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The Crypto crowdfunding platform has broken venture capital holds and has given both institutions and communities a major role in funding Web3.
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- Platforms like Coinlist and Republic have raised over $1 billion from projects that include Solana, Filecoin and Flow, reaching nearly 10 million users.
- Social fin models such as Kaito and Pump.Fun show how reputation and virality can drive token funding.
- Seedlist pushes further by replacing VC allocations with AI-driven merit-based participation from KOLS, exchanges and retail investors.
For decades, venture capital companies have been holding the iron in raising technology. In particular, their allocations arrived with sudden discounts and lock-ups, often on the sidelines of retail investors and narrowing down access. But today, its domination is eroded. Large Web3 startups are increasingly bypassing traditional VC paths in favour of institutional and community-driven crowdfunding platforms that have proven to be more scalable, more transparent and often more effective.
Facility-grade crypto crowdfunding platforms such as Coinlist and Republic currently count nearly 10 million users at the time of their recent pay raises and hold a valuation of over $10 billion together. Since 2017, they have promoted over 30 projects, helped secure more than $1 billion, and have promoted famous names such as Solana, Filecoin, and Flow. Not only will these venues provide funding, they will bring large communities to blockchain, create global visibility, compress the project's timeline, and reach authentic network effects.
The provision of oversupport for opaque VC allocations that frequently exclude retail investors, a stronger contribution framework, and growing frustration are driving a shift. With over 100 token sales forecasts between the second half of 2025 and 2026, large-scale crypto crowdfunding has solidified as a reliable route for token launches aimed at top 100 coin market cap status.
A set of tones that Mega launches
The recent cycle shows how vast, multi-platform crowdfunding can move projects forward.
WalletConnect's WCT token has secured $10 million at multiple venues, including Bitget's launch X, Coinlist and Cobie's Echo.
Originally spun from Angellist, Coinlist hosted sales such as Obol, Bitlayer, Doublezero, and more to assign participation using Karma-based reward mechanisms.
The Republic, backed by Galaxy Digital, exceeded the $120 million raised through Launchpad.
Echo has deployed a modular sonar framework to enable self-hosted sales that are tailored to compliant, customized for early-stage ventures.
These launches highlight a move away from the small island round to a global community-first campaign where not only small funds but thousands of contributors are laid the foundation.
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The rise of SocialFi and community-centered crowdfunding
While the agency's launchpad shows compliance and scale, the social fee platform reveals how reputation, engagement, and virality shape fundraising. They show that who you are and how you participate is just as important as the size of your check.
Kaito Capital LaunchPad has pioneered reputation-based allocations combined with AI analytics. Its debut sale, espresso, applicable allocation caps, gradual vesting, and redirected platform fees via kite tokens, are now worth nearly $300 million.
Built in Solana, Pump.Fun introduced the viral raw pull, allowing for the launch of thousands of meme tokens spread across social channels before the exchanges get caught up in. Whether or not it is controversial, it has proven that fundraising is possible with attention alone. Pump tokens rose to nearly $3 billion in market capitalization without centralized exchange listings.
Together, these social FI experiments foresee a landscape in which token distributions become less dependent on passive capital and rely on influence, community momentum, and active participation.
Beyond SocialFi: VC's death?
One project is driving further if Kaito and Pump.Fun demonstrate the possibility of SocialFi dynamics. The Singapore-based Seedlist is trying to remove venture capital altogether and relocate those stocks to KOLS, ecosystem funds, centralized exchanges and retail microinfluencers.
Instead of lottery tickets and minimal bets, Seedlist uses merit-based allocations powered by AI, which considers technical contributions, KOL reach and community engagement. We aim to build a more equitable and more global model by rewarding active participants, especially from unserved non-US markets.
The design of the Seedlist is based on Coinlist and Republic, but is forked. As co-founder Brijesh Patel explained in the closed investors session:
“Old-fashioned VC company days are numbered. Cryptography has better options. They can provide the same industry connections and capital, as well as stronger communities and global brand reach. Founders pitch and offer greater allocation, better ownership and better interactions for contributors. We believe partners, exchanges and retail microinfluencers can have a 5-10x impact on market value, blockchain adoption and brand reach.”
Seedlists are supported by experienced crypto builders and investors. Brijesh Patel is a former partner at Pronomos Capital and is supported by Marc Andreessen (A16Z), Balaji Srinivasan (CTO of Coinbase), Winklevoss Twins (Gemini; since the early Facebook days), and Naval Ravikant (founder of Angellist and founder of Coinlist). Another co-founder, Rosa Pagani, is CEO of Whitebit Australia, part of Europe's leading Exchange Whitebit Global, with over 8 million users.
Cryptosherdon, developer and advisor of the Solana Ecosystem, highlighted the philosophical drive behind the project.
“Crypto Venture Capital has evolved to be nothing more than a privileged minority. We want to fix it. Our goal is to reward everyone in the crypto value chain. Even the millions of developers, advisors, exchanges of Bybit and Binance, the basics of ecosystems like Solana and Avalanche, the adopters of Youtolinflunfluenters, can reach the millions of Millunfluenters' incentives to reveal the table and words.”
He continued. “Platforms like Echo and Kaito have already proven this dynamic work. Echo sold $500,000 WalletConnect in 11 seconds thanks to AI and community momentum. Elephants in the Crypto Room.”
What's coming next
By mid-2025, the boundary between Launchpad, Exchange, and Venture Firm is blurry. Both institutional and social crowdfunding models integrate compliance, analytics and liquidity, allowing the project to raise substantial amounts while fostering an engaged global user base.
Q3-Q4 2025, including Depin Networks, AI-Native protocols and L2 infrastructure, already has a number of notable token launches. With a focus on smarter distribution models and actual participation, 2026 could mark a decisive turn. Crowdfunding, not venture capital, could be the default route for ambitious crypto founders.
And the shift is led by the coin list, the Republic, echo, kite, pump, and, if that bold experiment pays off, seed list.
read more: unicorns not mistakes build founders ready to lead | Opinions
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