Weekly News Highlights | UK Aims to Build a Global Crypto Asset Technology Hub; OpenSea Officially Launches on Solana

Organizer: Zeyi, Chain Catcher

Important Events

1. The UK plans to regulate stablecoins as a means of payment and create a global crypto asset technology hub

On April 4, the UK Treasury announced on its official website a series of measures to recognize stablecoins as a valid means of payment, as part of a broader plan to make the UK a global center for crypto asset technology and investment.

The document states that with appropriate regulation, stablecoins can provide more efficient payment methods and expand consumer choice. The UK government plans to legislate to bring stablecoins used as payment into the regulatory framework for payments, creating conditions for stablecoin issuers and service providers to operate and invest in the UK.

At the same time, the UK government also plans to legislate to establish a financial market infrastructure (FMI) sandbox, allowing companies to experiment and innovate in providing supporting market infrastructure services, particularly through testing distributed ledger technology. The government confirmed it will launch a research program to explore the feasibility and potential benefits of using distributed ledger technology for sovereign debt instruments.

Additionally, the UK government will consult on expanding the scope of investment manager exemptions to include crypto assets. The UK Chancellor has commissioned the Royal Mint to create an NFT this summer. The Economic Secretary will establish and chair a crypto asset engagement group, bringing together key figures from regulators and the industry to advise the government on issues facing the crypto asset sector. (Source link)

2. Waves founder: Alameda Research is manipulating WAVES prices to incite panic selling

On April 4, Waves founder and CEO Sasha Ivanov tweeted accusations that Alameda Research is manipulating Waves prices and organizing FUD activities to trigger panic selling. Sasha Ivanov stated that he discovered accounts borrowing about 1 million WAVES tokens and sending them to a Binance address in mid-March, and upon investigation found that the address belongs to Alameda Research.

Sasha Ivanov also revealed that FTX had requested him to pay $1.5 million for integrating the native token (which had previously been packaged on Ethereum), but the request was declined. (Source link)

3. Inke will launch NFT products and go live on OpenSea, domestic live streaming apps will also launch digital collectibles

On April 7, sources revealed that Inke Interactive Group is set to launch NFT products abroad, designed around the IP character Xiao Ying under Inke, with products going live on OpenSea, the world's largest NFT trading platform. Domestically, Inke will also launch digital collectibles on the Inke live streaming app, but these digital collectibles will not be tradable. In the future, a digital collectibles exhibition hall will also be launched in the live streaming app for collection and display purposes. Additionally, several insiders disclosed that Inke is developing virtual products, with an independent app set to launch. (Titan Media)

4. Terra ecosystem non-profit organization LFG acquires $100 million worth of AVAX and 3,964 BTC as UST reserves

On April 8, news broke that the Luna Foundation Guard (LFG), a non-profit organization in the Terra ecosystem, has acquired $100 million worth of native tokens AVAX from the Avalanche Foundation as UST reserves. The purpose is to diversify UST reserves and strengthen cooperation with the Avalanche ecosystem, expanding UST and Terra's native applications on Avalanche.

On April 6, LFG increased its holdings by acquiring 3,964 BTC (worth approximately $231 million), bringing its total holdings to over $2 billion. LFG's long-term goal is to purchase $10 billion worth of Bitcoin as UST reserves. (Blockworks)

5. Frax Finance may purchase billions in mainstream tokens as collateral for its stablecoin reserves

On April 8, the algorithmic stablecoin protocol Frax Finance announced it is considering purchasing billions of dollars worth of mainstream cryptocurrencies (such as ETH, BTC) as collateral for its stablecoin reserves. Unlike Terra, which only purchases Bitcoin, Frax plans to buy native tokens from all blockchains that have issued its stablecoin, including Ethereum, Avalanche, BNB Chain, Fantom, Harmony, Polygon, Solana, and Arbitrum. Additionally, unlike Terra's approach, Frax will utilize its Flaxswap platform to execute these large token orders. (Source link)

6. DeFi lending protocol Inverse Finance suffers a hack, losing approximately $15 million, project team will ensure 100% compensation for users

On April 2, news surfaced that the DeFi lending protocol Inverse Finance was allegedly hacked, losing 4,300 ETH, valued at nearly $15 million, with the attacker transferring 1,300 ETH into Tornado Cash.

On April 3, Inverse Finance responded to the theft on its official Twitter, stating that its money market was subjected to capital-intensive manipulation of the INV/ETH price oracle on Sushiswap, leading to a significant spike in INV prices, allowing the attacker to borrow $15.6 million worth of DOLA, ETH, WBTC, and YFI.

