a16z Seeks Record-Breaking $4.5B for Crypto Funds
The $4.5 billion fund would nearly double the previous crypto fund record.
Key Takeaways
- Andreessen Horowitz has announced it is seeking $4.5 billion in fresh capital for its crypto funds.
- $3.5 billion would be allocated to its recently-launched crypto fund and $1 billion would be allocated to a new fund focusing on early-stage crypto startups.
- If successful, a16z's new fund would be the largest ever of its kind.
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Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) has announced plans to raise $4.5 billion for its cryptocurrency funds. The firm plans to finalize the funding by March.
a16z Seeks to Set New Record
Prolific venture firm Andreessen Horowitz is looking to raise a record-breaking $4.5 billion for its cryptocurrency funds.
According to the Financial Times, the firm told investors last week that it sought to raise $3.5 billion for its most recent cryptocurrency venture fund and another $1 billion for a new, distinct fund that would prioritize seed investments in crypto assets startups. The firm’s plan is to secure the funding by March.
Silicon Valley-based Andreessen Horowitz invests primarily in technology companies, including investments in biotech, fintech, and cryptocurrency. Its notable early investments include Facebook, Airbnb, Twitter, Coinbase, and Stripe. The firm has invested in dozens of major cryptocurrency projects, including as Solana Labs, OpenSea, Near, and UniSwap.
If a16z can successfully secure $4.5 billion in funding, it would be the largest cryptocurrency fund of all time, surpassing the previous record set by Paradigm’s $2.5 billion Paradigm One fund last November. Only last week, cryptocurrency exchange FTX fell short of breaking Paradigm’s crypto fund record with the launch of its $2 billion FTX Ventures.
Furthermore, Andreessen Horowitz’s new $1 billion crypto seed investment fund would double the digital assets industry’s previous record for a fund of that sort.
The size of this theoretical fund, while record-setting, would not be unthinkable, given the huge amounts of capital that have flowed into the space over the last year. In 2021, VC firms raised $10.7 billion for cryptocurrency-focused funds, and altogether investors put over $31 billion into crypto startups last year.
Disclosure: At the time of writing, the author of this piece owned BTC, ETH, and several other cryptocurrencies.
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