Pontem secures funding to pioneer Move-compatible apps

Dubai-headquartered global crypto exchange Bybit has integrated the Avalon Finance protocol within its platform to offer users greater opportunities to earn yield on Bitcoin. Avalon Finance is a decentralized lending protocol that offers a range of financial services on the Merlin Chain, a Bitcoin layer-2 network. It facilitates users to borrow stablecoins using their Bitcoin as collateral, while also providing opportunities to earn yield by contributing to digital asset liquidity pools.Photo by Kanchanara on UnsplashCeFi to DeFi bridgeAvalon Labs, the driving force behind the Avalon Finance protocol, took to X on April 14 to outline that the protocol had gone live on Bybit. It stated:”By integrating with Bybit Earn, Avalon unlocks new yield opportunities for Bitcoin holders by arbitraging our fixed-rate institutional borrowing layer — delivering predictable, enhanced returns through a seamless CeFi-to-DeFi bridge.” Avalon claims to offer a mechanism which brings Bitcoin into DeFi. It accepts FBTC, an omnichain digital asset with $1.25 billion in total value locked (TVL), pegged 1:1 with Bitcoin, as collateral, while lending it out at fixed interest rates. USDT stablecoin borrowed on the strength of that Bitcoin can then be deployed by platform users to execute high-yielding DeFi strategies via the Ethena Labs synthetic dollar protocol, implicating the use of Ethena USD (USDe) and Ethena Staked USD (sUSDE). In this way, the Avalon Finance protocol is providing a conduit between centralized finance and decentralized finance. Avalon Labs claims that the offering turns Bitcoin into a productive asset. It stated: “Returns are stable, secure, and passed back to Bybit Earn users—making Bitcoin a productive asset while maintaining simplicity and risk control.” More exchange collaborations plannedIt’s understood that Avalon plans to collaborate similarly with other crypto exchanges in the future. Towards the end of 2024, the firm raised $10 million in Series A funding, with the funding round having been led by Framework Ventures, with participation from UXTO Management, Presto Labs and Kenetic Capital. At the time, Avalon Labs asserted that the funding would be used to expand its Bitcoin-centric ecosystem.  BTC-backed public debt fundTaking to X in February, the project outlined that after years of research, it was working towards the launch of a Bitcoin-backed public debt fund that would fall within the parameters of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) regulatory framework. The firm stated:”By exploring regulated investment structures, we aim to bridge the gap between traditional finance and crypto, opening new opportunities for Bitcoin-backed financial products.” Regulation A is an exemption offered by the SEC enabling a company to sell securities to the investing public without full registration. Should it eventually take this path forward, the project would pioneer this approach to launching a public debt fund as little progress has been made by others in taking such a Bitcoin-related product forward to date. Towards the end of last month, Avalon Labs announced that it has added support for BlackRock’s “BUIDL” fund, a tokenized fund created by the world’s largest asset manager, which invests in short-term U.S. Treasury bills.

