Crypto VC Valuations Crash as Public Markets Reject Private Hype

The data paints a clear and often brutal picture of the disconnect. Humanity Protocol, once valued at $1 billion in private funding rounds, now commands a market capitalization of approximately $285 million. While some projects like Plasma and ICNT show comparatively smaller gaps—trading at around $224 million and $247 million against valuations of $500 million and $470 million, respectively—the steepest declines are impossible to ignore. Fuel Network, Double Zero, and Bubblemaps, the latter of which recently mocked rapper Soulja Boy over his past crypto and NFT promotions, each carried billion-dollar or near-billion-dollar valuations. They now trade at a mere $11 million, $373,000, and $6 million.

The trend extends across numerous well-funded ventures. Camp Network and TreeHouse have fallen from $400 million valuations to roughly $15 million and $16 million. Privasea stands out with a precipitous drop from $180 million to about $1 million. Not every project has been decimated; Sosovalue and Yieldbasis have held up relatively well, trading at $152 million and $34 million against initial valuations of $200 million and $50 million. Others, like Momentum and Bitlight, occupy a middle ground with market caps of $43 million and $34 million after being priced at $100 million and $170 million. Collectively, these figures represent hundreds of millions in implied value erased once tokens reached open markets.

This valuation reset is particularly notable because it occurred alongside a significant rebound in overall crypto venture capital activity. According to CryptoRank, quarterly investment climbed to about $10 billion in the second quarter of 2025, marking the strongest level since early 2022. Funding remained elevated at nearly $8 billion in both Q3 and Q4. This surge starkly contrasts with the bear market years, where investment bottomed near $689 million in Q3 2023 before stabilizing between $1 billion and $2.5 billion through most of 2024.

The 2025 recovery in VC funding closely tracked Bitcoin’s price action, which soared above $126,000 mid-year before settling into the $80,000 to $100,000 range by year-end. Crucially, the largest capital deployment happened in Q2 2025, precisely when market sentiment was most euphoric and token prices were rising rapidly. CryptoRank data indicates that many of the projects now trading far below their VC marks were funded during this peak optimism window. This timing underscores a critical dynamic: the return of capital has not translated into sustained validation for private round valuations.

The growing chasm between private funding numbers and public market caps has fundamentally altered its meaning for investors. What was once touted as a badge of confidence—a high valuation from prestigious venture firms—has now become a pronounced risk signal. As several analysts on social media platform X have noted, public markets are demonstrably less willing to accept private round narratives at face value. The data forces a reassessment of pricing discipline during bull cycles.

The takeaway for the market is clear. The resurgence of venture investment does not guarantee success for individual projects once their tokens are subject to the liquidity and scrutiny of public trading. The dramatic declines of projects like Fuel Network and Bubblemaps reinforce the need for sober expectations as capital continues to flow back into the crypto ecosystem. This valuation reset acts as a corrective mechanism, prioritizing tangible market performance over fundraising hype and signaling that the era of unchecked narrative-driven optimism may have cooled, at least for now.