What Andreessen Horowitz is
Andreessen Horowitz, known as a16z, is a Silicon Valley venture capital firm founded in 2009 by Marc Andreessen (co-creator of Netscape) and Ben Horowitz, headquartered in Menlo Park, California. It invests in startups at every stage, from seed to late stage, across software, fintech, artificial intelligence, biotechnology and defence. For the crypto sector what matters is the dedicated arm a16z crypto, founded in 2018 and led by general partner Chris Dixon: five dedicated funds that make it the largest venture investor in Web3, with historic stakes in Coinbase, Uniswap, OpenSea, Solana and hundreds of other projects. The crypto funds alone have raised more than 7.1 billion dollars over time.
Regulation and licences
- a16z is not an exchange: the MiCA regulation does not apply to its venture capital activity. It operates as a US venture capital fund manager.
- In January 2025 a16z closed its London office, opened in 2023 as its first location outside the US, bringing the crypto team back to the United States because of the changed American regulatory climate (Verified: September 2026).
- In May 2026 a16z crypto announced its fifth crypto fund at 2.2 billion dollars, entirely dedicated to entrepreneurs in the sector, at the same time promoting CTO Eddy Lazzarin to general partner (Verified: September 2026).
Security
Not applicable in the exchange sense: a16z does not hold retail user funds. There are no significant incidents on record against the firm; exposure for end users is indirect, through the portfolio projects.
Alternatives
Pantera Capital · Blockchain Capital · Ark Invest
FAQ
What is a16z crypto? It is Andreessen Horowitz's arm dedicated to cryptocurrencies and Web3, founded in 2018 and led by Chris Dixon. With five dedicated funds it is the sector's largest venture investor.
Is a16z still investing in crypto in 2026? Yes: in May 2026 it closed its fifth crypto fund at 2.2 billion dollars, entirely dedicated to the sector, albeit smaller than the 4.5 billion of the fourth fund (2022-2023).
Can I invest through a16z? No, it is not a retail product: a16z funds are reserved for institutional and qualified investors (limited partners).
Verified sources
- https://fortune.com/2026/05/05/a16z-crypto-andreessen-horowitz-fifth-fund-2-2-billion/
- https://www.coindesk.com/business/2026/03/05/andreessen-horowitz-crypto-arm-said-to-seek-u
- https://www.theblock.co/post/337019/the-daily-us-house-asks-crypto-execs-about-alleged-deb
- https://a16z.com/author/chris-dixon/