Matrixport Bullish Despite Bitcoin’s Price StandoffThe crypto market, with a total capitalization of around $1.08 trillion, finds itself in a tense state of anticipation towards October, which has been historically the most robust month for Bitcoin with average returns of over 20%, according to Singapore-based digital assets ecosystem firm Matrixport.Photo by Dmytro Demidko on UnsplashTechnical strugglesMeanwhile, Bitcoin (BTC) has been unable to breach the $27,400 mark, facing formidable resistance and failing to surpass its 50-day moving average. From a purely technical standpoint, the situation for Bitcoin appears bearish. The corrective rebound in BTC has concluded, with prices falling below key moving averages and short-term oversold conditions correcting themselves.This technical analysis reflects the cautious stance adopted by financial markets globally ahead of pivotal monetary policy decisions in countries like the US, Switzerland, the UK, and Japan.Mining difficulty increaseAnother notable development in the world of Bitcoin is the recent 5.48% increase in mining difficulty, bringing it to 57.12 T. This surge in mining difficulty is indicative of the ongoing robustness of the Bitcoin network, with the 7-day moving average reaching a substantial 423.4 EH/s, as reported by Glassnode.The leading cryptocurrency has a number of challenges and regulatory uncertainties that it must wrestle with currently.The regulatory issues at leading global crypto exchange Binance represent one of those challenges. Trading volumes on the Binance exchange have plummeted by 57% over the past week, driven by users seeking refuge on platforms yet to be subjected to regulatory crackdowns. Meanwhile, a court decision opted against ordering Binance’s US unit to provide the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in the United States with further customer fund information, encouraging collaboration between the parties.Spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are another area where the market anticipates a resurgence in the cryptocurrency space, driven by a wave of applications to launch spot Bitcoin ETFs. This development, according to Matrixport, has the potential to be a catalyst for Bitcoin’s growth should a spot BTC ETF be approved. The leading digital currency’s market dominance is currently approaching 50%.Meanwhile, the announcement of a new Bitcoin fund by Laser Digital Asset Management, a subsidiary of Japan’s largest investment bank and brokerage group, Nomura, has been interpreted as bullish news. Laser Digital has introduced a Bitcoin fund targeting long-term institutional investments, further demonstrating the growing institutional interest in cryptocurrencies.Further good news has emerged via Citigroup in the United States, which has launched Citi Token. The offering leverages blockchain technology and smart contracts for business-to-business payments and trade finance, reinforcing the adoption of blockchain within the financial industry.Divergent PredictionsAlthough Matrixport’s outlook is bullish, it comes amidst a backdrop of regulatory developments and technical challenges, with analysts offering contrasting outlooks for Bitcoin’s future. Matrixport projects a bullish fourth quarter for Bitcoin, citing historical trends of strong performance during this period. It anticipates potential gains of up to $37,000 by year-end.Mike Novogratz, the Founder of crypto-focused financial services firm Galaxy Digital, envisions Bitcoin reaching $500,000 by 2024, fueled by increased adoption and maturation of the crypto market.

Aptos Labs, the developers behind the Aptos layer-1 blockchain, has entered the Japanese market through the acquisition of HashPalette, a blockchain network concerned with the issuance, management and distribution of non-fungible tokens (NFTs). HashPalette informed stakeholders of the development on Oct. through an X post, alongside a press release published on its behalf by Japanese public relations company PR Times. Photo by Tianshu Liu on UnsplashExpanding Asian presenceUp until now, HashPalette has been a wholly owned subsidiary of HashPort, a blockchain-related consulting and infrastructure provider based in Tokyo. This acquisition sees the project transfer to being a wholly owned subsidiary of Aptos Labs. Accordingly, this will mean that applications developed by HashPalette will be migrated onto the Aptos Network. Similarly, the Palette Chain blockchain will migrate over to Aptos. From Aptos Labs’ perspective, the acquisition enables it to expand its blockchain ecosystem in Japan and within Asia more broadly. Aptos Labs Co-Founder Mo Shaikh described the acquisition as an investment in “the talented builders and creators of the region.”  Deal pending approvals, closing conditionsWhile the parties have announced the acquisition, the deal is still subject to required approvals being granted, together with various closing conditions related to the sale being met. Addressing the need to close out the deal, HashPalette tweeted:“HashPort and Aptos Labs will work closely together in the transition and will take great care to ensure that all stakeholders, including PLT and ELF holders, are not disadvantaged by the migration.” The PLT token is HashPalette’s native token. According to the project’s whitepaper, it has utility when it comes to the payment of NFT issuance fees and node management fees relative to the Palette Chain. Additionally, it can be used to pay for NFTs issued on the Palette Chain and for subscription payments related to applications developed on top of the network. The ELF token is a crypto asset utilized within THE LAND ELF Crossing, an NFT farming game which was developed by HashPalette and issued on the Palette Chain. The game is being marketed in Japan with the assistance of Animoca Brands following a partnership earlier this year. The companies have agreed to gradually migrate NFTs which had been issued on Palette Chain, relative to the EXPO2025 digital wallet developed by HashPort, to the Aptos Network. Once that migration has been achieved, it’s envisaged that the Aptos Network will become the only blockchain associated with the EXPO2025 digital wallet. Unresolved Palette Chain issuesFrom the point of view of the development team behind HashPalette, it was outlined in the press release that the move goes beyond a simple financial transaction. It acknowledged that “Palette Chain still has many issues.”  Against that background, the team believes that in order to further accelerate the social implementation of Web3, it has “considered how to make services built on Palette Chain more scalable and usable, and to enable smoother access to the global Web3 market.” That consideration has brought the project team to the conclusion that migrating to the Aptos Network offers the best path forward. At the time of writing, Aptos’ APT token was trading at $8.93, up 12.44% over the course of 24 hours, according to CoinMarketCap data.