May 17: Oobit, a mobile payment app, has “collaborated with TON Foundation to integrate its native cryptocurrency, TON (Toncoin), into its platform, advancing the usage of cryptocurrency as a means of payment,” according to the team: “Toncoin holders will be able to Tap & Pay at over 100 million retailers worldwide. The integration will further strengthen the recent announcement of the collaboration between the largest company in the digital asset industry, Tether, and the TON Foundation.” According to a separate press release on Tether’s website: Users will be able to “send USDT as a direct message on Telegram and spend the same USDT for instant crypto Tap payments on Oobit.”
May 17: Radix, a platform for DeFi and Web3, has “proposed a Bottlenose protocol update to its node runner community and expects it to be enacted on or around June 3. One of the standout features of the update is the introduction of AccountLockers, a ‘locker’ where token deliveries are routed through, which can be accepted or refused. AccountLockers are intended to stop undesired deposits and make for easier dApp bookkeeping. Other Bottlenose features include API and Radix Engine enhancements, and the addition of a recovery fee vault, eliminating the need for third-party fee locking during account recovery.”
May 17: Bitcoin layer 2 Bitfinity has introduced its Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) to bring smart contracts Bitcoin protocols and harness Runes to enable Bitcoin DeFi apps. Built on the Internet Computer (ICP) protocol, Bitfinity integrates with the Bitcoin network and allows asset bridging to other blockchains. Internet Computer’s tech stack will allow applications that use Ethereum’s smart contract programming language Solidity to access Bitcoin-based tokens.
May 17: Layer-2 scaling solution Mintlayer and Salus, a security company specializing in zero-knowledge (ZK) technology, are partnering to enhance Bitcoin via their building of the Thunder Network, a layer-3 ZK rollup-based solution, according to the team. “The Thunder Network is designed to address any potential scaling issues the Mintlayer network might encounter while enabling additional EVM functionality that may be currently absent from Mintlayer,” according to a press release.
May 17: DroppGroup, aiming to harmonize AI and blockchain technology, has “announced the launch of droppLink, an intelligent service platform poised to transform AI development and management across multiple blockchains. DroppLink’s architecture abstracts computational requirements, facilitates micropayments and democratizes data contributions, providing users with ownership and control, all while stakeholders, known as Computational Resource Patrons (CRPs), support infrastructure costs and share in the revenue generated by the AI processes they enable.” According to the project’s website, “end user Gen AI outputs are tokenized as unique digital assets on the Solana blockchain and are stored in the Filecoin network.”
May 17: Union, the modular interoperability layer, is “partnering with Stargaze, a community-owned decentralized NFT marketplace, to enable the transfer of blue-chip Ethereum NFTs to the Cosmos ecosystem via its trustless, decentralized zkIBC bridge. This collaboration paves the way for achieving trustless interoperability for NFTs,” according to the team.
May 17: Pyth, a blockchain oracle project, is “launching their Ecosystem Grants Program with 50 million PYTH (worth ~$22M at today’s prices) dedicated towards this activation,” according to the team: “The program seeks projects focused on at least one of these three key areas: Community, Research, and Developer Grants.”
May 17: The Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation (DTCC), the world’s largest securities settlement system, completed a pilot project with blockchain oracle Chainlink (LINK) and multiple major U.S. financial institutions, aiming to help accelerate the tokenization of funds, according to a report published by DTCC. The purpose of project called Smart NAV was to establish a standardized process to bring and disseminate net asset value (NAV) data of funds across virtually any private or public blockchains using Chainlink’s interoperability protocol CCIP. Market participants included American Century Investments, BNY Mellon, Edward Jones, Franklin Templeton, Invesco, JPMorgan, MFS Investment Management, Mid Atlantic Trust, State Street and U.S. Bank. (LINK)
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May 16: FLock.io, a platform for “AI co-creation,” and Morpheus, a network for powering smart agents, announced a strategic partnership “to advance decentralized AI capabilities in Web3,” according to the team: “By merging FLock.io’s community-driven, decentralized AI training model platform with Morpheus, which empowers Smart Agent builders to deploy their code and receive rewards, the partners aim to reduce reliance on centralized external function calls to OpenAI and integrate more Smart Agents into Web3 wallets. Ultimately, this integration will empower users to harness AI directly from their wallets for seamless, secure, and intuitive trading experiences.”
May 16: Entangle, an interoperable data infrastructure layer powered by underlying primitive “liquid vaults,” is releasing its mainnet after two years of development and a strict testnet phase, according to the team: “The network currently holds 71 validators, including Hashkey Cloud, Rhino, Nodefi and DaiC. The mainnet also presents the Photon Messaging feature, enabling omnichain development across 16 EVM and non-EVM blockchains, including Solana.”
May 16: Alvara Protocol is “launching its testnet, marking a major milestone in its development of a DeFi-based system for fund management,” according to the team: “Alvara democratizes fund management with an innovative tokenized fund factory, leveraging DeFi, ensuring transparency, liquidity, and cost-efficiency compared to traditional hedge funds and ETFs. Built on the ERC-7621 token standard, it allows anyone to become a fund manager. With the testnet live, users can explore the platform, provide feedback, and help shape Alvara’s future impact on DeFi and TradFi industries.”
May 16: The Hashgraph Association has signed a strategic partnership with the Qatar Financial Centre to launch a $50 million Digital Assets Venture Studio, according to the team: “The platform will support local Qatari and international portfolio companies in the development of regulatory-compliant decentralized finance solutions and digital assets built on the Hedera Distributed Ledger Technology network. The studio will be part of Qatar’s Digital Assets Lab within the QFC Innovation Dome as part of Qatar’s ‘National Vision 2030’ to accelerate research and development within the digital asset space.”
May 16: KYVE Network representatives announced that the KYVE Grants Program: Phase 0 is now live: “This grant phase offers up to $50,000 in funding per approved grant that utilizes KYVE’s trustless datasets and or tooling,” according to the team.
May 16: Param Labs, an independent game and infrastructure development company behind the game Kiraverse, and 3-D asset creation platform Pixel to Poly, announced a fundraise of $7 million in an investment round led by Animoca Brands. According to the team: “Delphi Ventures, Cypher Capital, Mechanism Capital and other top-tier investors have also joined the seed and private funding rounds. The company has thus incorporated 50+ IP partnerships within its ecosystem, with brands such as Pudgy Penguins, Neo Tokyo, Animoca Brands’ Mocaverse, Pixelmon, as well as retail giants such as GameStop.”
Protocol Village is a regular feature of The Protocol, our weekly newsletter exploring the tech behind crypto, one block at a time. Sign up here to get it in your inbox every Wednesday. Project teams can submit updates here. For previous versions of Protocol Village, please go here. Also please check out our weekly The Protocol podcast.
Edited by Bradley Keoun.
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Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information has been updated.CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. In November 2023, CoinDesk was acquired by the Bullish group, owner of Bullish, a regulated, digital assets exchange. The Bullish group is majority-owned by Block.one; both companies have interests in a variety of blockchain and digital asset businesses and significant holdings of digital assets, including bitcoin. CoinDesk operates as an independent subsidiary with an editorial committee to protect journalistic independence. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive options in the Bullish group as part of their compensation.
Bradley Keoun is the managing editor of CoinDesk’s Tech & Protocols team. He owns less than $1,000 each of several cryptocurrencies.
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