The eToro crypto accelerated its strategy to expand the offering of blockchain-based services. The brokerage announced an investment of US$ 12,5 million in Extended, an exchange specialized in on-chain perpetual futures contracts, reinforcing its plans to expand DeFi products for traditional investors.
The funding round also included participation from Jump Crypto and Alber Blanc. The move complements the acquisition of the self-custody wallet Zengo for US$ 70 million, previously announced by eToro, consolidating the company's expansion in the Web3 market.
eToro crypto expands DeFi product offering
According to the company, the goal is to offer simpler access to decentralized finance without users having to give up custody of their digital assets.
"We are seeing growing demand from our users for easier access to DeFi products," said Elad Lavi. "Our recent acquisition of Zengo and our investment in Extended are fundamental parts of our strategy to meet this demand and expand our Web3 ecosystem."
As part of this strategy, Extended's technology will be integrated into the Zengo wallet. Thus, users will be able to trade perpetual futures contracts directly through the wallet, maintaining control over their cryptocurrencies throughout the entire process.
The company also said it intends to bring other DeFi products to eToro's main platform in the coming months, expanding the number of services available to its clients.
On-chain trading gains ground among brokerages
The investment by eToro crypto follows a growing trend among investment platforms, which seek to bring blockchain-based trading to an ever-larger audience.
Perpetual futures contracts, once concentrated almost exclusively in the cryptocurrency market, have come to include assets such as stocks, commodities, and other financial instruments. This integration reduces the distance between the traditional financial market and digital asset platforms.
Extended was created by Ruslan Fakhrutdinov, former head of the cryptocurrency area at Revolut. According to the company, the platform has already processed more than US$ 245 billion in trading volume through June and currently offers more than 100 perpetual contract markets.
In addition, the exchange intends to expand its structure to include spot trading, tokenized real-world assets, and collateral composed of different assets.
"The first phase was to build for DeFi natives," Fakhrutdinov said in a statement. "The next is to expand the infrastructure and partnerships needed to support the next stage of on-chain derivatives."
eToro crypto bets on the convergence between blockchain and the financial market
The strategy of eToro crypto follows a broader shift in the financial sector. Brokerages and investment platforms have been expanding the offering of blockchain-based services to bring together different types of assets in a single environment.
Ouriel Ohayon, managing director of Zengo, said that this transformation should continue in the coming years.
"Capital markets are increasingly converging with digital asset infrastructure," said Ouriel Ohayon. "eToro’s investment in Extended reflects a shared conviction that the future of trading will be digital, accessible, and able to operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, beyond the traditional trading week."