Farcaster Secures $150M to Add to Decentralized Social Media Protocol

Hi NoRamp Community,

Daily News:

1) Worldcoin Ordered to Cease Operations in Hong Kong

2) ETH Liquid Restaking Platform Kelp Raises Round At $90M Valuation

3) Farcaster Secures $150M to Add to Decentralized Social Media Protocol

4) Stripe Steps Up UK Expansion With London Office

5) Footprint Secures $13M Series A to Revolutionize Identity Verification

Worldcoin Ordered to Cease Operations in Hong Kong:

• Hong Kong's privacy watchdog ordered Worldcoin, founded by OpenAI's Sam Altman, to halt activities in the region, including iris and facial image collection. An investigation concluded that Worldcoin violated data privacy laws by collecting unnecessary and excessive biometric data.

• The privacy office conducted multiple visits and raids on Worldcoin locations, discovering that the company offered free cryptocurrency in exchange for iris scans and facial recognition. Over 8,000 people had their scans taken, raising significant privacy concerns.

• The investigation found that Worldcoin's data collection system was unfair, lacking essential documents in Chinese and failing to inform participants of the risks. Despite a spokesperson's claim of legal adherence, Worldcoin's operations in Hong Kong have been halted following the privacy chief's ruling.

ETH Liquid Restaking Platform Kelp Raises Round At $90M Valuation:

• Kelp DAO, an Ethereum liquid restaking platform based on EigenLayer, raised $9 million in a private token sale round. The round was led by SCB Limited and Laser Digital, with additional investments from Bankless Ventures, Hypersphere Ventures, and others, along with notable angel investors.

• Co-founder Amitej Gajjala stated that Kelp's fully diluted valuation was set at $90 million in February when the total value locked (TVL) was around $300 million, which has since grown to $961 million. The KELP governance token is expected to launch soon, pending legal and exchange due diligence.

• With the new funding, Kelp plans to expand its liquid restaking services to other blockchains, including Bitcoin, Solana, and BNB Chain. They aim to enable native restaking from Bitcoin Layer 2 networks and are evaluating synthetic asset restaking solutions. Gajjala and co-founder Dheeraj Borra also run Stader Labs, a liquid staking platform with a TVL of over $680 million.

  

  Source: Blockworks

Farcaster Secures $150M, Add to Decentralized Social Media Protocol:

• Farcaster secured $150 million in funding led by Paradigm, with participation from a16z, Haun Ventures, Union Square Ventures, Variant, and Standard Crypto. The funds will be used to grow its user base and add developer tools, according to co-founder Dan Romero.

• Farcaster, the permissionless protocol behind the social network Warpcast, launched a feature called Frames in January, allowing users to embed functionality in Farcaster applications without leaving the app. The protocol aims to be sufficiently decentralized to encourage user and developer investment in building the network.

• Since October, Farcaster has seen 350,000 paid sign-ups and a 50-fold increase in network activity. Jesse Pollak of Coinbase layer-2 Base highlighted Frames' launch as a significant moment for the space, predicting rapid viral consumer growth. The major fundraise reflects an overall increase in crypto fundraising, with $3.1 billion raised in the first quarter of 2024, marking a 36% increase in capital and a 77% rise in the number of financings.

Stripe Steps Up UK Expansion With London Office:

• Stripe is expanding in the U.K. by opening a new London office, housing 250 workers across various departments and planning to hire 30 more. London is the largest city for Stripe in terms of new business sign-ups, making the U.K. its second-largest market globally.

• Stripe plans to introduce new payment tools in the U.K., including Stripe Capital, a small business financing service, and pay-by-bank options. Research shows high satisfaction among pay-by-bank users due to seamless integration into their ecosystems, though a knowledge gap hinders wider adoption.

• At Stripe's annual user conference, co-founders John and Patrick Collison highlighted the shift from online payments to broader software-defined financial services, including spending accounts and corporate cards. They emphasized the need for a programmable financial layer with real-time capabilities and comprehensive global coverage.

Footprint Secures $13M Series A to Revolutionize Identity Verification:

• Footprint, a London-based identity verification and fraud prevention firm, raised $13 million in a Series A funding round led by QED Investors, with participation from Index Ventures, Lerer Hippeau, Operator Partners, BoxGroup, Palm Tree Capital, Definition, Neo, and Animal Capital.

• The company offers a unified solution for KYC processes, security measures, and authentication protocols to streamline consumer onboarding and mitigate identity fraud. The new funding will be used to enhance product offerings, refine identity verification processes, expand identification options, and launch a fraud detection suite.

• CEO Eli Wachs emphasized Footprint's innovative approach to labeling good actors rather than screening out fraudsters, creating a centralized network of authentic, de-duplicated identities. Footprint's technology has attracted attention from financial services, automotive, and real estate industries, helping clients improve onboarding completion rates and identify thousands of fraud cases. The company aims to address identity fraud and data breaches, positioning itself as a leader in fraud prevention and KYC compliance.

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