Venture capital pours $2.4B into crypto startups in early 2024

As a seasoned crypto investor with a keen interest in the industry’s dynamics, I find the recent surge in venture capital investment in crypto and blockchain startups to be an encouraging sign. After witnessing three consecutive quarters of decline, it’s refreshing to see a significant uptick in funding and deal count.


As an analyst, I’ve observed that crypto and blockchain startups have experienced a notable surge in venture capital investment following three successive quarters of decline.

Based on Galaxy Research’s findings, there was an injection of $2.49 billion into 603 deals during Q1 2024. This marks a substantial 29% rise in funding and a noteworthy 68% surge in deal numbers compared to the preceding quarter. However, it’s important to note that further quarters of growth are necessary to validate a sustained recovery.

“This was the first rise in both capital invested and deal count in 3 quarters, perhaps signaling that Q4 2023 was the “bottom,” although a continuation of QoQ increases – and a more meaningful increase – would confirm that over the coming quarters.”

Multiple elements shaped the investing landscape during the recent quarter. The debut of Bitcoin ETFs was one significant factor, alongside advancements in staking, modular development, and Bitcoin’s layer-2 technologies. Additionally, macroeconomic aspects like altering interest rates played a role.

Venture capital pours $2.4B into crypto startups in early 2024

Over the past year, the connection between Bitcoin’s price history and venture capital investments in cryptocurrency has grown less consistent. The report highlights that Bitcoin prices have experienced significant growth, but venture capital funding in this sector has remained relatively flat until early 2024. However, investment levels have yet to reach the heights seen when Bitcoin previously surpassed $60,000.

As an analyst at Galaxy, I’ve observed that approximately 80% of our investment capital during the last quarter went towards early-stage startups. Contrarily, later-stage companies encountered more challenging conditions. Notably, numerous large venture capital firms have exited or significantly reduced their investments in this sector.

Venture capital pours $2.4B into crypto startups in early 2024

The infrastructure sector led investment activity in the industry during the quarter, contributing 24% to the overall capital raised, with EigenLayer’s $100 million funding round being a significant contributor. Additionally, the Web3 and trading sectors secured 21% and 17% of the total funds raised respectively.

As a geographical analysis specialist, I’d point out that among all crypto venture deals, American startups accounted for an impressive 37.3% of the total deal count and an even more significant 42.9% of the invested capital. Singaporean startups came in second place with a 10.8% share of the deal count, while British startups held a 10.2% stake, followed closely by Swiss startups with 3.5%, and Hong Kongese startups with 3.2%.

Additionally, Galaxy points out that fundraising continues to be difficult due to unfavorable economic circumstances and uncertainty surrounding regulations.

“At the start of 2024, investors widely believed that rates would come down significantly over 2024, but throughout Q1, strong inflation data has tempered expectations for rate cuts this year, which has helped maintain a difficult fundraising environment for venture capitalists.”

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2024-05-03 19:10