Dragonfly’s Qureshi: Crypto VC could end by 2030

Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner at Dragonfly, warned crypto venture capital could effectively end by 2030. He made the remark in a July 21 interview and cited data compiled through July 28 showing a sharp fall in active crypto investors.

The data counted 150 unique venture firms participating in crypto funding rounds in July, down from 1,177 in May 2022. That 87% decline was the lowest monthly total since November 2020.

Qureshi described the trend as consolidation of scale, liquidity and users among established networks. He compared the pattern to social media, where a small set of platforms built earlier kept growing while few challengers gained traction. He stated, “At some point, crypto VC might just be over. There might just be a last vintage.”

He warned against startups that depend on a single financial product and operate on top of larger platforms. Offering Hyperliquid as an example, he said, “If Hyperliquid owns the distribution, then you’re essentially just like a reseller.” He added that founders who retain control of customers, distribution and unit economics face different investor scrutiny.

The drop in active investors follows peak funding in 2021 and early 2022. Market data and industry observers point to regulatory pressure, market losses and shifting investor priorities as factors behind the reduced number of firms writing checks for crypto startups.

Qureshi did not predict that crypto networks or tokens will disappear. He noted timing was uncertain but suggested that by 2030 many of the important companies in the sector could already be in place.