Despite fundamental concerns about blockchain, crypto VC firms have increased their investments in the market this year. A new report from Bloomberg shows an influx of money.”professor coin”, a virtual asset project launched by university professors.
As the market recovers, companies founded by academics have received millions of dollars in funding from venture capital firms, according to the report. The inflow comes on the heels of new investments in Q1 2024 as Bitcoin (BTC) soared to an all-time high of over $72,000.
Companies like CheckSig and Sahara, founded by university academics, have seen an influx in the past two months.
Cryptocurrency VC firms resume re-staking
The attention paid to Professor Coin has led to large amounts of money flowing into companies offering re-staking services. Restaking allows validators to rely on assets that have already been staked. This creates room for new projects and you can see why you can get a head start by borrowing resources.
Cryptocurrency VC companies are attracting attention lamina propria Babylon recently saw $118 million in funding flowing to both projects. The company, founded by University of Washington professor Sreeram Kannan, has secured $100 million in funding from Andreessen Horowitz. babylon Founded by Stanford University professor David Tse, it has raised $18 million.
Riyad Waby, an engineering professor at Carnegie Mellon University, pointed to the research and industry utility of both projects. “They've thought a lot about this kind of restaking technique. I mean, it's like their baby, so that makes sense in a way. I think this technology will increasingly emerge from research in the future. ”
Kate Lawrence, chief executive of venture capital firm Blockcerate, said academic credentials could be used against professors because they tend to focus on theory rather than practice. However, the company invested in both projects based on a restaking model.
Concerns about centralization
The move towards Professor Coin by crypto VC firms has not been without criticism from the industry, with many citing it as less decentralized. This follows EigenLayer's token launch plan, which will distribute 1.67 billion tokens with over 50% allocated to early participants and investors.
Additionally, the coins will be non-transferable, which raises some concerns. The team explained that making it non-transferable will allow time to improve decentralization.
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