Last updated on July 22nd, 2025 at 05:33 pm
Venture capital is flowing back into the crypto industry at unprecedented levels, with 2025 shaping up to be a record-breaking year for startup funding.
According to a report released by CEX.io on Thursday, July 17, venture deals in the first half of 2025 reached an impressive $16.5 billion. This figure has already surpassed the total investments recorded in both 2024 and 2021, which stood at $12.2 billion and $10.9 billion respectively. If the momentum continues, 2025 could set a new all-time high for venture capital funding in the crypto sector.
The report also revealed that crypto now accounts for 5.3% of global venture funding—its highest share in three years. Researchers at CEX.io attribute this rise to renewed investor confidence, which has steadily grown since the 2024 U.S. elections, likely due to shifting policy sentiments towards digital assets.
Finance remains the dominant segment, capturing 51% of the deal volume, driven by robust investments in both centralized and decentralized finance projects. Infrastructure projects—covering hardware, security, bridges, and oracles—also attracted significant funding, buoyed by large deals involving Bitmain and TWL Miner.
However, not all segments are seeing growth. Blockchain Layer 1 and Layer 2 network deals have shrunk considerably, now representing just 2% of total deal volume. In contrast, AI-focused crypto projects are gaining traction, accounting for 5% of deal volume as investors continue to chase the convergence of AI and blockchain.
Despite the surge in overall funding, the number of deals has declined. This trend has pushed the average funding round size to a record $20 million in the first half of 2025, highlighting a sharp rebound from the downturn that followed the 2022 market crash.
If venture capital inflows maintain this pace, 2025 may go down as the most lucrative year yet for crypto startups.
Meanwhile, a June report by crypto trading platform CEX.io revealed that Ethereum’s mainnet is reclaiming its dominance in decentralized finance (DeFi), fueled by a resurgence in bot-driven trading and a spike in stablecoin activity.
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