Leading blockchain and Web 3.0 venture capital firm Outlier Ventures published the Q3 report in its State of Blockchains series, which provides an overview into blockchain investment and market trends worldwide. The report reveals a range of insights into the market
State of Blockchains 2019: Green shoots of adoption emerge from 2018 crypto c...Outlier Ventures
Leading blockchain and Web 3.0 venture capital firm Outlier Ventures published the 2018 Q4 report in its State of Blockchains series, which provides an overview into blockchain investment and market trends worldwide. The report highlighted multiple key trends including increasing user adoption and data showing the decline in ETH price isn’t due to ICO sellers
Our latest quarterly "State of Blockchains" report on developments in the blockchains space, across startups, government and corporate adoption. This information has been provided to help build knowledge and understanding in the emerging blockchain and DLT space.
Outlier Ventures Investment in Blockchains report by Research Analyst Joel John and Partner & Head of Research Lawrence Lundy.
The report provides an overview into blockchain investment and market trends in 2019. According to the report, $23.7 Billion has been raised by 3738 blockchain companies since 2013.
Early stage fundraising high in count, but follow on rounds few and scarce. Blockchain startups have raised finance in multiple forms including ICOs, debt, direct investments and crowd-funding. However, discounting a handful of exchanges and wallets, there hasn’t been an application that has broken through to mainstream adoption, yet. This definitely isn’t for lack of capital. The challenge is more about expertise and guidance at early stages, especially when it comes to areas unique to Web3 such as token design.
An assessment of what governments and corporations need to do to ensure blockchain technology is a success and realise its potential. Presented by Jamie Burke at the Future Blockchain Summit in Dubai on the 3rd May 2018.
State of Blockchains 2019: Green shoots of adoption emerge from 2018 crypto c...Outlier Ventures
Leading blockchain and Web 3.0 venture capital firm Outlier Ventures published the 2018 Q4 report in its State of Blockchains series, which provides an overview into blockchain investment and market trends worldwide. The report highlighted multiple key trends including increasing user adoption and data showing the decline in ETH price isn’t due to ICO sellers
Our latest quarterly "State of Blockchains" report on developments in the blockchains space, across startups, government and corporate adoption. This information has been provided to help build knowledge and understanding in the emerging blockchain and DLT space.
Outlier Ventures Investment in Blockchains report by Research Analyst Joel John and Partner & Head of Research Lawrence Lundy.
The report provides an overview into blockchain investment and market trends in 2019. According to the report, $23.7 Billion has been raised by 3738 blockchain companies since 2013.
Early stage fundraising high in count, but follow on rounds few and scarce. Blockchain startups have raised finance in multiple forms including ICOs, debt, direct investments and crowd-funding. However, discounting a handful of exchanges and wallets, there hasn’t been an application that has broken through to mainstream adoption, yet. This definitely isn’t for lack of capital. The challenge is more about expertise and guidance at early stages, especially when it comes to areas unique to Web3 such as token design.
An assessment of what governments and corporations need to do to ensure blockchain technology is a success and realise its potential. Presented by Jamie Burke at the Future Blockchain Summit in Dubai on the 3rd May 2018.
The Pitch Deck (version 2) for Eliconn - a blockchain technology and fintech-approached company which provides services for Supply Chain Finance (SCF) in multiple areas.
FinTech: Business Opportunity or Disruptor? - tryb @ FIDE Forum KL 4 Aug 2016tryb
tryb was invited to speak to 90+ Board of Directors of Malaysia Financial Institutions. In 90 min the audience learned about the impact of technology in finance, how banks respond to the trends and what kind of technology companies tryb sees in the market.
This report summarizes how Innovative technologies are disrupting the financial industry and how organizations can leverage them to their advantage.
It is a must read for senior executives in banks and other financial service providers (FSPs).
Diffusion 2019 Launch by CEO & Founder Jamie Burke and AvA BerlinOutlier Ventures
The world’s most exciting Web 3 protocols in blockchain, AI, IoT and Big Data from across The Convergence Stack come together for a 2-day dev con made up of hacks, exclusive product launches, and live demos.
Outlier Ventures, CEO & Founder Jamie Burke, and CTO & Founding Partner Aron van Ammers provide an overview of Diffusion 2019 and how you can get involved and be a part of our first dev con taking place in Berlin on the 19th-20th of October.
Dimitri De Jonghe Head of Research & Co-founder at Ocean Protocol and Toby Simpson CTO & Co-Founder at Fetch.AI share their involvement in the upcoming dev con Diffusion 2019.
To find out more visit our main page https://diffusion.events/ where you can apply to be a mentor, volunteer or hackathon team.
Nimble AppGenie is the top FinTech app development company. We provide top-notch and feature-rich FinTech applications for industry newcomers as well as well as established enterprises. So, your hunt for best FinTech app developers ends here.
