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According to a recent report, the venture capital firm founded by Alexis Ohanian, Seven Seven Six, is planning to raise $177 million for a new crypto-centric fund. The new Seven Seven Six fund called Kryptós will concentrate on investing in cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and ethereum.

Seven Seven Six Launches Cryptocurrency Fund Kryptós — Plans to Go Live in October

On August 29, 2022, The Information reporter Kate Clark published a report that noted Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian’s Seven Seven Six is raising money for a new crypto-focused fund called Kryptós. The company has been behind a number of investments tethered to the crypto and Web3 industry. For instance, Seven Seven Six led the Ethereum Web3 wallet platform Rainbow’s $18 million funding round.

In mid-December 2021, Seven Seven Six teamed up with Polygon to launch a $200 million social media Web3 fund. On Monday, The Information’s report says the fund Kryptós is looking to raise $177 million and it will invest in crypto assets. Last April, Seven Seven Six was approved to operate as a registered investment advisor (RIA), and Clark reports that her publication read the Kryptós fund marketing paperwork.

The Kryptós fund paperwork notes that there’s “potentially a unique opportunity” to obtain crypto investment vehicles “at a discount.” Now that Seven Seven Six is a registered investment advisor, it can invest in digital assets and manage the fund for a fee. Clark’s report further cites one of the founding partners at Ohanian’s venture capital (VC) firm, Katelin Holloway, who is quoted as saying “everything is on sale,” when it comes to crypto investment vehicles Kryptós could acquire. Holloway further added:

This is the best time to buy if you’re really long on the industry.

The crypto winter has not slowed VCs and businesses looking to invest in crypto-related products, projects, tokens, and companies in 2022. With the ability to invest directly into crypto assets like BTC and ETH, it can compete with investment funds offered by Sequoia Capital and Andreessen Horowitz (a16z). Seven Seven Six plans to charge a 2.5% management fee for Kryptós and the fund aims to go live in October 2022.

What do you think about the VC firm Seven Seven Six targeting $177 million for a new cryptocurrency fund called Kryptós? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

Bitcoin miner Cleanspark says it experienced accelerated growth amid the crypto winter this year and the operation’s hashrate has surpassed 3 exahash per second (EH/s), tripling in less than twelve months’ time. The news follows a number of expansions bitcoin mining operations have embarked upon during 2022’s tumultuous crypto market.

Cleanspark’s Hashrate Surpasses 3 EH/S, Bitcoin Miner’s Executive Chairman Says Firm Was Prepared ‘for a Rough Market’

On Tuesday, the bitcoin mining operation Cleanspark (Nasdaq: CLSK) announced that the company’s hashrate has officially surpassed 3 EH/s. Cleanspark notes that the firm’s hashpower has jumped three times higher in less than a year and currently the company has 31,000 ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit) mining rigs. According to the company, Cleanspark has recorded a “daily production high of 13.25 bitcoins.”

Cleanspark’s update on Tuesday follows the firm revealing it acquired thousands of next-generation ASIC miners at a discounted price. At the time the company said the crypto winter provided “unprecedented opportunities” and during the first week of August, it announced the acquisition of a plug-in-ready mining facility with up to 86 megawatts (MW) of capacity. A large number of other bitcoin mining operations have been expanding and growing operations in 2022 as well.

Applied Digital recently revealed it obtained land in North Dakota for a mining facility after it secured a $15 million loan to continue expansion. Validus Power, a blockchain power solutions firm, announced that the company is building out more data centers in Canada.

On Monday, the bitcoin mining operation Terawulf Inc. (Nasdaq: WULF) amended its existing joint venture agreement for the Nautilus Cryptomine bitcoin mining center. This month, Cipher Mining completed the firm’s 40 MW Texas mining facility that’s powered by wind and two weeks ago, BIT Mining revealed a $9.3 million registered direct offering.

