Andreessen Horowitz, also known as a16z, has completed a $515 million raise for a new crypto investment fund, but what do we know about this new venture? ‘Crypto Fund II’ will look to invest in a wide range of blockchain-focused companies, following the $300 million it invested in 2018 in its inaugural cryptocurrency fund.
Five Investment Categories Identified
A statement released by the company regarding Crypto Fund II listed five categories in which investments will be made – payments, stores of value, DeFi, new monetization opportunities, and Web 3. This casts a wide net over the blockchain landscape, and there will be no shortage of companies vying for a16z’s investment.
The statement reflected the firm’s belief in the future of blockchain technology, adding that 11 years after Bitcoin arrived on the scene, the potential of blockchain technology has not been realized:
In the same way that it wasn’t obvious in 2007 how applications on top of mobile phones would change so many aspects of the ways in which we move, consume, travel, communicate, and even date, it’s hard to imagine what the very best apps and use cases will be for blockchain-based computing platforms.
Fortune magazine spoke to Chris Dixon, the co-leader of the fund, who added his personal opinion of how big blockchain could become:
It’s very rare that major, new computing paradigms come along, and we think this is on the scale of cloud and mobile for the Internet.
70% More Raised Second Time Round
Andreessen Horowitz raised $300 million in their first crypto fund in 2018, and the fact that the company has been able to raise 70% more capital this time round is testament to the growth and the greater understanding of blockchain technology since then.
While events such as the Bitcoin halving create excitement generally only within the crypto community, blockchain technology has the potential to touch the lives of people all over the planet, which is clearly a possibility a16z sees as well.
