Crypto Venture Capital Firm a16z Invests $100 Million in Liquid Restaking Protocol EigenLayer | Cryptocurrency Trends

1. Mainstream Exchange Trends:

• Coinbase International adds support for Polkadot, Internet Computer, and NEAR Protocol perpetual futures contracts.
• OKX Jumpstart launches GPT ( QnA3.AI), which allows users to stake BTC and ETH in exchange for GPT tokens starting February 26, 6:00 AM (UTC).
• Binance to list GLM 1–50X USDT-M perpetual futures on February 22, 6:00 PM (UTC+8).
• KuCoin to list Smart Layer Network (SLN) and support the SLN/USDT trading pair. SLN deposits are enabled, and SLN trading opens on February 23, 4:00 PM (UTC+8).

2. Cryptocurrency Trends:

• Binance Labs announces investment in Renzo to support liquid restaking on the EigenLayer ecosystem.
• BitMEX Research reports that U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs saw a net outflow of $35.7 million on February 21, the first net outflow since January 25 (a total of 17 trading days).
• Binance Inscriptions Marketplace launches a limited-time campaign to give users who complete a qualifying transaction the opportunity to grab a share of $1 million in tokens.
• USDe developer Ethena Labs announces that it has raised the USDe pool limit to $100 million. The pool currently has a TVL of $66.25 million.

3. Financing Trends:

• Superfluid, an asset streaming protocol, raises $5.1 million in strategic funding led by Fabric Ventures, with participation from Multicoin Capital, Circle Ventures, Safe Foundation, The LAO, Taavet+Sten, and others.
• Clave, a fintech DApp startup, raises $1.6 million in pre-seed funding led by Matter Labs.
• a16z, a crypto VC firm, invests $100 million in liquid restaking protocol EigenLayer.
• Helius, a Solana ecosystem platform, raises $9.5 million in Series A funding led by Foundation Capital.
• Honeypot Finance, a native Berachain DeFi Hub project, closes an undisclosed pre-seed funding round led by AC Capital and DEXT Force Ventures.

4. Regulatory Trends:

• According to Bloomberg, Do Kwon's defense lawyer, Goran Rodic, expressed the belief that the Montenegrin court's "illegal decision" to authorize Do Kwon's extradition to the United States would be rejected in a court of appeal.
• February 22: CoinDesk reports that Digital Currency Group (DCG) has objected to a proposed settlement between its subsidiary Genesis and the New York Attorney General's Office.
• February 22: Coinbase Chief Legal Officer Paul Grewal: Coinbase responded to the U.S. SEC's request for comment urging the approval of Grayscale's Ethereum Spot ETF application. The application seeks to convert the Grayscale Ethereum Trust into an Ethereum Spot ETF.