Dan Romero is a prominent figure in the crypto and web3 industry, best known as the co-founder and CEO of Farcaster, a decentralized social protocol built on Ethereum. Before launching Farcaster, Romero spent approximately six years at Coinbase, where he joined in 2014 as one of the company's early employees and rose to Vice President, overseeing international expansion and various product lines. His deep operational background in crypto infrastructure shapes his investment thesis: backing early-stage projects that prioritize open protocols, developer tools, and consumer-facing applications in the decentralized web.
Romero's investment activity sits at the intersection of his operator experience and his conviction in on-chain social primitives. With a career that spans the earliest growth phase of Coinbase through the emergence of the Farcaster ecosystem, he brings hands-on product intuition to the companies he backs. His angel investments number around six documented deals, reflecting a selective, concentrated approach rather than a high-volume spray strategy. Geographic focus is primarily the United States, though the open-source nature of Farcaster draws contributors and related projects globally.
Notable investments
- Farcaster – Romero co-founded this decentralized social protocol alongside Varun Srinivasan. The project raised $30 million from Andreessen Horowitz in 2022 and a further $150 million at a $1 billion valuation in May 2024, with participation from a16z crypto and other top-tier funds. Warpcast, the primary client app built on Farcaster, has attracted tens of thousands of active users.
- Additional portfolio companies – Public information about Romero's specific angel investments beyond Farcaster is limited. He has been linked through public posts and discussions to early-stage bets in consumer crypto, onchain gaming, and social applications, but deal-level details have not been widely disclosed.
Team
Dan Romero operates as a solo angel investor and founder. He holds a degree from Stanford University. His co-founder at Farcaster, Varun Srinivasan, is a former Coinbase engineer who serves as CTO of the protocol. Romero is active on Farcaster itself under the username @dwr.eth, where he engages publicly with builders and researchers in the ecosystem. There are no managing partners or associates publicly listed under a named fund vehicle.
Recent activity
The most significant development in Romero's recent track record is Farcaster's $150 million fundraise in May 2024, which brought the protocol's valuation to $1 billion and positioned it as the leading decentralized social infrastructure play in crypto. In 2024 and into 2025, the Farcaster ecosystem saw a surge of third-party client apps and mini-applications called "frames," which allow developers to embed interactive experiences directly inside social posts. Romero has been vocal on social media about the protocol's growth and the broader opportunity in open social graphs.
As an angel, Romero's public investment cadence appears measured. He has not announced a formal fund, and his deal flow appears to concentrate on founders building within or adjacent to the Farcaster ecosystem. Given his role as a sitting CEO of a high-growth startup, angel activity is likely secondary to his operational responsibilities. Investors and founders tracking the decentralized social and consumer crypto space watch his moves closely, as his operator credibility and network within the Coinbase and a16z orbits give him early access to compelling deals.
