Vessel Capital Launches $55 Million Fund to Support Web3 Startups

Supporting the Next Wave of Crypto Entrepreneurs

Venture capital firm Vessel Capital has revealed a new $55 million fund aimed at investing in Web3 infrastructure and applications. The fund, which will be deployed over a five-year period, aims to assist crypto founders working on early-stage startups to launch and grow their projects. The founders of Vessel believe that their experience as former startup entrepreneurs puts them in a better position to understand the needs of these emerging businesses.

Global Expansion for Crypto Sector

In an interview, Mirza Uddin, co-founder of Vessel Capital and head of business development at Injective Labs, mentioned the growth of the crypto sector beyond its traditional circles. Uddin emphasized the firm's desire to support more entrepreneurs in the global crypto community. "Crypto has become more global, so it’s not the same circle and group you might have seen in 2018-2020, and we want to be able to help more people," Uddin explained.

Guidance and Advice in Addition to Financing

Vessel Capital aims to provide more than just financial backing to crypto start-ups. Uddin highlighted the importance of guidance and advice, stating, "the world has enough VCs, but what’s actually missing is actual guidance and advice." He added that traditional venture capital firms often lack expertise in the specific sectors they invest in, which can limit the support they provide to entrepreneurs. Vessel Capital seeks to bridge this gap and offer valuable guidance to crypto founders.

A Challenging Climate for Crypto Venture Capital

The launch of Vessel Capital's fund comes at a time when the crypto venture capital market is facing challenges. Recent data from the Cointelegraph Research Venture Capital Database shows a decline in investment deals, with just $779.32 million raised from 62 transactions in June representing a 29.73% drop. Notably, Sequoia Capital, a prominent venture capital giant, downsized its cryptocurrency fund from $585 million to $200 million due to a liquidity crunch and a shift to smaller crypto firms.

Focus on Web3 Infrastructure

Despite the overall decline in crypto venture capital, investment in Web3 infrastructure remains strong. Binance Labs, the venture capital arm of Binance, recently made a strategic investment in Delphinus Lab’s zero-knowledge WebAssembly (zk-WASM) virtual machine, which supports zero-knowledge proof computation. Web3 infrastructure and applications are seen as catalysts for redefining the Internet economy and creating a more innovative and decentralized society, according to Uddin.