An Indian entrepreneur and a software developer, Sandeep Nailwal, is one of the top names in blockchain since he is the co-founder and executive chairman of Polygon Labs. Since the launch of Polygon (formerly, Matic Network) in 2017 Mr. Nailwal has made it have grown into a top-tier layer-2 scaling solution for Ethereum, with $10 billion market cap for its POL token in 2025. His net worth, estimated to be $1 billion to $1.5 billion is as a result of his ownership interest in Polygon, Bitcoin investments, and Web3 investments. Polygon has been the cornerstone of decentralized finance (DeFi) due to the vision of Nailwal to scale Ethereum and onboard billions to Web3. This article examines his role in the expansions of polygon, wealth, crypto portfolio, and recent developments from an industry-based analysis and insight.
Polygon’s Rise and Innovation
In 2017, Polygon was founded in which Nailwal was co-founded with Jaynti Kanani, Anurag Arjun, and Mihailo Bjelic; with the main aim of overcoming the challenges of high fee and slow transactions by the Ethereum per Polygon Wikipedia. It had a seed round of $150,000 raised by launching from friends and family before it got a $5 million IEO with Binance in 2019, LiveMint reports. In 2021, its POL token skyrocketed from $26 million to $14 billion, therefore, turning Nailwal and co-founders the first billionaires in India in the cryptocurrency field, according to LiveMint. Polygon’s chain of proof-of-stake and zero-knowledge rollups support fast, and low-cost decentralized applications (dApps) with more than 40 thousand dApps by 2022, according to YourStory.
Polygon reached $20 billion valuation in a 2022 Series D round led by Sequoia Capital India in which it raised $450 million, per Tracxn under Nailwal’s command. Hermez Network ($250 million in 2021), Mir ($400 million in 2021) were acquisitions that consolidated its ZK abilities, according to Polygon Wikipedia. The 2024 AggLayer protocol merged layer-1 and layer-2 chains thereby increasing inter-operability, according to Polygon Wikipedia. Collaborations with Meta, Starbucks, Reddit, and Flipkart in 2022 coupled with a 2025 entry into the mainstream with a partnership with Reliance Jio, to integrate blockchain for a number of 450 million users, highlight Polygon’s drive to go mainstream, according to Cointelegraph. @AyobamiJacob123’s May 2025 X post called the Nailwal’s Jio deal “India’s on-chain moment “ (@AyobamiJacob123).
This was furnished by the strategic flights of Nailwal to chief business officer in 2024 aiming at Polygon CDK which is a ZK-based toolkit for tailored layer-2 chains, according to IQ.wiki. Even as 2023 bear market proved to be quite challenging, he accepted the title of “underdog” in the case of Polygon, inspiring innovation as per BeInCrypto. According to Polygon wiki, polygon’s Polymarket, the biggest of these markets (predictions markets) in the world, alongside its use by JPMorgan Chases in one of its 2022 blockchain trades attests to its enterprise adoption.
Net Worth and Wealth Sources
Nailwal’s net worth in 2025 be estimated at $1 billion – $1.5 billion according to BuyBitcoinBank and iWealthyFox, and this figure is fueled by his 4 per cent to 5 per cent interest in Polygon’s POL token, worth $10 billion (according to CoinMarketCap Bitcoin investments he had done in the early years, 2013, when he signed up for local forums, increase his wealth considerably, according to WebX2025. Symbolic Capital, which he co-founded with Kenzi Wang in 2022, and which has raised $50 million to finance Web3 start-ups such as Axie Infinity, also brings him income, according to CoinLoan. His 2022 Beacon Web3 accelerator, which was also started by Uri Stav, will be focused on nurturing new founders, according to CoinLoan.
