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Crypto and blockchain startups are rallying around the Web3 banner.
Big-name US investors are writing checks for these risky firms.
Insider profiled 13 VC investors in Europe doing the same.
Few topics have created as much polarization in the tech sector in 2022 as Web3. What it is, why it matters and how serious of a proposition all differ depending on who you ask.
Critics see Web3 as little more than a refreshed marketing tagline for crypto and blockchain technologies that have existed for over a decade and haven’t gained much traction. Supporters see it as a foundational idea on which the building blocks of a next-generation, decentralized internet will rest.
In the US, VC giants like Andreessen Horowitz have led the charge by launching mega-funds worth billions of dollars dedicated to finding lucrative opportunities in both the technical and consumer side of Web3.
Some venture capitalists in Europe are following suit, even as Web3 has yet to fully prove itself as a concept — and may never.
But venture capitalists are risk-tolerant, and will bank on ideas and technologies at risk of fizzling out.
Web3 startups may be trying to solve anything from technical challenges – such as the interoperability of multiple blockchains and the energy consumption of bitcoin – to more macro matters such as Web3’s relationship with traditional financial institutions or the creator economy.
Insider has identified 13 VC investors in Europe seeking to make investments into Web3 startups and projects. Luke Alvarez
Firm: Hiro Capital
Role: Founder and general partner
Focus: At the helm of Luxembourg and London-based VC firm Hiro Capital, Luke Alvarez oversees investments into both metaverse and Web3 technology platforms and services in the belief that they will be “a central pillar of entertainment, economic and social life in the mid 21st century.” The firm’s particular focus is on games.
Alvarez has spent 30 years in technology and gaming, having served as a founding board member at several firms, and founding Inspired Entertainment, a Nasdaq-listed games company.
In February, his firm launched a $340 million fund – its second in three years – to capture opportunities in what Alvarez says is “a pivotal moment in the very early phases of the metaverse, VR, AR and Web3”. Andrei Brasoveanu
Andrei Brasoveanu, partner at Accel Firm: Accel
Role: Partner
Focus: Andrei Brasoveanu, originally from Romania, is a longtime member of US VC firm Accel, having joined in 2014 and taking residence in London. The Accel partner is working with a team at the firm to invest in Web3 and crypto opportunities on both the consumer and technical sides.In July 2021, for instance, Accel led a $15.3 million Series A round in a startup named Tenderly, which offers a blockchain development platform that simplifies the process of building blockchain products for developers. In February 2021, the firm also invested in Sorare, a fantasy football game based on Ethereum’s blockchain. Ophelia Brown Blossom Capital founder Ophelia Brown (centre) alongside managing partner Alex Lim (left) and general partner Imran Ghory. Firm: Blossom Capital Role: Founder and partner Focus: Ophelia Brown is a public fan of Web3 as a concept, with her profile picture on Twitter being a CryptoPunk NFT bought in December.Since launching Blossom Capital in 2018, Brown has gone on to raise capital for three funds. The latest, a $432 million fund announced in January, takes the total raised since Blossom’s launch to $1 billion. Brown told Insider that a third of the new fund would be dedicated to crypto-related companies. The fund has previously backed MoonPay, a platform that allows users to exchange fiat and cryptocurrencies. Alex Brunicki Firm: Backed VC Role: Cofounder and partner Focus: For Alex Brunicki, it’s important that BACKED VC doesn’t take “the generalist approach to Web3.” Such an approach would mean investing in any startup calling itself a Web3 business without a specific solution. “The way we look at Web3 is we think the ecosystem is going to mature very quickly,” Brunicki told Insider.To avoid the generalist approach, Backed VC is looking at three core areas in Web3: decentralized finance, a system of financial instruments otherwise known as DeFi that does away with intermediaries, blockchain gaming, and any so-called “crypto-native infrastructure” technologies that help traditional finance institutions onboard into crypto. Filip Dames Firm: Cherry Ventures Role: Founding partner Focus: In January, Cherry Ventures raised a €300 million ($340 million) fund – its […]
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