Crypto VCs Now Wear Helmets and Ask “Who’s Using It?” 🤔

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Crypto venture capitalists, once the wild-eyed alchemists of blockchain, have traded their flasks for magnifying glasses. Sylvia To of Bullish Capital Management claims they’ve matured into cautious scholars, no longer betting on “Ethereum killers” like they’re picking lottery numbers. Or, as she put it, “It’s not just a narrative play. Before you could throw a check and say, Oh, there’s another L1 but it’s going to be an Ethereum killer.”

Imagine a world where “hot flavor of the month” is replaced with “do people actually use this?” To, speaking at Token2049 (a conference where the Wi-Fi probably costs more than your startup’s valuation), noted that the crypto market has become a fragmented bazaar of layer 1s and infrastructure projects-most of which are now as viable as a sandcastle in a monsoon.

“Who has been using it?” is the crucial question, says To

“We’re at a phase where you don’t have that luxury to just bet on these new narratives,” To said, which is crypto-speak for “stop pretending your blockchain can cure cancer.” She added that investments now require a “critical lens,” which sounds suspiciously like a magnifying glass and a spreadsheet named “NotAnotherL1.xlsx.”

“You really have to start thinking, there’s all this infrastructure being built in the industry, but who has been using it? Are there enough transactions? Is there enough volume coming through these chains to justify all the money being raised?”

To also noted that 2025 has been a “slow year” for projects raising funds at valuations that make a unicorn look grounded. “The potential revenue and the pipeline they’ve got aren’t solidified,” she said, which is code for “your business model is a house of cards and you’re playing Jenga with a chainsaw.”

Crypto startup funding declined in Q2 2025

Eva Oberholzer of Ajna Capital echoed To’s sentiments, stating VCs now prioritize “predictable revenue models” and “irreversible adoption.” Which, in layman’s terms, means “don’t email me with your NFT-based pet rock unless it’s generating tax returns.”

Galaxy Research’s report confirmed what everyone already knew: crypto funding dropped 59% in Q2 2025. That’s like a dragon sneezing on the market and everyone collectively sighing. Total VC investment hit $10.03 billion for the quarter, which is enough to buy Vivek Ramaswamy’s Strive Funds a new “alpha-generating” Bitcoin strategy… or a small island nation. Your call.

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2025-10-04 10:54