Singapore-based fintech platform Cake DeFi launches a $100M venture fund to invest in Web 3, NFTs, and fintech startups

The past few years have seen more people embrace the potential of a decentralized web following the debut of blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies. As it stands, most of the platforms that exist on the internet are built on Web 2.0; this includes social media websites such as Twitter and Facebook as well as centralized applications offering a range of services.

But Web 3.0 is about to change all that. Web3 is still a fuzzy concept in tech that refers to the idea of building a more decentralized version of the internet based on blockchain technology, where there’s no centralized control. Web 3.0 also accelerates the adoption of other related blockchain technologies including NFTs, gaming, metaverse, crypto, among others.

This development has also caught the attention of investors and venture capital firms looking for the next big winner. In recent months, investors have poured billions of dollars into NFT and Web 3 related projects. Now, Singapore-based fintech platform Cake DeFi is throwing its hat into the ring with a $100 million venture fund to invest in early-stage crypto startups to enhance its Web3 offerings.

Today, Cake DeFi announced the launch of a new corporate venture arm, Cake DeFi Ventures (CDV), with $100 million in funding to invest and accelerate the growth of web3, gaming, and fintech startups. The fund, which will be led by Cake DeFi co-founders Julian Hosp and U-Zyn Chua, will look for global investment opportunities in startups across the world.

In a statement, Hosp said: “With Cake’s current status as Singapore’s and Southeast Asia’s fastest-growing platform, projects which we invest in can expect to receive strong support scaling globally.”

In addition to the funding, Cake Defi said the fund will also offer insights and industry connections to investment companies, but Hosp said the fund will take a hands-off approach in terms of operational responsibilities and board seats.

“We’re a [business to consumer] platform that’s really centered around providing easy cash flow for our customers,” Hosp said in an interview. “So the thesis for the fund is mainly to look for projects and companies where we can have a symbiosis.”

Cake DeFi has grown exponentially over the past year, increasing its user base by 10 times by the end of 2021. The company almost doubled its user base in the fourth quarter also.

“As an extension of our multiple blockchains support and having built up an R&D arm with cryptography, deep tech capability, and specialization, investing in companies that bring synergies to Cake DeFi’s core business will allow us to enhance our Web 3 offerings,” said Chua in the press release.

Founded in 2019 by Julian Hosp and U-Zyn Chua, Cake DeFi is a fintech platform for growing cryptocurrency assets. Through its partnership with an internationally compliant and advanced fiat-to-crypto gateway solutions provider, Cake also provides support for swapping 13 major currencies into crypto.