Arthur Hayes’s family office is looking to raise at least $250 million for a new fund that will invest in or acquire medium-sized cryptocurrency firms.
Summary
- Arthur Hayes’ family office eyes a new fund to buy crypto companies.
- Maelstrom Equity Fund I has an initial target of $250 million and $1 billion by September 2026.
- The fund will invest $40 million to $75 million in each deal, with a focus on cash generating companies.
Maelstrom, the family office of BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes, is seeking $250 million for its debut private equity fund, which, as Bloomberg reported on Oct. 17, 2025, will target buyouts of distressed or undervalued crypto infrastructure and services companies.
A $250 million war chest for crypto investments
The fund, Maelstrom Equity Fund I, will seek equity stakes in trading and data analytics platforms, with each deal struck via special purpose vehicles.
Per the report, Maelstrom plans to plough between $40 million and $75 million into each acquisition – with the target being as many as six crypto related investments.
Maelstrom co-founder and managing partner Akshat Vaidya noted that the fund’s goal is to scoop up crypto platforms with income-generating models, strong fundamentals, and clearer valuations.
Rather than the previous strategy of buying startup tokens, Maelstrom plans to focus exclusively on equity capital. The gist of what the fund invests in will be “off-chain” companies, crypto-related platforms with realistic valuations, not prone to the deceptive environment of inflated token prices.
“You can’t artificially inflate value with a token that isn’t used in the off-chain world,” Vaidya noted.
Fund targets $1b raise
Hayes and the team, including new partner Adam Schlegel, plan to register this new fund in the United States. The group’s fundraising efforts will focus on institutional investors, pension funds, and family offices, they said in a statement.
Vaidya added that the private equity fund will be for investors keen on the crypto investment space, offering an initiative they can tap without the technical expertise that makes the market complex to navigate.
While Maelstrom Equity Fund I is expected to have its first closing in March 2026, the plan is to reach a total of $1 billion by September of that year.