After surpassing 3 EH/s, Cleanspark’s executive chairman Matt Schultz explained that the company had prepared for the crypto winter’s downturn. “We prepared for a rough market, which allowed us to take advantage of unique opportunities and propel the Company further,” Schultz detailed on Tuesday in a statement. “Because of that we’re growing our market share as a publicly traded bitcoin miner,” the executive added.

Meanwhile, a large quantity of shares stemming from publicly-listed bitcoin miners are down a great deal in value this year. Year-to-date, CLSK has shed 68.33% against the U.S. dollar and at one time it traded for more than $22 per share. On Tuesday, stock market data shows CLSK is changing hands for $4.29 a share.

What do you think about Cleanspark surpassing 3 EH/s amid the crypto winter? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

Meta, the corporate entity behind the social media platforms Instagram and Facebook, has revealed that non-fungible token (NFT) support now offers cross-posting compatibility between the two major social media platforms. The digital collectible-sharing ability follows Meta rolling out NFT and Web3 wallet support to 100 countries during the first week of August.

Meta’s NFT Rollout Continues as Social Media Giant Introduces the ‘Ability to Post Digital Collectibles’

Meta Platforms, Inc. (Nasdaq: META), announced on August 29, 2022, that the firm is “introducing the ability to post digital collectibles” across Instagram and Facebook. Meta disclosed the information on Twitter and shared a blog post published in May that gets updated on a regular basis.

When Meta tweeted about the NFT cross-posting compatibility and support for Facebook and Instagram, the company got a few replies from individuals who liked the idea and also from people who mocked the NFT concept. One person wrote that Meta’s latest NFT cross-posting compatibility was “bullish.”

Meanwhile, a number of other people mocked the NFT announcement and one such individual told Meta: “No, I’ll just post the jpeg instead, thanks.” Another individual replied jokingly that sharing a jpeg was “more safe for sure.” A few people shared screenshots of the ability to cross-post NFTs across Instagram and Facebook.

Meta’s post on Monday states:

As we continue rolling out digital collectibles on Facebook and Instagram, we’ve started giving people the ability to post digital collectibles that they own across both Facebook and Instagram. This will enable people to connect their digital wallets once to either app in order to share their digital collectibles across both.

The August 29 announcement follows Meta initiating NFT support to 100 countries and adding the ability to connect with third-party wallets such as Metamask and Rainbow. Meta also noted on August 4 that the digital collectibles features would support blockchains like Flow, Ethereum, and Polygon. At the time, Meta said that “there are no fees associated with posting or sharing a digital collectible” on Instagram and Facebook.

The company’s social media competitor Twitter launched non-fungible token support via Twitter Blue Labs. Users leveraging Twitter Blue Labs’ features can upload longer videos on Twitter, upload videos in 1080p quality, and leverage an NFT profile picture. While Meta has integrated Flow and Polygon, Twitter only supports static NFTs that were created on the Ethereum blockchain (ERC721, ERC1155).

What do you think about Meta adding cross-posting NFT compatibility between Facebook and Instagram? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

PRESS RELEASE. LONDON | August 30, 2022 – Hubble Protocol, home of the USDH stablecoin, has launched Kamino Finance: the first concentrated liquidity market maker (CLMM) optimizer of its kind on the Solana blockchain.

Kamino Finance, launching initially on next-generation decentralized exchange (DEX) Orca, will allow users to earn higher yields in a fully automated way simply by depositing their crypto into vaults linked to Orca’s liquidity “whirlpools.”

Kamino Finance builds on the advantages of CLMM’s, which reduce slippage and facilitate larger trades by narrowing the price range at which users provide liquidity.

By automatically adjusting positions so they are set in an optimum range to capture the most fees and provide the deepest liquidity, Kamino removes common pain points for CLMM liquidity providers (LPs). In addition, Kamino automatically compounds CLMM fees and rewards back into users’ LP positions, boosting yields as position sizes grow.

Marius Ciubotariu, the co-founder of Hubble Protocol, says: “Managing profitable LP positions has been notoriously difficult due to the complexities posed by CLMMs and the increased risk of impermanent loss when prices swing the wrong way, as well as front-running by bots – common on Ethereum.

