Monolith(TKN)

The new "AggLayer," set for launch next month, relies on zero-knowledge proofs, a type of cryptography that Polygon Labs is betting on as a core underpinning of future blockchain architecture.

Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin stated something called the Blockchain Trilemma. A blockchain tries to be secure, fast and decentralized.

San Francisco, USA, August 16th, 2023, ChainwireLinera reaches a total of $12M in seed funding. The new round of funding was led by Borderless Capital with contributions from a16z crypto, Laser Digital Ventures, Matrixport, Flow Traders, GSR Markets, and moreLinera, the first blockchain network scalable via microchains, has successfully closed an additional $6M round, led by Borderless Capital. Founded by Mathieu Baudet, former Meta researcher on the Novi digital payments wallet and a cryptographic protocols specialist, Linera's pioneering technology aims to bring web2 scalability to web3 applications by introducing an unlimited number of user chains powered by an elastically scalable network.Linera has now secured a total of $12M in seed funding, with the most recent $6 million follow-on investment round led by Borderless Capital. Notable participants include Laser Digital Ventures, DFG, Cadenza, Block1, Eterna Capital, MH Ventures, Matrixport, L2IV, ArkStream, Flow Traders, GSR Markets, and Open Web Collective (OWC), alongside continued support from a16z crypto, Tribe Capital, and Cygni Capital, who participated in the initial seed round.“Among new web3 architectures emerging like the move away from a single monolithic blockchain, Linera’s microchains are a completely new and necessary evolution. Further, Linera’s capacity for linear scaling is designed to support millions and conceivably billions of simultaneous transactions. And, while unprecedented, this kind of performance and reliability is essential for web3 to actually scale applications like payments, messaging, trading, AI, and more to billions of users around the world," said Alpen Sheth, Senior Partner at Borderless Capital. "Linera has made significant progress since we led their initial seed round last year, and we're excited to expand our support for the project. Mathieu and the Linera team have designed a truly innovative multi-chain architecture that unlocks a broader design space for developers and their end users. We can't wait to see how the ecosystem takes shape and the utilities it enables as Linera advances into the devnet and testnet phases," said Ali Yahya, General Partner at a16z crypto.Linera recently made its initial software development kit (SDK) available for testing, targeting Rust developers. Thanks to the new funding, Linera will be expanding the team, launching a devnet and a testnet for the protocol and fostering a strategic presence in the APAC region while continuing to grow their developer academy.From microchains to mass-scalable applicationsThe competition for blockspace in traditional Layer 1 blockchains, coupled with limited production rates and block sizes, creates a bottleneck during traffic peaks, leaving users outpriced or delayed, rendering the infrastructure effectively unavailable.“We’ve taken a step back to completely redesign a blockchain infrastructure that scales from the start,” said Mathieu Baudet, founder and CEO of Linera. “Linera’s unique multi-chain architecture ensures predictable performance, responsiveness, and robust security at Internet scale."Linera empowers developers to create high-speed web3 applications used by a large number of active users in parallel, revolutionizing decentralized infrastructure for a variety of use cases, including retail payments, gaming micro-payments, messaging, proprietary trading, and blockchain bridges.The Linera system scales by adding chains, not by increasing the size or the production rate of blocks. Its groundbreaking microchain model grants each individual user their own lightweight chains, which integrate into browser extensions or mobile devices for streamlined web3 app interactions within their wallets. During times of high demand, Linera's validators expand dynamically like elastic web services.Linera's innovative design is rooted in the expertise that Mathieu Baudet acquired at Meta while contributing to the Libra (now Diem) blockchain and co-authoring the academic paper "FastPay", which laid the foundations for the Linera protocol. Bernadette Cay, Linera's COO, brings extensive experience in launching products from Google and MoPub, the mobile ad exchange acquired by Twitter.About LineraLinera is the first low-latency blockchain designed to scale elastically like web2 applications. Founded by Mathieu Baudet, a former Meta Novi engineer and researcher, with a PhD in cryptographic protocols, Linera revolutionizes blockchain scalability by introducing microchains, removing mempools, and minimizing validator interactions. Linera optimizes performance for web3 applications used by a large number of active users in parallel, enabling unprecedented horizontal scalability for use cases such as retail payments, gaming micro-payments, messaging, proprietary trading, and blockchain bridges.Join us in creating the next generation of high-performance decentralized applications. Learn more at linera.ioAbout BorderlessBorderless is a leading investment management firm focused on Web3 technology, dedicated to supporting the next generation of innovators who are driving the development of groundbreaking technologies that will enable the creation of value without borders. Borderless comprises a team of builders, partners, and investors who adopt a long-term perspective and strive to unleash the full potential of open, community-driven networks. Since 2018, Borderless has made 200+ investments across infrastructure, business applications, and nascent cryptographic protocols, and has played an integral role in the development of some of the most significant and innovative Web3 communities.For more information, please visit their website at borderlesscapital.ioContactPR DirectorKarla VilhelemMarket [email protected]

