How to fundraise in Web3

Key takeaways

• Web3 fundraising has evolved; investors present request beardown concern models, wide tokenomics and marketplace validation.
• Remember, astute wealth matters; beyond funding, strategical investors tin supply mentorship and manufacture connections.
• Multiple backing options are disposable — VCs, angel investors, grants, ICOs and crowdfunding each person their advantages.
• You indispensable cognize erstwhile to pivot — If traction is debased and resources are depleting, reassess oregon determination connected to a caller opportunity.

If you were successful crypto backmost successful 2017, you mightiness retrieve Centra Tech, a Miami-based institution that conducted an ICO. The institution claimed to connection a cryptocurrency-based debit paper backed by large outgo networks similar Visa and Mastercard — but successful reality, it had nary operational product.

Despite being astatine the “idea” stage, Centra Tech raised implicit $32 cardinal successful its ICO and adjacent secured endorsements from celebrities similar Floyd Mayweather Jr. and DJ Khaled. 

Less than a twelvemonth later, its founders were arrested. It was aboriginal revealed that the institution had nary existent partnerships with the outgo networks and nary existent product.

Centra Tech was conscionable 1 of galore “ICO Boom” projects that secured concern based connected white papers alone, without an MVP (minimum viable product). A study by Fabric Ventures and TokenData highlighted that successful 2017, 435 palmy ICOs collectively raised astir $5.6 billion, with an mean of $12.7 cardinal per project.

What’s brainsick is that less than fractional of these ICOs remained progressive beyond 4 months aft their token income concluded. A survey reported that over 80% of ICO projects successful 2017 were identified arsenic scams.

Indeed, the days of casual wealth are agelong gone. Many startups successful 2025 are seeking investment, expecting the aforesaid level of enthusiasm, lone to beryllium met with accrued regulatory scrutiny, capitalist caution, precocious contention and ultimately, debased occurrence rates.

But it’s not each doom and gloom. Investors are inactive retired determination for projects that genuinely basal out.

Today, you’ll larn the astir fashionable ways to fundraise successful Web3, each the mode down to what to bash if you’ve lone got a mobile telephone and a dream.

Moreover, there’s a dainty astatine the end, an exclusive sit-down with the caput of concern improvement astatine Cointelegraph Accelerator, offering invaluable insights connected the existent authorities of Web3 investment.

1. Incubators and accelerators

Incubators and accelerators play a important relation successful helping Web3 startups determination from thought to market. These programs supply mentorship, resources and backing to enactment early-stage projects. Here’s the difference: 

• Incubators: These absorption connected startups successful the ideation phase, providing guidance, networking opportunities and resources to assistance physique an MVP.
• Accelerators: They enactment with startups that already person an MVP, offering backing and mentorship to assistance standard rapidly. Most reason with a demo day, wherever projects transportation to investors.

Notable Web3 programs include:

• Outlier Ventures Base Camp: A 13-week accelerator programme for Web3 and crypto startups.
• Alliance: Offers regular mentorship and flexible backing for Web3 founders.
• Antler: A planetary early-stage capitalist with a 26-week startup program.
• Brinc: A 10-week accelerator providing funding, mentorship and a planetary network. 

And, of course, Cointelegraph has its ain accelerator program, offering up to $100,000 of “smart money,” giving you nonstop entree to infrastructure providers, investors, mentors, foundations, exchanges, marketplace makers and more.

If you’re looking to use to a Web3 startup accelerator oregon incubator, probe programs that align with your project, hole a beardown transportation platform and taxable applications done their authoritative channels. 

Each programme has its process and deadlines, truthful cheque the requirements beforehand.

2. Venture superior (VC) funding

For Web3 startups that request superior capital, task superior (VC) firms are a go-to option. 

Investors are much selective, expecting wide concern models, sustainable tokenomics, and beardown ineligible foundations. Here’s what you request to know.

Finding the close Web3 VC

Not each VCs are funny successful blockchain, truthful it’s important to people firms that specialize successful Web3. 

Look for investors who person backed akin projects and person a way grounds successful crypto, DeFi oregon NFTs. Resources similar Alchemy’s database of Web3 VC firms tin assistance you identify the close players.

When reaching out, guarantee your transportation highlights what makes your task different. VCs person hundreds of applications, truthful you request to basal retired — whether done an innovative usage case, beardown traction oregon a slayer team.

Structuring VC deals 

Web3 backing often involves a premix of equity and token allocations. 

Investors whitethorn instrumentality a involvement successful your institution portion besides receiving a stock of tokens, which tin summation successful worth implicit time. Key things to negotiate: 

• Investment amount: How overmuch superior is being raised, and astatine what valuation?
• Equity vs tokens: Will the woody see both? If so, what’s the split?
• Vesting schedules: Investors whitethorn person lock-up periods to forestall aboriginal sell-offs.
• Governance: Will VCs person decision-making powerfulness successful your project? 

The champion deals align incentives betwixt founders and investors. A atrocious operation could mean losing power implicit your project.

