Bankless Ventures is the venture capital arm of Bankless, the crypto media and education brand founded by Ryan Sean Adams and David Hoffman. The Bankless brand launched in 2019 as a newsletter and podcast focused on helping people navigate decentralized finance and move away from traditional banking systems. The investment vehicle grew organically from that media presence, giving the fund an unusually direct line to retail crypto audiences and a recognizable brand in the Ethereum ecosystem.
The fund concentrates on early-stage crypto projects, with a clear thesis centered on Ethereum, decentralized finance, and the broader Web3 stack. Public information about total assets under management (AUM) is limited – Bankless Ventures has not disclosed a formal fund size. With 25 portfolio companies and a single lead investment on record, the fund appears to operate primarily as a participant in rounds led by larger institutional backers rather than as a lead investor. Retail ROI stands at 1.25x based on available tracking data, a modest return that reflects both the difficulty of the 2022–2024 bear cycle and the fund's early-stage focus.
Notable investments
- Optimism (OP) – Ethereum Layer 2 scaling network. One of the more high-profile Ethereum ecosystem bets aligned with Bankless's core thesis. optimism.io
- Lyra Finance – decentralized options protocol built on Optimism.
- Kwenta – decentralized perpetuals exchange in the Synthetix ecosystem.
- Aave – leading decentralized lending protocol on Ethereum. Bankless has been a long-term supporter and vocal advocate. aave.com
Public disclosure of the full portfolio remains limited. The projects above are consistently referenced by Bankless in public content. Additional holdings are not confirmed through regulatory filings or press releases.
Team
Ryan Sean Adams co-founded Bankless after a career in traditional venture capital and finance. He became an outspoken Ethereum advocate and built much of the Bankless subscriber base through his writing and podcast work. David Hoffman, the other co-founder, is widely known for articulating the Ethereum investment thesis to retail audiences – his work on Ethereum's monetary policy and ultrasound money narrative reached millions of crypto readers. Public information about additional investment team members beyond the two founders is limited.
Recent activity
Through 2024 and into 2025, Bankless Ventures maintained its focus on the Ethereum ecosystem, participating in rounds for DeFi and infrastructure projects. The fund has not announced a new flagship vehicle or a major AUM raise publicly. Bankless as a media brand expanded its reach with new podcast verticals and a growing YouTube presence, which continues to serve as the primary distribution channel for the fund's thesis and deal flow. bankless.com
Bankless Ventures occupies a specific niche: a media-native fund with strong brand recognition among retail crypto participants. That brand advantage aids deal flow and token awareness post-investment, but the fund's small portfolio size and limited lead-investor activity suggest it operates at a scale well below top-tier crypto VCs. Its long-term performance will depend on Ethereum ecosystem growth and how the DeFi protocols it backs navigate an increasingly competitive and regulated market.
