What Zharta does

Zharta is a Lisbon-based DeFi lending protocol founded in 2022 by Nuno Cortesão (CEO), Diogo Pires (CTO), and Pedro Granate (COO). The company builds non-custodial smart contract infrastructure for collateralized lending across two primary verticals: (1) NFT-backed loans to retail collectors and holders, offered through both a peer-to-pool model (V1) and a peer-to-peer marketplace (V2) supporting 43 NFT collections, and (2) institutional fixed-rate onchain credit against tokenized real-world assets, offered through its Lending Pro platform with KYC-compatible architecture integrated with Securitize's DS Protocol. The protocol features differentiated primitives including a Pay-per-Day interest system for true APR transparency, Smart Escrow that keeps collateral productive while locked, Refinance Pro for secondary loan trading, and an Asynchronous Redemption Unwind that bridges DeFi atomic settlement with tokenized securities redemption cycles. A third product line, Otherside Renting, enables hourly rental of gaming NFTs (Kodas, Maras, Otherdeeds) for Legends of the Mara gameplay.

Zharta's go-to-market combines self-serve web applications (app.zharta.io for retail, institutional.zharta.io for institutional, legacy.zharta.io for renting), community-led growth via Discord and DAO partnerships (notably SquiggleDAO), and selective enterprise field sales for institutional accounts. Revenue is generated through transaction fees on loan origination, refinancing, and transfers under a Pay-as-you-go billing model, supplemented by a multi-chapter token rewards program (GTA, LOTM, League of Lenders, Royal Flush) with a planned TGE. As of public reporting, Zharta has facilitated $20M+ in cumulative loans and rentals across 5,000+ transactions, with the largest single loan being a $1M USDC facility to SquiggleDAO. Strategic institutional partnerships include Securitize (official credit infrastructure partner), Keyrock, and Kamui as pilot customers.

The company is venture-backed (Zhartabal Lda, Portugal), having closed a $4.3M seed round in July 2022 led by Greenfield One, with participation from Shilling Capital, Possible Ventures, SpaceShipDao, UniwhalesDao, and angels. No subsequent equity round has been publicly disclosed. Three independent security audits have been completed by Hexens, Hacken, and Red4Sec. The team size is 11-50 with prior plans to add up to 20 hires using seed proceeds.

Name

Zharta

Legal name

Zhartabal Lda

Website

https://zharta.io

Company type

Private

Founded year

2022

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Zharta is a Lisbon-based DeFi protocol offering peer-to-peer NFT-backed lending and institutional fixed-rate credit against tokenized real-world assets, serving both retail collectors via its V2 marketplace and institutional clients via its Lending Pro platform integrated with Securitize.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

DeFi Lending Protocol

NAICS

Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers (52231), Nondepository Credit Intermediation (5222)

SIC

Loan Brokers (6163), Miscellaneous Business Credit Institution (6159)

akta.pro primary industry

Decentralized Lending & Credit Markets (overcollateralized/undercollateralized, P2P) (FSAPAEAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Private Credit & Loan Tokenization Platforms (FSADAEAD), Credit Marketplaces, Aggregators & Loan Routing (FSADAFAJ)

Keywords

• NFT lending protocol
• Fixed-rate DeFi credit
• Tokenized RWA lending
• Collateralized NFT loans
• Otherside NFT renting

Headquarters

HQ city

Lisbon

HQ country

Portugal

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Loan Interest (Pay-per-Day): Interest accrues on loans based on daily rates using the Pay-per-Day system. Borrowers pay only for actual days of loan usage, creating transparent and fair pricing.
2. Protocol Fees: Fees charged on loan origination, refinancing, and loan transfers within the peer-to-peer protocol infrastructure.
3. Token Rewards Program: Zharta Token Rewards program with chapters (GTA Genesis Token Allocation, LOTM, League of Lenders, Royal Flush) rewarding user activity. Token Generation Event planned.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion4 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Zharta operates a non-custodial blockchain lending protocol that enables users to obtain instant loans by collateralizing NFTs or tokenized real-world assets. The platform offers peer-to-peer NFT lending (V2), legacy peer-to-pool lending (V1), institutional fixed-rate credit against tokenized securities via Lending Pro, and an Otherside NFT renting service for blockchain gaming assets. Revenue is generated through protocol fees on loan origination, refinancing, transfers, and secondary loan sales.

Product overview

Zharta is a multi-product DeFi lending platform offering both consumer and institutional solutions. The core offerings include Zharta V2 (peer-to-peer NFT lending protocol) and Zharta V1 (legacy peer-to-pool lending), complemented by Lending Pro for institutional fixed-rate credit against RWAs and tokenized securities. The product suite also includes Otherside Renting for NFT utility rental and Zharta Token Rewards for loyalty incentives. Key features like Refinance Pro, Smart Escrow, and Automation enable flexible loan management, productive collateral, and optimized capital deployment across the protocol.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Zharta V2 (Peer-to-Peer NFT Lending) Peer-to-peer NFT lending protocol that lets lenders and borrowers freely negotiate loan terms, rates, and maturity against NFT collateral across 43 supported collections, with features for refinancing, secondary loan resale, and automation.
• Zharta V1 (Legacy Peer-to-Pool NFT Lending) Legacy peer-to-pool NFT lending protocol that uses lending pools (ETH, USDC, Grail NFTs, Kashi, Keyrock, Keyrock USDC) with fixed terms and Pay-per-Day interest. Operates alongside V2 as a continued pool-based offering.
• Lending Pro (Institutional Fixed-Rate Onchain Credit) Institutional-grade platform for fixed-rate collateralized loans against tokenized real-world assets and securities, supporting customizable risk profiles, oracle-based and oracle-free execution, KYC verification, callable loans, and asynchronous redemption unwind for leveraged positions.
• Otherside NFT Renting Platform Self-serve platform for renting Otherside game NFT assets (Kodas, Kodamaras, Maras, Otherdeeds, Hounds, HV-MTLs, BAYC, MAYC, Meebits, The Grailed) with hourly pricing, enabling players to access temporary asset utility in Legends of the Mara and similar games.

