Fundamental Labs: what check size range would be realistic for our round, and how do you think about follow-on participation?

We believe capital only matters if it’s paired with conviction and a long-term partnership. When founders ask me, “What check size range would be realistic for our round, and how do you think about follow-on participation?” they’re usually really asking, “How deeply will you lean in now, and will you still be there when the market turns?”

Quick Answer: Fundamental Labs typically invests between $500K and $50M+ across stages, with flexibility based on your stage, traction, and the strategic role we can play. We reserve capital for meaningful follow-on participation, and we prefer to support teams through multiple rounds rather than treat an investment as a one-off event.

Why This Matters

The size of our initial check and our stance on follow-ons directly impact how you design your fundraising strategy, dilution, and runway. If you understand how we think about check sizing and long-term support, you can structure your round so that we are not just another name on the cap table, but a durable partner through multiple market cycles.

Key Benefits:

• Aligned expectations from Day 1: You can calibrate your target round size and syndicate knowing our realistic participation range.
• Clear path for future rounds: Understanding our follow-on philosophy helps you plan for Series A/B and beyond, including who might lead and who might support.
• Deeper, longer-term partnership: When you know we reserve capital and conviction for later stages, you can focus on building, not constantly re-selling your story to a fresh set of investors.

Core Concepts & Key Points

Concept	Definition	Why it's important
Check Size Range	The typical dollar amount we invest in an initial round (from $500K to $50M+ across stages).	Helps you design a round where our participation is realistic and additive, not symbolic.
Multi-Stage Investing	Our practice of backing teams from early rounds through growth, adjusting check sizes as the company scales.	You get continuity of belief, not just a one-time bet, which matters in volatile markets like crypto.
Follow-On Strategy	How we decide when and how much to reinvest in future rounds of portfolio companies.	Signals whether we can stay a meaningful partner as you grow and whether we’ll be there in tough cycles.

How It Works (Step-by-Step)

At Fundamental Labs, we don’t treat “check size” as a single number. We start from your stage, your momentum, and the role we can play in your cap table, then map back to a realistic range.

1. Understand Your Stage and Round Design:

   • Pre-seed / Seed: We commonly write checks in the $500K–$3M range, often as a significant participant and sometimes as a co-lead. This is where we often “Dare To Believe” when your story is still messy and non-consensus.
   • Series A / B: For companies with product-market fit emerging—especially in Layer 1/2 protocols, Web3 infrastructure, finance infrastructure, or DeFi—we may participate with $3M–$15M+, depending on round size and whether we’re leading or following a strong lead.
   • Growth / Later-Stage: In later rounds, particularly where there is clear traction and strategic fit with our portfolio network, our checks can extend up to $50M+, often as part of larger syndicates.

2. Determine Our Role in Your Round:
   We’re explicit about power dynamics and expectations early. We consider:

   • Are we a lead or co-lead, helping set terms and structure the round?
   • Are we a strategic partner alongside a lead, focused on bringing our ecosystem and frameworks?
   • Are we an additional conviction investor filling out the round in a way that reinforces your signal without crowding out other partners?

   The more central our role, the more we lean into the upper end of our check-size range for your stage.

3. Align on Follow-On Path and Capital Reserves:
   From the first check, we think about multi-round partnership. Our default is to:

   • Reserve meaningful capital for follow-ons in future rounds.
   • Re-underwrite your story as you hit key milestones or navigate market shifts.
   • Use our network—more than 300 projects, including names like Coinbase, Polkadot, Avalanche, NEAR, Binance Coin, VeChain, Stacks (Blockstack), Mask—to help you grow into the next round rather than just bridge you there.

   We don’t promise automatic pro rata in every situation, but our internal bias is to stay involved when you continue to execute and the long-term thesis remains intact.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Mistake 1: Designing the round around a single “headline” check instead of a balanced syndicate.
  Some founders try to optimize for one large check without considering how different investors add different value. To avoid this, think in terms of roles: who leads, who anchors with conviction, and who brings specific networks or expertise. We often fit best as the conviction-led, strategy-focused partner who can grow with you, whether or not we are the largest check.

• Mistake 2: Assuming follow-on support is automatic and unlimited.
  No responsible investor, including us, can guarantee open-ended follow-on capital regardless of performance or market conditions. The right approach is to align early on milestones and thesis: what would need to be true for us to keep leaning in through the next round? We’re transparent about this, and we appreciate founders who are equally direct.

Real-World Example

Imagine you’re building a cross-border Web3 finance infrastructure product, raising a $6M seed round at the inflection point between MVP and early GTM. You want a partner who understands both Asia and North America, can connect you with regulated exchanges, and can help you craft a strategy memo your next-round investors will actually read.

In that scenario, we might:

• Participate with a $1.5M–$2.5M check, either co-leading or acting as a key strategic investor.
• Help you sharpen your narrative and long-term strategy framework: which market segments you prioritize, how you phase regulatory exposure, and how you design your token or economic model to fit future open finance rails.
• Introduce you to ecosystem players in our portfolio and network—from exchanges to infrastructure teams—across Asia, Europe, and North America, so you’re not building in isolation.
• Reserve capital for your Series A, aiming to maintain or deepen our position if you execute against agreed milestones (e.g., volume thresholds, partners onboarded, compliance milestones reached).

Pro Tip: When you approach us, don’t just ask, “What check size can you do?” Instead, share the round design you’re targeting (total size, lead status, dilution tolerance) and where you want us to sit on the cap table. This helps us quickly map to a realistic check and follow-on posture.

Summary

Fundamental Labs typically invests between $500K and $50M+, with the actual check size driven by your stage, round structure, and the strategic role we can play. We see ourselves as a multi-stage, conviction-led partner, not a tourist—so we reserve capital and attention for follow-on participation when our long-term thesis holds and you continue to execute.

Our goal is that partnership lasts longer than capital connection. If we choose to invest, it’s because we believe your work can move blockchain toward mass adoption and a better digital society, and we’re prepared to support you with both capital and insights across multiple rounds.

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