The Daily: Trump-linked DeFi project looks to raise $300 million, Uniswap Labs unveils Unichain Layer 2 and more

Happy Thursday! In today's Daily, the Donald Trump-linked World Liberty Financial DeFi project looks to raise $300 million at a $1.5 billion valuation, Uniswap Labs unveils its Ethereum Layer 2 Unichain, Optimism rolls out another airdrop and more.

Meanwhile, the SEC charges Cumberland DRW with acting as an "unregistered dealer" in crypto transactions.

Plus, blockchain sleuth ZachXBT's doxxing of "memecoin supercycle" promoter Murad Mahmudov's wallet addresses sparks debate in the crypto community.

Let's get started.

Trump-linked World Liberty Financial DeFi project looks to raise $300 million

World Liberty Financial plans to raise $300 million at a $1.5 billion valuation through an initial token sale next week, according to a roadmap obtained by The Block, though that could be subject to change.

• The governance token, WLFI, will be non-transferable for 12 months but can be used for voting on platform decisions immediately. Even if the community decides to vote on the tokens becoming transferable during this time, it will only be implemented after a year.
• The project, linked to Donald Trump and his three sons, aims to sell 20% of the total token supply to the public as part of the "initial sale," per the roadmap.
• This would suggest there could be more token sales to follow, given co-founder Zak Folkman's previous comments that 63% of the total supply would be sold to the public, with 17% going to user rewards and 20% to the team.
• Phase one of the project includes launching a version of the DeFi lending platform Aave on the Ethereum Layer 2 network Scroll, starting with bitcoin, ether and stablecoins.
• The platform would give 7% of its token supply to the Aave DAO — which would be worth $105 million at the slated valuation — for voting with and providing liquidity, along with 20% of fees generated by its platform on an ongoing basis.
• Future plans include creating a stablecoin-focused credit card, integrating with exchanges for easier on and off-ramping and fractionalizing real-world assets like hotels and sports clubs.

Uniswap Labs unveils Ethereum Layer 2 Unichain

Uniswap Labs is building a custom Ethereum Layer 2 called Unichain , joining Optimism's Superchain network of blockchains using the OP Stack for scalability and interoperability.

• Unichain is the first Layer 2 to incorporate Flashbots' Rollup Boost solution, aiming for sub-second block times to improve transaction speeds.
• Currently on testnet, Unichain will feature the Uniswap decentralized exchange protocol, with V2, V3 and a preview version of V4 set to be deployed by the end of the year.
• Addressing concerns about Ethereum ecosystem fragmentation, a source told The Block that the Superchain aims for fast, native interoperability between Layer 2s to avoid this.

Optimism rolls out another airdrop

Ethereum Layer 2 network Optimism rolled out its fifth airdrop on Thursday, distributing 10.3 million OP tokens, valued at around $16 million, to 54,700 users.

• Eligible recipients were required to have interacted with at least 20 contracts on the Superchain network of Layer 2s, including OP Mainnet, Base and Zora, between March 15 and Sept. 15 this year.
• Bonus rewards were also allocated to users who delegated a minimum amount of OP tokens or engaged with seven or more Superchain networks.
• Optimism has distributed over 265 million OP tokens across five airdrops so far, with 550 million tokens remaining for future distributions.

$16 million worth of ether from PlusToken Ponzi moves to exchanges

Around 7,000 ETH linked to the PlusToken Ponzi scheme , worth $16.7 million, was moved to crypto exchanges on Thursday morning, signaling the intent to sell what remains of ether seized by Chinese police, according to OXT Research analyst ErgoBTC.

• The transfers come around two months after wallets related to the crypto scheme moved large amounts of ether that was dormant since 2021 — when most of the seized assets were sold.
• PlusToken defrauded over 2.6 million people in 2018 and 2019, leading to the total seizure of over $14 billion in bitcoin, ether and seven other cryptocurrencies.
• A total of 15 people were convicted in connection to the PlusToken case and sentenced to between two and 11 years behind bars with fines from $100,000 to $1 million.

Assassin's Creed developer Ubisoft launches first crypto video game 'Champions Tactics'

Ubisoft, the gaming giant behind the hugely popular Assassin's Creed franchise, is launching its first crypto video game , "Champions Tactics," on PC from Oct. 23, featuring NFTs as collectible in-game assets.

• Players can assemble teams of Dungeon & Dragons-style characters to battle others in the game, with a total of 75,000 NFTs available.
• The new web3 game uses the HOME Verse, a Layer 2 network within the Oasys gaming ecosystem, where Sega and Ubisoft serve as validators.

In the next 24 hours

• UK GDP data are released at 2 a.m. ET on Friday. U.S. PPI figures follow at 8:30 a.m.
• U.S. FOMC member Michelle Bowman will speak at 1:10 p.m.
• Crypto Fest, Zebu Live and the World Blockchain Summit continue.

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