Pendulum
Pendulum operates a Substrate-based Polkadot parachain purpose-built to connect fiat currency rails to DeFi via a forex-optimized AMM, fiat FX oracles, and a trust-minimized Stellar bridge called Spacewalk. It serves fintechs, SMEs conducting cross-border payments, and remittance users in emerging markets.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2022
- HeadquartersBerlin, Germany
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingSoftware
What Pendulum does
Pendulum operates a Substrate-based smart contract blockchain deployed as a parachain on Polkadot (with a sister Kusama parachain called Amplitude). The platform is purpose-built to connect fiat currency rails to DeFi, specifically optimizing for foreign exchange use cases through a dedicated Forex AMM, fiat FX oracles (USDC, ARS, BRL, TZS, EURC), and a trust-minimized Stellar–Polkadot bridge called Spacewalk. Its product surface includes the Pendulum parachain and PEN gas/governance token, the Amplitude canary network and AMPE token, the Spacewalk bridge, the Vortex multi-chain DEX/liquidity layer, the Nabla-powered Forex AMM, and an all-in-one Pendulum Portal for swapping, staking, bridging, and governance voting.
The company sells into fintechs, SMEs conducting cross-border business, individuals in emerging-market remittance corridors (notably Brazil and Tanzania), and DeFi users seeking yield on fiat stablecoins, addressing pain points such as high remittance costs, limited 24/7 forex liquidity for exotic currencies, and fragmented access between traditional finance and on-chain liquidity. Distribution is community-led (Discord, Telegram, Twitter, Reddit, Ambassador Program) and developer-first (REST APIs, documentation, Grants Program, Substrate Builders Program, Web3 Foundation R&D grant).
The revenue model is centered on network economics rather than enterprise SaaS pricing: transaction fees on Pendulum are paid in PEN, PEN holders stake to collators under a Limited Delegator Proof of Stake consensus, and PEN enables on-chain governance over asset listings, reward distribution, and network parameters. Pendulum Development INC is incorporated in the British Virgin Islands and is wholly owned by the Panamanian Pendulum Development Foundation, with engineering rooted in Berlin and origins tracing back to the 2014-founded SatoshiPay. No public pricing has been disclosed.
Pendulum firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Pendulum
- Legal name
- Pendulum Development INC
- Website
- https://pendulumchain.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2022
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Pendulum operates a Substrate-based Polkadot parachain purpose-built to connect fiat currency rails to DeFi via a forex-optimized AMM, fiat FX oracles, and a trust-minimized Stellar bridge called Spacewalk. It serves fintechs, SMEs conducting cross-border payments, and remittance users in emerging markets.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Pendulum industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Blockchain Infrastructure / Cross-Border Payment Infrastructure
- NAICS
- Securities and Commodity Exchanges (523210)
- SIC
- Security & Commodity Brokers, Dealers, Exchanges & Services (6200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Crypto-Enabled Cross-Border Transfers & On/Off-Ramps (FSAGAKAO)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Liquidity Bridges & Cross-Chain Swaps (bridge aggregators, intent-based swaps) (FSAPAKAC), Cross-Chain DEXs & Bridge-Integrated Trading (FSADABAD), DEX Aggregation & On-Chain Execution (routing, RFQ, intent-based trading) (FSAPAEAD), Brokerages & On/Off-Ramps (fiat rails, instant buy/sell) (FSAPADAG)
Keywords
Where Pendulum is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Berlin
- HQ country
- Germany
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices2 records
Markets served
Pendulum business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Network Transaction Fees: Transaction fees are charged for all transactions on the Pendulum network, paid using PEN tokens. Fees are an integral part of the network economy.
- Staking Rewards Distribution: Token holders can delegate PEN to collators and earn rewards. The network uses Limited Delegator Proof of Stake consensus.
- Governance Token Utility: PEN serves as the governance token for on-chain voting on asset listings, reward distributions, and network parameters. Token holders participate in community governance.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels10 records
Pendulum product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Pendulum operates a smart-contract blockchain network (Polkadot parachain) that connects fiat rails to decentralized finance. It provides a forex-optimized infrastructure for cross-border payments, on-chain foreign exchange trading, and fiat-backed stablecoin liquidity through its native AMM, the Spacewalk Stellar-Polkadot bridge, and the Vortex DEX/liquidity layer.
