Bitrue Ventures launches Web3-focused $40M investment fund

Update (July 19, 9 am UTC): This article has been updated to include interview responses from Ryan Chan, investor principal at Bitrue Ventures.

The investment and research arm of crypto exchange Bitrue opened up a $40 million pool of investment funds dedicated to the Web3 ecosystem. 

Bitrue Ventures’ $40 million fund will be divided among several Web3 startups and developers, who are eligible to get up to $200,000 investment. According to the announcement shared with Cointelegraph, Bitrue will provide select projects the freedom to allocate their funds without external intervention.

In addition to monetary investments, Bitrue will also provide support for such Web3 projects:

“This can range from development expertise, connections within the industry, management support, and more. We want to help you succeed, so let us know where you need help and we’ll do all in our power to provide whatever is needed.”

Speaking to Cointelegraph, Ryan Chan, investor principal at Bitrue Ventures, shared a positive outlook on the current crypto market trends. 

While Web3 projects from all niches are eligible to apply for funding, Bitrue Ventures shared five business verticals that are most likely to succeed. These include artificial intelligence, real-world asset tokenization (RWA), GameFi, decentralized physical infrastructure networks (DePIN), and decentralized finance. The company added:

“As such, projects building within these industries will stand a better chance of receiving funding and are highly encouraged to reach out to us.”

Chan revealed to Cointelegraph their interest in RWA tokenization, considering its solid utility and crucial role in bringing crypto into mass adoption. He also pointed out the ongoing buzz at the intersection between Web3 and AI. “Other than that, we seek projects that could generate network effects, as we believe this is a key factor in determining whether a project could be in the game for the long run,” he added.

Bitrue Ventures concluded the above based on its recently released research report . The firm conducted a pilot investment round, in which Cardano-based projects WingRiders and Liqwid Finance received funding allocation.

Projects that receive funding from Bitrue Ventures can have their tokens automatically listed on the Bitrue exchange, “granting them exposure to Bitrue’s 10 million users and allowing them to utilize the integrated marketing services provided by Bitrue.”

Chan advised Web3 entrepreneurs to stay focused on their core values and not jump the trend bandwagon.  He said:

“It doesn’t matter if their ideas don’t match the current wave because they ARE the next wave. If you have a killer idea and execute it well, then don’t worry; it will get the attention it deserves.”

Related: HTX crypto exchange overtakes Coinbase in trading volumes

On April 24, B itrue suffered a hot wallet exploit and lost $23 million worth of cryptocurrencies.

Bitrue later confirmed that the loss related to the hack accounted for less than 5% of the exchange’s overall funds.

“The rest of our wallets continue to remain secure and have not been compromised. We are conducting a thorough security review and will update you as we make progress.”

The exchange promised to fully compensate all the affected users. According to the announcement, the currencies affected by the exploited hot wallet were Ether ( ETH ), Shiba Inu ( SHIB ), Quant ( QNT ), Gala ( GALA ), Holo ( HOT ) and Polygon ( MATIC ).

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