VanEck, a global investment management giant overseeing more than $118 billion in assets, has entered into the venture capital space with the launch of VanEck Ventures.

VanEck Ventures is seeking $30 million for its first fund, which will invest in early-stage startups operating at the intersection of fintech, digital assets and artificial intelligence, the firm said Wednesday. The fund will be led by Wyatt Lonergan and Juan Lopez, two former Circle Ventures leaders who have joined VanEck as general partners.

Lonergan departed Circle Ventures in May after six years, while Lopez left in July after three years. "Since then, we've been working in stealth as we set up the VanEck Ventures fund, firm up our thesis and make our first few investments," Lonergan told The Block. VanEck has made corporate investments in a number of early-stage companies and funds in the past, but this is the first venture capital fund the firm has set up, Lonergan said.

About two and a half years ago, VanEck expanded into liquid asset investing, and now it is extending its strategy with a dedicated venture fund that covers both liquid and illiquid crypto investments, Lonergan explained.

VanEck was an early mover in the crypto space, being the first asset manager to file for a bitcoin-linked ETF in 2017. It was among the first to file for a spot bitcoin ETF in 2018 and the first to file for a spot ether ETF in 2021. Both spot crypto ETFs were approved and launched earlier this year.

VanEck is anchoring its first venture fund, which has allowed the firm to begin investing while continuing to raise capital, with the fund expected to close later this quarter, Lonergan said.

The fund will target early-stage startups, with a focus on tokenization and stablecoin platforms. "If you've ever sent money over a wire, or even tools like PayPal vs. USDC -0.04% to a user with an existing wallet, we can all agree it's clear the benefits are there," Lopez told The Block. "But why hasn't broader adoption happened faster? We think, as we see broader stablecoin regulation, a number of very exciting opportunities will emerge in making both on-chain and off-chain payment systems compatible."

Stablecoins present the most significant product-market fit today outside of Bitcoin BTC -1.13% , Lopez noted, adding that there will be a "fintech explosion built on stablecoins," which he describes as "the open-source banking-as-a-service layer."

Lopez also highlighted the $39 trillion business-to-business cross-border payments market, which continues to grow as global interconnectivity increases. However, the efficiency of underlying payment rails varies, he said, adding that he believes that stablecoins on blockchains like Solana SOL -1.52% will help level the playing field, enabling near-instant, near-free transfers to become the norm over the next five years.

The VanEck Ventures Fund I expects to make between 25 and 35 investments, with check sizes ranging from $500,000 to $1 million. Lonergan said the fund is open to both equity and token projects and has already made four unannounced investments.

As part of the VanEck Ventures team, Lonergan and Lopez share resources and collaborate closely with the broader VanEck crypto team, which manages ETFs, liquid assets and other business lines. Globally, VanEck employs 400 people, Lonergan added.

VanEck’s move into venture capital comes amid a surge in fundraising by crypto VCs this year. As The Block recently reported, crypto venture firms have raised over $2.2 billion in new capital through closed funds as of August, according to PitchBook data.

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