“Thanks to the lightning-speed throughput of the Solana blockchain, Kamino is able to provide LPs with higher yields and maximum capital efficiency. This fully realizes the potential of CLMMs. With Kamino, we hope to be paving the way for DeFi’s next explosive period of growth on the Solana DeFi ecosystem.”

Instead of the usual CLMM NFT, Kamino will provide LPs with a fungible LP token as a receipt of deposit. This LP token can be used as collateral to borrow USDH, Hubble’s censorship-resistant stablecoin, which can then be used to transact or earn further yield in Solana DeFi.

Hubble will build the first Kamino vaults on top of Orca’s concentrated liquidity whirlpools. At launch, vaults will be dedicated to stable-asset and pegged-asset pairs, with additional vaults added in the future.

Milan Patel, Head of Business Development at Orca, says: “By building upon Whirlpools, Hubble has created a simple way for liquidity providers to access the benefits of concentrated liquidity without continuous rebalancing. Hubble’s Kamino project demonstrates how concentrated liquidity on Orca can be easily harnessed by all users and protocols.”

About Hubble Protocol

Hubble Protocol enables the Solana DeFi community to borrow USDH, a censorship-resistant and crypto-backed stablecoin. By depositing a range of bluechip crypto tokens such as SOL, BTC, ETH, liquid staking tokens like mSOL, stSOL, and daoSOL, and a growing number of assets, users can mint USDH at up to an 80% LTV.

USDH can be used on multiple protocols across the Solana DeFi ecosystem to transact and earn yield. The Hubble team is completing a roadmap that includes improvements to the current USDH borrowing platform as well as the launch of new products and services, like Kamino, that bring real and long-term value to DeFi.

About Kamino Finance

Kamino Finance is an automated market-making solution built on DEXs powered by concentrated liquidity. The protocol optimizes CLMM liquidity by leveraging the superior speed and cost of Solana to rebalance positions and auto-compound fees plus rewards on behalf of users.

As an automated product guided by quantitative analysis and modeling, Kamino seeks to provide users with a market-making tool that requires little to no expertise for participation. LPs can “set it and forget it” to maximize their earned fees and minimize IL when providing liquidity via Kamino.

This is a press release. Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to the promoted company or any of its affiliates or services. Bitcoin.com is not responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in the press release.

U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren says she is “very worried” that the Federal Reserve will tip the economy into recession. “There is nothing in raising the interest rates, nothing in Jerome Powell’s tool bag that deals directly with” the causes of inflation, she explained.

Senator Elizabeth Warren on Inflation and the Fed Raising Interest Rates

U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) discussed inflation and the Federal Reserve raising interest rates during an appearance on CNN’s State of the Union Sunday.

She began by commenting on the speech by Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell in Jackson Hole on Friday. “While higher interest rates, slower growth, and softer labor market conditions will bring down inflation, they will also bring some pain to households and businesses. These are the unfortunate costs of reducing inflation. But a failure to restore price stability would mean far greater pain,” Powell said.

“I want to translate what Jerome Powell just said,” the senator from Massachusetts said. “What he called ‘some pain’ means putting people out of work, shutting down small businesses because the cost of money goes up, because the interest rates go up.”

Replying to a question about whether she believes it’s a mistake for the Federal Reserve to keep raising interest rates, Warren stressed:

I am very worried about this.

She proceeded to list “The causes of inflation — things like the fact that Covid is still shutting down parts of the economy around the world, that we still have supply chain kinks, that we still have a war going on in Ukraine that drives up the cost of energy, and that we still have these giant corporations that are engaging in price gouging.”

Senator Warren emphasized:

There is nothing in raising the interest rates, nothing in Jerome Powell’s tool bag that deals directly with those, and he has admitted as much in congressional hearings when I’ve asked him about it.

She continued: “Do you know what’s worse than high prices and a strong economy? It’s high prices and millions of people out of work. I’m very worried that the Fed is going to tip this economy into recession.”

