TL;DR:
- Arthur Hayes launches Maelstrom Equity Fund I with a target of $250 million to acquire mid-sized crypto companies.
- Each transaction will range from $40 million to $75 million, focusing on off-chain firms with solid cash flow and no inflated tokens.
- Although private investment in crypto fell to $1.4 billion after the 2022 crisis, the 2025 rebound and acquisitions such as Coinbase and Ripple reinforce Hayes’ vision of consolidating profitable companies and selling them within a five-year horizon.
Arthur Hayes, co-founder of BitMEX and an influential figure in the crypto ecosystem, is preparing his big comeback. His family office, Maelstrom, is seeking to raise at least $250 million to launch its first private equity fund, with the intention of acquiring between four and six medium-sized companies in the sector. The plan is ambitious: to invest between $40 million and $75 million per transaction in companies that offer trading infrastructure, data analysis, and technology services related to digital assets.
Hayes’ resurgence and commitment to a sector in transformation
The project, called Maelstrom Equity Fund I, will be registered in the United States and aims to attract institutional investors, pension funds, and family offices. According to Akshat Vaidya, co-founder and managing partner, the fund seeks to attract those who want exposure to the crypto sector without having the technical expertise to manage it directly. Vaidya will run the fund alongside Hayes and new partner Adam Schlegel, with a first closing expected in March and a total fundraising target of $1 billion by September 2026.
The strategy marks a shift from Maelstrom’s previous investments, which focused on startup tokens. Now the fund will focus exclusively on equity capital, targeting “off-chain” companies with more realistic valuations. “You can’t artificially inflate value with a token that isn’t used in the off-chain world,” Vaidya explained, highlighting the opportunity to acquire assets with attractive multiples.
The context, however, is challenging. Since the collapse of FTX in 2022, private equity investment in crypto firms fell from $4 billion in 2021 to just $1.4 billion in 2025. Even so, Hayes is betting on a sustained rebound, driven by a recovering market and recent large acquisitions such as Coinbase‘s purchase of Deribit ($2.9 billion) and Ripple‘s acquisition of Hidden Road ($1.25 billion). The ultimate goal: to revitalize companies, improve their profitability, and sell them to larger players within four to five years.
