Peter Thiel’s Fund Cashed Out $1.8 Billion From Bitcoin Before 2022’s Crash

A VC fund co-founded by Peter Thiel closed almost all of its 8-year-long bet on Bitcoin last year. The winding down of the crypto investments came right before 2022’s crypto crash in May. Shortly after selling the crypto holdings, Thiel suggested that Bitcoin’s price may rise 100-fold.The fund currently manages more than $11 billion and has very little exposure to crypto. 

Billionaire investor Peter Thiel reportedly cashed out big on crypto last year. The Founders Fund, a venture capital firm co-founded by Thiel, made its initial investment in Bitcoin in early 2014 when the flagship crypto was trading at around $700. This was followed by large investments in crypto, however, the bulk of the crypto exposure was to Bitcoin. Crypto investments became one of the fund’s core positions. 

Peter Thiel’s fund sold crypto investments before the market crashed

According to a report by Financial Times, the 8-year-long crypto bet made by Thiel’s Founders Fund was wound down towards the end of March 2022. This included the majority of the fund’s exposure to the crypto portfolio. This sale came just a month before the crypto contagion of 2022 that started in May. The fund netted a whopping $1.8 billion from this sale. 

Interestingly, Peter Thiel said in April 2022 that he was optimistic about the future of Bitcoin. The billionaire investor had suggested that BTC, which was worth around $44,000 at the time, could rise by 100 times. These comments came just days after his fund had sold its Bitcoin. 

The sale of the Founders Fund’s crypto portfolio has not previously been reported. People familiar with the matter told FT that as of now, the fund has no significant exposure to crypto assets. The fund currently has more than $11 billion under management and has invested in popular companies like SpaceX and Lyft.