Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner at Dragonfly, warned this week that crypto venture capital could lose relevance by 2030 as dominant platforms capture more users and liquidity. The warning lands as new data from Cryptorank shows the number of active crypto investors has fallen to its lowest level since late 2020, with only 150 active venture firms still operating — the fewest since November 2020.
The numbers behind the warning
Active investors have dropped by 87% from the 2022 peak, according to Cryptorank. That's a brutal contraction. The 150 firms still in the game are a fraction of what the space saw during the bull run. Qureshi didn't mince words: the model that fueled the last cycle is running out of road.
Why platforms are eating VC's lunch
Qureshi's argument is straightforward. As dominant platforms — think the biggest exchanges, L1s, and DeFi protocols — hoard users and liquidity, the need for venture-backed startups to build distribution from scratch evaporates. Why fund a new exchange when the top three already have 90% of the volume? Why back a new L1 when the existing ones have the developer mindshare? The math gets ugly fast.
What this means for the next cycle
If the trend holds, crypto venture capital may be a footnote by 2030. The remaining 150 firms face a choice: adapt to a world where capital is abundant but deal flow is thin, or watch their relevance slip away. Qureshi's warning isn't a prediction — it's a diagnosis. The industry is consolidating, and the old VC playbook isn't built for that.
The question now is whether those 150 firms can pivot fast enough. Or whether the next crypto cycle will look nothing like the last one.
