Cycles raises $6.4m to expand clearing network for digital asset markets

Toronto-based crypto infrastructure startup Cycles has raised $6.4 million in funding to support the development of its open clearing network for on-chain finance, as the company looks to address settlement and liquidity inefficiencies across digital asset markets.

The funding round was led by Blockchange Ventures, with participation from Coinbase Ventures, Compound VC, Primitive Ventures, and a group of angel investors. The latest raise brings Cycles’ total funding to $8.7 million, following a $2.3 million pre-seed round completed in 2025.

“Clearing is a financial superpower that has historically only been available to large financial institutions,” said Ethan Buchman, Co-founder and CEO of Cycles. “Our goal is to bring that superpower to everyone else, through a privacy-preserving clearing network with capital efficiency at its core, and without centralised intermediaries.”

Cycles is developing a privacy-preserving multilateral clearing network designed to net obligations across crypto trading and stablecoin payment flows. The company said the infrastructure aims to reduce liquidity requirements, improve capital efficiency, and lower counterparty risk without requiring firms to move assets or alter existing trading relationships.

“Clearing is the cornerstone of capital-efficient markets like foreign exchange allowing the movement of massive volumes of value without crippling liquidity requirements,” said Rob Schmults, General Partner at Blockchange Ventures. “We see Cycles providing an essential coordination layer to bring the efficiency and effectiveness of clearing to new markets. Doing this will allow businesses to clear and settle payments privately, optimise capital flow, and reduce the need for idle capital. As global adoption accelerates, Cycles can become a category defining standard for how value is settled and netted across entire ecosystems and markets.”

Its first institutional product, Cycles Prime, enables trading firms to privately net OTC obligations across the network. The platform is launching with Lynq and FalconX as anchor partners.

The company is also launching Cycles Pay, a stablecoin payments application for individuals and businesses. The platform routes payments through Cycles’ clearing engine, enabling obligations to be netted across participants to minimise capital movement while supporting invoicing, expense management, and additional financial tools.