The post Entry Raises $1M Pre-Seed to Bring AI-Powered Compliance and zk Privacy to Regulated DeFi appeared first on Coinpedia Fintech News
The rebrand from Zekret Protocol follows a $1M pre-seed round backing Entry’s push to combine AI-powered compliance with zero-knowledge privacy for regulated DeFi.
Toronto, Canada – [20 October 2025] – Entry, the compliance-native infrastructure bridging institutions and decentralized finance, has raised $1 million in pre-seed funding to fuse AI-powered compliance with zero-knowledge privacy. The round, led by Modern Niagara with participation from Qrecendo and Perrfin, coincides with the company’s rebrand from Zekret Protocol to Entry.
The financing combines equity and SAFT components at a ~$25M seed FDV, with ~$50M projected at TGE, aligning with Entry’s go-to-market plans for regulated digital assets.
Rodney Prescott, CEO of Entry, said:
“Institutions need foundations that are private by design and regulator-ready by default. Our compliance-native protocol brings verified users and screened assets together so adoption isn’t gated by risk.”
Bryce Jones, VP & Area Manager of Modern Niagara, said:
“We invested because Entry delivers what institutions actually need: regulator-grade controls without sacrificing developer velocity or overall privacy. By bringing together ZKPs with an explainable compliance engine, they make it possible for RWAs to move on-chain safely and at scale.”
Suzanne Ley, CEO of Qrecendo, said:
“The dual-utility ENT token of Entry creates a powerful economic flywheel for compliant DeFi. We see a clear path to enterprise adoption across the US and EU as regulators and market participants converge on transparency with confidentiality.”
Entry is developing the foundational layer for regulated digital assets, combining zero-knowledge identity (zkID) with an explainable AI compliance engine, institutions can transact privately while meeting regulatory standards. The protocol verifies users and screens assets under auditable controls, turning proof into permission and addressing key institutional blockers in decentralized finance (DeFi). Entry’s development as the world’s first compliance-first Layer 1 protocol enables regulated institutions to access digital assets with full KYC/KYB, pre-screened tokens, and verifiable compliance trails built directly into the chain.
The network is powered by ENT, a utility token that fuels both ZK computation and AI compliance reasoning. Utilities include zkID & permissioning, node staking, work rewards, governance, and AI access fees for per-usage compliance calls. The team is aligning the protocol with global rule sets, such as MiCA, MAS, and the SEC/FATF, as it advances toward the mainnet.
Entry’s public testnet has been live since July 2025, with an initial focus on institutional pilots and developer integrations ahead of the mainnet launch. The commercial pipeline features over 20 Letters of Intent (LOIs) and selection into EU and APAC regulatory sandboxes, establishing regulated environments for early deployments.
Go-to-market centers on compliance-first DeFi infrastructure for banks, brokers/custodians, funds, and governments, with revenue from enterprise deployments, institutional subscriptions/licensing, management & maintenance, and compliance-as-a-service.
Supported by collaborations with Cardano Foundation, Avalanche, Secret Network, and BitcoinOS, along with capital markets partners Qrecendo and Perrfin, Entry is building the open, protocol-agnostic compliance layer for on-chain finance. Operating as a Layer 1 and integrating Layer 3 compliance technology from Zekret Labs, Entry aims to make regulated DeFi scalable, secure, and institution-ready.
