Jan. 10: EOS Network Ventures (ENV) invests $2.4M in NoahArk Tech Group, DeFi for secure decentralized trading, according to the team: "The investment will be used to build a robust DeFi within the EOS ecosystem and focus on decentralized exchange activities. NoahArk aims to drive innovation in the EOS DeFi ecosystem, particularly in decentralized exchange activities. The company plans to develop an interoperable liquidity aggregation protocol in collaboration with leading DeFi teams." [EOS]

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Brevan Howard, Hamilton Lane Back New Tokenization Platform Libre

Jan. 10: Libre, a newly established tokenization platform, is emerging from stealth mode under the leadership of tokenization pioneer Avtar Sehra, constructed using Polygon CDK, the blockchain development kit of the Ethereum-based scaling network. Heavy hitters from the world of institutional cryptocurrency investing like Nomura’s Laser Digital, Brevan Howard’s WebN group and private markets giant Hamilton Lane are foundational partners and the first users, the companies said on Wednesday.

SKALE, Ethereum Layer-2 Network, Now Has Chain Pricing Live on Mainnet

Jan. 10: SKALE Chain Pricing is officially live on mainnet, with first payments due Feb. 1, according to the team: "Instead of adopting an unsustainable model that may eventually lead to increased fees or perpetual subsidies, SKALE opts for a sustainable system with zero gas fees for end-users, financed through chain fees. This approach positions SKALE for mass adoption and long-term economic stability." The move follows a vote by the community last month. [SKL]

Hedera-Based Tune.FM Raises $20M for Artist-Friendly Web3 Music Platform

Jan. 10: Tune.FM, a Web3 music platform, has received $20 million in capital from alternative investment group LDA Capital to advance its goals of helping musicians earning a greater share of royalties from their work. Using Hedera Hashgraph's blockchain technology, Tune.FM provides musicians with a platform to receive micropayments for streaming in its native JAM token (JAM) as well as minting non-fungible tokens (NFTs) for digital music assets and collectibles.

DeFi Developer Daniele Sesta Deploys New Project 'WAGMI' on Metis With $2M Grant

Jan. 9: Metis, the layer 2 blockchain, in the first official disbursement of their Ecosystem Development Fund (EDF), revealed that DeFi products suite WAGMI will receive a $2 million grant and deployed on Metis on Jan. 8, according to the team: "WAGMI is the latest venture from DeFi magnate Daniele Sesta, and WAGMI will be deploying a decentralized exchange that will allow permissionless pool creation, arbitrage bots that will be a way for market inefficiencies to become users' returns and GMI strategies that allow users to seamlessly interact with concentrated liquidity pools."

Elastos Launches 'Elacity DRM' for Web3 Rights Management

Jan. 9: Elastos, working to develop a decentralized internet infrastructure, announced the launch of Elacity DRM, Elacity's first digital rights management (DRM) tool for Web3, focused on video content, according to the team: "Web3 promises to transform the realm of DRM and the scope of digital asset ownership and trading. Based on the Elastos Smart Chain, the Elacity DRM product is EVM compatible and will be available to creators on the Elastos SmartWeb via its marketplace starting January 2024. It fosters interactive Web3 content markets while protecting user data and intellectual property from unauthorized access and misuse."

Entangle, Messaging Infrastructure for Web3 Liquidity, Enters Alliance With Layer-2 Network Mantle

Jan. 9: Entangle , a customizable messaging infrastructure to "unify Web3 and optimize ecosystem liquidity," has entered a strategic alliance with Mantle Network, an Ethereum layer-2 network, according to the team: "Entangle, designed to optimize yield asset utility, foster liquidity sharing among decentralized applications (dApps), drive cross-chain interoperability and offer custom data feeds for Mantle Ecosystem, has gained pivotal support, including up to $50K from Mantle Foundation, to facilitate technical integration and marketing efforts. Entangle's integration addresses liquidity, smart contract communication and scalability, solidifying Mantle’s position as the premier destination for building groundbreaking dApps."

