Alphabet, Samsung among top 40 cos that invested $6 billion in blockchain companies

Forty companies invested in companies in the blockchain/crypto space during September 2021 to mid-June 2022. Samsung is the most active, having invested in 13 companies. UOB came in next with seven investments, followed by Citigroup with six investments, and Goldman Sachs with five, a report said.

The investors active in the largest funding rounds are Alphabet ($1,506 million in 4 rounds), Blackrock ($1,171 million in 3 rounds), Morgan Stanley ($110 million in 2 rounds), Samsung ($979 million in 13 rounds), Goldman Sachs ($698 ) million in 5 rounds), BNY Mellon ($690 million in 3 rounds), and PayPal ($650 million in 4 rounds).

The 40 companies invested roughly $6 billion in blockchain startups between September 2021 and June 2022. Because some rounds involve the participation of multiple investors, it is unclear how much each company invested in a project, according to a study by crypto intelligence platform Blockdata.

Speaking to Bizz Buzz, Raj Kapoor, Chief Advisor, eCryptoverse, says, “Upcoming trends are a clear indication of the shift in investment strategy. First, large companies are already supporting the blockchain landscape, as indicated by the funding trend over the years. Now they are trying to figure out some good low-hanging opportunities and are on the lookout for innovative companies and portfolios that add value to core business growth and consolidation, as they now want to disregard stand-alone trends and focus on macro segments that can give them synergistic growth.”

Innovation fuels enthusiasm and companies feel that it is something they want to support as best as possible. The web has always evolved, and it will continue to evolve. Open source is a great technology investment, as it is community-driven and constantly evolving and well-supported to reduce costs and resources, he said.

According to Kapoor, “Web3 companies are built on the premise that future companies will live on the blockchain, operate with the same idea that supports cryptocurrencies and thus be free from monopolistic interventions. Web3 companies aim to give people ownership of their digital property and unraveling the influence of Big Tech—resonating with investors and businesses who now see a dawning opportunity for a revolutionary technology.”

Although not on the current list of leading investors, MasterCard still actively participates in the integration and development of inorganic technology. Before September 2021, Mastercard was among the top three active investors based on the number of deals it participated in. But since then, MasterCard has mainly conducted incubator and accelerator programs for 4 blockchain startups. In September 2021, it also acquired CipherTrace, a crypto intelligence company to strengthen its cybersecurity solutions to stay on top of digital assets.

In the banking context, while Citigroup and Goldman Sachs retained their place among the leading investors, United Overseas Bank, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, BNY Mellon and Morgan Stanley made significant jumps to find themselves on the list as well.

A total of 61 blockchain/crypto companies received investments over 71 investment rounds. These blockchain companies are active across more than 20 industries and 65 use cases. Nineteen companies offer some form of non-fungible tokens (NFT) solutions and services. Many of these belong to industries such as gaming, art and entertainment, and distributed ledger technology (DLT).

In total, 12 firms are marketplaces, some of which support the buying and selling of NFTs. Eleven organizations offer gaming services. There is considerable overlap between use cases for the companies that offer NFT solutions, marketplaces and games.

Interestingly, seven companies offer blockchain services. ConsenSys secured one of the highest funding amounts ($450 million deal involving Microsoft) in the analyzed time period. Five companies are betting on infrastructure. Four companies focus on development platforms for blockchain, dApps, smart contracts, asset management/tokenization and scaling solutions.

Three companies, the report says, offer custodial solutions and secured deals of high value – Fireblocks ($550 million deal involving Alphabet), Circle ($550 million round with participation from Blackrock) and Anchorage Digital ($350 million deal involving PayPal and Blackrock).