Bitcoin's rally caused VCs to 'aggressively' return to crypto
Mar 28, 2024
auto_awesome
Craig Burel, Partner at Reciprocal Ventures, discusses the return of VCs to the crypto industry post-Bitcoin rally. Topics include nuances of Crypto VC, maturation of crypto ventures, Solana's growth, navigating market cycles, consumer crypto apps, and improving tokenomics.
Bitcoin's rally led venture capitalists to re-enter crypto industry with renewed interest.
Emphasis on refining token economics to ensure demand-driven launches and avoid payment flow friction.
Deep dives
Crypto Journey and Background
The guest discusses a winding road into crypto, starting in tradfi at Morgan Stanley and later joining an early AI company. Falling down the crypto rabbit hole while working with regulatory and compliance AI, a light bulb moment occurred after trying out technologies like Ethereum. Transitioning from the sell side to the dark side with his partner in 2017, joining a fintech focused firm, the move towards focusing on protocols like Ethereum become the central venture strategy.
Trader to VC Shift
The shift from a trader mentality to a VC one involved research focus on the trading floor, interest in technology and markets operations, and prior entrepreneurial experience. Transitioning to venture with a desire for operational experience, emphasis on empathy with founders, understanding deep technology and investing, and being hands-on with portfolio companies.
Community Engagement and Token Economics
The engagement with decentralized communities and investing in tokens versus equity discussed. Token economics refinement emphasized to transcend token price fluctuations, avoid friction in payment flow, and ensure demand-driven token launches. Testing without a token through loyalty systems like 'points' appreciated for flexible testing ground.
Future Crypto Trends
Future trends focus on application development over infrastructure, on-chain gaming, and wine NFTs. Looking beyond token fluctuations to products' intrinsic value, testing them with 'points' before token launches. Excitement for growth in DeFi, RWA collectibles, and deepening exploration of the design space within crypto in the upcoming months.
In this episode of The Scoop, Burel explains how the recent market rally caused sidelined venture capitalists to return to the crypto industry in earnest.