HB Ventures' Jun says white-paper fundraising is over, urges startups to win paying users first

At GWDC 2026 Korea in Seoul, HB Ventures investment lead Jun said the period when crypto projects could raise money on the strength of a white paper or a concept alone has passed. Speaking during a roundtable session, he said investors now want to see real traction, a first batch of paying customers, and some form of unfair advantage rather than a pitch built only on narrative. Jun also outlined how he evaluates products. He pointed to 30-day, 60-day, and 90-day user retention as key signals, and said teams should ask whether a product still stands on its own once token price is stripped out of the equation. His remarks framed product durability, not token performance, as a central test. For early-stage teams, Jun advised against chasing the mass market from day one. Instead, he said founders should lock onto a specific niche and go deep. He added that funding available for innovation has become tighter, which makes early fundraising more difficult. In that setting, his recommendation was to keep building at a small scale first and make sure the team can survive.