AboutAbout UsCode of EthicsTerms and ConditionsEU/EEA Regulatory NoticePrivacy PolicyCookie PolicyCookie PreferencesCommunity GuidelinesWork for usHR QualityConnectContact UsAppsChannel FinderTV SchedulePodcastsSubmit a TipOur ChannelsAl Jazeera ArabicAl Jazeera EnglishAl Jazeera Investigative UnitAl Jazeera MubasherAl Jazeera DocumentaryAl Jazeera BalkansAJ+Our NetworkAl Jazeera Centre for StudiesAl Jazeera Media InstituteLearn ArabicAl Jazeera Centre for Public Liberties & Human RightsAl Jazeera ForumAl Jazeera Hotel Partners Remember when Twitter dropped NFTs and enabled Bitcoin tips? Given that founder and CEO Jack Dorsey’s Twitter bio is literally just “#bitcoin,” it’s not surprising that Twitter Public-market investors continued to underestimate how volatile the crypto market is, leaving them to over-index on gains, and over-despair on less impressive results. How African refugees used bitcoin to build their own grassroots economy When hundreds of thousands of people in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) fled their homes after the eruption of the Mount Nyiragongo volcano on May 22, a blogger and a fledgling restaurant w TechCrunch+ roundup: Deep tech predictions, HashiCorp’s IPO, enterprisewide AI If you believe you have a good idea for a startup, go for it. When venture capitalists say this is a good time to be a founder, you know they absolutely mean it. In an interview today at the NYT Dealbook Conference, Apple CEO Tim Cook confirmed the company was looking into cryptocurrency, but clarified it had no “immediate” plans to launch any cryp 15 sectors pi Ventures expects deep tech to disrupt in the next 5 years The Exchange gained early access to pi Ventures' Deep Tech Shifts 2026 report, which identifies 15 deep tech subsectors the firm believes will reach an inflection point by 2026. Crypto exchange Bitmart in talks to raise at $300 million valuation Cryptocurrency exchange Bitmart is in talks to raise about $20 million at a pre-money valuation of $300 million, two sources familiar with the matter told me. Alexander Capital Ventures, known for bac Notabene raises $10.2M to help crypto exchanges comply with new global regulations Notabene, a New York, NY-based crypto compliance SaaS startup, has raised $10.2 million in a Series A funding round co-led by F-Prime Capital and Jump Capital. The latest investment brings Notabene’ Matter Labs scores $50M from a16z to bring zero-knowledge rollup scaling to Ethereum As some of the most popular cryptocurrencies reach all-time highs, plenty of new users and decentralized app developers are embracing the Ethereum network and quickly discovering that the blockchain r Studio behind ‘early access’ crypto game Blankos Block Party banks monster $1.25B valuation from a16z A16z Crypto has been minting plenty of NFT unicorns this year. In July, they backed NFT marketplace OpenSea at a $1.5 billion valuation. They participated in a September raise for NBA Top Shot-maker D Rational regulation is key to US competitiveness in the fintech race With all the focus on the technology race between the U.S. and China, little attention has been paid to who will lead the innovation and control the technology behind international payments systems? Hybe, the South Korean agency behind K-pop megastars BTS, announced today that it plans to set up a joint venture with Korean crypto exchange Upbit to enter the non-fungible token (NFT) business. Hyb The market is speaking with activity numbers that lower-priced, more-useful NFTs connected to an interactive world can generate not only lots of economic value, but also lots of fans. Chipper Cash gets $2B valuation with $150M extension round led by FTX Chipper Cash, an African cross-border payments company, has raised $150 million in a Series C extension round led by Sam Bankman-Fried’s cryptocurrency exchange platform FTX. The investment comes ba The factors that have determined whether art trends become art history are receiving scant attention amid the NFT writing of today. A new venture studio, SuperLayer, aims to become a preeminent Web3 launch pad There’s a new venture studio in the world that looks rather different from earlier venture studios from a structural standpoint. Unlike renowned outfits like Atomic or Science or Expa that create co Patreon confirms it’s exploring crypto as a way for creators to make money Patreon CEO and co-founder Jack Conte and Chief Product Officer Julian Gutman spoke on a panel at The Information’s 2021 Creator Economy Summit yesterday, where they were asked about the member Beta Finance, which offers one-click option to short crypto assets, raises from Sequoia Capital India and others Beta Finance, a decentralized finance protocol that has developed a one-click solution for lending, borrowing and shorting of any crypto asset, said on Friday it has raised $5.75 million across its pr Robinhood’s nasty quarter shows the ups, downs of trading incomes Robinhood's crypto revenues dropped like a stone. And that matters quite a lot for other companies. “The Ruin stirs, and the Five Realms rumble,” a now-archived web announcement read on Thursday morning. “You are cordially invited to join New York Times bestselling and award-winning authors Ma Apps & Software Cybersecurity Mobile Smart Home Social Media Space Tech Industry Transportation All Tech Digital Culture Family & Parenting Health & Wellness Sex, Dating & Relationships All Life Activism Climate Change Gender LGBTQ Mental Health Racial Justice Sustainability All Social Good
Another institutional hit for bitcoin–which probably had the most sustained effect–was the SEC’s refusal to approve a bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF). This would be a path for more mainstream people in finance to dabble with blockchain; it would allow investors to dip their toes in bitcoin without owning the actual asset. Not only that, but it would make bitcoin available on the most prominent financial markets. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), however, has yet to allow such a fund to exist–mostly because it is unable to monitor crypto-transactions in order to avoid market manipulation.
