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DeFi Protocol Ref Finance Completes $4.8M Financing Led by Jump Crypto

NEAR’s Blockchain ecological DeFi project Ref Finance announced the completion of $4.8 million financings led by Jump Crypto.

Other investors include Alameda Research, Dragonfly Capital, D1 Ventures, OKX BlockDream Ventures, Kucoin Ventures, SevenX Ventures, Kronos, Move Capital, Puzzle Ventures, 0xMaki, Caoyin, etc.

Ref Finance’s latest financing will expand its team, continue to build DeFi services, and build better DeFi products and services for customers to support the NEAR ecosystem.

Reportedly, Ref Finance currently uses algorithms such as automatic market maker (AMM) to provide DeFi one-stop service for the NEAR ecosystem.

Some of the DeFi protocols that the market is familiar with, such as Uniswap, use algorithms such as automatic market maker (AMM), allowing investors to deposit funds into the on-chain liquidity pool in advance, which makes a completely decentralized and non-custodial manner, all the while providing seamless transactions between cryptocurrencies.

It also uses the stable-swap market, a version of AMM, to exchange stablecoins.

Currently, NEAR supports the trading of ETH, SOL, LUNA, and CELO tokens through Asset Bridge for financial activities. Transaction costs on Near are about 1 cent per transaction, and transactions completed in one to two seconds.

Near Protocol Raises $350m in Funding Led by Tiger Global

For the second time this year, Near protocol, a layer-1 blockchain network, has pulled massive funds from investors cutting across the traditional finance and crypto industries.

According to Bloomberg, the platform pulled in $350 million, which is more than double what it raised ( $150 million) back in January.

“We are delighted to have such a fantastic list of backers supporting NEAR’s mission,” says Marieke Flament, NEAR Foundation’s CEO. “We are looking forward to leveraging the funding to improve access to blockchain technology in an ever-growing list of countries across the world.”

This latest funding round was led by Tiger Global, an investment firm that caters to more traditional tech and innovation startups. Other investors who participated in the round include Republic Capital, FTX Ventures, Hashed, and Dragonfly Capital. The massive capital injection Near protocol received has outlined how deep-rooted the platform’s solutions are projected to be integrated into the growing decentralized ecosystem.

Unlike this current funding round, the previous rounds were funded mostly by crypto native investors like Three Arrows Capital, Mechanism Capital, Dragonfly Capital, a16z, Jump, Alameda, Zee Prime, Folius, and Amber Group amongst others. Despite the diversity in its backers who may have different motives for investing in the protocol, Near has also been quite assertive about its goals, one of which is to fuel the decentralization of its growing ecosystem.

NEAR Protocol is a layer-one blockchain that was designed as a community-run cloud computing platform. That eliminates some of the limitations that have been bogging competing blockchains, such as low transaction speeds, low throughput, and poor interoperability. The protocol was designed to serve as one of the solutions to Ethereum and its congestion woes.

While the protocol has active communities in Europe, Africa, and Asia, it plans to extend into Latin America, Turkey, and India. Its goals are in tandem with other growing blockchain protocols like Avalanche and Binance Smart Chain (BSC), both of which have also launched dedicated funds to grow their ecosystem.

SEC Lawsuits Target Multiple Tokens: DCG Founder Points Out Absence of PoW Cryptos

In an unfolding legal battle against two major cryptocurrency exchanges, Coinbase and Binance, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has declared various tokens as securities. These tokens include SOL, ADA, MATIC, FIL, SAND, AXS, CHZ, FLOW, ICP, NEAR, VGX, DASH, and NEXO in the case against Coinbase. For Binance, the list features SOL, ADA, MATIC, FIL, ATOM, SAND, MANA, ALGO, AXS, and COTI.

This declaration by the SEC highlights its ongoing effort to regulate the cryptocurrency market and could have substantial implications for these tokens and their holders. If the SEC succeeds in classifying these tokens as securities, it would subject them to more stringent regulatory rules and obligations.

Barry Silbert, the founder of Digital Currency Group (DCG), commented on the situation via Twitter, noting, “No Proof of Work tokens in any of the lawsuits, I believe (BTC, LTC, XMR, ETC, ZEC, etc.).” Silbert’s tweet refers to the SEC’s decision to not include tokens that use Proof of Work (PoW) consensus mechanism in their lawsuits. This includes Bitcoin (BTC), Litecoin (LTC), Monero (XMR), Ethereum Classic (ETC), and Zcash (ZEC), among others.

