Latest news with #M13
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Crypto needs to fix its image—or it'll stay stuck in its malaise
Crypto is a tale of two worlds. On one hand, the space has never had as strong a product-market fit as it does today across a range of categories, from payments to infrastructure to decentralized finance. Builders have access to capital, a more welcoming (if still imperfect) domestic regulatory environment, and increasingly mature infrastructure. It's easier to build and use crypto products now than at any point in the past. Yet on the other hand, the space continues to be awash with grift, short-termism, and a lack of broader public support. Sentiment was supposed to be different in 2025. Instead, a malaise still hangs over the market. What gives? Having been investing in crypto since 2019, I'm no stranger to skepticism about the space. I'm a believer, of course, and readers of the crypto trades embrace the field—and I'd even venture to say a significant portion of Fortune readers are believers, too. We don't have to convince each other. We feel the potential and see the progress; the outside world largely sees confusion, scams, and broken promises. So it's worth writing this and continuing the conversation among friends and skeptics alike. The fact is crypto's biggest headwind isn't regulation, price action, or even grifters. It's perception. From the outside looking in, the industry often comes off as unserious. But beneath the surface, real businesses solving real problems are being built. We need to advance the conversation beyond the crypto echo chamber on X. We need to build businesses that solve real-world problems—not just airdrop hype or pocket JPEGs as NFTs. Because that's what the outside world is seeing. Despite the perception, real progress is happening. Measuring crypto adoption is notoriously difficult, but estimates suggest that around 7% of the global population owns crypto today. That's meaningful, but it's nowhere near enough. We haven't had the 'my mom is using crypto' moment yet. In my day job at a generalist venture fund, I don't care whether a company uses blockchain or not. But I do care if blockchain unlocks a meaningful advantage. Crypto is a 'choose your own adventure' technology and can be applied in a million ways. Sometimes it's the right tool, sometimes not. Removing friction—whether in cross-border payments, mobile, or beyond—is how we get crypto to the mainstream. Not by preaching to the choir. Not by leaning into financial speculation. But by creating experiences that are better, faster, and cheaper for everyday people—even if they don't know (or care) that crypto is under the hood. Consider DePIN (Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Network), which refers to a physical infrastructure network that uses blockchain to improve the efficiency of a network (e.g., wireless networks, energy grids, data storage, etc.). Projects like Helium and M13 portfolio company Hivemapper incentivize consumers with tokens to participate in their networks (i.e., deploying wi-fi hotposts for Helium, dashcams for Hivemapper), and as a result they can build networks with structurally lower capex costs than their counterparts. Does the average person know what DePIN is? No. But the average person doesn't understand or care how Google Maps or Boingo Hotspots work either. In both cases, blockchain is the catalyst. Token incentives offset the massive capital expenditure that traditionally gatekeep infrastructure build-outs. Participants are rewarded for participation, and networks are scaled faster and cheaper than we've seen with that of innovations built on Web2, where users felt compelled to build out and contribute solutions through user generated content and social media. That is the DePIN playbook at work. Stablecoins—tokens that are pegged to a fixed value, often a fiat currency—have become one of crypto's real-world use cases. In 2024, stablecoin volumes hit $8.5 trillion. While small compared to the $190 trillion in global cross-border payment volume, they're growing rapidly for good reason. Programmable payments, 24/7 operations, and nearly instant settlement of stablecoins offer compelling alternatives to the traditional correspondent banking model plagued by trapped liquidity, opacity, high costs, and slow timelines. Friction in cross-border payments will dissipate as dollars become digitized in the form of stablecoins. Another overlooked area for friction removal is the mobile experience. Today's mobile web is riddled with clunky payments, difficult authentication, and poor identity management. Mobile crypto apps have historically made this worse, not better. But that's starting to change. Crypto wallets like Phantom are bringing intuitive, consumer-grade experiences to crypto. Mobile wallets are getting easier to set up, fund, and use across applications. Meanwhile, hardware innovation is picking up steam. The team behind the blockchain Solana developed its own phone, the Saga, and while it may not replace the iPhone anytime soon, it was a strategic signal: The future of crypto needs to be mobile-native, not just mobile-compatible. Expect deeper OS-level integrations—from native wallets to decentralized identity management—to become table stakes in the next wave of devices. Crypto enthusiasts already imagine a future where signing into an app, sending a payment, proving