San Francisco, USA, August 16th, 2023, ChainwireLinera reaches a total of $12M in seed funding. The new round of funding was led by Borderless Capital with contributions from a16z crypto, Laser Digital Ventures, Matrixport, Flow Traders, GSR Markets, and moreLinera, the first blockchain network scalable via microchains, has successfully closed an additional $6M round, led by Borderless Capital. Founded by Mathieu Baudet, former Meta researcher on the Novi digital payments wallet and a cryptographic protocols specialist, Linera's pioneering technology aims to bring web2 scalability to web3 applications by introducing an unlimited number of user chains powered by an elastically scalable network.Linera has now secured a total of $12M in seed funding, with the most recent $6 million follow-on investment round led by Borderless Capital. Notable participants include Laser Digital Ventures, DFG, Cadenza, Block1, Eterna Capital, MH Ventures, Matrixport, L2IV, ArkStream, Flow Traders, GSR Markets, and Open Web Collective (OWC), alongside continued support from a16z crypto, Tribe Capital, and Cygni Capital, who participated in the initial seed round.“Among new web3 architectures emerging like the move away from a single monolithic blockchain, Linera’s microchains are a completely new and necessary evolution. Further, Linera’s capacity for linear scaling is designed to support millions and conceivably billions of simultaneous transactions. And, while unprecedented, this kind of performance and reliability is essential for web3 to actually scale applications like payments, messaging, trading, AI, and more to billions of users around the world," said Alpen Sheth, Senior Partner at Borderless Capital. "Linera has made significant progress since we led their initial seed round last year, and we're excited to expand our support for the project. Mathieu and the Linera team have designed a truly innovative multi-chain architecture that unlocks a broader design space for developers and their end users. We can't wait to see how the ecosystem takes shape and the utilities it enables as Linera advances into the devnet and testnet phases," said Ali Yahya, General Partner at a16z crypto.Linera recently made its initial software development kit (SDK) available for testing, targeting Rust developers. Thanks to the new funding, Linera will be expanding the team, launching a devnet and a testnet for the protocol and fostering a strategic presence in the APAC region while continuing to grow their developer academy.From microchains to mass-scalable applicationsThe competition for blockspace in traditional Layer 1 blockchains, coupled with limited production rates and block sizes, creates a bottleneck during traffic peaks, leaving users outpriced or delayed, rendering the infrastructure effectively unavailable.“We’ve taken a step back to completely redesign a blockchain infrastructure that scales from the start,” said Mathieu Baudet, founder and CEO of Linera. “Linera’s unique multi-chain architecture ensures predictable performance, responsiveness, and robust security at Internet scale."Linera empowers developers to create high-speed web3 applications used by a large number of active users in parallel, revolutionizing decentralized infrastructure for a variety of use cases, including retail payments, gaming micro-payments, messaging, proprietary trading, and blockchain bridges.The Linera system scales by adding chains, not by increasing the size or the production rate of blocks. Its groundbreaking microchain model grants each individual user their own lightweight chains, which integrate into browser extensions or mobile devices for streamlined web3 app interactions within their wallets. During times of high demand, Linera's validators expand dynamically like elastic web services.Linera's innovative design is rooted in the expertise that Mathieu Baudet acquired at Meta while contributing to the Libra (now Diem) blockchain and co-authoring the academic paper "FastPay", which laid the foundations for the Linera protocol. Bernadette Cay, Linera's COO, brings extensive experience in launching products from Google and MoPub, the mobile ad exchange acquired by Twitter.About LineraLinera is the first low-latency blockchain designed to scale elastically like web2 applications. Founded by Mathieu Baudet, a former Meta Novi engineer and researcher, with a PhD in cryptographic protocols, Linera revolutionizes blockchain scalability by introducing microchains, removing mempools, and minimizing validator interactions. Linera optimizes performance for web3 applications used by a large number of active users in parallel, enabling unprecedented horizontal scalability for use cases such as retail payments, gaming micro-payments, messaging, proprietary trading, and blockchain bridges.Join us in creating the next generation of high-performance decentralized