Quantifiable outcome

• Up to 50% gas savings compared to competitors
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

AI capability2 records

Feature10 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• SecuritizecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2025Strategic partnership integrating Securitize's tokenized fund infrastructure (ACRED and others) with Zharta's fixed-rate lending protocol. Enables institutional investors to access DeFi credit markets using Securitize-issued tokenized securities as collateral. Zharta is Securitize's official credit infrastructure partner. Over $4B+ AUM in tokenized assets from Securitize.
• KeyrockcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2025Keyrock partnered with Zharta, Securitize, and Kamui to execute the first fixed-rate institutional collateralized loans on tokenized securities. Keyrock is a global crypto investment group with deep liquidity provision across 85+ venues.
• Kamui (RWA Professional Fund)coreTechnology or Integration · 1 November 2025Kamui's RWA Professional Fund is the pilot partner for Zharta's fixed-rate borrowing against Securitize tokenized securities. Successfully executed multiple end-to-end loans including first asynchronous redemption unwind on ACRED.
• Lagoon FinancecoreTechnology or IntegrationLagoon Finance powers the Zharta RWA Prime Vault, enabling USDC lending against tokenized real-world assets. Lagoon provides the underlying vault infrastructure.
• SquiggleDAOcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOfficial partnership and sponsorship including $1M USDC loan (largest Squiggle-backed loan). Zharta sponsored SquiggleDAO activities at Artblocks Marfa Weekend and Art Basel Miami Beach. Zharta facilitates loans against Squiggles enabling holders to maintain ownership.
• FarawayminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFaraway is the studio behind Otherside and Legends of the Mara. Zharta's renting platform supports Otherside gaming assets, creating utility for Faraway's ecosystem.
• HackenminorOthersThird-party smart contract security auditor. Conducted security review of Zharta's NFT lending V1 protocol smart contracts.
• HexensminorOthersTier-1 security audit firm completing comprehensive review of P2P lending contracts for Securitize integration (6 Vyper contracts). Zero critical vulnerabilities found.
• Red4SecminorOthersThird-party smart contract security auditor.
• Cuatrecasas Law FirmminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerLeading Portuguese law firm providing legal advisory for Zharta's seed funding round.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Pine Protocol: Pine is a peer-to-pool NFT lending protocol with fixed-rate terms. Closely matches Zharta's V1 architecture and competes for NFT holders seeking instant liquidity.
• NFTfi: NFTfi is the largest peer-to-peer NFT-backed lending marketplace. Directly competes with Zharta V2 in NFT collateralized lending for collectors seeking liquidity against their digital assets.
• Maple Finance: Maple Finance is an institutional onchain credit marketplace with fixed-rate loans to crypto-native institutions. Directly comparable to Zharta's Lending Pro for institutional fixed-rate credit, with broader borrower base.
• TrueFi: TrueFi is an institutional DeFi lending protocol offering fixed-rate, uncollateralized and undercollateralized loans. Comparable to Zharta Lending Pro for institutional credit with similar KYC/AML and portfolio management features.
• Gondi: Gondi is an NFT lending protocol offering both peer-to-peer and pooled NFT-backed loans. Competes with Zharta across retail NFT collateralized lending with similar refinance and open-offer functionality.
• Blend: Blend is a peer-to-peer NFT lending protocol launched by Blur marketplace. Competes head-to-head with Zharta's P2P NFT lending on advanced features, fixed-rate terms, and refinancing.
• Centrifuge: Centrifuge is an RWA tokenization protocol with onchain credit vaults lending against tokenized real-world assets. Direct competitor to Zharta's RWA Prime Vault and Lending Pro infrastructure.
• Arcade: Arcade is a P2P lending protocol for NFT collateral with bundled asset support. Directly comparable to Zharta's multi-collection lending and refinancing features.

Broad incumbents

• Aave: Aave is the largest DeFi lending protocol with hundreds of millions in treasury and expanding into RWA-backed lending via GHO stablecoin. Broad incumbent whose potential entry into fixed-rate NFT and institutional RWA credit threatens Zharta's niche.
• MakerDAO: MakerDAO operates the DAI stablecoin with significant RWA exposure (US Treasuries, real estate). As a broad incumbent with substantial RWA credit infrastructure, its evolution into more sophisticated onchain credit products is a competitive risk to Zharta's institutional motion.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ZhartaFinance
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/zharta

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors8 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Zharta