A new decentralized exchange, Ostium, has made headlines by securing $20 million in a Series A funding round, bolstered by investments from notable ventures such as General Catalyst and the crypto division of Jump Trading. Founded by two Harvard graduates, Ostium caters to users looking to trade real-world assets, including stocks, metals, oil, and select cryptocurrencies. A distinctive feature of Ostium’s platform is its offering of perpetual futures—derivatives that do not have a fixed expiration date, allowing traders to engage in higher-risk strategies as long as they meet margin requirements.
The latest funding round, which valued Ostium at approximately $250 million, included contributions from Coinbase Ventures and prominent crypto market-making firms like Wintermute and GSR. This follows Ostium’s previous fundraising efforts, which raised nearly $8 million.
Marc Bhargava, a managing director at General Catalyst, emphasized the need for a bridge between traditional financial systems and the burgeoning crypto asset class. “We live in a world where traditional financial institutions and financial products still have a lot of relevance,” he remarked, highlighting the demand for innovative solutions that merge these worlds.
With a team of 15 employees, Ostium is navigating a competitive landscape of decentralized exchanges specializing in perpetual contracts, or “perps.” Interest in these derivatives surged following the success of the trading protocol Hyperliquid, which emerged in 2025 and positioned itself against major platforms like Binance. Other startups such as Lighter and Aster have similarly entered the fray, further intensifying competition.
Ostium, named after the ancient Roman port city, distinguishes itself by not aiming to replicate these trading protocols; instead, it seeks to compete with established online brokerages like Robinhood and eToro. Co-founder Kaledora Kiernan-Linn believes her background as a classical ballet dancer has equipped her with the discipline and resilience needed for the startup world. Having danced with the Royal Danish Ballet and holding a Harvard degree, she partners with Marco Antonio Ribeiro, who has an impressive background in the sciences.
In contrast to projects focused primarily on cryptocurrency trading, Ostium is targeting tangible assets such as metals and energy. The duo plans to utilize their fresh capital to reach non-crypto investors beyond the U.S. borders, specifically aiming at the offshore broker market. This segment often grapples with complex brokerage systems and outdated technology, which Kiernan-Linn believes Ostium can effectively disrupt. She pointed out that there are few entities operating in this niche space within the crypto realm, describing it as a “textbook use case for blockchain.”
