Morgan Stanley Executive Joins Crypto VC Firm

Jeremy Huff, the former Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Morgan Stanley China, has transitioned into the crypto industry. He has joined No Limit Holdings (NLH), a blockchain-focused venture capital firm.

This move reflects the growing allure of the crypto sector among traditional finance professionals and major institutions.

Morgan Stanley’s Former COO Embarks on a New Venture in Crypto

Huff brings a wealth of experience from his tenure at Morgan Stanley. He directed operations across the firm’s various platforms in mainland China since 2017.

His role encompassed strategy execution for Morgan Stanley’s onshore mutual fund business. He also participated in the investment committee of Morgan Stanley’s RMB private equity fund.

Gin Chao, a partner and co-founder of NLH, highlighted the strategic importance of Huff’s appointment. He emphasized that Huff’s ability to navigate complex concepts and convert them into actionable strategies would be invaluable to NLH’s future endeavors.

“Jeremy brings deep experience across corporate law, intellectual property, and asset management that is highly complementary to NLH’s strengths as native crypto investors,” Chao explained.

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Additionally, Huff expressed his enthusiasm about his new role. He emphasizes the transformative potential of blockchain technology. He noted NLH’s commitment to supporting visionary founders and developing products that harness blockchain’s potential for decentralization and democratization.

“As a believer in the power of blockchain to change our world for the better, I couldn’t be more excited,” Huff said.

No Limit Holdings’ latest move also solidifies the renewed interest from venture capitalists in the crypto, blockchain, and Web3 sectors.

For instance, Haun Ventures recently led a $5 million seed funding round for Agora, an app designed to streamline voting and decision-making for decentralized autonomous organizations. This round also saw participation from major players like Coinbase Ventures.

Moreover, Galaxy Digital has expanded its investment strategy by launching a $100 million fund to empower early-stage crypto startups. Known as Galaxy Ventures Fund I, LP, the fund plans to support up to 30 startups over the next three years. Investments will start at $1 million, focusing on financial applications, software infrastructure, and crypto protocols.

In addition to venture capitalists, traditional financial institutions also show increased interest in crypto. The latest investment from BlackRock in the real-world tokenization firm Securitize exemplifies this trend.

On May 1, Securitize announced that they secured a $47 million investment round led by BlackRock. This investment round features participation from Hamilton Lane, ParaFi Capital, and Tradeweb Markets. Moreover, Joseph Chalom, BlackRock’s Global Head of Strategic Ecosystem Partnerships, will be appointed to the Securitize Board of Directors.

A recent report from PitchBook further solidifies this trend. The data reveals that venture capital investment in crypto startups reached $2.5 billion during the first quarter of 2024. This represents a 32% increase from the last quarter.

Read more: Crypto Hedge Funds: What Are They and How Do They Work?

At the same time, crypto startups are raising more capital, and venture firms are launching new digital asset funds. Robert Le, crypto analyst at PitchBook, attributes this renewed enthusiasm partly to the approval of Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in January. Furthermore, Le also mentioned growing interest in the intersection of crypto and artificial intelligence as one of the drivers.