The first Web3 Wrap-Up: hello and welcome

Welcome to the first Web3 Wrap-Up!

Each week I’ll share some of the most important and exciting news that’s happened across Crypto, Web3, NFTs, Metaverse & DeFi. 🚀

Web3 and the tech that will underpin it like blockchain, virtual reality, and AI are exciting digital technologies that could completely change the way we interact and exists online. This new virtual world horizon will see resources, applications, content, and agreements that are accessible to all, enabled by blockchain and other advanced digital technologies.

Web 3 represents the next generation of the internet, one that focuses on shifting power from big tech companies and proprietary algorithms to individual users and everyday people – you and me. I created CryptoSessions with the aim to put Crypto and Web3 knowledge into the hands of 10,000 curious minds.

The most important thing I’ve learnt so far? This industry is for anyone with an open mind who wants to join.

Back to the newsletter and recent updates!

A lot happened last week in the Crypto & Web3 space 👀

• Magic Eden raises $130M, hitting unicorn status at $1.6B valuation – Magic Eden, the leading Solana-based NFT marketplace, has raised $130 million at a $1.6 billion valuation. The marketplace plans to expand beyond Solana to include other platforms, as well. Electric Capital and Greylock co-led the round, with new investor Lightspeed Venture Partners also participating alongside previous investors Paradigm and Sequoia Capital.
• Microsoft, Meta, Unity, NVIDIA, Sony, and 30 other tech giants have come together to establish the Metaverse Standards Forum – The metaverse will bring together diverse technologies, requiring a constellation of interoperability standards, created and maintained by many standards organisations. The Metaverse Standards Forum is a unique venue for coordination between standards organisations and industry, with a mission to foster the pragmatic and timely standardisation that will be essential to an open and inclusive metaverse.
• The U.K.’s digital minister, Chris Philp, still intends for Britain to become a crypto centre – The U.K.’s digital minister, Chris Philp, still intends for Britain to become a crypto centre, but he wants to be cautious about it. He said he wants to move “in a way that protects the public and in particular pays attention to issues concerning, for example, money laundering.” The potential for sanctions evasion was also a concern, he said.
• Tether plans to release a stablecoin pegged to the British pound in July – Following an announcement by the Treasury in April of its intentions to make the UK a cryptocurrency hub, stablecoin company Tether has announced the launch of a GBP-pegged coin (GBPT) in July (pegged 1:1 to the British pound). The creation of GBPT will put British pounds on the blockchain and provide a faster, less costly option for asset transfers.
• Shopify Adds NFT-Gated Option for Online Retailers – Shopify is leaning into NFTs as the future of e-commerce. The online shopping giant, which allows small businesses to create custom e-commerce shops, is launching NFT-gated storefronts as a new feature for brands looking to make their stores more exclusive, Shopify announced Wednesday.

This space moves at the speed of lighting! Don’t forget to subscribe to the newsletter to see what’s happens this week. ✨