A survey published last week showed that 72% of economists polled by the National Association of Business Economics expect the U.S. economy to be in recession by the middle of next year. Nearly one in five (19%) economists surveyed said the economy is already in a recession, as determined by the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER).

A different survey by Stifel Financial found that 97% of corporate executives, business owners, and private equity investors in the U.S. surveyed believed that the U.S. economy is either already in a recession (18%) or will face one within the next 18 months (79%).

Some people believe that inflation has peaked, including Tesla CEO Elon Musk. Meanwhile, JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon said there is a chance of “something worse” than a recession coming.

What do you think about the comments by U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren? Let us know in the comments section below.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) expects the U.S. economy to experience high inflation for at least another year or two. “I would be careful about looking at one data point for the U.S.,” IMF First Deputy Managing Director Gita Gopinath cautioned.

IMF on US Economy and Global Inflation

The first deputy managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Gita Gopinath, discussed global inflation and the U.S. economy in an interview with Bloomberg Friday in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

Responding to a question about whether global inflation has peaked, she said: “I think it’s too early to say. Yes, we have inflation almost everywhere. There are important exceptions, like China and Japan, but everywhere else we have high levels of inflation.” The IMF executive added:

There are global factors like energy prices and food prices that are driving it but there are also kind of more sticky components of inflation that are high.

On Friday, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell stressed in his annual Jackson Hole speech that the central bank will use its tools “forcefully” to attack inflation, which is still running near its highest level in more than 40 years. He expects the Fed to continue raising interest rates in a way that will cause some pain to the U.S. economy.

Commenting on Powell’s speech, Gopinath opined: “What was great was that he came out as being firm and resolute about bringing inflation down to target, making sure inflation expectations don’t get de-anchored and that, I think, is exactly what you need to make sure that the economic health of the world is in a good place over the medium to long term.”

The latest U.S. personal consumption expenditures (PCE) inflation data was published Friday. The PCE price index showed a year-over-year rise of 6.3% in July, down from 6.8% in June. The PCE is the Federal Reserve’s preferred measure of inflation.

“Now, I would be careful about looking at one data point for the U.S.,” Gopinath stressed.

“I think last year around the same time, there was a good inflation reading and everybody thought we were on track for inflation to come down. And then October inflation went up again. So I think one needs to be very wary about one inflation rating,” the IMF’s first deputy managing director pointed out, elaborating:

We are in a period where inflation is likely to be high for a while, at least for another year or two.

What do you think about the comments by IMF First Deputy Managing Director Gita Gopinath about inflation in the U.S. economy? Let us know in the comments section below.

In November 2020, Colorado banned gas flaring, venting, and the release of raw gas into the atmosphere. While the centennial state has a large number of well sites, a recent report shows that roughly a half dozen Colorado oil and gas companies are leveraging gas-to-bitcoin flare mitigation systems and these firms are raking in a lot of bitcoin.

Report Shows at Least a Half Dozen Colorado-Based gas and Oil Firms Are Leveraging Gas-to-Bitcoin Mitigation Solutions

On August 29, 2022, the Colorado Sun author Mark Jaffe reported on Colorado-based gas and oil companies teaming up with bitcoin miners and explaining how “they’re making quite a bit of coin.” Jaffe details that there are at least a half dozen oil and gas refiners using gas-to-bitcoin flare mitigation systems in the natural gas-rich state of Colorado.

The growing number of bitcoin flare mitigation sites in Colorado is interesting because the state’s regulatory watchdog, the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC), has banned natural gas flaring. Essentially, if any oil and gas company chooses to operate in the state of Colorado, it must connect to a pipeline to mitigate the excess gas.

If an oil and gas firm cannot comply with the regulations, the COGCC will shut the operations down. Jaffe’s report explains that the COGCC is aware of these gas and oil firms leveraging gas-to-bitcoin solutions. A COGCC spokeswoman, Megan Castle, told the Colorado Sun (CS) journalist that “it is definitely on our radar.”