For More details Click Here- https://www.nimbleappgenie.com/fintech-app-development
Coin token ico really only have one utility — to act as simple stores of value with limited-to-no other functionality. By “simple” value, I mean value not represented or manifested through a variety of dynamic functions. Tokens are a completely different breed all together. They can store complex, multi-faceted levels of value. Forget everything you know about bitcoin and pre-mined coins and that entire ilk of tech, Ethereum tokens are generated by a Smart Contract System (SCS), are highly programmable and have multi-functionality because of it. They transcend being just a coin, and through their array of functions become something much more — “tokens”. Technically, they are not “offered”, they are “generated”. Probably the most accurate phrase of what’s going on during an Ethereum token launch is to describe it as a “Token Generation Event”, but I’m not sure TGE has the same flare as ICO. Nevertheless, a coin does one thing, and a token can do many things
Applying the Howey Test to the DAO Tokens- On July 25, 2017, the SEC issued its Report on an investigation into an ICO and related activities by the DAO, an unincorporated entity, Slock.it UG (“Slock.it”), a German corporation, and various principals and participants. Previously in this Lawcast series I went through the parameters of the Howey Test to determine if a particular investment contract is a “security” under the federal securities laws. I also have detailed the relevant facts related to the DAO and its ICO offering.
Applying the Howey Test to the DAO Tokens, the SEC notes that “money” need not include cash, but rather can be anything of value. A contribution of ETH is an investment of “money” as considered by the Howey Test. Investors in the DAO were investing in a common enterprise with the expectation of profits, including dividends and increased value. The SEC also found that the profits were to be derived from the efforts of others, including Slock.it, its founders and the DAO curators...
ICO Pitchnight #1 by Catena Capital & Herdius and friendsBalazs Deme
The first ICO Pitchnight organized by Catena Capital and Herdius. Advice and learnings on already having done an ICO by Bricklock, on having already done an ICO in Germany by Herdius and planning on one by KYC solution Fractal.
The playbook captures the journey of 26 FinTech hubs in emerging markets, their experiences and learnings in the process of building a strong financial services ecosystem.
This report serves to facilitate hubs to think global and act local through an appreciation of global trends, local drivers and regional opportunities.
What if we could hardcode economics into the fabric of The Web to literally change the rules of the game to the benefit of citizens?
Creating systems that are enhancing not extractive.
An overview of what is happening. Content: ICO market review, Tokens and products, Industry review of ICO campaigns, ICO geography, Post-ICO performance, Token sale structure. Source: ICOrating
ICO Survival Guide: Everything you need to know about itStefan Chun Yin
What is an ICO and why are people investing in ICOs? How secure are ICO and how are they regulated? These slides provide an extensive beginner's guide in a Q&A format.
Investing In Blockchain Startups - A Guide For Angels & VCs Jamie Burke
A presentation by Jamie Burke at www.blockchainangels.eu meetup (11 02-16) for angel and VC investors wanting to understand opportunity & risk in the space.
In this presentation I talk about the state of the digital currency economy in mid 2020, including my unique perspective as CEO of Gilded, a B2B payment solution using digital currency.
I also discuss what it will take to get the flywheel moving and grow the digital currency economy in 2021 and beyond.
How venture capital backed startups can use token offerings to raise non-dilutive financing. In 2017, companies raised over $4 billion through token offerings (called Initial Coin Offerings)
The Pitch Deck (version 2) for Eliconn - a blockchain technology and fintech-approached company which provides services for Supply Chain Finance (SCF) in multiple areas.
FinTech: Business Opportunity or Disruptor? - tryb @ FIDE Forum KL 4 Aug 2016tryb
tryb was invited to speak to 90+ Board of Directors of Malaysia Financial Institutions. In 90 min the audience learned about the impact of technology in finance, how banks respond to the trends and what kind of technology companies tryb sees in the market.
This report summarizes how Innovative technologies are disrupting the financial industry and how organizations can leverage them to their advantage.
It is a must read for senior executives in banks and other financial service providers (FSPs).
Diffusion 2019 Launch by CEO & Founder Jamie Burke and AvA BerlinOutlier Ventures
The world’s most exciting Web 3 protocols in blockchain, AI, IoT and Big Data from across The Convergence Stack come together for a 2-day dev con made up of hacks, exclusive product launches, and live demos.
Outlier Ventures, CEO & Founder Jamie Burke, and CTO & Founding Partner Aron van Ammers provide an overview of Diffusion 2019 and how you can get involved and be a part of our first dev con taking place in Berlin on the 19th-20th of October.
Dimitri De Jonghe Head of Research & Co-founder at Ocean Protocol and Toby Simpson CTO & Co-Founder at Fetch.AI share their involvement in the upcoming dev con Diffusion 2019.
To find out more visit our main page https://diffusion.events/ where you can apply to be a mentor, volunteer or hackathon team.
Nimble AppGenie is the top FinTech app development company. We provide top-notch and feature-rich FinTech applications for industry newcomers as well as well as established enterprises. So, your hunt for best FinTech app developers ends here.
For More details Click Here- https://www.nimbleappgenie.com/fintech-app-development
Coin token ico really only have one utility — to act as simple stores of value with limited-to-no other functionality. By “simple” value, I mean value not represented or manifested through a variety of dynamic functions. Tokens are a completely different breed all together. They can store complex, multi-faceted levels of value. Forget everything you know about bitcoin and pre-mined coins and that entire ilk of tech, Ethereum tokens are generated by a Smart Contract System (SCS), are highly programmable and have multi-functionality because of it. They transcend being just a coin, and through their array of functions become something much more — “tokens”. Technically, they are not “offered”, they are “generated”. Probably the most accurate phrase of what’s going on during an Ethereum token launch is to describe it as a “Token Generation Event”, but I’m not sure TGE has the same flare as ICO. Nevertheless, a coin does one thing, and a token can do many things
Applying the Howey Test to the DAO Tokens- On July 25, 2017, the SEC issued its Report on an investigation into an ICO and related activities by the DAO, an unincorporated entity, Slock.it UG (“Slock.it”), a German corporation, and various principals and participants. Previously in this Lawcast series I went through the parameters of the Howey Test to determine if a particular investment contract is a “security” under the federal securities laws. I also have detailed the relevant facts related to the DAO and its ICO offering.
