Open Web Collective Launches Venture Arm OWC Ventures

Open Web Collective launches venture arm OWC Ventures. The division is backed by Barry Silbert’s Digital Currency Group and the blockchain protocol NEAR, Jeff Lavoie, head of investments at OWC Ventures said. There will also be a fund behind OWC Ventures, which has not closed yet, but the team said it anticipates raising a $20 million vehicle for pre-seed to Series A deals with co-investment opportunities. "If you look at NEAR’s ethos and DNA, we’re capturing a lot of that [with OWC Ventures]. NEAR’s focus is on user experience, the end developer," Lavoie said. "They’ve tried to make their lives as easy as possible, to create the next leaders in Web3."