Author: The Block

Zynga, the online and mobile game developer behind titles like FarmVille and Words With Friends, has plans to get into non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and blockchain-based gaming. According to Axios, Zynga intends to grow its blockchain team from 15 to up to 100 and launch an NFT-based game by the end of 2022. Zynga’s game will likely tailor the blockchain-based game to the interest of large-scale crypto holders or whales, which may include a yield-focus as opposed to gameplay for entertainment. Zynga’s plans for blockchain-based gaming come four months after the firm hired its vice president of blockchain gaming Matt Wolf in November…

McDonald’s and Panera Bread, two major US-based food chains, have filed trademark registrations to build virtual restaurants and sell other digital assets in the metaverse. McDonald’s filed a total of ten trademark applications, one of which is for “operating a virtual restaurant featuring actual and virtual goods, operating a virtual restaurant online featuring home delivery.” Panera Bread’s trademark registration concerns non-fungible tokens (NFTs) to facilitate commercial transactions of virtual food and beverages, as well as computer programs to access such tokens in the metaverse. Under the brand name “Paneraverse,” the restaurant also intends to build out virtual restaurants and delivery features. Trademark…

The decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) underpinning the Terra ecosystem has struck a sponsorship deal with the Washington Nationals, a professional baseball team in the US. According to Wednesday’s announcement, the deal features “title sponsorship of the premier club space behind home plate at Nationals Park and establishes a foundation for future blockchain and cryptocurrency applications for fans.” “Terra will also be featured on in-stadium signage and will sponsor a five-part digital series that airs on Nationals social platforms,” a press release explained. The deal with a then-unnamed professional baseball team was first floated to Terra token-voters earlier this month, and the $40…

A bill introduced in Tennessee’s legislature would, if approved, allow the state and other municipalities to invest in cryptocurrency and non-fungible tokens (NFTs). House Bill 2644, according to public records, was introduced on February 2 and, per its summary, “authorizes a county, municipality, or the state to invest in cryptocurrency, blockchains, and non-fungible tokens.” It does so by amending parts of state law pertaining to permissible investments and, in the case of counties, the allowed use of “idle funds.” Per LegiScan, the measure has been referred to a subcommittee within the House Finance, Ways, and Means Committee for future consideration. It is unclear at…

OpenNode, a crypto startup that helps merchants accept bitcoin payments from customers, has raised $20 million in a Series A funding round and is now valued at $220 million. UK-based Kingsway Capital led OpenNode’s funding, with Twitter, Tim Draper, and Avon Ventures, a venture capital fund affiliated with the parent company of Fidelity Investments, also participating. With fresh capital in hand, OpenNode plans to announce new product features, including a payment wallet and an account-linked debit card. The firm also plans to expand its current team to around 50 to meet the growing demand for its services, said Josh Held,…

Compute North, a bitcoin mining infrastructure firm that provides equipment hosting services within its data centers, has raised $385 million in equity and debt funding. The equity part of the funding, worth $85 million, was co-led by Mercuria, a global energy and commodities trading company, and Generate Capital, an infrastructure investment firm. Other investors, including National Grid Partners, the venture arm of National Grid — one of the largest energy companies in the world — also joined the equity funding. The debt portion of the funding, some $300 million, was also provided by Generate Capital. Compute North calls the equity…

Web traffic to cryptocurrency exchanges decreased for the third month in a row as of January, according to data collected by The Block Research. Web traffic hits for crypto exchanges reached 427.6 million in January, 8.3% lower than December’s web traffic, which itself was 14.7% lower than in November. As further data from The Block Research shows, Binance comprised most of January’s web traffic volume at 33.2%. Coinbase and Bybit followed up with 18.1% and 6.6%, respectively. Read full story on The Block

Authorities in Russia are set to recognize digital assets as a form of currency, according to local news reports. Russian newspaper Kommersant reported this morning, and later tweeted, that the government and the Bank of Russia have reached an agreement on how to regulate cryptocurrencies. They are now preparing a draft law, expected by February 18, which will define crypto as an “analogue of currencies” rather than as digital financial assets. The report further stated that it will only be possible to use crypto “in the legal sector” with full identification, through the banking system, or via licensed intermediaries. The news comes just…

The centuries-old English art auction house Sotheby’s announced Tuesday that it will auction off 104 CryptoPunks, one of the oldest and most popular non-fungible token (NFT) collections to date. The CryptoPunks sale will occur in New York on February 23, 2022 at 7:00 PM EST, marking the auction house’s first dedicated live evening auction for NFTs, according to Sotheby’s. Attendees will also receive a VIP Punk Dinner and live party with a DJ named SeedPhrase.  This isn’t the first time Sotheby’s sold a collection of high-profile NFTs. In September of 2021, Sotheby’s auctioned off 104 Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) NFTs for $19 million —…

AssangeDAO, a collective of cypherpunks formed last week in an attempt to free WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, has won the bid for an NFT created by Julian Assange and digital artist Pak — essentially making a large donation to his cause. AssangeDAO ended up raising 17,422 ether ($56 million) from its community to bid on the NFT dubbed Clock and has now won the NFT by putting in the highest offer worth 16,593 ether ($53 million). “This is an important moment in DAO history,” Rachel Rose O’Leary, a core contributor of AssangeDAO — who is also co-founder and developer of DarkFi and a former CoinDesk…