Crypto

a16z’s Chris Dixon announces new accelerator program for crypto founders in LA • ZebethMedia

By zebethcontrolPosted on October 18, 2022Posted in Andreessen Horowitz, Chris Dixon, Crypto, crypto accelerator program, Disrupt, TechCrunch Disrupt 2022No Comments

Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) is one of the most influential players in the web3, funding entrepreneurs in the space amid “crypto winter.” Founded and helmed by general partner Chris Dixon, the venture firm’s crypto arm raised a massive $4.5 billion fund in May for its fourth dedicated sector fund to continue backing early-stage founders just as the crypto downturn had begun to take root. Now, it’s doubling down on its programming for crypto founders, Dixon, an early Coinbase backer who has been investing at a16z since 2012, revealed on stage at Disrupt 2022 in San Francisco on Tuesday in an interview with ZebethMedia’s Lucas Matney. On stage, Dixon announced a16z’s plans to expand its educational “Crypto Startup School” initiative to include a new accelerator program for entrepreneurs. The inaugural accelerator program will take place in-person in March in Los Angeles, Dixon said, adding that he has noticed particular excitement in the city around the creator economy and its potential intersections with crypto. Participants in the 12-week program will each get $500k in seed funding and access to mentors and advisors as well as the opportunity to participate in a Demo Day at the end of the course, according to the website. Applications for the accelerator are now open, Dixon said, though he did not share details on the expected cohort size. “This one will be different than the last one in that we will also provide capital and take equity, similar to an accelerator and Startup School combined,” Dixon said of the new program, contrasting it with the current version of “Crypto Startup School.” “Crypto Startup School” first launched in 2020 as a seven-week course meant to educate people on how to build a crypto company. The in-person cohort had 40 founders participating, including those behind companies such as Phantom and Notional Finance, and raised a collective $300 million+ in venture funding, according to a16z. a16z Crypto also released video segments of its lectures for the public to view, which it says have been watched by over 1 million people. Instructors for the first program included Dixon, Stanford computer science professor Dan Boneh, Coinbase founder Brian Armstrong and other well-known industry leaders. Dixon noted that the new program will remain crypto-focused and that a16z is “not trying to build some sort of new startup accelerator,” saying the new offering is instead intended to be an educational program with funding that is tied to the “very specific” sector. When asked about what makes the firm’s offering unique from accelerators such as Y Combinator, Dixon said there isn’t a “grand master plan” for this launch and that it was built as a response to feedback he had been hearing from founders. “We literally just meet entrepreneurs all the time, who say, hey, I wish that conversation we had was available online … so we’re just listening [to them],” Dixon said.

Terra’s Do Kwon says South Korea’s charges against him not legitimate and politically motivated • ZebethMedia

By zebethcontrolPosted on October 18, 2022Posted in Crypto, Do Kwon, south koreaNo Comments

Do Kwon says charges levelled against him by the South Korean prosecutors are not legitimate and politically motivated, sharing a rare update on what has become one of the most high profile events in the crypto industry this year in the aftermath of the $40 billion wipeout of his Terra blockchain. Kwon said he has yet to receive a copy of the Interpol’s red notice and his understanding is that the order doesn’t include an international arrest warrant. He said in the meantime he is complying with “all the document requests” made by the South Korean prosecutors. “Every sovereign nation can interpret the red notice the way it sees fit,” he told journalist Laura Shin on her podcast Unchained. He said he plans to address, appeal and do everything to get to a “better result.” Interpol issued a red notice for Kwon last month after South Korean prosecutors made the request to the organisation that facilitates international police information exchange and arrest requests. Earlier this month, South Korea ordered Kwon to surrender his passport, or risk getting it revoked. “The second point of clarification is that since the end of last year, I haven’t been living in South Korea. So it wouldn’t be accurate to say [the order is about me] returning to South Korea. The more accurate point would be would I travel to South Korea,” he said. Media reports have claimed that Kwon has been on the run and has left Singapore. Kwon disputed many of the findings in media reports, but declined to disclose where he is currently residing, citing personal security and privacy concerns. Kwon also expressed disappointment at the overreach of South Korea’s Financial Services Commission, which he said is tasked with devising regulation policy but is increasingly making enforcements. He said the Korean government as well as the FSC don’t classify cryptocurrencies as securities. “So it’s not within the ambits of their jurisdiction to regulate cryptocurrency for that reason,” he said. “We are a little bit disappointed in the way that prosecutors are attempting to create new regulation through criminal enforcement proceedings whereas that really should be within the job description of the legislature or at the very least the financial regulators,” he said, adding that he doesn’t think “any of the charges pertaining to the Capital Markets Act” are “legitimate” and are “politically motivated.” (More to follow)

