Billionaire entrepreneur, Palantir founder, and PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel has long been a vocal supporter and strategic investor and supporter in the cryptocurrency space.

With an interest in disruptive technologies, Thiel has positioned himself as a supporter of Bitcoin and other altcoins, including helping back Ripple XRP, Ethereum, and more.

Theil’s early Bitcoin advocacy, including early investments into crypto firms building next-gen infrastructures, deserves a closer look.

A Longstanding Advocate of Bitcoin and Ethereum

Thiel has described Bitcoin as a ‘moderately big invention‘, highlighting his belief in its potential as a store of value beyond the control of centralized governments and authorities.

He has also referred to Bitcoin as “digital gold,” arguing that Bitcoin’s decentralized architecture and fixed supply make it a strong alternative to fiat, particularly in times of economic uncertainty or rapid inflation.

In 2014, Thiel’s venture capital firm, Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund, made investments into Bitcoin, acquiring millions of dollars worth of the asset before major VCs were even bothering to take a look at what crypto could do.

Thiel viewed Bitcoin not merely as a financial instrument but as a revolutionary shift in how humanity would come to interact with finance.

During the creation of Ethereum, Thiel’s Fellowship supported ETH co-founder Vitalk Buterin with a grant of $100,000 scholarship that allowed Buterin to work on Ethereum full-time.

Strategic Alignment with Crypto

Unlike most institutional investors who entered crypto during the 2020–2021 bull run, Thiel’s support came from a possible ideological conviction in decentralization and the belief that it could change the way the world does finance.

Thiel has often criticized centralized government control and fiat monetary policy. At a 2021 conference appearance, Thiel criticized central banks and suggested that their monetary policies were effectively making Bitcoin more attractive.

Through Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund, Thiel has invested in multiple crypto companies and startups, which have gone on to become some of the largest and most influential in the crypto industry.

The fund has backed platforms such as BitGo, Layer1 Technologies in Bitcoin mining and crypto altcoins, including Ethereum, Ripple, and Tom Lee’s BitMine Immersion Technologies, which are building the largest ETH treasury in the world.

Theil also backed Bullish Exchange, a crypto exchange for institutional and serious investors led by Thomas Farley, who previously served as president of the New York Stock Exchange.

These investments reflect a strategy focused not just on digital currencies themselves, but also on the surrounding infrastructure necessary to scale blockchain adoption globally.

The Founders Fund has also taken long positions in crypto assets directly, placing bets on Bitcoin and Ethereum for future growth.

Peter Thiel’s Erebor, a New Bank for Crypto Natives

Most recently, Peter Thiel teamed up with leading fintech figures to launch Erebor, a new banking institution aimed at supporting crypto, AI, and advanced tech startups. Named after the Dwarven kingdom in The Hobbit, Erebor wants to fill the void left by the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) in 2023.

Erebor has already filed for a national bank charter with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. The bank will focus on clients in the cryptocurrency, artificial intelligence, defense, and tech manufacturing sectors.

Reports suggest that Anduril co-founder Palmer Luckey, along with Joe Lonsdale, are involved in the initiative. Owen Rapaport and Jacob Hirshman, an ex-Circle adviser, are expected to serve as co-CEOs.

Erebor Bank will also support stablecoins, reflecting a broader pro-digital asset stance. Inspired by SVB’s former mission, Erebor aims to be the go-to financial institution for next-gen tech firms underserved by traditional banks.

Bullish Exchange and Thiel’s Early Investment

Thiel is also an early backer of Bullish Exchange, a digital asset exchange that has since filed for an IPO as of June 2025.

Launched in 2021, Bullish was designed to be a hybrid exchange that combined the benefits of centralized finance (CeFi) and decentralized finance (DeFi), offering liquidity, automated markets, and regulated trading infrastructure.

Thiel’s involvement came through a $10B funding round led by Block.One. The capital helped position Bullish as one of the best-funded crypto exchanges before launching.

Thiel’s investment in Bullish reflects his ongoing belief that crypto is here to stay and may overtake the traditional finanical system as the next step in global finance.

Paul Atkins’ Project Crypto may lead to 24/7 markets as traditional finance, including stocks, could all be tokenized, cutting costs and allowing markets acsess to greater global liquidity, something that’s never been done before but is now possible thanks to blockchain networks.

A Strategic Vision for the Future of Finance

Peter Thiel’s involvement with companies like Bullish suggests that Thiel may see the next wave of financial innovation coming from crypto and not anywhere near Wall Street.

With investments backed by solid convictions, Theil’s next investments and the evolution of Erebor and Bullish exchange are something to keep an eye on.