Farcaster to repay $180 million to venture backers, says protocol is ‘not shutting down’
Farcaster's parent company, Merkle Manufactory, will repay $180 million to investors following its acquisition by Neynar.Summary
Merkle Manufactory, the firm behind the decentralized social protocol Farcaster, plans to fully repay the $180 million it raised from venture capital investors, according to co-founder Dan Romero. This move follows the acquisition of Farcaster by Neynar, a decentralized social media infrastructure firm backed by Haun Ventures, which plans to shift the protocol toward a developer-focused direction.
Romero explicitly stated that "Farcaster is not shutting down" and that the protocol will continue to operate, noting it had about 250,000 monthly active users in December. Early investor Balaji Srinivasan confirmed the repayment plan and supported the handover to Neynar, suggesting it could aid Farcaster's goal of deeper decentralization.
Merkle Manufactory, founded in 2020, was backed by major firms like a16z Crypto and Paradigm. Farcaster was last valued at a reported $1 billion after a $150 million Series A round in 2024.
(Source：The Block)