Services Catalogue
Financial Services
Vertex Accelerator provides comprehensive operational services across financial activities including direct investments, treasury management, and grant access.
Direct Investment Programs
Equity-Based Investments
Structure and Terms:
Investment range: $100K-$500K per project
Equity stake: 3-7% depending on stage, valuation, and strategic value
Security type: Preferred stock or common stock with preferential rights
Board participation: Observer rights for 5%+ stakes, director seat for 7%+ stakes
Pro-rata rights: Included for all investments to participate in future rounds
Information rights: Quarterly financial statements, annual budgets, monthly metrics dashboard
Valuation Methodology:
Pre-revenue projects: Comparable analysis against similar-stage projects in ecosystem
Post-revenue projects: Revenue multiple methodology (typically 10-20x ARR for SaaS-like models)
Token projects: Discounted cash flow on projected protocol revenue plus network value analysis
Adjustment factors: Team quality, technical differentiation, market timing, competitive positioning
Investment Process Timeline:
Week 1-2: Initial due diligence and term sheet negotiation
Week 3-4: Legal documentation preparation (Stock Purchase Agreement, Investor Rights Agreement)
Week 5-6: Final due diligence, closing conditions satisfaction, fund wire
Documentation:
Stock Purchase Agreement (SPA)
Investor Rights Agreement (IRA)
Right of First Refusal and Co-Sale Agreement (ROFR)
Voting Agreement (for preferred stock)
Disclosure schedules covering IP, contracts, capitalization
Post-Investment Support:
Monthly check-in calls with founding team
Quarterly board meetings or updates
Strategic advisory on fundraising, partnerships, hiring
Network introductions as relevant opportunities arise
Crisis management support when challenges emerge
Historical Performance:
45 equity investments made since 2023
Average investment: $220K for 4.8% equity stake
8 exits to date (acquisitions or token launches with liquidity events)
Realized MOIC: 4.2x across exited positions
3 write-offs (companies shut down or pivoted significantly)
Token-Based Investments
Structure and Terms:
Investment range: $50K-$300K token purchase
Token allocation: 3-5% of total supply
Purchase timing: Pre-TGE at significant discount to expected public launch price
Vesting schedule: 6-24 months linear vesting (most common: 12 months)
Lockup period: Typically matches or exceeds team token lockup
No dump clauses: Strategic long-term holding approach, no market selling without coordination
Token Purchase Pricing:
Pre-seed/seed stage: 60-80% discount to projected TGE price
Series A equivalent: 40-60% discount to projected TGE price
Pricing methodology: Based on comparable project valuations at similar stages, adjusted for tokenomics
Token Economic Due Diligence:
Supply mechanics review (emission schedule, burning mechanisms, max supply)
Distribution analysis (team allocation, investor vesting, community distribution, ecosystem reserves)
Utility assessment (token use cases, value capture mechanisms, holder benefits)
Demand drivers identification (transaction fees, governance rights, staking rewards)
Velocity analysis (expected token holding periods and circulation dynamics)
Comparable tokenomics study
Tokenomics Collaboration:
Supply optimization recommendations
Distribution improvements and alignment of stakeholder vesting
Utility enhancement suggestions
Incentive design for users/developers/liquidity providers
Market making coordination for launch liquidity
Historical Token Investment Performance:
62 token investments since 2023
Average investment: $140K for 3.8% of supply
Average entry price: $0.038 per token
23 projects have launched tokens (TGE completed)
Average TGE price: $0.14 (3.7x entry price)
Current average price for launched tokens: $0.22 (5.8x entry price)
Unrealized portfolio value: $18.2M across all token positions
12 positions remain pre-TGE
Accelerator Investment Fund
Purpose: Dedicated capital pool for top-performing projects graduating from our acceleration program.
