Venture capital giant Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) has chosen London as the site for its first office outside the U.S., citing the U.K. government’s willingness to create policies that encourage startups to pursue decentralization. The Menlo Park, California-based firm plans to use the office, which will open later this year and be led by Sriram Krishnan, to invest in the crypto and startup ecosystem in the U.K. and Europe. A16z’s move comes as the U.K.’s crypto regulatory outlook is gaining clarity, with the government planning to bring crypto into the realms of existing financial services regulation. U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak welcomed the decision, saying: We must embrace new innovations like Web3, powered by blockchain technology, which will enable start-ups to flourish here and grow the economy.
The firm also noted its recent investments in U.K.-based companies, including leading a $43 million Series A funding round into blockchain-based computing resources for artificial intelligence platforms (AI) provider Gensyn, which was also announced on Sunday. A16z said it remains heavily invested in the U.S., where it will continue to push for regulatory clarity for crypto startups.
While there is still work to be done, we believe that the U.K. is on the right path to becoming a leader in crypto regulation, a16z said. It is home to more ‘unicorns’ than Germany, France, and Sweden combined; to some of the world’s largest financial markets and pools of capital; and to highly-sophisticated, world-class regulators.