WebN Group, the blockchain and Web3 incubator backed by billionaire Alan Howard, is closing its doors after seeding a clutch of digital infrastructure startups in recent years, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Most recently, the venture studio has backed tokenization specialist Libre (now called KAIO), crypto staking store Twinstake, blockchain infrastructure company TruFin, and zero-proof startup Geometry.
In addition to Howard, WebN also received an undisclosed investment from Japanese bank Nomura’s crypto partnership, Laser Digital, in 2023.
The incubator was described as having “successfully fulfilled its mission”, the source said. Some staff members who worked at WebN moved to work at Brevan Howard, the hedge fund founded by Howard, they said.
The decision to close the WebN incubator has no bearing on Howard’s digital asset aspirations, the person familiar with the situation at WebN said.
“Those who know Alan know that he has long believed that blockchain technology would be used in traditional markets,” the person said.
The last 12 months have been a difficult time for businesses with exposure to cryptocurrencies. Brevan Howard’s digital assets fund lost almost 30% last year, according to a Financial Times report. This follows gains of 52% in 2024 and 43% the year before.
Like many other hedge funds, Brevan Howard has reduced its bitcoin portfolio. ETF positions, reducing the holdings of BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust by about 85%, according to data from Bloomberg and CF Benchmarks.
2025 also saw the departure of BH Digital CEO Gautam Sharma, who had been overseeing crypto investments at the company for the past few years. Brevan Howard also decided to create Nova, a hedge fund led by former Dragonfly investor Kevin Hu, who joined the company with his own financial pool in 2023 as part of an acquisition.
“Brevan Howard is not afraid of temporary volatility, remains bullish on digital assets and has a huge venture capital business focused on a wide range of opportunities,” the source said.
WebN Group did not respond to requests for comment. Brevan Howard declined to comment.
