Latest news with #MulticoinCapital
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Crypto-to-Fiat App P2P.me Raises $2M from Multicoin and Coinbase Ventures
Bitcoin's original promise of "peer-to-peer electronic cash" hasn't exactly developed in the way Satoshi intended. More people than ever are eager to pay in crypto, while most vendors want nothing but fiat. While the mismatch has plenty of workarounds in countries with a strong banking and credit card culture, it's a real problem in places with alternative electronic payment rails, like QR codes, says pseudonymous crypto developer Sheldon Cooper. How can one scan a fiat-only code and pay in stablecoins? Cooper's claimed solution, does it without ever touching the regular on-and-off ramps. Instead, this blockchain-based service relies on a network of middlemen willing to accept USDC from, say, Alice and send the equivalent fiat along to Bob. The whole process takes about 90 seconds, he said. There are no traditional identity checks, either. vets its users with zero-knowledge proofs that checks for a real-seeming social media presence and maybe even for a government ID. But it doesn't store this personal data as would most financial institutions from banks on down to Binance. "What we thought about is, 'How do we decentralize this? How do we do on and off rams in a decentralized way,'" said Cooper. "The number one concern is privacy and self custody. All these CEXes give data to the government." quirky blend of permissionless markets and privacy tech has processed $1.6 million in payments from around 1,100 users, mostly in Indonesia, Nigeria and Vietnam. That modest amount, quickly growing, was enough to get venture capitalists' interest: Multicoin Capital and Coinbase Ventures recently invested $2 million seed round. The money's already helped scale its team to 20 people ahead of a planned push into Latin America, Cooper said. He sees local communities that struggle to navigate established financial rails as key adopters. So too are crypto-savvy tourists who go places where their credit cards don't work, but their cell phones do. Built on Base, the open protocol plans to launch a token in the next 12 months that will shift control to the community, according to Cooper. "The strategic idea of the token is to scale globally, to break the network effects of the centralized exchange with P2P," he said. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
15-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
DoubleZero Foundation Secures $28 Million for Blockchain Infrastructure Expansion
DoubleZero Foundation has successfully closed a $28 million token funding round, co-led by Multicoin Capital and Dragonfly Capital. The organization, which supports the DoubleZero protocol, aims to develop a global fiber network designed to enhance performance for blockchains and distributed systems. In addition to the leading investors, other participants in the funding round included Foundation Capital, Reciprocal Ventures, DBA, Borderless Capital, Superscrypt and Frictionless. The foundation plans to allocate the raised funds toward hiring personnel in key areas such as marketing, developer relations, and business development. This funding will also facilitate the network's transition from its testnet beta phase to a public mainnet anticipated later in the year. The launch of a permissioned testnet was also announced, allowing Solana validators and RPCs to participate in the testing phase. Austin Federa, co-founder of DoubleZero, indicated that the primary focus is currently onboarding Solana validators before advancing to a permissionless testnet. The testnet is operational in seven global cities: Singapore, Tokyo, Los Angeles, New York, London, Amsterdam and Frankfurt. Kyle Samani, managing partner at Multicoin Capital, explained that the public internet's bandwidth limitations and unpredictable routing create challenges in delivering reliable experiences akin to Web2. DoubleZero intends to address these issues, aiming to enhance bandwidth and reduce latency for high-performance blockchains through fiber links provided by independent network contributors. Core contributors to the project include Malbec Labs and Jump Crypto. The foundation's initiatives are positioned to lay the groundwork for a new physical infrastructure that supports the evolving landscape of blockchain technology.
Bloomberg
14-03-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Trump Crypto Czar Sacks Sells Over $200 Million in Investments
David Sacks, President Donald Trump's adviser for artificial intelligence and cryptocurrencies, and his venture-capital firm Craft Ventures have divested more than $200 million worth of holdings related to the digital-asset industry, according to a memo released by the White House. Sacks and Craft Ventures sold all their liquid cryptocurrency holdings, including Bitcoin, Ethereum and Solana, prior to Trump's inauguration, the memo dated March 5 from White House counsel David Warrington said. Sacks divested his stock in Coinbase Global Inc. and Robinhood Markets Inc. as well as limited-partner interests in crypto funds Multicoin Capital and Blockchain Capital, according to the memo. Craft also sold its interests in Multicoin Capital and Bitwise Asset Management Inc.
