Alan Howard-Backed Private Equity Firm Raises $750M for Crypto Fund

Private equity firm 10T, backed by Alan Howard, raised $750 million for a start-up crypto investment fund. 

A Connecticut-based private equity firm 10T recently raised $750 million towards a new crypto investment fund. Founder Dan Tapiero is a crypto-bull with his sights set on the major players in the crypto industry. Prior to 10T, Tapiero worked in the finance industry with Tiger Management, Duquesne Capital Management and SAC Capital Advisors.

Among key backers is billionaire hedge fund manager Alan Howard. However, the fund also gained the support of public pensions like the Municipal Employees’ Retirement System of Michigan. 

The new crypto fund targets fast-growing crypto-based companies in the industry for future investments and backing. Tapiero’s fund started its hunt for funding at the end of 2020. At the time of writing, the fund already deployed close to 80% of funds in mid-to-late stage companies. 

Currently, 11 companies fit their profile for investment, each with a minimum $500 million valuation. Some of these investments include major crypto exchange Kraken, blockchain lender Figure Technologies, and the hardware wallet maker Ledger SAS.

In a comment on the companies backed, Taperio hinted at the growing options in the crypto industry. “The space is growing so quickly that three years ago there were only a handful of companies that were at scale,” he said. “There’s a nice pipeline here, too.”

Big bets on crypto

Despite the market crash this past Tuesday with bitcoin down to $42,800, Taperio has high hopes for the currency. “There’s tremendous volatility in these nascent markets because the participants are trying to figure out how to price the asset,” Taperio said. “I still think Bitcoin is going up to $400,000 or $500,000 and potentially more, but it’s not going to be a straight shot and you’re going to have lots of volatility.” 

Taperio is not the only one with a hopeful outlook for the future of crypto. This past year saw a flood of investment into the space. According to a KPMG report, investment in crypto and blockchain doubled in 2021 compared to the previous year. 

In addition, both large-scale wealth management firms and entire countries place their bets on crypto.