The implication of Silbert’s statement suggests that the SEC might be differentiating between PoW tokens and other tokens. This differentiation could lead to different regulatory standards and implications for tokens depending on their underlying consensus mechanism.

This ongoing case and the SEC’s decisions could set a precedent for future regulations and classifications in the crypto market. As such, all eyes within the crypto community are keenly focused on the developments. It is yet to be seen how these decisions will shape the regulatory landscape of digital assets.

NEAR Protocol Expands Gaming Ecosystem with Vortex Gaming Partnership, Strengthening Web3 Integration

NEAR Protocol has expanded its gaming ecosystem by partnering with Vortex Gaming, a Web3 subsidiary of INVEN, Korea’s largest game media and community. This collaboration aims to attract more users and companies to the NEAR ecosystem while strengthening the NEAR game ecosystem. INVEN, with a monthly active user count of 7.2 million, brings valuable expertise and content to the partnership.

In addition to onboarding Vortex Gaming’s content onto NEAR Protocol, the NEAR Foundation and INVEN plan to support the growth of Vortex Gaming and enhance brand awareness through active collaboration, including offline hackathons and events to foster developer talent.

INVEN has been a leading company in the game industry for over 20 years, driving development as a top online game media platform. Vortex Gaming, a content-based game community optimized for Web3 games, aims to break stereotypes by offering specialized content, such as in-depth analysis of in-game economies. Leveraging their experience in building Web2 communities, Vortex Gaming plans to establish a strong user base by incorporating high-quality content and INVEN’s existing wide pool of users.

NEAR Protocol, a global Layer 1 blockchain, focuses on usability and scalability. It also serves as a Blockchain Operating System (BOS), allowing Web2 companies and developers to easily build decentralized apps and experiences for the open web. With features like FastAuth, NEAR Protocol reduces entry barriers in the Web3 gaming industry and works alongside Vortex Gaming to popularize the NEAR ecosystem.

The CEO of Vortex Gaming, Hoon Jai Lee, aims to build an integrated gamer community encompassing both Web3 and traditional Web2 gamers by providing high-quality content for both. This community-driven approach includes incentivizing gamers to create content such as character builds and game guides.

Marieke Flament, CEO of NEAR Foundation, expects the partnership with INVEN to further enhance NEAR’s sustainable game ecosystem, following the success of leading companies in the gaming industry. Scott Lee, Co-CEO of NEAR Korea, highlights the importance of community in maintaining content competitiveness and believes that onboarding Vortex Gaming will strengthen NEAR’s position as the optimal mainnet in the Web3 game ecosystem, accelerating its development.

NEAR Protocol's Q2 Market Cap Holds at $1.25 Billion, Experiences 25% QoQ Decline

According to Mesari, NEAR Protocol, a leading smart contract platform, demonstrated resilience and growth in Q2 2023, despite being listed in the SEC’s complaint against Coinbase. The platform’s financial and network fundamentals remained stable, with strategic partnerships and grassroots initiatives driving user adoption.

The introduction of the Blockchain Operating System (BOS) in March 2023 marked a significant milestone for NEAR. Within four months, NEAR Social, the social layer of the BOS, attracted over 15,000 user accounts and saw the creation of nearly 6,000 widgets. The BOS, an open-source platform, allows developers to build on any blockchain using familiar languages and a broad set of community-built components.

The Sweat Economy, a leading application on NEAR, continued to thrive. Within a year, it accumulated a total of 19 million Sweat wallets and recently conducted one of the largest governance votes in DAO history, attracting over 350,000 participants.

NEAR’s circulating market capitalization stood at $1.25 billion at the end of Q2, reflecting a 25% decrease QoQ. However, the platform’s market cap quickly recovered following the SEC news, and NEAR ranked as the 40th largest crypto project by market cap at the end of the quarter.

NEAR’s native token (NEAR) is used for staking, transaction fees, and storage fees. As of Q2, approximately 81% of the total NEAR supply is currently in circulation. Stakers on the NEAR network are earning an annual staking yield of 9.4%, resulting in a real yield of 4.4%.

The NEAR Foundation’s treasury totaled $0.9 billion at the end of Q2 2023, which included $349 million in fiat reserves, 315 million NEAR ($435 million at a closing price of $1.38), and $90 million in loans and investments.

