# VC Related Articles

HTX News Center provides the latest articles and in-depth analysis on "VC", covering market trends, project updates, tech developments, and regulatory policies in the crypto industry.

Who Exactly Is Persistently Funding the Crypto Bear Market?

Despite a significant crypto market downturn in Q1 2026, with Bitcoin falling over 25% and Ethereum down 35%, institutional investment continued to flow in. Key buyers included corporate treasuries like Strategy (MicroStrategy), which aggressively added over $10 billion in Bitcoin, sovereign wealth funds such as Mubadala, and major banks launching new crypto ETFs. Over 26 new single-asset crypto ETFs were filed or launched under new SEC rules, including products from BlackRock and Morgan Stanley. VC funding showed concentration, with total funding around $5-6.8 billion but deal count dropping 49%. Three major deals—BVNK ($1.8B), Kalshi ($1B), and Polymarket ($600M)—accounted for half the quarter’s funding. Investment shifted toward payment/stablecoin and prediction market sectors, while DeFi and NFT/gaming funding declined sharply. The market is bifurcated: long-term holders and institutions are accumulating, while tactical hedge funds and miners are selling. The U.S. strategic Bitcoin reserve remains unallocated, leaving corporate and sovereign buyers as the main drivers during this bear phase.

Odaily星球日报04/25 14:56

Who Exactly Is Persistently Funding the Crypto Bear Market?

Odaily星球日报04/25 14:56

Naval Steps Into the Arena: A Historic Collision Between Ordinary People and Venture Capital

Naval Ravikant, co-founder of AngelList and a prominent Silicon Valley thinker, has taken a hands-on role as the chairman of the investment committee at USVC—a new SEC-registered fund allowing non-accredited investors to access high-growth private tech companies with a minimum investment of $500. The fund’s initial portfolio includes leading AI firms like OpenAI, Anthropic, xAI, and others. This move represents a significant shift in democratizing access to venture capital, a space traditionally dominated by institutional investors and high-net-worth individuals. USVC aims to let ordinary investors participate in the high-alpha, pre-IPO growth phase of tech companies—a stage where much of the value creation now occurs before public listings. However, the fund is not without complexities. It offers limited liquidity, with potential quarterly redemptions capped at 5%, and charges an all-in fee of 2.5% in its first year. While this is higher than traditional ETFs, it is positioned as a more accessible alternative to conventional VC fee structures. Ultimately, USVC symbolizes a broader movement toward financial inclusion in high-stakes tech investing—not through crypto or Web3 mechanisms, but via regulated, retail-friendly investment vehicles. It offers a ticket to early-stage innovation, though risks typical of venture capital remain.

marsbit04/25 12:45

Naval Steps Into the Arena: A Historic Collision Between Ordinary People and Venture Capital

marsbit04/25 12:45

Weekly Editor's Picks (0418-0424)

Weekly Editor's Picks (0418-0424) provides in-depth analysis on key developments across macro trends, crypto markets, and policy. Key topics include the oil market nearing a physical supply crisis due to shipping disruptions, even if the Strait of Hormuz reopens. In crypto, reports cover global consumer crypto adoption, a data-driven strategy for trading volatile altcoins, and the state of VC funding. Prediction markets like Polymarket are analyzed not as pure event-guessing games but as systems where understanding legalistic rules creates an edge. Major DeFi protocol Aave is criticized for poor crisis management amid a $300M exploit, while the controversial structure of World Liberty Financial is examined. Other highlights include policy updates like the CLARITY Act, Ethereum’s, airdrop opportunities, and weekly recaps of major incidents like the Kelp DAO hack and SpaceX's AI disclosures.

marsbit04/25 02:47

VCs Sticking to the Primary Market: How Much Money Do They Still Have?

The article discusses the current state of the cryptocurrency venture capital (VC) market, based on a debate among investors from firms like Pantera Capital, Crucible Capital, and others. Key insights reveal that while VC funds are not short on capital, there is a scarcity of high-quality investment opportunities. The discussion highlights a structural shift: early-stage funding is more dispersed and competitive, with many smaller funds active, but later-stage growth capital is highly concentrated among a few large players like Paradigm and Pantera. Data indicates that over 80% of funding in 2026 went to later rounds, but this includes "graduated" fintech projects that have entered traditional VC realms. The core issue is not the availability of money, but its distribution and accessibility—early-stage founders face intense competition for funding, while later-stage funding is gatekept by a handful of major firms. This reflects a broader trend where VCs are being more selective, prioritizing long-term, proven projects over narrative-driven investments, and founders must demonstrate substantial progress and resilience to secure capital.

