DeFi lending platform Compound raised $25 million in Series A funding on November 15, 2019, led by Andreessen Horowitz – one of the largest ever DeFi startup raises at the time.
Andreessen Horowitz, also known as a16z, highlighted that they had been working with the Compound team for two years and had a strong belief in their aptitude in the field.
According to Compound co-founder Robert Leshner, Polychain Capital, Paradigm Capital and Bain Capital Ventures also participated in the round, valuing the protocol at around $90 million.
At the time of the investment, Compound had a little over $100 million in total value locked (TVL) in its protocol.
Funding Decentralization and Accessibility
Leshner claimed that the funding round would assist with the protocol’s plans to decentralize, in addition to putting the platform within the reach of the average person – not just tech-savvy users.
In order to achieve this, he promised the protocol would be integrated into a variety of exchanges, custodians and wallets by the end of 2020.
Where is Compound Finance Now?
Since the funding round, Compound has successfully surpassed expectations on all fronts.
The protocol became one of the very first projects to decentralize control across the hands of the community, via the launch and distribution of its COMP governance token.
Compound also secured partnerships with popular exchanges and wallets including Binance, Crypto.com, and Exodus. On the institutional end, it has been integrated into institutional platforms such as Coinbase Custody, Anchorage and BitGo.
Users of these platforms can now directly access the Compound protocol through these partners, rather than having to withdraw their funds and use a separate wallet.
The protocol peaked with an impressive $12.3 billion in TVL in November 2021 and is currently sitting at $2.12 billion TVL, at the time of writing.
It spans 6 different blockchain networks: Arbitrum, Base, Ethereum, Optimism, Polygon, and Scroll.
About Andreessen Horowitz (a16z)
Andreessen Horowitz, also known as a16z, is a prominent private venture capital firm founded in 2009 by Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz.
Headquartered in Menlo Park, California, a16z manages assets totaling $42 billion as of May 2024, making it one of the leading firms in its field.
It supports both early-stage startups and established companies, providing not only financial backing but also strategic guidance and resources.
Notable investments include companies like Facebook, Twitter, Airbnb, and Coinbase.