applications. Learn more at linera.ioAbout BorderlessBorderless is a leading investment management firm focused on Web3 technology, dedicated to supporting the next generation of innovators who are driving the development of groundbreaking technologies that will enable the creation of value without borders. Borderless comprises a team of builders, partners, and investors who adopt a long-term perspective and strive to unleash the full potential of open, community-driven networks. Since 2018, Borderless has made 200+ investments across infrastructure, business applications, and nascent cryptographic protocols, and has played an integral role in the development of some of the most significant and innovative Web3 communities.For more information, please visit their website at borderlesscapital.ioContactPR DirectorKarla VilhelemMarket [email protected]

CoinMarketCap has released a report on the global crypto market after H1. The report delves into a general market overview, recent key events, and what it expects H2’s key themes will be. Today, CoinMarketCap, the world’s leading price-tracking website for crypto assets, released its 2023 H1 Crypto Market Analysis Report. Crypto Market Kicks 2023 Off Strong The crypto market started this year with a bang witnessing the bitcoin price doubling, the rise of L2s such as Arbitrum and ZK, and the NFT market showing signs of improvement. By the end of Q2, the global crypto market capitalization reached an impressive $1.17 trillion, marking a 48% YTD increase. Q1 and Q2, however, concluded with similar total market caps, meaning Q2 showed much less growth. Q2 was instead characterized by trends such as the “memecoin” frenzy and the rise of BRC20 tokens, which, despite being noteworthy, did not garner the same excitement as the previous quarter’s developments. Market sentiment improved significantly by the end of Q1, with the CMC Crypto Fear and Greed Index registering at a neutral 52 – a vast improvement over the start of the year, which registered a fearful 30. According to CMC’s report, the Total Spot Trade Volume of the Top 20 Crypto Exchanges peaked in March but declined by around 36% quarter-on-quarter. Top Growing Sectors Despite what can only be called challenging market conditions, certain industry sectors witnessed remarkable growth in market cap year-to-date. VR/AR (704%0 and AI & Big Data (323%) exceeded expectations, while blue-chip decentralized finance (DeFi) projects appear to be making a strong comeback. The “memecoin” frenzy saw the sector add over 260 new coins YTD, with AI & Big Data taking second place, adding 61 coins. DeFi ranked third, adding 47 new listings YTD. Bitcoin and Ethereum Developments The market’s top tokens, Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) experienced several events, resulting in noteworthy price fluctuations. CMC’s Top Views CoinMarketCap saw a surge in views from the memecoin sector as $PEPE took the industry by storm. PEPE’s explosive rally of over 3700x from April to May sparked particular interest in the sector, and it joined CMC’s “Most Added to Watchlist.” Memes also registered the most engagement in CMC Community. The DeFi sector registered sustained interest throughout the year’s first half to become the second most viewed. Sector interest largely focused on Terra Classic (LUNC) as Binance burned 2.65 billion LUNC tokens, worth approximately $236,000. AI and Big Data have undoubtedly marked 2023 following the launch of OpenAI’s revolutionary ChatGPT, and it is reflected in views. Best Performing Coins Arbitrum ecosystem tokens such as Pendle (PENDLE) and Radiant Capital (RDNT) appeared to be H1’s top gainers, along with Optimist ecosystem tokens such as Velodrome Finance (VELO). Other top gainers include layer-one blockchains, including Dione Protocol (DIONE), Conflux (CFX), and Injective (INJ). AI-related tokens such as SingularityNET (AGIX) and Render (RNDR) also performed well. Key Themes for H2 CoinMarketCap identified the key themes for the second half of 2023. Bitcoin ETFs The crypto news cycle has recently been dominated by talks of Bitcoin ETFs after BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, filed for a Bitcoin spot ETF with the SEC. News of BlackRock’s application spurred a host of other firms, such as Valkyrie, Fidelity and 21 Shares, to announce they are also seeking ETF approval. The SEC has yet to approve any of the applications. Should the regulator grant these ETFs, they could unlock substantial investor demand by offering regulated products for asset allocation. Decentralized Public Infrastructure Networks One of H2’s key themes will be Decentralized Physical Infrastructure (DePIN). DePIN is still in its early stages of expansion and aims to provide solutions for access sharing of physical assets or services like warehousing and data networks. Real World Assets (RWAs) The tokenization of assets has become an increasing focus for the crypto asset industry. Projects focused on making RWAs tradeable on-chain largely consist of credit market protocols such as Maple Finance and Goldfinch allow businesses to use DeFi to secure financing and loans. Liquid Staking Derivative (LSDs) Liquid Staking Derivative witnessed a dramatic surge in activity in H1 owing largely to Ethereum’s Shapella upgrade. Market leaders such as Lido and Rocket Pool saw their TVLs rise 138% and 220%, respectively. By the end of June, LSD platforms secured over a third of Ethereum’s Total Value Staked. Restaking The introduction