Applying the Howey Test to the DAO Tokens, the SEC notes that “money” need not include cash, but rather can be anything of value. A contribution of ETH is an investment of “money” as considered by the Howey Test. Investors in the DAO were investing in a common enterprise with the expectation of profits, including dividends and increased value. The SEC also found that the profits were to be derived from the efforts of others, including Slock.it, its founders and the DAO curators...
ICO Pitchnight #1 by Catena Capital & Herdius and friendsBalazs Deme
The first ICO Pitchnight organized by Catena Capital and Herdius. Advice and learnings on already having done an ICO by Bricklock, on having already done an ICO in Germany by Herdius and planning on one by KYC solution Fractal.
The playbook captures the journey of 26 FinTech hubs in emerging markets, their experiences and learnings in the process of building a strong financial services ecosystem.
This report serves to facilitate hubs to think global and act local through an appreciation of global trends, local drivers and regional opportunities.
What if we could hardcode economics into the fabric of The Web to literally change the rules of the game to the benefit of citizens?
Creating systems that are enhancing not extractive.
An overview of what is happening. Content: ICO market review, Tokens and products, Industry review of ICO campaigns, ICO geography, Post-ICO performance, Token sale structure. Source: ICOrating
ICO Survival Guide: Everything you need to know about itStefan Chun Yin
What is an ICO and why are people investing in ICOs? How secure are ICO and how are they regulated? These slides provide an extensive beginner's guide in a Q&A format.
Investing In Blockchain Startups - A Guide For Angels & VCs Jamie Burke
A presentation by Jamie Burke at www.blockchainangels.eu meetup (11 02-16) for angel and VC investors wanting to understand opportunity & risk in the space.
In this presentation I talk about the state of the digital currency economy in mid 2020, including my unique perspective as CEO of Gilded, a B2B payment solution using digital currency.
I also discuss what it will take to get the flywheel moving and grow the digital currency economy in 2021 and beyond.
How venture capital backed startups can use token offerings to raise non-dilutive financing. In 2017, companies raised over $4 billion through token offerings (called Initial Coin Offerings)
Initial coin offerings (ICOs) are a new way of raising funds for projects running on blockchain technology. Similar to the role venture capital (VC) plays in financing start-ups in traditional finance, ICOs are the future of venture investing in the blockchain world. Through ICOs, exponential returns can be earned in a very short period of time. When a decentralised application is created, the start-up behind it can sell the associated coin or token early in the process for an amount based on what it thinks it’s worth.
VIVA Investment Partners Briefing Number 1 - Digital Securities w/Tal ElyashivJulie Meyer
Tal Elyashiv, the founder and Managing Partner of SPICE VC, the leader in investing in the digital securities ecosystem and tokenised assets, gives an overview of the investment landscape that SPICE and he have pioneered.
Presentation from blockchain-real.net // blockchain-real.at (9th of March 2018, Graz, Austria)
Copyright/Property of: Dr. Guenther Dobrauz-Saldapenna (CH/AT), Experte für rechtliche & regulatorische Fragen bei Blockchain-Lösungen, Partner und Leiter PwC Legal Schweiz
Title: Die Dynamik der Innovation und was staatliche Regulierung damit zu tun hat: ICOs, Cryptocurrencies und Tokenized Assets - Stand der Dinge und was zu erwarten ist
The speakers provided the slides to the public and are shared in this LinkedIn Group: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/12087113
About Blockchain-REAL: Blockchain means revolution: What does blockchain technology - the operating system behind Bitcoin & Co, so to speak - for businesses and the real estate industry? The speculation hype around the cryptocurrencies obscures the view of a truly groundbreaking technology that is slowly but surely turning some things upside down. See what Blockchain can do on a day and decide for yourself how to use this technology.
From Bitcoin to Blockchain: Industry Review April 2017 from OLMA NEXT LtdOLMA Capital Management
When the Bitcoin cryptocurrency was released in 2009, its underpinning, the blockchain distributed ledger system was the real technological breakthrough, a formulation that promises to change the basis of all types of transactions globally.
Blockchain technology has paved the way for an Internet of Transactions. Blockchain technology has already proved its worth in such areas as means of payment, interbank exchanges and international remittances. Touted as the next digital revolution, blockchain technology has the potential to transform traditional industries and alter society through disintermediation of trade. Any situation that involves an intermediary that is expensive or fallible represents an opportunity to create a blockchain application case. No industry is immune to the blockchain’s disruption potential.
In 2017, the blockchain technology is at an inflection point. The industry is in a state of transition and must move to Blockchain 2.0, which means the adoption of more sophisticated applications, such as micro-payments and smart contracts. Having outgrown its original bitcoin community, the majority of blockchain applications have yet to pass beyond the prototype stage to make blockchain technology the greatest restructuring technology of the next decade.
Crypto currencies usage is growing in a more connected world. The traditional banking industry is being disrupted by a decentralized network, rich in computing resources and connectivity.
Full quality version here -> https://www.scribd.com/document/333257162/Crypto-Currency-Mining-Science
7 Predictions & Future Trends of Blockchain Technology for 2021ArpitGautam20
Know about 7 amazing predictions & future trends of Blockchain Technology in 2021 that can assist Financial Institutions, Government Agencies & Businesses.
