(PROTOCOL VILLAGE EXCLUSIVE) July 18: Shape, a creator-focused layer-2 network atop Ethereum and part of the Optimism Superchain, announced the availability of its testnet, with GA going live in Q3. According to the team: “The network is an open space where everyone is free to create whatever they want – from high art to weird experiments. Shape ensures creators that thrive on the network share in its success through ‘Gasback.’ This mechanic rewards cultural impact directly by giving 80% of sequencer fees back to smart contract owners. Shape is powered by Optimism and, as part of the Superchain, contributes 15% of sequencer fees to the Optimism Collective to fund public goods.”

Chainlink Releases ‘Digital Asset Sandbox’ for Financial Institutions

July 18: Chainlink, the blockchain oracle project, announced the launch of the Chainlink Digital Assets Sandbox (DAS), “designed to accelerate digital asset innovation within financial institutions.” According to the team: “The Chainlink DAS is the ideal solution for financial institutions that want to quickly innovate and experience the potential of generating new revenue opportunities, increasing efficiencies, improving time-to-market, and more. With the DAS, institutions can seamlessly access ready-to-use business workflows for digital assets.” CoinDesk 20 asset: {{LINK}}

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Bitrue Ventures Launches $40M Fund for ‘Nascent Web3 Companies’

July 18: Bitrue Ventures, the research and investment section of crypto exchange Bitrue, has launched a $40 million investment fund and “is putting out the call to aspiring developers,” according to the team. A blog post reads: “Individual recipients of funding can receive up to $200,000 of investment funds that can be allocated however they feel is most appropriate. In addition, Bitrue will make available their various avenues of expertise to provide further support to these projects. While Bitrue Ventures will consider investing into any niche within the crypto space, we believe that the most successful projects right now are likely to be building in the sectors of Artificial Intelligence (AI), Real World Asset tokenization (RWA), GameFi, Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Networks (DePIN), and Decentralized Finance (DeFi). As such, projects building within these industries will stand a better chance of receiving funding.”

InfStones, Blockchain Infrastructure Provider, Launches Node-as-a-Service

July 18: InfStones, a blockchain infrastructure provider, “launched its node-as-a-service (NaaS) product, empowering emerging protocols to jumpstart their DePIN projects while making sophisticated blockchain node operations accessible to mainstream users,” according to the team: “Since 2018, InfStones has provided enterprise-grade node management services to industry-leading groups such as Binance, CoinList and BitGo. In the recent node sale for cloud computing platform Aethir, InfStones’ NaaS product helped to successfully convert over 26,000 of its Checker Node license holders into long-term node operators.”

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Raise to Provide Payment Rails for Polkadot Mobile App, Enabling Retail Purchases

July 18: Raise, a payments provider and with a white-label gift card infrastructure, has partnered with Parity Technologies “to provide the payment rails for the Polkadot mobile app, enabling DOT payments at over 1 million stores and websites across the U.S.” According to the team: “Users can make purchases and earn up to 20% cash back in DOT. This integration, previewed at Polkadot Decoded, bridges the gap between crypto and retail, making it easier and more rewarding to use crypto for everyday transactions. The app is set to launch in Q3, with plans to expand internationally by the end of the year.” {{DOT}}

Zivoe, RWA Credit Protocol on Ethereum, Raises $8.35M

July 18: Zivoe, a real-world asset credit protocol atop Ethereum, raised $8.35 million in their last round, aiming to broaden credit access by connecting blockchain liquidity with real-world borrowers, according to the team: “The round comes in tandem with Zivoe launching its RWA credit protocol on mainnet on July 31 and their Initial Tranche Offering (ITO), a unique liquidity bootstrapping mechanism.”

AI-Focused Layer-1 Chain Nuklai Announces Launch of DAO for Governance, Say on Use of Funds

July 18: Nuklai, a layer-1 blockchain built for artificial intelligence, announced the launch of the Nuklai DAO, “a decentralized autonomous organization designed to empower its community and ecosystem,” according to the team: “With this development, the company moves towards greater community-driven governance and collaboration. This initiative allows community to have a direct say in the allocation of these funds through proposals and votes on Commonwealth and Snapshot. The launch of the Nuklai DAO will manage the 400,000,000 NAI Community token allocation.”

Polygon, Google Cloud, Accenture Release White Paper on Web3 Loyalty Programs

July 18: Polygon Labs, in collaboration with Google Cloud and Accenture, jointly released a white paper that highlights how Web3 solutions can build high-margin loyalty programs. According to the team: “The paper highlights how users can enjoy rewards such as tokenized privileges, gamification, collectibles and community-generated content. This not only improves the user experience but also generates new revenue streams for brands while empowering users to actively participate in loyalty programs.” {{MATIC}}

Chainbase Raises $15M to Grow Omnichain Data Network

July 18: Omnichain data network Chainbase has raised $15 million in Series A funding with Tencent Investment Group, Matrix Partners and Hash Global among the investors. Chainbase is an interoperability layer that is building the “first crypto world model,” to deliver data from across the cryptocurrency spectrum, according to an emailed announcement on Thursday.