of EigenLayer – a middleware platform which allows staked ETH or liquid staked ETH tokens to be reused on the consensus layer, prompted restaking as an emerging theme in H1. Restaking was in demand after EigenLayer’s Restaking Smart Contracts were deployed and reached their maximum limits within a day of the mainnet launch. zkSync zkSync, a zero-knowledge roll-up solution, emerged as a popular Ethereum-based layer-2 solution and strong competitor against Ethereum optimistic roll-ups, including Optimism and Arbitrum. zkSync utilizes zero-knowledge technology to offload traffic from Ethereum to an efficient second layer, helping to increase Ethereum’s throughput while enabling an array of new applications. Modular Blockchains (Celestia) Most layer-1 blockchains are monolithic chains that result in issues surrounding efficiency, stemming from the blockchain trilemma of decentralization, security and scalability. Modular blockchains like Celestia address these issues by separating blockchains into three layers: execution, settlement, consensus and data availability. In doing so, modular blockchains provide developers with modular data availability and consensus layers which dApps and sidechains can leverage to bootstrap development. FTX Bankruptcy Developments After FTX collapsed, its depositors could not determine how much of the almost $9 billion shortfall could be collected during the liquidation process. In January, it emerged that more than $5 billion in liquid assets were collected, and this number subsequently increased to $7 billion. The firm overseeing FTX’s restructuring recently contacted creditors, giving them a “Customer Bar Date” of September 29, 2023. Debtors are, however, unlikely to receive a payout until at least H2 2024. Bitcoin Remains Most-Viewed Crypto Across All Regions Regional differences in interest in various crypto sectors were insignificant. Bitcoin continues as the most-viewed crypto across all regions in H1 2023, similar to data from Q4 2022. Bitcoin’s dominance over altcoins increased by 25% from 40.09% at the beginning of the year to 50.39% at the end of H1. As expected, the US continues to dominate the distribution of crypto users worldwide. Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

Uwerx is a new project seeking to reconceptualize the gig economy with its revolutionary features. This accounts for its presale success and the increased adoption it has been gaining. Due to these, analysts predict a bright future for the project, which has shown strong potential to keep soaring in the crypto winter. On the other hand, Monolith (TKN) is struggling to beat bearish sentiments as the bears continue to dominate over the token. This article looks at Monolith&rsquo;s (TKN) predictions, what Uwerx is all about, and why you should quickly become a WERX holder. >>BUY WERX TOKENS NOW>BUY WERX TOKENS NOW<< Uwerx (WERX) Continues Smashing Through Its Presale Uwerx's surging presale has been marveling, quickly reaching its final stage, stage 5. This exceeded initial predictions, and due to demands, WERX allocation for the presale was increased to 427,500,000 (57%). Stage 5 has 72,500,000 WERX available, and the total supply of WERX is 750,000,000. The WERX price increase is more surprising. WERX started trading at $0.005 but is now at $0.047725, with more price increases unavoidable. Also, the WERX launch price was increased to $0.095 - $0.115 due to the token&rsquo;s rising value. There is a 15% purchase bonus to increase users&rsquo; profits, and the presale ends on July 31. Uwerx (WERX) Has Leverage Over Other Freelancing Platforms Global gig workers are expected to reach 78 million in 2023. Hence, Uwerx is making significant moves to increase adoption and stand out from centralized platforms. It brings blockchain technology and a 1% service fee, features yet to be seen in freelancing. There is also the UwerxVault which promotes user rewards and engagement. Its platform&rsquo;s Alpha version launched a few months back and has been gaining traction with more features added. The platform&rsquo;s features now include the Initial Step of Job Creation, My Activity Page, Initial Step of Finding Talent, Hiring Dashboard Page, Logging In and Sign-Up Pages, Freelancer or Client Initiation, Job Creation Process Page, and Forgot Password. The Job Application Page was remodeled to the Post Job and Apply Page to quicken users' job applications. New features like the Tools and Client and Freelancer Dashboards are in the works. Uwerx will transition to the Beta version, which is now in the works so users can test the platform themselves. InterFi Network and SolidProof have performed audit approvals on Uwerxto ensure its security. The platform has gained over 1,825 Telegram members, 1,652 Twitter followers, and 6,953 sign-ups. The team's agile methodology to release the project in bits and modify the platform based on users' feedback has also contributed to the project&rsquo;s success. They are eager to hear from the community, and feedback can be emailed to [email protected]. To show their dedication to users, the team&rsquo;s token allocation is now only 7% following their decision to reduce it. For sustainability, they will forfeit ownership of the smart contract once the project becomes listed on centralized exchanges. Also, they began a nine-month liquidity lock on their tokens to prevent rug pulls. This started on June 7, after the 82.8% vote it received from the community to start immediately. A Test Airdrop will be performed to verify wallet addresses for users, for which 98.2% of the community is in support. Uwerx will be a force to reckon with in the freelancing industry. To do that, you have to become a WERX holder. It is best to do so now and maximize the 15% purchase bonus. To learn more or join the presale, follow the links below: Website: https://www.uwerx.network Presale: http://invest.uwerx.network Telegram: https://t.me/uwerx_network Twitter: https://twitter.com/uwerx_network Disclaimer: This is a sponsored press release and is for informational purposes only. It does not reflect the views of Crypto Daily, nor is it intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, or financial advice.