Product overview
Pendulum offers a blockchain platform composed of multiple interconnected products: the core Pendulum Polkadot parachain (with the PEN token for gas, governance, and staking), the Amplitude Kusama sister network (powered by the AMPE token for testing with real financial consequences), the Spacewalk trust-minimized Stellar-Polkadot bridge, the Vortex DEX and liquidity layer for forex swaps and fiat on/off ramps, the Pendulum Portal for swapping/staking/bridging/governance, and the Nabla-powered Forex AMM for stablecoin swaps. The ecosystem also includes a Grants Program and an Ambassador Program. Built on Substrate with Wasm smart contracts, it targets fintech companies needing interoperable cross-border payment infrastructure.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Amplitude: Pendulum's sister network on Kusama, acts as a testing ground for Pendulum applications and network parameters, powered by AMPE token.
- Spacewalk
- Vortex
Products and services
- Pendulum A Polkadot parachain providing an interoperable blockchain infrastructure for cross-border payments and traditional finance, connecting fiat and DeFi ecosystems through a forex-optimized smart contract platform. Built for fintech companies needing interoperable cross-border payment infrastructure.
- PEN Token Native token of Pendulum, used as the gas token for powering transactions on the network and for governance and staking. Total supply of 150,000,000 tokens. Reloaded as the utility token for Vortex in 2024.
- Amplitude Sister network of Pendulum on Kusama, acting as a canary/testing network for Pendulum applications and network parameters with real financial consequences. Powered by the AMPE token.
- AMPE Token Native token of Amplitude, used for transaction fees, staking, and on-chain governance on the Kusama sister network. Distribution is entirely community-driven with no allocation for the team or advisors.
- Spacewalk Trust-minimized Stellar-Polkadot bridge enabling users to bridge tokens between Stellar and the Polkadot/Kusama ecosystems, built by SatoshiPay. 8+ assets supported on Spacewalk.
- Vortex A liquidity layer connecting local fiat rails with crypto, providing a DEX for forex swaps, on/off ramps, and yield-earning opportunities across multiple chains including Binance Smart Chain, Base, Ethereum, Arbitrum, and Polkadot Hub. PEN serves as its utility token.
- Pendulum Portal All-in-one web application for swapping, staking, bridging, and governance voting on Pendulum. Supports WalletConnect v2.0.
- Forex AMM FX-native Automated Market Maker optimized for efficient stablecoin swaps, supporting USDC, ARS, BRL, EURC and USDT.axl, powered by Nabla technology. Enables on-chain forex trading 24/7.
Companies that use Pendulum
Customer profileSegments5 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Pendulum technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature5 records
Pendulum partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
17 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Stellar Development FoundationcoreStellar Development Foundation partnered with Pendulum to develop Spacewalk, a trust-minimized bridge connecting Stellar's payment network to Polkadot/Kusama ecosystems. This partnership enables Stellar's stablecoins and assets to flow into Pendulum's forex-optimized DeFi ecosystem.
- PolkadotcorePendulum is built as a Polkadot parachain, leveraging Polkadot's shared security infrastructure and interoperability with 40+ other parachains. The partnership provides access to Polkadot's ecosystem and relay chain security.
- KusamacoreAmplitude, Pendulum's sister network, is deployed on Kusama as a parachain. This provides a testing ground for Pendulum applications with real financial consequences.
- Parity TechnologiescoreParity provides the Substrate framework used to build Pendulum. Partnership includes Substrate Builders Program membership for technical support and ecosystem resources.
- Web3 FoundationcoreWeb3 Foundation provides grants and support for building Polkadot ecosystem projects. Pendulum received R&D Grant from Web3 Foundation for Pendulum Blockchain development.
- SatoshiPaycoreSatoshiPay is the parent company behind Pendulum. Spacewalk and other Pendulum technologies are developed by SatoshiPay team members. SatoshiPay has processed over 1M euros in borderless content payments.
- Berkeley Blockchain XceleratorminorPendulum participated in the Berkeley Blockchain Xcelerator Program in 2022, providing access to academic resources and blockchain innovation ecosystem.
- eMoneycoreeMoney is a European EURC stablecoin issuer integrated with Pendulum. eMoney provides regulated fiat-backed stablecoins for the Pendulum ecosystem.
- MyKobocoreMyKobo is a European EURC stablecoin issuer integrated with Pendulum for European euro stablecoin functionality.
- NablacoreNabla provides the Forex-optimized AMM technology powering Pendulum's FX DEX. This is a critical technology partnership for Pendulum's core forex functionality.
- DIAcoreDIA provides cross-chain oracle services for Web3. Partnership enables fiat price oracles (USDC, BRL, TZS) on Pendulum.
- HackencoreHacken conducted security audits for Solidity Wrapper and Asset Chain Extension, providing security validation for Pendulum smart contracts.
- ZenlinkcoreZenlink is a composable Polkadot DEX integrated with Pendulum for token swaps and liquidity provision.
