Pantera Capital Targets $1 Billion

Hi NoRamp Community,

Daily News:

1) Ronin to Scale Web3 Games With New zkEVM

2) Pantera Capital Targets $1 Billion with New Fundraising Effort

3) LayerZero Opens Eligibility Checker for Upcoming Token Airdrop

4) Nuvei Shareholders Approve Previously Announced Go-Private Deal

5) Abacus Group Acquires Tribeca Technology Group

Ronin to Scale Web3 Games With New zkEVM:

• Ronin has announced the upcoming launch of Ronin zkEVM, a zero-knowledge Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) layer-2 chain using a Sky Mavis-modified version of the Polygon Chain Development Kit (CDK). This new ZK chain aims to accommodate more users, support game studio partners, and enhance the permissionless environment for integrating more gaming experiences.

• The chain will feature an enshrined Polygon ZK prover, allowing game studios to build their own zkEVM blockchains without needing to establish their own security and consensus. Initially created for the play-to-earn game Axie Infinity, the Ronin blockchain now supports a broader gaming ecosystem with 1.4 million daily active addresses. The enhanced scalability of Ronin zkEVM is expected to drive innovation and expansion among partner studios.

• The network has already onboarded major blockchain games like Web3 game Pixels, which surpassed 4.4 million users since migrating to Ronin in October 2023. The new zkEVM chain offers a seamless cross-chain experience and potentially higher staking rewards. Trung Nguyen, CEO and co-founder of Sky Mavis, aims to create a unified gaming ecosystem allowing asset transfers, token swaps, and NFT trading between layer-1 and layer-2 games. Polygon Co-founder Sandeep Nailwal emphasized the support of the Polygon CDK in making Ronin a more attractive destination for game studios.

Pantera Capital Targets $1 Billion with New Fundraising Effort:

• Pantera Capital is aiming to raise a new $1 billion fund to boost the crypto industry, with over $200 million specifically allocated for investments in artificial intelligence (AI) projects. Cosmo Jiang, the portfolio manager at Pantera Capital, envisions AI becoming ubiquitous in the crypto industry, akin to how websites are standard for businesses today.

• Pantera Capital is focused on projects that integrate AI with blockchain technology. Their portfolio includes notable companies like Coinbase, Circle, and Bitstamp. The new fund is expected to allocate even more to AI-related blockchain projects compared to their previous fund, which invested around 15% to 20% in such ventures. This could potentially result in over $200 million invested in AI-adjacent crypto projects over the next decade.

• The convergence of AI and blockchain is gaining significant traction, with predictions suggesting it could add around $20 trillion to the global economy by 2030. Investors have already poured over $98.8 million into the sector in 2024, and the total market value of AI tokens has reached $26 billion. Other industry players, such as Brevan Howard, are also exploring opportunities in this space. Companies like SingularityNET, Fetch.ai, and Ocean Protocol are planning a merger to establish a decentralized AI platform, potentially creating a token with a fully diluted value of $7.5 billion. However, some, including Coinbase, warn that the current surge in the AI token market might be driven more by hype than actual utility, with many tokens potentially lacking sustainable demand-side drivers in the near term.

  

  Source: The Block

LayerZero Opens Eligibility Checker for Upcoming Token Airdrop:

• The LayerZero Foundation has introduced an eligibility checker for its upcoming airdrop, enabling users to verify their eligibility and review their user activity, including start dates and transaction counts. This announcement was made by Bryan Pellegrino, CEO of LayerZero Labs, the core developer of the protocol. A total of 1.28 million wallets are eligible for the airdrop.

• The Foundation hinted at the airdrop claim date, "06.20.2024," in its first social media post. Pellegrino revealed that 23.8% of the total 1 billion token supply will be allocated to the community and builders, with 8.5% of this being distributed on the first day. The remaining tokens will be distributed over the next 36 months with additional allocations every 12 months and requests for proposals for builders.

• To prevent Sybil attacks, which involve creating fake accounts to gain more tokens, LayerZero has implemented an anti-Sybil strategy. This includes a bounty hunter program and a self-reporting system that rewards reporters with 15% of their intended token allocation, while non-reporters receive none. This strategy contrasts with the backlash faced by ZKsync for its perceived lack of anti-Sybil measures during its recent airdrop. In April 2023, LayerZero Labs raised $120 million in a Series B funding round, valuing the company at $3 billion.

Nuvei Shareholders Approve Previously Announced Go-Private Deal:

• Nuvei has received shareholder approval for its plan to go private with Advent International. Shareholders approved the special resolution on June 18, as announced in a press release by the Canadian FinTech company.

• Shares not held by three rollover shareholders will be acquired for $34 in cash per share. The rollover shareholders include Nuvei founder, chair, and CEO Philip Fayer, certain investment funds managed by Novacap Management, and Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ). These shareholders will sell their shares in exchange for a mix of cash and shares in the purchaser's capital or an affiliate.

• Following the completion of the transaction, Fayer, Novacap, and CDPQ will control significant equity in the private company. They are expected to hold about 24%, 18%, and 12% of the common equity, respectively. Nuvei announced the $6.3 billion deal with Advent International on April 1, marking a new chapter for the company, which has seen substantial growth and innovation in the payments sector.

Abacus Group Acquires Tribeca Technology Group:

• Abacus Group has acquired UK-based Tribeca Technology Group to enhance its market presence and capabilities in the UK, particularly in the hedge fund and private equity sectors.

• The acquisition will allow Abacus to expand its range of managed IT and digital security services, including offering its abacusFlex solution to Tribeca’s clients.

• Tribeca joins Gotham Security as an Abacus subsidiary, following Abacus’ acquisition of US cybersecurity firm GoVanguard in early 2023, positioning Abacus for new growth opportunities in domestic and global markets.

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