MNX, a decentralized futures exchange built on Ethereum Layer 2 network MegaETH, has secured $6.4 million in pre-seed funding at a $40 million valuation, as it prepares to launch a marketplace focused on AI-linked derivatives later this summer.
The round was led by Village Global, with participation from Cambrian, North Island Ventures, Finality Capital, and Relay Digital. Individual backers included Patel, Hobart, Liston, and Moore. The funding was structured through a simple agreement for future equity with token warrants, and no participants received governance roles.
Platform targets AI-linked futures and perpetual markets
Founded last year by Grugett and Philips, co-creators of prediction platform Manifold Markets, MNX is aiming to expand access to AI-related financial instruments that are largely unavailable on major trading platforms.
The exchange plans to offer products tied to the artificial intelligence sector, including valuation futures, equity perpetuals, compute perpetuals, and prediction markets linked to AI developments. A public mainnet debut is expected later this summer.
Grugett said the platform will rely on dated futures rather than perpetual contracts to price less liquid private company valuations. Equity perpetuals will focus on AI-linked firms such as Z.ai and Sivers, while compute perpetuals will draw on datasets from SemiAnalysis.
Batch auctions and liquidity model shape trading environment
MNX will operate using 200-millisecond batch auctions instead of a continuous order book. The system is enabled by MegaETH’s sub-millisecond block times and is designed to reduce latency advantages and create more balanced trade execution.
The exchange will also introduce an internally managed Hyperliquidity Provider vault to support market depth and improve liquidity efficiency, a model inspired by other decentralized exchanges.
A private beta is already live on MegaETH’s testnet with institutional users. The team plans to hire up to six additional staff in the coming months while maintaining a lean structure. Part of the new funding will be allocated to the liquidity vault and platform expansion.
Exclusive bet on MegaETH infrastructure
MNX plans to remain exclusive to MegaETH, citing its high-performance architecture. The network targets sub-10-millisecond block times and throughput exceeding 100,000 transactions per second.
Since launching its mainnet in February 2026, MegaETH has processed billions of transactions in testing and reached nearly $100 million in total value locked by April, positioning it as a candidate for high-frequency derivatives trading.
Philips has stepped back from day-to-day involvement at Manifold Markets, appointing a co-CEO there while focusing on MNX.
Growing demand for on-chain AI financial products
The launch comes as decentralized exchange markets continue to expand, with projections placing the sector’s value above $120 billion by 2030, up from about $54 billion in 2026. Growth is being driven by demand for user-controlled financial systems and new forms of on-chain exposure.
MNX’s focus on AI-linked derivatives also aligns with rising activity in tokenized assets. The tokenized real-world asset sector surpassed $17 billion in value by late 2025, while tokenized equities recorded more than $5.5 billion in trading volume through May 2026. AI-related stocks accounted for roughly 35% to 40% of that activity.
New risks and dynamics for traders
The platform introduces trading structures that differ from traditional digital asset markets. Dated futures tied to private company valuations and perpetual contracts linked to compute resources create new pricing and liquidity dynamics.
MNX’s batch auction system and internal liquidity vault will also shape how prices are discovered and trades are executed, particularly in early stages after launch.
The focus on private valuations and AI-driven prediction markets ties on-chain activity more closely to developments in the broader technology sector. Traders will need to track private equity trends, AI performance benchmarks, and geopolitical factors that could influence pricing.
The private equity market currently holds an estimated $3.6 trillion in unrealized value, and tokenization is increasingly seen as a path to unlocking liquidity in this traditionally hard-to-access space.
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