Pye Finance has unveiled a $5 million seed round led by some of the key players in the space. The goal is to turn billions in locked-up SOL holdings into an active yield market.
Variant And Coinbase Companies led this round, with the participation of Solana Labs, Budding, Twinand others, according to the press release.
Pye says it is building bond markets for validators and stakers on Solana (SOL). The platform allows validators to draw and keep their stakes. They can offer rewards through more than a thousand validators.
According to the team, they achieve this by creating transferable, time-bound staking positions with transparent reward distribution.
Furthermore, they claim that the approach opens up new DeFi use cases. These include lending and borrowing, as well as fixed-rate products for the $60 billion tied up in the strike.
According to Brian Long. CEO of Block logic and Triton“Stake Trading unlocks new opportunities for both stakers and validators, which is desperately needed.”
According to Alana Levin, investor at VariantPye’s staking marketplace could “fundamentally change the way staking on Solana works. By allowing validators and stakers to better align their preferences — for example, by allowing validators to offer higher yields in exchange for longer lockups — Pye is creating a more efficient, transparent, and incentive-focused staking ecosystem.”
Meanwhile, Pye is the product of Alberto Cevallos, co-founder of Bitcoin yield aggregator on Ethereum DasDAOand Erik Ashdown, an executive with a background in structured products in traditional markets.
“Validators have become the underbanked layer of Web3,” says Ashdown. Pye is building a financial infrastructure that allows validators to operate as asset managers and offer structured products and predictable returns.
This increase mainly follows a closed alpha. The team plans to launch a private beta in the first quarter of 2026. Early access is currently available for validators and staking providers.
Bernstein, the global research and brokerage firm that manages more than $790 billion in assets, has announced the end of the traditional four-year crypto cycle. The company’s latest Bitcoin price forecast sets a target of $150,000 by 2026, in what analysts describe as an “extended bull market.” End of the four-year cycle and Fed policy could trigger a big rally According to Matthew Sigel, Head of Digital Asset Research at VanEck, Bernstein stated that after the recent market correction, “we believe…
Passive billions ‘turn’ into an active returns market
Staking shifts from a passive return mechanism to a programmable financial layer, the team says. Institutional stakers look for transparent reward structures, customizable terms and the ability to trade or borrow against locked positions.
To that end, Pye says it turns node operator validators into yield providers who can “compete on product offerings rather than just commission rates.” It creates the first onchain marketplace for timed staking positions on Solana, it adds.
In doing so, they claim, they will convert Solana’s billions in fixed shares into an active, programmable returns market.
The total currently wagered is 422.6 million SOLor almost $59 billion.
Specifically, the team claims that these accounts have not had any updates in years and have no liquidity. Moreover, they lack customization and control over the use of rewards.
At the same time, institutions and digital asset treasuries (DATs) are asking for a bigger slice of the rewards pie, the Solana Foundation Delegation Program (SFDP) is seeing a cut, and smaller validators are scrambling to find ways to generate revenue or attract stakers.
Pye says the solution is an upgrade from Solana’s own Staked accounts. Validators gain control over their wagering rewards and time slots. Validator deals are moved up-chain as ‘transferable locked stakes’: they are locked but can be traded on secondary markets. These are split into a Principal Token and a Rewards Token (RT).
“The goal is to enable validators to offer more flexible and dynamic products, unlock additional revenue opportunities, while providing greater utility to stakers,” the press release said. “Without the ability to structure term-based deals, reward loyalty or provide additional utility – such as better accounting, reward forwarding or other features – many validators remain vulnerable to sudden outflows that could destabilize operations.”
Dan Albert, Solana Foundation Executive Director, noted that Pye’s “fixed-term tradable positions at the validator level provide a significant enabler for both reward discovery and capital efficiency in proof-of-stake networks, opening up new opportunities.”
Coinbase has activated staking services for New York residents, allowing users to earn returns on Ethereum and Solana holdings for the first time. The rollout follows approval from state regulators under Gov. Kathy Hochul, ending a restriction that prevented New Yorkers from taking advantage of opportunities available to most other Americans. Users in New York can now stake ETH, SOL and other supported assets directly through the platform, with rewards earned in the…
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