Squid on The DeFi Drop: Raising $6M in a Bear Market and the Future of Cross-Chain

Guest: Fig, Co-founder, Squid

Host: Edward Ward, Portals.fi

Building Cross-Chain Infrastructure Through the Bear Market

In this episode of The DeFi Drop, Edward Ward speaks with Fig, co-founder of Squid. The conversation covers their recent $6 million funding round, the strategy behind their 12x oversubscribed public token sale, and the future of cross-chain infrastructure.

Squid has achieved significant milestones, crossing $6 billion in routed volume across 4 million transactions. These metrics were built steadily during the bear market, demonstrating strong product-market fit.

Fig emphasized that despite shifts in crypto narratives toward meme coins and RWAs, the core infrastructure required to move capital between blockchains remains fundamentally necessary.

The recent $6 million funding round was led by North Island Ventures, with participation from Ripple, Dialectic, Borderless Capital, and several angel investors.

Fig attributed the success of the raise to long-term alignment with chain foundations and building genuine trust.

"The in-person relationships is probably the single biggest thing you can do... flying to their offices and just having a meeting with them... trust is probably the most important thing."

Moving Up the Stack and Pitching Fundamentals

Pitching infrastructure to venture capitalists can be challenging. Fig noted that many investors look for viral narratives, while Squid focuses on realistic, sustainable fundamentals.

To adapt to the current market, Squid is expanding its focus beyond base layer protocols and cross-chain swaps. The team is actively moving up the stack toward institutional clients and enterprise chains, including deployments on Canton.

Recognizing that front-end applications currently capture a significant portion of industry revenue, Squid is also developing a consumer app. This application aims to own the direct relationship with the user through social logins, moving beyond traditional wallet connections.

Rethinking the Public Token Sale

Launching a token mid-bear market requires careful structuring. Squid's public sale opened at a $45 million FDV, a calculated choice designed to give the community a better entry point than early venture investors.

Fig then expressed frustration with the current airdrop meta, noting that it often turns protocol usage into a game rather than genuine adoption. Squid has never paid for volume or run incentive programs. Their internal analysis revealed that of their $6 billion total volume, less than $100 million came from airdrop farmers.

To combat the negative reputation associated with insider dumping, the public allocation for the Squid token is 100% unlocked at the TGE. This structure rewards users who genuinely believe in the project while removing the anxiety of future sell pressure.

The sale was conducted across two platforms: Legion for global users and Kraken for US participants. The strategy proved highly effective.

The sale was fully subscribed on the first day and ultimately became 12x oversubscribed, attracting around 3,500 participants and pulling in $1 million every 10 minutes near the close.

Tokenomics, RWAs, and Future Roadmap

Looking ahead, Squid is focused on aligning token holders with ecosystem revenue. While navigating legal constraints, Fig outlined that the core utilities of the token will involve staking and buybacks.

Revenue generated from protocol fees and off-chain products will be used to produce staking rewards or buy back tokens from the open market.

The product roadmap leans heavily into RWAs and stablecoins. Fig is particularly bullish on connecting global users seamlessly to assets like Ondo and X-stocks. Squid is also working closely with Ripple in preparation for the launch of Ripple's upcoming stablecoin, RLUSD.

Despite this expansive roadmap, the Squid team remains lean, currently operating with just 20 people and planning only strategic, targeted hires in the near future.

TVL Prediction: $90 Billion by 2026

When asked to predict the total DeFi TVL by New Year's Eve 2026, Fig offered a measured estimate of $90 billion.

With the current TVL sitting around $76 billion, this prediction reflects a mature, conservative outlook focused on sustainable growth rather than speculative spikes.

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