Funding Round Overview
Metal, a tokenized financial product settlement network, announced the completion of a seed funding round led by enterprise payment and financial platform Airwallex and venture capital firm Capital49. The exact amount raised was not disclosed. As part of the investment, Airwallex has joined Metal as its first design partner, signaling deeper collaboration in the tokenized settlement space.
About Metal
Metal is a settlement network designed for tokenized financial products, leveraging blockchain technology to enable the tokenization, trading, and settlement of various asset types. Its core features include support for multiple asset classes, real-time settlement, reduced intermediary costs, and integration with traditional payment rails. The network is still in early development, and the funding will be used for technical R&D and ecosystem growth.
Investor Background and Notable Shift
Airwallex is a global business payment and financial platform. Its founder, Jack Zhang, tweeted in June 2025 expressing skepticism about stablecoins: 'Investors keep asking me about stablecoins and how they reduce FX fees. If you send USD to EUR and the recipient still needs to receive EUR in their bank, I don't see how stablecoins can reduce fees—the conversion cost from stablecoin to receiving currency is far higher than the interbank FX market. Cryptocurrency is an area I've never understood. In the past 15 years, I've yet to see any application case.' However, Airwallex's decision to lead Metal's seed round and become its design partner indicates a potential evolution in its stance, actively investing in tokenized settlement technology.