while Bitcoin As 2026 begins, sentiment towards other areas of the cryptocurrency space has deteriorated further – particularly DePIN, or decentralized physical infrastructure networks. Tokens for decentralized cell phone service Helium and decentralized mapping network Hivemapper, for example, are near all-time lows. However, some investors remain bullish on the concept, including venture startup Escape Velocity, which has raised $61.74 million for a second fund to support DePIN founders and cryptocurrencies more broadly.
The company closed its latest round of capital in December, attracting high-profile investors such as venture giant Marc Andreessen and prominent fintech investor Micky Malka of Ribbit Capital. Mahesh Ramakrishnan, co-founder of Escape Velocity, said Fund of Funds Cendana gave $15 million, the largest check in the fund.
“I think the nature of cryptocurrencies and doing very offshore investing is that there will be cycles of very bearish sentiment and cycles of very bullish sentiment,” Ramakrishnan said, as he reiterated his belief in decentralized physical infrastructure.
The core value proposition of cryptocurrencies is decentralization. The founders wove financial bars, currencies and assets that are not controlled by any single party. Others have taken this ideal beyond digital networks to physical networks, dreaming of peer-to-peer services for Wi-Fi, cell phone plans, and even Drones. To incentivize people to support these networks, DePIN startups usually pay supporters in cryptocurrency.
Although the concept of DePIN has attracted a lot of attention, it has yet to produce a project that breaks into the mainstream. Ramakrishnan, who was described As a “DePIN fan,” he believes it’s just a matter of time.
“A lot of what I’ve seen in the last three years are DePIN projects that launched tokens before they had anything; they launch tokens based on hype and based on the idea,” he said.
Instead, Ramakrishnan and his co-founder Salvador Gala, who were named Forbes 30 Under 30 List In finance, they believe they can find decentralized infrastructure projects that cut through the hype.
The couple met as interns at Goldman Sachs. Gala then became an investor in Ribbit Capital, the venture capitalist that backs fintech companies like Robinhood, Revolut, and. Coinbase. Ramakrishnan left Goldman Sachs for the private equity giant Apollo Global Management.
In 2022, the two friends, both crypto enthusiasts, decided to launch their own investment fund. “The idea that you can use these crypto-incentives, and almost connect people to these economic communities, seems like something very new, where you can build businesses around communities,” Ramakrishnan said.