Polkadot Wallet Talisman Releases 'Sign-In-With-Substrate'

Jan. 9: Polkadot wallet, Talisman, released "Sign-in with Substrate (SIWS) similar to sign-in with Ethereum (SIWE)," according to a blog post: "The goal for SIWS is to allow people to 'store and access their own data in web2-style apps,' and to do so with a Web3 sense of decentralization in terms of identity and ownership. This immediately benefits application developers, end users and ecosystems on Polkadot." [DOT]

ZkLink, Multi-Chain Rollup Platform, Releases 2024 Roadmap, Plans $ZKL Token

Jan. 9: ZkLink, a multi-chain rollup infrastructure based on zero-knowledge technology, revealed its 2024 roadmap on Tuesday, including "what comes next for the protocol and the potential for a native token to ensure streamlined bridging of assets across the ZK rollup ecosystem." According to the roadmap, "a $ZKL token is coming and we're getting the engine warm for this train ride." ALSO: the project's new whitepaper is here.

QuickNode, Blockchain Infrastructure Provider, Aims to 'Redefine Industry Partnerships'

Jan. 9: QuickNode, a blockchain infrastructure solutions provider, introduced their new "Preferred Partner Network, aiming to unite top B2B blockchain companies in a bid to redefine industry partnerships," according to the team: "The business development network, featuring heavyweights like Chainlink and Fireblocks, aims to set new standards by offering tailored opportunities for members to expand their Total Addressable Market, secure more deals and gain valuable referrals."

C3, Crypto Exchange With 'Self-Custodial Approach, Launches Public Mainnet

Jan. 8: C3.io, a hybrid crypto exchange, announced the launch of public mainnet. The project's "self-custodial approach ensures users control their funds, enhancing security while reducing insolvency risks," according to the team. "Emphasizing security, C3.io passed two Halborn audits and offers up to $100K for vulnerabilities with Immunifi. Collaborating with Pyth Network, it has processed 10 million+ oracle-based transactions. Users can benefit from all CEX functionalities, including instant execution, high throughput, REST APIs, Websocket connectivity, advanced order types and support for all blockchains." According to the project documentation: "C3’s on-chain component consists of two smart contract applications, the Cross-collateral Clearing Engine and the Health Calculator, which are deployed on the Algorand blockchain and serve as C3's settlement layer…. To consolidate balances, C3 leverages Wormhole’s cross-chain interoperability protocol to process deposits and withdrawals to and from C3’s on-chain component."

Solana Foundation Claims 2.5K Monthly Active Developers in Report

Jan. 9: The Solana Foundation released its new report on the State of the Developer Ecosystem, which "outlines the strength of the developer community on Solana in 2023," according to the team: "The report highlights key metrics for ecosystem health, including monthly active developer figures, retention rates, and overall levels of developer experience. Today, the Solana ecosystem has more than 2,500 monthly active developers on open source repositories, with a three-month retention rate of over 50%."

Ta-da, AI Marketplace Based on 'Gamified Web3,' Raises $3.5M

Jan. 8: Ta-da, an AI data marketplace, completed a $3.5M funding round from investors including Morningstar Ventures, the layer-1 blockchain protocol MultiversX, GBV Capital, XVentures, NxGen and Spark Digital Capital, according to the team: Keying off the model of a "gamified Web3" app, "Ta-da is the brainchild of Vivoka, a successful startup that develops speech recognition solutions." CEO William Simonin is a serial entrepreneur, according to a spokesperson, while his brother Owen "Hasheur" Simonin, founder of Meria.com and one of the leading Web3 influencers in France, is an investor and serves on the advisory board. "Other members of its advisory board include Luc Julia (creator of Apple's Siri) and Morningstar Ventures CEO Danilo Carlucci."

