Peter Thiel and Digital Currency Group Invest in Crypto Platform Layer1

Crypto investment and infrastructure platform Layer1 announced today the closing of $2.1 Million in Seed Funding backed by world-class investors, including Peter Thiel, Digital Currency Group, Jeffrey Tarrant, and more. Layer1 takes concentrated bets on promising blockchain protocols and builds critical technology to support their global impact. Layer1’s prominent investors affirm this approach with their participation in the company’s funding.

Led by co-founder Alexander Liegl, Layer1 takes a long-term position in cryptoassets with promising technologies and network effects, then deploys capital and resources in order to improve their fundamental value and support market adoption. The company has a heavy focus on programmable money and store-of-value applications, which it believes has the potential for true value creation.

“We believe that the crypto investment company of the future will look radically different to status quo, with a clear focus on an engineering-first and pro-activist investment approach,” said Liegl. “Cryptocurrencies, as open-source protocols, offer the unprecedented opportunity for companies like Layer1 to meaningfully add value. This is fundamentally different from the possibilities available in traditional asset classes.”

“We believe there is huge potential for a hands-on, mission-driven investor to take a concentrated position in a single cryptocurrency, and then dedicate talent and resources to significantly accelerate its development,” said Travis Scher, VP Investments at Digital Currency Group. “Alex and his team are extremely talented and we are excited to support them.”

Layer1 wants to be the category-defining investment company for cryptocurrencies: an engineering organization that directly engages with open-source protocol development. It is currently deeply involved with a promising privacy-focused cryptocurrency called Grin and intends to build critical technology to support its growth. Launching in early 2019, Grin is highly scalable with strong privacy features.

Layer1’s team has previous experience at the world’s leading technology companies including Google and Facebook, global multi-billion Dollar investment funds including Protégé Partners and Stanford Management Company, and the most established cryptocurrency projects including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Stellar, and Grin.