The DSF runs grant programs to empower stakeholders in its University Network. These grant programs are in the areas of research, education and innovation. You can learn more about the general types of programs we run and fund on this page.
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Specific eligibility criteria are contained in the individual grant program information.
This Call aims to promote three major educational activities on distributed ledger technologies. Applications are expected to be for running multiple programs over at least a three-month period (not one-off events/programs):
This may include an overview of how blockchain technology works, its key features and benefits, and its potential applications in different industries.
This may include an overview of how cryptocurrencies work, their impact on the financial industry, and the different types of cryptocurrencies available.
This may include an introduction to smart contracts, how they work, and their potential applications in different industries.
This may include an overview of what token economics is and why it is important in the context of blockchain-based systems. It should also include an explanation of how tokens are designed and how the characteristics of a token can impact its value and functionality.
This may include an overview of decentralised applications (DApps), how they differ from traditional applications, and their potential applications in different industries.
This may include an overview of blockchain security, including the different types of attacks that can be launched against a blockchain network, and how to protect against them.
This may include an introduction to blockchain governance, including how decisions are made on a blockchain network, and the different types of governance models that can be used.
This may include an overview of how blockchain can be integrated with existing systems and technologies, and the potential benefits and challenges of such integration.
Many blockchain executive programs may focus on specific industries, such as finance, healthcare, supply chain, and others, and explore how blockchain can be applied in these industries.
Blockchain can be combined with other emerging technologies to create new use cases. These executive programs can showcase how and when to combine these emerging technologies together.
This may include an explanation of the key features of Web 3.0, such as interoperability, decentralisation, and semantic web technologies. This may also include a discussion of the challenges and opportunities presented by Web 3.0, such as data privacy, interoperability, and governance.
Description: Intensive training programs designed to equip aspiring developers with the necessary skills to succeed in the industry.
Goals: To provide practical and hands-on experience for participants to learn programming languages and frameworks, build real-world projects, and network with peers and mentors in the field.
Format: Instructor-led sessions, individual and team-based projects, mentorship and support, networking opportunities.
Description: Structured discussion groups centred around a particular topic or theme, with assigned readings and facilitated conversations.
Goals: To foster intellectual curiosity, critical thinking, and deeper understanding of complex concepts.
Format: Regular meetings, assigned readings, discussion questions, facilitator-led conversations, peer feedback.
Description: Conferences or workshops that showcase research findings and promote knowledge sharing and collaboration among scholars, practitioners, and stakeholders.
Goals: To promote the dissemination of research findings, facilitate interdisciplinary collaboration, and advance the state of knowledge in a particular field.
Format: Keynote speeches, panel discussions, poster sessions, paper presentations, networking opportunities.
Description: Informal learning sessions held during lunch breaks or other designated times, often led by experts in a particular field or topic.
Goals: To provide accessible and convenient learning opportunities for busy professionals, facilitate knowledge sharing and networking, and promote continuous learning.
Format: Informal presentations, Q&A sessions, peer-to-peer discussions, networking opportunities.
Description: Competitions or events that challenge participants to develop innovative solutions to real-world problems or industry-specific challenges.
Goals: To promote practical education and skills development, encourage creativity and innovation, and foster collaboration and teamwork.
Format: Challenge statements, time-limited competitions, project showcases and demos, peer feedback and mentorship, networking opportunities.
Description: Training sessions or workshops led by experts from industry tool providers, aimed at educating participants on the latest tools and technologies used in the field.
Goals: To provide practical knowledge and hands-on experience with industry-specific tools and technologies, and promote best practices and standards.
Format: Instructor-led sessions, hands-on activities and demonstrations, peer feedback and support, and networking opportunities.
Description: Practical demonstrations and hands-on learning on blockchain technology
Goals: For students to complement their courses or to introduce technical aspects of blockchain to learners (students, professionals etc).
Format: Single lab sessions or multiple sessions led by instructors in-person or online
Description: Programs that provide funding and mentorship for students to contribute to open-source software projects.
Goals: To promote practical education and skills development, encourage community engagement and contribution, and support the development of open-source software.
Format: Mentorship and support from open-source project leaders, project-based work, peer feedback and support, networking opportunities.
Description: A collaborative project that brings together students and industry professionals to work on real-world projects.