Bitcoin&rsquo;s huge surge over the last two days has come to a halt at resistance. Is this just the calm before the real storm? Bitcoin has work still to be done The tsunami called Bitcoin is building momentum and there is a real possibility that a breakthrough of the $30,000 resistance is on the cards. Many traders will have their short stops just above this level and therefore a short squeeze could be likely. Bitcoin really motored both Tuesday and Wednesday putting on as much as 14.6% in the process. Not a bad couple of day&rsquo;s work. However, the main task is still to be accomplished, and this is facing the king of the cryptocurrencies like Everest, for a trepidatious climber. The reality of the situation So much bad press has hit the crypto market over the last few months that for the market to be going up is pretty miraculous. That is until you think of the fundamentals. On the one hand you have a pristine asset that is ridiculously scarce, more secure than any other asset, unreachable by government intervention, and able to be held, bought, and sent to anyone on the planet. On the other hand there is fiat currency, being printed to oblivion, in an unfair system, and being weaponised against the people. On top of this government agencies are doing their level best to stop citizens buying cryptocurrencies by bringing enforcement actions against all and sundry in the crypto sector. Banking is obsolete The banks that help to control the currency provide almost no interest to depositors, probably minus value when inflation is taken into account, and they control their customers by enforcing who they can send their currency to. Banking is utterly obsolete and it has taken the wildly innovative crypto sector to bust this banking facade wide open. These monoliths of antiquity are no longer fit for purpose. People can now hold their own value and wealth so there is no need for a middleman. Therefore the banks&rsquo; days are numbered. Bitcoin is for the people Bitcoin is likely to keep rising given its pure fundamentals, providing a store of value in the face of the rapidly diminishing purchasing power of fiat currencies like the dollar. The regulatory agencies might stop the majority of the institutions from getting onboard, but it needs to be remembered that Bitcoin is for the people. There is still time. Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

Source: Depositphotos The current bear market took a significant toll on the cryptocurrency market, with major currencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum sliding down 75%-85% from their all-time highs. With cryptocurrency prices crashing to new lows, investors became pessimistic about the future prospects of the market, leading to decreased trading volumes. However, it's important to note that crypto bear markets are a natural part of the market cycle. Investors should be prepared for the possibility of market downturns and adjust their investment strategies accordingly. In addition, many experts believe that the crypto bear market presents the ideal opportunity to build crypto projects. How the Bear Market is the Best Time to Build The crypto bear market can be the best time to build because it presents a unique opportunity to invest time and resources in building a solid foundation for your project or business. Here are some reasons why. Lower competition: Many people lose interest in cryptocurrencies and sell their holdings during a bear market. This results in lower competition in the market and a reduced number of new projects being launched. As a result, it is easier for developers to stand out from the crowd and gain attention for their projects. Lower costs: As the market goes down, the cost of resources like computing power, hosting, and other infrastructure may decrease. This can be an excellent time for developers to invest in their project's infrastructure and lay a strong foundation at a lower cost. Time to focus: There is less hype and excitement around cryptocurrencies during a bear market. This can give developers the time and space to focus on their projects and build a solid product without being distracted by the latest market news or price fluctuations. Evaluating mistakes: The bear market is an excellent opportunity to learn from past mistakes and improve projects. It is an opportunity to assess what worked and what did not work during the previous bull market and make the necessary changes. Build a loyal community: In a bear market, people who remain invested in cryptocurrencies are typically more committed and devoted to the ecosystem. This can be an excellent opportunity to build a strong community around projects and develop relationships with people who share the project&rsquo;s vision. Overall, a crypto