Developers pour into crypto space despite stagnant markets • ZebethMedia

By zebethcontrolPosted on October 17, 2022Posted in Crypto, developers, EC Blockchain, EC Cryptocurrency, ethereum, Polygon, sdk, SolanaNo Comments

This year was huge for the crypto developer space even though the digital asset market continues to wallow in a downturn, according to a new report by web3 developer platform Alchemy. Although the crypto market capitalization is down about 58% year to date, web3 developers are pouring into the space. The report found that developer activity increased based on the number of crypto software developer kit (SDK) libraries being downloaded, smart contracts being stored on blockchains, and the growth in the number of decentralized applications (dApps) in the market. “It’s a really exciting time in web3 overall and especially in the web3 development space,” Jason Shah, head of growth at Alchemy, said to ZebethMedia. “We were shocked at the results [because they run] counter to the narratives out there with token prices being down, pullbacks in investments, and even layoffs. But in the data with libraries, smart contracts, and dApp growth, all those numbers are up year over year.” Despite the bear market, crypto has become a “builder market,” with many clearly undeterred, Shah said. “Crypto bear markets are often when the best projects get built,” Francesco Melpignano, CEO of layer-1 blockchain Kadena, said to ZebethMedia.

Indian e-commerce giant Flipkart launches metaverse shopping experience • ZebethMedia

By zebethcontrolPosted on October 17, 2022Posted in Amazon, Commerce, Crypto, Flipkart, indiaNo Comments

Flipkart has launched a metaverse offering for consumers to discover and shop new products, the latest bet from the Indian e-commerce giant as it experiments with web3 offerings to supercharge its customer experience. The Walmart-backed Bengaluru-headquartered firm has partnered with eDAO, a Polygon-incubated firm, to launch the metaverse offering, which it is calling Flipverse. The offering is in the pilot stage and aimed to garner interest during the festive season this month. On Flipverse, which goes live on Flipkart’s Android app Monday, the company is offering “gamified, interactive and immersive” experiences for consumers where they will be able to collect the company’s loyalty points — Supercoins — as well as digital collectibles from partner brands. At a briefing Monday, Flipkart said “a wide range of brands” including Puma, Noise, Nivea, Lavie, Tokyo Talkies, Campus, VIP, Ajmal Perfumes and Himalaya are partnering to set up experience theaters on Flipverse. “The idea is to have millions of users experience Flipverse and open the doors to the future of shopping,” the company said. The company’s executives acknowledged that its web3 offerings are at an experimental stage, but they said they are confident that it has legs to eventually become a critical part of Flipkart’s future. Flipkart and its chief rival in India, Amazon, are increasingly broadening their offerings to reach new customers in the South Asian market and retain loyal base. Amazon launched a QVC-style livestream shopping in India late last month, bringing an army of more than 150 creators to host livestreams and plug products in the videos. “While we have only just begun to scratch the surface of what’s possible in the metaverse, we see e-commerce as one of the killer use cases. Combining top brands with Flipkart’s e-commerce expertise in a virtual environment stands to revolutionize online retail as we know it. Flipverse will be a vibrant, visible expression of the metaverse, and I’m proud that this activation is taking place on Polygon,” said Sandeep Nailwal, co-founder of Polygon, in a statement. The broader partnership with Flipkart is Polygon’s latest win to attract large brands. The Ethereum scaling platform has partnered with a number of firms including Stripe, Meta and Starbucks in recent months. Flipverse isn’t Flipkart’s first foray into web3. The company partnered with Carl Pei’s Nothing earlier this year to give exclusive NFTs to those purchasing the smartphone from the platform. “The future growth of e-commerce will be influenced by the immersive technologies of today, and Metaverse is one of the significant revolutions in this arena with immense potential,” said Naren Ravula, VP and Head of Product Strategy and Deployment at Flipkart Labs, said in a statement. “The launch of Flipverse will continue to have an impact on innovative industries like e-commerce and enhance the customer experience while delivering a gamified and an immersive shopping experience, especially in light of the adoption of the metaverse and web3 platforms by multiple brands in India. By providing customers with access to their preferred brands, offers, SuperCoins, and digital collectibles, we are aiming to improve their shopping experiences in a virtual and immersive setting.” (More to follow)

