Jacquelyn Melinek
Senior Reporter, Crypto, TC+
The Latest from Jacquelyn Melinek
Polygon’s head of investments remains ‘highly bullish on web3’
Polygon launched a $100 million ecosystem fund and an "uncapped" fund to help projects built on the now-defunct Terra ecosystem migrate to its blockchain.
Anthony Hopkins sees NFTs as ‘art in a new format’
Two-time Academy Award-winning actor Sir Anthony Hopkins partnered with NFT digital collectible company Orange Comet to launch his own series, The Eternal Collection.
CoinFund launches $300M web3 fund to invest in early-stage crypto
As capital continues to deploy the crypto economy, another big fund is entering the space. Seven-year-old CoinFund is launching a $300 million early-stage web3 venture fund, CoinFund Ventures I, which
Crypto scams have declined, but hackers remain resilient in bearish markets
When it comes to crime, illicit activity is still abundant regardless of crypto volatility, according to a new Chainalysis report.
Why Twitter anons are sending crypto to celebrities
Welcome back to Chain Reaction. Last week, we talked about a hack that gave new, ironic meaning to the word “trustless.” This week, we’ll get into one of the most polarizing aspects
Open source software is needed to prevent future crypto hacks, Polygon CISO says
What can be done to prevent future crypto hacks? Polygon's Mudit Gupta says the answer might be through projects employing open source software.
A Tornado (Cash) flew around my room
It seems like there are always people butting heads in the crypto world, and this week was no different. Cryptocurrency mixer Tornado Cash was hit with sanctions by the U.S. and Binance and WazirX dis
As Telegram grows in size, so does crypto traders’ dependence on the app
Some say Telegram is the ultimate hub for communication and information — an imperative place to be in the crypto community.
LongHash Ventures launches second fund for $100M to support web3 infrastructure
LongHash Ventures, a web3-focused investment firm and accelerator, has launched its second fund for $100 million, its CEO, Emma Cui, told TechCrunch.
Jump Crypto leads Injective’s $40M round to help expand DeFi applications
Even though digital asset markets have been shaky, the blockchain sector continues to scale as demand increases from both crypto-native and traditional institutions looking to use the technology. Laye
Coinbase’s earnings fall short of expectations as crypto winter rages
Investors shrug, implying the bad news was priced-in
Pinata raised $21.5M to scale NFT media infrastructure
Pinata, an NFT-focused media distribution platform, has raised a total of $21.5 million in funding, the company exclusively told TechCrunch. This is the only capital the four-year-old company has rais
Ethereum co-founder sees role diminishing as blockchain becomes increasingly decentralized
As more developers and researchers contribute to the project, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin said, their role will grow and his will shrink.
Solana co-founder says NFTs have ’50 different use cases’ that can onboard millions this year
New NFT use cases stretch from gaming to music, and Solana co-founder Raj Gokal says he sees enough startup activity focused on those areas to feel optimistic about the digital assets more generally.
Sometimes, stealing crypto is the moral choice
The world of crypto moves quickly and sometimes, when there’s an ongoing heist, the best thing that technically savvy but ethically sound users can do is join in on the pillaging. That’s w
Investors cheer Coinbase’s new partnerships and attempts to reignite growth
While deals with high-profile names are investor-pleasing, they can be better headlines than results.
Solana’s speedy approach to crypto is attracting developers, despite hiccups
Even though the market is shaky and Solana has had its share of problems, there’s still a pool of developers who want to build on Solana in this bear market cycle.
Playstudios launches blockchain gaming division and $10M web3-focused fund
Playstudios, a publicly traded mobile gaming platform and developer, is venturing into the web3 world with a new blockchain division and investment fund. The gaming entity, which owns popular mobile a
Tiffany and Gucci’s dip into crypto is a balance of reputation and revenue
Are crypto integrations by household name brands and sports teams evidence of increasing use cases for digital assets and cryptocurrencies -- or more of a marketing ploy?