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Hello and welcome back to the TechCrunch Crypto newsletter. I’ve been out for the past week, so there’s been no newsletter, but we’re back to regularly scheduled news and some new recurring sections and features — so if you like what you see (or don’t), let me know at jacquelyn@ techcrunch.com.
Here’s what the biggest news was this week: the price of bitcoin soared above $60,000 and Coinbase’s app crashed, Telegram introduced a reward payment plan using toncoin on the TON blockchain, and Nigerian crypto users experienced difficulties with some exchanges. Let’s get into it.
This week on web3
- Ex-Meta employees’ Aptos tests Hong Kong’s crypto appetite
- Bitcoin is so high, it crashed Coinbase
- Telegram starts ad revenue sharing next month using toncoin
- Crypto users in Nigeria temporarily lose access to Binance, Kraken and Coinbase
- Starbucks Odyssey Community Lead Sees NFTs as Best Way to Build Brand Loyalty
Crisp numbers
This week the cryptocurrency market was very excited as the two largest cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, bitcoin and ether, both jumped around 23.6% and 18%, respectively, on the week, according to CoinMarketCap data. The total crypto market cap rose 19.4% over a seven-day period to $2.34 trillion.
The recent price jump for bitcoin, combined with inbound bitcoin in half and spot bitcoin ETF approvals in early January, fueling demand, has many crypto market players wondering if the granddaddy of cryptocurrencies will soon hit a new all-time high or if this rally is short-lived.
Our favorite “Crypto Twitter” post.
ICYMI, last week many crypto people tweeted about emails from Satoshi Nakamoto, the creator of Bitcoin. Satoshi said a lot of interesting things, but this one post on X by Tom Schmidt, a partner at Dragonfly Capital, got a lot of attention and even got some Bitcoiners to go out and buy a pineapple jalapeno pizza in his honor. Which brings me to the question…would you eat it?
Image Credits: Tom Schmidt in X(opens in new window)
The last pod
Chain Reaction does a monthly series that dives into different topics and issues in crypto. This month we focus on NFTs.
Since there was no newsletter last week, we are highlighting last week's episodewhere I interviewed Steve Kaczynski, co-author of the book "The Everything Token" and co-host of a web3 morning show, Coffee with Captain.
He also authored the first Harvard Business Review article on NFTs. In addition, he advises agencies and brands on building their web3 strategies, including his role with Starbucks where he is the community lead for their NFT-focused loyalty program, Starbucks Odyssey.
Prior to joining the world of web3, Steve worked in communications and marketing roles for over 15 years.
Jacquelyn and Steve discussed what got him interested in NFTs, how important it is to build understanding for the sector, and why communities matter more than price floors.
They also dove:
- Future adoption for Bored Ape Yacht Club
- NFT-based Starbucks rewards program is being developed
- What companies and brands need to know about web3
- How to get started in the NFT space
GIFT: For this week's episode, we're reposting a conversation I had in June 2023 with Jack Lu, CEO and co-founder of Magic Eden.
When we recorded this episodeNFT sales were down about $640 million at the start of the month, compared to today, where February 2024 NFT sales volume reached $1 billion for the first time since February 2023.
Looking back on this discussion, we decided that this episode was a great addition to the NFT series to add some context to what a crazy year it's been and how much things have changed (and some things have stayed the same) — especially for the people who build the NFT space.
Magic Eden originally started as a Solana-based NFT trading platform, but has expanded its support to other blockchain networks such as Polygon, Ethereum, and Bitcoin. In June 2022, Magic Eden raised $130 million in a Series B round that gave it unicorn status.
We discussed why the NFT market expanded its support to other blockchains, its support with BRC-20 tokens, and how the company plans to stay competitive in the ever-changing market.
We also talked about:
- NFT market volatility
- Rights rights
- Web3 Game Extension
- Tips for the NFT community
Sign up to Chain reaction on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or your favorite pod platform to catch up on the latest episodes and leave us a review if you like what you hear!
Follow the money
- Silence Laboratories, a crypto security startup, secures $4.1 million in funding
- Initia raises $7.5 million to simplify blockchain development
- Asymmetric Financial Has Plan To Unlock Bitcoin's Trillion Dollar Potential With Dedicated DeFi Fund
- Crypto wallet and exchange Backpack raised $17 million in strategic Series A round
- Ethereum-based Etherfi has raised $27 million in a round led by Bullish and CoinFund
This list was compiled with information from Messari as well as reports from TechCrunch itself.
What else are we writing?
Want to escape the web3 world? Here are some TechCrunch articles that caught our attention this week.
- Why VCs invest in startups that help other startups close
- Don't ignore Asia's technology
- Mark Zuckerberg lures Big Tech to Asia to double down on AI chips
- The Apple Car That Never Was: A Timeline
- Tim Cook says Apple will "break new ground" in GenAI this year
