VanEck is setting up a $30 million venture fund to support crypto and AI startups

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VanEck, a well-established investment management firm, has launched a $30 million venture fund, called VanEck Ventures, to support early-stage companies operating in the fintech, digital assets and artificial intelligence (AI) sectors. , according to a Wednesday press release. .

The fund, led by Circle Ventures alumni Wyatt Lonergan and Juan Lopez, plans to invest in 25-30 different projects. Each project can receive between $500,000 and $1 million in funding. So far, the team has invested in four projects.

VanEck Ventures targets investments in companies that are in the pre-seed or early stages of development. The asset manager is particularly interested in companies building innovative solutions in areas such as tokenization, native internet financial markets and next-generation payment systems.

“Three key inflection points in our investment thesis are beginning to reshape the foundations of the Internet: stablecoins emerging as an open-source banking layer, blockchain commercialization, and AI breakthroughs,” Lonergan said. “Their convergence creates unprecedented opportunities for globally connected, user-centric financial experiences, and we’re excited to support the founders who build on these innovations.”

The company envisions stablecoins to revolutionize payment systems, particularly in the $39 trillion B2B cross-border payments market. Lopez predicts that this area will see major advances in the next five years.

VanEck has a track record of identifying emerging trends and investing in them early. The company was an early supporter of Bitcoin and always has been showed willingness to embrace new and disruptive technologies.

VanEck was also the first US company to apply for a potential Solana spot ETF in the US. The move follows the recent trend of crypto ETFs gaining market traction.

The newly established fund is part of VanEck’s broader strategy to expand its involvement in the digital asset space. The company aims to increase its exposure to crypto and related technologies, going beyond their ETF offerings.

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