A recent research report has quantified blockchain investment activity during the past five years. According to TeqAtlas, from 2014 to the first half of 2019 approximately $32.3 billion has been invested into blockchain startups. In 2018, that number hit a record amount of $15 billion but during the first half of 2019, the amount invested into blockchain startups has tanked as the report says just $2 billion has been committed to “token generation events.”
TeqAtlas states that even with the decline, investment is still “twice more than the traditional funding total value during the same period ($1.2B in 1H 2019).”
Some other data points according to TeqAtlas:
- Investment rounds into blockchain companies hit 476 in 2017
- This number jumped to 910 in 2018 and stood at 268 during the first 6 months of 2019
- The average TGE accumulates nearly 26% more money for the startup than the average Venture Capital round as of now.
The report adds
“The fact that the average Later stage VC cheque peaked in 2018 to $289 million, indicates that the major investment funds and institutions being interested in the field. To compare, the median deal size of the later stage VC-backed IT companies amounted to $11.5 million in 2018, according to Statista. This data shows that the average deal amount is increasing at all stages during the period under observation.”
It appears some outliers have skewed the numbers in 2018 such as the EOS funding which is pegged at $4.2 billion. Bakkt, the digital asset exchange being pursued by ICE (parent company of NYSE) raised $182.5 million.
Telegram is also on the list having raised $1.7 billion.
In 2019, Bitfinex raised $1 billion in a TGE – the biggest blockchain raise so far this year.
While just about all tokens are down considerably from their all-time highs (ATHs), the report highlights the largest returns of the tokens since their TGE with IOTA in the top spot.
As for most active VCs, Digital Currency Group, Pantera Capital and Blockchain Capital are in the top spots in that order.
Initial Exchange Offerings (IEOs) are on the rise. The report states:
“After a considerable slowdown in ICO funding in the second half of 2018, an already established pool of retail investors did not want to abandon the field. Exchanges have accumulated a significant user base. The market needed a new concept of the coin offering; subsequently, the Initial Exchange Offering (IEO) was introduced. The idea is not much different from ICO with major distinctions shifting the most of crowd sale issues to exchange that is obliged to accommodate immediate token listing, scam protection, and promotion.”
The research expresses the opinion that blockchain investment trends show signs of saturation.
You may read the entire report here.