Funding
How a DAO for a bank or financial institution will look like
DAOs can provide several services for banks, including asset management, compliance and lending. Banks today are already using blockchain technology for things like payment, clearing and settlement, trade finance, identity and syndicated loans, according to The Financial Times. However, there are still many unexplored areas in banking where a DAO-based model might be useful: Fundraising In the crypto world, initial coin offerings (ICOs) are breaking down the barrier between access to capital and traditional services like capital-raising firms. Likewise, banks can use DAOs to raise capital from a wider pool of investors via ICOs. Loans and Credit Using decentralized technology in banking can eliminate the need for gatekeepers in the lending industry. DAOs provide more secure ways for people...
True Global Ventures doubles down on Web3 with $146M ‘follow-on’ fund
Venture capital firm True Global Ventures 4 Plus (TGV4 Plus) has announced the closure of a $146 million funding round earmarked for a wide range of Web3 projects — highlighting investors’ continued interest in crypto despite an ongoing bear market. The latest closure, dubbed the TGV4 Plus Follow On Fund, was led by a group of 15 general partners who committed over $4 million on average (over 40%, or $62 million) into the fund. The majority of the funding will be primarily injected into Web3 companies within TGV’s portfolio, while the remaining will be used to invest in late-stage Web3 opportunities. TGV previously invested in numerous Web3 initiatives using a base fund dedicated to the late-stage Series A, B and C across three business verticals: entertainment and gaming, financial servic...
Crypto Biz: Stablecoins are paving the way for mass adoption of crypto, June 2–8
Stablecoins are a controversial subject in crypto. Questioning the legitimacy and backing of Tether (USDT) is a right of passage for many entering the crypto market for the first time. The meltdown of the Terra (LUNC; or the old LUNA) ecosystem left little doubt that algorithmic stablecoins don’t have a future beyond Do Kwon’s fantasies. Pesky regulators are constantly poking and prodding at dollar-pegged assets to carve out firmer rules on their usage. But, if you look beyond all the fear, uncertainty and doubt, stablecoins are providing liquidity to millions of people who don’t have access to dollars because of capital controls or sanctions, or because hyperinflation is destroying their local currency. This week’s Crypto Biz newsletter looks at the role of stablecoins in fueling e-...
Huobi Global launches $1B investment arm focused on DeFi and Web3
Digital asset exchange Huobi Global has spun out a new investment arm focused on decentralized finance (DeFi) and Web3 projects, further highlighting venture capital interest in the blockchain economy. Dubbed Ivy Blocks, the new investment arm has over $1 billion in crypto assets under management to deploy, a spokesperson for Huobi confirmed. These funds have been earmarked for “identifying and investing in promising blockchain projects,” the company said. In addition to financing, Ivy Blocks will offer various services to selected projects, including an asset management platform, a new blockchain incubator and a dedicated research arm. The firm’s asset management department will provide “liquidity investments” to help DeFi and Web3 projects get up and running, according to Lily Zhan...
Solana price just one breakdown away from a 40% slide in June — here’s why
Solana (SOL) is nearing a decisive breakdown moment as it inches towards the apex of its prevailing “descending triangle” pattern. SOL’s 40% price decline setup Notably, SOL’s price has been consolidating inside a range defined by a falling trendline resistance and horizontal trendline support, which appears like a descending triangle—a trend continuation pattern. Therefore, since SOL has been trending lower, down about 85% from its November 2021 peak of $267, its likelihood of breaking below the triangle range is higher. As a rule of technical analysis, a breakdown move followed by the formation of a descending triangle could last until the price has fallen by as much as the triangle’s maximum height. This puts SOL’s bearish price target at $22.50 ...
Binance Labs’ $500M fund to catalyze crypto, Web3, blockchain adoption
Binance Labs, the investment arm of crypto giant Binance, launched a $500 million fund in partnership with global investors including DST Global Partners and Breyer Capital to drive innovation across the crypto, Web3 and blockchain landscape. Binance Labs plans to allocate the latest $500 million fund to projects across various stages — incubation, early-stage and late-stage growth. Sharing his take on accelerating the adoption of the crypto ecosystem, Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, CEO of Binance, revealed the importance of a connection between values, people and economies: “The goal of the newly closed investment fund is to discover and support projects and founders with the potential to build and to lead Web3 across DeFi, NFTs, gaming, metaverse, social, and more.” Binance Labs was established in...
