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Execs remain positive on long-term prospects amid VC funding downturn

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As crypto prices remain at lower levels, venture capital (VC) funding also recorded one of its worst quarters since 2021. Despite this, executives in the space remain optimistic about the industry’s long-term potential. 

Crypto data platform RootData highlighted that the second quarter of 2023 delivered one of the worst performances in terms of crypto fundraising. Compared with the first quarter of 2022, where $12.62 billion were raised across 559 funding rounds, Q1 2023 saw around $2.1 billion across 292 rounds — an 83% decrease in VC investments flowing into the space.

Quarterly crypto fundraising trend data chart. Source: Rootdata

Despite the flow of venture capital funds slowing down, professionals working in the space believe there’s still a strong ongoing belief that crypto has potential in the long term. 

Gvantsa Chkuaseli, the head of structuring and fundraising at Web3 accelerator Outlier Ventures, told Cointelegraph in a statement that despite the downturn in Q4 2022, there’s also been an uptick in activity. According to Chkuaseli, this suggests investors strongly believe in blockchain’s long-term potential.

“We can see with our own portfolio, such as Mawari’s recent $6.5 million seed round co-led by Blockchange Ventures and Decasonic, and Zinc’s $5 million Series A, that there is interest despite the challenging conditions,” Chkuaseli explained.

Chkuaseli added that some investors appear undeterred by the recent downturn and continue to back early-stage companies within the sector. “We still believe, though, there are reasons to be optimistic,” Chkuaseli said. The executive also noted the massive interest in startups focused on artificial intelligence (AI), highlighting that fetch.ai received $40 million in funding from DWF Labs earlier this year.

Saqr Ereiqat, co-founder of Dubai-based venture-building firm Crypto Oasis, believes that despite the negatives brought about by the downturn, there are still positive takeaways from the current situation. Ereiqat explained:

“On the positive side, this shift allows for a more discerning selection process, ensuring that only the most promising projects receive funding. Moreover, the challenging times serve to crystallize the winners, separating the truly innovative ventures from the rest.”

Even though there are positive outlooks, the executive still expressed empathy toward projects that are struggling because of the lack of funding. “It’s disheartening to witness numerous companies facing the risk of extinction due to the scarcity of funding opportunities,” he said. Ereiqat also told Cointelegraph that this situation emphasizes the importance of strategic decision-making for projects.

Similar to Chkuaseli, Ereiqat also highlighted how AI-focused projects are still seeing massive amounts of investments. Citing the $1.3 billion funding round for Inflection AI, the executive said there’s a growing opportunity within the AI startup landscape.

Related: Crypto VC is struggling only from a North American perspective — Animoca Brands CEO

Meanwhile, Phillip Lord, the president of the crypto payments platform Oobit, believes that it’s necessary for entrepreneurs to focus on building companies with sustainable business models and clear revenue streams. According to Lord, this help VCs be compelled to invest in their projects. He said:

“We are currently in a higher interest rate cycle, and rates are expected to remain high for the next three to five years. As such, businesses should avoid the ‘growth at any cost’ model, and instead focus on building strong and sustainable operations that will stand the test of time.“

Lord also highlighted that the VC model is experiencing a change because of AI. “Burn rates of companies can drastically come down if AI is fully embraced,” Lord said. The executive also predicted that there would be solo entrepreneurs earning more than $25 million annually “with literally no staff” because of AI.

Magazine: AI Eye: Is AI a nuke-level threat? Why AI fields all advance at once, dumb pic puns

Cryptocurrency

Bitcoin Rejected at $110K Despite US-China Trade Deal and Favorable CPI Numbers: Market Watch

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Despite the positive news on the US-China trade front and the CPI numbers in the States, bitcoin’s price failed to capitalize and has fallen by over two grand.

Most altcoins are also in the red today, with DOGE, SUI, ADA, LINK, TRX, and AVAX posting big losses.

BTC Stopped at $110K

After last Friday’s violent correction amid the rising tension between US President Trump and former ally Musk, when BTC plunged below $100,500, the primary cryptocurrency was actually going strong for a while. It managed to recover all losses by the weekend and started to gain traction at the start of the current business week.

Bitcoin spiked to $110,500 on a few occasions as the week progressed, and the latest example came yesterday when the asset came just over a grand away from tapping a new all-time high.

The macroeconomic scene improved as the POTUS said Washington and Beijing are very close to a trade deal, while the US CPI data for May was more favorable than expected. However, BTC failed to keep climbing and was quickly stopped at the $110,000 mark and pushed south by over $2,500.

As of now, it still trades below $108,000, and its market cap has slumped to $2.140 trillion. Its dominance over the alts stands still at 61% on CG.

BTCUSD. Source: TradingView
BTCUSD. Source: TradingView

Alts in Retreat

Most altcoins registered impressive gains in the past several days, so it’s rather expected that red dominates the charts today. Ethereum, which recently painted a multi-month peak, is down by just over 1% and trades at $2,750. XRP has lost the $2.3 line and is below $2.25 after a 4% daily decline.

