Injective is rewriting the playbook for decentralized finance with a lightning-fast, interoperable Layer One blockchain built specifically for the future of money. At the heart of its growing ecosystem is Helix, a flagship decentralized exchange that lets users trade futures and access leverage in a fully permissionless and transparent environment. Fueling the entire network is INJ, Injective’s native token, designed with deflationary mechanics that enhance its scarcity and long-term value. With over $13 billion in trading volume processed and backing from giants like Binance, Jump Crypto, and Pantera, Injective is gearing up to play a crucial role in the financial infrastructure of the future.

But way before Injective became a multibillion-dollar blockchain network, it was just an idea held together by grit and hope. No fancy boardrooms. No hype campaigns. Just grit and the stubborn belief that finance shouldn’t be rigged for the rich.

Spending his childhood in China, the U.S., and Hong Kong, Eric Chen noticed a stark contrast in tech adoption between Asia and the West, which sparked his fascination with the internet and compelled him to study both computer science and finance in college. As he watched his classmates branch into hedge funds, big tech, and more typical careers. He felt called to build something with purpose and impact, and he found that purpose in crypto.

Crypto exposed real flaws in our financial system, such as front-running and price manipulation, that left regular users behind. Eric was convinced that the system could be rebuilt to serve everyone equally. That belief would later birth Injective—a blockchain designed to serve as a financial infrastructure layer, not just another smart contract chain.

“We Had to Earn Every User”

Injective was envisioned as a decentralized on-chain exchange mechanism meant to solve the limitations of existing DEXs. The project was finally launched in the shadow of the 2018 crypto crash. That was when Bitcoin slipped below $6,000, VCs pulled out, and institutional interest dried up. The team lived in a tiny New York apartment, splitting rent with roommates and eating whatever they could afford. With little funding, every dollar counted.

“We had to earn every single user we gained over time. We had to earn every single dollar that came in. We had to really, really learn how to be extremely efficient and scrappy with the incubation capital that we were given.”

Eric took to Telegram to personally reach out to crypto communities and pitch the idea of Injective. Many were skeptical, and some were bluntly critical. But rather than get discouraged, Eric leaned into the feedback. Eventually, his refusal to ignore even the harshest voice in the room became the foundation of Injective’s culture.

A Different Kind of Blockchain

While others raced to build all-purpose platforms, Injective stayed focused. Instead of trying to support every app under the sun, Injective was purpose-built for traders, builders, and financial engineers. It allows developers to build fully on-chain order books, derivatives platforms, and real-world asset markets, which are typically out of reach for the average person.

In today’s world, Eric says, finance is “a game for the rich,” and he’s determined to change that. He believes that access to opportunity shouldn’t depend on how much money you have. Whether someone holds a few dollars or a few million, they should be able to participate in the same financial markets without barriers.

That’s what Injective is doing. It offers users from anywhere in the world the ability to access tokenized assets, participate in global markets, and build their financial future without middlemen. Today, Injective supports over 1.4 million unique addresses, enabling seamless DeFi access across 100+ markets. From perpetual futures to real-world stocks like Tesla or GameStop, Injective is bridging traditional assets with crypto-native tools on a chain built entirely for finance.

Yet for Eric, the goal was never the numbers, but the impact. The most powerful feeling, he says, wasn’t launching a product or hitting a metric. It was that quiet moment at the beginning when an idea finally felt real—when everything else was uncertain, but the mission was clear.

“If I have a time machine and go back and tell myself at that time, it would be: cherish that moment. Because you're not going to have a lot of those. And it's probably the most powerful feeling in the world.”

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Injective's Latest Highlights

Injective is pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in Web3 by delivering breakthrough innovations that are transforming how real-world assets, artificial intelligence, and traditional finance operate on-chain.  Its purpose-built blockchain is actively building the core infrastructure of digital finance and offering users and institutions a faster and smarter way to engage with global markets.

First Tokenized Index for BlackRock’s BUIDL Fund

Injective launched the first perpetual index tied to BlackRock’s BUIDL Fund, which now holds over $500 million in assets. $BUIDL is BlackRock’s first tokenized fund issued on a public blockchain, and this index lets users gain exposure to US Treasury-backed assets directly through dApps like Helix. Unlike traditional price-based indexes, this product tracks the actual fund inflows and outflows, giving traders a new way to monitor institutional sentiment in real time.

Launch of iAssets

Injective introduced iAssets, a new type of financial primitive that allows any type of RWA to be launched on-chain. It brings any stock, bond, or ETF on-chain with real utility. Compared to older models that rely on synthetic tokens, iAssets are composable, capital-efficient, and don’t require prefunding. They offer instant liquidity, programmable features, and are supported by Injective’s oracle and exchange modules.

TradFi Stocks Index Now Live

Through the new TradFi Index, users can now invest in hundreds of top US stocks including Apple, Amazon, and Goldman Sachs hassle-free. This product is available on Helix with up to 25 times leverage and 24/7 access. It’s the first time a unified, on-chain stock index of this scale has been made available to everyday users.

Injective’s Real World Asset Ecosystem

Injective is leading the surge in real-world asset (RWA) tokenization, a market now valued at over $35 billion. Injective’s custom-built RWA module gives institutions full control over how assets are tokenized and managed on-chain. This technology supports seamless integrations with projects like Agora’s AUSD, Ondo Finance’s USDY, and BlackRock’s BUIDL fund, offering a compliant, customizable framework for bringing traditional assets into crypto. 

$AIX: The First AI Index on Injective

Injective also launched $AIX, a groundbreaking on-chain index that bridges the gap between traditional finance and crypto by combining 10 of the top AI-related tokens with 6 major AI stocks, including tech giants like Nvidia. Designed for both casual users and seasoned investors, $AIX offers an easy and efficient way to get diversified exposure to the rapidly growing AI sector, which is expected to reach a $1.5 trillion market cap in the coming years. The index delivers real-time, institutional-grade pricing that ensures accurate and transparent market data. Available on Helix, Injective’s premier DEX, $AIX makes investing in both AI and Web3 more accessible than ever before.

iA Agent 2.0

iAgent 2.0’s upgraded framework lets developers create smart, automated AI agents that can do everything from trading and managing assets to interacting with users on platforms like Twitter and Discord. Built with flexibility in mind, iAgent 2.0 makes it easier to build AI-driven apps that work across multiple blockchains, tap into real-time data, and even learn from past actions. With support for today’s leading AI models and tools, iAgent 2.0 turns Injective into a launchpad for the next generation of on-chain innovation.

AI Agent Hackathon Highlights

Injective’s AI Agent Hackathon, held in April 2025, marked a major milestone in merging artificial intelligence with decentralized finance. The event culminated in a live Demo Day on April 22 where builders from around the world showcased cutting-edge DeFi agents designed to operate autonomously on-chain. Top teams included ParadyzeFi, jecta.ai, TrendPup, Pool Protocol, PerpProphet, and ZK Carbon, each exploring new ways AI can enhance trading, automation, and user experience within the Injective ecosystem.

Institutional Momentum and Vision

At Korea BUIDL Week, Injective co-founder Justin Wu shared an inspiring vision of what the future of finance could look like: fully on-chain, secure, and open to the world. He made it clear that Injective isn’t just another blockchain project; rather, it’s been engineered over seven years to meet the highest standards of the financial world.

Injective is working to build a foundation where performance, compliance, and accessibility go hand in hand, offering built-in features like asset-level KYC, on-chain AML, and Ethereum compatibility. With more than a billion transactions processed and zero security breaches so far, Injective is helping reshape the future of digital finance, one block at a time.