Key Takeaways
- The funding surpassed Coinfund’s initial target of $125 million
- Coinfund is particularly interested in early-stage crypto startups that intersect with artificial intelligence
Coinfund, a leading venture capital firm in the cryptocurrency and blockchain industry, has successfully raised $152 million for its fourth seed fund, according to a Bloomberg report on July 18. The achievement surpassed Coinfund’s initial target of $125 million, as the company experienced a renewed surge of interest in the crypto sector.
Coinfund’s co-founder, Alex Felix, emphasized the company’s commitment to championing startups beyond providing financial backing.
“We are in service to the crypto ecosystem, the leaders of the new internet, pursuing ideal conditions for founders to flourish and their technologies to thrive by unlocking our networks and fostering education.”
Unlike previous fundraising rounds, which saw Coinfund invest in established categories such as NFT gaming and DeFi applications, this current round will prioritize emerging sectors. The company is particularly interested in early-stage crypto startups that intersect with artificial intelligence, recognizing the potential synergy between these innovative technologies.
Coinfund has a history of backing promising projects, including AI company Giza, which raised around $3 million, and infrastructure projects like Cosmos, where it contributed to a $10 million funding round alongside Binance Labs and others. The firm’s involvement in successful ventures highlights its commitment to fostering innovation and growth in the crypto and blockchain space.
Coinfund’s successful fundraising effort coincides with the news of Polygon Capital raising approximately $200 million during the first close of its fourth investment fund.
However, the news of Coinfund’s fundraising comes amidst a challenging landscape for Web3 startup funding. According to data from Crunchbase, venture funding to Web3 startups in the current year’s second quarter experienced a significant decline of 76% compared to the same period in the previous year. The number of funding deals also dropped by 51%, indicating a slowdown in investment activity within the sector.
In the second quarter of 2021, Web3 startups raised over $7.5 billion across 322 deals, while in the same period this year, the total funding amount was just over $1.8 billion. This consecutive decline in funding through 2022, as highlighted by a report from Blockdata, indicates a cooling off in venture capital funding within the broader Web3 space, following a period of high growth in 2021.