Get in-depth insights on the emergence, growth and future prospects of Blockchain in India. The historical timeline of the Blockchain technology in India. A detailed breakdown of the Blockchain technology and decoding the types of Blockchain currently in use.
This thought leadership is a report detailing how Blockchain can be industrialized in ASEAN and how its potential can be unlocked across organizations.
The report also clearly illustrates the implications of Blockchain, its key developments, how it impacts countries across ASEAN and a five-point test for assessing the fit of Blockchain for specific processes, all serving to provide meaningful insights into the current state of the FinTech industry in the ASEAN region.
"This thought leadership is a report detailing how Blockchain can be industrialized in ASEAN and how its potential can be unlocked across organizations. The report also clearly illustrates the implications of Blockchain, its key developments, how it impacts countries across ASEAN and a five-point test for assessing the fit of Blockchain for specific processes, all serving to provide meaningful insights into the current state of the FinTech industry in the ASEAN region."
Everything you need to know about Ibinex. Check out the comparison listed between Ibinex and others to understand what makes us the best in the industry.
The Article explores the possibility of Blockchain being the Saviour of the Banks.
The article was republished in Journal of Insitute of Bankers of Pakistan - July 2018
Grow VC Group presentation at Crypto Funding Summit in Los AngelesGrow VC Group
Presentation about crypto funding ecosystem and data, including basics about tokenization, tokenomics, distributed finance models and blockchain. The presentation describes distributed finance market, where tokenization can be used to all assets, and where data and AI are coming key tools.
Wave Financial + TQ Tezos: State of Digital Securities Tom Lombardi
Wave Financial recently authored a report on the state of digital securities in conjunction with TQ Tezos - a leading institutional-grade blockchain solutions developer with a focus on security and durability across technological generations.
Digitizing securities through blockchain technology can enable cost savings, economic value creation, and risk reduction. While the digital securities ecosystem is quite nascent, early examples from financial heavyweights like Santander and Franklin Templeton indicate that the potential benefits around compliance automation and cost reduction may be the driving forces of broader adoption.
In this report, we explore the advantages of digital securities, the global regulatory landscape, current challenges hindering widespread adoption, and leading digital securities initiatives.
Blockchain the inception of a new database of everything by dinis guarda bloc...Dinis Guarda
Blockchain the inception of a new database of everything by Dinis Guarda blockchain age
Trends and questions?
1. Redefinition of banking and relation with Blockchain
Mobile App banking finance – mobile ledgers – blockchain identity
New products and the emergence of DAO products.
2. System Legacies in paralel with advanced tech - Ethereum.
3. Distribution Strategy in a new Digitalised World who own what.
4. Super computer Cloud base blochcain solutions / infrastructure.
5. Emergence of AI IOE in relation with blockchain all connected.
6. User Experience, UI, UE, Big data and the IOE blockchain touching.
7. Blockchain Cyber Security and Value Reinvention.
A comprehensive guide to investing in blockchain stocksBlockchain Council
Stocks of companies are being traded publicly. The interest shown by customers and investors towards blockchain stocks is steadily increasing. Some of the renowned companies are hopping onto the blockchain wagon and trying to monetize the opportunity.
Similar to Outlier Ventures State of Blockchain Q3 2018 (20)
Jamie Burke's keynote speech on the convergence of blockchain with IoT and AI at Wuzhen Blockchain Conference including announcements for their China expansion strategy.
Download the presentation for the script he talked through during his presentation.
Diffusion 2019 was Outlier Ventures inaugural two-day devcon held in Berlin on 19th and 20th October.
Hundreds of developers, protocols, teams and individuals in the blockchain, artificial intelligence and IoT space joined for two days of intense hacking, talks and workshops at Factory Berlin. Our objective was to drive interoperability by joining forces to grow Web3.
The tone and format of the event was not about crypto theatre, ego and noise, it was strictly focused on collaboration and building. What made the event unique was the resolute focus on growing the space together, in an open exchange of ideas between protocols and teams across the technology stack from around the globe.
Diffusion 2019 was Outlier Ventures inaugural two-day devcon held in Berlin on 19th and 20th October.
Hundreds of developers, protocols, teams and individuals in the blockchain, artificial intelligence and IoT space joined for two days of intense hacking, talks and workshops at Factory Berlin. Our objective was to drive interoperability by joining forces to grow Web3.
The closing ceremony was a presentation of the hackathon winners.
Outlier Ventures State of Blockchains Q2 report by Research Analyst Joel John and Partner & Head of Research Lawrence Lundy. The report provides an overview into blockchain investment and market trends in 2019. According to the report, blockchain start-ups raised $822 Million from 279 separate VC deals during the first half of this year.
Convergence in Smart Cities: Powering the 4th Industrial Revolution Outlier Ventures
Smart cities around the world have pioneered ambitious open data frameworks. Connecting city data at an unprecedented scale. But the current economic model of the Web, its infrastructure and its data economy holds back innovation.
At Outlier Ventures more specifically we believe the convergence of technologies like blockchain, IoT and AI are forming a new bottom up stack of internet protocols.
The Convergence Stack is an aggregation of open source protocols but also a a blueprint for the positive commoditisation of data by smart cities.
Dubai is already a world leader in blockchain with a commitment to have all government transaction on a blockchain by 2020 and AI, with its own AI Lab leading Ethical AI.
