Global cryptocurrency exchange Binance announced funding for six projects building on the firm’s smart chain. In an Oct. 14 statement, Binance stated that blockchain projects AnySwap, Arkane Network, BakerySwap, Bitquery, PancakeSwap and Proxima will receive $350,000 in grants through the firm’s $100 million fund. More than 180 projects have applied for grants since the fund was announced in September. The firm chose the six projects using criteria examining teams, products and contribution to the blockchain ecosystem. Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao said the Accelerator Fund was designed to support the development of high-quality DeFi projects that contribute to building the industry’s …

Securing seed money for blockchain startups is a tricky business in normal times, but with a pandemic raging, it’s really touch-and-go. Private investors have been walking away from startup deals lately, looking to conserve working capital in uncertain economic times. But fortuitously, governments and government-like entities have been rushing in to fill the gaps. Richard Fetyko, founder of altFINS — a blockchain startup that enables crypto investors to screen, analyze and trade digital assets across exchanges — told Cointelegraph that he had an investor lined up to provide development and launch funding for the platform, “but then Covid rolled in.” …

Since the “digital Sleeping Beauty,” Bitcoin (BTC), woke up about two months after its third halving in mid-May 2020, we have read a lot about the “funding rate” of digital assets futures — from good to completely misleading reports. We just wanted to chime in on that trendy topic. What is the funding rate? First, it is important to understand what this “funding rate” is, as it only relates to digital assets derivatives. In traditional finance, futures contracts in which prices are derived from the spot price of the same underlying asset have a predefined expiration: monthly and/or quarterly. Small …

A technology unit at the European Commission has awarded millions of dollars to several blockchain projects in an effort to support the use of blockchain in socially beneficial ways. The European Innovation Council has awarded 5 million euros ($5.6 million) to six blockchain initiatives within its “Blockchains for Social Good” program. Announcing the news on Tuesday, the EIC noted that the prize intends to promote blockchain development in the areas of traceability, fair trade, financial inclusion and decentralized circular economy. The awarded startups include Dutch content authenticity firm WordProof, British startup PPP, Finnish GMeRitS, Oxfam’s UnBlocked Cash Project OXBBU, French …

Building Cities Beyond (BCB) Blockchain, a Singapore based tech solution company for smart cities, has launched an innovation grant, worth $15 million, to encourage development on its ecosystem, according to Fintech News Singapore. This innovation grant comes as the company announced partnerships with leading accelerators in Asia to incubate selected projects. Targeting Asian projects The BCB Innovation Grant is said to target up to 1,000 projects within Asia. The $15 million grant will cater to technology startups in the region, with grant participants also gaining access to BCB workshops and facilities to assist and bolster their development capabilities. BCB will …

The Tezos (XTZ) class-action lawsuit from law firm Block & Leviton will likely conclude in a $25-million settlement on August 27. Tezos, like many initial coin offerings (ICO) from 2017, has come under scrutiny from both investors and regulators alike alleging that its token sale constituted an illegal offering of securities. Indeed, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has come down hard on numerous 2017-era ICOs demanding penalties for securities violation. Even distributions to non-U.S. citizens have also come under the SEC’s radar, as was the case with Telegram. The SEC has consistently maintained that most ICOs are indeed …

The joint blockchain cloud computing venture of computing giant AMD and Ethereum-focused development firm ConsenSys has received $20.5 million in funding. According to a June 25 announcement, AMD and ConsenSys’ W3bcloud joint venture obtained the funds through the sale of convertible notes to the founding firms and several family offices in the United Arab Emirates. Jörg Roskowetz — the head of the blockchain business unit at AMD — said, “Parallel and distributed computing focused on blockchain use cases is a fast-growing segment of the industry.” W3bcloud’s co-founder and CEO Sami Issa told Cointelegraph, “AMD will design the high-performance hardware technologies …

Floating Point Group, or FPG, a startup delivering institutional crypto traders automation technologies, garnered $2 million of capital from several entities. "It's becoming clear that sophisticated quantitative traders and platform developers are viewing the cryptocurrency markets as an exciting new opportunity," FPG CEO John Peurifoy explained in a May 28 statement. The funding goes toward expansion Algorand CEO Steve Kokinos, Seabury Global Markets, AngelList founder Naval Ravikant, and multiple others invested the money into FPG, receiving company stake in return, the statement said. An outfit operating under U.S. governing bodies, FPG plans on putting the funding toward regulation approvals, as …

Blockchain technology firm, LayerX, has raised about 3 billion yen (equivalent to nearly $28 million) to further blockchain adoption. The Japanese version of Cointelegraph reported on May 28 that LayerX raised the funds from venture capital firms JAFCO, ANRI, and Yahoo Group. JAFCO board member, Keisuke Miyoshi, commented: “Corona has exposed various issues in Japan. It is further accelerating [digitization]. Blockchain is not just a technology buzzword.” The news follows April reports revealing that most of the fundraising in the crypto space shifted from the Americas to the Asia Pacific regions, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. According to a …

The first thing to note is that despite the safe-haven characterization of crypto, the asset class itself in March appeared to be closely correlated with traditional public markets. Additionally, there were some notable crypto funds that went insolvent due to unhedged positions, a leverage mismatch or challenges with conducting proper risk management. Similar to December 2017, some funds were so beneath their high-water mark that the fund managers decided to wind down their fund, issue compulsory redemptions and stop activities. On average, crypto hedge funds were down among our clients, but not as much as their traditional counterparts. Both categories …

Popular stock and cryptocurrency trading app had a lot of problems in March, and is reportedly trying to make up for it with help from a new injection of cash. According to Bloomberg, Robinhood is in the process of raising $250 million at a valuation of about $8 billion. Citing anonymous sources, the report says the new funding round will be driven by Robinhood’s existing investors, like major venture capital firm Sequoia Capital. The word is that there’s still no final deal. Cointelegraph contacted Robinhood for comment and didn’t receive an immediate response. We will update this story if they …

This week’s headlines from Japan included GMO Coin unveiling Basic Attention Token (BAT) lending, Nitori using blockchain for furniture logistics, blockchain solution outfit, Ginco, receiving funding from DBJ Capital, Japan's stay at home order impacting crypto businesses, and a representative from the Japan Restoration Association questioning crypto taxes. Check out some of this week’s crypto and blockchain headlines, originally reported by Cointelegraph Japan. GMO Coin exchange announces BAT lending In an April 10 statement, Japanese crypto exchange, GMO Coin, unveiled lending features for Brave Browser's Basic Attention Token (BAT). The new capability means customers can lend their BAT to other …