Andreessen Horowitz is closing UK office to double down on Trump's America

Andreessen Horowitz, the Silicon Valley venture capital firm with a huge footprint in web3, is pulling back from a trumpeted expansion into the UK, according to a report from the Financial Times on Friday. 

Andreessen Horowitz Chief Operating Officer Anthony Albanese confirmed in a message on X that the company would be closing its London office. This was the firm's first office outside the U.S., which at the time symbolized a bet that the UK government would create a more hospitable environment for crypto.

"This doesn’t change our confidence in the UK’s growing role in crypto and blockchain," Albanese said, noting the firm is "excited" about the country's recent policy changes. "We will continue to invest in great entrepreneurs no matter where they are in the world, including the UK. We also remain ready to help the UK with its ongoing crypto efforts."

The firm, often referred to as a16z for the 16 letters separating the “a” in Andreessen and “z” in Horowitz, made a high-profile entry into the country in 2023, at a time when UK politicians were pitching the nation as a global crypto hub under its conservative leadership.

That year, the country passed the Financial Services and Markets bill that empowered regulators to create tech “sandboxes” and tailored rules for the digital asset sector to support then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's ambition to draw crypto firms to the UK. 

The decision to pull back from the country comes amid a series of significant advancements for the crypto industry in the U.S. as the Trump administration settles in. Both a16z co-founders, Ben Horowitz and Marc Andreessen, were vocal Trump supporters . 

Notably, the a16z partner tapped to lead the firm’s interests in the UK, Sriram Krishnan, was named a senior adviser on artificial intelligence for the Trump administration. Krishnan, who joined a16z in 2020, started pulling back from the UK last year and has since left the firm.

Last month, Fortune reported that Andreessen has become a leading voice in the Trump administration and has helped place a number of his technocratic contemporaries in influential political positions. 

The UK is home to the second-largest tech industry after the U.S., according to Fortune. Startups raised a collective $6.7 billion in the first half of 2024, surpassing China to claim the No. 2 spot globally in funding.

That said, UK regulators seem to take a tough-love stance when it comes to crypto companies. The Financial Conduct Authority has implemented stringent promotion guidelines regarding crypto and issues hundreds of warnings annually. Several firms, including U.S.-based PayPal and UK-based Revolut , have spoken out against the rules, and crypto exchange Bybit exited the UK market altogether.

However, the UK Treasury FCA has worked over the years to pass guidelines making it clear what activities are permissible and how to register with regulators. Last year, for instance, the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 was amended to allow staking and custody operations. Meanwhile, Parliament is considering a bill formally defining crypto assets, including non-fungible tokens and real-world assets, as property under English common law.

The Coinbase-led advocacy group Stand With Crypto outlined seven crypto policy recommendations for the UK ahead of the country's General Election, in which Labour's Kier Starmer was elected. 

A16z has invested nearly $8 billion in the global crypto industry.