Blockchain – SiliconANGLE

Digital Currency Group plans to shut down institutional trading unit TradeBlock

Kyt Dotson — Fri, 26 May 2023 16:25:26 +0000

Venture capital conglomerate Digital Currency Group Inc. announced plans to close its TradeBlock subsidiary that provides cryptocurrency trade and prime brokerage services for institutional investors. According to a May 25 report from Bloomberg, the shutdown will officially be effective on May 31. “Due to the state of the broader economy and prolonged crypto winter, along with […]

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Arrington Capital-led group to acquire bankrupt Celsius Network assets

Kyt Dotson — Thu, 25 May 2023 17:10:04 +0000

Bankrupt cryptocurrency lender Celsius Network LLC will be reborn as a new company under the management of Fahrenheit LLC, a group of bidders led by investment group Arrington Capital, which won the bid to manage the company’s assets. Other members of Fahrenheit include the crypto mining firm US Bitcoin Corp., Proof Group, crypto entrepreneur Steven […]

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Worldcoin developer Tools for Humanity raises $115M led by Blockchain Capital

Kyt Dotson — Thu, 25 May 2023 16:10:03 +0000

Tools for Humanity, the developer behind the eyeball-scanning crypto startup Worldcoin, today announced a $115 million fundraise led by Blockchain Capital to accelerate the growth of its research and development and global reach. This news confirms a report earlier this month that Sam Altman, co-founder of Worldcoin and chief executive of artificial intelligence company OpenAI […]

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Solana Labs integrates ChatGPT plugin to connect blockchain to AI

Kyt Dotson — Wed, 24 May 2023 18:00:13 +0000

Solana Labs, the developer of the Solana blockchain, announced Tuesday that it has released a ChatGPT plugin that connects its blockchain technology with artificial intelligence that will allow users to query information from the network. ChatGPT is an artificial intelligence chatbot from OpenAI LP that can answer questions from users in conversational language. The company […]

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Report: Digital assets firm HashKey looks to raise $200M at $1B valuation

Kyt Dotson — Fri, 19 May 2023 16:05:23 +0000

Digital asset financial services company HashKey Group is in talks with investors to raise between $100 million and $200 million in funding as the company looks to take advantage of Hong Kong’s emerging role as a crypto hub, according to a Bloomberg report today. Although the details of the talks weren’t disclosed, the company is in […]

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UK Treasury report asks government to regulate crypto as gambling

Kyt Dotson — Thu, 18 May 2023 15:20:46 +0000

Cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin and Ethereum should be regulated as gambling, according to a committee of lawmakers in the United Kingdom who claimed that the assets “pose significant risks to consumers.” The U.K. Treasury Select Committee released a report on Wednesday noting that tokens such as bitcoin are unbacked by any assets and therefore have […]

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Ripple acquires Metaco for $250M to diversify services into crypto custody

Kyt Dotson — Wed, 17 May 2023 17:50:05 +0000

Blockchain technology company Ripple Labs Inc. has bought the Switzerland-based digital asset custody and tokenization firm Metaco SA for $250 million, the company said in an announcement today. Metaco provides a platform for cryptocurrency and digital asset custody infrastructure for institutions to safely store tokens. Its primary service is Harmonize, which is an enterprise-grade offering designed […]

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DOJ crypto enforcement director calls for crackdown on illicit behavior by exchanges

Kyt Dotson — Mon, 15 May 2023 16:45:48 +0000

The U.S. Department of Justice is increasing its efforts to stop illicit and criminal activities on crypto trading platforms, according to a report published by the Financial Times. Eun Young Choi, the director of the agency’s National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team, said the DOJ intends to target crypto exchanges along with “mixers and tumblers,” which assist […]

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Report: OpenAI CEO Sam Altman in talks to raise $100M for Worldcoin crypto startup

Kyt Dotson — Mon, 15 May 2023 16:40:03 +0000

OpenAI LP Chief Executive Sam Altman is reportedly in advance talks to raise about $100 million in new funding for Worldcoin, an iris-scanning startup that seeks to build a globally distributed cryptocurrency. According to a report published by the Financial Times on Sunday, citing three people with knowledge of the deal, the company is currently in […]

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Bittrex files for bankruptcy after being charged for operating an unlicensed securities exchange

Duncan Riley — Tue, 09 May 2023 00:11:25 +0000

Cryptocurrency exchange Bittrex Inc. today filed for bankruptcy less than a month after being charged by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission with operating an unlicensed securities exchange. In its Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing in the Delaware Federal Court, the exchange said it had more than 100,000 creditors, with estimated liabilities and assets of between […]