Fantom Foundation, Sonic Labs Partner With Alchemy for RPC on Opera Chain

July 18: The Fantom Foundation and Sonic Labs announced a partnership with Alchemy “in which the leading Web3 infrastructure provider immediately contributes RPC support (mainnet and testnet) and key development tools to developers on Fantom’s Opera chain.” According to the team: “Alchemy will also support the new Sonic network in the same capacity, enhancing its performance and scalability when it launches later this year.”

Outlier Ventures Partnership With Morgan Creek Digital Brings Accelerator to Latin America

July 18: Global Web3 accelerator Outlier Ventures has announced a new strategic partnership with Morgan Creek Digital, to launch their first-ever accelerator program in the Latin American region. According to the team: “The program seeks to identify startups developing solutions to drive technological and financial innovation across Latin America. The virtual program starts in September and lasts for 12 weeks, offering selected startups support from Outlier Ventures’ in-house team of experts, tailored mentorship from industry experts, networking opportunities with investors, and up to 200K investment.”

Visa’s Data Partner Allium Labs Raises $16.5M as Their New Findings Show Stablecoin Activity is Back Up

July 18: Data platform Allium Labs, which provides enterprise-grade blockchain data to companies like Visa, Stripe and Uniswap Foundation, has raised $16.5 million in a Series A funding round, it announced Thursday. The funding round was led by venture capital firm Theory Ventures whose founder Tomasz Tunguz will join the board as part of the investment. Tunguz said “The demand for cryptocurrencies and tokens has just started” and that Allium will provide the data to “foster broader adoption.”

Pundi X Launches Payment Solution for Merchants

July 18: Pundi X, a blockchain developer, has launched a crypto payment solution, Pundi X Pay for merchants, according to the team: “This innovative solution is set to transform the landscape of physical store crypto transactions with the omni QR code payment layer, making it easier for merchants and customers to embrace cryptocurrency payments. Pundi X Pay InStore QR Code features include extensive wallet integrations (over 500+ direct wallet apps), flexible payment options, instant digital receipts, and AI-powered multi-chain transactions and security: powered by Pundi X AI.”

BitGo Integrates Stacks, Enabling Delegate and Solo Stacking

July 18: BitGo has integrated Stacks, “enabling delegate and solo stacking for its clients,” according to the team: “This grants them the ability to earn BTC directly within their wallets via a secure and risk-controlled process. Additionally, BitGo now supports the Stacks token standard and acts as a network Signer, contributing to consensus and block production. This Signer role will be crucial for the future launch of sBTC, a decentralized Bitcoin-backed asset.”

Zeebit, Solana-Based Casino, to Rely on Sonic L2 Infrastructure

July 18: Zeebit, describing itself as “Solana’s first on-chain casino,” is “launching the first fully decentralized risk-on gaming platform on Solana using SonicSVM infrastructure,” according to the team: “This on-chain platform features casino classics, PVP games, and novel Web3 experiences with provable fairness and non-custodial settlement. Leveraging Sonic’s scalable L2, Zeebit will migrate its current Solana-based platform, including player histories. Supported by major Web3 VCs and incubated by Solana Labs, Zeebit’s testnet launch will offer various games, followed by a mainnet launch with incentivized campaigns.”

Aethir, DePIN for GPUs, Teams With Beamable for Cloud-Based Game Development, Distribution

July 18: Aethir, a DePIN project specializing in GPUs for AI and pixel streaming, and Beamable, a creator-centric platform for building live games, announced a “strategic end-to-end solution that will empower game studios to develop, build, scale and distribute live games entirely in the cloud,” according to the team: “With the launch of this end-to-end solution, developers will be able to store, manage, and process data all on one platform to create more engaging and scalable gaming experiences.”

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.

TON Foundation Says Trustless Bitcoin Bridge for DeFi Launched

July 17: TON Teleport BTC, a trustless bridge facilitating secure bitcoin (BTC) transfers to and from The Open Network (TON) blockchain, has launched. According to a message from the TON Foundation team: “This development enables BTC holders to securely engage in DeFi on TON and participate in decentralized exchanges (DEXs), lending platforms, and other applications. The TON Teleport BTC process is entirely trustless and transparent, operating without a centralized issuer. Each BTC on TON is 100% backed by actual BTC, pegged through the teleport process, ensuring secure and reliable transactions.” {{TON}}

IoTeX ‘DePIN Infrastructure Modules’ to Reduce Development Time

July 17: IoTeX, an Ethereum compatible blockchain platform optimized for decentralized physical infrastructure projects (DePIN), is launching its 2.0 platform to democratize access to DePIN by partnering with NEAR, Filecoin, RISC Zero, Espresso and more, “to enhance data availability, storage, computation and sequencing,” according to the team: “IoTeX 2.0 features DePIN Infrastructure Modules (DIMs) and Modularity Security Pool (MSP) to cut development costs and support sustainable growth for DePIN projects, positioning itself as the largest decentralized hub for devices and data that will be deployed by both humans and AI agents.” According to a press release: “The introduction of Modularity Security Pool (MSP) enables DePIN layer-1s to restake their Proof-of-Stake security to DIMs, fueling growth and fostering sustainability within the ecosystem.”

Schematic illustrating how IoTeX’s Modular Security Pool works in conjunction with its DePin Infrastructure Modules (DIMs), designed to reduce development time and initial costs for DePIN applications (IoTeX)

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