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A lot of news happened in the wild world of web3: Solana Mobile's new device generated over 30,000 pre-orders, Electric Capital's highly anticipated developer report showed good (and bad) news for developers, Coinbase went to court, and the India faced more crypto issues. More details below.
This week on web3
- Shopping frenzy for Solana Mobile's second phone triggers pre-orders
- Coinbase Advocates Motion to Dismiss SEC 'Securities Violation' Allegations
- Number of monthly active cryptocurrency developers fell 25% in 2023
- Google removes Binance and other global crypto apps from India store
- How low can bitcoin ETF fees fall before it hurts a company?
Analyzing the numbers
As the crypto space soaks in last week's bitcoin ETF spot approval, trading volumes across the 11 issuers hit $11.95 billion with total assets around $27.7 billion in four days , according to a publish in X by James Seyffart, ETF analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence.
Before the approval of spot bitcoin ETFs by the US Securities and Exchange Commission, some experts told me they expected trading volumes to reach $10 billion in a year, not a week. Therefore, it is safe to say that these figures are well ahead of previously anticipated demand.
Our favorite web3 post about X
Franklin Templeton, a 77-year-old firm with over $1.4 trillion in assets under management, has a laser-eyed PFP (a nod to the bitcoin community) and posts about memecoins like dogwifhat. I bet you didn't have that on your 2024 bingo card.
Not sure how to feel about Laser Eye Ben? Just think instead of Ben with a hat.
-Franklin Templeton (@FTI_US) January 17, 2024
The last pod
For this week episodeI interviewed Monica Long, president of Ripple, a blockchain-based digital payment network and protocol.
Ripple has been around since 2012 and is one of the oldest crypto entities. Monica has spent the last 10 years at Ripple, rising from Director of Communications to now President.
We talked about Monica's professional growth, cross-border payments, traditional finance, and the need for regulatory clarity.
We also dive into Ripple's lawsuit with the SEC, the XRP Ledger, its approach to 2024, and tips for the community.
Subscribe to Chain reaction in apple podcasts, Spotify or your favorite pod platform to keep up to date with the latest episodes and leave us a review if you like what you hear!
follow the money
- Inception Capital closes $30 million flagship fund of funds focused on emerging crypto managers.
- Betting tech Provider Kiln Raises $17 Million in Rare crypto Funding Round
- COTI Launches $25M Ecosystem Growth Fund to Focus on Privacy on ethereum
- Cryptocurrency exchange WOO Network raises $9 million to increase liquidity
- Digital asset trading technology company Flowdesk raises $50 million in Series B round
This list was compiled with information from Messari as well as TechCrunch's own reporting.
What else are we writing?
Do you want to leave the world of web3? Here are some articles on TechCrunch that caught our attention this week:
- Welcome back to the Unicorn Club, 10 years later
- I spent the morning with the Apple Vision Pro
- The goal of a startup is to cease to exist
- Will startup valuations start to recover in 2024? Investors are not so sure
- As Hacks Worse, SEC Increases Pressure on CISOs