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New York attorney general proposes new cryptocurrency legislation

Maria Deutscher — Fri, 05 May 2023 21:09:26 +0000

New York Attorney General Letitia James today proposed legislation that would ban cryptocurrency companies from engaging in deceptive business practices. The Crypto Regulation, Protection, Transparency, and Oversight Act, or CRPTO Act for short, also seeks to tackle other issues such as conflicts of interest. It would furthermore empower the attorney general to fine or shut down […]

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Coinbase and Block surprise with earnings and revenue beats

Duncan Riley — Fri, 05 May 2023 00:21:25 +0000

Shares in both Coinbase Inc. and Block Inc. rose in late trading after both crypto-focused companies surprised with earnings and revenue beats for their quarters that ended March 31. Coinbase reported a loss per share of 34 cents on revenue of $736 million. The revenue figure was down 33% from the same quarter of last […]

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Europol-led operation leads to arrest of 288 dark web vendors

Duncan Riley — Wed, 03 May 2023 00:15:53 +0000

A joint operation coordinated by the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation, with support from the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, has resulted in the arrest of 288 dark web vendors. The operation, code-named “SpecTor,” resulted from the previously unknown seizure of a dark web marketplace called Monopoly Market in December 2021. Seizure is the […]

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Robinhood launches ‘Connect’ to allow users to fund Web3 wallets and apps

Kyt Dotson — Fri, 28 Apr 2023 17:05:56 +0000

Robinhood Markets Inc., a commission-free stock trading and investing platform, Thursday introduced “Robinhood Connect,” a new feature that will allow users to fund their Web3 wallets and decentralized apps directly using their Robinhood Crypto accounts. Users of Web3 decentralized apps face a challenge when trying to get cryptocurrency tokens for their wallets and apps. Often, […]

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Google Cloud expands startup program to boost emerging Web3 projects

Kyt Dotson — Tue, 25 Apr 2023 14:00:54 +0000

Alphabet Inc.’s Google Cloud today announced that it’s broadening its outreach to Web3 and blockchain startups to enable emerging projects building in the industry to get started faster through an expansion of the Google for Startups Cloud Program to include Web3-specific benefits. Web3 technology, otherwise known as the decentralized web, allows for peer-to-peer transactions using […]

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Fetch.ai announces AI trading tools for decentralized crypto exchanges

Kyt Dotson — Wed, 19 Apr 2023 17:00:22 +0000

The Cambridge-based artificial intelligence lab Fetch.ai Ltd., which develops AI-powered agents for peer-to-peer applications, today announced the development of new trading tools for decentralized cryptocurrency exchanges. The new platform will use AI agents that can execute trades on the behalf of users, ensuring the best possible trade outcomes and reducing the need for manual intervention. […]

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Unchained Capital raises $60M to expand its bitcoin financial services

Kyt Dotson — Tue, 18 Apr 2023 21:15:19 +0000

Austin, Texas-based Unchained Capital Inc. today announced it has raised $60 million in fresh funding to expand its financial services for bitcoin holders during what have been chaotic markets. The Series B funding round was led by Valor Equity Partners, known for early investments in SpaceX and Tesla. The round closed earlier in April with […]

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SEC charges cryptocurrency exchange Bittrex and former CEO William Shihara

Maria Deutscher — Mon, 17 Apr 2023 20:56:27 +0000

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission today charged cryptocurrency company Bittrex Inc., as well as former Chief Executive Officer William Shihara, for operating an unregistered securities exchange. The agency filed the complaint with the U.S. Distinct Court in Western Washington. Earlier this year, the SEC stated that it believes many popular cryptocurrencies could be considered securities. […]

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Ethereum completes major upgrade allowing withdrawal of staked tokens

Kyt Dotson — Thu, 13 Apr 2023 15:10:07 +0000

The Ethereum blockchain completed its “Shapella” upgrade on Wednesday evening, allowing users who locked up Ether tokens to support the network to withdraw their cryptocurrency for the first time. The upgrade happened at 6:27 p.m. EDT when the Shanghai and Capella forks happened simultaneously — hence the merging of the names into Shapella – and […]

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Sei Labs nabs $30M to develop high-speed blockchain for trading

Kyt Dotson — Tue, 11 Apr 2023 17:10:18 +0000

Sei Labs, a contributor to the Sei blockchain focused on trading, said today that it has raised $30 million across two strategic funding rounds, according to a press release. Sei is a top-level, or Layer 1, blockchain designed to facilitate digital asset trading at large scale. It claims to be the fastest blockchain in the […]

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CryptoGPT raises $10M led by DWF Labs for AI-focused blockchain