While some operations are “making quite a bit of coin,” Jaffe reports that some operations in Colorado have been shut down. For instance, the CS reporter noted that Renegade Oil and Gas collaborated with Datahawk Energy and Adams County’s oil and gas inspector shut the business down. A spokeswoman for Adams County, Christa Bruning, would not comment on the lawsuit that started over Renegade’s shutdown.

Crusoe Energy’s Gas-to-Bitcoin Solution Reduces 99.8% of Methane Compared to Traditional Flaring’s 93%

The CS report says the Houston-based D90 Energy is working with Crusoe Energy in Jackson County, Colorado. Jackson County has a lot of gas and oil production going on in the region, and much of the refinery work is located in the North Park Basin. D90’s president, Dan Silverman, told the COGCC at a hearing that sites like his have no connection infrastructure within 60 miles of the basin.

Silverman said that the oil had to be trucked away, however, D90 Energy gave a presentation to the commission showing off six Crusoe Energy flare gas mitigation modules located at the company’s well site. Silverman told the COGCC hearing’s participants that people will see “a lot more Crusoe modules out there” for a few years.

D90 Energy’s president further noted that over the next three to four years, the company plans to drill roughly seven well sites per year. Moreover, Crusoe has given presentations to the COGCC, according to the CS report on Monday.

Crusoe’s president and co-founder Cully Cavness explained at a June hearing that the company’s technology reduces 99.8% of methane compared to 93% for traditional flaring. Crusoe recently raised $505 million in April 2022 and three days ago it was reported that the company is suing a competitor company.

What do you think about the half dozen oil and gas companies in Colorado leveraging gas-to-bitcoin solutions? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

Phil Spencer, head of the Xbox brand, believes that the metaverse has been with us since 30 years ago, when digital gaming was largely introduced. However, Spencer criticized play-to-earn (P2E) models, stating that they create a workforce out of a kind of gamer who needs to monetize the time spent playing.

Xbox Boss Phil Spencer Believes the Metaverse Has Been Here for Some Time

The metaverse and its current conceptions have been the subject of debate and criticism. The current head of the Xbox brand and CEO of gaming at Microsoft, Phil Spencer, offered his skeptical take on how the metaverse, an alternate world, is currently being presented. In an interview with Bloomberg, Spencer stated that the metaverse is nothing new and that it is related to what gamers have already been doing for some time. He explained:

My view on metaverse is that gamers have been in the metaverse for 30 years. When you’re playing games, these 3D shared worlds that people have been playing in for years and years, I think what we’ve found is that there’s more connection because we have a shared purpose.

Furthermore, Spencer clarified that gamers might be confused with the concept of the metaverse because having an avatar in a game and being part of a virtual world where voice communication is available can be considered inhabiting it.

While Spencer personally might be skeptical about the metaverse, Microsoft and the Xbox brand have used the term regularly at different times. In January, when announcing the purchase of Activision Blizzard for almost $69 billion, Microsoft stated it would “accelerate the growth in Microsoft’s gaming business across mobile, PC, console and cloud and will provide building blocks for the metaverse.”

Play-to-Earn Criticism

While other companies in the space have been more open to play-to-earn (P2E) models and the mechanics behind them, Spencer has shown himself to be hesitant about this new trend. In the interview, the Xbox boss criticized the objective of play-to-earn games, declaring:

Play-to-earn specifically is something I’m cautious about. It creates a workforce out of players, for certain players to kind of monetize. I think sometimes it’s a hammer looking for a nail when these technologies come up.

However, Spencer believes that there might be “interesting things” in the future use of such technologies. The technology, which has reached some degree of popularity with blockchain games like Axie Infinity, has yet to reach consoles like the Xbox or the Sony Playstation 5.

What do you think about the opinions of Xbox head Phil Spencer regarding the metaverse and play-to-earn models? Tell us in the comments section below.

