This Week on web3 5min recap

Market information, major news, and fundraising status for 9/21~9/27.

Good morning.
Mitsui from web3 researcher.

Every Monday will be a summary article about the web3 market for the past week.Please use it to catch up on information and trends!

①Pickup
②Market & News
③Projects funded

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①Pickup

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Pickups and descriptions of the week's news and fundraising projects of interest.

1,Hamster Combat announces token buyback, NFT and web app release ahead of airdrop

• Ahead of Token Airdrop, Hamster Kombat Unveils Roadmap for Future Development

• Team Plans Token Buyback, NFT Integration, and Progressive Web App (PWA) Release for Apple and Android Devices

2,Zeta Markets plans Solana L2 despite previous opposition to ecosystem

• On September 20, Zeta Markets, a Solana-based derivatives exchange, announcedthat it is working on a roll-up called Bullet.data-dl-uid="39">describing the project as the first layer 2 network built on top of Solana.

• Zeta Markets plans to deploy a Bullet test net in Q4 2024 and launch the main net in Q1 2025

• Bullet will combine Solana-based data availability and settlement with an off-chain zero-knowledge virtual machine that facilitates the execution of smart contracts.

• The company also announced plans to launch a new version of its decentralized exchange, Zeta X, on Bullet.The project claims that Zeta X will offer 5ms latency and support chain abstraction, and aims to provide a user experience comparable to a centralized exchange

• Layer 2-based scaling is a topic of disagreement within the Solana community, with many influential figures adamantly opposed to using L2 for scaling

3, Celestia Foundation raises $100 million

• The round was led by Bain Capital Crypto, with participation from Syncracy Capital, 1kx, Robot Ventures and Placeholder

• Celestia's "Data Availability Sampling" technology is critical to scaling, allowing users to validate large blocks without downloading all data

• Since inception, over 24 roll-ups have been introduced into the network

• Celestia will see an 82% increase in distribution supply with a mass unlocking in late October

4,Ethena Releases Blackrock BUIDL Stable Coin UStb

• Ethena Partners with Securitize to Launch UStb, a Stablecoin Backed by BlackRock's Tokenized US Treasury Fund BUIDL

• UStb exists as a separate product from USDe, offering different risk profiles to users and exchanges

• New UStb Launch Provides Interesting Counterbalance to USDe, Addresses Major Concerns About Stablecoin Resilience Amid Recession

5,Base accounts for the majority of Ethereum ecosystem activity

• Base sets new records for weekly active wallets, weekly transactions, and transactions on the DEX

• Base is attractive to traders because of Coinbase's dominance in the industry.The U.S.-based exchange has more than 70 million users, many of whom want to use cryptocurrencies in a variety of ways, not just to buy and sell tokens.

• Base is the third largest DEX trader with over 3.5 million traders, followed by Ethereum with 115,000 traders and Optimism with 96,000 traders

• Polygon's active wallets plummeted to 2.1 million from 4.1 million in June; Arbitrum's active wallets fell to 1.2 million from 4 million in April; ZKsync fell to 400,000 from 1.9 million in June

6,XProtocol announces XForge phone, priced $299

• Ethereum Layer-3 network XProtocol has revealed that it will launch a Web3-enabled gaming smartphone called XForge later this year

• Priced at $299, the Android device is claimed to be the world's first "DePIN phone" that uses the XProtocol blockchain to allow users to earn various rewards and airdrops

• XForge is powered by a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor with 256GB of storage and 12GB of RAM

• Initially deploying web3 functionality in a Base-based Layer 3 XProtocol chain, but will migrate to its own Layer 1 network in the future

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②Market & News

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⛓️Blockchain

L1

• Japan Open Chain (JOC) Partners with Bifrost to Enhance Chain-to-Chain Interoperability

• LayerZero activity up 433% after second airdrop announcement.

• There are many reasons for Bitcoin to rise in value - how far do analysts think BTC will go?

• Ethernet researchers warn of possible loss of anonymity for node operators

• Ethernet transaction fees soar as active accounts fall to year's lowest level

• Modular blockchain Celestia raises ¥14.3 billion

• Avalanche targets institutional adoption as virtual currency projects seek use cases

• Avalanche Awards $40 Million in Grants to Developers Building Layer 1 Chains

L2

Overall, TVL is also increasing.

• Plume Network Announces Tokenization of Over $1 Billion in Real World Assets, Including Solar Power Plants, Medicaid Claims, and Mineral Rights

• Celo's Active Wallet Count Surpasses Tron

• Asphere and Babylon Announce BTC L2 Launch Service

• Base accounts for the majority of ethereum ecosystem activity

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💰DeFi

DeFi's TVL is also much back.

