Crypto Fundraising Hits 3-Year Low as Firms Struggle to Raise Capital: Messari

The crypto winter hit fundraising in Q3, which fell to its lowest lowest level in three years, blockchain intelligence firm Messari found.

The amount raised by crypto firms in Q3 totaled just under $2.1 billion across 297 deals, the lowest on both counts since Q4 2020, according to Messari’s latest State of Crypto Fundraising report.

From a peak of nearly $17.5 billion across over 900 deals in Q1 2022, the returns diminished throughout the year as conditions in the crypto industry worsened coming to a head with the sudden collapse of exchange FTX in November.

Despite this, fundraising appeared to hold its own through Q1 and Q2 2023, with around $7.5 billion raised across about 200 deals in both quarters, in line with those of Q4 2022. Both counts however took a 36% hit in Q3.

Messari also highlighted that investors are concentrating on new investments in early-stage projects and infrastructure investments as opposed to user-facing applications.