Odaily星球日报04/22 07:42

VCs Sticking to the Primary Market: How Much Money Do They Still Have?

Odaily星球日报04/22 07:42

VCs on 2025 Crypto Investments: 84% of 118 Tokens Break Issue Price, Only One Type of Company is Quietly Making Money

Crypto investor Ching Tseng categorizes the market into four quadrants based on two axes: crypto-native vs. traditional finance (TradFi)-oriented, and having traction vs. no traction. In 2025, 84.7% of 118 tracked token launches fell below their issuance price, with a median fully diluted valuation drop of 71%. Crypto-native projects without traction are experiencing massive capital destruction, often relying on speculative narratives without sustainable revenue or user retention. Crypto-native teams with traction, often built in prior cycles, generate real revenue but face structural challenges with their tokens lacking direct value capture mechanisms. While some have implemented successful buyback programs, the core issue remains finding growth beyond crypto volatility. TradFi-oriented startups without traction face long, costly enterprise sales cycles but benefit from a robust M&A environment, with crypto acquisitions reaching a record $8.6 billion in 2025. The current winners are TradFi-oriented companies with traction, particularly in the Real World Asset (RWA) tokenization space, which grew from $5.5B to $18.6B in 2025. They are winning through enterprise sales, building alliances, and improving unit economics on established compliance stacks. Their main risk is being bypassed by large incumbent institutions building their own infrastructure. The overarching theme is market maturation, where narrative alone is insufficient for long-term success.

marsbit04/22 03:44

VCs on 2025 Crypto Investments: 84% of 118 Tokens Break Issue Price, Only One Type of Company is Quietly Making Money

marsbit04/22 03:44

Crypto Trader's Account: Friends Are Leaving, What's Left to Do in This Industry?

Crypto trader Donn reflects on the declining state of the cryptocurrency industry, noting that many peers are leaving due to three core challenges: lack of innovation in the past 2-3 years, the threat of quantum computing to Bitcoin by 2029, and increased DeFi attacks exacerbated by AI models like Claude Mythos. VC activity has stagnated, with few quality token projects generating over $50M in annual income. Liquidity and investor interest have dwindled, shifting focus to traditional markets. For traders, event-based strategies remain viable but are increasingly competitive and low-yield due to reduced open interest and retail participation. Systematic and basis traders are exploring alternative strategies as traditional methods become less profitable. DeFi yield farming is increasingly unattractive due to rising hack risks and insufficient returns, pushing farmers toward off-chain options. On-chain gem hunters still chase high-risk, high-reward opportunities, but success rates are low, and most tokens crash shortly after peaking. Personally, the author is scaling down crypto trading, maintaining a small arbitrage strategy on Polymarket, and exploring AI automation for analytical tasks. He is also researching AI model fine-tuning and broader AI applications beyond crypto, seeking new focus areas as the industry wanes.

marsbit04/22 03:14

Crypto Trader's Account: Friends Are Leaving, What's Left to Do in This Industry?

marsbit04/22 03:14

Spending $200 to Buy Stars, Scamming VCs Out of Tens of Millions: The Entire GitHub Fake Star Industry Exposed

A peer-reviewed study from Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) reveals that GitHub hosts approximately 6 million fake Stars, involving 18,600 repositories and 301,000 accounts, with AI/LLM projects being the largest non-malicious category for fake engagement. The fake Star market has exploded, with prices as low as $0.03 per Star. Research shows that venture capital firms, such as Redpoint Ventures, use GitHub Star counts as a key metric for evaluating startups, with median Stars at 2,850 for seed-stage funding. For less than $200, a project can artificially meet this threshold, distorting investment landscape. Over a dozen websites openly sell GitHub Stars, and fake Star activity saw explosive growth in 2024. AI-related repositories were among the most heavily affected. Despite GitHub’s policies against fake engagement, enforcement remains inconsistent: while 90% of flagged repositories were deleted, only 57% of involved accounts were suspended. The report highlights how purchased Stars can manipulate GitHub’s Trending algorithm and influence VC funding decisions, creating a cycle where artificial metrics attract real investment.

marsbit04/21 02:59

Spending $200 to Buy Stars, Scamming VCs Out of Tens of Millions: The Entire GitHub Fake Star Industry Exposed

marsbit04/21 02:59

When Top Crypto VCs Are Shrinking Across the Board, Why Has This Firm Grown by 150%?