Now in partnership with Outlier Ventures we are together launching a city wide Dubai Decentralised Data Programme to accelerate the next phase of the Web.
H2O Machine Learning with OrbitBD and Ocean Protocol Outlier Ventures
Theo Turn, Technology Analyst at Outlier Ventures presented the announcement of H2O Machine Learning with OrbitBD and Ocean Protocol at Digital Catapult on 18th December 2018.
H2O, short for Haja to Ocean, is the first app to run in the convergence stack, building on top of multiple software frameworks that underpin the convergence ecosystem. H2O is a demonstration of machine learning in Web3, allowing users to run a clustering algorithm on data stored in OrbitDB and publish the resulting AI datasets to the Ocean Protocol blockchain.
Back to the future: the convergence economy - Jan 6th 2018Outlier Ventures
The last 18 months have been a rollercoaster, and we’re all feeling justifiably pleased with ourselves. However, like many who have been involved professionally for many years now, on the one hand, we feel vindicated, on the other hand frustrated. It seems many have gotten distracted from the real job at hand building the next phase of the web and fixing its many problems. ICOs are changing the face of tech fundraising, but with a lot of confusing exuberance. We need to get back to building the future. What will be required to build into this emerging ecosystem to unlock true value for developers, communities and end users?
Our latest quarterly "State of Blockchains" report on developments in the blockchains space, across startups, government and corporate adoption. This information has been provided to help build knowledge and understanding in the emerging blockchain and DLT space.
Encryption in Microsoft 365 - ExpertsLive Netherlands 2024Albert Hoitingh
In this session I delve into the encryption technology used in Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Purview. Including the concepts of Customer Key and Double Key Encryption.
Dev Dives: Train smarter, not harder – active learning and UiPath LLMs for do...UiPathCommunity
💥 Speed, accuracy, and scaling – discover the superpowers of GenAI in action with UiPath Document Understanding and Communications Mining™:
See how to accelerate model training and optimize model performance with active learning
Learn about the latest enhancements to out-of-the-box document processing – with little to no training required
Get an exclusive demo of the new family of UiPath LLMs – GenAI models specialized for processing different types of documents and messages
This is a hands-on session specifically designed for automation developers and AI enthusiasts seeking to enhance their knowledge in leveraging the latest intelligent document processing capabilities offered by UiPath.
Speakers:
👨🏫 Andras Palfi, Senior Product Manager, UiPath
👩🏫 Lenka Dulovicova, Product Program Manager, UiPath
In his public lecture, Christian Timmerer provides insights into the fascinating history of video streaming, starting from its humble beginnings before YouTube to the groundbreaking technologies that now dominate platforms like Netflix and ORF ON. Timmerer also presents provocative contributions of his own that have significantly influenced the industry. He concludes by looking at future challenges and invites the audience to join in a discussion.
SAP Sapphire 2024 - ASUG301 building better apps with SAP Fiori.pdfPeter Spielvogel
Building better applications for business users with SAP Fiori.
• What is SAP Fiori and why it matters to you
• How a better user experience drives measurable business benefits
• How to get started with SAP Fiori today
• How SAP Fiori elements accelerates application development
• How SAP Build Code includes SAP Fiori tools and other generative artificial intelligence capabilities
• How SAP Fiori paves the way for using AI in SAP apps
Generative AI Deep Dive: Advancing from Proof of Concept to ProductionAggregage
Join Maher Hanafi, VP of Engineering at Betterworks, in this new session where he'll share a practical framework to transform Gen AI prototypes into impactful products! He'll delve into the complexities of data collection and management, model selection and optimization, and ensuring security, scalability, and responsible use.
Essentials of Automations: The Art of Triggers and Actions in FMESafe Software
In this second installment of our Essentials of Automations webinar series, we’ll explore the landscape of triggers and actions, guiding you through the nuances of authoring and adapting workspaces for seamless automations. Gain an understanding of the full spectrum of triggers and actions available in FME, empowering you to enhance your workspaces for efficient automation.
We’ll kick things off by showcasing the most commonly used event-based triggers, introducing you to various automation workflows like manual triggers, schedules, directory watchers, and more. Plus, see how these elements play out in real scenarios.
Whether you’re tweaking your current setup or building from the ground up, this session will arm you with the tools and insights needed to transform your FME usage into a powerhouse of productivity. Join us to discover effective strategies that simplify complex processes, enhancing your productivity and transforming your data management practices with FME. Let’s turn complexity into clarity and make your workspaces work wonders!
GraphRAG is All You need? LLM & Knowledge GraphGuy Korland
Guy Korland, CEO and Co-founder of FalkorDB, will review two articles on the integration of language models with knowledge graphs.
1. Unifying Large Language Models and Knowledge Graphs: A Roadmap.
https://arxiv.org/abs/2306.08302
2. Microsoft Research's GraphRAG paper and a review paper on various uses of knowledge graphs:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/blog/graphrag-unlocking-llm-discovery-on-narrative-private-data/
Pushing the limits of ePRTC: 100ns holdover for 100 daysAdtran
At WSTS 2024, Alon Stern explored the topic of parametric holdover and explained how recent research findings can be implemented in real-world PNT networks to achieve 100 nanoseconds of accuracy for up to 100 days.