Crypto VC deployment still slow as investors wait for even lower valuations • ZebethMedia

By zebethcontrolPosted on October 13, 2022Posted in Crypto, Crypto Economy, cryptocurrencies, EC Blockchain, EC Cryptocurrency, EC venture capital, Startups, venture capitalNo Comments

Ongoing volatility in the crypto markets is leading to mismatched conversations between venture capitalists and founders — and entrepreneurs aren’t often finding themselves on the winning side. While some crypto-native and general funds are actively deploying capital into the digital asset world, others are taking a slower approach. Over the summer, some market participants anticipated deals would ramp back up in September, but that still seems to be on hold as we move into mid-October and crypto market conditions remain shaky. “A lot of VCs paused deployment over the summer and there’s a record amount of cash right now sitting on the sidelines; that’s not just specific to crypto,” Alex Marinier, founder and general partner of fintech and blockchain-centered firm New Form Capital, said to ZebethMedia. “My sentiment is that the pervasive feeling in crypto right now is fear.” However, Marinier said that the more bearish climate is an attractive time to keep investing, adding that “now is the time to be allocating.” “My sentiment is that the pervasive feeling in crypto right now is fear.” New Form Capital founder Alex Marinier New Form has allocated about 30% of its $75 million Fund 2 to date, Marinier shared. The majority of New Form’s deals for its second fund have been in its target “sweet spot” of crypto startups valued in the range of $15 million to $35 million. But not every fund is going full steam ahead. “Many of us were expecting September to be a gangbuster type of moment where sentiment would be fully back and the events that happened with LUNA, Celsius and BlockFi would have been moved on from,” David Nage, venture capital portfolio manager at the crypto-focused firm Arca, said to ZebethMedia. “But what you’re seeing with these events, while they’re in the past, they still come back to bite us in the proverbial ass.”

Meet these five emerging startups at TC Sessions: Crypto • ZebethMedia

By zebethcontrolPosted on October 13, 2022Posted in Crypto, Startups, TC Sessions: Crypto, TC Sessions: Crypto 2022No Comments

Whether it’s seasoned industry behemoths or fresh, fearless upstarts ready to challenge the status quo, you’ll find them — and everything in between — at TC Sessions: Crypto on November 17 in Miami. Pay to play: It’s early-bird season, folks, so buy your pass today and save $150 — before prices go up. Take a deep dive through the awesome agenda to plan your day, but be sure to save time to meet and greet the early-stage startups exhibiting on the show floor. These founders represent the next iteration of products and possibilities across the blockchain, cryptocurrency, DeFi, NFT and web3 ecosystem. Check out the five listed below, and learn more about the other exhibitors here. Gall3ry 3: A way for NFT owners to show off their collection on social media. The app auto-generates exciting visual assets with an NFT’s blockchain data, helping the web3 community create posts that are more engaging, credible and informative. MassPay: A worldwide fiat off-ramp for crypto. Personal Digital Spaces: PDS has designed and built a proven (v3.5) Property Rights Protocol used by real applications by enterprises to solve real-world problems to manage/monetize valuable data and IP. Our experienced team steered clear of the hype cycle and focused on delivering market infrastructure for IP, much like FTX does for crypto. Pressrisk: A blockchain solution to promote geographic decentralization of nodes, with applications in fintech and media distribution. Recur: Makes NFTs accessible for fans and brands with seamless, easy-to-use, secure, interoperable experiences. Our partners include Paramount and Sanrio. Don’t miss your chance to meet, connect and network with some of the most creative early-stage startups bent on redefining the future of finance, blockchain and the web at TC Sessions: Crypto on November 17. Buy your pass now to nab the early-bird price and save. We can’t wait to see you in Miami! Is your company interested in sponsoring or exhibiting at TC Sessions: Crypto? Contact our sponsorship sales team by filling out this form.

