Catenaa, Sunday, July 12, 2026- Crypto infrastructure startup M1X Global has raised $5.5 million in a seed funding round led by Paradigm as the company moves to expand institutional adoption of its blockchain-native sovereign debt platform built around the Republic of the Marshall Islands’ USDM1 digital debt instrument.
The oversubscribed equity financing also attracted Breed VC, bringing M1X Global’s total funding to $8.5 million after a $3 million angel round completed in March. Earlier investors included former Coinbase Chief Technology Officer Balaji Srinivasan and Cumberland Labs Chief Executive Officer Tama Churchouse.
The latest funding will support wider deployment of USDM1, a US dollar-denominated sovereign debt instrument issued by the Republic of the Marshall Islands and backed one-for-one by short-duration US Treasury securities. The token was initially launched on Stellar before expanding to Canton and Solana, allowing regulated institutions to access government-backed collateral across multiple blockchain networks.
Unlike privately issued stablecoins, USDM1 is structured as sovereign debt under New York law and is designed for use in repo transactions, margin financing and secured lending markets. The structure enables around-the-clock settlement while maintaining compatibility with existing institutional financial frameworks.
The instrument is held in custody through Anchorage Digital’s federally regulated platform and has been structured to remain bankruptcy remote, supporting its eligibility for regulated collateral arrangements and legal netting frameworks.
M1X said USDM1 has already participated in industry working groups involving Bank of America, Citadel Securities, Virtu Financial, Tradeweb and DTCC to assess how tokenized sovereign debt could improve collateral movement and settlement efficiency in digital markets.
The company’s first live deployment focuses on government aid payments in the Republic of the Marshall Islands. Citizens receive funds through the Lomalo wallet, allowing transfers to settle within seconds instead of relying on traditional correspondent banking networks. A recent integration with Bank of Guam has also connected the platform with regulated banking infrastructure.
M1X Global said its immediate priority is expanding institutional acceptance of USDM1 rather than launching additional sovereign debt products. The company plans to integrate the instrument across banks, custodians, alternative trading systems, prime brokerages, over-the-counter trading desks, exchanges and post-trade settlement infrastructure.
Management said discussions with additional governments remain under consideration as opportunities emerge, although near-term efforts will concentrate on building institutional market adoption.
Paradigm said the investment reflects growing demand for government-backed collateral capable of operating continuously in tokenized financial markets. The venture firm believes sovereign financial infrastructure could become one of blockchain’s next major institutional use cases as digital capital markets continue evolving beyond conventional settlement hours.
M1X Global currently employs 11 people and plans to expand hiring across engineering, product development and institutional partnerships as it scales the platform.
USDM1 represents one of the first sovereign-issued debt instruments created natively on public blockchain infrastructure. Unlike tokenized Treasury funds issued by private asset managers, the instrument is issued directly by a sovereign government while maintaining full backing through short-duration US Treasury securities. The model seeks to combine the credit quality of sovereign debt with the speed and programmability of blockchain settlement. Market participants increasingly view tokenized government securities as a foundation for 24/7 digital capital markets, where traditional collateral can move instantly across trading venues without relying on legacy banking hours.
