Who Is Kyoko?
As web3 matures, demand for liquidity solutions continues to grow. Poignantly, the rising cost of entry into GameFi and the challenge of gaming blockchain interoperability have limited the development of the GameFi industry and its gamers. Meanwhile, the illiquidity of NFTs, both within and outside of GameFi, has also limited capital efficiency for investors. These issues have presented opportunities for projects willing to address them though.
Kyoko brings liquidity to the traditionally illiquid NFT market through its decentralized fixed-rate NFT lending protocol that offers liquidity pools for blue-chip and emerging NFT collections. Kyoko’s cross-chain asset lending platform lowers the cost of entry into popular P2E titles by bridging assets across gaming blockchains through a single marketplace for guilds, investors, and players.
Kyoko: A Liquidity-First Solution for the Industry
Peer-to-pool (P2P) NFT Lending Protocol
Originally launched as peer-to-peer NFT lending, Kyoko’s peer-to-pool lending platform brings liquidity to traditionally illiquid NFT markets. The P2P lending platform is a one-stop marketplace for NFT collectors and investors to lend NFTs in exchange for liquidity.
NFT lending allows investors to access loans by collateralizing their valuable NFT assets such as those from blue-chip, emerging, and early-stage collections. Kyoko disrupted this market when it launched its original peer-to-peer lending protocol in June 2022.
In October 2023, Kyoko upgraded its lending protocol to a peer-to-pool lending model. Whereas the peer-to-peer platform required a direct agreement between a lender and a borrower to set terms like valuation and interest, peer-to-pool lending operations allow NFT lenders to access instant liquidity. Peer-to-peer deal pairing created friction, as time and other resources were needed to find independent users that would come to an agreement on loan terms. Instead, Kyoko’s upgraded lending pool, supported by a network of depositors who support the protocol via staked token pools, allows users to collateralize NFTs and receive instantly-generated terms. The system determines loan principal, repayment period, and interest rates according to current market valuations.
Alongside its lending model upgrade, Kyoko also made changes to the protocol’s liquidation mechanism. Previously, the NFT liquidation process would be directly executed between lender and borrower. If a borrower were to fail to repay their loan, the NFT collateral would be directly transferred to the lender. Now, with Kyoko’s peer-to-pool platform, liquidated asset transfers have been replaced by auctions, creating equal opportunity for pool participants to claim forfeited assets and repay the principal owed by the defaulting party.
Going forward, Kyoko will continue to build out its P2P NFT lending protocol’s capabilities. Kyoko is currently developing a new arm of its NFT lending protocol, which will support BTC inscription cross-chain lending. The Kyoko team marries its experience in building cross-chain lending solutions with its P2P NFT lending protocol to develop a platform that will allow users to bridge their BTC inscriptions to Ethereum or other EVM-compatible chains, like Arbitrum, and access instant liquidity. BTC inscriptions and Layer 2s have been an emerging narrative and Kyoko intends to front-run investor demand for BTC liquidity solutions by releasing its platform by the end of Q2 2024.
Kyoko’s P2P NFT lending protocol has undergone dramatic changes to stay at the forefront of the industry. Its upgrade from a peer-to-peer lending model disrupted the NFT lending space by removing the need for transactional counterparties and its implementation of an auction mechanism makes the liquidation process more equitable and efficient. Its development on a cross-chain BTC inscription lending pool will bring liquidity to a formerly inaccessible market. Kyoko’s P2P NFT lending protocol fosters a seamless cooperation between pool participants, who benefit from staking rewards, and NFT investors, who benefit from instant liquidity for unused NFT assets.
Access Kyoko’s P2P NFT lending protocol here: https://app.kyoko.finance/.
Cross-Chain Asset Lending Platform
Kyoko’s cross-chain asset lending platform, “CCAL,” offers a one-stop marketplace where users can either list or borrow their web3 gaming assets. This not only allows players to monetize idle assets, but also allows gamers to borrow new NFT assets to earn income — all at a lower cost. Additionally, CCAL unlocks interoperability between blockchains by allowing gamers to list game assets across different blockchains on a single marketplace.
CCAL solves both the high cost of entry in GameFi and siloed blockchain operability. Similar to the mechanics of Kyoko’s original peer-to-peer lending platform, gamers with idle NFT assets can lend them out via the CCAL platform. Borrowers, who may be looking to find NFT assets on a new blockchain to play new games or who may be looking to access required gaming assets for rent cost (as opposed to buying outright), will come to the CCAL platform to borrow NFTs. The platform creates an open marketplace for borrowers and lenders to strike a customized agreement, including cash deposit, loan duration, and interest terms.