Pillow wants to make crypto saving and investing easy for new users • ZebethMedia

By zebethcontrolPosted on October 13, 2022Posted in Asia, Crypto, cryptocurrency, Pillow, Singapore, Southeast Asia, StartupsNo Comments

Pillow aspires to be an all-in-one platform that helps even newbie users save, spend and invest in crypto currency. The Singapore-based startup announced it has raised $18 million in Series A financing co-led by Accel and Quona Capital, with participation from Elevation Capital and Jump Capital. The app currently has more than 75,000 users in over 60 countries. It supports 10 digital assets, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, Polygon, Axie Infinity and USD-backed stablecoins USDC and USDT, and plans to expand to over 50 assets in the coming months. Founded in 2021 by Arindam Roy, Rajath KM and Kartik Mishra, Pillow is focused on emerging markets like Africa and Southeast Asia. It founders say that since the beginning of the year, it has grown its user base by 300%, with assets under management growing 5x. It also recently expanded into Nigeria, Ghana and Vietnam, among other markets. Before founding Pillow, Roy and KM explored web3 while working at identity verification and AML software provider HyperVerge, while also holding jobs in the traditional finance industry. During this time, the two started a Discord server on the side to onboard people onto web3, which eventually grew to more than 15,000 people. “We saw a pattern of problems repeating,” the two told ZebethMedia. “People do not know how to pay gas fees, do not know how to bridge across various blockchains, people do not know what transaction they are approving and end up losing funds.”Around this time, the two met Mishra, who was head of business for Indian delivery startup Dunzo, and started talking about how to solve the onboarding problem at scale. “Eventually, we realized that the challenge is that crypto transactions today do not fit the mental model of how retail users perceive transactions. You would need a strong technical background to transact seamlessly in crypto,” they said. As a result, Pillow was born to make crypto usage understandable. To do this, the Pillow team has to tackle a couple big issues. The first is awareness, since the majority of people still think crypto is just buying and selling Bitcoin, without understanding other use cases. The second is complexity, since using crypto in its entirety means understanding gas fees, blockchain technology and bridging. “A person who just wants to transact is not going to scale this learning curve,” they said. Pillow solves these problems by simplifying crypto investments and transactions to one click, instant swaps and savings using single-click daily interest savings. It plans to do the same for other crypto services like payments. To use Pillow for the first time, people sign up using their email accounts, and then provide KYC information, such as live selfie photos and national identity cards. Afterward, they get a short lesson on the potential risks of investing in digital assets before choosing which ones they want to deposit or invest in. Before their initial investment, they are taken through another lesson about that asset’s potential risks. After that, they can deposit cryptocurrency from their own wallets or another crypto platform by making a transfer to the displayed crypto wallet address on Pillow. In some countries where Pillow has partnered with local, compliant on-ramp service providers, users can also buy crypto with their local fiat currency. Pillow supports deposits and withdrawals with fiat currency through local partnerships in Nigeria, the Philippines and Vietnam, with plans to add more across Southeast Asia, Africa and Latin America with its new funding. The startup’s largest user base is in Nigeria, and it also has a major presences in India, Ghana and Vietnam, and growing user bases in Brazil, the Philippines and Sri Lanka. It focuses on retail investors, enabling them to start with investments as small as $5. Since Pillow’s users are from different geographies, its closest competitors also come from around the world. They include crypto exchange Luno in Africa, multi-asset exchange Pluang (another Accel investment) in Southeast Asia and global crypto savings app Nexo. Pillow’s founders says it differentiates with its goal of becoming a holistic home for digital asset-driven financial services that allows even first time crypto users users to earn, save, spend and invest from the same platform. Pillow is currently in growth phase and plans on introducing transaction fees as new products, including swaps and tokenized real world assets are introduced. It currently makes profits on returns generated on top of the 5% to 10.42% returns made accessible to users. Pillow keeps a small percentage of the spread generated, and another portion also goes into its yield reserves.

