In the first nine months of 2016, blockchain and bitcoin startups raised $429M across 92 equity financings. At the current run rate, annual deal activity is set to drop for the first time since startup investments began cropping up in the space, according to CB Insights data.
Compared to the same period in 2015, blockchain and bitcoin startup deal activity in the first nine months of this year fell 16%, while funding was down 7%.
Blockchain seed deal share falls below 60%
Looking at blockchain and bitcoin deals by stage, we see seed deal share in the space fell below 60% in the first three quarters of 2016, after hovering at or near 70% in each of the past three years.
Series A activity took 1/5th of all deals in the first nine months of 2016 and looks set to hit a five-year high in deal share by year end. Circle Internet‘s Series D in Q2’16 from investors including Baidu, CreditEase and IDG Capital marks the first Series D+ round among bitcoin or blockchain startups.
Largest rounds of 2016 YTD take 62% of funding
The top 5 largest blockchain and bitcoin rounds in 2016 YTD accounted for $264M in funding, almost 62% of all funding to companies in the space over the period. Four companies including Blockstream, Ripple, and Digital Asset Holdings have raised over $50M in separate financing rounds in the year to date.
| Company | Description | Round Amount ($M) | Headquarters | Select Round Investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Digital Asset Holdings | Settlement and ledger services for financial assets | $ 67 | United States | Australian Securities Exchange, Citigroup, JPMorgan, PNC, DTCC, Goldman Sachs |
| Circle Internet Financial | Blockchain for payments transfer | $ 60 | United States | Baidu, Breyer Capital, China Everbright, CreditEase |
| Blockstream | Sidechain technology | $ 55 | Canada | AXA Strategic Ventures, Khosla Ventures, Mosaic Ventures |
| Ripple | Blockchain technology settling financial transactions | $ 55 | United States | Standard Chartered, Accenture, SCB Digital Ventures, Santander InnoVentures |
| bitFlyer | Bitcoin marketplace | $ 27 | Japan | SBI Investment, Venture Labo |
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