Andreessen Horowitz has committed $100 million to Eigen Labs, the principal developer of the Ethereum restaking initiative EigenLayer, leading its Series B financing round. This follows a $50 million Series A led by Blockchain Capital, amidst a backdrop of declining venture funding in the crypto sector. EigenLayer, which introduced a protocol for re-staking Ethereum to enhance third-party protocols' security, has launched on the Ethereum mainnet with support for various liquid staking tokens (LSTs). This investment aims to spur innovation beyond Ethereum's smart contracts into areas like consensus mechanisms and decentralized oracles. With this significant backing, EigenLayer has seen its total value locked approach $8 billion, highlighting its growing impact on the DeFi landscape.
Reddit announced an investment in Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) as part of its excess cash management strategy, alongside acquiring Ether and Polygon (MATIC) for virtual goods sales, as revealed in its SEC filing for a public listing on the NYSE under ticker "RDDT." The company, following in the footsteps of MicroStrategy and Tesla in direct digital asset investment, did not specify the amount held but noted the carrying value as immaterial. This move, part of Reddit's broader strategy to explore blockchain technology, comes amidst its public offering preparations, aiming to enhance its mission and community engagement. With $804 million in sales for 2023 and $1.6 billion in total assets, including $1.3 billion in cash, Reddit's entry into the cryptocurrency space marks a significant step for the platform and highlights the growing interest of major corporations in digital assets.
A U.S. bankruptcy judge has granted approval for FTX to sell its nearly 8% stake in AI startup Anthropic, marking a step towards fulfilling creditor claims following the exchange's collapse. This decision by Judge John Dorsey came after resolving opposition from a creditor representative by ensuring their rights are preserved in the sale process. FTX's investment in Anthropic, made by its former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried in 2021, could potentially bring significant returns to its creditors, given Anthropic's valuation of up to $18 billion as of December 2023. This sale is part of FTX's broader strategy to liquidate assets and secure funds to repay customers and creditors, with the anticipation that enough resources will be gathered to cover all claims fully. The judge's approval reflects the urgency and strategic importance of leveraging high-value investments like Anthropic amidst the volatile market for early-stage tech companies, particularly in the AI sector.
Bitcoin is persistently testing its intraday support level of $50,600, displaying a pattern of consistently lower highs, indicating potential impending weakness in the market. Bids are accumulating across various exchanges in an attempt to sustain the ongoing rally. A breach of this support level could trigger a cascading effect of sell orders, potentially driving prices towards the next support zone ranging from $47,000 to $49,000.
Spot Bitcoin ETFs witnessed a net inflow of $251.4 million yesterday, reversing the net outflow observed on Wednesday. Concurrently, outflows from Grayscale decreased from $199.3 million to $55.7 million. Total trading volume for spot Bitcoin ETFs surpassed $50 billion yesterday.
Reddit recently disclosed its investment of excess cash into BTC and ETH, joining the ranks of companies directly acquiring digital assets, such as MicroStrategy and Tesla. This investment revelation coincided with Reddit's filing with the SEC to go public on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol "RDDT."
Altcoins related to AI experienced notable gains this week, fueled by NVDA’s exceptional quarterly report, with AGIX surging by 97% and WLD reaching a record high of $9 after a 93% gain. Additionally, FIL and GRT performed strongly, rallying over 40% in the past seven days.
Avalanche experienced an outage, failing to produce a block for nearly two hours, according to its status page. Developers are currently investigating the issue, with AVAX showing a modest decline of only 1%.
In the equities market, stock futures edged slightly higher on Friday following significant gains in the S&P 500 and Nasdaq, marking their best day since early 2023. The rally was fueled by blockbuster earnings from tech giant Nvidia, with multiple sectors contributing to the positive momentum. Furthermore, all three major averages are now poised for a winning week.
Fed Governor Christopher Waller addressed concerns after Thursday's market close, reiterating the central bank's cautious approach towards future monetary policy decisions. Waller emphasized that policymakers will proceed carefully, especially in light of hot January inflation readings, which may postpone potential rate cuts. He indicated the need for "at least another couple of months" of inflation data before determining the appropriate course of action.
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