6 tips for launching a blockchain startup • ZebethMedia

By zebethcontrolPosted on October 12, 2022Posted in blockchain, Column, Crypto, DeFi, EC Blockchain, EC Column, EC Cryptocurrency, EC How To, startup strategy, StartupsNo Comments

Wolfgang Rückerl Contributor These days, a blockchain startup founder should expect to navigate challenging waters. Even in the best of times, founders must both prepare for a bull market and be ready for possibly bearish territory. Having a solid roadmap, real-world use cases and a war chest are only a small part of a blockchain startup’s survival strategy. Founders also need to be aware that while non-crypto startups can offer useful and transferrable launch strategies, the road to achieving success in the blockchain industry is paved differently. Here are tips every blockchain founder should consider before launching. Bear the market conditions in mind Bear markets appear more attractive to blockchain businesses looking to launch. But before suiting up for winter, founders must assess whether it’s worth waiting to launch until market conditions are better. In the web3 world of horizontal technologies, you’ll be running against the wind if you wait to build relationships until you’ve built a technology. Evaluate your startup with the same criteria investors use during a bear market. Investors want to see a strong roadmap with deadlines and benchmarks that don’t simply come and go with no activity, as this is a signal to investors that a slow rug pull is underway. Evidence of a diversified war chest that you can draw from is pivotal, especially when providing returns on locked assets is the main impetus for attaining liquidity. In addition, analyze the market situation from a technical standpoint: The bear market is an attractive time to launch, but it’s also a time to go heads-down and focus on building your product. Regardless of market conditions, make use of your reward programs for loyal community members by offering staking rewards, airdrops and giveaways without needing to raise additional capital, similar to the traditional business world. Opt for longer vesting schedules In the non-crypto startup scene, it’s common to include compensation packages as an incentive for employees to perform well. Blockchain startups do this during the presale period of an initial coin offering using a method called vesting, where they lock and release assets (usually in the form of tokens) over a certain period. In so doing, they give their team, investors and advisers the right to certain assets such as retirement and stock options. If you choose this path, set up the token metrics and the vesting period for the gradual release of these tokens in a way that doesn’t put too much pressure on the token itself. Many crypto projects unlock and distribute their tokens every three months, and they’re finding private investors dumping them on the market, which is bad for the team and the community. In turn, retail investors also begin selling up front because they know a dump is coming. Opt for longer vesting schedules — between three and five years — to show that you have a financial incentive to continue project development. Split the release of the tokens: Release the private sale investor tokens one month, the adviser tokens the next month and the team tokens a month later. If it’s all in one month, the risk for retail investors will be too high. Don’t underestimate crypto regulations

Last day to save hundreds on TC Sessions: Crypto passes • ZebethMedia

By zebethcontrolPosted on October 12, 2022Posted in blockchain, Crypto, Fintech, TC Sessions: Crypto, TC Sessions: Crypto 2022, TechCrunch Events 2022, web3No Comments