In response, the project itself will propose a plan to ensure that all affected wallets receive 100% compensation, and there are no plans or needs to mint additional INV tokens. Meanwhile, the project encourages price manipulators to contact them via Twitter DM or Discord to discuss generous bounties in exchange for the borrowed funds. (Source link)

7. OpenSea officially launches Solana, users can now view and purchase NFTs on this public chain

On April 6, the NFT trading platform OpenSea officially integrated and launched Solana, allowing users to view and purchase Solana-based NFTs on the OpenSea website.

It is reported that Solana is the fourth blockchain network supported by OpenSea, following Ethereum, Polygon, and Klaytn. (Source link)

8. Meta is exploring a virtual currency for the metaverse: Zuck Bucks

On April 7, news broke that Meta (formerly Facebook) has developed plans to introduce virtual currencies, tokens, and loan services within its applications. According to several insiders, Facebook's financial division, Meta Financial Technologies, has been exploring the creation of a virtual currency for the company, internally referred to as "Zuck Bucks."

Meta is inclined to introduce in-app tokens that are centrally controlled by the company, similar to tokens used in gaming applications. The company has recently been seeking alternative revenue sources and supporting e-commerce on its platform, delving into cryptocurrency and blockchain technology. (Source link)

9. Uniswap Labs faces class action lawsuit for alleged violations of securities laws

On April 9, U.S. law firms Kim & Serritella and Barton announced a class action lawsuit against Uniswap Labs and defendants including Paradigm and a16z, accusing them of violating securities laws by issuing and selling unregistered securities in the form of digital tokens, including UNI tokens, on the Uniswap exchange, and failing to register Uniswap as an exchange and/or broker-dealer under applicable securities laws, as well as failing to provide investors with registration statements for the securities they issued and sold.

Additionally, the lawsuit claims that the defendants allowed illegal activities associated with tokens sold on the Uniswap exchange, such as "rug pulls" and "pump and dumps."

The announcement states that the lawsuit represents anyone who purchased any of the following digital tokens on the Uniswap exchange between April 5, 2021, and April 4, 2022: EtherumMax, Bezoge, Matrix Samurai, Alphawolf Finance, Rocket Bunny, and BoomBaby.io. ("Tokens"). The lawsuit seeks rescission and damages and is currently awaiting the defendants' appearance in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. (Source link)

10. EOS, Telos, WAX, and others announce the formation of an alliance to take over EOSIO protocol core code development

According to an announcement from the EOS Network Foundation (ENF), four blockchains based on the EOSIO protocol, including EOS, Telos, WAX, and UX Network, have announced the formation of an alliance to combine their development resources to take over the development of the core code of the EOSIO protocol, which underpins these blockchains, and have committed to providing an annual budget of $8 million for core developers and outsourced developers in 2022. They will work together to reshape the EOSIO tech stack and bring additional security and new features to the protocol core.

EOSIO was originally created by Block.one, which raised approximately $4 billion in 2017, with $1 billion pledged to support the EOSIO blockchain ecosystem and a commitment to provide ten years of core code development. Block.one ceased support for EOSIO protocol development in mid-2021, leading to EOS terminating their affiliation payment plan. The alliance will also retain a professional branding agency to establish a new name and brand for the EOSIO protocol to further showcase its multi-chain nature and distance itself from any association with Block.one. (Source link)

Important Financing/Venture Capital Information

1. The Wall Street Journal: Financial payment company Bolt Financial is acquiring crypto startup Wyre for about $1.5 billion

On April 7, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing insiders, that financial payment company Bolt Financial is acquiring crypto service startup Wyre Payments for approximately $1.5 billion.

Bolt Financial was founded by Ryan Breslow in 2014, focusing on one-click checkout services for merchants, and has raised about $1.3 billion in venture capital, with a valuation of around $11 billion. Wyre provides exchange and trading services between banking and crypto wallets for retail and commercial clients, holding remittance licenses in 27 U.S. states. (Source link)

2. Axie Infinity developer Sky Mavis completes $150 million financing, led by Binance

On April 6, news broke that Axie Infinity developer Sky Mavis completed $150 million in financing, led by Binance, with participation from Animoca Brands, a16z, Dialectic, Paradigm, and Accel. This round of financing, combined with Sky Mavis's balance sheet funds, will be used to ensure that all users affected by the Ronin cross-chain bridge theft incident receive compensation.

It is reported that the Ronin Network cross-chain bridge will reopen after security upgrades and multiple audits, which may take several weeks, and plans to increase the number of cross-chain bridge validators to 21. Meanwhile, Binance is supporting the Ronin Network by providing ETH withdrawals and deposits for Axie Infinity users.

The 56,000 ETH belonging to the Axie DAO treasury among the stolen assets will remain under-collateralized, and if the funds are not fully recovered within two years, Axie DAO will vote on the next steps for the treasury. (Source link)

3. Near Protocol completes $350 million financing, led by Tiger Global

On April 6, CoinDesk reported that Near Protocol completed $350 million in financing, led by Tiger Global, with participation from Republic Capital, FTX Ventures, Hashed, and Dragonfly Capital. This financing aims to accelerate the decentralization of the NEAR ecosystem.

