Bitcoin News Today: Pantera Launches $100M DAT Fund Amid Crypto-Stock Frenzy

Pantera Capital, a pioneering venture capital firm in the cryptocurrency space, has remained active and adaptive across the volatile cycles of the past twelve years. From its early 2013 focus on Bitcoin, through the DeFi Summer, to its current foray into a new wave of crypto-driven stocks, the firm has maintained a bold and strategic approach. Known for its first-mover advantage and resilience, Pantera’s success is underpinned by its ability to align with evolving market structures and investor sentiment. The firm’s founder, Dan Morehead, brought a macroeconomic perspective from his Wall Street background, which continues to shape Pantera’s aggressive and forward-looking investment philosophy [1].

Pantera's early success came through its Bitcoin fund, which acquired approximately 2% of all Bitcoin between 2013 and 2015, generating over 1,000x returns. The firm continued to evolve its strategies as the crypto landscape expanded, launching the Pantera Blockchain Fund during the DeFi boom to provide full-stack exposure. Today, Pantera manages five main funds and has invested in over 214 projects, with a focus on infrastructure, DeFi, CeFi, and blockchain gaming. Despite notable losses, such as its involvement with FTX, the firm remains influential in the crypto VC space [1].

In 2024, Pantera made a significant bet on TON (Telegram Open Network), a platform with potential for massive user adoption. According to on-chain analyst AI Yi, the firm’s position in TON was valued at over $250 million, though the asset has since dropped more than 60% from its peak. This move reflects Pantera’s willingness to take large, speculative risks in pursuit of high returns [1].

As the crypto primary market cooled in early 2025, liquidity and exit strategies became central concerns for venture capital firms. Pantera identified a new opportunity in what has become known as the “crypto-stock wave”—public companies whose core strategy revolves around raising capital and buying tokens. In this space, Pantera launched the DAT Fund, which targets Digital Asset Treasury (DAT) companies. The fund has secured commitments from several Pantera limited partners and plans to invest over $100 million across multiple projects. The firm has already evaluated more than 50 public companies in this space and is building a “multi-coin, MicroStrategy-style investment matrix” [1].

Some of the DAT companies Pantera has invested in have seen their share prices rise more than 100x in just one month, reflecting the high volatility and speculative nature of the market. Pantera partners describe the structure as one with limited downside and outsized potential upside [1].

Dan Morehead’s background in macro trading and his early conversion to crypto has been instrumental in shaping Pantera’s approach. After a deep conversation in 2013, he sold his Tesla shares and went all-in on Bitcoin, a move that proved critical to the firm’s early success. Morehead emphasizes the need to seek opportunities where potential returns far exceed risks and advises against investing in widely-followed assets. His philosophy continues to influence Pantera’s strategy as it navigates the next phase of the crypto market [1].

Twelve years after its pivot to crypto, Pantera Capital remains a key player in the industry, continuously adapting its strategies to capture emerging opportunities. As the firm builds its new investment matrix and expands into crypto stocks, it continues to exemplify the bold, risk-taking mindset that has defined its journey [1].

Source: [1] Twelve Years , Pantera Capital Makes Aggressive Moves in the Crypto-Stock Frenzy (https://coinmarketcap.com/community/articles/68a6849e2545a531d3898a4d/)