Maelstrom, the family office of BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes, is seeking to raise at least $250 million for its first private equity fund intended to acquire established businesses in the crypto ecosystem, according to a Bloomberg report.
The new vehicle, Maelstrom Equity Fund I, will invest between $40 million and $75 million per deal across four to six acquisitions. The fund will target profitable “off-chain” companies such as trading infrastructure providers and analytics platforms, rather than token-based projects—a strategy designed to minimize market volatility and regulatory risk.
Institutional Investors in Focus
The U.S.-registered fund is targeting a first close by March 2026 and a final close by September 2026. It will seek commitments from institutional investors, including pension funds, family offices, and crypto-focused funds.
Akshat Vaidya, Maelstrom’s Co-founder and Managing Partner, will lead the fund alongside Hayes and new partner Adam Schlegel. Each transaction will be structured through a special-purpose vehicle (SPV), with Maelstrom serving as the anchor investor.
The fund’s strategy centers on acquiring companies at attractive valuations, enhancing operations and cash flow, and exiting within four to five years.
Crypto M&A Reaches Record Levels
The launch comes amid a rebound in digital asset mergers and acquisitions, with total deal volume reaching a record $10 billion in Q3 2025, according to Architect Partners.
Recent headline transactions include Coinbase’s $2.9 billion acquisition of Deribit and Ripple’s $1.25 billion purchase of Hidden Road—indicating renewed confidence in the sector’s long-term profitability.
Despite a cooling broader fundraising environment, Vaidya told Bloomberg that Maelstrom expects strong demand from investors seeking to capitalize on the market’s recovery and growing institutional interest.
Arthur Hayes’ Next Chapter
Arthur Hayes, who was pardoned earlier this year by U.S. President Donald Trump after pleading guilty to Bank Secrecy Act violations, has re-emerged as a prominent investor in the digital asset space.
He remains best known for innovating the perpetual swap, a derivative product that transformed crypto trading, and for inspiring the design of Ethena’s synthetic dollar, now among the largest stablecoins globally.
With Maelstrom’s new fund, Hayes is expanding his influence beyond trading and into long-term ownership of key infrastructure.
Arthur Hayes Predicts $3.4M Bitcoin by 2028
Hayes has also released his most audacious Bitcoin prediction yet, forecasting the cryptocurrency will reach $3.4 million by 2028.
The prediction hinges on Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent implementing yield curve control policies that could trigger massive money printing, creating what Hayes calls a “once in a century change of the global monetary architecture.“
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