The Central Bank of Nigeria has said it is slashing transaction fees for the e-naira platform by 50% — a move which the bank claims will increase the volume of transactions on the central bank digital currency (CBDC) platform. The central bank also believes that wider adoption of the CBDC will bolster Nigeria’s cross-border trade volumes.

Boosting E-Commerce Transaction Volumes

In yet another move aimed at boosting the embrace and adoption of the e-naira central bank digital currency (CBDC), the Central bank of Nigeria (CBN) reportedly said it will slash the service fees incurred by individuals and merchants using the digital currency platform by 50%.

In addition, Nigerian businesses signing on to become e-naira merchants have an opportunity to increase the volumes of their respective e-commerce transactions by 50%, a report has said.

Quoting Kingsley Obiora, the central bank’s deputy governor, a Daily Trust report suggests that Nigerian businesses adopting the CBDC could improve cash management and potentially boost the country’s cross-border trade volumes. Obiora said:

Also, the implementation of cross-border transactions in phase 3 of the e-naira project is expected to increase cross-border trade by about 30%. Furthermore, the lower transaction cost is expected to increase the usage (transaction volume and value) of eNaira and improve income generation by businesses.

Deepening Financial Inclusion

The remarks by Obiora, who reportedly spoke at a merchant onboarding event, come just days after CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele revealed that the CBDC had less than 1 million users. However, as reported by Bitcoin.com news, the CBN is now targeting a tenfold increase in the number of e-naira users.

To achieve this, Emefiele said the central bank would add a feature that enables users without bank accounts and smartphones to access the CBDC. The CBN has since unveiled an unstructured supplementary service data (USSD) code which it says will deepen financial inclusion.

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In 2021, the global cryptocurrency market was valued at US$ 1,782 Billion. Sectors like DeFi and NFTs allowed individuals to earn high yields on their investments and create unique collectables as web3 introduces decentralized and permissionless ownership of assets to individuals.

Acquire.Fi is creating the first-of-its-kind Mergers and Acquisitions (M&As) marketplace for web3, crypto, blockchain, and NFT companies or IPs. The platform is equipped with crowdfunding and fractionalized ownership through NFTization.

The project is steadfast in enabling all investors to participate in wealth-building M&A opportunities using cryptocurrency.

A Platform to Access Exclusive M&A Deal Flows

Web3 M&A deals originate only in the back channels among trusted parties, the crypto founders, promoters, advisors, or influencers. M&A alpha is highly sensitive, intricate, and confidential.

For most investors, there isn’t a platform to view or shop the full spectrum of Web3 innovation. However, most investors do not have the time or financial, technical, and legal expertise to deal with M&A and web3 valuations and due diligence.

Acquire.Fi is a backstage pass to unpublished deals and confidential M&A alpha. $ACQ staking grants investors tiered access to the Acquire.Fi platform and unique investment opportunities.

The team also provides matching services to investors with businesses or IPs they are interested in acquiring.

An Innovative Wealth Building Tool

Many investors do not have the same investment opportunities as institutional or accredited investors, excluding them from wealth-building opportunities through acquisitions.

Acquire.Fi establishes inclusivity in wealth-building opportunities through investment pools, crowdfunding, and fractionalized ownership.

The platform allows investors to list and sell their NFTs on a secondary marketplace, making the acquired investments liquid assets.

DeFi investors can participate in acquiring traditional investments using cryptocurrency, but they do not have to leave the blockchain sphere to invest in real-world investments.

Conclusion

With a listing database comprising over 40 companies with a revenue potential of $82 million and deal flows for complete acquisitions ranging between $120000 to $12M, Acquire.Fi will be the world’s first marketplace for investing in crypto assets and IPs up for acquisition.

The company reached the MVP funding milestone in under two months; this guarantees the launch of the $ACQ token, liquidity farming, staking, investment tiers, governance, and access to novel investment opportunities.

Acquire.Fi is a wealth-building ecosystem ushering in the new era of web3 M&A where all investors are offered access and the opportunity to acquire a piece of the future.

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