ICYMI - Last week in crypto: New York Senate propose Crypto Bill & "Bitcoin Jesus" owes Genesis $20M
Ready to dunk into the OREOVERSE?🤾🏽♂️
Last week, the New York Senate proposed a bill to accept cryptocurrencies for tax payments, and the “Bitcoin Jesus” was probed for owing Genesis a sum of $20M. Famous cookie company Oreo launched the OREOVERSE, and two Web3 startups - Storyco and Spatial Labs secured seed funding of $6M and $10M respectively.
NFT sales peaked at 101 million in 2022: DappRadar report
Nonfungible tokens (NFTs) have remained crucial to the development of the Web3 sector over the past year. NFTs sparked a shift toward utility-focused projects with long-term value and away from hype-based drops.
According to a new DappRadar report on blockchain and decentralized application (DApp) adoption in 2022, the number of NFT sales reached 101 million last year, an increase of 67.57% from the year before.
In the NFT ecosystem, the Ethereum ecosystem dominates with 21% of the market share and more than 21.2 million processed transactions, claims the report. Wax (14.5 million), Polygon (13.3 million), and Solana are next in line (12.9 million).
The transaction volume in the Solana and ImmutableX ecosystems increased dramatically from the prior year, by 440% and 315% respectively.
With roughly 1 million transactions for both 2021 and 2022, the data indicates that the BNB ecosystem has not changed in the meantime.
Over the past year, different chains' top-performing DApp categories have changed as well. All but two of the 13 chains analyzed in the report had a predominance of decentralized finance (DeFi) apps in 2021.
However, a significant shift toward high-risk, gaming and NFT DApps this year leveled the playing field.
With 223 and 151 active protocols, respectively, Ethereum and Cardano were named as the blockchains with the most active developers working on-chain in the report.
While the network developer activity on modular blockchains like Polkadot and Cosmos increased by 16% and 131.7%, respectively.
Last year, NFTs' significance in the Web3 sector also spread to the general public. From the NBA's continued adoption to Amazon's production of a documentary series on NFTs and collectors, NFTs are still being used by established institutions.
China announced the launch of its first national NFT marketplace at the end of the previous year, which will act as a secondary market for the trading of digital assets.
Web3 Gaming Studio Mythical Games Releases New Marketplace
Mythical Marketplace 2.0, a new digital game asset marketplace, is being launched by Web3 gaming studio Mythical Games, the business announced last Wednesday.
To aid in the development of the new product, Mythical Games also purchased the gaming asset platform DMarket. The company will give Mythical the framework for Mythical Marketplace 2.0, which will let customers buy in-game items. Incorporating DMarket's anti-money laundering and fraud protection standards, the market will also promote a neighborhood-focused marketplace with a focus on digital ownership.
Mythical Games CEO John Linden cited that the new market will introduce a new digital ownership economy while bringing new players into Web 3.
“Our core audience really is introducing gamers into these mechanics”
“You're just you're playing the game – you're buying items in the game and we're doing all the hard and heavy lifting behind the scenes” - John Linden.
Over 2 million transactions have been completed on the Ethereum-compatible chain that Mythical launched six weeks ago. Still, the long crypto winter and market turbulence are still having an impact on the company.
Mythical fired 10% of its workforce in November, citing the company's explosive growth during the bull market and the need for restructuring. A few weeks later, in December, the business announced that it intended to file a lawsuit against three former executives who quit to start Fenix Games with the money they had planned to raise for Mythical.
While he cannot comment on the specifics of the lawsuit, Linden expressed his hope that it would be resolved quickly for the benefit of both the investors and the employees.
Porsche Hits Brakes on “low effort” NFT Mint After Backlash
After receiving criticism from its community, Porsche announced on Twitter that it is stopping the minting of its first non-fungible token (NFT) collection.
Each NFT, a digital replica of its iconic 911 model, cost 0.911 ether (ETH), or roughly $1,490 when the mint first opened on Monday morning. In the hours that followed, criticism of the collection grew on Twitter as creators and collectors voiced their opinions about the company's hasty adoption of a Web3 strategy without taking the state of the NFT market as a whole into account.
Only 1,818 of the 7,500 available tokens had been minted as of the time of writing. The project performed worse on secondary marketplaces like OpenSea, where NFTs sold for less than the mint price, making it more affordable to purchase a used NFT than a mint one.
With only 2,040 of the 7,500 NFTs available having been sold as of the time of writing, the Jan. 23 launch was viewed by many as a huge failure for Porsche.
