Although the geopolitical tensions sparked by the U.S. trade war resulted in a quarter-long giveback of gains across most liquid tokens, venture capitalists (VC) were still seeking out crypto’s core utility rails. This interest is evidenced by the growth of the stablecoin market capitalization by $25 billion to $227.1 billion, even as token prices retreated.

According to the latest Pitchbook report on crypto VC trends, the stablecoin market’s diverging fortunes demonstrate VCs’ growing positive view of stablecoins.

“Dollar-denominated settlement remains crypto’s killer application, insulated—at least partially—from broader risk-off moves. Our expectations remain that VC investments in the near term could see a step-up increase, especially in payment, remittance, and treasury-management startups that directly monetize stablecoin velocity,” the Pitchbook team explained in the report.

While the crypto market has since erased much of the trade-induced losses in the first two months of Q2, the Pitchbook team believes VCs will only commit more if the industry works to address security concerns, which were been amplified by the Bybit hack. The team also predicts that more and more institutional investors will demand real-time proof-of-reserve tooling and middleware that “abstracts” away key-management complexity. Startups addressing these issues will likely attract funding, the team added.

Meanwhile, the report notes retail speculation cooled in the quarter, leading to a drop in memecoin volumes, especially on Solana, and a shift of SOL liquidity to other blockchains seeking higher yields. The decline in retail activity softened investment in meme-token trading applications. Looking forward, the report said Circle’s upcoming initial public offering (IPO) could be a significant event for crypto equity, potentially validating the stablecoin model. The IPO’s success could also boost valuations across the crypto payments and infrastructure sectors.

“Taken together, Q1 2025 was a quarter of consolidation rather than capitulation. Market beta turned negative, but venture-relevant signals—stablecoin growth, infrastructure de-risking, and a credible IPO pipeline—remain intact,” the team asserted.

The Pitchbook team added that this combination sets the stage for a more “fundamentals-driven” deployment environment in the coming months.

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