Ten31 is a new organization named after October 31, the birthday of the Bitcoin white paper. The venture fund’s ethos is tied to its namesake, with a mission to partner with, invest in, and support exclusively Bitcoin companies whose mission is hyperbitcoinization.
On October 31, 2008 the pseudonymous Satoshi Nakamoto posted the Bitcoin White Paper on the cypherpunks mailing list, a day that forever altered the course of humanity.
Satoshi's email announcing Bitcoin to The Cryptography Mailing List
Ten31 commented, “Our mission is to partner with, invest in, and support great Bitcoin companies creating infrastructure for a Bitcoin monetary system. We believe bitcoin is the tool that will facilitate the freedom of mankind and unlock individual sovereignty and human flourishing.”
Ten31 mission statement predicates on hyperbitcoinization, a single purpose which everyone regardless of skillset can contribute to. “We know not everyone can be shadowy super coders, but there are skills others have at their disposal to contribute to the ecosystem. We believe the traditional venture capital model falls short in its potential impact on the space, and thus we have purposely designed Ten31 to be different from traditional VC.”
In the spirit of Bitcoin, Ten31 funds are called “Low Time Preference Funds”, in which a portion of management fees are directed to fund open source Bitcoin development and grants to contributors in the space. Ten31 is focused “on building an active community of supporters who have seen the orange light of bitcoin and want to contribute.”
The Ten31 tribe, its limited partners, and the members of its team are a talented group of Bitcoin holders, comprising a wealth of diverse expertise and relationships across the world. Members include Bitcoin legends such as the indelible Matt Odell, Parker Lewis, Michael Tanguma, and Marty Bent.
The mission of Ten31 is best summed thus, “In a sense, we are the anti-fiat VC, with a singular focus: Bitcoin.”