Dragonfly managing partner Haseeb Qureshi says crypto venture capital could lose relevance as dominant platforms capture more users and liquidity. The warning comes as the number of active crypto investors falls to its lowest level since late 2020.
Key Takeaways
Haseeb Qureshi warned that crypto VC may face a last vintage as platforms dominate.Cryptorank counted 150 active investors in July, down from 1,177 in May 2022, signaling consolidation.Dragonfly says 2030 may leave few startups, favoring founders who control distribution and economics.Crypto venture capital may be approaching a structural turning point, even if bitcoin, ethereum and stablecoins continue to expand.
His warning is not a prediction that crypto will disappear. Instead, it reflects a market where scale, liquidity and network effects increasingly favor a small group of mature platforms.
Social Media Offers a WarningQureshi compared crypto with social media, which grew rapidly during the 2010s even though most of its leading platforms had been built years earlier. Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram and LinkedIn kept expanding, while Bytedance’s TikTok became the rare major challenger.
Crypto could follow a similar path.
“Maybe by the year 2030, pretty much every important company is built,” Qureshi said. Large platforms could continue growing while leaving very little room for new players to disrupt them.
He acknowledged that the timing remains uncertain. Still, he said investors may be overlooking the possibility that a growing crypto market will not always produce a steady pipeline of fundable startups.
Active Crypto Investors Hit Multiyear LowRecent funding data points in the same direction.
“If Hyperliquid owns the distribution, then you’re essentially just like a reseller,” he said. “That’s not a very compelling business model.”
Crypto VC is unlikely to vanish overnight. However, its next phase may favor fewer companies, larger platforms and founders who control their own customers, distribution and economics.
