Quick take:
- Lightspeed Faction has announced the launch of its first venture fund.
- The $285 million will invest in early-stage Web3 startups.
- Lightspeed will assist on “blockchain-related matters”, while Faction will run the fund independently with “full discretion over the $285 million raised.”
Lightspeed Faction, a venture fund jointly launched by Lightspeed Venture Partners with Faction has announced the launch of its first fund. The fund will use the $285 million raised to invest in early-stage Web3 startups.
According to the announcement on November 9, Faction, the venture firm co-founded by alumni of Coinbase, Amber Group and Blockchain.com will run the fund independently with “full discretion over the $285 million raised.” On the other hand, Lightspeed will provide support on “blockchain-related matters”.
According to Faction, selected companies will also receive support ranging from tokenomics to operational scaling.
Commenting on the announcement, Banafsheh Fathieh, co-founder and general partner at Faction said: “The blockchain ecosystem is full of promising projects looking to disrupt everything from financial systems to telecommunication and we look forward to collaborating with them to nurture the next phase of blockchain innovation.”
This fundraising comes at a time when the Web3 industry is negotiating a recovery from the adverse effects of the crypto winter that began last year. The industry experienced its seventh consecutive decline in quarterly funding for startups in Q3 2023.
However, judging by funds announced since the beginning of the current quarter, investors seem to be slowly beginning to make their return. Earlier on Thursday, Japanese financial services company SBI Holdings launched a $662 million fund dedicated to Web3, the metaverse, AI and Fintech startups.
Faction’s new fund will focus on projects building “real-world utility to users and businesses.” The company has already invested in zkSync developer Matter Labs, Aave’s social media protocol — Lens, and Crossmint — a payment tool for NFT developers.
According to Samuel Harrison, co-founder and managing partner of Faction, the team behind the venture firm has already deployed more than $500 million towards blockchain and early-stage startups.
“We’ve been doing this for a long time and intend to be a dependable financing partner in the cycles yet to come,” Harrison said.
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