Pencil Finance announces US$10 million for student loan financing backed by Animoca Brands and Open Campus

▤ Summary

The goal is to expand access to education financing through blockchain technology.Recent policy changes in the U.S. could put millions of borrowers at risk of defaulting on their student loans, highlighting the urgent need for accessible, transparent, and efficient financing solutions for the student loan market, which is estimated to be worth around US$3 trillion globally (Market Research Future, April 2025).Yat Siu, co-founder and executive chairman of Animoca Brands, said: "Blockchain is redefining how education is funded and developed. By bringing loans on-chain, we deliver transparency, efficiency, and access at a global scale, helping students everywhere unlock new educational opportunities. Together, they are working with Open Campus to enhance the education system for teachers, learners, and institutions by using innovative blockchain protocols and funding initiatives. Open Campus has launched EDU Chain, a Layer 3 blockchain on Arbitrum Orbit designed for consumer-facing education apps and on-chain education finance (EduFi), powered by the EDU token.Animoca Brands Corporation Limited (ACN: 122 921 813) is a Web3 leader that leverages tokenization and blockchain to deliver digital property rights to consumers, helping to establish the open metaverse and its associated network effects. It has received broad industry and market recognition including Fortune Crypto 40, Top 50 Blockchain Game Companies 2025, Financial Times High Growth Companies Asia-Pacific, and Deloitte Tech Fast.Animoca Brands realizes its mission via three integrated business pillars: operating Web3 businesses to advance blockchain adoption with native projects such as Moca Network, Anichess, The Sandbox, Open Campus, NEOM Web3 initiatives, and a regulated stablecoin project in partnership with Standard Chartered and HKT; providing digital asset advisory services including tokenomics advisory, liquidity provisioning, and institutional research to help external Web3 projects grow; and investment management, with a portfolio of investments in over 540 companies including industry leaders Pudgy Penguins, Yuga Labs, Axie Infinity, Polygon, Consensys, Magic Eden, OpenSea, Dapper Labs, YGG, and many others.For more information visit www.animocabrands.com or follow on X, YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and TikTok.HackQuest is the gateway to the Web3 development world, providing a comprehensive, one-stop educational infrastructure that minimizes friction and helps onboard developers and non developers to the world of Web3.

$ Funding

▦ Linked Companies

Animoca Brands

$10M to $25M