Former Citigroup Inc. executive Matt Zhang launches a $1.5 billion venture, named Hivemind Capital Partners, focused on blockchain and digital asset related investments.
Who is Matt Zhang?
Matt Zhang is a 14-year veteran of the leading global investment bank Citigroup, where he worked both in the U.S. and Europe. In addition to his trading business responsibility, Matt created the bank’s spread products investment technologies team, or SPRINT, to focus on investments in the fintech space. Mr Zhang is also a founding partner of Citi Impact Fund, which makes equity investments in “double bottom line” companies to help address some of society’s most pressing challenges.
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The New York-based investment firm has received “a decent amount of interest” from qualified institutional investors including pensions, endowments, sovereign wealth funds and family offices, Matt Zhang, founder and managing partner, said in an interview.
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Where Hivemind Invests?
Hivemind will support in verticals including crypto infrastructure, blockchain protocols, open internet, programmable money and virtual world among others.
Matt Zhang, Founder and Managing Partner of Hivemind, commented:
“We believe blockchain technology is a paradigm shift, and we are still in the early innings. 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.”
Hivemind Selects Algorand Blockchain As A Strategic Partner
As part of the launch, Hivemind has selected Algorand, the leading 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. 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,” said Mr. Zhang. “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.”
Hivemind expects to add another four to five partners in the next six to 12 months.
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Algorand has experienced zero down time since launch and provides advanced yet easy-to-use tools, making it the blockchain technology of choice for thousands of organizations launching NFTs, payment solutions, regulated digital assets, new economic models, and DeFi offerings.
ex-Goldman Sachs Analyst To Lead “Play-to-Earn” Strategy
Hivemind Capital Partners is also focusing on play-to-earn blockchain gaming opportunity. Hivemind has hired Sam Peurifoy — an ex-Goldman Sachs analyst known for his online gaming persona “Das Kapitalist” — to lead a dedicated “play-to-earn” strategy.
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