Participated · Seed · Jan 2024

Root Protocol is developing a Web3 operating system that serves as a digital identity aggregator. The platform aims to be a one-stop service for all decentralized identity–related tasks to make access to different Web3 platforms more seamless. Its core product aggregates digital identities across Web3 environments. The company positions the OS to simplify identity interactions for users and services. Financially, Root Protocol completed two seed rounds totaling $10 million led by Animoca Brands with participation from Signum Capital, Ankr Network, CMS Holdings and angel investors. After the financing the company reached a $100 million valuation.

Participated · Seed · Aug 2023

VIP3 operates an all-in-one web3 benefits and membership platform that issues membership cards as soul-bound tokens (SBTs) built on the ERC-721 protocol. The platform enables members to access substantial rebates (40%–100%) on transaction fees from major centralized exchanges, mint NFTs without gas fees, receive a 60% discount on swap fees, and earn token rewards and airdrops for participating in top crypto projects. By using SBT-based membership cards, other web3 platforms can recognize members’ identities at minimal cost, letting users unlock discounts and benefits across integrations. VIP3 plans to use its recent funding to accelerate product development and expand its user base. The company closed a $2M seed financing to support those efforts. Backers named in the round include IOBC Capital, ANKR, PAKA Capital and others.

Participated · Seed · May 2023

Asymmetry Finance is a liquid staking tokens (LST) protocol that launched its platform alongside a seed fundraise. Its flagship product, Simple Asymmetry Finance Ethereum (safETH), uses a fee-free decentralized asset basket, simplicity/accessibility, and indexed products to deliver passive, diversified staking yield. The team positions safETH as a way to mitigate centralization risk in the LST market, which the article notes is a $13.6 billion market with 88% currently staked via Lido. Co-founders Justin Garland and Hannah Hamilton framed the protocol as complementary to existing providers rather than a direct challenge, emphasizing decentralization and capital efficiency. Asymmetry plans to use its new capital to further develop the protocol, hire top talent, and onboard DeFi users and institutions.

Participated · Seed · Mar 2023

Soul Wallet offers an online, self-custodial Ethereum wallet built on the ERC-4337 account-abstraction standard to add smart contract capabilities to wallets. Its product targets legacy UX issues—removing reliance on seed phrases by enabling social recovery and adding programmable features such as paying gas fees with stablecoins. The team positions the product as aiming for the next billion crypto users, with particular focus on adoption in developing regions rather than directly poaching users from incumbents like MetaMask. Soul Wallet is currently undergoing internal testing and is scheduled to launch in Q3 or Q4 after a series of audits. The startup has a team of about a dozen people across the U.S., Japan, Thailand and China. Financially, the company recently closed a $3 million seed round to support its development.

Participated · Seed · Jan 2022

NFT3 develops a unified decentralized identity (DID) and credit network for Web3 that uses NFTs as a portable identity layer and an NCredit identity graph for Web3 credit scoring. The platform’s first major use case is validated airdropping, enabling projects to airdrop only to real users by requiring an activated NFT3 DID. NFT3 positions its DID solution as a fix for bot-generated wallet address spoofing and to expose useful on-chain metadata for projects and platforms. The company aims to enable personal monetization paths tied to users’ data journeys across projects, social networks, companies and metaverses. CEO Dylan Dewdney, founder of Kylin Network, leads the effort and frames NFT3 as a gateway to mass adoption of Web3 products. The company recently closed a seed financing to support product rollout and expansion.