Author: Fortune
Compiled by: Deep Tide TechFlow
Deep Tide Intro: The biggest player in crypto VC is launching a new fundraising round at a time when Bitcoin has halved from its recent high. The scale has shrunk to less than half of the 2022 fund. More notably, the industry ecosystem is diverging: Paradigm is pivoting to AI and robotics, Multicoin's founder has departed, while a16z remains 100% committed to blockchain—the outcome of this bet will define who calls the shots in the next crypto cycle.
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The biggest player in crypto venture capital is back on the fundraising circuit. According to multiple anonymous sources who spoke to Fortune, Andreessen Horowitz's blockchain division, a16z crypto, is currently raising its fifth fund, targeting approximately $2 billion, with plans to complete the raise by the first half of 2026.
a16z crypto, led by veteran investor and entrepreneur Chris Dixon, launched its first $300 million fund in 2018, the year after the blockchain boom pushed Bitcoin to $20,000. Each subsequent fund has been larger than the last, culminating in the $4.5 billion mega-fund in 2022—which is still actively investing. Although the latest fund is less than half that size, one source indicated that a16z crypto plans to shorten the fundraising cycle to capitalize on rapidly changing crypto trends. Previous funds were spaced one to two years apart. (a16z crypto CMO Kim Milosevich declined to comment.)
This venture giant's fifth foray into digital assets comes at a time of sluggish crypto market performance, despite recent rebounds. Bitcoin has fallen nearly 50% since hitting an all-time high in October, and shares of publicly traded crypto companies have also declined significantly. Nevertheless, the industry is enjoying the most lenient regulatory environment in Washington in its 17-year history.
Read, write, own
When a16z launched its first crypto fund, digital assets were still novel to traditional investors. But the venture capital firm and Dixon brought institutional capital into the space, prompting other major players to follow, including Paradigm and Haun Ventures, founded by a former a16z crypto general partner. Fortune reported last year that Haun is raising $1 billion through two new funds.
a16z crypto has backed several winners, including crypto financial services firm Anchorage, prediction market platform Kalshi, and decentralized exchange Uniswap. However, other digital asset investors have questioned Dixon's philosophy—summarized in his 2024 book, *Read Write Own*. Dixon has been a proponent of the "Web3" narrative, arguing that blockchain can create decentralized versions of internet applications and underlying infrastructure, from social media platforms to lending protocols.
Yet many of these projects have since faded, including a16z-backed Farcaster—a project building a decentralized Twitter—which decided to return the full $180 million it raised to investors earlier this year after selling its infrastructure to another company.
Meanwhile, the crypto industry has largely shifted toward purely financial projects centered around stablecoins and tokenization, or offering blockchain-wrapped versions of other financial assets. Even staunch crypto investors are pivoting. Multicoin Capital co-founder Kyle Samani left the firm in February, stating he would focus on other areas of technology. According to a recent Wall Street Journal report, crypto VC Paradigm, founded by Sequoia and Coinbase alumni, is raising up to $1.5 billion for a new fund that will focus not only on crypto but also on AI and robotics. A Paradigm spokesperson declined to comment.
According to a source familiar with the matter who spoke to Fortune, a16z crypto's fifth fund will be 100% focused on blockchain investments.
Dixon recently acknowledged on X that blockchain has entered its "financial era" but refuted claims that the "read write own" philosophy has failed. "Finance isn't outside the larger narrative; it's part of it," Dixon wrote. "It's the foundation and proving ground for everything else."
During the fundraising period, a16z crypto continues to make investments. Recent examples include: Babylon, a decentralized protocol that helps users use Bitcoin positions as collateral; Kairos, a cross-platform integration tool for prediction markets; and a $50 million investment in Solana staking protocol Jito.
