Vessel Capital, a pioneering venture capital firm, has unveiled a formidable $55 million fund dedicated to fueling the growth of Web3 infrastructure and applications, as reported by TechCrunch. Instead of focusing on rapid expansion, the firm’s vision is to support early-stage crypto founders, enabling them to navigate the challenges of launching and nurturing their projects.
In the words of Mirza Uddin, one of the co-founders and also the head of business development at Injective Labs, “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.” The team at Vessel, which includes other prominent figures like Eric Chen, CEO of the Injective protocol, and Anthony Anzalone, co-founder of Burnt (formerly Burnt Finance), is committed to empowering the crypto ecosystem.
1/ I’m excited to announce the public launch of @VesselVC, the operator led Web3 fund for early stage startups.
Together with @ericinjective and Anthony, our goal was to build a new venture model that actually aligns us with the success of our founders.https://t.co/3g8RnFgyTD
— Mirza 🥷 (@TheMirza_) August 24, 2023
Over five years, the fund’s substantial resources will be strategically deployed. Drawing from their own experiences as startup founders, the Vessel team believes that their empathetic position offers unique insights into the needs of entrepreneurs. Uddin stated, “Often, [VCs] don’t have expertise in the things they’re investing in,” highlighting a gap in the market. He added, “The world has enough VCs, but what’s missing is actual guidance and advice.”
Uddin explained that while many venture capitalists provide funding, they often need to offer substantial support beyond initial introductions. Vessel’s approach aims to bridge the gap by serving as a valuable resource throughout the startup journey.
This initiative arrives amidst declining interest in crypto venture capital (VC) investments. Citing data from the Cointelegraph Research Venture Capital Database, June recorded a 29.73% drop in investment deals, yielding $779.32 million raised from 62 transactions. Notably, even VC-heavyweight Sequoia Capital recently downsized its cryptocurrency fund from $585 million to $200 million, citing liquidity constraints and a shift towards smaller crypto entities.
In contrast, the allure of Web3 infrastructure persists as a high-potential investment avenue. Just this week, Binance Labs, the venture capital arm of Binance, announced a strategic investment in Delphinus Lab’s zero-knowledge WebAssembly virtual machine, a technology supporting zero-knowledge-proof computation.
Reflecting on the transformative potential of Web3, Mirza Uddin emphasised on LinkedIn, “Web3 infrastructure and applications will fundamentally redefine the very fabric of a new Internet economy, leading to a far more innovative, decentralised and capital efficient society.” Vessel Capital’s debut in this landscape aligns with this vision, offering a supportive haven for budding crypto entrepreneurs amidst shifting VC dynamics.