Due diligence: what VCs expect

Before signing a deal, investors volition behaviour owed diligence — a heavy dive into your project’s financials, ineligible presumption and concern model. To beryllium prepared, you’ll need:

• Legal documentation: Company registration, contracts and compliance with regulations.
• Tokenomics model: A wide program for token distribution, inferior and semipermanent sustainability.
• Roadmap and traction: Demonstrated progress, whether done partnerships, a moving merchandise oregon an progressive community.

A beardown concern case, combined with coagulated ineligible and fiscal documentation, volition marque your task much charismatic to investors.

Did you know? Scammers impersonating task capitalists (VCs) successful the Web3 abstraction purpose to exploit startups’ eagerness for backing by employing deceptive tactics to bargain wealth oregon delicate information. Always support your wits astir you! 

3. Angel investors

Angel investors — high-net-worth individuals who put their ain wealth — tin supply early-stage backing with much flexibility than VCs. But securing angel concern isn’t conscionable astir numbers; it’s astir uncovering idiosyncratic who genuinely believes successful your vision. 

If you’re moving connected a Bitcoin layer-2 solution, your champion stake isn’t a generic tech investor; it’s a Bitcoin whale who wants to spot the web scale. Investors are acold much apt to backmost a task erstwhile they person a idiosyncratic involvement successful its success, whether ideological oregon financial.

So wherever bash you find these people? 

Conferences. 

Events similar Token2049, ETHDenver and Consensus are afloat of angels looking for their adjacent opportunity. 

Cointelegraph spoke to random attendees astatine Token2049, and astir each had wealth to invest.

Beyond conferences, Web3 X, Telegram and backstage capitalist groups are large places to physique relationships. Warm introductions tin beryllium the quality betwixt getting a gathering and getting ignored.

Angel investors tin beryllium immoderate of the astir supportive backers successful Web3. You conscionable request to beryllium successful the close place, with the close transportation astatine the close time.

4. Grants and ecosystem funds

Many blockchain platforms person established assistance programs to enactment projects that heighten their networks. 

Essentially, “If you physique your task connected our blockchain, we’ll backmost you!” 

For instance, the Rootstock assistance offers $2.5 cardinal quarterly to developers gathering connected the Bitcoin blockchain. Similarly, the Starknet effect assistance programme provides non-dilutive backing to early-stage teams with an MVP aiming to participate the market.

To summation your chances of securing a grant:

• Align with the grantor’s mission: Ensure your project’s goals resonate with the objectives of the backing organization.
• Demonstrate task viability: Present a wide roadmap, including milestones and a sustainable concern model.
• Highlight imaginable impact: Explain however your task volition payment the ecosystem and its community.
• Follow guidelines meticulously: Adhere to exertion instructions and supply each required documentation.

For elaborate guidance, notation to the Rootstock assistance exertion guide, which offers insights into eligibility and valuation criteria. 

Did you know? The largest Web3 assistance successful past might spell to Lotte Group, a South Korean firm giant, done an Arbitrum Foundation grant, marking a displacement from backing indie developers to backing large enterprises successful Web3. 

5. ICOs and token sales

Believe it oregon not, initial coin offerings (ICOs) and token income are inactive fashionable methods for blockchain-based projects to rise capital.

An ICO involves creating and distributing a caller cryptocurrency token, which investors acquisition utilizing established cryptocurrencies similar Bitcoin (BTC) or Ether (ETH).

These tokens whitethorn assistance holders entree to a circumstantial service, voting rights oregon a stock successful the project’s imaginable profits. The ICO process typically includes:

• White insubstantial release: A elaborate papers outlining the project’s concept, method specifications, squad inheritance and backing requirements.
• Marketing campaign: Efforts to make involvement and physique a assemblage astir the project.
• Token merchantability event: The play during which investors tin acquisition the recently issued tokens.

Remember, successful galore regions, tokens offered successful ICOs are considered securities, subjecting them to circumstantial ineligible requirements. For instance, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has indicated that galore ICOs impact the offering of securities and indispensable comply with national securities laws.

Noncompliance tin pb to ineligible actions, fiscal penalties and harm to the project’s reputation. Therefore, it’s important to consult with ineligible experts to guarantee adherence to each applicable laws and regulations. 

To summation the likelihood of a palmy ICO:

• Develop a wide tokenomics model: Define the token’s utility, full supply, organisation program and mechanisms to incentivize holders.
• Set realistic fundraising goals: Determine the magnitude needed to execute task milestones and debar overcapitalization.
• Build assemblage trust: Engage transparently with imaginable investors, supply regular updates, and show the team’s competence and commitment.

By cautiously readying and adhering to regulatory guidelines, projects tin leverage ICOs and token income to rise superior and foster a dedicated idiosyncratic base.

Did you know? Influencers tin beryllium portion of your ICO fundraising strategy by receiving tokens straight to beforehand your project. This attack is sometimes called an ‘influencer round.’

6. Crowdfunding

If you’re astatine the thought signifier without funding, bootstrapping improvement costs to physique your MVP tin beryllium challenging. 

On apical of that, you mightiness not person angel capitalist contacts oregon the funds and clip to be capitalist events.

It’s a challenging position, particularly if you’ve spent months sending acold LinkedIn messages to imaginable investors with nary success.

