Crypto Market Q1 2024 Funding Surges to $2.4 Billion: Report

Crypto market fundraising in Q1 2024 surged to $2.4 billion following a turn in market sentiments amid new inflows. A new PitchBook report shows a massive jump in investment numbers quarter-on-quarter in the cryptocurrency market.

According to the report, the sector saw an inflow of $2.3 billion from 518 deals in the first three months of the year. This figure points to a 40.3% rise in investments compared to the previous quarter. This is a huge leap considering increased on-chain activity recorded in Q4 2023.

Deal volume or number of transactions increased by 44.7% last quarter. Market valuations were up this year with the rise in asset prices. PitchBook analysts expect to see a steady rise in investment numbers throughout the year.

“for the pre-seed/seed stage was $21.8 million; the early stage, $72.0 million; and the late stage, $51.1 million, representing YoY increases of 85.5%, 148.3%, and 7.6%, respectively.”

EigenLayer Leads The Pack

Per the report, infrastructure startup saw the highest inflow led by EigenLayer with a $100 million Series B funding while Zama, a crypto company that develops fully Homomorphic Encryption (FHE) saw $73 million inflows.

However, the largest deal of the quarter was Together AI netting $106 million increasing its valuation to $1.1 billion. Deals came with higher valuations for several firms as institutions got invested in the crypto market.

“with median figures registering at $2.7 million for the pre-seed/seed stage, $5.0 million for the early stage, and $5.8 million for the late stage, representing an increase of 24.9%, an increase of 25.0%, and a decrease of 9.7%, respectively, from full-year 2023,” the report added. 

Crypto Markets Sees Upticks on Institutional Flows

The major factor spurring the rise in investment was the bull market in Q1 that saw crypto prices tap highs not recorded in months. The approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) triggered a new wave of flows from institutional investors in the crypto market. 

The price of Bitcoin soared above $72,000 attracting investors to the market through the approved window. This bull run also increased VC fund activity. 

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