As America’s war on crypto intensifies, investors are looking east for opportunities. A new $100 million venture fund targeting web3 startups in Asia has been launched.
On April 10, crypto derivatives trading platform Bitget announced a $100 million venture fund. It will focus on investing in “Web3-friendly venture capital and projects.” The goal is to support the development of the next generation of crypto projects in Asia.
The Bitget Web3 Fund was announced during Hong Kong Blockchain Week. It will seek out venture firms and Asian crypto and web3 projects for investment.
The aim is to “foster a positive attitude towards the digital currencies economy and support the development of the web3 environment,” stated Bitget.
SponsoredCrypto Pivot to Asia
Bitget revealed that it had already garnered interest from several venture capital firms. These included Foresight Ventures, Dragonfly Capital, SevenX Ventures, and DAO Maker.
Bitget managing director Gracy Chen said, “We strive to support financial innovation in Asia.” Launched in 2018, the Seychelles registered platform acts as a copy-trading venue and claims it has 8 million users.
Bitget is not the only crypto company to launch an Asia-centric fund. In late March, Hong Kong investment firm ProDigital Futures announced that it plans to invest $100 million in crypto startups in the region.
The big funding drive comes at a time when Uncle Sam is trying its best to drive crypto and web3 innovation away.
Aside from China and India, which remain mostly anti-crypto, Asia is embracing the industry and the innovation that follows.
Hong Kong is gearing up to open a fully regulated crypto investment environment in June. Its new licensing regime, although very strict, will open the doors for mainland Chinese institutional investors and companies. It could also see some move over from the United States, which has become an industry battleground this year.
US War on Crypto Continues
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has recently ramped up its enforcement actions. Furthermore, crypto companies have also been targeted by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the New York Department of Financial Services.
Industry executives such as the heads of Coinbase, Ripple, and Circle have all warned about an innovation and investment exodus.
Late last week, Forbes revealed a fall in U.S.-based crypto developers and Github commits. “Many developers and entrepreneurs are already leaving the U.S. to consider more crypto-friendly jurisdictions,” it reported.
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