Crypto Research

Over the past two weeks, we have seen the bear markets bringing out the worst in digital asset markets. While 3AC exemplified the opacity of CeFi dealings, not all DeFi protocols are transparent and immutable, despite users self-custodying their own funds.  We attempt to define and outline the differences and similarities of CeFi, DeFi, and the grey area in between. CRYPTO DEFI DIGEST: CEFI, DEFI, AND EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN

FIGURE: 3AC’S CONTAGION AFFECTING CEFI, DEFI, AND CEDEFI Over the past two weeks, we have seen the bear markets bringing out the worst in digital asset markets. Rumors of insolvency flew rampant in the face of volatility, affecting behemoths that were previously deemed ‘too sophisticated/large to fail.’ Celsius, which we covered in detail in The Tide Pulling Out, was one of the first to waver, fueling fears of contagion in...

Last week we noted that Three Arrows Capital (3AC), a prop shop headed by the once-beloved Su Zhu and Kyle Davies, was on the brink of exiting the industry. Well, if you have been following our daily market updates, you know by now that this did indeed happen, and 3AC unleashed chaos of leverage unwinds on its way out the door. In the past week, we witnessed yet another bout...

DEAL OF THE WEEK FalconX, a digital asset platform for institutions, raised $150M in a Series D funding round at a valuation of $8.0B. The funding round was led by Singaporean wealth fund GIC as well as B Capital and included new and existing investors. New investors include private equity firm Thoma Bravo and Adams Street Capital, and existing investors include Tiger Global Management and Wellington Management. FalconX offers institutions...

Following the decrease in liquidity in the public markets, venture funding continued to drop lower this week. Weekly funding made a new low of 2022 with total deals declining from 28 deals to 24 deals and total amount funded dropping from $410M to $284M. Similar to last week, CeFi funding remained relatively strong and was the most funded segment of the week at $84M. Interestingly, Metaverse and Gaming saw a...