Yahoo
13-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Solana Validators Prepare To Vote on Influential SIMD-228 Proposal Impacting Inflation
The Solana community is currently engaged in discussions around the SIMD-228 proposal, a governance initiative that aims to transform the network's tokenomics by introducing a dynamic emissions model for SOL tokens. Authored by Tushar Jain and Vishal Kankani of Multicoin Capital, the proposal seeks to replace the existing fixed inflation schedule of 4.6% annually, which decreases by 15% each year until stabilizing at 1.5%. Under the new model, the issuance rate of new SOL tokens would adjust based on the staking rate. If the percentage of staked SOL falls below a targeted threshold of 33%, the inflation rate would increase to incentivize staking. Conversely, higher staking rates would lead to lower emissions, reflecting the network's reduced need to 'overpay' for security. Proponents argue that this change could enhance the value of SOL by making it scarcer during periods of high staking. Voting on the proposal is set to kick off in epoch 753, which is expected to begin this weekend. Key figures in the Solana ecosystem, including co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko and Helius founder Mert Mumtaz, have expressed support for the initiative. Mumtaz stated that the proposal could strengthen the network while emphasizing the value of public discourse regardless of the outcome. However, not all voices in the community are in favor. Lily Liu, president of the Solana Foundation, has expressed skepticism about the proposal, labeling it 'too half-baked' and warning that its unpredictable staking yields could deter institutional investors. The authors of SIMD-228 have defended their proposal, asserting that it has undergone extensive discussion and input since its inception in January. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
03-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Donald Trump Names XRP, SOL, ADA, BTC and ETH as Part of U.S. Crypto Reserve
U.S. President Donald Trump named XRP, Solana (SOL) and Cardano (ADA) as three assets to be included in a U.S. strategic crypto reserve on Sunday, providing the first details about what such a reserve may look like. Notably, Trump did not initially mention bitcoin (BTC) or Ethereum (ETH) — the two largest cryptocurrencies by market capitalization — in his statement, but he later clarified that the reserve would include these assets as well. Trump made the announcements on Truth Social, his social media platform. "A U.S. Crypto Reserve will elevate this critical industry after years of corrupt attacks by the Biden Administration, which is why my Executive Order on Digital Assets directed the Presidential Working Group to move forward on a Crypto Strategic Reserve that includes XRP, SOL, and ADA," Trump stated. "I will make sure the U.S. is the Crypto Capital of the World. We are MAKING AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!" Following Trump's initial announcement, XRP, SOL, and ADA experienced significant price surges. The price of ADA soared by more than 63% within two hours after the president's post, while SOL increased by 23% and XRP by 32%. While fans of XRP, ADA and SOL celebrated the news, some BTC and ETH fans initially responded with a mixture of disappointment and surprise. Around an hour after his initial post, the president clarified that "BTC and ETH, as other valuable Cryptocurrencies, will be at the heart of the Reserve." Trump has been discussing the idea of a strategic crypto reserve since his 2024 presidential campaign. Soon after taking office in January, he signed an executive order directing a working group to evaluate the formation of a strategic crypto reserve, but the order did not explicitly mandate that the U.S. establish one outright. The order said the digital assets working group should "evaluate the potential creation and maintenance of a national digital asset stockpile." Trump said on Sunday that the group should "move forward" with formally establishing the reserve. The working group will host a summit on Friday with crypto industry and government representatives. Sen. Cynthia Lummis previously introduced a bill to create a strategic bitcoin reserve for the U.S. She first advocated for one at July's Bitcoin Nashville conference, where then-candidate Trump also spoke. The bill proposed by Lummis would have authorized the U.S. Treasury to acquire one million bitcoins over five years, equating to approximately 5% of the total Bitcoin supply. A number of U.S. state legislatures have already introduced bills to create their own strategic crypto reserves, though most of these efforts have failed to take off. David Sacks, the White House crypto and AI czar, is a limited partner of Multicoin Capital, which is invested in Solana, a blockchain ecosystem focused on providing low fees and fast transactions. Sacks said in a 2021 interview that he was "hodling" SOL, the blockchain's native token. TRUMP, the president's memecoin, is also built on Solana. Sacks said on X (formerly Twitter) that Trump's announcement was "consistent with his week-one EO" shortly after Trump's posts. Ripple, meanwhile, is in the midst of a years-long legal battle with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which charged the company with selling XRP — the native token of the Ripple-supported XRP Ledger blockchain — as an unregistered security during Trump's first term. In recent months, Ripple has sought to increase its profile in Washington, including by contributing heavily to Fairshake, a crypto industry super PAC, as well as to Trump's 2025 inaugural fund. UPDATE (March 2, 2025, 16:50 UTC): Adds additional information and Trump's second post. UPDATE (March 2, 17:15 UTC): Adds additional information and responses.
