Unchained: Brevan Howard has a $25 million "refund right" on his investment in Berachain.
TL;DR
Brevan Howard's $25M investment in Berachain includes a one-year refund right, allowing full recovery after the token event. This protects their principal, unlike traditional VC, with the token's value down 67% from their entry price.
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PANews reported on November 25th that, according to The Block, Unchained columnist Jack Kubinec revealed in his latest report that Brevan Howard's venture capital investment in Berachain was almost "zero risk." Documents released this Monday show that Berachain granted Brevan's crypto investment subsidiary, Nova Digital, a special right—a one-year refund guarantee on its $25 million Series B funding round. This means that although Brevan co-led Berachain's $69 million funding round at a $1.5 billion valuation, it can still recover its entire investment after the token generation event on February 6th. This right is reportedly valid until February 6th, 2026.
In its report, Kubinec stated, "These refund clauses completely protect Brevan's principal from risk, a stark contrast to traditional venture capital models. If Berachain's BERA token performs exceptionally well, the fund will generate excess returns; if the token underperforms, the fund can exercise its right to a refund." Currently, the BERA token is trading at approximately $1, a drop of about 67% from Brevan's investment cost of $3. According to The Block data platform, the token's fully diluted valuation is currently $536.7 million.
The Series B funding round was led by Framework Ventures, with participation from Arrington Capital, Hack VC, Polychain, and Tribe Capital. Berachain also completed a $42 million Series A funding round in 2023. It is currently unclear whether other investors also have a refund right.