# Olaf Carlson-Wee

> Olaf Carlson-Wee is the founder and CEO of Polychain Capital, one of the world's largest crypto-focused investment firms managing billions in assets. A Lutheran minister's son from rural Minnesota who wrote his college thesis on Bitcoin, he was Coinbase's first employee, demanded his salary be paid entirely in cryptocurrency, then left to launch Polychain in 2016 with $8 million that grew to $1 billion in under two years. He is a practicing lucid dreamer, a transhumanist, and the brother of two poets — a fact that tells you nearly everything about the household he grew up in.

- **Role:** Founder & CEO at Polychain Capital
- **Organizations:** Polychain Capital, Coinbase
- **From:** Northfield, Minnesota, USA
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** B.A., Sociology, Vassar College
- **Known for:** Founded Polychain Capital, one of the first dedicated crypto investment firms, Grew Polychain from $4M initial fund to $1 billion AUM in under two years, Was Coinbase Employee #1, scaling the company from 3 to 120+ employees

## Career timeline

- **2011** — First exposure to Bitcoin; invested ~$700 of life savings at $2-$16 per coin
- **2012** — Graduated Vassar College with B.A. in Sociology; thesis focused on Bitcoin and distributed networks
- **2012-2013** — Spent ~1 year traveling the US with a backpack; worked as a lumberjack at Holden Village commune in Washington State
- **2013** — Cold-emailed Coinbase founders Brian Armstrong and Fred Ehrsam from a commune yurt; hired as Employee #1
- **2013-2016** — Served at Coinbase in Customer Support, then Head of Risk and Product Manager; demanded full salary in Bitcoin
- **2016** — Left Coinbase to found Polychain Capital; raised $8 million initial fund
- **2017** — Featured on Forbes cover during ICO craze; Polychain named to Forbes Midas List
- **2018** — Polychain Capital reached $1 billion AUM; named Forbes 30 Under 30 and Fortune 40 Under 40
- **2018** — Created 'Strange Genius' speaker series bringing unconventional thinkers to Polychain
- **2019** — Main Polychain fund up 53% YTD; personal payout of ~$60M from performance carry
- **2021** — Polychain Capital reached $4 billion AUM
- **2023** — Raised $200 million for Polychain Ventures IV
- **2024** — Began distributing 44% of Polychain Ventures II to investors

## Achievements

- Founded Polychain Capital, one of the first dedicated crypto investment firms
- Grew Polychain from $4M initial fund to $1 billion AUM in under two years
- Was Coinbase Employee #1, scaling the company from 3 to 120+ employees
- Forbes 30 Under 30 (2018) - Finance
- Fortune 40 Under 40 (2018)
- Forbes Blockchain 50 (2022)
- Featured on Forbes cover (July 2017)
- Early investments in Ethereum, Polkadot, Compound, Uniswap, Arbitrum, EigenLayer, Solana, Cosmos
- Raised $200 million for Polychain Ventures IV (2023)
- Built Polychain to $4 billion AUM at peak (2021)

## Latest updates

- **2024-05** — Polychain Capital began distributing 44% of Polychain Ventures II back to investors
- **2023-07** — Raised $200 million for Polychain Ventures IV amid staff restructuring
- **2025-08** — Spoke about memecoins as information discovery systems at major crypto events

## Links

- Website: https://polychain.capital
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/olafcw/
- Twitter/X: https://x.com/zxocw
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/olafcw/

---

Profile page: https://yespress.io/olaf-carlson-wee
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-04-29