The crypto community condemned the mint for being "low effort," "tone deaf," and expensive. The cost of the NFTs was fixed at 0.911 ETH. C’mon Porsche, Stop playing.
“porsche really tried to sell $11 million worth of uncreative NFTs with low effort
big W for the space that this flopped
do better” - @GiancarloChaux said in a tweet.
“Really sad. No community. No comms. No value. Glad our community hasn’t fallen for it. Big brands should take note. This is a valuable lesson for them. Extracting value not gonna cut it.”- @Haymaker_Studio responded.
With some selling for as little as 0.86 ETH, secondary market sales have been undercutting the live mint.
“Our holders have spoken. We’re going to cut our supply and stop the mint to move forward with creating the best experience for an exclusive community. More info in the next hours.” @eth_Porsche tweeted afterward to address the issue.
Porsche clarified that minting would continue to take place until 11 a.m. UTC on January 25 after announcing that the supply would be reduced. A surge in FOMO buying was observed in the collection, temporarily raising the floor price.
Nike’s Web3 Platform .SWOOSH to Reward Creators for Virtual Sneaker Designs
Nike announced on Wednesday that it's new .SWOOSH non-fungible token (NFT) platform allows users to create custom digital wearables.
The leading sportswear company is giving away $5,000 in cash and the opportunity to work with Nike designers to create a unique virtual sneaker.
Members of the SWOOSH community were invited to take part in the #YourForce1 competition, which challenges participants to create an Instagram visual storyboard showcasing their footwear design. Four winners, if chosen, will each receive $5,000 and the chance to collaborate with Nike designers to design their own unique digital sneakers.
The four designs may be included in Nike's upcoming first signature collection, which the company continued. The competition began on January 25 and ended on January 29.
“At .SWOOSH, we’d like to expand the definition of what a creator can be. That’s why this .SWOOSH Studio contest prioritizes creative storytelling over creative skills,” Nike said in a press release.
Nike has invested years utilizing its Web3 strategy. RTFKT, a digital fashion house, was purchased by .SWOOSH in November as it prepared to enter the metaverse. As a way to track the supply chain process, Nike announced that it would start testing RFID in 2020.
Hollywood in Web3: StoryCo acquires $6M to Decentralize Storytelling
Web3 storytelling platform StoryCo announced on Thursday that it had secured $6 million in seed funding.
The platform recently unveiled its first story universe, a token-gated experience that invites users to develop the story while decentralizing IP.
Blockchange Ventures, Flamingo DAO, and executives from United Talent Agency and William Morris Endeavor also participated in the round, which was jointly led by the cryptocurrency investment firms Collab + Currency and Patron.
Additionally, StoryCo revealed The Disco Ball, its first narrative experience, which will be available in 2023. Kyle Killen, the creator of the Halo television series, and artists Shelby and Sandy will create the "immersive and collaborative storytelling experience," but they are asking for community participation to complete the main character's journey. Community members can access pre-release content, solve puzzles, discover artifacts, and jointly develop the narrative experience by using a StoryPass non-fungible token (NFT).
In a press release, founders Justin and J.P. Alan expressed their optimism that bringing Hollywood to Web3 would help to lower entry barriers and foster a community around immersive, interactive storytelling.
“We are building a new model that will drive the development of incredible new stories and allow our community of creatives and fans to contribute meaningfully to its expansion,” said Justin and J.P. Alanís in a press release.
In its efforts to decentralize intellectual property (IP) and bring Hollywood to Web3, StoryCo, formerly known as StoryDAO, is not acting alone. In an effort to expand the distribution of its associated IP, Web3 animation studio Toonstar partnered with clothing retailer Hot Topic in July to produce NFTs for both its original productions and merchandise.
Web3 Infrastructure Startup Spatial Labs Secures $10M in Seed Funding
In a seed funding round led by Blockchain Capital, Spatial Labs secured $10 million. According to a press release, the funds will be used to create new products and for growth initiatives.
Jay-Z, a businessman, and Grammy Award-winning Hip-Hop artiste/producer co-founded Marcy Venture Partners, another investment company that participated in the round. In a $4 million pre-seed round in 2021, Marcy previously invested in Spatial Labs. Other backers in the most recent round included renowned businessman Ron Burkle, music producer Scooter Braun, former professional basketball player Anthony Tolliver, and Los Angeles Rams linebacker Bobby Wagner.
Spatial Labs, a Los Angeles-based company founded in 2020, develops hardware and software that enables users to buy and sell goods like clothing online and demonstrate the goods' provenance and previous history using an embedded microchip.
