Discussion Details
**Regulated Private Credit RWA products on Cardano**
jasondehni
Description
BlackOpal is a regulated private credit platform focused on Real World Asset (RWA) financing. We specialize in high-yield, low-default niches like Invoice Financing, Embedded SME Lending, and Asset-Backed Facilities. Our mission is to create safe, compliant, and high-performing RWA vaults for the Cardano DeFi ecosystem.
BlackOpal has the ability to build structured product specifically and exclusively for the Cardano ecosystem, including new asset classes.
The primary objective of our proposal is to introduce a new asset to Cardano and thereby increase its Total Value Locked (TVL). Furthermore, since we are considering using a Cardano-based stablecoin as a payment method, we strongly believe that the resulting transactions will contribute to enriching the Cardano treasury. In line with this contribution, when the business funded through treasury support begins to generate revenue, we will make a donation to the treasury.
We propose to deploy a multi-RWA product suite on Cardano, along with the required on-chain infrastructure (vaults, tokenization, investor dashboard, and reporting stack). This will integrate directly with USDA, Cardano’s native stablecoin, for both capital deployment and yield redemptions.
Problem Statement
Problem: DeFi yields are unsustainably low and disconnected from the real economy. Meanwhile, TradFi real-world private credit continues to generate stable 8–15% APYs for institutional investors, but remains inaccessible to on-chain users.
Opportunity: By bridging regulated, high-quality private credit opportunities with Cardano's DeFi ecosystem, we can unlock real yield and improve capital efficiency, TVL, and user trust.
Proposal Benefit
The BlackOpal Solution
- Compliant RWA Vaults: Tokenized and regulator-reviewed lending vaults backed by real-world cash flows like invoices and secured SME loans.
- Cardano Vault Infrastructure: Fully on-chain, modular vault contracts deployed on Cardano.
- USDA Integration: USDA will be used as the stable asset for deployment and redemption, enabling real on-chain cash flows.
- Investor Portal: An intuitive frontend for KYC’d users to deposit USDA, view positions, and track returns.
- Institutional Origination Network: BlackOpal partners with licensed originators in SEA and beyond to source quality deal flow.
Cardano Alignment
- TVL Growth: Each RWA vault adds 1:1 backing and stable inflows.
- USDA Utility: Enables real-world stablecoin usage.
- DeFi Maturity: Establishes yield-bearing, regulatory-compliant primitives for DeFi 2.0.
- Global Impact: Supports SME growth, reduces financing gaps in emerging markets.
USDA Integration All vaults will be denominated in USDA, ensuring a native stable asset is used for:
- Investor deposits
- Borrower disbursements
- Yield redemptions
We will work with EMURGO to integrate USDA via:
- USDA APIs for minting/redemptions
- Vault support for USDA balances
- USDA/ADA DEX pairs for user flexibility
This will demonstrate first real on-chain usage of USDA in real-world lending flows.
Key Proposal Deliverables
-
Milestone 1 (40%) - On approval, request 40% of the budget to achieve Milestone 2
-
Milestone 2 (20%) - Develop a private credit vault infrastructure and product offering on Cardano for institutional investors, purchasable with USDA, and conduct an audit of the associated smart contracts. → provides funding to achieve Milestone 3
-
Milestone 3 (40%) - Established an offshore lending entity and all relevant legal documentation for DeFi solutions (allowing for USDA), along with website and UX/UI dApp → provides funding to execute on 12 months of retail launch
-
12 Months Retail Launch - Execute on a retail GTM strategy, working with various Cardano ecosystem partners
Cost Breakdown
Milestone 2 (funded by Milestone 1 on signing) - 40%
Key Activities
- Source and onboard three Aiken as well as full-stack Engineers - $50,000
- Vault smart contracts, USDA integration, tokenized vault issuance logic - $200,000
- Deployment, wallets, API nodes, indexing, metadata servers - $75,000
- Independent audit of smart contracts (e.g., by Certik, Obsidian) - $70,000
- Investor dashboard, on-chain analytics, USDA KYC flows - $50,000
- Onboarding originators, due diligence, underwriting tech, product structuring - $75,000
- Direct work with USDA APIs, DEX routing, stable vault deployment - $80,000
Total: $600,000
Milestone 3 (funded on achieving Milestone 2) - 20%
Key Activities
- Agency Fees - $20,000
- Set-up an offshore 'non-obligated' lending entity for DeFi retail - $75,000
- Legal advisory, corporate secretary fees - $30,000
- Legal document formation (e.g. Loan Agreement, Terms of Services, Data Privacy) - $75,000
- Website & UX/UI dApp - $100,000
Total: $300,000
12 Months Retail Launch (funded on achieving Milestone 3) - 40%
Key Activities
- 12 Months GTM Distribution channels and integration (e.g. GTM & integrations on Cardano with RWA Exchanges (DigiFT), Stablecoins (USDA etc), A.I. bots & infra (FUKUAI) etc.) - $180,000
- Purchase of ADA for top up on yield for initial incentive - $200,000
- KOL fees, contests - $70,000
- Contingency / Misc (10% of total) - $150,000
Total: $600,000
Resourcing & Duration
- Overall team size: 7-9 resources
- Milestone 2: 6-9 months depending on speed of onboarding additional Cardano engineers
- Milestone 3: 3 months
- 12 Months Retail Launch: Ongoing
Experience
The BlackOpal team has built successful DeFi lending solutions under the Credbull brand for the Plume Network. Credbull is the lead product partner for Plume’s flagship RWA product, Nest RWA, accounting for the largest share of TVL. This product has a target launch of May’25. https://app.nest.credit/nest-rwa-vault
Maintenance & Support
It’ll be maintained by us, with our own technical resources.
