Funding news · Oct 5, 2026
Xverse Raises Series A Led by Draper Associates for Self-Custodial Bitcoin Neobank
Xverse Closes Series A Led by Draper Associates
Xverse, the self-custodial Bitcoin neobank built by Secret Key Labs, has raised a Series A round led by Draper Associates. The round also includes participation from Draper Dragon and Trust Machines. The funding date is October 5, 2026.
What Xverse Does
Headquartered in Hong Kong and launched in 2021, Xverse pairs a self-custodial Bitcoin vault with onchain Earn, Cash and Borrow rails. The product is designed so users can earn yield, pay with stablecoins and borrow against their Bitcoin across networks including Stacks, Starknet and Spark — all while keeping control of their private keys.
The wallet app has surpassed two million downloads.
Positioning
Founder and CEO Ken Liao positions Xverse as the consumer banking layer for Bitcoin holders moving assets off centralized exchanges. That framing places the company at the intersection of self-custody and consumer financial services, a combination that has drawn increasing attention as Bitcoin holders look for yield and credit without surrendering key control.
Round Details
- Round type: Series A
- Lead investor: Draper Associates
- Additional investors: Draper Dragon, Trust Machines
- Funding date: October 5, 2026
- Headquarters: Hong Kong
- Founder and CEO: Ken Liao
Why It Matters
The Series A gives Xverse backing from investors with deep roots in Bitcoin and decentralized infrastructure. Draper Associates leads the round, with Draper Dragon and Trust Machines participating. For a company building a self-custodial alternative to centralized exchange accounts, that investor mix signals continued appetite for consumer-facing Bitcoin financial rails.
With more than two million downloads already recorded, Xverse enters its next phase with an established user base and a product spanning earn, payments and borrowing. The company's stated goal — becoming the consumer banking layer for Bitcoin holders — sets up a competitive landscape against both centralized platforms and other self-custodial wallets expanding into financial services.
Acquisition Context
For acquirers and strategic partners, Xverse represents a self-custodial wallet with scale, multi-network support and an expanding financial services stack. The combination of a Bitcoin vault with Earn, Cash and Borrow rails across Stacks, Starknet and Spark gives the company a differentiated position among consumer crypto wallets. Its Hong Kong headquarters and founder-led structure are relevant considerations for any evaluation of the business.