Circle IPO is imminent because $ 6 billion flow into crypto startups, while the market is shrinking for transactions
The investor interest in crypto startups is gaining strength again-although not in relation to the volume.
In the first quarter of 2025, risk capital providers invested $ 6 billion in the area of digital assets and thus more than twice as much as in the first quarter of the previous year, although the number of transactions decreased.
New PitchBook data show that only 405 investments in connection with cryptocurrencies were made in the first quarter, which corresponds to a decline of almost 40% compared to the 670 investments in the previous year. Despite the slowdown of the transaction activities, the capital commitments rose to a base due to large investments in stock exchanges, asset managers and infrastructure projects.
According to Robert Le, analyst at PitchBook, the market's appetite remains firmly anchored in practical crypto applications. Almost $ 2.6 billion flowed into financial service companies alone, while infrastructure companies secured almost $ 1 billion. Web3 companies followed $ 231 million from two dozen transactions.
The upcoming IPO of Circle-a stable coin issuer and heavyweight in payment transactions-should serve as an important stress test for the mood of the investors. A strong debut, especially in or above the rumored rating of $ 4 to $ 5 billion, could move the benchmarks throughout the industry and attract new capital in the late phase.
Meanwhile, stable coins have expanded their market presence quietly and quietly and have grown from $ 202 billion to $ 227 billion in the first quarter. LE sees this proof that the processing in US dollars is still the strongest and best shielded application for cryptocurrencies, even if other areas of the market are affected by volatility.
With regard to the future, areas such as payment transactions, custody and key management could increasingly attract investors' interest, especially after the $ 1.4 billion hack at Bybit in February-one of the biggest hacker attacks in the history of cryptocurrencies.
