Digital Assets for 1 Billion Rubles Issued in Russia in a Month

Platforms authorized by the Russian government issued digital assets worth around a billion rubles in April, the local press reported. The spike in the volume has been attributed to Russian companies experimenting with new financial instruments amid limited access to traditional…

Sotheby’s to Auction 3AC’s NFT Collection, Including Larva Labs’ Zombie Punk and Dmitri Cherniak’s ‘Golden Goose’

On Wednesday, Sotheby’s, one of the world’s largest brokers of fine and decorative art, announced its plans to auction a number of non-fungible token (NFT) assets that were previously owned by the now-defunct crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital (3AC). The…

First Republic Bank’s Shares Downgraded to Junk Status by S&P Global; Stock Slides More Than 25% Lower

After UBS acquired Credit Suisse and close to a dozen financial institutions injected $30 billion into First Republic Bank four days ago, S&P Global downgraded First Republic’s shares to junk status on Sunday. Investors are concerned that the cash infusion from…

Silicon Valley Bank Faces Financial Woes as Stock Is Halted, Sells $21 Billion Bond Portfolio at a $1.8 Billion Loss

On March 10, 2023, market observers are discussing the troubles Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) faces, as the firm’s stock slid more than 60% in the last 24 hours. SVB was forced to sell a $21 billion bond portfolio at a $1.8…

Israeli Startup Chain Reaction Raises $70 Million to Build Blockchain Silicon

Chain Reaction, a Tel Aviv-based blockchain startup, announced it has raised $70 million as part of its Series C funding round. The objective of the company is to expand its engineering staff to accelerate the production of its blockchain-focused silicon and…

Egyptian Fintech MNT-Halan Secures $400 Million in Funding, Valuation Rises to Over $1 Billion

Egyptian fintech MNT-Halan announced on Feb. 1 that it had raised over $340 million via debt and equity and it expects to raise an additional $60 million from leading international investors. The latest funding round sees MNT-Halan’s valuation rise to over…

Korean VC Firm Daesung Private Equity Announces $83 Million Metaverse Fund

Daesung Private Equity, a Korean venture capital firm, has announced the launch of a metaverse fund of 110 billion won ($83.5 million). The fund, which will have the participation of the Korean state represented by Korea Venture Investment Corporation’s Korea Fund…

Nigeria’s Rising Inflation and Foreign Exchange Shortages Fueling Devaluation Speculation — IMF Mission

According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s mission concluding statement, Nigeria’s rising inflation rate as well as the continuing shortage of foreign currency are fueling the naira devaluation speculations. To achieve a unified naira exchange rate, the global lender said Nigeria…

Onchain Data Reveals Alameda Acquired Specific Tokens a Month Before FTX Listings

According to a report stemming from the blockchain analytics firm Argus, Sam Bankman-Fried’s trading firm Alameda Research obtained tokens ahead of FTX.com listings. The report claims that Alameda acquired roughly $60 million worth of tokens before the digital assets were scheduled…