Crypto VC Investments Drop 26% in First Half of 2022

Venture capital (VC) investments in crypto companies were down 26% in the first half of the year, a period hit by cryptocurrency price drops, the collapse of the terraUSD stablecoin and liquidity crises faced by crypto lender Celsius and crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital.

Investments in crypto companies totaled $9.3 billion in the first six months of 2022, down from the record $12.5 billion in the first half of last year, according to Crunchbase data.
Deal flow actually increased year-over-year from 456 deals to 534 deals, indicating that smaller deal sizes helped drive the lower overall investments.
Second quarter deals totaled more than $4.2 billion, roughly flat compared to the same period last year and only down $1 billion from the first quarter.
Venture capital investments are down across multiple industries due to the global bear market. Overall VC deals in the U.S. were down 22% year-over-year to $123.1 billion in the first half of the year, according to GlobalData.
Crypto investments faced particularly difficult comparisons due to their strength last year, which included a record $6.1 billion in investments during the fourth quarter.
The broader pullback didn’t stop Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) from launching a record-breaking $4.5 billion crypto fund in May.

Disclosure

Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information has been updated.

CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. In November 2023, CoinDesk was acquired by the Bullish group, owner of Bullish, a regulated, digital assets exchange. The Bullish group is majority-owned by Block.one; both companies have interests in a variety of blockchain and digital asset businesses and significant holdings of digital assets, including bitcoin. CoinDesk operates as an independent subsidiary with an editorial committee to protect journalistic independence. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive options in the Bullish group as part of their compensation.