Even more painful declines come from the likes of DOGE, TRX, SOL, ADA, SUI, LINK, and AVAX, with daily drops of up to 6-7%.

SPX is once again the top gainer today, having surged by almost 9%, while JUP, FET, and SEI lead in terms of value lost.

The total crypto market cap has shed over $70 billion and is down to $3.510 trillion on CG.

Cryptocurrency Market Overview. Source: QuantifyCrypto
Cryptocurrency Market Overview. Source: QuantifyCrypto
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Cryptocurrency charts by TradingView.

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Cryptocurrency

Spot Ethereum ETFs Outshine Bitcoin with $240M Daily Flow

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Spot Ethereum ETFs have outpaced their Bitcoin counterparts, raking in $240 million in net daily inflows on Wednesday, June 11.

This figure eclipsed the $164 million flowing into BTC ETFs, marking the first time Ethereum products have led daily inflows since the launch of U.S. spot crypto ETFs 18 months ago.

Ethereum Breaks Through

The shift, hailed by analysts and echoed across social media, is seen by some as a potential turning point in institutional crypto adoption, fueled by unique catalysts driving capital towards the second-largest digital asset.

“As far as I can remember, this is the first time this has happened,” noted prominent crypto commentator CryptoMe in a post on X, highlighting the historic nature of the flows.

Data compiled by SoSoValue shows a consistent trend building over recent weeks. Ethereum ETFs have now enjoyed 18 consecutive days of net inflows, culminating in the near-record $240.29 million haul. The crypto-linked investment products now boast $3.74 billion in cumulative net inflows, $830.98 million in total daily trading volume, and $11.05 billion in net assets, making up roughly 3.25% of Ethereum’s market cap.

The top performer, BlackRock’s ETHA, contributed just over $163 million on June 11 alone and leads all Ethereum ETFs with $5.13 billion in cumulative inflows.

In comparison, while still dominant in absolute terms, spot BTC ETFs appear to be facing diminishing momentum. Despite some $45 billion in cumulative inflows and almost $132 billion in assets under management (AUM), net inflows have softened over the past week. After a mid-week rally on June 10, where the ETFs brought in $431.12 million, flows tapered off, dropping to $164.57 million on June 11.

Even BlackRock’s flagship IBIT, which recently shattered records by becoming the fastest ETF in history to surpass $70 billion in AUM, is now experiencing moderated daily volumes, down to $1.89 billion yesterday.

Regulatory Clarity, DeFi Potential Spark Inflows

Market watchers have pointed to a combination of factors to explain Ethereum’s sudden surge in the spot ETF space. These include optimism in the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector following recent remarks by U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Paul Atkins directing the agency to explore rule amendments to accommodate on-chain financial systems.

Other key drivers include a perception of ETH as an undervalued asset as well as institutional spillover from Bitcoin ETFs. Regulatory clarity, particularly regarding Ethereum’s classification, appears to be easing institutional hesitancy.

Furthermore, ETH’s stronger recent price performance, up 5.4% over the past week compared to BTC’s 2.9% gain, and 12% over the last month versus the king cryptocurrency’s 4.9%, is reinforcing the undervaluation narrative, especially with Bitcoin trading just 3.8% below its recent all-time high while Ethereum remains 43.5% below its peak.

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XRP Price Suffers Again but Can June 16 Change Everything for Ripple?

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TL;DR

  • Alongside the rest of the crypto market, Ripple’s native token has headed south with a 3% daily decline that has pushed it to $2.25.
  • The XRP Army, though, remains bullish on the asset’s future price performance, especially since a key date in the legal case between Ripple and the SEC is approaching.

Save the Date: June 16

It has been nearly three months since Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse triumphantly announced on X that the legal spat between his company and the US securities regulator had effectively come to an end. Although both parties indeed reached an agreement regarding the payment Ripple has to make, Judge Torres rejected their joint motion, which would have extended the lawsuit, and there is no official conclusion yet.

Judge Torres argued that the agency and the company failed to file the motion correctly under Rule 60. As of now, June 16 stands as the most crucial date for a major update about the potential resolution between the two, as the SEC must file a status update with the US Court of Appeals by that date.

Numerous XRP Army members outlined the significance of the date, including perma-bull John Squire. He asked his over 500,000 followers whether Ripple’s XRP will finally get regulatory clarity after Monday.

It’s worth noting that this is not a “settlement or bust” date for the case, but it’s an important deadline for a procedural update. Any real settlement would still require Judge Torres’s final approval, which could take more time.

Will XRP’s Price React?

Although June 16 could have significant implications in the legal case between Ripple and the SEC, market experts believe it won’t have a big positive impact on XRP’s price movements. After all, the hype surrounding the closure of the case has come and gone, and investors have already factored its resolution. However, there could be further pain on the horizon if the case is extended again, as it has been in the past.

For now, XRP’s price struggles at $2.25 following a 3% daily drop. Still, the XRP Army continues to be highly bullish on the asset’s future price trajectory, marking some mindblowing targets like the one below.

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