Alt. GDG Cloud Southlake #33: Boule & Rebala: Effective AppSec in SDLC using ...James Anderson
Effective Application Security in Software Delivery lifecycle using Deployment Firewall and DBOM
The modern software delivery process (or the CI/CD process) includes many tools, distributed teams, open-source code, and cloud platforms. Constant focus on speed to release software to market, along with the traditional slow and manual security checks has caused gaps in continuous security as an important piece in the software supply chain. Today organizations feel more susceptible to external and internal cyber threats due to the vast attack surface in their applications supply chain and the lack of end-to-end governance and risk management.
The software team must secure its software delivery process to avoid vulnerability and security breaches. This needs to be achieved with existing tool chains and without extensive rework of the delivery processes. This talk will present strategies and techniques for providing visibility into the true risk of the existing vulnerabilities, preventing the introduction of security issues in the software, resolving vulnerabilities in production environments quickly, and capturing the deployment bill of materials (DBOM).
Speakers:
Bob Boule
Robert Boule is a technology enthusiast with PASSION for technology and making things work along with a knack for helping others understand how things work. He comes with around 20 years of solution engineering experience in application security, software continuous delivery, and SaaS platforms. He is known for his dynamic presentations in CI/CD and application security integrated in software delivery lifecycle.
Gopinath Rebala
Gopinath Rebala is the CTO of OpsMx, where he has overall responsibility for the machine learning and data processing architectures for Secure Software Delivery. Gopi also has a strong connection with our customers, leading design and architecture for strategic implementations. Gopi is a frequent speaker and well-known leader in continuous delivery and integrating security into software delivery.
DevOps and Testing slides at DASA ConnectKari Kakkonen
My and Rik Marselis slides at 30.5.2024 DASA Connect conference. We discuss about what is testing, then what is agile testing and finally what is Testing in DevOps. Finally we had lovely workshop with the participants trying to find out different ways to think about quality and testing in different parts of the DevOps infinity loop.
PHP Frameworks: I want to break free (IPC Berlin 2024)Ralf Eggert
In this presentation, we examine the challenges and limitations of relying too heavily on PHP frameworks in web development. We discuss the history of PHP and its frameworks to understand how this dependence has evolved. The focus will be on providing concrete tips and strategies to reduce reliance on these frameworks, based on real-world examples and practical considerations. The goal is to equip developers with the skills and knowledge to create more flexible and future-proof web applications. We'll explore the importance of maintaining autonomy in a rapidly changing tech landscape and how to make informed decisions in PHP development.
This talk is aimed at encouraging a more independent approach to using PHP frameworks, moving towards a more flexible and future-proof approach to PHP development.
Accelerate your Kubernetes clusters with Varnish CachingThijs Feryn
A presentation about the usage and availability of Varnish on Kubernetes. This talk explores the capabilities of Varnish caching and shows how to use the Varnish Helm chart to deploy it to Kubernetes.
This presentation was delivered at K8SUG Singapore. See https://feryn.eu/presentations/accelerate-your-kubernetes-clusters-with-varnish-caching-k8sug-singapore-28-2024 for more details.
Removing Uninteresting Bytes in Software FuzzingAftab Hussain
Imagine a world where software fuzzing, the process of mutating bytes in test seeds to uncover hidden and erroneous program behaviors, becomes faster and more effective. A lot depends on the initial seeds, which can significantly dictate the trajectory of a fuzzing campaign, particularly in terms of how long it takes to uncover interesting behaviour in your code. We introduce DIAR, a technique designed to speedup fuzzing campaigns by pinpointing and eliminating those uninteresting bytes in the seeds. Picture this: instead of wasting valuable resources on meaningless mutations in large, bloated seeds, DIAR removes the unnecessary bytes, streamlining the entire process.
In this work, we equipped AFL, a popular fuzzer, with DIAR and examined two critical Linux libraries -- Libxml's xmllint, a tool for parsing xml documents, and Binutil's readelf, an essential debugging and security analysis command-line tool used to display detailed information about ELF (Executable and Linkable Format). Our preliminary results show that AFL+DIAR does not only discover new paths more quickly but also achieves higher coverage overall. This work thus showcases how starting with lean and optimized seeds can lead to faster, more comprehensive fuzzing campaigns -- and DIAR helps you find such seeds.
- These are slides of the talk given at IEEE International Conference on Software Testing Verification and Validation Workshop, ICSTW 2022.
1. The State of Blockchains Q3 2018:
The Empire Strikes Back
Lead Analyst: Joel John
Head of Research: Lawrence Lundy-Bryan
2. Contents • About Outlier Ventures
• Executive Summary
o Blockchains & Startups
o Blockchains & Corporates
o Blockchains & Government
o OV View: The Tech Lab
o OV View: Crypto-economics
• Q3 in the Blockchain Ecosystem
• Key Takeaways
• Outlier Ventures Proprietary Information
• Disclaimer
2
3. About Outlier Ventures
Outlier Ventures is a venture platform focused on building the infrastructure for the next phase of the Web. As the first
European venture firm dedicated to blockchain technology, we’ve developed an industry-leading investment thesis,
based on the convergence of decentralised technologies such as blockchains and distributed ledgers, with ‘deep
tech’ such as artificial intelligence, robotics, the Internet of Things, and 3D printing.
We focus on early stage, seed and pre-seed projects where direct support to investee founders and creating value
post-investment is integral to our business model. We have consistently proved our ability to identify exceptional
projects, allowing us to constantly expand. Our team is 30 people strong, with a presence in London, Toronto,
Chicago and Amsterdam. With specialists in crypto-economics, research, legal, marketing, and tech, we bring a
powerhouse of support to founders.
