Money keeps flowing into cryptocurrency companies even as President Donald Trump’s policies shake up financial markets around the world.
During the third week of January alone, investors put $362 million into 14 different crypto startups. That brings this year’s total past $1 billion, according to numbers from DeFiLlama.
Early-stage investors hold steady
The steady funding comes at a time when Trump’s trade threats have sent shockwaves through stock markets and other traditional investments. But people who invest in new companies say that kind of day-to-day market drama doesn’t really affect their decisions.
“The ‘Sell America’ trade we are seeing is mostly occurring in the public markets, not on the fundraising scene,” said Annabelle Huang, who runs Altius and previously worked as a venture partner at Amber Group. She explained that venture capitalists work with young companies in early stages, so they don’t move in lockstep with broader market swings in the short run.
Some investors are actually seeing opportunity in the current global tensions, Huang added. “They’re essentially looking for the next Palantir or Anduril, which are companies that benefit from the heightened tensions we’re seeing,” she noted. Still, she warned that “the uncertainty around geopolitical risks should bring caution to all investors.”
It’s worth noting that fundraising numbers are down more than 50% compared to the same time last year, when crypto markets were riding high during a major rally.
Where the money went
The week’s biggest deals show how investors are picking their spots carefully.
BitGo led the pack with a massive initial public offering that brought in $213 million, based on Nasdaq records. The company’s stock market debut was by far the largest transaction of the week.
Superstate grabbed $83 million in a Series B funding round. Bain Capital Crypto and Distributed Global led the investment. The company works on tokenization, which means putting traditional assets on blockchain technology. It creates tokenized investment products, including a mutual fund based on Ethereum that tracks short-term U.S. government bonds. The company has filed paperwork with the Securities and Exchange Commission for this product.
A Solana-based prediction market called Space completed a $14 million public token sale, showing that investors remain interested in betting platforms. The platform says it provides a fast environment for betting on economic, political, and cultural outcomes.
Big traditional banks are also starting to warm up to digital money.
UBS, the Swiss banking giant, is working on plans to offer cryptocurrency investments to some of its private banking customers, Bloomberg News reported, citing sources with knowledge of the situation. The bank is now choosing partners to help launch the crypto service.
UBS provides wealth management, investment banking, and asset management to individuals, companies, and institutions worldwide. The bank handles assets and creates investment solutions for clients across the globe.
According to the report, UBS plans to start by letting a small group of private bank clients in Switzerland trade Bitcoin and Ether. If things go well and regulations allow it, the service could spread to other regions, including Asia-Pacific and the United States.
UBS wouldn’t comment directly on the Bloomberg story. However, a company spokesperson said the bank is watching digital asset developments closely and looking at projects that fit with what clients want, regulatory changes, market movements, and risk management. The spokesperson also pointed to the importance of distributed ledger technology like blockchain, which makes digital assets possible.