Zhang Joins Banking Crypto Exodus

Citi’s former head of structured products Matt Zhang has joined the growing exodus of bankers to the crypto industry, unveiling Hivemind Capital Partners’ inaugural $1.5 billion multi-strategy venture to invest in the blockchain and digital asset ecosystem.

Headquartered in New York, Hivemind, which was founded by Zhang who is also managing partner, will make venture investments in crypto companies, trade digital assets, and feature what the firm says is a first-of-its-kind, dedicated “play-to-earn strategy” in the gaming space. The investment firm will deploy capital in verticals including crypto infrastructure, blockchain protocols, open internet, programmable money and virtual world among others.

“We believe blockchain technology is a paradigm shift, and we are still in the early innings,” says Zhang. “Our mission is to provide start-to-finish capital and infrastructure solutions to visionary entrepreneurs and category-defining crypto projects. The traditional asset management model is not designed to do this, which is why we are building a tailor-made crypto investment platform from the ground up that also offers the infrastructure institutional investors need for risk management, compliance and security.”

As part of the launch, Hivemind has selected Algorand, the layer-1 blockchain, as a strategic partner to provide technology capability and network ecosystem infrastructure.

“We believe that Algorand is the preeminent blockchain protocol that allows institutional and corporate users to connect with the decentralized economy,” says Zhang. “With the explosive growth of the digital asset space, people tend to forget how early the crypto economy still is. We want to team up with partners who have the patience to build an enduring business. We are also in active discussions to form partnerships with a number of other leading layer-1 networks. The goal is to build a multi-chain world to let our investors see the best opportunities across the entire crypto ecosystem.”