Investing in both equity and crypto-tokens we have invested and partnered with some of the most impressive projects
in the decentralised space including, IOTA, Ocean Protocol, Fetch.AI, SEED, Sovrin and most recently Haja Networks.
5. Blockchains &
Startups
1. The Empire Strikes Back
2. Crypto Winter Bites
3. Consolidation of Private and Public Investing
1. The empire strikes back. VC investments in the space at all time high as
professionalization of the industry continues. The drastic reduction in the frequency and
size of token sales have created a gap that is now being filled by venture capital. VC
financing is moving earlier in the funding cycle at Seed or Series A instead of the later
stage, pre-ICO rounds we witnessed in Q2. Legal expenses, marketing costs and
community building efforts are part of the reason why startups that don't necessarily
require a network or token have been avoiding token generation events completely.
Until we see a recovery in Bitcoin’s price, it is likely that the model of token generation
events that took center stage in 2017 would never return.
2. Crypto Winter bites. Total ICO raised in the quarter down nearly 74% as speculators
flee. Although number and size of public token fundraises has reduced, startups,
corporates and regulators continue to believe that tokens are foundational to Web 3.0
infrastructure and represent the opportunity for new business models. This quarter has
witnessed a considerable improvement in both the amount of traction and complexity of
token design by startups before they approach private capital or public capital markets.
There is a shift in thinking in the industry in the role of tokens not just as fundraising
mechanism but also as a business model innovation. Large, venture funded businesses
will begin using tokens as a way to engage, retain and attract users. We are witnessing
this shift already with chat apps like Kik, Telegram and Line implementing tokens.
3. The consolidation of private and public investing. The prolonged bear market have
provided an opportunity for larger funds looking to enter the space to engage directly
with network foundations and take a stake in the network. Notable token based
investments this quarter involved Dfinity and Maker DAO. If token prices continue to
remain suppressed, it is likely that teams turn to more traditional forms of
venture investors to seek liquidity for their tokens and expertise to help scale
their projects.
6. Blockchains &
Corporates
1. Banking still driving the blockchain wheel
2. Blockchains coming to a phone near you
3. The new hotness is zero knowledge
1. Banking still driving the blockchain wheel. Financial organisations continue to
dominate the blockchain ecosystem in terms of interest and active traction. The quarter
was instrumental for the setting up of infrastructure that enables the custody and trade of
token based assets. Notably, Bakkt (owned by NYSE’s parent company Inter-continental
Exchange) and Fidelity announced plans to provide trading instruments for clients. ING,
MasterCard and JP Morgan released more information on projects that enable payments
settlements, compliance and scaling of token based transactions. It is safe to say,
FinTech innovation in large financial organisations is now spilling over to the blockchain
ecosystem as enterprise embrace and contribute to open source projects.
2. Blockchains coming to a phone near you. Blockchain-based hardware are now
evolving beyond merely wallets and miners. The quarter saw HTC announce the launch
of their blockchain-based smartphone. The use of blockchains in mobile devices is
anticipated to reduce the leak of personal data from phones and combine secure
enclave security with blockchain-based verification and authentication systems. While
these devices are currently far from ready for mass markets, it is likely that future
iterations of retail mobile devices integrate blockchains as a mechanism to authenticate
third parties accessing private data of individuals.
3. The new hotness is zero knowledge. Enterprises seem to be taking an increasing
amount of interest in zero knowledge proofs (ZKP). Notably, the quarter had ING and EY
release more information on their work in the space. EY launched the prototype of a
system that enables private transactions on the Ethereum public network. Named Ops
Chain Public Edition, it uses ZKP for authentication of entries on the ledger. ING open-
sourced a tool that allows enterprise to use ZKPs to verify a claim without necessarily
requiring access to the data itself. Public implementations of both developments remain
pending.
7. Blockchains &
Government
1. Nations that ship together, blockchain together
2. Governments wake up to regulatory arbitrage
3. But are kicking the can down the road
1. Nations that ship together, blockchain together. A number of large ports around the
world have been embracing blockchains as a mechanism to reduce the time needed for
shipments to process. The largest port in Europe, the Port of Rotterdam has partnered
with Dutch bank ABN Amro and one of Samsung’s subsidiaries to test blockchain
solutions. It will use Nexledger from Samsung and Corda for the purpose of tracking
logistics data. In a similar move, Abu Dhabi’s port partnered with Belgium’s Antwerp Port
for a project named Silsal for accelerating document verification. Although the trend is
increasing in count, past initiatives by Maersk and IBM have reported challenges in on-
boarding partners.
2. Governments wake up to regulatory arbitrage. The sentiment used by regulators
towards token generation events have largely switched from one of concern to intrigue.
The quarter saw a number of countries take proactive measures to ensure regional
companies do not move abroad in search of faster access to capital. The French Ministry
of Economy and Finance announced a legislative framework for token sales. It would
allow the regional regulator (AMF) to issue permits to companies that intend to conduct
token sales. Banking regulators in Switzerland and Singapore recently came forward to
ensure that token based startups in their jurisdiction have access to banking services.
