YO Labs

About YO Labs

YO Labs is the development team behind YO (Yield Optimizer), a decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol designed to automate and optimize yield generation across multiple blockchains. The company was co-founded by Mehdi Lebbar and Driss Benamour, who previously held leadership roles at Uber and also co-founded the DeFi risk-rating platform Exponential.fi. Their background includes experience in strategy, operations, product development, and financial technology.

The YO Protocol functions as a non-custodial, cross-chain yield aggregator that simplifies the process for users to earn returns on their crypto assets. It automatically identifies the best risk-adjusted yield opportunities across more than 50 DeFi protocols and continuously rebalances user funds to maximize returns. To manage risk, the protocol utilizes trusted ratings from Exponential.fi, which became a product under YO, to assess and balance risk and reward. Users deposit assets like ETH, BTC, EUR, and USD into the respective vaults and receive yield-bearing ERC-4626 tokens (e.g., yoETH, yoUSD) that represent their share and accrue value over time.

The business model targets both individual DeFi users and institutional clients, including fintech companies, crypto wallets, and developers. YO Labs aims to provide a unified yield infrastructure, allowing other platforms to integrate optimized, risk-aware yield strategies through a single integration, and it generates revenue through a share of protocol performance fees. As of December 2025, YO Labs has raised a total of $24 million, following a $10 million Series A round led by Foundation Capital with participation from Coinbase Ventures, Scribble Ventures, and Launchpad Capital.