Eligibility Criteria:
Completion of Advanced Acceleration Stage required
Demonstrated execution: 80%+ of acceleration milestones achieved on time
Traction metrics: User growth, revenue, or TVL showing strong trajectory
Technical quality: Code quality assessments, security audit results
Community engagement: Discord/Telegram activity, social media growth, organic interest
Partner feedback: Positive references from exchanges, market makers, auditors
Investment Range: $100K-$235K depending on project needs and performance
Typical Terms:
Hybrid structure most common: 2-3% equity + 2-3% token allocation
Fast decision process: 1-2 weeks from nomination to term sheet
Streamlined documentation leveraging existing relationship
Selection Process: Projects scored across five dimensions:
Technical Progress (30%): Milestone completion, code quality, security posture
Market Fit (25%): User acquisition, retention, product-market fit evidence
Community Strength (20%): Community size, engagement, organic growth
Partnership Quality (15%): Caliber of integrations, strategic relationships
Team Execution (10%): Communication quality, adaptability, professionalism
Scoring: Each dimension scored 0-10. Projects with combined scores of 7.5+ typically receive offers.
Historical Accelerator Fund Performance:
19 investments made from accelerator fund
Top 30% of each cohort receives investment offers
Average investment: $165K in hybrid equity + token structure
100% of accelerator fund recipients successfully raised follow-on capital within 12 months
Average follow-on round: $4.8M at 2.9x higher valuation than Vertex entry
Treasury Management Services
Multi-Sig Wallet Setup
Hardware and Software Configuration:
Gnosis Safe deployment across relevant chains (Ethereum, Arbitrum, Base, Polygon)
Multi-signature schema design: Typically 3-of-5 or 4-of-7
Signatory selection: Team members, advisors, neutral parties
Hardware wallet integration: Ledger or Trezor
Policy configuration: Transaction limits, whitelisted addresses, time delays for large transfers
Setup Process (2-3 weeks):
Week 1: Requirement gathering, signatory identification, security architecture design
Week 2: Wallet deployment, hardware wallet procurement and setup, test transactions
Week 3: Policy implementation, signatory training, emergency procedures documentation
Cost: Setup included in acceleration fee. For external clients: $5K-$8K depending on complexity.
Treasury Diversification Strategy
Risk Assessment:
Runway requirements
Volatility tolerance
Liquidity needs
Currency exposure
Diversification Framework (by risk tolerance):
Conservative:
60-70% Stablecoins (USDC, USDT)
20-30% Blue-chip crypto (BTC, ETH)
10-20% DeFi yields (Aave, Compound)
Target: Preserve capital, 3-5% annual yield
Moderate:
40-50% Stablecoins
30-40% Blue-chip crypto
20-30% DeFi positions (staking, LPing)
Target: Modest growth, 8-12% annual yield
Growth:
20-30% Stablecoins
40-50% Blue-chip and mid-cap crypto
30-40% DeFi and ecosystem positions
Target: Aggressive growth, 15-25% annual yield
Implementation:
Monthly rebalancing
Automated yield optimization systems
Real-time monitoring dashboard
Quarterly strategy reviews
Historical Treasury Performance:
31 projects using services
Average treasury size: $2.1M
Average blended yield: 11.4% annually (2024-2025)
Zero treasuries suffered significant loss from hacks/exploits
OTC Trading Facilitation
Use Cases:
Pre-TGE sales to institutional investors or partners
Post-TGE treasury diversification
Strategic token purchases
Token swaps for partnerships or M&A
OTC Desk Partnerships:
Wintermute OTC: Large transactions ($500K+), 24/7 availability
GSR OTC: Institutional relationships
DWF Labs: OTC + market making and strategic investment
Fibonacci OTC: Competitive pricing, strong in Asian markets
Typical Transaction Process:
Project requests quote (RFQ)
We shop quote across partners
Present best execution price (usually 10-50 bps better than market)
Project accepts and provides settlement details
Trade executed via escrow or atomic swap
Settlement typically within 24 hours
Pricing Advantage:
Public market slippage: 2-3%