your identity, or verifying a document is native to your phone without needing dozens of middlemen apps or endless passwords. Now, it's time to simplify the message and make it relevant to outsiders. To truly break through, the crypto community needs to address our industry-wide marketing problem. Here's how: Speak in benefits, not features: Talk about what crypto enables, not how it works. Embrace accessibility: Build products that feel familiar while delivering new value. Demonstrate integrity: Actively distance ourselves from the scams and schemes. Show don't tell: Let working products build credibility instead of promises. The next wave of crypto winners will make the technology invisible and inevitable—solving real problems that matter to people outside our echo chamber. I feel that's already happening. Crypto has a marketing crisis, not a tech one. We need to stop convincing ourselves and start welcoming outsiders through demonstrable value. Only then will we transform from a niche technology movement into the foundation of a more efficient, accessible digital future. The opinions expressed in commentary pieces are solely the views of their authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and beliefs of Fortune. Read more: America must harness stablecoins to future-proof the dollar Stablecoin legislation risks sowing seeds of a financial crisis The U.S. dollar's strongest ally is crypto Elon Musk wants the U.S. Treasury to be on a blockchain. That's a terrible idea—take it from a big proponent of the technology This story was originally featured on Sign in to access your portfolio
Bloomberg
12-05-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Managing Supply Chain Changes Amid Trade Uncertainty
Carter Reum, partner and co-founder of venture firm M13, discusses how his portfolio company Pietra is helping e-commerce businesses adjust their supply chains in the face of tariffs. Reum speaks with Caroline Hyde on 'Bloomberg Technology.' (Source: Bloomberg)
Axios
24-04-2025
- Business
- Axios
Independent journalists prioritize community building for growth
Influential journalists who have positioned themselves as subject matter experts and amassed large followings are ditching traditional outlets to venture out on their own. Why it matters: These independent journalists are grappling with the same challenges that many communication and brand teams face. That is, how do they differentiate themselves in the market and establish a strong reputation with the audiences that matter most? State of play: As trust in media declines, independent journalists are pivoting away from writing for passive readerships and toward building a hyper-engaged community — and it's proving to be quite lucrative. The Free Press, founded by former New York Times writer Bari Weiss, boasts more than 155,000 paid subscribers and is estimated to generate at least $10 million annually from subscription revenue, per Axios' Sara Fischer. Former Bloomberg reporter Eric Newcomer announced that his independent media entity, Newcomer, brought in $2 million in revenue in 2024 and he has recently made his first round of hires. Former CNN reporter Oliver Darcy's Status newsletter has accumulated more than 70,000 total subscribers since its launch and is estimated to generate $1 million in annual recurring revenue. The latest big-name journalist to make this pivot is former Forbes editor Alex Konrad, who last month launched Upstarts Media, covering the startup ecosystem. The big picture: The volatility of the news industry, paired with the growth of publishing platforms, has made independent journalism more appealing but has also led to more media fragmentation. The formats and distribution channels are also evolving, with news personalities like Jim Acosta and Chris Matthews hosting daily live shows on these creator-owned platforms like Substack, for example. Between the lines: Independent ventures enable journalists to become hyper-specific on coverage areas and desired audiences — and it allows them to engage with these audiences as they wish. Konrad created a WhatsApp group for the founding subscribers to his Upstarts newsletter, in which he actively hosts conversations. Substack writer Emily Sundberg is known for engaging in real-time through her comments section. Driving the news: Christine Choi, partner at early stage venture capital firm M13, gathered several journalists who ditched traditional newsrooms to build their own media empires — like Newcomer, Konrad, Polina Pompliano and Zack Guzmán — to help make sense of the evolving landscape for a room full of investors, founders and communication professionals. Media entrepreneurs like Business Insider co-founder Henry Blodget, Quartz co-founder and CEO of Charter media Kevin Delaney and Capital Allocators founder Ted Seides were also in the crowd. What they're saying: In-person events are a major component of community building, Konrad told me during our on-stage conversation at the M13 event. "The media landscape and technological trends [are] pushing us towards community, towards a direct relationship with your audience," he said. "The most important thing about events is to have a moment where I can talk to a bunch of people that matter to [the startup] ecosystem and help them meet other people within the ecosystem. "It's not just revenue for me. It's about seeing that close connection with our audiences grow."
