Grayscale Launches DeepBook, Walrus Trust Increases: Cryptocurrency Prices Surge
Grayscale, a prominent digital asset investment manager, has entered the Sui blockchain ecosystem with the launch of two new single-asset trusts: the Grayscale DeepBook Trust and the Grayscale Walrus Trust. The announcement was made on August 12, 2025.
These trusts provide accredited investors with direct exposure to the DEEP and WAL tokens, which are native to the DeepBook and Walrus protocols respectively. Both protocols are recognized as foundational infrastructure elements within the Sui ecosystem, although they currently rank outside the top 10 by activity.
Current Status
As of the launch, both trusts are available for daily subscription through private placements. DeepBook, an on-chain decentralized central limit order book (CLOB), has processed over $10 billion in trading volume, underscoring its growing usage. Walrus, a scalable and secure on-chain data storage platform, raised $140 million in a major funding round in March 2025 from institutional investors.
Impact on Sui's DeFi and Data Infrastructure
DeepBook serves as a high-performance on-chain order book, acting as the liquidity backbone for decentralized exchanges, wallets, and other DeFi apps. This facilitates fast and efficient token trading on Sui’s blockchain. Walrus, on the other hand, enables programmable, scalable data storage optimized for the increasing demand stemming from AI-driven applications, significantly expanding Sui’s data management capabilities.
Together, these protocols contribute to Sui’s promise of fast, low-fee transactions and flexible smart contracts, powered by its unique architecture that includes parallel transaction processing and the Move programming language. Grayscale’s trusts potentially accelerate growth and innovation in Sui’s DeFi, social, and gaming sectors by providing institutional options to invest in specific Sui infrastructure tokens beyond the main SUI token.
A Seminal Moment for Sui
Adeniyi Abiodun, co-founder and CPO of Mysten Labs, the company behind Sui, has referred to the launch of these trusts as a "seminal moment" for Sui. He emphasizes the importance of DeepBook and Walrus in supporting the network's financial and data infrastructure.
The DEEP token, priced at roughly $0.17 on major exchanges, has shown a gain of over 12% since the announcement. The WAL token, trading around $0.43 as of August 12, has also seen an approximate 7% increase in the past 24 hours. This heightened volatility reflects growing investor interest and sector-wide momentum.
Grayscale is preparing for a market launch with a valuation of $50 billion amid the latest crypto-friendly regulation in the United States. The company's Grayscale Bitcoin Trust reached equilibrium in April 2024, after being at a discount for almost one year and producing losses for the company. Grayscale has several launches planned for 2025, including the new Grayscale DeepBook Trust, Grayscale Walrus Trust, and the recently announced Story Trust.
However, it's important to note that Grayscale had to sell over $800 million of assets due to the collapse of FTX in 2023. Despite this setback, the company continues to expand its product suite and invest in promising blockchain ecosystems like Sui.
In summary, the DeepBook and Walrus trusts facilitate institutional investment into crucial Sui ecosystem infrastructure that underpins decentralized trading and scalable data storage, thereby enhancing the blockchain’s DeFi functionality and data infrastructure in a manner aligned with Sui’s performance-focused design.
The launch of Grayscale's DeepBook and Walrus Trusts signifies a significant milestone in the Sui blockchain ecosystem, as these trusts provide accredited investors with direct exposure to the DEEP and WAL tokens, which are integral to the Sui ecosystem's DeFi and data infrastructure.
The integration of these trusts potentially accelerates growth and innovation in Sui's DeFi, social, and gaming sectors by offering institutional investment options in Sui infrastructure tokens beyond the main SUI token.