OTC via our network: 0.3-0.5% spread
On $1M transaction saves ~$15K-$25K
Security:
Vetted counterparties
Escrow arrangements
Atomic swaps where possible
Legal agreements for recourse
Transaction Volume:
$127M OTC volume facilitated in 2024
Average transaction: $850K
Largest single transaction: $12M
Zero transaction failures or disputes
Fundraising Support
Investor Deck Development:
Review and redesign of pitch deck
Typical deck structure (problem, solution, tokenomics, traction, team, roadmap)
Visual design and iterative refinement
Multiple versions (detailed and concise)
Timeline: 2-3 weeks with 2-3 revision rounds
Financial Model Construction:
Three-statement financial model (P&L, Balance Sheet, Cash Flow)
Token economic model
Scenario and sensitivity analyses
Comparable company analysis
Use of funds breakdown
Model complexity: Excel-based, 50-100 rows, 3-5 year projections
Due Diligence Material Preparation:
Data room setup (corporate, legal, technical, financial, go-to-market, team)
FAQ document and 2-page executive summary
Investor Introductions:
Warm introductions to relevant investors from 40+ investor network
Matching and personalized intro emails
Founder briefings and follow-up
Vertex warm intros: ~40% response, ~15% meeting conversion
Funding close rate from our intros: ~25%
Term Sheet Negotiation Support:
Review and benchmarking of term sheets
Negotiation strategy and legal counsel facilitation (we do not provide legal advice)
Average fundraising time: 3-4 months with our support (vs. 6-9 months industry average)
Historical Fundraising Results:
38 portfolio companies raised $285M total
Average round: $7.5M
Largest round facilitated: $35M Series A
Success rate: 68% of projects that complete our fundraising prep close target round
Selling Pressure Mitigation
Vesting Schedule Optimization:
Analyze and redesign vesting schedules
Common patterns: Team 4-year vest with 1-year cliff; Investor 2-3 year vest with 6-12 month cliff; Advisor 2-year vest
Strategic Lockup Implementation:
Extended lockup rewards
Staking programs to incentivize locking
OTC lockup agreements
Market Maker Coordination During Unlocks:
30-60 day advance notice to market makers
Negotiated support agreements
Buy pressure coordination with announcements
Real-time monitoring of unlock wallets
Communication Strategy:
Transparent community communication, blog posts, AMAs
Post-unlock reports
Buyback and Burn Programs:
Protocol buybacks, treasury deployment, burns with transparent dashboards
Historical Unlock Management:
47 major unlock events managed
Average unlock size: 15% of circulating supply
Price impact without intervention: -25% to -40%
Price impact with mitigation: -8% to -15%
12 unlocks resulted in price increases due to positive coordination
Grant Program Access
Projects in program receive priority consideration for Vertex Foundation grants across five categories.
DeFi Innovation Grants: Up to $320K
Funding Breakdown:
Direct development: Up to $300K
User incentives: Up to $200K in tokens
Marketing: Up to $20K
Smart contract audits: Covered separately
Eligibility:
Existing traction on another chain (TVL > $2M or trading volume > $1M/month) OR proven DeFi experience
Working MVP or comprehensive testnet
Security-first approach with multi-audit plans
Focus Areas:
Novel lending/borrowing, advanced AMMs, synthetics, cross-chain infra, real yield protocols
Application:
Technical spec (10-15 pages), economic security analysis, competition analysis, roadmap, team backgrounds
Review Timeline: 3-4 weeks
Historical DeFi Grants:
23 awarded since 2023
Average grant: $280K
19 launched protocols (83%)
Aggregate TVL: $420M
4 secured Series A funding post-launch
Social Web3 Grants: Up to $250K
Target Projects:
B2C and B2B2C social Web3 platforms, SocialFi, creator monetization
Encouraged Features:
Web2 integrations, viral growth mechanics, group features, token-gated access
Anti-Patterns:
Pure clicker games, Ponzi referral schemes, TOS violations, projects without path to 10K+ users in 6 months
Requirements:
Working prototype with ≥100 beta users
User acquisition strategy and retention mechanics
