What CitizenX does

CitizenX is a New York-based private venture capital fund founded in 2021 that invests exclusively in early-stage Web 3.0 and decentralized-technology companies. The fund targets teams building blockchain infrastructure, middleware, and applications — spanning DeFi protocols, Layer 1 and Layer 2 blockchains, Web3 gaming, AI-crypto infrastructure, and tokenized real-world assets — with a stated strategy of backing 'category creators' (zero-to-one opportunities with asymmetric upside) over 'category subscribers' in existing market segments.

The fund is operationally small (1–10 employees) and runs a community-led sourcing model in which the majority of deal flow originates from founders previously backed by CitizenX. Post-investment, the team reports spending 85% of working time with existing portfolio founders rather than on new deal evaluation, providing hands-on support across token economics design, protocol integration, product-market-fit adjustment, and day-to-day operating counsel. The investment team is led by Managing Members and General Partners Michael Tant (crypto investor since 2011) and Emilio DiSanluciano (founder of predecessor firm CitizenVC, active in crypto since 2015), supported by GP Darren Cohen (ex-Goldman Sachs), CFO Cathryn Taylor, Chief Accounting Officer Andrea Perlak (founder of Crypto Accounting Group), and General Counsel Giles Carmichael.

CitizenX generates returns through standard venture-fund economics — management fees on committed capital and carried interest from successful portfolio exits — with specific fund terms, AUM, LP composition, and performance not publicly disclosed. The portfolio comprises more than 25 seed-stage investments, with Beam additionally receiving Series A participation; portfolio names include Berachain, Movement Labs, Frequency, Azuro, Beam, Lost Glitches, KLIMA, Aethir, Edgescale AI, and Masa Finance, among others.

Name

CitizenX

Website

https://citizenx.co

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

CitizenX is a New York-based venture fund founded in 2021 that invests seed-stage capital in early Web 3.0 and blockchain companies across infrastructure, DeFi, gaming, and AI, backing top-tier founders via community-led referrals and providing hands-on token-economics support.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Venture Capital Investment Fund

NAICS

Funds, Trusts, and Other Financial Vehicles (525), Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Tokenized Securities & Capital Markets Infrastructure (equities, bonds, funds, ATS/MTF connectivity) (FSAPAIAD)

Keywords

• Venture capital fund
• Web 3.0 investing
• Blockchain investments
• Early-stage crypto
• Decentralized technologies

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Carried Interest and Management Fees: As a venture capital fund, CitizenX generates returns through carried interest from successful portfolio exits and management fees. The fund focuses on early-stage crypto investments in Web 3.0 products across infrastructure, middleware, and applications, with a strategy of identifying category creators versus category subscription opportunities to maximize asymmetric upside.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

CitizenX is a thesis-driven venture capital fund that invests in early-stage Web 3.0 and decentralized technology startups. The fund sources deals primarily via founder referrals from previously backed unicorn founders, deploys capital across Web 3.0 infrastructure, middleware, and applications, and provides hands-on operational support to portfolio companies on token economics, protocol design, and product-market fit.

Product overview

CitizenX is a venture capital fund focused on Web 3.0 and decentralized technologies. The fund identifies and supports teams advancing blockchain infrastructure, middleware, and applications. The portfolio includes investments across multiple categories: DeFi protocols (Azuro, GTE, Kodiak, Overlay, Infrared, Mitosis), Layer 1/2 blockchains (Berachain, Frequency, Movement Labs), gaming platforms (Beam, Beratone, Lost Glitches, Planet-X, SNACKCLUB, Ascendant), AI applications (Edgescale AI, GeppettoAI, HyperspaceAI, Masa Finance), infrastructure services (AethirAI, Cabal, Hyacinth), and other Web 3.0 verticals (KLIMA, OogaBooga). The fund operates as a single offering focused on venture investment rather than a product portfolio.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• CitizenX Web 3.0 Venture Fund

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Digital Currency Group: Crypto conglomerate spanning venture (Grayscale, Foundry), trading, and media. Comparable as a major crypto investment platform, but vastly larger and more diversified than CitizenX.
• Andreessen Horowitz (a16z crypto): Large multi-stage venture firm with a dedicated crypto fund. Comparable as a Web3 investor, but operates at much larger scale across many sectors beyond crypto.

Direct peers

• Framework Ventures: Crypto-native fund investing in DeFi, infrastructure, and gaming verticals. Directly comparable as an early-stage thesis-driven fund with category-creation orientation.
• Pantera Capital: One of the largest and longest-tenured crypto venture funds, investing across DeFi, L1/L2, and tokenized assets. Directly comparable as a crypto-focused multi-stage fund manager.
• Polychain Capital: Early crypto venture fund known for protocol and token investments. Directly comparable as a thesis-driven crypto VC with deep focus on foundational Web3 infrastructure.
• Variant Fund: Crypto-native fund investing in ownership economies and Web3 applications. Directly comparable for thesis-driven early-stage Web3 investing with founder-support orientation.
• Multicoin Capital: Crypto-native fund investing in tokens and equity across DeFi, infrastructure, and application layers. Directly comparable for thesis-driven early-stage Web3 investing with token-economics expertise.
• Paradigm: Crypto-native venture fund investing across Web3 infrastructure, DeFi, and protocols at early stages. Directly comparable as a thesis-driven crypto VC with deep operating support and category-creation focus.
• CoinFund: Crypto-focused investment firm investing across early-stage tokens, equity, and infrastructure. Directly comparable as a thesis-driven Web3 fund with broad vertical exposure similar to CitizenX.
• 1confirmation: Crypto-native seed fund led by Nick Tomaino, focused on early-stage Web3 founders. Directly comparable in thesis-driven seed investing and founder-first community model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/CitizenXcrypto
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/citizenx-co

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments33 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about CitizenX