bear market can be challenging but can also provide valuable opportunities to build a strong foundation for a project or business. By focusing on building during these times, developers may be setting themselves up for success when the market eventually turns around. Steps Crypto Users Can Take While Waiting for the Next Bull Run The cryptocurrency market has been known to experience cycles of price surges and drops, and investors can sometimes face a waiting period for the next bull market to arrive. Here are some steps that users can take while waiting for the next bull run: Research: It is essential to educate oneself about the cryptocurrency market continually. Users can research different cryptocurrencies and their growth potential, read about the latest developments in the industry, and stay up-to-date with news and events that may impact the market. Portfolio Management: Users can analyze and re-evaluate their cryptocurrency portfolios. It is essential to assess the performance of one's current holdings, evaluate the risks, and consider diversifying the portfolio with stable coins or alternative investments. Set realistic expectations: It's important to remember that the cryptocurrency market can be volatile, and price fluctuations are normal. Setting realistic expectations for the market and being patient for the next bull run is critical to success in this industry. HODL: HODLing, or holding onto one's cryptocurrency investment for the long term, is a popular strategy for those who believe in the market's long-term potential. Users can consider holding onto their investments rather than panic-selling during a bear market, which may result in losses. Risk management: It is important to remember that investing in cryptocurrency carries risks. Users can consider setting stop-loss orders to limit potential losses in case of market downturns or investing only a portion of their portfolio in cryptocurrency. Stay informed: Keeping up to date with the latest news, developments, and trends in the industry can provide insight into potential opportunities for investment or market shifts. Users can follow reliable information sources such as cryptocurrency news websites, social media accounts of cryptocurrency influencers, and forums or groups for cryptocurrency investors. As the cryptocurrency market awaits an imminent bull run in the future, below are five blockchains to have on your radar in 2023. Venom Operating under the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) jurisdiction, Venom is the world&rsquo;s first licensed protocol. This guarantees its security, reliability, and regulatory compliance, making it appropriate for Web3 projects' widespread acceptance. It also features a unique architecture that combines dynamic sharding technology with L0 Masterchain, L1 workchains, and shardchains. As a result, a blockchain with great performance, infinite scalability, and lightning-fast speed is produced. All these work together to achieve high throughput on the blockchain, guaranteeing minimal transaction costs (less than $0.0002 average cost). Founded by Dr. Kai-Uwe Steck, Venom&rsquo;s leadership team includes Peter Knez, a former chief investment officer of BlackRock and global chief investment officer of Barclays Global Investors, and Mustafa Kheriba, a board member for numerous family offices and an expert in long-term investments in the Middle East and North Africa. Venom sees community development and collaboration as the key to creating a more interconnected Web3 future. It has collaborated with prestigious Web3 initiatives like Hacken to establish security frameworks in DeFi and with projects like Developer DAO, Hub71, and DAO Maker to provide technical assistance and foster the expansion of budding Web3 enterprises. Venom Ventures Fund has pledged $1 billion to foster innovation by assisting and nurturing Web3 startups alongside Iceberg Capital. Venom has outlined some major plans in its future roadmap and initiatives. Venom is working on a potential testnet alongside ten dApps created on the Venom blockchain. The dApps include Venom Wallet, a non-custodial wallet and the key of the Venom ecosystem, as well as Venom Bridge, VenomScan, Web3.World, a DEX, and Oasis.Gallery, an NFT Marketplace. Users can easily swap tokens to interact with other networks on Venom Bridge and VenomScan, respectively. Finally, Venom will continue to work to establish partnerships with key industry players while advancing projects like the development of innovative dApps.Read this Venom blockchain guide to learn more about Venom. Aptos Aptos is a move-based Layer 1 blockchain platform that aims to make decentralized finance (DeFi) accessible to everyone, regardless of their technical expertise or financial resources. The platform is designed to be user-friendly, secure, and scalable, focusing on enabling seamless transactions, low fees, and high-speed processing. Born from Diem, a failed blockchain project from Meta (formerly Facebook), the Aptos blockchain was developed by Aptos Labs in 2021. The Aptos Lab team in charge of the Aptos project features former engineers and leaders from Meta&rsquo;s blockchain Diem and wallet Novi and Move programming language, including co-founders Avery Ching and Mo Shaikh. Aptos raised $350M across multiple funding rounds from Web3-focused investors, including Andreessen Horowitz, Multicoin Capital, and Binance Labs &mdash; their latest funding happened on Sep 15, 2022, from a Venture - Series Unknown round. These funds were enough for a successful devnet and a series of testnets. Aptos garnered more significant traction after that. The Aptos "Autumn" Mainnet went live on October 17, 2022. The Layer 1 project later added Names Services and agreed to a partnership with Google Cloud to run a validator node on Aptos and jointly launch accelerator programs and hackathons to foster increased adoption of Web3. The Layer 1 blockchain also launched its native utility token, APT, which currently ranks in the world&rsquo;s top 35 cryptocurrencies by market cap with a market value of over $1.9 billion. The next steps in the Aptos roadmap include attracting new Web3 projects, delivering higher transactions per second (TPS), making improved configurations and upgrades, and Web3 education. In May 2023, Aptos will collaborate with Outlier Ventures, a Web3 accelerator and incubator, to launch a $100,000 fund to provide early-stage crypto startups with mentorship and education. LayerZero LayerZero is a blockchain protocol that enables omnichain communication and interoperability, allowing developers to build decentralized applications across multiple blockchains. The blockchain network guarantees authentic transactions with configurable trustlessness. LayerZero connects dApps across chains using on-chain Ultra Light Nodes, which achieve the security of a light node with the cost-effectiveness of a middle chain. LayerZero is developed by LayerZero Labs and co-founded by world-class engineers: Bryan Pellegrino (CEO), Ryan Zarick (CTO), and Caleb Banister (Principal Engineer). These individuals have previously founded startups together, and co-published academic research with Noam Brown and Facebook AI Research. Thirty-two (32) investors have contributed to LayerZero Labs' funding, including Sequoia Capital, Paypal Ventures, Defiance Capital, and others. Between 2021 and 2023, the team raised $293.3 million in seven fundraising rounds. Their latest funding was raised from a Series B round on Apr 4, 2023. In addition, LayerZero Labs developed the Omnichain Fungible Token (OFT) standard, a multichain standard for fungible tokens. An OFT is a general-purpose fungible token standard that works with different established fungible token types that exist across chains. In February 2023, Trader Joe announced an integration with LayerZero Labs to launch $JOE as an OFT to unlock deeper liquidity, facilitate easy crosschain transfers and expand availability for the Trader Joe community. Fuel Network Fuel Network is an execution layer designed to introduce modularity into blockchains, making monolithic blockchains more scalable. It was created as a Layer 2 scaling technology on the Ethereum blockchain and deployed in 2020. Layer 2 networks have grown in both number and utilization, but they still face the challenge of higher gas fees during network congestion. Fuel Network is built to optimize blockchain transactions, reducing the impact of gas fees. The blockchain's stack is supported by parallel transaction execution, Fuel Virtual Machine (FuelVM), and the Sway language, which combine to make up its three main pillars. The project&rsquo;s development team is led by John Adler, co-founder of Fuel Labs, Nick Dodson, CEO of Fuel Labs, and Emily Herbert, core contributor of Sway Language and Fuel Labs. Fuel Labs has successfully raised $81.5M over three rounds between 2021 and 2023, with 14 investors, including MH Ventures and Blockchain Capital, funding the project. Their most recent funding came from a Venture - Series Unknown round on February 21, 2023. Fuel Network looks to support developers using Sway to build on its protocol. Fuel Network has established a grant program to help teams develop in its ecosystem, including the Beyond Monolithic hackathon. The grant ranges from $10,000 to $150,000. Lisk Lisk is an open-source Web3 application framework created with sidechain interoperability in mind. Its Javascript SDK offers developers an easy way to launch their Lisk-compatible blockchains. The LSK token serves as the native coin for the Lisk blockchain, and the network uses Delegated Proof-of-Stake (DPoS) to reach consensus. Lisk was co-founded by globally recognized crypto entrepreneur, Max Kordek (CEO), and veteran crypto developer, Oliver Beddows (CTO), in 2016. The same year, they also co-founded Lightcurve, a renowned blockchain studio headquartered in Berlin. Lisk raised over 14,000 BTC during its initial coin offering (ICO). The LSK is currently ranked 186th in the world cryptocurrency market by market cap, with over $143 million in market value. Lisk is looking to launch a grant program in 2023 to ensure entrepreneurs can access capital to get critical project resources. The grant amount will reach up to $270,000 (CHF 250,000). Conclusion Venom, Aptos, LayerZero, Fuel Network, and Lisk are blockchain platforms that deliver unique features and functionality to the blockchain. These blockchain projects focus on creating decentralized applications, platforms, and networks that leverage blockchain technology to address specialized challenges. To keep up with the latest news and developments from these projects, it's a good idea to follow relevant subreddits, social media accounts, and official blogs. You can also sign up for newsletters or join online communities to stay up-to-date. Additionally, attending industry events, such as conferences and meetups, can be an excellent way to network and learn from experts in the field.

