIO connects stable traditional yield assets to DeFi. 5. Interoperability and Scalability: With support from Sui, Avalanche, TON, and others, KAIO's assets can scale to meet global demand. Looking Ahead As regulatory clarity improves and demand for tokenized assets increases, KAIO is positioning itself as a foundation for the future of compliant and interoperable finance. The platform's strategy combines the structure of TradFi (institutional managers, regulated funds, robust risk management) with the flexibility of DeFi (composability, cross-chain liquidity, programmable yields). KAIO is transforming institutional-grade funds into tokens that can be integrated into the global DeFi ecosystem, building the capital markets of tomorrow. For both investors and developers, KAIO's announcement is a milestone. It demonstrates that real-world assets can be issued, traded, and used as components across blockchains without compromising regulatory standards or risk management. As more funds, credit products, and yield strategies transition on-chain, the boundaries between traditional finance and DeFi will blur, and KAIO aims to be at the forefront, providing the technological foundation at this intersection. I personally believe that partnering with AI RWA Novastro @Novastro_xyz will make it even more efficient.