SynFutures, a perpetual futures decentralized exchange (DEX), has raised a $22 million Series B led by Pantera Capital, alongside fellow crypto industry investor heavyweights.

Pantera Capital was joined by Susquehanna International Group and HashKey Capital, according to an emailed announcement on Thursday.

The substantial funding round may be a sign of better times for cryptocurrency projects looking to raise capital, with a bitcoin (BTC) halving expected in early 2024 and a potential end to the U.S. Federal Reserve’s tightening cycle offering hope of a thawing in the crypto winter.

Along with the funding announcement, SynFutures is also introducing its revamped exchange, featuring its "Oyster automated market maker" (Oyster AMM). SynFutures' intends to combine orderbook and AMM models to improve trading efficiency by concentrating liquidity in decentralized finance (DeFi.)

“The name "Oyster AMM" reflects the completely permissionless listing of futures trading pairs on SynFutures DEX, as well as the ‘pearls’ that appear on a liquidity curve with limit orders, as is the case with our model," Rachel Lin, SynFutures' co-founder and CEO, said.

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