Research Partner at RockawayX
Check size: No Ryan-specific venture check range is public. For RockawayX's Catapult program, the firm says it writes first checks into RWA-yield founders and can add anchor TVL, liquidity, DeFi integrations and mentorship; founders should ask directly about round-specific sizing.
Ryan looks for crypto investments where differentiated, alpha-generative research reveals something the consensus has missed and where tokens or equities can be underwritten with traction and fundamentals. At RockawayX he invests around yield onchain, DeFi and RWA infrastructure while retaining a contrarian interest in experimental consumer finance and entertainment-finance products that can become sticky, high-margin categories.
Reach Ryan through his exact @ryanconnor X account or /in/ryanrconnor LinkedIn. Lead with the non-obvious insight, current traction and fundamental value driver; explain token versus equity structure and why incentives work. For yield or RWA products, quantify the asset's risk-adjusted yield, scalability and cold-start needs. For consumer products, show why the unusual behavior can become sticky, high-margin and category-defining rather than merely novel.
Category-defining teams formed in difficult markets; tokens or equities with observable traction and fundamentals; non-obvious insight grounded in trusted founder and market relationships; products that bridge crypto-native and TradFi users; scalable differentiated onchain yield; and unconventional consumer-finance products whose apparent weirdness creates a blue-ocean opportunity.
Research or pitches that merely summarize the top Google or Crypto Twitter consensus; abstract technology analysis that is not additive to a portfolio; publishing or narrative volume without exceptional insight; token designs with broken team and investor incentives; and opportunities where the traction, fundamentals or differentiated source of alpha cannot be explained.
Research is investable only when it surfaces information, context or perspective that is not already obvious from search results or the prevailing crypto conversation.
Judge research by whether it changes portfolio construction or an investment decision, not by technical depth, publishing cadence or narrative polish in isolation.
Apply the lessons of traditional equity and technology markets to both tokens and equities: strategy, incentives, traction and durable fundamentals must support the opportunity.
Underwrite both the asset and the launch system: first capital, anchor TVL, liquidity, vault access, DeFi integrations and operator distribution must work together.
Do not dismiss strange consumer-finance products because they look playful; test whether the behavior is sticky, high-margin and capable of defining an uncontested category.
Crypto's selloff reflected reversible fears around the digital-asset-treasury bid and quantum preparedness, while fundamentals and incentives left meaningful upside asymmetry.
Improving inflation, resolution of a major market overhang, stablecoin adoption and Solana's resilience made the team more constructive despite a difficult macro month.
New uncorrelated RWA-yield businesses need more than capital: the strongest launch stack combines a first check with anchor TVL, liquidity, DeFi integrations and experienced operator support.