Axios
03-03-2025
- Business
- Axios
$300 billion Trump crypto rally re-ignites reserve fight
A cryptocurrency reserve held by the U.S. government would not necessarily require taxpayer money for the feds to set up a stash of several billion dollars' worth, but that doesn't mean everyone — even everyone in the crypto industry — thinks it is a good idea. Why it matters: President Trump, who calls himself America's "first crypto president," stoked a $300 billion cryptocurrency rally this past weekend with a social post about a reserve that would include several major cryptocurrencies. Friction point: There's a lot of blowback to the whole idea, particularly if it were funded by taxpayers. "I think reserves actually make no sense," Latif Peracha, general partner at early stage venture fund, M13, which has invested in many crypto-connected companies, including many with a bitcoin focus, told Axios. While he acknowledges that such a program would be good for some of his investments, he doesn't think the idea holds up to geopolitical scrutiny, especially if it undermines U.S. Treasuries as the go-to safe haven for other nations. "I think that's long term a potential risk to a dollar-first global order," Peracha said. Instead, he said, the Trump administration should put all its political capital into advancing stablecoins rather than diverting some of it to this reserves idea, he said. Yes, but: Perarcha's view isn't necessarily the blockchain consensus. Many CEOs and leaders in the industry support the general concept — though they tend to diverge on just how many flavors of crypto assets the U.S. should hold. "The reserve going beyond bitcoin to also include the key crypto assets ethereum, XRP, Solana and Cardano shows that the Trump administration is serious about this," Mena Theodorou, a co-founder at the crypto exchange Coinstash, said in a statement sent to Axios. Others differ. "Bitcoin is the only one that makes sense to hold in a strategic reserve," Zach Burks, CEO of Mintable, an NFT creation platform, wrote in a statement. Reality check: Andrew O'Neill, managing director of digital assets for S&P Global Ratings, wrote that Bitcoin has some of the same properties as gold, giving it a reasonable narrative as a national reserve asset. But, for a nation-state, the other "assets differs significantly from BTC and tech venture investment is less common for sovereigns." What they're saying: The chief of crypto and AI for the White House, David Sacks, has urged critics to wait and see what the administration actually plans to propose. "Nobody announced a tax or spending program," Sacks wrote on social media. Even still, critics like crypto researcher Molly White argue that any such initiative will only benefit those who already hold the chosen crypto assets, "rather than benefit all Americans." Between the lines: A strategic reserve still raises the fundamental question: What's the strategy? Bharat Ramamurti, the Biden-era deputy director of the National Economic Council, now with the the American Economic Liberties Project, noted to Axios that past strategic reserves had to be created with an act of Congress. As Ramamurti explained, the U.S. has reserves in commodities like petroleum in order to take action in the market when costs are hurting Americans. Bitcoin is not so widely used by Americans that such market operations would be easy to justify. The other problem that has to be addressed is how to actually get the coins in question for a reserve. The United States already holds over $17 billion in crypto assets that it seized from criminals in various operations. The US could just use seized assets, redirect revenue to buying additional assets, or seek appropriations to buy crypto assets from Congress. So far, the White House has not described its planned approach. 💭 Our thought bubble: Sitting on seized digital assets is passive investment, government style. If the feds start trading those assets to hit certain allocation targets, that's not passive. It's a recipe for drama among Trump's supporters and fodder for his critics. What's next: Last week, the administration announced a summit devoted to cryptocurrency for this Friday, and the reserve is on the agenda. "More to come at the summit," Sacks tweeted. An administration spokesperson directed Axios to these tweets from Sacks rather than provide further details about its plans. Emily Peck contributed.
