Crypto exchange FTX launches $2bn venture fund
FTX was recently valued at $25bn and is led by billionaire Sam Bankman-Friend
Popular crypto exchange platform FTX has launched a $2bn venture fund to support innovative crypto firms and businesses building the future of Web3.
The funding, confirmed via a company blog post, will offer a “flexible capital” structure where funding will be allocated in equity or tokens at any stage of a startup.
“We measure time horizons in decades. We don’t mind if you’re anon. We won’t ask you to present in front of an investment committee,” FTX confirmed.
The fund will be led by Amy Wu, a former partner at investment firm Lightspeed. She confirmed the news via Twitter.
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Betting big on blockchain
FTX, which was recently valued at $25bn and is led by billionaire Sam Bankman-Friend, will join a variety of industry rivals also looking to fund the next generation of crypto startups.
Coinbase is one of them. Last year, its co-founder Fred Ehrsam and former Sequoia Capital partner Matt Huang launched a $2.5bn fund via their VC firm Paradigm to back the next generation of startups. Investments will range in value from as little as $1m.
VC veteran Andreessen Horowitz’s Crypto Fund is another that adopts a similar funding structure.
The first Crypto Fund launched in 2018 and raised $300m. Horowitz’s second fund, which closed in April 2020, raised $515m. Crypto Fund III closed in June 2021, raising a staggering $2.2bn of capital to support the next generation of blockchain startups.
‘We're excited about crypto’
Andreessen Horowitz currently has $18.8bn assets under management and has previously invested $11.2bn in Coinbase.
FTX confirmed that the team will use the fund to support founders who share similar values, with the ability to “move fast, make the impossible possible, follow through, and improve the world”.
“We're excited about crypto. We believe digital assets and blockchain technology can reshape our world in the next few decades,” said FTX.
“Some sectors we’re excited about are gaming, social, software, fintech, and healthcare. We will also occasionally invest outside of crypto.”
