Get your daily, bite-sized digest of cryptoasset and blockchain-related news – investigating the stories flying under the radar of today’s crypto news.
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Investments news
- The major crypto index fund manager, Bitwise Asset Management, said it raised USD 70m in a Series B round, valuing the company at more than USD 500m. The round was co-led by tech investor Elad Gil and crypto venture fund Electric Capital, among other investors. Bitwise said they are already profitable and expect to use the proceeds from the round to strengthen its balance sheet and accelerate the national buildout of its organization, team, and product suite.
- Ethereum-based decentralized crypto exchange dYdX said it has raised USD 65m in a Series C round, led by Paradigm. Other investors include Three Arrows Capital, a16z, Polychain Capital, and others. The exchange said they will use the new funds to build a bridge between traditional and decentralized finance, develop a mobile app, and add more assets and features to their platform.
- Blockchain monitoring and workflow automation platform PARSIQ has raised USD 3m in a Series A funding round led by Solana Foundation, with participants including Mindworks VC, Axia8 Ventures, Krypital Group, and others, according to an emailed press release. The purpose of the round was to obtain new strategic partners, while the new investors will help the project in product development, go-to-market strategies, marketing, etc.
Barry Silbert, Founder and CEO of Digital Currency Group, said in a tweet conversation that he finds 99% of cryptoassets to be overpriced. He also warned to be prepared for “the macro fireworks.” “No clue what will be the spark, hence the volatility hedge. But food prices, oil prices, investor complacency, speculative excess, lack of trust in the Fed, interest rate normalization, meme stocks, overpriced cryptos, etc. are all on my mind,” he said.
Crime news
- A crypto trader from Hong Kong was sprayed in his eyes with an unknown substance and robbed of HKD 2m (USD 257,646) while he was on his way to buy bitcoin (BTC), according to the South China Morning Post. A citywide police hunt was on the way, but no arrests were made at the time of publication. It’s not the first attack on a crypto trade in Hong Kong this year.
CBDCs news
- Around a quarter of the 50 surveyed central banks would allow tourists and other non-residents to use their hypothetical central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), a survey by the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) found. Almost 20% would consider allowing this at a later stage. Some banks would even be open to multiple CBDC arrangements run on a single payment system. Of the 50, 18 respondents are in advanced economies and 32 in emerging market and developing economies, while about two-thirds are conducting CBDC experiments or pilots.
Exchanges news
- Coinbase has hired Christian Sabella, a former deputy director of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), to help them with the necessary legal work on capital markets, the exchange’s Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal said.
- Users of hardware wallet Ledger are now able to swap Ethereum (ETH)-based tokens through an integration with the decentralized exchange ParaSwap. Users will have to install the dapp and create an account before being able to swap, they said. Ledger has also announced that they have partnered with Wyre that will provide crypto access to Ledger’s US users by opening up more states, more coins, and ACH (automated clearing house) bank transfers.
- The owner of blockchain-based platforms for trading digital securities and cryptoassets INX Ltd today announced the acquisition of the Israel-based interdealer-broker ILS Brokers Ltd (ILSB). The acquisition will allow INX to expand its global institutional reach while focusing on lead generation and over-the-counter (OTC) trading, bridging the gap between traditional finance and digital assets, they said.
- Bakkt Holdings, the digital asset marketplace behind the Bakkt App, said it enabled its users to send BTC, gift cards, and cash to anyone, including those not currently using the Bakkt App.
Education news
- A new Japanese picture book for children on the subject of money has been published – and features a section on crypto. In a press release, the publisher – the Tokyo-based education giant Gakken – said that the new book, aimed at high schoolers, is named “Money Encyclopedia” and is now on general sale in bookstores and via e-commerce platforms. Each of its 30 chapters features multiple-choice format quiz sections, including the chapter on crypto.
NFTs news
- The chat app operator Line is set to launch a non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace in Japan via its blockchain and crypto-focused subsidiary LVC, reported Cnet Japan. The marketplace will be linked to the firm’s Line Bitmax Wallet crypto exchange, which in turn is linked to the Line chat app. The new platform will allow users to make secondary market sales on the Line blockchain network.
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