Bitpanda Founders Set Up Own Venture Capital Firm: Report

The three founders of crypto exchange Bitpanda have set up their own venture capital firm, The Block reported Thursday.

Eric Demuth, Paul Klanschek and Christian Trummer applied to set up Diamond Hand Ventures in May last year.

Among its early investments were blockchain development tool Tatum, payments firm Payable, and Web3 accounting platform Consola Finance, according to the report, which cited a Bitpanda spokesperson. The firm also joined crypto custodian Copper's $50 million Series B funding round last year.

Vienna, Austria-based Bitpanda, like many other crypto firms, was forced to cut its headcount in response to tougher market conditions earlier this year. In June, it said it would be looking to reduce employee numbers to 730 from just over 1,000.

Its founders' steps into venture capital demonstrate how crypto entrepreneurs are attempting to broaden their business interests beyond the buying and selling of cryptocurrency in response to the ongoing bear market.

Bitpanda did not immediately respond to CoinDesk's request for further comment.

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