Google parent Alphabet invested $1.5 billion in blockchain startups since September 2021
Over $6 billion was invested in blockchain startups by 40 public companies from September 2021 to June 2022, according to CB Insights.
Available data indicates that Google’s parent company Alphabet took the highest stake of $1.5 billion into 4 startups, including DapperLabs.
Institutional hedge fund manager BlackRock followed with $1.17 billion, while Wall Street giants Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs invested $1.1 billion and $698 million, respectively.
Samsung was the most active investor in the period, having participated in 13 investment rounds. United Overseas Bank (UOB) led 7 rounds, while Citibank closed 6 deals.
Concentrated vs Diversified Plays
Many of the companies reviewed chose to make concentrated bets, while a few, such as Samsung, adopted a diversified approach to their investments.
Of the $477 million committed by Microsoft to two startups during the period, 94% ($450 million) went to the ConsenSys deal. Alphabet, for its part, bet on 4 startups with $550 million invested in Fireblocks.
On the other end, a more diversified company like Samsung shared its $979 million in 13 blockchain startups. UOB, with an investment of $204 million, funded 7 startups, including Yield Guild Games.
NFT solutions are getting more attention
A look at the use cases investors were interested in showed that non-fungible tokens (NFT) services received more funding.
61 blockchain startups were considered for investment, of which 19 were focused on building NFT solutions. About 63% of the solutions were marketplaces that supported the buying and selling of NFTs.
Custody solution providers received a total of $1.4 billion. Fireblocks, Circle and Anchorage Digital were named to have received $550 million, $550 million and $350 million, respectively.
Venture capital also invests
A similar report published by Pitchbook indicated that $17.5 billion was invested in crypto startups during the first half of 2022. Venture capital infused $9.85 billion into crypto during the first quarter, while the second quarter recorded $6.75 billion.
Recently, venture capital firm Pantera led a $65 million Series A funding round to help NFT domain provider Unstoppable Domain reach a $1 billion valuation.
