Venture capitalists and the Solana community touted the ICO as a showcase for capital formation in the age of internet capital markets. Memecoin launch platform Pump.fun raised $500 million in an initial coin offering (ICO) on Saturday, which sold out in about 12 minutes. The PUMP token has a maximum supply of 1 trillion, and 33% of the supply was allocated to the ICO. 24% of the supply was allocated to the ecosystem and future community projects, while 13% was reserved for existing investors, according to the memecoin platform. Of the 33% ICO allotment, 18% went to institutional investors, and 15% was offered to retail traders. Pump.fun’s ICO may signal the return of the memecoin sector, which experienced a sharp downturn after being one of the highest-performing asset classes in 2024. The public token sale also portends the resurgence of initial coin offerings, which fizzled out due to regulatory pressure in the United States under the reign of former Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) chairman Gary G...
The next wave of Web3 neobanks won’t be standalone apps; they'll be embedded within platforms people already use. Opinion by: Vlad Kamyshov, CEO of Evaa Protocol The race to build the next big Web3 neobank is missing the point. Most projects are still focused on launching standalone apps, creating new interfaces and rebuilding user acquisition strategies from the ground up. It’s a familiar playbook, and increasingly an outdated one. In crypto, the next generation of finance won’t ask users to switch apps; it’ll meet them where they already are. Telegram and The Open Network (TON) aren’t trying to become neobanks themselves. They’ve already moved beyond that contest — one where Revolut and Monzo still fight for share. Together, they offer what nearly every crypto banking product lacks: a built-in audience, an intuitive interface, distribution embedded inside existing user flows and the rails to deliver instant financial utility. Read more
Veer Chetal, a 19-year-old hacker, used social engineering to steal $243 million in Bitcoin, then exposed his identity during a livestream and reoffended while out on bail. Social engineering attacks are a potent weapon that scammers use to compromise crypto wallets and steal funds from victims. Court documents reveal that this was the tactic used to target the Gemini creditor in this case. In August 2024, about 4,100 BTC worth $243 million vanished overnight from a single victim’s account. Three gamers, turned self-taught hackers, siphoned off the Bitcoin (BTC) after successfully gaining access using social engineering tactics. But this was just the start of a bizarre case, especially for the youngest thief, 19-year-old Veer Chetal. Read more