Key Takeaways
- In 2022, 72% of 1,200 crypto startups that raised funding successfully launched on the mainnet.
- Gaming was the highest-invested sub-vertical for consumers, raising almost $700 million in investment.
- Sectors that were popular during 2022, such as the metaverse, are now failing to attract investors.
Almost 3 out of 4 crypto startups that launched in 2022 were successful despite the year being marred by major setbacks for the market, according to a new report from venture capital firm Lattice Fund.
Out of the 1,200 crypto companies that raised seed and pre-seed funding, 72% successfully launched on mainnet, marking a 66% increase from the year prior.
The Successes of 2022
2022 saw many successes for the crypto industry, according to the report. A total of $5 billion was invested in nearly 1,200 startups, an increase of 150% over the year prior.
Centralized finance (CeFi) and infrastructure became the most popular sectors within the market, with 80% of CeFi and 78% of infrastructure projects launched successfully on mainnet.
Gaming was the highest sub-vertical investment for consumers, with an investment of almost $700 million.
However, Regan Bozman, Lattice Fund co-founder, claimed that “chasing narratives can get you rekt,” in a post on X.
“$700M went into gaming seeds rounds, but Gaming & Metaverse had some of the highest fail rates and likelihood to be active without anything shipped,” Bozman added.
Crypto Startups Still Face Challenges
According to the report, the 2022 vintage faces “an even more challenging position than 2021. ” Sectors that were popular during 2022, such as the metaverse and NFTs, are now failing to attract investors like they did two years ago.
“A good reminder that the hot sectors of today do not always materialize alongside investor appetite,” Lattice wrote.
The metaverse sector raised almost $280 million in 2022 but has still been unable to find a real product-market fit, with 21% of the crypto startups being shut down.
“Compare that with DePIN or AI, which were barely registering in 2022 but are two of the hottest narratives today,” the report stated.
The initial hype of the metaverse initially promised a digital world where people would interact, work, and socialize in immersive virtual environments.
BigTech invested swiftly and heavily, with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg going as far as to completely rebrand his company to focus on the grand vision.
However, after shovelling billions of dollars into the vision and receiving minimal returns, Meta has quietly pivoted its key focus towards more prominent technologies – such as AI.
Microsoft was the latest tech titan to give up on its metaverse dreams, discontinuing the production of its HoloLens 2.
Kurt Robson is a London-based reporter at CCN, specialising in the fast-moving worlds of crypto and emerging technology. He began his career covering local news in Cornwall after graduating from Falmouth University with First Class Honours in Journalism. There, he cut his teeth on everything from council meetings to missing swans.
He quickly rose through the ranks to become a frontline journalist at several of the UK’s leading national newspapers. Over the years, he has interviewed musicians and celebrities, reported from courtrooms and crime scenes, and secured multiple front-page exclusives.
Following the upheaval of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kurt shifted his focus to technology journalism—just ahead of the AI boom. With a natural curiosity and a trained eye for emerging trends, he has found a new rhythm in reporting on innovation.
At CCN, Kurt's work focuses on the cutting edge of crypto, blockchain, AI, and the evolving digital world. Drawing on his background in people-first reporting and his deep interest in disruptive tech, Kurt delivers stories that are insightful, entertaining, and human-centric.
