A16z’s crypto arm seeks $2b fund: sources

Andreessen Horowitz’s crypto arm a16z crypto is raising a fifth fund targeting around US$2 billion and plans to close by the end of H1 2026, sources told Fortune.

A16z crypto raised a US$4.5 billion vehicle in 2022, and a source said the new fund will be smaller and the firm is planning a shorter fundraising cycle to move faster on shifting crypto trends.

Fortune reported the raise comes as the crypto market is “sputtering” despite a recent uptick, with Bitcoin down almost half since its October all-time high, and that the industry is enjoying its “most favorable regulatory environment in Washington, D.C., in its 17-year history.”

Fortune reported that, amid the fundraise, a16z crypto has backed Babylon, a protocol that helps users collateralize Bitcoin; backed Kairos, a cross-platform integration tool for prediction markets; and invested US$50 million in the Solana staking protocol Jito.

In a recent post on X, Chris Dixon acknowledged blockchain has entered its “financial era” and pushed back against critics of his “Read Write Own” thesis, writing: “Finance isn’t separate from the broader thesis; it’s part of it. It’s the foundation and proving ground for everything else.”

🔗 Source: Fortune

🧠 Food for thought

Implications, context, and why it matters.

Past results power a16z crypto’s next fundraise

Andreessen Horowitz can keep raising capital even in a slump because its crypto investing history looks strong.
Its first dedicated crypto fund has already returned 5.4 times the original investor capital 1.
Its US$4.5 billion fund from 2022 now sits at 1.8 times invested capital, even though it launched near the market peak 2.
Stablecoins, cryptocurrencies built to hold a steady value and usually pegged to the US dollar, handled an adjusted US$9 trillion in transactions last year. That is five times PayPal’s annual throughput and more than half of Visa’s 3.

Crypto’s financial phase sets up an AI-driven internet

A16z also treats crypto as internet plumbing that can handle problems AI creates.
AI models can pull in website content without attribution, so blockchain protocols can support IP registries, databases that track who made a work plus how others may use it, which can route revenue back to creators 4.
Hiring flows already run both ways. A16z says about 1,000 jobs moved from crypto to AI in 2025, while a similar number of builders moved into crypto from traditional finance and tech 5.