Multicoin Capital
Crypto hedge fund and venture firm managing about $2.7B, known for early Solana bets.
On the record
Checkpoint: Fund IV first close and Mark Young v. Solana Labs class action ruling
The call
Multicoin survived one full crash and rebuilt, but AUM has halved again and Samani's exit from day-to-day work leaves Jain and Smith to prove this contraction is cyclical, not the end of the story.
Multicoin Capital is a fund that invests money in cryptocurrency and blockchain projects, with early wins like backing Solana when it was new. The problem is that the business swings wildly with crypto trends (it has shrunk from $9 billion to $2.7 billion in four years), and rivals like Andreessen Horowitz's crypto team and Paradigm are just as connected and respected, so there is no special advantage protecting Multicoin. The critical unknown is whether the fund can raise new money and make deals at a healthy pace now that co-founder Kyle Samani stepped back in early 2026, plus there is an unresolved lawsuit from 2022 that could create costs or distraction.
Why
01
AI pressure: None apparent. AI doesn't pick tokens or negotiate founder allocations, so it doesn't directly displace this business yet. Could AI do the core job? Unlikely.
02
Bigger players: a16z crypto, Paradigm, Pantera. Rival crypto funds compete for the same deals and LPs, and Multicoin's deal pace has fallen to 4 in H2 2025 while peers keep deploying. Could a giant copy it? Yes, easily.
03
What protects it. Early Solana relationships and a two-cycle track record still pull founders and LPs back after drawdowns.
What would change this call
Whether Multicoin's Fund IV announces a first close within 12 months. Shows whether LPs still trust the firm enough to commit fresh capital.
Whether deal count rises above roughly 15-20 per year by mid-2027. Shows whether the 2025 slowdown to 4 deals was cyclical or a lasting pullback.
Whether Tushar Jain or Brian Smith departs, or another senior partner exits, within 18 months. Would confirm deeper leadership instability after Samani's step-back.
Whether deal count rises above roughly 15-20 per year by mid-2027. Shows whether the 2025 slowdown to 4 deals was cyclical or a lasting pullback.
Whether Tushar Jain or Brian Smith departs, or another senior partner exits, within 18 months. Would confirm deeper leadership instability after Samani's step-back.
Key numbers
- AUM fell from $5.9B to $2.7B in about 9 months
- Only 4 new investments made in H2 2025
- $1.65B PIPE into Forward Industries co-led Sept 2025
Named risks
- Key-person dependency after Kyle Samani stepped back from daily leadership, Feb 2026.
- Deal pace collapsed to 4 investments in H2 2025, signaling structural slowdown.
- Unresolved 2022 securities class action naming Multicoin and Samani over SOL sales.
- AUM cyclicality: halved from $5.9B to $2.7B since crypto downturn began Oct 2025.
- Concentrated exposure to Forward Industries Solana treasury and AAVE holdings.
Rivals, as read in July 2026
| Rival | Direction | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| a16z crypto | contesting | a16z's crypto fund AUM also plummeted 40% by April 2026 as sector-wide contraction hit both firms |
| Paradigm | gaining on | Paradigm reported actively fundraising in 2026 while Multicoin's AUM halved to ~$2.7B |
| Pantera Capital | contesting | Named alongside Multicoin in April 2025 Fortune AUM comparison of top crypto VCs |
| Dragonfly Capital | gaining on | Reported actively fundraising alongside Paradigm and a16z as of April 2026 per KuCoin news |
| top-50 active VC peers (unspecified) | losing to | Multicoin fell out of the top-50 most-active VC ranking by February 2026 amid deal slowdown |
Questions people ask
- Is Multicoin Capital in trouble in 2026?
- Multicoin's assets under management fell from about $5.9B in May 2025 to roughly $2.7B by early 2026 amid a crypto downturn that began around October 2025, and deal pace collapsed to just 4 investments in H2 2025, pushing it out of the top-50 most-active VC ranking.
- Who runs Multicoin Capital now that Kyle Samani stepped back?
- On February 4, 2026, co-founder Kyle Samani announced he was stepping back from day-to-day management to pursue AI, robotics and longevity technology; co-founder Tushar Jain and CFO/COO Brian Smith now run daily operations, per The Block.
- Who is Multicoin Capital's biggest competitor?
- Multicoin competes directly with a16z crypto, Paradigm, Pantera Capital, Polychain Capital, Electric Capital and Haun Ventures for crypto deal flow; Fortune's April 2026 reporting notes a16z's crypto fund AUM also plummeted 40% while Multicoin's roughly halved, showing sector-wide pressure.
- Is Multicoin Capital facing any lawsuits?
- Yes. A 2022 securities class action (Mark Young v. Solana Labs et al., N.D. Cal.) names Multicoin Capital Management LLC and Kyle Samani over alleged unregistered SOL securities sales; a separate $5.5B RICO suit filed June 2026 targets broader Solana-ecosystem entities.
- Could AI replace what Multicoin Capital does?
- Unlikely for its core function. Multicoin's moat is capital allocation, LP trust, and founder relationships like its 2019 Solana Series A access, plus SEC compliance infrastructure; AI could augment research and thesis-writing but not the capital, reputation, or regulatory role.
- How much money does Multicoin Capital manage?
- SEC-derived regulatory AUM is approximately $2.69B across 10 private funds as of 2026, including the Master Fund at $1.68B and Venture Fund III at $687.3M, per privatefunddata.com; other estimates put total AUM near $2.7B by February 2026.
Timeline
- 2026-07-16Multicoin leads $1.75M seed round for Trasia Labs, a Hyperliquid-native perpetuals platform
- 2026-06-10$5.5B RICO class action (Aguilar v. Baton Corp.) targets Solana-ecosystem entities
- 2026-04-17Fortune reports Multicoin AUM halved to about $2.7B amid crypto downturn
- 2026-02-04Kyle Samani steps back from day-to-day management; Jain and Smith take over
- 2025-11Multicoin buys about 338,000 AAVE tokens (~$60.46M) via Galaxy Digital OTC
- 2025-09-11Multicoin co-leads $1.65B PIPE into Forward Industries for Solana treasury strategy
- 2025-07Brian Strugats hired as Head Trader
- 2022-08-16Securities class action filed naming Multicoin Capital and Kyle Samani as defendants
- 2022Multicoin Capital Venture Fund III closes at $430M
- 2017-08-01Multicoin Capital founded by Kyle Samani and Tushar Jain, first close
Revision history
21 July 2026
First assessed. Losing its protection. The text above is fixed as of this date and is not edited afterwards.
In the same band
Sources
- Multicoin founder Kyle Samani steps back from investment firm (2026-02-04)
- Crypto venture firms like Paradigm, Multicoin enjoy banner years (2025-04-07)
- Why Multicoin Capital's Kyle Samani Is Leaving Crypto for AI and Robotics (2026-02-05)
- Fortune Exclusive: a16z's Crypto Fund AUM Plummets 40%; Multicoin Cuts in Half (2026-04-17)
- AUM, Funds, Owners & Contact Info
- Multicoin Capital Closes $430M Venture Fund III (2025-09-17)
- Creating The World's Leading Solana Treasury Company (2025-09-11)
- A Major Signal from Venture Capital (2026-02-05)
- Multicoin invests $1.75 million in Asia-focused trading platform Trasia (2026-07-16)
- Products, Competitors, Financials, Employees, Headquarters Locations (2025-11-25)
- Announcing Multicoin Capital (2017-08-09)
- Products, Competitors, Financials, Employees, Headquarters Locations (2025-11-25)