Crypto unicorns: how startups in the digital asset market become billion-dollar companies

The stunning success of leading cryptocurrency projects such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, and Solana led to new platforms attracting tens of millions, and even hundreds of millions, of dollars at early funding stages.

The market valuation of some new cryptocurrency projects exceeded $1 billion even before the launch of their own tokens (digital assets on the blockchain). A separate term was even coined specifically for such projects — crypto unicorns.

What does "crypto unicorn" mean?

Crypto unicorns are new projects in the digital asset market whose valuations reach or exceed $1 billion.

The term "crypto unicorn" originates from a similar concept that appeared in the traditional venture market*. The term "unicorn" was first used in 2013 by venture capitalist Aileen Lee. With this word, the author emphasized how rare it is for projects to reach a $1 billion valuation in financial markets.

* Venture market — a segment of the financial market where investors (venture funds) invest money in young, fast-growing companies with high risk in exchange for equity, expecting significant growth in the value of the projects in the future.

The key difference between traditional startups and crypto unicorns is that the latter often receive their valuation even before launching their digital asset on exchanges. In addition, many companies in the traditional stock market require up to 10 years to reach a $1 billion valuation, whereas new projects in the digital asset market become crypto unicorns within the first two to three years.

Crypto unicorns are made by venture funds — they are the ones who assign them valuations. However, among tens of thousands of projects in the digital asset market, only a few become crypto unicorns — less than 1% of the total.

Examples of crypto unicorns

1. Coinbase

Coinbase is one of the most well-known companies in the digital asset space, owning a cryptocurrency exchange of the same name, a non-custodial wallet, and the Layer 2 network Base.

Coinbase became the first crypto unicorn to receive such a high valuation from venture funds. Back in 2017, after a funding round, the Coinbase exchange was valued at $1.6 billion. At that time, the crypto unicorn Coinbase attracted more than $110 million in investments from major funds, including Andreessen Horowitz, the New York Stock Exchange, and BBVA.

Rumors about the launch of a Coinbase token (a digital asset on the blockchain) were circulating as early as 2023, when the Base mainnet was launched. However, representatives of the crypto unicorn confirmed plans to launch their own token only at the end of 2025.

2. Starknet and zkSync

These projects are grouped together because both crypto unicorns received the same valuation from venture funds — $8 billion. However, with the same valuation, Starknet raised $287 million in investments, while the crypto unicorn zkSync raised more than one and a half times more, $458 million.

Both crypto unicorns were created to scale the largest blockchain platform, Ethereum.

As of April 2026, the crypto unicorns Starknet and zkSync have their own tokens (digital assets on the blockchain) traded on exchanges — STRK and ZK, respectively.

Both tokens of the crypto unicorns show poor price performance after listing on exchanges. The STRK price, relative to its all-time high of $3.66 in February 2024, has fallen by almost 99% to $0.04.

The asset of the second crypto unicorn, ZK, has lost more than 95% of its value from its all-time high, dropping to $0.01. At its peak, the ZK price reached $0.32.

The cryptocurrencies of both crypto unicorns have left the top 100 digital assets, as they failed to meet investors' expectations, although at the time of listing, they held fairly high positions.

The situation with STRK and ZK cryptocurrencies clearly demonstrates that even with high valuations, crypto unicorns are highly dependent on the overall conditions of the digital asset market.

3. Kalshi

Kalshi is one of the first crypto unicorns in the prediction markets* segment, which became one of the most in-demand sectors in 2026. The Kalshi project became a crypto unicorn after receiving an $11 billion valuation from venture funds, a record for the digital asset sector.

* Prediction markets — platforms where users bet on the outcome of future events (for example, political elections, economic indicators, or events in a country). The "bet" price reflects the collective opinion of participants about the probability of an event occurring.

Kalshi's weight as a crypto unicorn is increased by the fact that it is regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, allowing the project to attract institutional investments. The listing of Kalshi's own cryptocurrency is still only planned, but based on the current valuation, the preliminary value of the asset already exceeds $500.

4. Tempo

Another new project in the digital asset space that has already become a crypto unicorn and received a $5 billion valuation from funds. At the same time, the crypto unicorn Tempo raised $500 million in its Series A alone, already more than zkSync and Starknet.

The crypto unicorn Tempo is a Layer 1 blockchain created to process payments in stablecoins such as Tether (USDT) and USDC (USDC).

As of April 2026, only the Tempo testnet has been launched, and the crypto unicorn does not yet have its own cryptocurrency.

5. Celestia

Celestia is the first modular blockchain* to become a crypto unicorn with a valuation of $3.5 billion. The project raised more than $100 million before issuing its own token (a digital asset on the blockchain).

* Modular blockchains are a type of blockchain network in which the core functions of the network (such as transaction execution, consensus, and data storage) are separated into individual modules. This allows modular blockchains to be modified without editing the core code and without affecting the key functionality of the protocol.

Celestia is part of the Cosmos ecosystem, which is experiencing a decline amid the overall correction in cryptocurrencies. The cryptocurrency of the crypto unicorn Celestia (TIA) reached its peak at $20.91 in February 2024, after which the asset's price dropped by more than 98% to $0.36. Like STRK and ZK, the TIA cryptocurrency left the top 100 digital assets by market capitalization.