Update: Binance Industry Recovery Plan has received support from 18 institutions and has funded 14 projects

Key pointsOn November 24, 2022, Binance launched the Industry Recovery Initiative (IRI) to provide recovery support to the crypto asset industry, which has experienced difficulties in the past year.
In the past three months, IRI has received support from 18 institutions and raised a total of US$1.1 billion.
At press time, IRI participating institutions have provided funding support for 14 projects, and another 57 projects are in the due diligence stage. Currently, IRI funding applications are still open.
It has been three months since IRI was launched. Below is an update on the past three months and an introduction to the projects that have successfully received support.
On November 24, 2022, we launched the Industry Recovery Initiative (IRI) to support the recovery of the crypto asset industry, which has experienced many difficulties, and to protect users. Binance and industry leaders such as Aptos and DWF have reached an agreement to provide financial support to projects with good development prospects but in short-term financial difficulties due to negative market events in 2022.
Three months later, we are excited to announce that IRI has received support from 18 institutions, raising a total of $1.1 billion. As of press time, 14 projects have received funding and another 57 projects are in the due diligence stage. For more details about the Binance IRI program and participating institutions, please continue reading below.
Binance IRI’s first investment project: GOPAXOn February 3, 2023, we announced that GOPAX became the first project invested by Binance IRI. GOPAX is one of the five major crypto asset trading platforms that have obtained a fiat-to-crypto asset service license in South Korea.
“Binance is committed to protecting the safety of our users’ funds and the healthy development of the crypto industry,” said Changpeng Zhao (CZ), Founder and CEO of Binance. “The Industry Recovery Program was created to support promising companies that were negatively impacted by last year’s market events, and we hope that our investment in GOPAX will help the Korean crypto and blockchain industry recover.”
GOPAXIn November 2022, due to the suspension of withdrawal services by Genesis Global Capital, LLC, GOPAX, as its product broker, also suspended the withdrawal services of principal and interest payments on its decentralized finance (DeFi) service platform GoFi. Since then, GOPAX has worked closely with local regulators and industry partners to raise funds to return to affected users.
The IRI program selects industry projects that focus on innovation and long-term value creation, have viable business models, and focus on risk control. Binance learned that GOPAX is a company with a solid business model, focuses on risk management, and is a leader in the local crypto asset industry.
The two exchanges share a common goal: to raise the standard of user protection by shaping a sustainable and responsible crypto asset investment and trading environment in South Korea. To promote this mission, Binance decided to make its first investment in GOPAX, which will be used exclusively to meet GoFi platform user withdrawal requests.
Aptos and DWF announce support for IRIIn addition, Animoca Brands, Aptos Labs, Brooker Group, DWF Labs, GSR, Jump Crypto, Kronos, and Polygon Ventures also announced their participation in the IRI program. It is worth emphasizing that in addition to Binance IRI’s investment in GOPAX, our partners have also provided financial support to the crypto asset industry through IRI.
Aptos IRI Investment UpdateAptos is a Layer 1 blockchain. Aptos Network provides developers with an efficient, secure and reliable application development environment.
In the past three months, Aptos has approved nine projects for investment or funding from IRI, with several more currently under review.
Mo Shaikh, CEO and co-founder of Aptos Labs, said: “Aptos is focused on creating true usability for the crypto space. Through IRI, we can further support the Aptos ecosystem and build applications that can be used at scale. We are proud to support this initiative and advance our common goal of achieving crypto ubiquity.”
Aptos is committed to continuing to support more projects through IRI and promote sustainable development of the industry.
DWF IRI Investment UpdatesDWF Labs is a global digital asset market maker and multi-stage Web3 investment firm.
Andrei Grachev, Managing Partner of DWF Labs, said: “The market is experiencing a cooling-off period for crypto assets and we are proud to participate in IRI as it provides an opportunity for us and other responsible market participants to support promising projects.”
In the past three months, DWF’s IRI Fund has issued a total of four grants, providing financial support for Web3 projects such as MXC and Symbiosis.
MXC DAO founder Sheen Hu Xin said: “MXC empowers the world’s largest Web3 IoT network. We are very happy to work with excellent partners such as DWF and Binance IRI Project. We believe that 2023 will be the year of popularization of Web3, and our global IoT network will create more and more valuable applications!”
Nick Avramov, co-founder of Symbiosis, commented: “During the last year when the market was experiencing significant uncertainty, Symbiosis, with the support of DWF Labs, continued to create value for the community. We are grateful for this support and will work hard to exceed expectations in 2023.”
IRI grant applications are still openTo date, the Binance IRI program has supported 14 projects. We would like to reiterate that we will review all company profiles that apply for support.
The goal of this program is to support the most promising and high-quality companies and projects with first-class technical teams and entrepreneurs, but which are in short-term difficulties due to external reasons.
What makes this initiative unique is that it is a collective effort to rebuild trust in the Web3 industry. We are looking for projects that:
Has the potential for innovation and long-term value creation.
Have a clear and viable business model.
Pay great attention to risk management.
In addition to financial support, we will also provide comprehensive support to founders and projects - including technical execution, fundraising, etc., to help projects continue to grow and develop.
If you are interested in the IRI program - either as an applicant or a funder - please contact us through the IRI program inquiry form. Together, we will build a brighter future for the crypto asset industry.
Note: IRI is not an investment fund. Each funder (including Binance) will review IRI application materials and make independent investment decisions based on each project. Funders who provide funds to IRI can share details of candidate projects with each other, but are not obligated to participate in every investment.
Further readingIndustry Recovery Plan (Consultation Form)
Binance Completes Investment in South Korean Crypto Exchange GOPAX Through Industry Revival Plan
Web3 leaders join Binance’s Industry Recovery Initiative