Venture Firm Bessemer Creates DAO, Earmarks $250 Million for Crypto Deals

Venture capitalists’ efforts to earn the respect of sought-after cryptocurrency entrepreneurs have reached a new peak: The biggest firms are now starting decentralized autonomous organizations, communities that pool cryptocurrency tokens and vote collectively on the group’s activities.

Bessemer Venture Partners is one of the first to make the leap. The San Francisco–based firm on Thursday is unveiling BessemerDAO, a group for discussing trends in the crypto industry and sharing resources, as part of a larger effort to showcase its crypto investing ambitions. The firm has also earmarked $250 million of its new $2.5 billion fund for crypto deals, partner Ethan Kurzweil said in an interview with The Information.

Other venture firms are also forming DAOs, which exploded in popularity in the crypto industry last year. Redpoint Ventures in February teamed up with Maverick Ventures, the VC arm of hedge fund Maverick Capital, to jointly create a healthcare-focused DAO, Maverick’s managing director, Ambar Bhattacharyya, told The Information.