Key Takeaways:
- Decrypt, a media business that debunks crypto and the decentralized web, has raised $10 million in a spin-off from blockchain accelerator ConsenSys Mesh.
- There is no anchor investor in this round. The new funding includes all sorts of sources, along with more than a dozen venture capital firms, decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs), web3 groups, and angel investors, all with the goal of strengthening Decrypt’s autonomy from a single governing company.
- The company intends to invest heavily in PubDAO, a decentralized newswire that Decrypt launched in October together with other journalist organizations and DAOs.
Decrypt Studios, a Web3 studio focusing on metaverse activations, has reported its successful spinout from ConsenSys Mesh, the blockchain accelerator and incubator, after obtaining $10 million in capital on a $50 million post-money valuation. The funding comes from more than 15 investors, comprising venture capital firms, decentralised autonomous organisations (DAOs), Web3 groups, and angel investors, in line with Decrypt’s aim of progressive decentralisation as it transitions to independence.
Decrypt is now totally autonomous thanks to a spin-off from ConsenSys Mesh, a blockchain incubator. The funds raised will be utilised to hire more personnel for its media coverage and to continue expanding its web3-related business projects. Ethereum co-founder Joseph Lubin launched ConsenSys Mesh in 2015. Decrypt was launched with the help of the incubator’s startup investment. During the “crypto winter” of 2018, magazine veteran Josh Quittner (Time Inc.), Ilan Hazan, and Ryan Bubinski co-founded Decrypt. It was founded as part of the ConsenSys Mesh incubator programme with the goal of educating the world about crypto and Web3, and it has now grown to 5 million monthly unique visits and 25 full-time staff.
“The crypto sector is incredibly tribal,” said Josh Quittner, CEO and co-founder of Decrypt. “Being truly independent is not the same as knowing we are completely supported by ConsenSys (Mesh).” “It was always our aim to spin out,” Quittner said. In this round, there is no lead investor. The new funding comes from a variety of sources, including over a dozen venture capital firms, decentralised autonomous organisations (DAOs), web3 groups, and angel investors, all with the goal of bolstering Decrypt’s independence from a single governing company.
Josh tweets that he is really pleased with the team that has developed over time, led them to this point, and will continue to lead them into the future.
According to Daniel Roberts, Decrypt’s editor-in-chief, the funding arrangement “shows we are a legitimate Web3 organisation.” “We’re a journalism organisation, but we like to point out that we use the technologies we cover.”
Hack.VC, Hashkey Capital, Canvas Ventures, Protocol Labs, and SK Group are among the venture capital firms that have invested. Global Coin Research DAO, Own.fund, Honey DAO, and Orange DAO were among the four decentralised autonomous organisations (DAOs) that took part in the round. Dan Roberts (Yahoo Finance, Fortune) was named Editor-in-Chief in 2021, with Jeff John Roberts (Fortune) as Executive Editor and journalists from ABC News and The Street.
Alanna Roazzi-Laforet (Condé Nast, IAB), a veteran media and technology executive who joined as Publisher and Chief Revenue Officer, created Decrypt Studios, a new type of Web3 studio that collaborates with brands and creators to curate NFT and metaverse activations. Decrypt’s business activities are starting to generate revenue, therefore it’s spinning out.
According to Alanna Roazzi-Laforet, publisher and CRO at Decrypt, the company produced roughly $1 million in revenue last year and expects that to expand significantly this year, with a projected bump to $5 million.
It presently has roughly 5 million unique visitors per month, while executives admit that traffic fluctuates as much as the cryptocurrency markets. “Like the crypto world, crypto media clicks fluctuate,” Roberts remarked.
Hack.VC, Hashkey Capital, Canvas Ventures, Protocol Labs, SK Group, as well as four DAOs (Global Coin Research DAO, Own.fund, Honey DAO, and Orange DAO) and a number of critical individuals, contributed to the $10 million fundraise.
The organisation intends to put a lot of money into PubDAO, a decentralised newswire that Decrypt started in October with the help of other journalist groups and DAOs.
Despite the fact that Decrypt is assisting with funding, PubDAO is a self-contained entity with its own treasury and payment mechanism. “In the last couple years, crypto has become so mainstream that there’s a firehose of everyday crypto news, which can be overwhelming for individuals,” explains Decrypt EIC Dan Roberts. “At Decrypt, we dissect it all with good and clear language for people of all levels of comprehension.” We can now continue to provide the highest-quality Web3 journalism and beef up our video interviews, high-level podcasts, and popular live events thanks to our spinout and new independence.”
“With PubDAO and Decrypt, we’re laying the foundation for a new approach to media publishing by creating a decentralised network where creators and their audiences own the platform they monetize through—a media marketplace with better economics for creators, new monetization options, and a healthier ecosystem,” says Bubinski, who helped co-found PubDAO. We’re ecstatic to work with Decrypt and the rest of the Web3 community to shape the future.”
