GD1 launches New Zealand's first crypto VC fund
New Zealand’s GD1 has launched what it calls the first dedicated crypto and Web3 VC fund in its home market less than a week after a similar claim by PAC Capital in Australia.
GD1, also known as Global From Day One, said the USD 5m vehicle has already received LP commitments from the likes of Coinbase, Reddit, Patreon, Yat, and Artblocks. A first close is set for June. GD1 has raised three generalist technology funds, the most recent of which closed on NZD 130m (USD 84m) last year.
It comes within a week of Sydney-based PAC Capital touting the launch of Australia’s first VC fund dedicated to Web3. The firm is targeting USD 50m for early-stage investments across segments such as e-sports, gaming, and virtual reality.
PAC will co-invest with a network of established crypto specialist VC firms while also making LP commitments. About 15% of its target corpus has already been deployed with a more than 10% return on invested capital, according to a statement. That figure is hoped to top 60% in the next six months.
Meanwhile, GD1 has warehoused two deals that will give it exposure to companies backed by the likes of Andreessen Horowitz, True Ventures, and Kleiner Perkins. Its fund will be led by Nawaz Ahmed, an angel investor known for his work on the first New Zealand dollar stablecoin.
“In the past, the very best NZ companies in this space have easily been able to raise funds globally and haven’t needed to rely on local investment,” Ahmed, now a general partner at GD1, said in a statement. “This is a missed opportunity for NZ-based funds and one we’d like to be the first to explore.”
In March, Australian VC firm Carthona Capital reached a first close of AUD 100m (USD 75m) against a target of AUD 200m for its fourth fund, which has included Web3 among its core target categories. Carthona’s previous investment in this space includes voice technology provider Replica Studios. Gaming and metaverse are also areas of interest.
It followed Australia’s AirTree Ventures, which is also active in New Zealand, closing its fourth flagship fund on AUD 700m, including a AUD 50m Web3-dedicated vehicle. John Henderson, a partner at AirTree, described the strategy as interesting to existing LPs and consistent with his firm’s historical approach to software and the internet, albeit with some differences.
“Traditional VC investors normally look for 10%-plus, which is antithetical to Web3 models where ownership and governance are decentralised. So, you have to be happy with much smaller stakes,” Henderson told AVCJ in February.
“Another difference is the community element – these projects tend to be community-run and community-governed, unlike traditional software companies. We must be active participants in those communities, taking part in governance votes and making governance proposals.”
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