Samson Mow's AQUA Launches Bitcoin Wallet for Latin American Users, Maxis

Jan. 7: AQUA by JAN3, a Bitcoin and stablecoin wallet headed by former Blockstream Chief Strategy Officer Samson Mow, launched on Jan. 3, according to a press release. Designed for users in Latin America, AQUA claims features that "can also attract die-hard Bitcoin Maximalists, offering them a powerful interface to layer-2 technologies like Lightning and Liquid. By utilizing submarine swaps, AQUA can completely bypass high fee-rate environments, seamlessly moving between Lightning and Liquid. AQUA gives Bitcoiners the ability to batch their Bitcoin transactions in Layer 2 and then swap to mainchain Bitcoin when fees are low."

Parallel Claims to be First Arbitrum Orbit L2 Live on Mainnet

Jan. 7: Parallel Network has officially launched on mainnet and is open to developers, according to the team, claiming to be the first layer-2 network on Arbitrum Orbit to go live. "It is also the first non-custodial omni-chain margin protocol, which allows liquidity to be pooled across multiple chains and makes it immediately available on the Parallel Network."

John Lilic Joins Telos Foundation as Executive Director

Jan. 5: Telos Foundation, which supports the delegated proof-of-stake (DPOS) layer-1 blockchain Telos, named former Consensys and Polygon contributor John Lilic as executive director. According to the team: "Lilic will spearhead Telos's evolution into a layer-0 network underpinned by ZK technology aimed at attracting developers and users worldwide. Lilic was an early volunteer at the Bitcoin Center NYC in 2014, before joining Consensys in 2015 and Polygon as a key advisor in 2020. Lilic is also a Top 50 Web3 Angel Investor. Lilic will donate the headline sponsorship for ETHCC 2024 to Telos, plus an additional sponsorship at ETH Belgrade 2024. Lilic will also work to establish an external advisory board made up of world class talent in 2024."

Bracket, DeFi Structured Products Platform, Raises $2M from Binance Labs, NGC

Jan. 5: Bracket Labs, a provider of leveraged structured products for non-custodial DeFi users, raised $2 million in a pre-seed round led by Binance Labs and NGC Ventures for their "Passage" volatility trading product on the BracketX platform, according to the team: "Passage, built on Arbitrum, simplifies on-chain long and short volatility trading with a user-friendly experience, offering features like 200% leverage, a limit order book and a liquidity-improving vault. Bracket Labs plans to enhance Passage by introducing liquid-staked tokens and deploying on BNB Chain in 2024."

KuCoin Invests in Solana-Based Mixed-Reality Project DeMR

Jan. 4: KuCoin Labs, the investment and incubation program of Seychelles-based crypto exchange KuCoin, has made a strategic investment in DeMR, a "decentralized mixed reality (MR)" infrastructure network (MR-DePIN) built on the Solana blockchain, according to a press release. The project solves key problems associated with creating 3D maps, according to a whitepaper, by employing "a decentralized network and automated AI map reconstruction pipeline, which can collect and reconstruct global full-scene 3D high-definition map data at lower cost with higher efficiency, and provide open spatial interaction services for massive MR applications. The ownership and revenue of the data are shared by global contributors, and the revenue will be continuously obtained in subsequent applications according to the evaluation of contribution volume."

EOS-Focused VC Invests in EZSwap for Gaming and 'Smart Inscriptions'

Jan. 4: EOS Network Ventures (ENV) "just invested $500K in EZ Swap, a multi-chain NFT DEX protocol and inscription marketplace, during its successful second fundraising round in December 2023, totaling $1 million," according to the team. "Led by ENV with support from major investors like IOBC Capital and Momentum Capital, this investment is set to significantly boost EZ Swap's gaming asset and smart inscription protocol landscape." ENV is a venture capital fund set up to make strategic equity and token-based investments into Web3 startups deploying on the EOS Network. According to the EOS Network Foundation, the EOS Network is a "third-generation blockchain platform powered by the EOS VM, a low-latency, highly performant and extensible WebAssembly engine for deterministic execution of near feeless transactions." [EOS]