Андре Кронье собирает $200 млн для создания мультифункциональной DeFi-биржи Headline: Andre Cronje Raises $200 Million to Create a Multifunctional DeFi Exchange

Flying Tulip, developed by DeFi creator Andre Cronje, has successfully raised $200 million in its seed funding round. The team is set to develop an exchange that will integrate spot and derivatives trading, lending, stablecoins, and insurance into a single platform.

The funding round utilized a Simple Agreement for Future Tokens (SAFT) format, valuing the project at $1 billion. Notable investors include Brevan Howard Digital, CoinFund, DWF Labs, FalconX, Hypersphere, and others.

The project aims to raise an additional $800 million through a public sale of FT tokens at the same valuation, which will take place on its proprietary Flying Tulip platform.

A distinctive feature of this round is the «on-chain buyback right.» Investors can burn FT tokens at any time and reclaim their original capital in the asset they contributed, such as Ethereum. Cronje stated that this model provides a safety net for investors against losses while retaining «unlimited growth potential.»

The raised capital will not be spent directly. Instead, the team plans to invest it in DeFi protocols like Aave and Ethena. The anticipated annual return of 4% could generate around $40 million each year. These funds will be allocated to project development, user incentives, and token buybacks.

According to Cronje, his past experiences inspired this model. The pressure from token prices often leads to short-term decisions that harm the protocol. The buyback mechanism alleviates this pressure.

Team members will not receive an initial token allocation. Their compensation will come from asset buybacks on the open market funded by protocol revenues.

Cronje emphasized that Flying Tulip is not merely a decentralized exchange (DEX) but a «complete reconstruction» of all essential DeFi services from the ground up.

Upon launch, the exchange will operate across Ethereum, Avalanche, BNB Chain, Sonic, and Solana networks. Initially, the platform will be deployed on Sonic, offering trading with zero fees. The exact launch date is yet to be determined.

As a reminder, in August, Sonic Labs approved a plan to enter the U.S. capital market.