In a declining crypto market where top venture capital firms like Paradigm, Pantera, a16z crypto, and Multicoin saw significant reductions in assets under management (AUM), Haun Ventures stood out with a 150% growth, increasing its AUM from $1 billion to $2.5 billion by 2025. Founded by Katie Haun, a former federal prosecutor and a16z crypto veteran, the firm combines regulatory insight with investment discipline. Initially investing heavily in NFTs during the 2022 hype, Haun Ventures quickly pivoted as the bubble burst, adopting a cautious approach with only six investments over the following 18 months. The firm balanced its portfolio between digital tokens and traditional equity, allocating about 30% to liquid tokens like Bitcoin and Ethereum, which contributed significantly to returns as Bitcoin’s price surged. By 2024, Haun Ventures shifted focus to B2B solutions in payments and developer infrastructure, leading over 56% of its investment rounds—the highest rate among top VCs. This strategy paid off with several high-multiple exits via acquisitions, such as Bridge (acquired at $1.1 billion from a $200 million valuation) and BVNK (acquired at $1.8 billion from a $750 million valuation). The firm’s success is attributed to its regulatory foresight, adaptive strategy, high-conviction lead investments, and emphasis on real-world utility and exit efficiency—making it a standout performer during the crypto downturn.

marsbit04/20 10:32

When Top Crypto VCs Are Shrinking Across the Board, Why Has This Firm Grown by 150%?

marsbit04/20 10:32

L1 is Dead, Long Live Appchain

"L1 is Dead, Appchain Rises" critiques the failure of current Layer-1 (L1) blockchain models, arguing their tokens are trending toward zero. The author identifies key flaws: linear token emissions that incentivize selling rather than value creation, weak value propositions like "gas token" and "governance" narratives, mismanagement by bloated "foundations" or "labs" that drain value through excessive spending and token sales, and poor industry leadership focused on short-term narratives and overhyped trends like RaaS and high TPS. The solution proposed is a fundamental shift. New L1 token models are needed, moving away from the "low float, high FDV" paradigm that disadvantages retail investors. Fundraising should be sufficient only for launch, not excessive. Token unlocks should be tied to real milestones like CEX listings or DeFi integration. The ultimate goal should be for L1 tokens to become widely used mediums of exchange, not just fuel for networks. Value is increasingly moving to the application layer, with successful apps building their own chains (appchains). The author concludes that L1s must build sustainable value by creating useful applications and services, fostering strong holder communities, and achieving self-sustainability without relying on continuous token emissions.

marsbit04/20 03:36

marsbit04/20 03:36

Leading Crypto VCs See Collective AUM Shrink: a16z Crypto Fund Management Scale Plummets 40%, Multicoin Halved

Headline: Top crypto funds including a16z Crypto and Multicoin saw their Assets Under Management (AUM) decline significantly in 2025, according to undisclosed SEC filings obtained by Fortune. Key Points: - a16z Crypto’s AUM dropped nearly 40% to $9.5 billion, partly due to returning capital to LPs at a market peak. Its first crypto fund achieved a 5.4x DPI. - Multicoin’s AUM was halved to approximately $2.7 billion, impacted by the crypto market downturn and its hybrid hedge/VC fund structure. - Pantera Capital also reduced AUM, influenced by successful exits including five portfolio company IPOs like Circle and BitGo. - Haun Ventures was the exception, with AUM growing over 30% to nearly $2.5 billion, driven by the successful acquisition of portfolio company BVNK by Mastercard. - Despite AUM contractions, major firms are raising new funds: Paradigm targeting up to $1.5 billion, a16z Crypto seeking up to $2 billion, and Dragonfly closing a $650 million fund. The data highlights the high volatility and cyclical nature of crypto VC investments, where AUM fluctuations are heavily tied to token prices and market cycles rather than solely reflecting fund performance.

marsbit04/18 02:58

Leading Crypto VCs See Collective AUM Shrink: a16z Crypto Fund Management Scale Plummets 40%, Multicoin Halved