An Orlando-based venture capital firm that invests in blockchain startups has pulled in millions of dollars, financial filings show.
Global Blockchain Ventures Fund LP, a fund connected to Global Blockchain Ventures LLC, raised $27.6 million from investors, according to an April 21 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. That equips the fund, which SEC filings show has raised at least $31.1 million since 2019, with a significant chunk of capital to invest in blockchain-focused businesses.
Led by general partners Al Weiss, Max Hooper and David Metcalf, Global Blockchain Ventures has 28 firms listed in the investment portfolio on its website. It’s unknown how Global Blockchain Ventures plans to deploy the capital, as the firm’s leaders could not be reached for comment.
If any of those dollars are invested into local companies, it likely would fuel high-tech business growth. Venture capital often is critical for startups. It funds companies as they scale up while also providing business expertise and industry connections.
Blockchain technology is one of the hottest spaces for venture capital investment. Worldwide, investors poured $25.2 billion into blockchain startups in 2021, up 713% from the year before, according to New York-based business analytics firm CB Insights.
Blockchain-focused startups are drawing interest from other investors in the region. For example, Orlando-based Cogent Bancorp Inc. and Orlando-based DeepWork Capital LLC invested in Orlando-based Home Lending Pal Inc.'s bridge investment round that was announced April 7. Home Lending Pal’s blockchain-based mortgage advising platform anonymizes the user’s personal data for much of the loan shopping process, eliminating lender discrimination based on age, race or sex.
The blockchain aspect is one of the factors that caught the attention of Cogent, co-founder and President Chirag Bhavsar previously told Orlando Inno. The bank is bullish on blockchain technology revolutionizing banking, and Bhavsar said the company is interested in future investments into startups working on blockchain innovations.
Local startup investment activity was down in the first three months of 2022. Metro Orlando companies collectively raised $42.3 million from seven investment deals in the first quarter, according to an April 13 report from PitchBook and the National Venture Capital Association. That was down from $69.7 million raised in the fourth quarter and $70 million raised in Q1 2021.
However, companies in the region have landed mega fundraising deals in recent weeks. That includes Orlando-based Fortress Information Security LLC’s $125 million investment deal, Maitland-based ThreatLocker Inc.’s $100 million Series C round and Winter Garden-based Anuvia Plant Nutrients Corp.’s $65.5 million Series D round.
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