Lantern Ventures, a London-based proprietary trading firm founded by some former members of Sam Bankman-Fried’s Alameda Research, is winding down its funds after seven years of operation, according to two people familiar with the plans.
The crypto investment firm is in the process of returning capital to investors and is closing its external funds, a person familiar with the situation said. A number of the hedge fund’s staff are likely to lose their jobs, according to a second person.
The firm is said to have been in talks with potential buyers. Other alternatives include relaunching under a family office structure.
At its peak, Lantern, run by crypto trader and former Alameda co-founder Tara Mac Aulay, held over $600 million in assets under management. Mac Auley declined to comment.
An affiliate company called Pharos USD Fund SP, a Cayman Islands-based investment fund, was listed as Celsius’ largest single creditor at the beginning of the crypto lender’s bankruptcy proceedings in 2022, with a claim of around $80 million.
Before becoming a full-time trader, Mac Aulay was the CEO of the Center for Effective Altruism, a philanthropic project that FTX boss Bankman-Fried was also aligned with.
Lantern was also founded on philanthropic principles, with 50% of founder profits being donated to high-impact charitable causes.
The Oct. 10 crypto market crash made institutional fundraising a tougher ask these days, many people said.