Overview of Binance Labs (now YZi Labs)
Founded in 2018, Binance Labs is the venture capital and incubation arm of Binance, the world’s leading cryptocurrency exchange. Its core mission is to identify and support promising Web3 and blockchain projects, accelerating the development of the entire ecosystem by providing resources such as funding, technical guidance, and marketing support.As of early 2024, Binance Labs had been spun off to operate as an independent entity and was officially renamed YZi Labs in early 2025, continuing its investment and incubation efforts in the blockchain sector.The organization screens 10 to 30 projects annually for investment, with its portfolio spanning multiple growth areas such as decentralized finance (DeFi), non-fungible tokens (NFTs), the metaverse, and blockchain gaming.
A Review of Eight Key Projects Invested in by Binance Labs (YZi Labs)
Below are eight noteworthy projects invested in by Binance Labs (or its rebranded counterpart, YZi Labs) as of March 2024:
- Pendle Finance: This is a leading LSDfi (Liquid Staking Derivatives DeFi) yield trading protocol. Binance Labs announced its investment in August 2023. Pendle Finance allows users to devise complex yield strategies by tokenizing future earnings, bringing new avenues of financial innovation to the DeFi ecosystem.
- Radiant Capital: As a cross-chain lending protocol, Radiant Capital aims to achieve liquidity aggregation across multiple blockchains. The project has been listed by Binance Labs as one of its key investment priorities.
- Neutron: Neutron is a cross-chain smart contract platform built on the Cosmos blockchain. Binance Labs led a $10 million funding round for Neutron. The platform is dedicated to addressing security vulnerabilities, trust issues, and ecosystem connectivity limitations in cross-chain application development, facilitating the seamless creation of cross-chain dApps within the Cosmos ecosystem.
- Open Campus: This is a groundbreaking Web3 project designed to empower communities to create and monetize educational content. Open Campus received a $3.15 million investment from Binance Labs and was launched as the 31st project on Binance Launchpad, with the goal of revolutionizing the education sector through blockchain technology.
- Curve Finance: As a well-known decentralized exchange in the DeFi space, Curve Finance focuses on stablecoin trading and operates its liquidity pools using an automated market maker (AMM) mechanism. With its efficient stablecoin exchange model and products, Curve holds a significant position in the DeFi industry.Its native token is CRV, and holders can participate in the governance of Curve DAO.
- Memeland: This is a Web3 community and NFT project launched by the 9GAG team. Memeland has been listed by Binance Labs as one of its investment projects to watch, reflecting its interest in Web3 communities and cultural initiatives.
- Puffer Finance: Puffer Finance is a decentralized liquid staking protocol focused on providing secure and decentralized Ethereum liquid staking services. The project has been rated as having “high” investment potential on YZi Labs’ (formerly Binance Labs) investment list.
- Ethena: Ethena is a liquid staking derivatives (LSD) protocol that introduced the concept of the synthetic dollar, USDe. Users can generate USDe by leveraging liquid staking tokens (LSTs) such as tETH and rETH. Ethena manages the liquidation risks inherent in market volatility through delta hedging strategies.The project is rated as having “very high” investment potential on YZi Labs’ investment list and has raised $182.5 million in funding.
The Strategic Significance of Binance Labs (YZi Labs)
Binance Labs’ (now YZi Labs) investment strategy not only provides critical financial backing to portfolio projects but also helps accelerate their product development and market expansion through its extensive industry network and expert guidance.For the cryptocurrency community, projects backed by Binance Labs are generally viewed as high-potential opportunities with a strong likelihood of being listed on the Binance platform, thereby gaining broader market exposure and liquidity.