So, alternatively of leaving fractional our assemblage without caller ideas, we’re introducing Web3 crowdfunding arsenic a mode to span the gap. While it whitethorn not screen everything, it tin assistance with immoderate MVP improvement costs.

Traditional crowdfunding platforms similar Kickstarter and GoFundMe are centralized and don’t integrate with blockchain-based fundraising models, making them unsuitable for Web3 projects. Instead, Web3 startups typically crook to projects specified arsenic Gitcoin grants — those that offer crowdfunding for nationalist goods and open-source blockchain projects.

And if you’re inactive struggling to secure funding, you mightiness privation to effort an industry-agnostic level similar UFANDAO.com.

This level stands retired for its quality to facilitate crypto fundraising for immoderate idea, with donations coming from individuals who resonate with the imaginativeness and privation to lend to the corporate happiness of humanity.

While it’s improbable to assistance you rise hundreds of thousands of dollars, it mightiness beryllium the propulsion that gets your insubstantial airplane disconnected the ground.

UFANDAO offers: 

• Peer-to-peer donations: Contributions are made straight betwixt members successful real-time, ensuring instant entree to funds without intermediaries.
• Zero commissions: The level doesn’t complaint immoderate fees connected donations, truthful you person the afloat amount.
• Access to a planetary community: Available to anyone with net access.
• Flexible fundraising: Raise funds for anything, from idiosyncratic goals to Web3 innovations.

And determination you person it — our wildcard for those with thing but a smartphone and a dream.

You can’t accidental this nonfiction wasn’t comprehensive!

The authorities of Web3 fundraising successful 2025 with Anna Shakola

As portion of the probe for this article, a speech was held with Anna Shakola, the caput of concern improvement astatine Cointelegraph Accelerator, to summation an insider’s position connected the existent authorities of Web3 fundraising.

Here are 3 cardinal moments from the speech that are worthy sharing with you.

1. What are Web3 investors presently looking for?

Gone are the days erstwhile a startup could rise tens of millions of dollars connected the ground of a achromatic paper. 

The manufacture has suffered from poor-performing Web3 portfolios, from investing successful projects that showed a deficiency of maturation oregon ended up being scams. 

The manufacture is getting bigger, yes, but this has besides meant that determination are much startups, higher levels of competition, and capitalist hazard tolerance has lowered.

Right now, we’re looking for infrastructure, B2B, and growth-stage projects with proven marketplace demand. I deliberation this reflects the broader concern appetite.

I would stress that infra is truly the caller alpha.

2. What’s your proposal to a Web3 startup successful 2025?

Here are the things I’d absorption connected astatine the start:

• Think astir who you are. Be specific, beryllium honest, and retrieve that you don’t request to reinvent the bicycle. Be definite of the occupation you’re solving. Strong task individuality is crucial.
• Check capitalist portfolios. Look astatine the accelerators, VCs and angel investors you’re reaching retired to. Don’t interaction everyone mindlessly — you’re wasting your time.
• Consider grants and ecosystem funds. These are often overlooked. You mightiness adjacent privation to validate your thought astatine hackathons oregon done bug bounties. This is wherever investors volition beryllium paying attention.
• Seek astute money. It mightiness not beryllium capable to unafraid backing from laissez-faire angel investors. Focus connected deals that volition bring you solid, broad support.

3. At what signifier should a laminitis springiness up trying to fundraise for their project?

It’s an absorbing constituent due to the fact that ordinarily, astir radical would accidental never.

However, you request to see the accidental outgo of clip spent reaching retired to VCs, traveling to events, reworking the MVP and the financials involved.

I person a database of founders that I scope retired to each twelvemonth due to the fact that they motorboat caller projects each clip determination is simply a trend. It’s important to adapt. If thing doesn’t work, don’t beryllium acrophobic to scrap it.

I deliberation that erstwhile the wealth runs out, the task becomes a fiscal burden, the squad is burned retired and moving astatine debased efficiency, and determination are nary meaningful conversations with investors underway, these are each signs that it mightiness beryllium clip to determination on.

Remember, much often than not, VCs find you — you don’t find VCs.

Beyond ICOs to astute money: Navigating the aboriginal of Web3 fundraising

In lawsuit the stunning magnitude of treble ticks you’ve received from VCs connected Telegram hasn’t painted the representation for you, fundraising successful Web3 has changed massively since the ICO roar of 2017.

Today, securing concern requires much than conscionable a achromatic insubstantial and a fewer bully connections. It demands a beardown task identity, a well-structured concern exemplary and the quality to show existent marketplace demand.

Whether you prosecute task capital, angel investors, grants, token income oregon crowdfunding, knowing the close attack for your signifier of improvement is key.

Most importantly, arsenic Anna mentioned, securing astute wealth — concern that comes with strategical enactment — tin marque each the difference.

If 1 method doesn’t work, pivot, refine and support pushing, adjacent if you extremity up fundraising for your MVP implicit astatine UFANDAO. 

But if the challenges go overwhelming and traction remains elusive, knowing erstwhile to determination connected is conscionable arsenic important arsenic knowing erstwhile to persist.

Good luck!