• Zeta Markets plans Solana L2 despite ecosystem opposition

• Curve Finance Considers Removing TrueUSD as Collateral for Stable Coin Curve USD

• EigenLayer expects token transfer restriction to end on September 30

• DEX aggregator Jupiter acquires SolanaFM and Coinhall

• Ethena Releases Blackrock BUIDL Stable Coin UStb

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🖼️NFT

Transaction volume is increasing.

• NFT has symbolism that meme coins cannot replicate

• Magic Eden enables optional royalties on EVM chains

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🎮GameFi

The UAW increase in the top games is incredible.

• Hamster Combat announces token buyback, NFT and web app release ahead of airdrop

• Google Cloud and Solana Labs offer web3 game development API GameShift

• STEPN GO to Release Limited Edition Genesis Sneakers for Adidas

• Hamster Combat faces backlash for excluding 57% of users from airdrop

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👀Other

Dapps-related

• New Farcaster "Mini App" feature released in Web3 Social Protocol client Warpcast.

• Travala Expands Booking Support to Solana-Based Properties and Offers SOL Travel Benefits

• USDC-issued U.S. Circle Unveils Real-time Automated Compliance Checking Feature

• Siemens Germany issues and settles tokenized bonds in JP Morgan's Onyx and JPM coin

• PayPal plans to allow "buy, hold, and sell crypto assets" with US corporate accounts

• Swiss crypto asset management platform Taurus partners with Aktionariat on tokenization

• Visa develops "legal tender collateral token issuance platform" for financial institutions.On Ethereum

State, Legal & Regulatory Affairs

• Kamala Harris Breaks Silence on Cryptocurrencies, Encourages Innovation; Cryptocurrency Searches Increase 316%

• Bank of Korea to pilot CBDC payments at supermarkets and convenience stores

• SEC Chairman Gary Gensler was grilled at a congressional hearing on virtual currency regulation and his handling of the DEBT Box case

• Former Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison sentenced to two years in prison for her role in FTX collapse

• Bitcoin discounts in South Korea hit highest since October 2023

• South Korea Fines Worldcoin and Tools for Humanity for Data Privacy Violations

• Kanto Finance Bureau takes administrative action against DMM Bitcoin, confirming "serious problems" with unauthorized BTC outflow.

• Australia seeks to require licensing for cryptocurrency companies under the Companies Act

Other

• BlendAI Announces "Gammie," the Second Stage of Copyright-free Characters for AI-related Use.

• Coinbase Announces Plan to Bring cbBTC to Solana Network

• Bitbank to Support Bitcoin's "Lightning Network"

• NTT Digital partners with actor Tetsuya Bessho's Visual Voice to study the use of blockchain for video asset management and rights transfer.

• BlackRock's bitcoin physical ETF, options trading approved by US SEC

• Bananagan promises to refund $3 million stolen from affected users

• NTT Digital partners with GMO Media to introduce "scramberry WALLET" to Gesoten byGMO.

• ZKsync (ZK), Moonwell (WELL) and CoW Protocol (COW) to list on Coinbase

• XProtocol announces XForge phone, priced at $299

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③Projects funded

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Top 5 projects

1,Celestia

• Overview: A simplified Layer 1 blockchain focused solely on transaction ordering and publishing transaction data.

• Category: Modular Blockchain, DA

• Procurement amount：$100M

• Investment Round：不明

• Investors：★Bain Capital Crypto、1kx、Robot Ventures、Placeholder

2、Infinex

• Overview:A secure, user-friendly platform designed to simplify access to DeFi and on-chain protocols. ethereum,Solana, Polygon, etc., combined with support for multiple blockchains, eliminating the need for multiple wallets, seed phrases, and gas fees.

• Category: DeFi

• Procurement amount:$65.29M

• Investment Round：不明

• Investors：Wintermute、Framework Ventures、Moonrock Capital、Bodhi Ventures、etc..

3、Pencils Protocol (PenPad)

• Overview:Auction platform and revenue aggregator on Scroll.Integrates zero-knowledge rollup, human proof login, and on-chain verifiable randomness to provide a fair launch platform that leverages Scroll's native functionality to enhance functionality and security and provide builders with a comprehensive Zk solution toolkit.

• Category：DeFi

• Procurement amount：$30M

• Investment Round：Public Sale

• Investors：個人投資家

4、Initia

• Overview: A network that combines L1 technology with application-specific L2 infrastructure to create scalable, interconnected blockchains.Aimed at creating: merging L1 and L2 to simplify the process for developers to launch application-specific blockchains as L2, native storable coins, multi-chain bridging, and more.

• Category: Infrastructure

• Procurement amount:$2.50M

• Investment Round：Private

• Investors：The Echonomist

5、Mawari Network

• Overview: Metaverse Content Delivery System and Web3 project to eliminate bottlenecks in delivering metaverse content to mobile devices.Build a distributed, revenue-sharing content delivery and rendering network that leverages existing underutilized computing and network resources.