Previously, on January 14, NEAR announced the completion of $150 million in financing, led by Three Arrows Capital. (Source link)

4. HBAR Foundation launches $250 million metaverse fund to incentivize B2C and B2B2C applications

On April 8, the HBAR Foundation, responsible for the development of the Hedera network, announced the launch of a $250 million metaverse fund to incentivize B2C and B2B2C applications to develop within the metaverse ecosystem of this public chain, including gaming, sports, fashion, and entertainment industries, to integrate users "at scale" into Web3 development. Customer relationship management platform Sayl has been designated as one of the first beneficiaries of this fund. (Source link)

5. Venture capital firm Stillmark plans to raise $500 million to invest in Bitcoin Lightning Network infrastructure

On April 6, Alyse Killeen's venture capital firm Stillmark announced plans to raise $500 million for its new fund, Stillmark Credit Fund, focusing on supporting investments in Bitcoin Lightning Network infrastructure.

It is reported that Stillmark was founded in 2019, with portfolio companies including Satoshi Energy, Casa, and Lightning Labs. The company's managing partner and founder Alyse Killeen previously worked at venture capital firms such as Clearstone Venture Partners and March Capital Partners. (Source link)

6. Pantera Capital to launch new fund Pantera Select Fund, aiming to raise $200 million next month

On April 7, Pantera Capital announced the launch of a new fund, Pantera Select Fund, aiming to raise $200 million in early May. This fund is intended to raise capital for three locked-in investments and seven to nine investments planned for next year. The three locked-in investments include a cryptocurrency financial service provider Amber, an Indian exchange, and a blockchain domain provider. (Source link)

7. Binance.US completes $200 million seed round financing, with participation from RRE Ventures

On April 6, cryptocurrency exchange Binance.US announced the completion of over $200 million in seed round financing, with participation from RRE Ventures, Fundamental Labs, Foundation Capital, Original Capital, VanEck, Gaingels, Gold House, and Circle Ventures, with a pre-money valuation of $4.5 billion. This funding will be used to enhance its spot trading platform, develop a new suite of products, and fund marketing and educational programs.
Binance.US was launched in 2019, offering over 85 tokens and 190 trading pairs for retail and institutional traders, and is currently available in 45 U.S. states and 8 territories. A company spokesperson stated that they plan to go public in the next two to three years. (Source link)

8. Blockchain security company CertiK completes $88 million financing, led by Insight Partners and Tiger Global

On April 8, TechCrunch reported that blockchain security company CertiK completed $88 million in financing, achieving a valuation of $2 billion. This round was led by Insight Partners, Tiger Global, and Advent International, with participation from Goldman Sachs, Sequoia Capital, and Lightspeed Venture Partners. The funds will be used to build new products and a one-stop security platform for the Web3 world.

The company stated that CertiK has protected over $300 billion in crypto assets for 2,500 enterprise clients through its auditing and fraud investigation services, with revenue growing 12 times and profits growing 3,000 times in 2021. To date, CertiK has raised a total of $230 million. (Source link)

9. Metaverse technology company Improbable completes $150 million financing, led by a16z

On April 8, metaverse technology company Improbable completed $150 million in financing, led by a16z and the SoftBank Vision Fund II, with participation from Mirana, DCG, CMT, SIG, and Ethereal Ventures.

It is understood that this funding will primarily be used to establish the interoperable metaverse network M² (MSquared), powered by its Morpheus technology, which will allow companies, brands, and creators to build their own metaverse and Web3 businesses within its network, organize large-scale experiences involving thousands of players, and provide interoperability with existing blockchain and Web3 businesses.

Improbable has become a leading provider of multiplayer gaming services to over 60 global publishers with its developed virtual world technology, and its Morpheus technology is an evolution of the company's earlier SpatialOS product, supporting over 10,000 players interacting in dense virtual spaces. The platform now processes over 350 million communication operations (or ops) per second. In January 2022, Improbable announced a transformation to accelerate its transition into the metaverse. (Source link)

10. Ethereum scaling solution Boba Network completes $45 million financing, with participation from Huobi

On April 6, Ethereum scaling solution Boba Network announced the completion of $45 million in Series A financing, with participation from exchanges such as Crypto.com, Huobi, and BitMart, as well as institutions like Infinite Capital, Hypersphere, 10X Capital, Hack VC, GBV, Sanctor Capital, Shima Capital, Old Fashion Research, Kinetic Capital, IOST, and ROK Capital, totaling nearly 400 participants, with a valuation of $1.5 billion. (Source link)