We warned you this day would come. You have less than 24 hours left to save $250 on a General Admission pass to TC Sessions: Crypto — taking place in Miami on November 17. Our special launch pricing expires tonight at 11:59 pm PDT, so buy yours now — your wallet will thank you. Now that you’re registered, get ready to go mining for opportunities across the blockchain, cryptocurrency, DeFi, NFT and web3 ecosystem. You’ll hear from industry giants like Binance’s Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, FTX Ventures’ Amy Wu, Alchemy’s Nikil Viswanathan and many more. Here’s a quick look at just some of the day’s hot topics — be sure to check out the agenda so you don’t miss what matters most in your corner of the cryptoverse. Keeping the Web3 Dream Funded: Billions in capital were raised by crypto native funds and web3 VCs during an unprecedented bull run, but as the crypto markets turn bearish, how will investors keep their web3 dreams alive? We talk to Chris Ahn (Partner, Haun Ventures), Michelle Bailhe Fradin (Partner, Sequoia Capital) and Tom Schmidt (General Partner, Dragonfly) about which potential bets are too early, too late and right on time. A Non-Fungible Empire: Few in the crypto space saw the explosive adoption of NFTs happening this quickly, but NFT marketplace startup OpenSea, founded back in 2017, was waiting in the wings. Fast forward to the present day, and there have been tens of billions of dollars in NFT transaction volume with OpenSea handling the lion’s share of those sales. We’re thrilled that OpenSea CEO, Devin Finzer will join us on stage. So far, he’s fended off marketplace competitors from well-funded public behemoths and upstart threats, but can his $13.3 billion startup hold its lead through a bear market? Securing Web3: As blockchain boosters continue to onboard swaths of consumers to their vision of the crypto web, a central question has been how to optimize the underlying tech to keep these new users safe. We’ll talk to a panel of experts with expertise in blockchains, decentralized apps and protocols including Kathleen Breitman (co-founder, Tezos) and Pascal Gauthier (chairman and CEO, Ledger) on how web3 technologists can build a more secure environment. Plus, don’t miss your chance to meet and network with more than a dozen up-and-coming startups exhibiting at the show. Today’s casual conversation could lead to tomorrow’s next big deal. TC Sessions: Crypto takes place on November 17 in Miami, but the tides and time wait for no one. Jump on board and buy your pass before the launch special ends tonight at 11:59 p.m. (PDT). Is your company interested in sponsoring or exhibiting at TC Sessions: Crypto? Contact our sponsorship sales team by filling out this form.

Roboadvisor Betterment launches crypto offering with four themed portfolios • ZebethMedia

By zebethcontrolPosted on October 12, 2022Posted in betterment, Crypto, Fintech, roboadvisorNo Comments

Betterment, a roboadvisory platform which manages over $33 billion in assets, has finally launched its crypto offering after completing a private beta phase. The fintech acquired Makara, a crypto asset management startup, back in February and has been working towards transforming Makara into its own in-house crypto product since the deal closed. Crypto for Betterment, as the new offering is called, debuts to Betterment’s 730,000+ customers today with four themed, customizable portfolios that will allow users to invest in curated selections of digital assets, the company’s VP of crypto, Jesse Proudman, told ZebethMedia in an interview. According to Proudman, the four portfolios that launched today include approximately 25 different cryptocurrencies each and categorized as follows: “Universe,” which purports to offer broad exposure across the crypto landscape and includes coins such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, Chainlink and Filecoin “Sustainable,” which focuses on green blockchains including Ethereum, which recently transitioned to a proof-of-stake (PoS) transaction verification mechanism, and other PoS chains such as Solana and Tezos “Metaverse,” comprised of assets involved with immersive online experiences such as gaming and digital commerce, such as tokens used in Decentraland and Sandbox “Decentralized Finance,” which contains tokens native to DeFi protocols including Aave, Uniswap and Compound Proudman noted that the offering will include a feature that guides users to limit their crypto exposure to 5% of their investable assets as a guardrail. “A pretty meaningful number of our clients are either interested or already invested [in crypto], but they’re feeling pressure with the do-it-yourself nature, particularly when you couple that with the speed of change that happens in this asset class. So they provided feedback that this sort of managed, curated offering was of interest to them,” Proudman said. Makara, which is registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, launched with 20,000 customers and $1 million in assets under management last June, according to Decrypt. Betterment announced last month that it would be partnering with crypto exchange Gemini, helmed by the Winklevoss twins, to develop the crypto portfolios and serve as custodian for the assets. The company’s last publicly-known fundraise was a $160 million round announced in September last year, which it raised at a $1.3 billion valuation. The company has been relatively slow compared to other investment platforms like Robinhood and Acorns in adding crypto to its suite, perhaps in part because it wants to focus on messaging around the importance of long-term investing, especially as the crypto markets continue to prove volatile. Betterment’s launch comes just a week after investing app Stash announced its own crypto offering informed by an anti-trading, long-term ethos that stands in contrast to the short-term trading mentality often associated with Robinhood’s rise.