Crypto startup funding rose to $2.4 billion in Q1 2024, according to Pitchbook data. This marks the second consecutive quarterly increase.
The funding spanned 518 deals, a 40.3% rise from the previous quarter. Meanwhile, global venture capital investments hit a near-five-year low.
Investor interest in digital asset startups has declined since the $10 billion peak in Q1 2022. Economic concerns and the shutdown of key players contributed to this decline. However, U.S. approval of bitcoin spot ETFs by BlackRock and Fidelity boosted crypto’s legitimacy. Bitcoin reached a record high of $73,803 in March.
Pitchbook analyst Robert Le commented, “The recovery in publicly traded tokens and institutional adoption will drive more VC funding.”
Startups developing crypto and blockchain infrastructure led the funding in Q1, PitchBook noted.
The largest deal was by Together AI, a decentralized cloud platform. It raised $106 million in an early-stage round led by Salesforce Ventures, valuing it at $1.1 billion.
“The early-stage investment rounds are highly competitive,” Le said. “Early-stage deals now have higher valuations than late-stage ones. We will see if this trend continues.”
Le also mentioned low exit rates but anticipates mergers among crypto exchanges, custodians, and infrastructure providers as the market matures.