• Category: DePIN

• Procurement amount:$10.80M

• Investment Round:Seed

• Investors: ★Anfield LTD, ★Borderless Capital, ★1kx, Accord Ventures, etc.

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👀Other Projects

• Mind Network[$10M/Series A]:A distributed platform that uses adaptive fully quasi-isomorphic encryption (FHE) to protect user data, smart contracts, and AI on the web3.

• Daylight[$6M/Seed]A transaction engine that integrates with wallets and apps to enable users to discover meaningful, personalized blockchain transactions; API connects tools, protocols, and authors with users to distribute mints, claims, quests, and othertransactions can be distributed.

• Gunzilla Games[$6M/Seed]: a game development studio known for its innovations in multiplayer games.Working on Off The Grid, a cyberpunk battle royale 2.0 game set in a dystopian future.

• Darkbright (Smolbound)[$6M/Seed]: a web3 game development company focused on creating immersive life simulation RPGs.Their debut title, Smolbound, blends fantasy and agriculture with web3 technology and offers players ownership of in-game assets.

• AminoChain[$5M/Seed]: a decentralized biosample marketplace that connects biobanks and clinical facilities with biopharmaceutical companies.Provides a secure and transparent platform for the exchange and management of biosamples.

• Eigenpie[$4M/Public Sale]: a re-staking SubDAO designed to maximize the revenue potential of LST holders.By allowing users to re-stake assets on the platform, it provides a liquid re-staking version for each approved LST, effectively isolating the risk associated with a particular token.

• MeshMap[$4M/TBD]:WorldAn open and decentralized platform focused on creating 3D maps of theLeveraging crowdsourcing and blockchain technology to enable gaming, navigation, immersive experiences, and estate planning applications.

• Meridian[$4M/Seed]:A decentralized liquidity marketplace and liquidity staking protocol built on top of Movement, serving as the native liquidity layer of the Movement ecosystem, where users earn rewards while securely trading and staking assets. Movement

• Helix Labs[$2M/Pre Seed]: a re-staking asset liquidity protocol that enhances revenue opportunities for non-Ethernet Layer 1 asset holders.By leveraging liquidity abstraction and OmniVM technology, Helix Labs will support future MoveVM rollups and increase the utility of tokens.

• EarthFast[$1.40M/Pre Seed]: a distributed infrastructure protocol designed to shift responsibility for front-end updates, deployment, and hosting from a centralized service to the voting community.

• Swan Chain[$870k/Grants]: Decentralized infrastructure designed to accelerate adoption of AI. leveraging OP Stack's Ethereum Layer 2 technology, SwanChain combines Web3 and AI to provide a comprehensive solution across storage, computing, bandwidth and payments.and payment.

• Earn Alliance[$350k/Public Sale]: the largest Web3 game aggregator and discovery platform, connecting over 500,000 users to thousands of blockchain games.

• Zulu Network[TBD/Seed]: a two-layer architecture that extends the capabilities of the network and promotes interoperability between chains.The first layer, ZuluPrime, operates as Bitcoin Layer 2, prioritizing EVM compatibility and providing stable DeFi applications and financial services; the second layer, ZuluNexus, functions as Bitcoin Layer 3, supporting both UTXO and accountSupport for both types.

• Coin Meester BV (BCM)[TBD/M&A]: a Netherlands-based cryptocurrency broker offering services for trading and staking over 170 cryptocurrencies.

• Privasea[TBD/TBD]Solutions to address data privacy challenges in artificial intelligence.Integrates fully quasi-isomorphic encryption and blockchain-based incentives to revolutionize machine learning reasoning, enhancing privacy and facilitating collaborative AI computation while ensuring a secure and private AI computing experience for users.

• Grass[TBD/Series A]:A data layer for AI built as a sovereign data rollup, providing underutilized Internet resources via the Grass node for over 2 million users and enabling AI developers to access the data.

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Disclaimer：I carefully examine and write the information that I research, but since it is personally operated and there are many parts with English sources, there may be some paraphrasing or incorrect information. Please understand. Also, there may be introductions of Dapps, NFTs, and tokens in the articles, but there is absolutely no solicitation purpose. Please purchase and use them at your own risk.

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About us
🇯🇵🇺🇸🇰🇷🇨🇳🇪🇸 The English version of the web3 newsletter, which is available in 5 languages. Based on the concept of ``Learn more about web3 in 5 minutes a day,'' we deliver research articles five times a week, including explanations of popular web3 trends, project explanations, and introductions to the latest news.

Author
mitsui
A web3 researcher. Operating the newsletter "web3 Research" delivered in five languages around the world.

Contact
The author is a web3 researcher based in Japan. If you have a project that is interested in expanding to Japan, please contact the following:

• X：@web3researchgl

• Telegram：@mitsui0x

*Please note that this newsletter translates articles that are originally in Japanese. There may be translation mistakes such as mistranslations or paraphrasing, so please understand in advance.