Goal: Through this program, students will have the opportunity to apply their knowledge and skills to practical projects while receiving guidance and mentorship from experienced professionals. Industry professionals, on the other hand, will benefit from fresh perspectives and innovative ideas from students while helping them to gain valuable industry experience.
Format: call for project proposals from industry professionals, student applications, project selection, team matching, project work with check-ins and feedback, and project presentations.
This Call aims to promote research on distributed ledger technologies to tackle two major Grand Challenges that the blockchain communities suffered over the last decade:
We welcome proposals that develop innovative solutions to detect, prevent, and prosecute those who engage in fraudulent activities in the blockchain and crypto space. This includes scammers, pump-and-dump schemes, Ponzi schemes, and other types of fraud.
We invite proposals that tackle the problem of trolls, bots, and spammers in social media platforms related to blockchain and cryptocurrency. We encourage innovative ideas that can effectively detect and mitigate the impact of these activities on the broader community.
We seek proposals that develop novel approaches to enhance security in the blockchain and crypto ecosystem. This includes solutions to prevent sybil attacks, hacking attempts, and other malicious activities that compromise the integrity of the system. We are particularly interested in ideas that leverage advanced technologies such as machine learning and AI.
We are interested in proposals that tackle the problem of selfish mining in proof-of-work (POW) systems and address the need for equitable reward incentives in proof-of-stake (POS) systems. We welcome ideas that can provide a fair and transparent mechanism for mining and incentivisation, while preventing abuse and centralisation.
We invite proposals on new asset pricing theories for cryptocurrencies, tokens and understanding market microstructures, yield products and asset portfolio design for Web 3.0.
We invite proposals on decentralised financial products and services, designing incentives mechanisms for distributed systems, the DeFi economy and the convergence of CeFi and DeFi.
We invite proposals on new token business models and governance of blockchain ecosystems looking particularly at decentralisation and its benefits and measuring this. We encourage research on decentralised autonomous organisations (DAOs) as a new form of governance.
We invite proposals that seek to create new regulatory models: automating regulation and compliance and provide guidance on regulatory changes that will promote innovation in the new Web 3.0 economy whilst maintaining protection for consumers and economic systems.
total of up to USD 1,700,000 (USD One Million Seven Hundred Thousand equivalent) is available for this round of Research Grants funding. Funding will be awarded to projects that run for a period of up to 12 months (starting from the award of the grant).
Applicants are permitted to apply for up to USD 300,000 (USD Three Hundred Thousand equivalent) over a 6 month period from the date of this Call. The amount of funding allocated to each applicant will be determined by the scale, nature and quality of the activities to be conducted through the proposed project.
The number of applicants to be awarded has not been pre-determined. The number of awards will reflect the quality of the applications, and the need to provide appropriate funding to deliver the supported programs of work. Applicants will be funded on a rolling basis until the budget is exhausted.
The grant scheme covers Directly Incurred costs (Direct costs are those eligible project costs that will be incurred by the awardee in carrying out the project work (eg. project-specific research staff, consultancy costs, software licensing costs, technical staff, travel, consumables or equipment costing less than USD 15,000 (USD Fifteen Thousand equivalent) and the salary costs associated with the PIs and collaborators estimated time on the project. These costs will be charged as the amount that will be spent and could be supported by an audit record. Any funding requested shall only be awarded to named individuals or companies who are in the submitted budget.
The funding is not intended to meet indirect, estates and generic administrative costs including overheads, rent, utilities etc. associated with the proposed project award
This Call aims to promote innovation activities on distributed ledger technologies around Four Major Areas that are of interest to the industry community:
The project should be licensed under an open-source license that allows other developers to use, modify, and distribute the software freely.
Modularity: The project should be modular and designed to enable easy integration with other blockchain-related software.
The project should have clear and comprehensive documentation that explains how to use, deploy, and contribute to the software.
The project should prioritise security by adhering to industry best practices and conducting regular security audits and vulnerability assessments.
The project should be designed to be scalable, ensuring that it can handle large volumes of data and transactions without compromising performance.
The project should actively engage with the blockchain community, seeking feedback, and encouraging contributions from developers and users.
The project should support interoperability with other blockchain networks and protocols, enabling seamless integration and cross-chain functionality.
By incentivising the development of POCs, the program aims to facilitate experimentation with new tokenomic models to ensure greater efficiency, transparency, and security in these industries.
Grant applicants should apply for running at least two hackathons over their grant period rather than one-offs.
