Havenex seeks Austrian approval as Series A nears close

Havenex, an Austrian company advised by Sui co-founder Kostas “Kryptos” Chalkias, said on Aug. 26 that its Series A financing round was nearing completion as it pursued regulatory authorization.

Chalkias announced the project through an X post. He described Havenex as infrastructure for financial institutions offering digital and traditional financial assets. The company has not disclosed the round’s size, participating investors, valuation or expected closing date.

Havenex awaits Austrian regulatory authorization

Havenex’s website says the platform is undergoing authorization with Austria’s Financial Market Authority. The company also states that it cannot provide regulated services before receiving approval.

That distinction means Havenex should not yet be described as a licensed exchange. No public authorization number or regulatory approval appears on its website. Chalkias said the company had applied for every required license and some additional permissions, but he did not identify individual license categories.

Havenex AG lists a registered address in Vienna and Austrian company registration number FN 673083d. Its public disclosures identify Gregorios Siourounis as the management board member. Chalkias, Adeniyi Abiodun and Petros Pyloridis sit on the supervisory board.

The company describes its intended customers as professional and institutional clients. Its approval process will determine which services it can provide, the assets it can support and whether it can operate across the European Economic Area.

Series A details remain undisclosed

Chalkias said the Series A allocation was already “quite packed” and invited interested investors to contact him. That statement remains a fundraising update from an adviser rather than confirmation of a completed transaction.

“Series A is underway and closing soon,” Chalkias said.

Havenex has not released supporting documents naming investors or specifying committed capital. It has also not announced a closing deadline. Until the company completes the round, its financing terms remain subject to change.

Chalkias said Havenex originated from his idea but clarified that he would participate as an adviser. He said his main focus would remain Mysten Labs and Sui. His formal position on Havenex’s supervisory board gives him an oversight role, while Siourounis appears responsible for management.

Havenex proposes verifiable institutional custody

Havenex plans to provide white-label infrastructure through which banks and other financial companies could offer crypto and traditional assets. Its proposed services include trading, custody, staking, tokenization, settlement and wallet infrastructure.

The project says it will support verifiable custody, continuous proof of solvency, multisignature controls and hardware-based two-factor authentication. It also plans self-custody and key-recovery protections.

Chalkias called Havenex the “most transparent, safest, institutional-grade, fully regulated exchange possible.”

Those descriptions express the project’s objectives. Havenex has not published an independent security audit, a live proof-of-solvency system, custody addresses or technical documentation demonstrating the planned controls. There is therefore no public on-chain data available to verify the proposed solvency model.

Institutional custody providers are increasingly combining controlled asset storage with blockchain services. As crypto.news reported, HashKey Cloud and BitGo connected institutional staking while keeping customer assets within BitGo’s custody framework.

Sui will form only part of Havenex’s technology

Chalkias said Havenex would use Sui technology where appropriate, but the platform would not operate as a Sui-only exchange. It plans to integrate assets, infrastructure and bridges from multiple blockchain ecosystems.

The promised quantum-resistant key system could connect with Sui’s wider cryptographic work. In related coverage, Sui targeted a 2027 rollout for native quantum-safe account authentication using NIST-approved signature schemes.

However, Havenex has not identified which post-quantum standard it will implement or when the feature will become available. Its use of Sui, bridges and real-world assets also remains under development.

The next verifiable milestones will be an FMA authorization, final Series A disclosures and detailed technical documentation. A launch date has not been announced. Until authorization arrives, Havenex will remain a development-stage infrastructure provider rather than an operating regulated exchange.