- MEXCcoreMEXC is a user-friendly centralized cryptocurrency exchange where PEN tokens are listed for trading.
- Vortex FinancecoreVortex is a liquidity layer connecting local fiat rails with crypto. Vortex DEX is deployed across Binance Smart Chain, Base, Ethereum, and Arbitrum.
- Alchemy PaycoreAlchemy Pay provides fiat on/off ramps enabling users to buy PEN and other tokens with fiat currency.
- ClickPesaminorClickPesa Debt Fund partnered with Pendulum for Tanzania's microfinance evolution, providing funding and technology partnership for financial inclusion initiatives.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves9 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Pendulum competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Stellar: The payment-focused blockchain that Pendulum's Spacewalk bridge directly connects to. Both target cross-border fiat flows and stablecoin payments, and the partnership with the Stellar Development Foundation makes Stellar the upstream protocol Pendulum depends on for asset flow.
- Axelar: Cross-chain interoperability network providing general message-passing and asset transfer between chains. Like Pendulum/Spacewalk, it sits in the bridge/messaging layer and competes for the same wallet and dApp integration slots across the multi-chain ecosystem.
- LayerZero: Cross-chain messaging protocol widely adopted by DEXs and omnichain apps. Competes with Spacewalk for cross-chain asset and message routing, and is referenced in Pendulum's own ecosystem (Vortex uses Squid Router which is built on LayerZero).
- Wormhole: One of the largest cross-chain bridges connecting Solana, Ethereum, BSC, Base and other chains. Directly comparable to Spacewalk in bridge functionality, with a far larger set of connected chains and tokenized assets.
- Squid Router: Cross-chain swap router built on top of Axelar that Pendulum explicitly integrates for 'trustless cross-chain interoperability.' Operates in the same cross-chain execution/intent space as Vortex DEX.
- THORChain: Liquidity-network protocol for native cross-chain swaps between BTC, ETH, LTC and others. Competes for the same cross-chain FX/swap use case Pendulum targets, though focused on crypto-to-crypto rather than fiat-stablecoin.
Broad incumbents
- Acala: DeFi hub parachain on Polkadot. Comparable as a fellow Polkadot parachain targeting DeFi and stablecoin liquidity, and is explicitly listed as a Pendulum partner — represents both collaboration and competitive overlap in Polkadot DeFi.
- Moonbeam: Ethereum-compatible smart contract parachain on Polkadot. Comparable as another Polkadot parachain pursuing DeFi and cross-chain asset flows, with significantly more EVM compatibility and ecosystem traction than Pendulum.
- Ripple (XRP): Established institutional cross-border payments network using XRP and RLUSD stablecoin. Competes with Pendulum for the same remittance and FX corridor use case, but at vastly larger scale and with traditional-bank distribution.
Emerging players
- Synapse Protocol: Cross-chain bridge and swap protocol supporting Ethereum, Arbitrum, Optimism, BSC and others. Comparable to Pendulum/Spacewalk in cross-chain asset bridging, though with different chain coverage and a more generalist focus.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Pendulum social profiles
Digital presencePendulum financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Pendulum leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles11 records
Pendulum subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries2 records
Pendulum funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds3 records
Investors3 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Pendulum M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Pendulum
What does Pendulum do?
Pendulum operates a smart-contract blockchain network (Polkadot parachain) that connects fiat rails to decentralized finance. It provides a forex-optimized infrastructure for cross-border payments, on-chain foreign exchange trading, and fiat-backed stablecoin liquidity through its native AMM, the Spacewalk Stellar-Polkadot bridge, and the Vortex DEX/liquidity layer.
Is Pendulum a public or private company?
Pendulum is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Pendulum founded?
Pendulum was founded in 2022. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Pendulum based?
Pendulum is headquartered in Berlin, Germany, in the Europe region.
How does Pendulum make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Network Transaction Fees are the primary driver. The others are staking Rewards Distribution and governance Token Utility.
Who are Pendulum's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Stellar, Axelar, LayerZero, Wormhole, Squid Router and THORChain. Broad incumbents are Acala, Moonbeam and Ripple (XRP). Synapse Protocol is listed as an emerging player.
Does Pendulum have an API?
No public API is recorded for Pendulum.
What industry is Pendulum in?
Pendulum's product category is Blockchain Infrastructure / Cross-Border Payment Infrastructure. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAGAKAO, Crypto-Enabled Cross-Border Transfers & On/Off-Ramps, with a secondary code of FSAPAKAC, Liquidity Bridges & Cross-Chain Swaps (bridge aggregators, intent-based swaps). Its NAICS code is 523210 and its SIC code is 6200.