Historical Social Grants:
31 awarded
Average grant: $185K
24 projects (77%) reached 10K+ users within 6 months
Gaming and Onboarding Grants: Up to $200K
Target Projects:
PC/mobile games with blockchain integration, play-and-earn, NFT utility, metaverse tools
Evaluation Factors:
Fun-first design, easy onboarding, sustainable economics, cross-platform availability, social/competitive features
Not Eligible:
Pure gambling, simple clicker games, exploitative P2E models, crypto reskins
Requirements:
Playable demo/alpha, GDD, token economic model, user acquisition plan
Historical Gaming Grants:
18 awarded
Average grant: $175K
12 games launched publicly
Developer Education Grants: Up to $50K
Target Projects:
Courses for Solidity, Rust, Move; bootcamps; security best practices; documentation
Requirements:
Comprehensive curriculum, qualified instructors, plan to reach 1,000+ students, SBT or on-chain certificate
Course Structure Guidelines:
Modular design, hands-on projects, assessments, community support
Historical Education Grants:
9 awarded
Average grant: $38K
7,800 total students; 34% completion rate; 450+ employed in Web3
Infrastructure and Other Grants: Up to $50K
Scope:
SDKs, explorers, wallet infra, bridges, oracles, AI-blockchain tools, NFT infrastructure
Requirements:
Clear technical need, open-source encouraged, technical spec, integration and maintenance plan
Evaluation Criteria:
Technical novelty, ecosystem benefit, maintainability, team capability
Historical Infrastructure Grants:
14 awarded
Average grant: $42K
Most successful: Explorer with 50K+ monthly users
8 projects raised follow-on funding
Market Infrastructure
Services supporting exchange listings, DEX integration, derivatives, institutional infrastructure, and market data.
Exchange Listings
Vertex coordinates end-to-end listing processes for centralized exchanges (Tier 1–3) and DEX integrations.
Tier 1 Centralized Exchange Partnerships
Binance (example highlights):
Daily spot volume: $20B-$40B
User base: 150M+
Vertex: direct channel, expedited review (6-8 weeks), reduced fees (20-30% discount)
Listing requirements: project quality, legal opinion, multiple audits, liquidity readiness, strong community
Typical listing fees: $100K-$300K (negotiated)
Historical: 7 portfolio companies listed since 2023
OKX, Bybit: similar Vertex relationships with faster timelines and preferential fee structures. Historical listings: OKX (5), Bybit (9).
Tier 2 and Tier 3 Exchanges
Gate.io, MEXC, LBank, Bitget: faster, lower-fee listings used to build initial trading history and regional exposure. Historical performance includes many successful placements (e.g., MEXC: 22 listings; Gate.io: 14 listings).
Exchange Listing Process Management
Phase 1: Preparation (2-3 weeks)
Documentation gathering and application package creation
Phase 2: Submission and Review (4-8 weeks)
Application submission, follow-ups, negotiation
Phase 3: Technical Integration (1-2 weeks)
Smart contract integration, deposit/withdrawal testing
Phase 4: Launch Coordination (1 week)
Coordinated announcements, market maker activation, PR
Phase 5: Post-Listing Optimization (Ongoing)
Volume monitoring, new pairs, futures listings, marketing
Multi-Exchange Strategy:
Staged approach: Tier 2 initial launch (Month 1-2), additional Tier 2 (Month 3-4), Tier 1 pursuit (Month 5-6)
Listing Fee Negotiation:
Standard vs. Vertex-negotiated fees (typical reductions 30-60%)
Exchange Listing Success Metrics:
Day 1 volume targets, bid-ask spreads, order book depth, market maker uptime, historical performance metrics
Decentralized Exchange (DEX) Integration
Supported protocols: Uniswap V3/V4, PancakeSwap, Trader Joe, Curve, Maverick, etc.
DEX Services:
Liquidity pool design, fee tier selection, initial liquidity provision (Vertex contribution $50K-$200K)
LP incentive program design and mitigation for mercenary capital
DEX aggregator listings and oracle implementation
Historical DEX integration: 73 pools launched; average initial liquidity $300K total
Derivatives and Options Markets
Perpetual futures and options listing support to increase volume, hedging, and sophistication.
