Binance backs 14 projects under Industry Recovery Initiative (IRI)

Nearly two dozen organisations backed Binance’s Industry Recovery Initiative (IRI). Fourteen projects received funding, according to ForkLog, the exchange’s representatives said.

Under the programme, 18 participants allocated a combined $1.1 billion. The list includes Animoca Brands, Aptos Labs, Brooker Group, DWF Labs, GSR, Jump Crypto, Kronos and Polygon Ventures.

The first project to receive funding was the South Korean Bitcoin exchange Gopax. In February it emerged that Binance Holdings Ltd. bought out a controlling stake in the platform using IRI funds.

“Binance bears responsibility for protecting our users and our industry. The initiative to restore it has been created to support promising companies that were adversely affected by events of last year,” said Binance’s CEO, Changpeng Zhao.

According to the press release, another 57 projects are undergoing due diligence. Binance noted that applications are open. Projects must meet several criteria, including:

• potential for innovation;
• a clearly defined and viable business model;
• a focus on risk management.

Binance launched a fund in November 2022 to mitigate the cascading negative effects of the FTX collapse on the industry.

Subsequently the platform contributed $1 billion to the fund and announced plans to raise the amount to $2 billion.