Coinbase's new Base blockchain, which operates as a layer-2 network atop Ethereum, has gained significant traction with its application Friend.tech attracting over 100,000 users and generating $25 million in fees, pushing its total value locked past $200 million and its transactions per second above Ethereum and rival layer-2 projects Arbitrum and Optimism.
In July, capital inflows from venture capitalists in the crypto sector decreased by 10.26%, with $700 million raised, as macroeconomic conditions and geopolitical events continued to impact investment decisions, although some notable outliers, such as Polychain Capital and CoinFund, launched new funds totaling millions of dollars, and the potential approval of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the U.S. could bring renewed attention and capital into the industry. Infrastructure and Web3 sectors received the most capital inflows, while overall investor activity in the blockchain industry remained low, suggesting a slow return to a steady upward trend.
Venture capital firm Vessel Capital has launched a $55 million fund to invest in Web3 infrastructure and applications, aiming to assist early-stage crypto founders in launching and growing their projects by providing guidance and advice. The fund's resources will be deployed over a five-year period, and the team's experience as startup founders will enable them to better understand entrepreneurs' needs.
Five crypto and blockchain-based companies raised a total of $24 million this week, with notable fundraises including $13 million for bitcoin mining company Nodal Power and $5 million for crypto lender Maple Finance.
ARK Invest CEO Cathie Wood predicts that the market capitalization of cryptocurrencies will increase by over 2,100% in less than seven years, driven by institutional investment and the potential approval of a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF), with the total crypto market cap potentially reaching $25 trillion by 2030.
Despite a decrease in venture capital investments in June, new crypto projects are still attracting funding, including Orbital's $6.4 million raise for expanding blockchain payment infrastructure, unshETH's $3.3 million seed round for decentralized finance solutions, ZTX's $13 million funding for Web3 infrastructure development, Stroom Network's $3.5 million raise for Bitcoin staking, and Fxhash's $5 million funding for its digital art platform.
Web3 venture capitalists have established a $20 million fund to invest in blockchain gaming and collectibles projects, as well as other Web3 initiatives.
Around $150 billion worth of capital could enter the Bitcoin market if BlackRock's BTC spot exchange-traded fund (ETF) gets approved, according to a senior Bloomberg ETF analyst.
Germany's blockchain sector received $355 million in venture capital funding, marking a 3% yearly increase and achieving an all-time high share of global funding in 2023, despite a decline in the global blockchain market, according to a report by Crypto Valley Venture Capital (CVVC).
Bitcoin is expected to experience a significant increase in value and reach a fair value of $100,000, driven by institutional capital inflows and the approval of Bitcoin ETFs, according to Mark Yusko, founder of Morgan Creek Capital.
