Meet the first cohort: The 5 teams selected for the DeFi Builders Program

When we first envisioned the DeFi Builders Program, our goal was simple: to create a support system that high-potential teams actually need to launch and scale on Polkadot Hub. It’s not just about capital. It’s about providing direct access to technical mentorship, go-to-market strategy, liquidity partners, and a network ready to help. We wanted to build a program that empowers builders to focus on what they do best—building the future of DeFi.

The DeFi Builders Program is a 12-week structured initiative led by Velocity Labs in partnership with the Web3 Foundation, Parity Technologies, and other partners. The program addresses the core challenges that prevent DeFi projects from succeeding: the liquidity cold-start problem, security vulnerabilities, and the difficulty of achieving sustainable product-market fit. Instead of just providing grants, the program offers a comprehensive package including funding, direct technical support from core developers, security audits, liquidity partnerships, and go-to-market strategy, all designed to help teams launch stronger applications on Polkadot Hub.

We were truly humbled by the response. We received over 75 applications from impressive teams all over the world. The quality, innovation, and vision on display made the selection process incredibly tough. It's clear that the desire to build high-performance, interoperable financial applications is stronger than ever.

While we wish we could support everyone, we are excited to announce the 5 elite teams that will make up our first cohort.

Introducing the DeFi Builders Program Cohort 1

Joinn

Joinn is building a financial platform to empower the underserved in Latin America by integrating spending and investing. Their flagship product, Joinn Pay, is a yield-generating wallet that allows users to spend while their balances earn real-time yield from tokenized assets like bonds and ETFs. In a region where over 98% of potential savers do not invest, Joinn is tackling high-friction barriers with a simple Web2-style interface, AI-driven onboarding, and gamified tools to make wealth generation accessible and inflation-resistant for millions.

SigilSafe

​SigilSafe is building a privacy-preserving platform to bridge the gap between traditional estate planning and the digital asset economy. As crypto becomes a major part of personal wealth, SigilSafe "Estate Graph" allows users to securely map their entire portfolio. The platform ensures that value is not locked or lost during probate by giving fiduciaries selective, event-based access without ever exposing private keys. It creates a tamper-evident bridge between on-chain and off-chain wealth, reducing legal friction and securing the next generation of assets on a global scale.

WinCoins

WinCoins is a creator-first prediction market protocol that allows anyone to instantly launch and resolve markets based on real-time events. While traditional platforms are often slow and permissioned, WinCoins empowers creators and fans to monetize attention. Using a smart-oracle system with AI and live data feeds, creators can launch markets on social trends or gaming events and earn 1% of all trading volume, turning community engagement into a new kind of economy.

Koni Finance

The Subwallet team is building a unified trading and token launch ecosystem native to Polkadot Hub, connecting the Ethereum, Arbitrum, Bitcoin, and Polkadot networks. The platform is designed to be an all-in-one solution, featuring an advanced Trading Terminal for professional-grade analytics and a permissionless Token Launch Platform for transparent token issuance. Koni Finance aims to bridge the full lifecycle of a digital asset, from launch to trading and management, all from a single, seamless interface.

TidalX

TidalX is building a next-generation perpetual trading platform (Perp DEX) designed for mass adoption. Their mission is to make leverage trading intuitive, fast, and accessible for everyone. Already backed by over $250,000 in security audits, the platform delivers professional-grade functionality in a clean, user-friendly interface. By focusing on gasless, ultra-fast, and simple execution, TidalX is positioned to be the ideal onboarding tool for the next wave of DeFi users.

What's next?

These five teams are just getting started. This week, they officially begin the intensive 12-week program. They will be working closely with our partners and core developers to refine their products, secure their code, and prepare for a successful mainnet launch.

We can't wait to see what they build and to have them present their progress at the first cohort Investor Demo Day.

The selection of this cohort is a major milestone for Polkadot Hub. The innovation and energy these teams bring are a testament to the bright future of DeFi on Polkadot. We are honored to be a part of their journey.

About the author

Jonathan Boyd is the DeFi & Infra BD Lead at Velocity Labs and a Program Manager for the DeFi Builders Program. He is focused on incubating and supporting the next generation of financial applications on Polkadot.