VC Roundup: The rise of blockchain gaming, DAO management and asset tokenization
Bitcoin (BTC) and the broader cryptocurrency market have provided very little comfort in recent weeks, as macroeconomic headwinds and the implosion of the Terra ecosystem continue to reverberate. But, if we look beyond the immediate price action, we observe an industry that continues to grow and evolve, as well as attract sizable capital investments from major funders. The latest edition of venture capital (VC) Roundup highlights the continued growth of Web3 gaming, metaverse applications and even decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols. Related: Crypto Biz: Smart Money is betting big on Web3, layer 2, May 19-25 Andreessen Horowitz backs Irreverent Labs Blockchain video game developer Irreverent Labs has raised $40 million from venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) to f...
Crypto Biz: Smart Money is betting big on Web3, layer 2, May 19-25
Billions and billions. That’s what venture capitalists are spending to get ahead of the curve in crypto. Their latest fixation is Ethereum layer-2 scaling solutions and Web3, an umbrella term that describes the next stage of the internet’s evolution. So, while the cryptocurrency market is in a state of extreme fear, smart money investors — TradFi folks who invest with expert knowledge — continue to pour countless sums into the space. This week’s Crypto Biz newsletter gives you the latest funding stories from the world of blockchain and explores interesting developments surrounding Google and Sam Bankman-Fried. Andreessen Horowitz closes $4.5 billion crypto fund amid market turmoil The crypto market selloff of 2022 hasn’t deterred Andreessen Horowitz from pledging additional billions ...
Polkadot parachains spike after the launch of a $250M aUSD stablecoin fund
Crypto prices have been exploring new lows for weeks and currently it’s unclear what it will take to reverse the trend. Despite the downtrend, cryptocurrencies within the Polkadot (DOT) ecosystem began to rally on May 24 and have managed to maintain gains ranging from 10% to 25%, a possible sign that certain sub-sectors of the market are on the verge of a breakout. Here’s a look at three Polkadot ecosystem protocols that have seen their token prices trend higher in recent days. Acala launches a $250 million aUSD ecosystem fund Acala (ACA) is the leading decentralized finance (DeF) platform on the Polkadot network, primarily due to the launch of aUSD, the first native stablecoin in the Polkadot ecosystem. Following the collapse of Terra’s LUNA and TerraUSD (UST), traders we...
StarkWare nets $100M as investors bank on layer-2 success
Ethereum (ETH) layer-2 developer StarkWare has raised a further $100 million in its latest fundraising round despite the prevailing downturn in cryptocurrency markets. StarkWare’s series D fundraising round sees the firm’s valuation up to $8 billion, marking a four-fold increase in value just six months after its Series C round in November 2021. Tech investment firm Greenoaks Capital led the latest fundraising round in addition to private equity firm Coatue, Tiger Global and other investors. StarkWare has established itself as a major player in the Ethereum layer-2 scaling space, boasting more transaction throughput than the Bitcoin network and collectively more than all other layer-2 platforms in 2022. The firm makes use of rollup technology for its Ethereum layer-2 scaling platforms. By ...
Singapore venture firm launches $100M Web3 and metaverse fund
Crypto-focused venture firm NGC Ventures has launched a new ecosystem fund dedicated to Web3 projects, underscoring heightened investor demand for startups that are contributing to the development of a decentralized internet. NGC Metaverse Ventures, the company’s third blockchain fund, raised $100 million from investors that included Babel Finance, Huobi Ventures, Nexo Ventures, Altonomy and GBIC. The fund will allocate capital towards “high-potential projects” in the Web3 economy, according to Roger Lim, NGC Ventures’ general partner. The Web3 fund has already invested in three startups, NGC disclosed on Wednesday. Based in Singapore, NGC Ventures was founded in 2017 as a blockchain and fintech-focused venture firm. It was an early investor in Solana (SOL), Algorand (ALGO) and Oasis...
ADDX bags $58M to reduce min. private investment by 10x via smart contracts
ADDX, a blockchain and smart contract-based digital securities platform from Singapore raised $58 million from mainstream financial institutions to fund its goal of reducing minimum private investment sizes via tokenization and fractionalization. The Monetary Authority of Singapore regulates ADDX as a digital securities exchange that aims to democratize private markets. The Pre-Series B funding round saw participation from the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET), UOB, Nasdaq-listed Hamilton Lane and Thailand’s Krungsri Bank, which has brought total funds raised by ADDX to around $120 million. As explained in the announcement, ADDX uses blockchain technology and smart contracts to tokenize and fractionalize private markets, including pre-IPO equity, private equity, and hedge funds and bonds. A...