Supplementary Endorsement
N/A, not part of Cardano ecosystem at the moment
Roadmap Alignment
Does your proposal align with any of the Intersect Committees?
Product Committee
Does this proposal align to the Product Roadmap and Roadmap Goals?
Programmable Assets
Administration and Auditing
Would you like Intersect to be your named Administrator, including acting as the auditor, as per the Cardano Constitution?
Yes
Ownership Information
Submitted On Behalf Of
CompanySocial Handles
jason@blackopal.financeKey Dependencies
Need Cardano Developers, & Programmable Assets enabled on Cardano
Supporting Links
Comments (6)
Answering questions from Rodorigo
- They are set in bahamas
We explored six different jurisdictions based on the following criteria: 1/ comprehensive regulatory framework for digital assets in fund management 2/ partnering with a fund administrator with expertise in digital assets 3/ cost effective to obtain the highest designated fund license 4/ crypto friendly banking partners
The Bahamas emerged as being the strongest on the above criteria - with BitGo as our custody partner. Having said that, part of our expansion plans is to establish a second license in Europe, in jurisdictions such as Ireland or Luxembourg.
- No website owner info
The website is blackopal.finance and the owner is the BlackOpal team, led by Jason Dehni, https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasondehni/
- I could not find track of their previous work or results.
BlackOpal has not publicly launched yet (an opportunity for Cardano), but rather has been structuring bespoke products for its permissionless DeFi sister company, Credbull (set up in Europe). Credbull has emerged as the lead product partner for Nest Credit RWA, Plume’s flagship RWA product. https://app.nest.credit/nest-rwa-vault
- They only work with accredited investors, but no USA residents Offshore jurisdiction combine with anonymity seems risky
The fund is a professionally designed fund (the highest designation), and is able to service up to $100M in assets or 99 investors from the US. To exceed this, it is a simple registration with the SEC. All investors who invest directly into the fund undergo KYC.
The permissionless DeFi/lending entity to be set up for the Cardano ecosystem that provides access to products structured by the fund will be in a jurisdiction that provides a clear regulatory framework for such activity (similar to how Credbull was set up), as well as one that allows for the deployment of various stablecoins, including USDC, USDT and USDA. In addition to working with Intersect, we are happy to work with an advisory committee from Cardano to present options and recommendations.
- They are working on plume network which is only on testnet now, they been putting on delay the launch of it.
We are now fully deployed on Plume mainnet and we are set to launch toward 3rd/4th week of May.
I noticed that the proposal mainly emphasizes USDA as the stablecoin solution.
Could you clarify why other stablecoin options available on Cardano are not considered?
Would there be flexibility to integrate alternative stablecoins if they become more liquid or widely adopted in the future?
The proposal was submitted at the last minute and there are tons of questions. : Does the proposal define concrete KPI targets such as TVL growth or USDA transaction volume? How will these be measured and reported? What outreach plans exist to recruit technical partners within the Cardano ecosystem? Have any engineering partners already committed? The proposal allocates $200K worth of ADA for yield top-ups — how will this be made sustainable beyond the initial period? The proposal mentions donating back to the Treasury — based on what revenue levels and through what mechanism will this be implemented? How does this differ from prior Cardano RWA projects like Empowa, DigiFT, or Anzens? What makes this uniquely positioned?
Comments from 2025 Cardano Budget Proposals Review Workshop: Cameroon Hub
What stands out? This is a project focused on increasing investor returns. Strengthening financial security and reducing risks. Expanding partnerships with traditional financial institutions. Real-world use of the USDA.
What’s a tradeoff to consider? Accepting a strong interconnection with the global financial system, which increases the risk of falling back into the excesses of finance that cryptocurrencies and blockchains aim to solve.
What’s one question you’d want to ask the proposer? Who are the lenders in Asia that the proposer is referring to?
Highlight areas that are missing or require clarification What are the risks associated with the loans, and how will they be mitigated? Who are the members of the team? What is the timeline, schedule, and what are the milestones? Given the still noticeable lack of regulation around crypto, under what legal framework does the proposer plan to operate? What percentage of the profits will be allocated to the treasury?
What value will it provide to your community? Access to credit is rather complex in our community. This proposal could help solve that issue. It could also improve transaction costs by encouraging the use of USDA.
I noticed you submitted this to the "core" budget category, but most of your proposal focused on private business operation. You do mention in your proposal plans to some infrastructure, but if you meant that work to fall into "core" I think it may have been better to split this proposal into two:
- one that outlines the infrastructure, how it's reusable between multiple projects, emphasizes its open source nature, etc.
- one that focuses more on your private businesss and how its growth benefits Cardano
Are You Ready to Participate?
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