The proposed program consists of Hackathons for students, academics, and industry professionals interested in Distributed Ledger Technology. The program seeks to provide a platform for individuals to collaborate, innovate and learn about emerging digital technologies, with a particular focus on DLT.
The program's goal is to foster innovation and creativity in the blockchain ecosystem by providing a space for participants to work together, learn from each other, and develop new blockchain-related solutions. The program aims to engage students, academics, and industry professionals and create opportunities for cross-disciplinary collaboration.
The program will be held in-person and online, depending on the circumstances and participants' preferences. In-person hackathons will be held at physical locations that provide the necessary infrastructure and resources for participants. Online hackathons will be conducted through virtual platforms that enable participants to collaborate and work together remotely. Participants will form teams, and each team will be tasked with developing a blockchain-related project from scratch within a limited time frame. The Hackathons will provide access to mentorship, technical support, and resources to guide participants through the development process. The program will culminate in a showcase event where teams present their projects to a panel of judges, who will evaluate and provide feedback on the projects.
A total of up to USD 2,000,000 (USD Two Million equivalent) is available for this round of Innovation Grants funding. Funding will be awarded to projects that run for a period of up to 12 months (starting from the award of the grant).
Applicants are permitted to apply for up to USD 300,000 (USD Three Hundred Thousand equivalent) over a 6-month period from the date of this Call. The amount of funding allocated to each applicant will be determined by the scale, nature and quality of the activities to be conducted through the proposed project.
The number of applicants to be awarded has not been pre-determined. The number of awards will reflect the quality of the applications, and the need to provide appropriate funding to deliver the supported programs of work. Applicants will be funded on a rolling basis until the budget is exhausted.
The grant scheme covers Directly Incurred costs (direct costs are those eligible project costs that will be incurred by the awardee in carrying out the project work (eg. project-specific innovation staff, consultancy costs, software licensing costs, technical staff, travel, consumables or equipment costing less than USD 15,000 (USD Fifteen Thousand equivalent) and the salary costs associated with the PIs and collaborators estimated time on the project. Startups awards costs are also eligible. These costs will be charged as the amount that will be spent and could be supported by an audit record. Any funding requested shall only be awarded to named individuals or companies who are in the submitted budget.
The funding is not intended to meet indirect, estates and generic administrative costs including overheads, rent, utilities etc. associated with the proposed project award.
Funding programs are open to University Network members only.
Please apply to join our network before applying for funding.
We will make every effort to ensure your application's confidentiality and that they are not shared with the public. However, any information you provide may be shared with advisors in the review process. If there is something you would like to be kept confidential, please let us know in your application (although this may affect our ability to process your application).
We are aiming to provide payment in a number of different currencies, but our preference is to pay in USD equivalent stablecoin. This can be discussed at the grant contracting stage.
Our grants embrace both entrepreneurship and collaboration. We believe that academic research, education and innovation can and should be linked to industry as well as having public benefit. Only the lead applicant of the grant needs to be from a University Network Member.
Yes! Your application will be acknowledged within five working days to assess whether or not it is complete. Thereafter, our team of DSF Scientists will initially review the grant to ensure it meets the grant scope. This process is likely to take around two weeks. Only then is it passed on to the Grant-giving Committee for a decision. Ultimately the final decision on your grant depends on the grant budget and when you submit your application. Rolling grant calls will be evaluated continuously until their budgets are exhausted. Competitive calls will be distributed after they close. We love learning about the amazing work people are doing and if your grant isn’t successful, we’ll suggest how to improve it and whether we’ll keep it on file for another funding opportunity.
Grant sizes are typically capped at several hundred thousand dollars (equivalent) and vary widely depending on the scope and expected length of the project - but we expect that grant funds are used efficiently and for maximal impact.
Don't be discouraged! We have a finite scope and sometimes it's just not a fit, or not the right time - that doesn't mean the work you're doing isn't important. We’ll aim to give you feedback where possible if your application isn’t successful and if its a case of just not being the right time, we’ll keep your application on file and get in touch with you when something more appropriate is open.
You can also reapply in the future if you feel that something has changed. Feel free to get in touch with our grants office if you’d like to know more.
The questions in the grant application form can be found in a blog post available here. Once you prepare your application offline, please aim to fill out the grant application in one go. If you don't manage to, your information will be saved in your browser's local storage for 15 days (but only if you are on the same device and not in Incognito or private browsing mode).