The effect of the 2022 crypto crash on POL’s worth affected Nailwal’s plurality, although Polygon’s recovery and market cap rise in 2025 restored Nailwal’s fortune, according to CryptoEmotions. His philanthropist side is shown through his 2021 Crypto Relief Fund that raised $6 million and a $1 billion SHIB donation from Vitalik Buterin according to eBiography Post. Nailwal’s other investments such as the $7M in Mana Interactive spread his portfolio in the gaming and DeFi, according to TechieGamers.
| Asset |
Holding |
Estimated Value (USD, 2025) |
| Polygon (POL) Stake |
4–5% of $10B market cap |
$400M–$500M |
| Bitcoin Holdings |
Early 2013 investments |
$300M–$500M (est.) |
| Symbolic Capital |
Web3 VC fund investments |
$100M–$200M (est.) |
| Beacon Accelerator |
Web3 startup stakes |
$50M–$100M (est.) |
| Other Investments |
Mana Interactive, others |
$50M–$150M (est.) |
Crypto Portfolio and Vision
Nailwal’s portfolio focuses on POL and Bitcoin, with huge Web3 investments via Symbolic capital, supporting more than 40 startups, including Biconomy, according to CoinLoan. His Nailwal Fellowship that was initiated in 2023 provides $50,000 grants to innovators in Web3, and helps discover global talent, per Coingape. Though his non-reported altcoin holdings are unclear, his interest in DeFi and gaming means investments in the related tokens, according to TechieGamers. Polygon’s architecture was established on Nailwal’s 2016 ScopeWeaver venture that was a dApp platform (eBiographyPost).
His vision is to bring in “the next billion users” onto Web3, with Polygon being the scaling back of Ethereum, YourStory. In a 2025 CoinMarketCap interview, Nailwal disputed the established four-year crypto cycle associated with Bitcoin halvings, claiming that the cycle had changed because cryptocurrencies were embraced by institutions and there were Bitcoin ETFs, promising to have more stable markets, according to CoinMarketCap. He envisages Polygon competing with Bitcoin and Ethereum, and seeking a place among the top three, according to Your Story. The 2025 Jio partnership and Polygon’s SDK of Ethereum-like chains are both in line with his mass-adoption target, according to Polygon Technology.
Influence and Challenges
Having more than half a million X followers and a 2023 Harvard Business School case study, Nailwal is a Web3 titan as per @0xsachi. Polygon’s enterprise out-reach was expedited by his 2022 Flipkart partnership and 2023 Google Cloud alliance, according to Polygon Wikipedia. But in 2021 a security breach occurred which led to losing 801,601 POL tokens that attracted attention according to Polygon Wikipedia. Nailwal’s admission of the bear market of 2023 as a painful ride attracted the community, according to BeInCrypto. His mental health activism, based on personal stress, gives his leadership more depth, according to YourStory.
FAQs
Q1: How much is Sandeep Nailwal’s net worth in 2025?
His net worth is reported to be anything between $1 billion and $1.5 billion from shrewd investments in Polygon, Bitcoin, and Web3.
Q2: How does Polygon feature in crypto?
Polygon is a layer-2 scaling of Ethereum with the use of POL tokens and cheap, instant dApps.
Q3: What crypto does Nailwal hold?
He holds POL, Bitcoin, and probably DeFi / gaming tokens through the investments in Symbolic Capital.
Q4: What is Crypto Relief Fund?
Nailwal’s 2021 fund collected $6 million, amongst these $1 billion from Vitalik Buterin for the relief of India’s COVID 19.
Q5: What are Nailwal’s recent ventures?
He heads Polygon’s Jio partnership and invests in Web3 start-ups through Symbolic Capital and Beacon.
Final Thoughts
Sandeep Nailwal’s leadership has made Polygon, a $10 billion layer-2 juggernaut that has scaled Ethereum for 40,000+ dApps. His net worth of $1 billion to $1.5 billion indicates the strength of his POL stake, Bitcoin investments, and the Web3 investments through Symbolic Capital and Beacon. The desire of Polygon to be mainstream is evident from its 2025 Jio partnership and the Agglayer protocol. Influenced positively by such setbacks as the 2021 hack, Nailwal’s transparency and philanthropy, insomuch as the $6 million Crypto Relief Fund, strengthen his clout. His vision to compete with Bitcoin and Ethereum makes Polygon a major Web3 player that makes blockchain go global.