Kyt Dotson — Mon, 10 Apr 2023 17:00:40 +0000

CryptoGPT, a zero-knowledge layer 2 blockchain that aims to help users make money from data for artificial intelligence use, today announced it has raised $10 million in new funding led by DWF Labs at a $250 million valuation. The company was founded in July 2022 with an aim to allow users to provide data for […]

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Blockchain scaling startup Opside raises $4M to expand its ZK-rollup-as-a-service platform

Kyt Dotson — Fri, 07 Apr 2023 16:20:04 +0000

Opside Network Inc., a blockchain infrastructure startup building “zero-knowledge” rollups, announced Thursday it raised $4 million in seed funding led by Web3.com Venture Capital to expand its blockchain scaling platform. ZK rollups are a type of technology that uses what are called zero-knowledge proofs to scale up blockchain networks by bundling transactions on a second-layer […]

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Binance Australia’s derivatives license canceled by regulator amid probe

Kyt Dotson — Thu, 06 Apr 2023 16:20:49 +0000

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has canceled Binance Australia’s derivatives license, at the cryptocurrency exchange’s own request, according to an announcement today. The action follows the regulatory body opening a “targeted review of Binance” in February. The exchange was ordered by ASIC to wind down its derivatives operations beginning April 14, when clients would not […]

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Blockchain interoperability protocol LayerZero raises $120M at $3B valuation

Kyt Dotson — Tue, 04 Apr 2023 18:00:19 +0000

LayerZero Labs Inc., a cross-chain interoperability protocol startup, today announced that it has raised $120 million in new funding at a valuation of $3 billion. The new Series B round triples LayerZero’s valuation since its last funding round of $135 million in March 2022. The round was joined by 33 investors, including the crypto arm […]

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Digital assets startup Bakkt completes acquisition of Apex Crypto for $200M

Kyt Dotson — Tue, 04 Apr 2023 16:20:45 +0000

Bakkt LLC, a digital asset startup founded by New York Stock Exchange owner Intercontinental Exchange Inc., announced Monday that it finalized its acquisition of crypto trading firm Apex Crypto LLC. Apex Crypto provides a turnkey platform for integrated cryptocurrency trading designed to meet the needs of financial institutions and trading customers such as neobanks. Through its […]

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Crypto hardware wallet maker Ledger raises $109 million in new funding

Kyt Dotson — Thu, 30 Mar 2023 16:35:07 +0000

Ledger SAS, a Paris-based startup that manufactures crypto wallet hardware, today announced that it has raised most of a $109 million funding round. Bloomberg reported that the firm’s valuation remains about $1.4 billion, which is about the same as the company had during its previous titanic funding round in June 2021, when Ledger raised $380 […]

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Econia Labs secures $6.5M to build decentralized order books on Aptos blockchain

Kyt Dotson — Wed, 29 Mar 2023 20:11:49 +0000

Econia Labs, a startup developing decentralized order books for the Aptos blockchain, announced today that it raised $6.5 million in seed funding led by Dragonfly. Other investors joining the round included, among others, Lightspeed Faction, Wintermute Ventures, Hudson River Trading, Flow Traders, Aptos Labs. Econia Labs develops an underlying toolset of protocols that permit settlement […]

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CFTC sues cryptocurrency exchange Binance and founder Changpeng Zhao

Maria Deutscher — Mon, 27 Mar 2023 21:05:19 +0000

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission today sued Binance and its founding Chief Executive Officer Changpeng Zhao, as well as former Chief Compliance Officer Samuel Lim. The CFTC is the agency responsible for regulating the derivatives market. Its newly filed lawsuit, which is structured as a civil complaint, charges Binance, Zhao and Lim with “numerous […]

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Web3 middleware platform Particle Network raises $7M

Kyt Dotson — Mon, 27 Mar 2023 16:35:02 +0000

Particle Network, a middleware platform for Web3 applications, announced Friday that it has raised $7 million in seed funding to support easier development of blockchain-based decentralized applications. The round was led by ABCDE Capital and was joined by other well-known crypto investors such as Animoca Brands, Hashkey Capital, Longhash Ventures, GSR Ventures and OP Crypto. […]

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Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon arrested in Montenegro

Maria Deutscher — Thu, 23 Mar 2023 20:42:56 +0000

Police in Montenegro have apprehended Do Kwon, the co-founder and former Chief Executive Officer of cryptocurrency company Terraform Labs Pte Ltd. Montenegro’s interior ministry announced the arrest today in a statement obtained by Bloomberg. According to the statement, Kwon was arrested at an airport in the capital of Podgorica while attempting to board a flight […]

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