Ground, a startup co-founded by Superstate co-founder Reid Cuming, raised $3.6 million in a pre-seed funding round and launched its platform Wednesday to help fintechs and asset managers access onchain yield products through an API. The company began fundraising in September 2025 and closed the round the following month, structured as a simple agreement for future equity (SAFE) with token warrants. Bain Capital Crypto and ParaFi co-led the round, with participation from Nascent, Robot Ventures, Chapter One, and Consonant Ventures. The platform addresses growing demand as stablecoin and tokenization adoption increases, providing financial platforms a way to add onchain yield products without building their own blockchain integrations.
Bain Capital Crypto and ParaFi Co-Lead $3.6 Million Round
Bain Capital Crypto and ParaFi co-led Ground's $3.6 million pre-seed round, with participation from Nascent, Robot Ventures, Chapter One, and Consonant Ventures, the company said Wednesday. Ground began fundraising in September 2025 and closed the round the following month, Cuming told The Block. The round was structured as a simple agreement for future equity (SAFE) with token warrants, Cuming said, declining to disclose valuation. No investors received board seats, observer seats, or advisory roles as part of the round, he added.
Parth Chopra, partner at Bain Capital Crypto, said fintechs and institutions are increasingly looking beyond stablecoins and tokenization toward onchain credit markets that can offer higher yields and lower borrowing costs. "This is not at all easy to do today," Chopra said. He added that Bain Capital Crypto invested in Ground because it is building infrastructure that gives fintech developers secure and compliant access to a range of onchain credit products.
Ground API Supports Aave, Morpho, and Kamino Protocols
Ground's API allows clients to access onchain yield strategies based on their risk and liquidity preferences, the company said. The platform currently supports crypto-native yield sources, including lending protocols, structured products, and, soon, liquid staking tokens, according to Cuming. When asked what yield products are currently available, Cuming pointed to protocols including Aave, Morpho, Maple, and Kamino across Ethereum, Solana, and Layer 2 networks. He said Ground regularly adds new protocols and blockchains based on customer demand.
"Ground is building the platform that makes onchain finance accessible and embeddable," Cuming said. "As stablecoins and tokenization adoption increases outside the U.S. and within, there will be a need to do more than hold or spend but to earn, to grow, and invest." Ground's target clients include fintechs, neobanks, wealth managers, exchanges, and asset managers building yield, savings, or investment products. "The global asset management industry oversees more than $147 trillion, and there are trillions of dollars idling in pre-funded accounts, neobanks, and blockchain wallets. That is a massive untapped opportunity," Cuming said.
When asked about competitors, Cuming said most existing alternatives are crypto-native protocols, yield aggregators, or infrastructure providers built primarily for web3 users. He said many lack the transparency and configurability features required by fintechs and traditional financial institutions.
Ground Plans Usage-Based Revenue Model and Additional Hires
Ground plans to generate revenue through usage-based platform fees, according to Cuming. The company is based in San Francisco and has three full-time employees, including the founders, along with one contractor. Cuming said Ground expects to hire between two and four additional employees across engineering, go-to-market, and potentially legal and operations roles.
Ground was co-founded by Cuming, who previously co-founded tokenization startup Superstate and served as vice president and general manager of Compound Treasury, alongside chief technology officer Sam Yoon. Yoon previously served as technical CEO of Braid, where he worked on stablecoin infrastructure, and also led product and engineering efforts at HiFi. Cuming said he remains a board member and senior advisor at Superstate but is no longer involved in the firm's day-to-day operations.
FAQ
What did Ground raise in its pre-seed funding round?
Ground raised $3.6 million in a pre-seed funding round co-led by Bain Capital Crypto and ParaFi, with participation from Nascent, Robot Ventures, Chapter One, and Consonant Ventures. The company began fundraising in September 2025 and closed the round the following month.
What protocols does Ground's API currently support?
Ground's API currently supports protocols including Aave, Morpho, Maple, and Kamino across Ethereum, Solana, and Layer 2 networks. The platform provides access to crypto-native yield sources including lending protocols, structured products, and liquid staking tokens.
