Binance Labs launches US$ 500 million fund to focus on Web3 startups

The venture capital arm and innovation incubator of leading crypto exchange Binance, Binance Labs has raised its first startup fund to invest into Web3 companies in incubation, early-stage venture and late-stage growth. 

Binance said that the fund will back ‘projects that can extend the use cases of cryptocurrencies and drive the adoption of Web3 and blockchain technologies.’

‘In a Web3 environment, the connection between values, people, and economies is essential,’ Binance’s founder and CEO Changpeng Zhao said. ‘If these three elements come together to build an ecosystem, that will accelerate the mass adoption of Blockchain technology and crypto.’

‘The goal of the newly closed investment fund is to discover and support projects and founders with the potential to build and to lead Web3 across DeFi, NFTs, gaming, Metaverse, social, and more,’ he added.

For companies in the incubation growth stage, Binance Lab will allow them to access its network of resources, experts and mentors. For early-stage startups, the fund will support them via token and equity investments while late-stage projects will be involved in strategic partnerships. 

This fund marks Binance’s first raise to take in external capital. Backers of the fund include DST Global Partners, Breyer Capital and other undisclosed family offices, private equity funds and corporations.

Web3 is heralded as the new iteration of the Internet leveraging Blockchain technology. Executive Director of Binance Labs, Ken Li noted that the number of Web3 developers has increased from 300,000 to 500,000 recently.

According to the company’s press release, Binance Labs has allocated funds to and incubated more than 100 crypto projects since 2018 including reputable companies like Axie Infinity, Elrond, Dune Analytics, Polygon, The Sandbox and more. Binance Labs claims that it  ‘identifies, invests, and empowers viable blockchain entrepreneurs, startups, and communities.’

Photo: Binance Labs