Perpetuals:
Benefits: higher volume, price discovery
Requirements: spot trading volume, liquidity, market maker
Platforms: Binance Futures, Bybit, OKX, dYdX, GMX, Aevo
Historical: 31 portfolios with perps listed
Options:
Platforms: Lyra, Aevo, Deribit, Ribbon
Vertex supports applications, market maker recruitment, IV analysis
Historical: 8 portfolios with options markets
Structured Products:
Covered calls, put-selling vaults, range products
Ribbon Finance integration support
Institutional Infrastructure
Wallet Integration
Institutional custody integrations and RFQ access.
Custodians:
Fireblocks: MPC platform, account setup, API integration; widely required by institutions
Qredo: decentralized MPC custody
Copper: UK-based, FCA-regulated
BitGo: US-qualified custodian
Institutional RFQ Access:
Platforms: Paradigm, Hidden Road, Talos
RFQ process overview and Vertex support for integration and market maker recruitment
Market Data and Analytics
Real-time market feeds, trading metrics, on-chain analytics, custom dashboards, competitor benchmarking, and sentiment tracking.
Real-Time Data Feeds:
Aggregated price feeds, OHLCV, WebSocket and REST APIs, Grafana dashboards
On-Chain Analytics:
Holder distribution, transaction analytics, token flow analysis
Integrations: Nansen, Dune, Glassnode, Token Terminal
Custom dashboards: 47 built for portfolio companies
Competitor Benchmarking:
Monthly reports, deep-dive analysis, real-time alerts
Market Sentiment Tracking:
Social listening, news monitoring, sentiment tools (LunarCrush, Santiment, The TIE)
Go-to-Market and Business Development
Comprehensive GTM strategy, marketing, PR, KOL/influencer campaigns, community building, events, and partnerships.
GTM Strategy Development
Phase 1: Market Research and Analysis (Weeks 1-2)
User persona research, competitor landscape mapping, TAM/SAM/SOM, regulatory assessment
Deliverables: persona document, competitive analysis, market sizing spreadsheet, regulatory memo
Phase 2: Positioning and Messaging (Weeks 3-4)
Value proposition refinement, messaging architecture, brand voice and tone, visual identity recommendations
Deliverable: final value prop, messaging framework, brand voice guide
Phase 3: Channel Strategy (Weeks 5-6)
Identify paid, owned, and earned channels
Crypto-specific channels: Twitter/X, Discord, Telegram, YouTube, TikTok, Reddit
Partnerships, influencer marketing, events and conferences
Phase 4: Execution Planning (Weeks 7-8)
90-day launch plan with week-by-week breakdown
Resource allocation and budget recommendations (early-stage to late-stage ranges)
KPI definition and tracking setup (awareness, acquisition, activation, retention, revenue, product metrics)
Historical benchmarks for CAC, activation rate, and retention included.
Marketing and PR
Content Marketing Execution:
Thought leadership, technical content, social media cadence, video coordination, case studies
Output examples and quality standards provided
Public Relations:
PR strategy, press release drafting and distribution, media relationship management
Target publications and historical media relationships and placements
Interview Preparation and Crisis Communication:
Interview placements, preparation, crisis response framework and historical results
Agency Partnerships:
Zero-H Marketing (growth marketing) and Serotonin (PR) as example agency partners
Agency selection, contract negotiation, KPI setting, and management
KOL and Influencer Network
KOL network across Tier 1–3 with engagement models (strategic advisory, paid campaigns, affiliate programs, ambassador programs). Campaign design, execution timeline, vetting and quality control, and historical performance metrics included.
Community Building
Community infrastructure (Discord, Telegram, Twitter), engagement programs (ambassador programs, incentivized testnets), bug bounty structuring, and tools/platforms for gamified engagement (Zealy, Galxe, Guild.xyz, Crew3, Layer3, QuestN).
Historical community metrics and best practices provided.
Events and Partnerships
Conference participation, sponsorship coordination, speaking placement, booth design and staffing, side event organization, hackathon hosting, partnership identification and activation, and historical performance metrics.