“Spatial Labs is designing next-gen technologies to connect brands to younger demographics that shop and interact with products in completely new ways," Spatial Labs founder Iddris Sandu said in the press release. "Through our technology solutions, we provide brands with rich consumer data and previously inaccessible revenue models."
The additional funding will help Spatial Labs expand beyond consumer goods into other industries, such as media and entertainment, hire new staff, scale and diversify its tech stack, and make other technological advancements.
Get Stuf’d: Oreo launches a Metaverse…and a really big cookie
The Oreo cookie company created its own Metaverse, the OREOVERSE, an immersive online environment where cookie enthusiasts can participate in contests and play games with a cookie theme.
A screenshot from the web-based version of Oreo’s new metaverse. Source: OREOVERSE
The OREOVERSE is available on desktop, mobile, and in Meta's Horizon Worlds, where users can access the Metaverse and experience it in virtual reality while wearing a Meta Quest headset (VR).
To promote the Oreo-inspired digital world, Oreo hired TV personality Martha Stewart and her friend and gardener Ryan McCallister.
Among other smaller prizes, the sweepstake's grand prize offers participants the chance to win $50,000.
“Introducing our newest Limited Edition OREO Cookie: The Most OREO OREO 😱 This OREO cookie features ‘Most Stuf’ creme with bits of OREO wafer.
With a cookie so meta, it’s only right that we’re dunking into the Metaverse with our very own OREOVERSE” - @Oreo announced in a tweet
The launch of its newest limited-edition cookie, the "Most OREO OREO," which has a "Most Stuf" creme center filled with bits of Oreo, coincided with the announcement of the Metaverse.
“Bitcoin Jesus” Roger Ver Owes Genesis $20M
Bitcoin Jesus must have had a challenging year in 2022. I mean, who didnt?
Evidently, Roger Ver owes Genesis $20 million. He had previously been charged by cryptocurrency exchange CoinFLEX with breaching a $47 million debt.
On January 23, the cryptocurrency lending firm Genesis served Roger Ver with a summons, alleging that the proponent of Bitcoin owes it more than $20 million.
Ver allegedly incurred this debt by trading cryptocurrency options that would have expired on December 30, 2022, according to the filing. He had 20 days to respond to the summons. In its legal action against Ver, Genesis is requesting compensation as well as that Ver cover the costs of the defense.
Early Bitcoin investor and influencer Roger Ver. "Bitcoin Jesus" is a moniker he acquired due to his evangelistic marketing tactics. He serves as Executive Chairman of Bitcoin.com
This is not the first time a cryptocurrency business has charged Ver with breach of contract. Ver owes CoinFLEX over $47 million, according to an announcement made by the cryptocurrency exchange in June 2022. He refuted the charge, asserting that CoinFLEX was really the party owing him money. By developing the token rvUSD (officially called Recovery Value USD, but also featuring Roger Ver's initials), CoinFLEX chose to monetize its liability.
On November 16, Genesis halted loan originations and redemptions, citing "extreme market dislocation" brought on by FTX's spectacular collapse and the ensuing panic it caused in the industry. Genesis filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last week; the company owes its top 50 creditors more than $3.5 billion.
New York Senate Bill Proposes Legalizing Crypto for Payment in State Agencies
A new bill submitted to the New York Senate aims to legalize the use of some cryptocurrencies as payment for state agencies.
This would include accepting cryptocurrency as payment for fines, taxes, and other governmental charges.
The accepted cryptocurrencies are described in the legislation as being Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, and Bitcoin Cash, though it may include more.
The law defines cryptocurrency specifically as "any form of digital currency, operating independently of a central bank, in which encryption techniques are used to regulate the generation of units of currency and verify the transfer of funds."
The state would not be required to accept such transactions, but would be free to voluntarily enter into agreements "with persons to provide the acceptance, by offices of the state, of cryptocurrency as a means of payment."
Clyde Vanel, a Democratic assemblyman, introduced the proposal. He is frequently referred to as a politician who is pro-crypto, but many in his party are against it due to concerns about its negative effects on the environment and potential for use in sanction evasion.
Senator Wendy Rogers of Arizona introduced a bill last week that would make Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies legal tender in the entire state. It would permit state agencies to enter into agreements with cryptocurrency issuers to provide a pathway for citizens to pay taxes, rent, and fines in cryptocurrency, similar to Vanel's bill.
In January 2022, Rogers put forth a similar bill, but it didn't seem to gain traction.
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