On October 2 local time, Japan’s SMBC Nikko Securities and blockchain developer Nethermind announced that they had signed a memorandum of understanding with Uniswap Labs, Base and the Nyx Foundation to develop a “DeFi Gateway.” The collaboration will develop liquidity-provision protocols and customized liquidity pools so Japanese investors can access decentralized finance (DeFi) in accordance with legal and regulatory requirements.
The project gives concrete form to a plan the two companies announced in March for Japanese investors to participate in onchain finance by supplying assets needed for trading to automated market makers (AMMs). Using the “hooks” feature in Uniswap v4, they plan to embed anti-money-laundering and counter-terrorist-financing controls (AML/CFT) and investor-protection procedures into liquidity pools. A hook is a smart contract that adds custom operating rules to a pool.
They will also develop “agentic vaults” and user interfaces that use verifiable and reproducible artificial intelligence to support or execute investment decisions. The partners also plan operating strategies intended to expand liquidity provision for digital assets including stablecoins and real-world assets (RWAs).
SMBC Nikko Securities will lead engagement with regulators and contribute expertise in compliance, risk modeling and portfolio management. Nethermind will handle technical architecture and development, AI integration and smart-contract security. Uniswap Labs will provide technical support for protocol integration and liquidity-provision strategies; Base will support development within its ecosystem; and the Nyx Foundation will advise on designing and optimizing market-making strategies and hook structures.
The target for completing development is mid-2027. The participants plan to share progress with government and regulatory bodies, including Japan’s Financial Services Agency, and support discussion of a regulatory framework for DeFi. The announcement did not specify investor eligibility requirements or a service launch date.