Once the loan period expires, the borrower will repay the NFT asset back to the smart contract. The lender then can reclaim their digital asset as well as claim interest that the borrower has paid on the predetermined fixed rate. In the case that an NFT borrower does not return the borrowed asset, the initial cash deposit — which was initially set by the lender — will be liquidated and sent to the lender.
Kyoko’s CCAL solution is a multi-use tool. Simultaneously, borrowers can access liquidity for unused assets, lenders can access new games at lower costs, and both can bypass blockchain interoperability through Kyoko’s cross-chain functionality.
In terms of development updates, Kyoko will be conducting a thorough audit of all currently listed titles and remove any that are no longer in operation. The development team will also begin adding support for new games that have just recently launched and gained significant traction with players.
Access Kyoko’s cross-chain asset lending protocol here: https://ccal.kyoko.finance/.
$KYOKO: One Token to Rule Them All
Kyoko is committed to the long-term, which requires a sustainable tokenomics model. There are three main components of the tokenomics model: the $KYOKO token, token staking, and community governance.
The $KYOKO Token
The $KYOKO token is the native cryptocurrency released by Kyoko. It is a governance token with a limited supply of one billion tokens, distributed across a variety of channels. In pre-sale, 210 million tokens were distributed to the project’s key investors, including Infinity Ventures Crypto, Animoca Brands, Morningstar, and YGG SEA, among others, as well as the project’s team and strategic advisors. To ensure long-term support for the project, pre-sale tokens stipulate multi-year vesting periods for strategic token holders. To date, investor vesting periods are nearly 50% complete.
The $KYOKO token first launched publicly on decentralized exchanges in April 2022 after a triple public sale event that included an IDO, IEO, and IVO. The remaining token supply would be distributed through long-term activities, including token staking and mining.
A New Kyoko for a New Market Cycle
Kyoko has launched solutions that suit the long-term development of the GameFi and broader web3 industries. Though, as the past few years have shown, cryptocurrency is a volatile, tumultuous market, and Kyoko has prioritized its operational runway to ensure it has the chance to run with the bulls.
While the broader industry enters a new market cycle, Kyoko will continue to develop its product suite while shifting towards a transparent community-centered governance model.
As of March 2024, Kyoko’s finances remain in great shape. The project raised more than $6 million USDT across its seed, private, and strategic fundraising rounds. Kyoko invested roughly $4 million into technical development and long-term infrastructure costs to ensure sustainability and proper functionality. Still, approximately $2 million USDT remains in the treasury, offering protection against future headwinds and a strong war chest for product adoption promotional activities. The project currently operates on $65,000 in monthly expenses, making the $2 million USDT cash balance enough to sustain Kyoko’s operations for the next two and a half years at minimum — even without any revenue.
Kyoko’s Plan for the Future
Kyoko will not rely on its coffers alone. Instead, the project has a long-term roadmap for future developments to support community and revenue growth.
Kyoko’s Roadmap
24Q1 (January — March): BRC Cross-Chain Feasibility Analysis
- Research and development focused on cross-chain integration of BRC assets to Kyoko’s P2P NFT lending protocol
- Exploration of technical feasibility within the cross-chain framework
24Q2 (April — June): Development and Testing
- Development and implementation of cross-chain functionalities for BRC assets, with a focus on interoperability with the Ethereum network
- Protocol testing and validation
24Q3 (July — September): Beta Launch and Iterative Improvements
- Beta launch
- Iterative improvements based on user feedback and performance metrics
24Q4 (October — December): Mainnet Launch
- Official launch of BRC cross-chain capabilities
- Strategic planning for further upgrades and expansions according to market position
Kyoko Is Here to Stay
The bear market showed its teeth, and Kyoko has not been immune to the wear and tear. There is work to be done on rebuilding the community, reworking the tokenomics model, continuing to develop the product suite, and more. However, the team was forward looking in its conservative treasury management since raising funds. Kyoko now has the opportunity to continue building in the new market cycle.
We appreciate the support you’ve shown over the past two years, Kyokoans. We’re excited to look to the future, together.
The bull is back and the opportunity is here. Let’s get to work.
About Kyoko
Kyoko addresses the most challenging issues in Web3. Kyoko’s cross-chain asset lending platform solves the persistent issues limiting the GameFi market, including the rising cost of entry and siloed in-game assets across different blockchains. Kyoko’s P2P NFT lending platform expands inclusivity and access to liquidity for NFT projects and holders through its decentralized fixed-rate NFT lending protocol. The $KYOKO token launched in April 2022.
Follow Kyoko at the links below to stay up to date on upcoming events, releases, and news:
Website | Twitter | Discord | Docs | CCAL | P2P NFT Lending | $KYOKO | Stake
