Key Takeaways
- Franklin Bi is a basic companion at Pantera Capital, specializing in blockchain investments and supporting the expansion of digital asset and Web3 applied sciences.
- He co-founded Scale8 Companions, a enterprise studio centered on constructing and supporting early-stage blockchain startups and innovation.
- His background combines finance and tech, with expertise in enterprise capital, company technique, and blockchain growth throughout main establishments.
Franklin Bi is a expertise and funding skilled with a robust concentrate on blockchain innovation and digital asset markets. He at present serves as a basic companion at Pantera Capital, a agency recognized for backing tasks within the digital asset and blockchain ecosystem. On this position, he helps information funding selections and help the expansion of rising applied sciences within the house.
Previous to his work in enterprise capital, Bi was concerned in JPMorgan Chase’s early blockchain initiatives, the place he contributed to the event of enterprise-grade options. He holds a Bachelor of Science diploma in Economics, Finance, and Entrepreneurial Administration from the Wharton Faculty on the College of Pennsylvania, reflecting a basis that mixes enterprise technique with monetary experience.
Early Enterprise Capital Expertise
Franklin Bi started his enterprise capital profession at ff Enterprise Capital, the place he labored from 2010 to 2011. On this position, he gained foundational expertise in evaluating early-stage startups and understanding rising expertise markets. This era marked his preliminary publicity to the funding panorama, significantly inside innovation-driven sectors.
Position in Company Technique at JPMorgan Chase
In 2011, Bi joined JPMorgan Chase as a vice chairman within the Company and Funding Financial institution, the place he labored on company technique till 2014. His tasks included supporting monetary expertise tasks, serving to to plan enterprise development, and evaluating new alternatives to enhance the agency’s total route. Throughout this era, he additionally contributed to efforts that aimed to adapt the corporate’s methods in response to adjustments within the monetary providers sector.
Blockchain Management at JPMorgan Chase
From 2015 to 2018, Bi transitioned right into a extra specialised management position at JPMorgan Chase as vice chairman and blockchain and digital property technique lead. He was actively concerned within the agency’s early blockchain efforts, supporting the event of distributed ledger applied sciences and enterprise blockchain programs.
His tasks included collaboration with business organizations such because the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance and Hyperledger, in addition to contributions to tasks like Quorum, an enterprise blockchain platform developed throughout the agency’s ecosystem.
Scale8 Companions, Pantera Capital, and Ongoing Roles
In 2018, Bi co-founded Scale8 Companions, a enterprise studio centered on constructing and supporting early-stage blockchain startups. The next 12 months, he joined Pantera Capital as a basic companion, the place he has since been concerned in investments throughout blockchain infrastructure, decentralized finance, and Web3 gaming.
Past this, he has held board and observer positions at firms together with Pintu, InfiniGods, Azra Video games, and Bitso, and has suggested companies comparable to Alchemy and NPC Labs. In 2025, he additional expanded his management involvement by becoming a member of the board of TransCrypts.
$34B Raised as Crypto VC Market Matures
On Pantera Capital’s podcast, host Mason Nestrom speaks with Franklin Bi and Paul Veradittakit about how crypto enterprise capital is evolving. They level out that though complete deal depend dropped by practically half in comparison with earlier intervals, fundraising nonetheless reached round $34 billion in 2023, signaling a shift in capital allocation quite than total decline.
This modification is especially as a result of traders now desire later-stage offers and are extra cautious with their selections. Unclear guidelines round stablecoins and a extra mature market additionally have an effect on how cash is invested. The enterprise house has additionally modified, with exits shifting from token launches to public listings. Additionally they word that new sectors proceed to draw curiosity even because the market evolves.
Franklin Bi on Investing and Early Blockchain Work
In January 2025, Bi was featured on the Pondering Crypto podcast hosted by Tony Edward, the place he shared insights into the cryptocurrency business’s evolution and the funding methods at Pantera Capital, a long-standing institutional agency lively within the blockchain and digital asset house.
Through the dialog, he additionally mirrored on his early publicity to blockchain at JPMorgan Chase, the place he contributed to early tasks exploring distributed ledger expertise and its potential purposes in enterprise settings, a time when many established monetary establishments have been nonetheless unsure about its long-term worth.
Imaginative and prescient for Blockchain Adoption
Franklin Bi’s imaginative and prescient is formed by his expertise in conventional finance and blockchain work at JPMorgan Chase, the place he gained perception into how establishments undertake new programs. This led him to concentrate on constructing options that meet enterprise requirements whereas supporting decentralized innovation, a perspective additional bolstered by means of his enterprise capital roles at ff Enterprise Capital, Pantera Capital, and Scale8 Companions, the place he emphasizes scalable infrastructure and tasks bridging conventional finance with blockchain.
Last Ideas
Franklin Bi’s profession exhibits a transparent concentrate on connecting conventional finance with blockchain innovation, utilizing his expertise in massive establishments and enterprise capital to help the expansion of scalable digital asset applied sciences. From his time at JPMorgan Chase to his roles at Pantera Capital and Scale8 Companions, he has helped develop and spend money on blockchain infrastructure and decentralized tasks. His strategy highlights long-term considering, cautious investing, and supporting applied sciences that hyperlink conventional monetary programs with the rising decentralized ecosystem.