SEC Chair Gary Gensler has been called a hypocrite by critics after footage of him promoting Algorand and praising Silvio Micali emerged. Caught Praising Algorand Gary Gensler, the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, has found himself in a tight spot after footage of him promoting and praising Algorand (ALGO) emerged. Gensler has been at the vanguard of a crippling regulatory crackdown on Bitcoin and several other cryptocurrencies. As a result, the footage has left him vulnerable to attack from critics. At one point in the clip, Gensler goes on to praise Silvio Micali, the founder of the Algorand project, stating, &ldquo;Silvio Micali&rsquo;s Alogrand, he&rsquo;s a Turing Award winner at MIT I work with&hellip; Silvio&rsquo;s got a great technology; it has performance; you could create Uber on top of it.&rdquo; Furthermore, Gensler has spoken highly of Algorand on a number of public occasions since 2019. Despite his public anti-crypto stance at the SEC, Gensler is listed as an instructor on an MIT Open Learning course called &ldquo;Blockchain and Money.&rdquo; Now Calls ALGO A Security The footage of Gensler&rsquo;s high praise for Algorand emerged on the same day the Securities and Exchange Commission labeled Algorand&rsquo;s ALGO and five other tokens as securities in its lawsuit against the Bittrex exchange. This action highlighted the tokens as pivotal assets in any potential enforcement action against the Seattle-based crypto firm. In its complaint against Bittrex, the SEC stated that the firm failed to register as an exchange, clearing agency, or broker-dealer with the regulatory authorities. All of these are required for companies offering securities to their customers. The SEC, on its part, needs to establish that one of the assets made available by Bittrex qualifies as a security. While the SEC under Gensler has claimed that the label of &ldquo;Security&rdquo; applies to all tokens except Bitcoin, the agency has zeroed in on six assets in the case of Bittrex. The tokens which the SEC has cited as &ldquo;crypto asset securities&rdquo; are Dash (DASH), Monolith (TKN), Naga (NGC), Omisego Network, Real Estate Protocol (IHT), and Algorand (ALGO). However, the agency has stated that more tokens could be added to the list. Out of all the tokens mentioned in the lawsuit, Algorand has the largest market capitalization, reaching a total value of $1.6 billion, according to data from CoinGecko. However, none of the tokens have been named as defendants in the Bittrex lawsuit. Furthermore, the SEC has yet to announce separate charges against them. According to JW Verret, Counsel at Lawrence Law, the tactic is similar to other lawsuits where the SEC has included other coins, &ldquo;It strikes me as very similar to the Wahi case. They&rsquo;re making claims that tokens are securities without suing the actual tokens themselves.&rdquo; While the tokens named in the Wahi case are entirely different from the ones named in the Bittrex lawsuit, the broad idea is that they fall under the definition of a security when using the Howey test. Critics Pan Gensler Gensler has been criticized for his position against cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology, even by his colleagues at the SEC. Commissioner Hester Peirce, in remarks made on the 14th of April, stated, &ldquo;Rather than embracing the promise of new technology as we have done in the past, here we propose to embrace stagnation, force centralization, urge expatriation, and welcome extinction of new technology.&rdquo; The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) under Gensler has modeled itself on the lines of Gensler&rsquo;s anti-crypto reputation. In the US, promotions of securities are governed by the Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Both acts seek to regulate the offering and sale of securities and require that platforms offering them register with the appropriate authority. They also prohibit the misrepresentation of facts, and those failing to do so could face civil and criminal penalties that range from fines to imprisonment. On Monday, the SEC announced the appointment of Inspector General Deborah J. Jeffrey. However, it remains to be seen if Gensler will be investigated for his promotion of Algorand as a security. Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.