Partnership development:
Outreach strategies (cold, warm, inbound)
Partnership proposal templates and negotiation support
Activation and ongoing management
Layer 1/2/3 Support Services
Specialized services for blockchain infrastructure projects: validators, ecosystem development, funds, governance, and TVL growth.
Validator Node Operations
Deployment:
Hardware specs by chain (Ethereum example, Solana example)
Cloud vs. bare metal guidance
Node Setup:
Provisioning, OS hardening, client install, synchronization, key generation, staking
Monitoring and Alerting:
Prometheus, Grafana, Alertmanager, PagerDuty
Alert thresholds and response targets
Operational Management:
24/7 monitoring, rapid response SLAs, software updates, incident post-mortems
Slashing Risk Mitigation:
Procedures to avoid double-signing, downtime, and other slashing conditions
Historical operations: 78 validator nodes, 99.7% uptime, 0 slashing events
Ecosystem Development
Developer Programs:
Docs, SDKs, tooling, dev support, workshops, courses, grants
SDK and Tooling:
Essential SDKs, CLI tools, IDE extensions, local dev networks
Technical Support:
Developer Discord, Stack Overflow, GitHub presence
Grants:
Infrastructure, applications, research, education with milestone-based funding
Ecosystem Fund Structuring
Fund design:
Fund sizes by chain maturity, legal structure, investment thesis, team recruitment, deal flow generation, portfolio support
Historical: 5 funds designed; combined size $380M; 140+ investments
Governance Participation
Governance framework design:
Proposal/voting models, platform selection (Snapshot, Tally, Commonwealth), community governance support, strategic voting
TVL Growth Strategies
Liquidity mining program design:
Emission schedules, reward mechanisms, effectiveness measurement
Protocol-Owned Liquidity (POL):
Bonding mechanisms and treasury-owned LP strategies
Partnership integrations:
Yield aggregators, lending protocols, cross-chain bridges, fiat on/off-ramp partners
Historical results and benchmarks included
Technical and Security Services
Smart contract audits, code optimization, security architecture, and infrastructure scaling.
Smart Contract Audits
Audit firm partnerships:
CertiK, Hacken, Halborn, OpenZeppelin, Trail of Bits
Audit processes, severity classifications, remediation, re-audit recommendations
Multi-audit strategy and historical audit results
Code Optimization
Gas cost optimization:
Storage packing, function signatures, loop avoidance, event usage
Refactoring:
Readability, maintainability, modularity, test updates
Documentation and testing:
NatSpec, architecture diagrams, test coverage goals (80%+; critical contracts 95%+)
Historical optimization metrics provided
Security Architecture
Threat modeling across attack surfaces, access control and key management (multi-sig, hardware wallets, time-locks), oracle manipulation protections, upgradeability patterns, incident response planning and simulations
Infrastructure Scaling
Chain selection and multi-chain strategy, subgraph/indexing infrastructure (The Graph, custom indexers), API design and rate limiting, CDN and caching strategies, CI/CD and DevOps pipelines
Historical infrastructure scaling metrics provided
Additional Services
Legal/compliance, talent acquisition, and ongoing advisory services.
Legal and Compliance
Token classification analysis, law firm network by jurisdiction, entity formation guidance, TOS and privacy policies, SAFT/SAFE coordination, IP protection, KYC/AML infrastructure (Onfido, Jumio, Sumsub), AML screening (Chainalysis, TRM Labs, Elliptic), compliance program guidance
Historical legal/compliance metrics provided
Talent Acquisition
Recruitment services:
Job description templates, sourcing channels, screening process, role-specific recruitment (smart contract engineers, full-stack, DevOps, product, BD, marketing, legal)
Interview coordination, offer negotiation, onboarding consultation, and first-90-day plans
Ongoing Advisory
Monthly office hours, quarterly strategy reviews, crisis management support, follow-on investment consideration, pro-rata rights and follow-on investment process
Contact: For questions about specific services or customization, contact services@vertexfdn.xyz.