In terms of decentralization, the NEAR Foundation announced in early January that it is actively working towards a more decentralized model of capital allocation by handing over decision-making to community DAOs. The first community DAOs have already been created, each with a specific focus and mandate.

The second quarter witnessed significant developments, including high-profile lawsuits by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) against major players like Binance and Coinbase. Despite regulatory uncertainty in the United States, the NEAR network remained resilient, with financial and network metrics showing stability throughout the quarter.

In conclusion, despite regulatory challenges, NEAR Protocol continues to make significant strides in its mission to drive adoption and attract more users to its platform. The introduction of the BOS and the continued growth of applications like the Sweat Economy are testaments to the platform’s resilience and innovative approach.

Crypto Exchange Bitstamp to Suspend Trading AXS, CHZ, MANA, MATIC, NEAR, SAND, and SOL

Bitstamp, one of the world’s oldest cryptocurrency exchanges, has announced a suspension of trading for seven cryptocurrencies in the United States, effective from August 29, 2023. The affected cryptocurrencies include AXS, CHZ, MANA, MATIC, NEAR, SAND, and SOL.

In an official statement released on Bitstamp’s blog, the company explained that the decision was made “considering recent developments” and in alignment with their “comprehensive framework” to evaluate cryptocurrencies in light of the dynamic regulatory environment. The statement further clarified that as of the mentioned date, new orders involving these assets would be disabled, and all existing orders across the affected trading pairs would be canceled.

Customers in the U.S. will still be able to hold these assets within their Bitstamp accounts and withdraw them at any time. The company has urged users to execute any desired buy or sell orders involving the affected assets before the deadline.

The New York State agency of Financial Services has issued Bitstamp USA, Inc. a license allowing it to participate in Virtual Currency Business Activity. This same agency has also issued Bitstamp USA, Inc. a license allowing it to act as a Money Transmitter.

This move comes at a time when Bitstamp is actively seeking to raise funds for expansion. The delisting coincides with the company’s efforts to comply with the dynamic regulatory environment, as stated in their official announcement, though no direct connection to investor pressure has been publicly disclosed

According to a Bloomberg report, Bitstamp initiated the fundraising process in late June 2023, with Galaxy Digital Holdings acting as an adviser. The funds are planned to be used for launching derivatives trading in Europe next year, expanding into Asian markets, and enhancing operations in the U.K.

Bitstamp’s global chief executive officer, Jean-Baptiste Graftieaux, emphasized that the company is not for sale and that the priority is to “accelerate Bitstamp’s growth by providing new products and services to retail and institutional crypto customers.”

Founded in 2011 and headquartered in Luxembourg, Bitstamp was once a primary venue for Bitcoin trading. It is now the world’s seventh-largest exchange, with about $126 million in trading volume in a recent 24-hour period. In 2018, Bitstamp was acquired by NXMH, a European investment firm owned by South Korean conglomerate NXC.

The suspension of trading for the seven cryptocurrencies is a significant indicator in Bitstamp’s operations, reflecting the ongoing challenges and complexities of regulations.

USDC will integrate into Polkadot, NEAR, Base, Cosmos' Noble, and Optimism this September

Circle, the company behind the USDC stablecoin, is set to expand its digital dollar to six new blockchain ecosystems. The move comes as part of Circle’s “Stable September” initiative and aims to provide developers and businesses with a more versatile and secure stablecoin experience. The expansion will increase USDC’s native availability from nine to fifteen blockchain ecosystems.

Multi-Chain Expansion of USDC

Circle has announced that it will extend the reach of its USDC stablecoin to five new blockchain ecosystems in September, including Base, Cosmos via Noble, NEAR, Optimism, and Polkadot. A sixth addition, Polygon PoS, is slated for October. This expansion follows Circle’s recent launch of its Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol (CCTP) on mainnet and the introduction of its Web3 Services pillar and Programmable Wallets.

According to Circle, “the expansion of USDC to six new blockchain ecosystems enables developers to build on a stable foundation with a fully reserved digital dollar they can trust.” This move is expected to offer businesses and their users a “faster, safer, and more efficient way to send, spend, and exchange value around the globe.”

