Crypto fund-of-funds Protocol Ventures is shutting down: Bloomberg

Protocol Ventures, a crypto fund of funds that invested in the likes of Multicoin Capital, Pantera Capital and Electric Capital, is reportedly shutting up shop.

Bloomberg reported the news on Thursday, citing unnamed people familiar with the matter. The shuttering is expected by the end of this year or the first quarter of next year, per the report. Protocol Ventures reportedly sent notices to investors at the end of October about the move.

Protocol Ventures was founded in 2017 by serial entrepreneur and venture capitalist Rick Marini, reportedly as the first-ever fund-of-funds for cryptocurrencies. The fund had started with $1 million of Marini's own money and it had hoped to raise $100 million at the time. Investors in Protocol's fund-of-funds may have lost as much as 90% over the past year, according to the Bloomberg report.

Protocol Ventures did not immediately respond to The Block's request for comment.

The fund's closure comes amid the so-called crypto winter. The market capitalization of the crypto sector globally has fallen to around $1 trillion from over $3 trillion a year ago, according to data tracked by CoinGecko. Several crypto companies have faced financial difficulty and bankruptcy, including Three Arrows Capital, Celsius, Voyager, Zipmex, Vauld, Hodlnaut and Core Scientific.