2022 marked a turning point for crypto venture capital, with investors pouring tens of billions of dollars into crypto-focused startups despite the overwhelming downward trend in asset prices. So, what were the biggest financing stories of 2022? Here are the details…
Haun Ventures: raised $1.5 billion
In March, crypto investor and Coinbase board member Katie Haun raised $1.5 billion for two Web3-focused mutual funds. The newly launched Haun Ventures has set up a $500 million early stage fund and a $1 billion accelerator fund to invest in “every layer of the Web3 tech stack.” Katie Haun hired former executives from Airbnb, Coinbase, and Google tech incubator Jigsaw to set up her new fund.
Huobi Global, the investment fund of the cryptocurrency exchange: launched a fund of $ 1 billion
In June, crypto exchange Huobi Global launched a $1 billion investment fund focused on decentralized finance (DeFi) and Web3 projects. The new fund, called Ivy Blocks, is designed to identify and invest in “promising blockchain projects” in various crypto subsectors. Huobi Global will focus specifically on providing “liquidity investments” to help get DeFi projects up and running.
NBA Top Shot creator: $725 million funding
Dapper Labs, the company behind CryptoKitties and NBA Top Shot, has launched a $725 million fund to support the development of the Flow Blockchain. The fund has received support from a number of investors, including Andreessen Horowitz, Spartan Group, and CoinFund. The fund supports the development community already built on Flow. Apart from that, it is used to attract developers from other blockchains like Ethereum.
Dragonfly Capital: launched $650 million fund
Crypto VC Dragonfly Capital closed its third funding round in April. Thus, it raised $650 million, surpassing the previous two rounds of $100 million and $200 million. The funding initiative, backed by Tiger Global, Sequoia China, KKR, and Invesco, was higher than the $500 million the company originally declared as part of its Form D filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Dragonfly said the funds will be used to invest in DeFi, metaverse and blockchain gaming startups.
Fireblocks: Raised $550M
Cryptocurrency custody platform Fireblocks has closed a $550 million Series E funding round. Thus, it saw an increase in its valuation in January. VCs continue to support enterprise infrastructure solutions. The latest round brings Fireblocks’ cumulative funding since 2019 to $799 million. Some of Fireblocks’ most prominent clients include Bank of New York Melon, Galaxy Digital, and CoinShares. It also served the now bankrupt BlockFi and Three Arrows Capital.
Binance Labs: Allocates $500M for Web3 development
As we reported as Kriptokoin.com, Binance Labs launched a $500 million fund in June. At this point, Blockchain development came to the fore. Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao said the funds will support project founders who are leading the adoption of Web3 in DeFi, NFT, gaming, metaverse and social sub-sectors. The Binance Labs fund supported 14 projects in the DeFi and social finance subsectors at the time of its launch.
Yuga Labs: $450 million funding round
Although the NFT market peaked in 2021, venture capitalists are counting on the growth of digital collectibles. In March, Bored Ape Yacht Club creator Yuga Labs completed a $450 million funding round worth $4 billion. Its supporters included Andreessen Horowitz, Animoca Brands, MoonPay and, you guessed it, FTX. Few subsectors have risen as hard or fast as NFTs in the previous bull market. This success earned Yuga Labs a significant investment round in March. But NFT-focused companies will have a hard time maintaining their forward valuation.
Popular cryptocurrency Polygon: $450 million investment round
Sequoia Capital India and more than 40 other venture funds have invested $450 million in layer-2 scaling solution Polygon. The company said it will use the funds to expand its scaling solutions to drive adoption of Web3 apps. According to Polygon co-founder Sandeep Nailwal, Ethereum will not provide enough scalability to support the Web3 future even after Merge happens. Polygon’s funding round ended in February, a few months before the explosion of the Terra ecosystem triggered the first collapse in crypto.
Multicoin Capital: $430 million for new cryptocurrency startup fund
In July, Multicoin Capital announced the launch of a $430 million fund to support early-stage companies. The company stated that it will allocate $500,000 to $25 million to crypto startups. He said he was ready to invest up to $100 million in larger projects. Multicoin stated that its latest funding initiative will prioritize projects with “physical proof of work” or protocols that create real incentives for decentralization.
Framework Ventures: $400 million raised
In April, crypto VC Framework Ventures launched “FVIII,” a $400 million fund to Web3, Blockchain games and DeFi. Framework Ventures said that half of the funding will go to blockchain gaming projects.
Ava Labs: $350 million in new funding
Avalanche Blockchain developer Ava Labs had a valuation of $5.25 billion in April. At the time of funding, Avalanche was one of the most popular blockchains in terms of TVL, or total locked value. Of course, this is no longer the case after crypto and DeFi entered a deep bear market.
Near Protocol: $350 million funding round
In April, Tiger Global and FTX Ventures managed Near Protocol’s $350 million funding round. At the time, it was one of the largest fundraising for any decentralized application platform. The income was intended to support Near ecosystem growth.
Binance.US, the US arm of crypto exchange Binance: $200 million venture round
American crypto exchange Binance.US has attracted notable investors including VanEck and Circle Ventures, raising $200 million at a pre-market valuation of $4.5 billion. Binance.US said the fund will go to expand its product features and operations across the United States. The company seems to have made some progress recently by offering mobile payments to US-based customers. The exchange also plans to buy the assets of the bankrupt crypto lender Voyager Digital.
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