RaonSecure to Develop Digital Identity Strategy for the Indonesian Government

Taiko Labs Raises Funding to Build Ethereum-Equivalent zkEVMTaiko Labs, a crypto startup focused on scaling the Ethereum blockchain, has successfully raised a total of $22 million in two funding rounds.According to a blog article published to the startup’s website on Thursday, the first funding round, a $10 million seed raise, was led by Sequoia China and concluded in the third quarter of 2022. The second round, a recent pre-Series A round, raised $12 million and was led by Generative Ventures, according to co-founder Daniel Wang.Photo by cottonbro studio on PexelsBroad investor participationNotable investors in the two rounds include IOSG Ventures, GSR, and GGV Capital, as well as angel investors like Patricio Worthalter, the Founder of the Proof of Attendance Protocol (POAP), Tim Beiko from the Ethereum Foundation, and Anthony Sassano, Co-Founder and COO of the decentralized virtual world, The Sandbox. Taiko Labs has not disclosed its valuation.Scaling EthereumThe primary focus of Taiko Labs is to develop a scaling solution for the Ethereum blockchain that closely adheres to Ethereum’s design and ideology. The company refers to its product as a Type 1 zero-knowledge Ethereum Virtual Machine (zkEVM).Vitalik Buterin, the inventor of Ethereum, emphasized the importance of Type 1 zkEVMs for scaling the Ethereum layer 1 in a blog post. Taiko Labs aims to extend Ethereum’s capabilities by sticking to the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) specification and leveraging its best properties, as explained by Matthew Finestone, co-founder of Taiko Labs.On Wednesday, Taiko Labs released its latest version, its alpha-3 testnet, Grímsvötn, marking a significant milestone on its path to a decentralized and Ethereum-equivalent ZK-EVM.Taiko backstoryThe journey towards Taiko Labs began when Daniel Wang and Matthew Finestone worked together at Loopring Foundation, a trading and payment protocol based on zk-rollup technology. Wang served as the founder and CEO of Loopring Foundation from July 2017 until November 2021, while Finestone worked as the head of business for three years.Wang initially intended to build a decentralized social network but encountered a major obstacle — the lack of infrastructure and scalability. This realization led to the birth of the idea for Taiko Labs.Wang commented on the funding milestone, stating: “We believe that we are now on the cusp of having a truly decentralized Ethereum-equivalent ZK-rollup. This is our core mission at Taiko and we are incredibly proud to partner with leading investors who share our uncompromising vision.”The successful financing rounds will enable Taiko Labs to ensure a successful launch of its mainnet. However, the company is considering raising additional capital, partly to establish an ecosystem investment fund that will attract decentralized applications (dApps) and developers to the ecosystem.In terms of organizational structure, Taiko Labs plans to follow in Ethereum’s footsteps. Wang told The Block: “We are going to quickly convert the organization into a non-profit one. Ideally, we’ll operate very similarly to the Ethereum Foundation.”These successful funding rounds provide a solid foundation for Taiko Labs’ future endeavors, and the company is aiming to make a meaningful impact on the global adoption of blockchain technology with its focus on scaling.

SkyArk Chronicles, a Singapore-based Triple-A gaming platform, recently announced the completion of a $15 million funding round that it suggested was led by Binance Labs, the venture arm of the leading global crypto platform. Binance has subsequently moved to clarify that it is not involved in the latest funding initiative.Photo by Laurin Steffens on UnsplashBacked by Binance since 2021The gaming ecosystem, which has enjoyed the backing of Binance since 2021, expressed excitement about the successful completion of the funding round. On Jan. 12, SkyArk posted on social media platform X, suggesting that Binance led the recent funding round but the project has since deleted that post. The post mentioned the participation of more than 40 institutions in the funding round, including Vividthree Productions, a Singapore-based company. It didn’t disclose the amount it claimed was invested by Binance Labs at that time. The announcement also highlighted contributions from other notable entities in the NFT and gaming space, such as GuildFi Global, Jambo Technology and BreederDAO. Additionally, individual investors like LayerZero CEO Bryan Pellegrino, Tangent Ventures Co-Founder Wangarian and Story Protocol CEO S.Y. Lee were all claimed by the project to have made noteworthy contributions to SkyArk's funding initiative. Binance Labs denialHowever, recent developments have introduced an element of uncertainty. Binance Labs, in an X post on Monday, distanced itself from SkyArk Chronicles' latest funding round. Contrary to the earlier announcement, Binance Labs clarified that it did not participate in SkyArk's $15 million funding round earlier this month. The venture arm reiterated its sole investment in SkyArk during the Incubation Season 3 program in 2021. This clarification from Binance Labs raised concerns about the accuracy of SkyArk Chronicles' earlier announcement, leading to SkyArk posting to confirm the information supplied by Binance. That post states: “We are very sorry for the miscommunication and appreciate the clarification from Binance Labs. We remain focused on making SkyArk a success and will continue working hard to achieve our vision.” Community reactionThe saga has caused some concern within the community, underscoring the need for transparency in the cryptocurrency and gaming industries. Web3 and NFT consultancy firm Vader Research commented on the development, stating:”SkyArk didn’t raise a new private round at all. They circulated the 2021 funding round announcement as if it recently occurred and used that to raise $11m from the public.” In a subsequent post, Vader added that Binance still has considerable leverage where SkyArk is concerned, as it retains the right to decide whether to list the SkyArk token on the platform. SkyArk Chronicles had a history of collaboration with Binance, dating back to 2021 when Binance selected SkyArk Studio for its prestigious Incubator Program Season 3. Out of over 1,000 applicants, SkyArk Studio was one of the nine teams chosen, emphasizing its potential in the blockchain and gaming space. In a follow-up post on Monday, SkyArk co-founder Kelvin Chua expressed his gratitude to Binance for its support over the past three years. The gaming platform, led by seasoned professionals in traditional mobile games, aspires to revolutionize the gaming sector worldwide. Their focus on launching Fully-On-Chain and Only-Assets-On-Chain games sets them apart, with a commitment to incorporating NFTs seamlessly into various gameplay styles. 

South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Coinone disclosed that it has received more than 600 applications in two weeks following the start of its mass recruitment for development staff for 2024, according to local news outlet Law Issue on Tuesday (KST).Photo by Clem Onojeghuo on UnsplashOffering hope in a job market downturn"We believe this large influx of applications is due to our recruitment’s role in revitalizing the job market of both domestic and foreign virtual asset industries, which has been inactive lately," the exchange explained. Coinone opened applications on Jan. 8, recruiting employees for a total of eight fields related to development. As of Monday, more than 600 people have applied. The exchange’s website received over 3,000 visitors on the first day of recruitment. The final number of applicants is expected to increase as the application deadline is January 26th. More applications are expected to flood in until the deadline on Jan. 26. Job category preferencesAccording to the applications by job category, applicants were most interested in front-end positions (57.1%), followed by back-end (24.4%) and data (18.4%) positions. More specifically, positions in front-end development (29.8%), data analytics (21.3%) and Android development (15.8%) had the highest application rates. The popularity of these categories can be attributed to a combination of Coinone's corporate identity rooted in its solid technology and a positive outlook for this year’s cryptocurrency market. Throughout last year, the exchange also implemented more than 13 service updates across its trading, information and security services, demonstrating its commitment to service integrity and improvement.