Supporting Blockchains Detailed

Base

Base is an Ethereum Layer 2 solution designed to onboard the next million developers and billion users. It is built on OP Stack in collaboration with Optimism and is currently incubating at Coinbase. Base aims to serve as an easy-to-use bridge for Coinbase users.

NEAR

NEAR is a high-performance blockchain that offers frictionless user onboarding and a unique scaling solution built on sharding technology. The integration of USDC into NEAR aims to “empower developers to integrate stablecoin payments flows into JavaScript or Rust-based decentralized applications.”

Noble

Noble is an appchain in the Cosmos ecosystem focused on simplifying asset ownership and transfer within the Inter-Blockchain Communication (IBC) ecosystem. USDC issued on Noble will be accessible to dozens of appchains via a seamless IBC integration.

Optimism

Optimism is an Ethereum Layer 2 solution that utilizes Optimistic Rollup technology to improve transaction throughput. The integration is expected to result in “significantly faster and lower-cost USDC transactions.”

Polkadot

Polkadot aims to facilitate an internet where independent blockchains can exchange information in a trustless manner. Circle plans to bring USDC to Polkadot via the Asset Hub parachain.

Polygon PoS

Polygon PoS complements Ethereum’s decentralized security and aims to appeal to the general public while maintaining decentralization.

Conclusion

The expansion of USDC to six new blockchains is a significant step in Circle’s commitment to delivering a stablecoin with the “widest reach, developer optionality, and the simplest, most secure user experience.” With this move, Circle continues to solidify its position as a leader in the stablecoin market.

NEAR Protocol Potential Unveiled by Open Forest Protocol

The internal pitch deck of Open Forest Protocol (OFP) surfaced on Reddit. OFP, a pioneering project on the NEAR Protocol, offers a unique perspective on the potential trajectory of NEAR’s growth.

OFP is poised to revolutionize the voluntary carbon market, currently valued at around $2 billion USD. Projections indicate a potential surge to $50 billion USD by 2050. The project leverages open-source technology to introduce ‘real-world assets’ related to carbon sequestration and a ‘new asset class’ signifying a quantifiable amount of captured carbon. The ultimate goal? Establishing OFP as a trusted source for affordable, high-quality carbon credits.

Slide 5 from the leaked deck highlights the distinct advantages OFP holds over conventional verification methods. Open-source projects like OFP are gaining momentum. The OFP Explorer, as mentioned in the document, offers a transparent snapshot of each project’s status within the network. Slide 10 reveals OFP’s remarkable market fit, considering it’s been operational for just seven months. With a project pipeline 20 times its current size, OFP’s influence is anticipated to grow substantially.

OFP’s approach to carbon credits is noteworthy. These credits, traditionally viewed as commodities by regulators, are transitioning from an off-chain, analog format to an on-chain digital one. This not only simplifies regulatory disruptions but could also become a tax revenue source for governments.

While specific organization names remain undisclosed, Slide 13 hints at potential collaborations with major partners. Current OFP projects are forecasted to generate nearly $4 million in protocol fees within the next two years. The emphasis on forest initiatives indicates a potential for this revenue to recur annually.

Furthermore, the full ‘on-chain’ nature of these credits ensures compatibility with DeFi markets and liquidity pools. If the leaked deck holds true, OFP might emerge as one of the first revenue-positive ReFi projects, potentially generating an estimated $200m USD annually for the ecosystem and over $12m in yearly fees.

As an early venture in the NEAR ecosystem, OFP is strategically placed to contribute to NEAR’s growth, both in terms of ReFi capabilities and liquidity enhancements. Despite being operational for a mere seven months, OFP has gained significant traction with a project pipeline 20 times its present size, signaling a robust market fit. The project’s carbon credits are fully ‘on-chain,’ making them compatible with decentralized finance (DeFi) markets. They are also categorised as commodities by regulators, facilitating a smooth transition to Open Web infrastructure. Leaked slides hint at upcoming major partnerships that could further amplify OFP’s value and make it a pioneering, revenue-positive ReFi project.

NEARWEEK serves as the primary hub for all NEAR-related content. As the official NEAR Protocol newsletter and community platform, NEARWEEK extends beyond traditional journalism, actively engaging with and contributing to the NEAR ecosystem. NEAR’s vision is to introduce a billion users to the boundless potential of Web3 through the Blockchain Operating System (BOS). With its high-performance, carbon-neutral protocol, NEAR provides a unified platform for exploring the open web.

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