3. But are kicking the can down the road. Governments in both the United Kingdom and
United States published reports exploring crypto-assets. There has not been much
progress with regards to the ETFs in the United States. The New York Attorney General’s
office published their ‘Virtual Markets Integrity Report’. It explored how exchanges
around the globe tackled challenges with AML/KYC and policies around trading
internally. The UK’s House of Lords published a report on crypto-assets for their digital
currencies inquiry. It suggested that the current state of the industry is one that’s similar
to the “wild west’. It called for the urgent regulation of the space to position the
UK for DLT-related innovation.
8. OV View – The Tech Lab
Aron van Ammers, Founding Partner
“The credo ‘be your own
bank’ signifies the power of
the participants in tokenised
crypto networks. But many
investors have neither the
technical capacity nor the
organisational structure to
"be their own bank", and
that's the opportunity that
new fee-based businesses
now jump onto.”
• As we see the focus of early stage investment into tokens
shift away from tech-savvy retail investors toward to VCs,
hedge funds and ultimately larger institutional investors, in
this quarter we saw a large growth in new businesses and
services enabling the larger institutional investors to invest
in the space.
• Self-sovereignty means self-responsibility, and when your
private keys are lost or stolen there is no broker to call.
Institutional investors have a need to reduce that technical
complexity and risk. New players solve that problem; from
institutional-grade custody providers, to trading platforms
offered by the financial incumbents, to staking services for
proof of stake networks.
• These enabling services extend beyond investors - they are
vital for large scale adoption by individuals and
corporations alike, with each having a choice over the level
of control and responsibility they want. At Outlier Ventures
we are exploring these new services both as investment
opportunities and as partners for us and our portfolio.
9. OV View – Crypto-economics
Eden Dhaliwal, Partner
• This quarter saw a significant negative sentiment around utility
tokens from an investment standpoint. Many investors have
grown frustrated over regulation and exasperated over
valuation of tokenized networks. This represents a new cycle
back towards equity based blockchain investments until the
crypto community makes advances in validating tokens as a
new asset class with viable business models. That said, projects
with well designed token economies are still finding support in
the community and our Token Ecosystem Creation
methodology should help facilitate groundbreaking work.
• Interestingly, this quarter saw Airbnb recognize the power of
incentive systems with their desire to give homeowners who
power their service a stake in their company. “We (Airbnb)
believe that enabling private companies to grant hosts and
other sharing economy participants equity in the company
from an earlier stage would further align incentives between
such companies and their sharing economy participants to the
benefit of both.” We will certainly see more crypto-economic
principles validated in the near future.
“The downturn is driving
increasing rigor. We’re seeing
the community respond by
shifting focus from crypto-
economic design to token
engineering methods to help
validate and optimize token
ecosystems for success.”
11. Markets collapsed from high of $829bn in early January
settling around $200bn
• Bitcoin stayed steadily at a little over $6000 and showed very little volatility. The
ecosystem’s market-cap hovered around $200 billion.
• The lack of volatility in the space may be a result of accumulation of tokens by
larger more established players and retail investors no longer panic selling.
• The choppy nature of the markets currently make it very unattractive for traders
to make a profit from actively trading the space.
12. Daily volumes are also down by nearly 50%
• Daily volume dipped from being over $20 billion to slightly over $10
billion this quarter.
• The drastic dip in volume in the markets are a direct result of the lack of
volatility of tokens.
• Altcoins witnessed considerable dip in volume over the course of the
quarter as traders are likely to have moved to Bitcoin or stable tokens
• The considerable dip in equity markets may have contributed to capital
seeking higher levels of risk from entering the space over the quarter.
13. Bitcoin futures are also dwindling in volume as
markets appear to lose interest
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
Jan
Feb
M
arch
April
M
ay
June
July
AugustSeptem
ber
Volume
CBOE Btc Futures Volume
• The launch of CBOE’s Bitcoin futures
has not necessarily done much to
positively impact the price of the
token. The volume of contracts
associated to the futures has steadily
declined over the course of the year.
• CBOE and CME combined trade
only around 9000 futures on an
average day currently. The rise of
alternative investment instruments
such as DARs from Citi Bank could
further reduce this volume.
• Part of the challenge associated with
the instrument is the heavy expenses
involved in taking and maintaining
positions. Bloomberg reports that
collateral requirements are at 40%
for the instrument. In comparison,
CME’s S&P futures require only
4% in collateral.
Source: Investing.com, Bloomberg
14. Despite the ‘Crypto Winter’, trading infrastructure
is being improved drastically
• 72 year old financial services firm, Fidelity announced plans of launching a
custodian and trading services aimed at institutions. The organisation
currently provides financial services for $7.2 trillion in customer assets and
provides clearing, custody and investment services for 13,000 institutional
clients according to Forbes. The company has also been incubating startups
leveraging both public and private blockchains internally. The token oriented
subsidiary of the organisation will have a little over 100 employees and is
scheduled for launch in early 2019.
• Citi Bank announced the launch of Digital Asset Receipts (DAR). They are
designed to act as financial instruments that will track the price of digital
assets without buyers necessarily holding the asset themselves. This moves
risks associated with tracking, storage, transfers and custodianship from
institutions to the bank. It is also believed to enable institutional clients to
trade digital assets within the regulatory environment in USA.
• Intercontinental exchange, the parent company of NYSE in collaboration with
Microsoft, Starbucks and Boston Consulting Group among others
announced Bakkt. It will be a startup aimed at enabling large organisations
such as pension funds, ETFs and mutual funds to acquire exposure to the
space.
15. Winter bites hard as ICOs raise just $1bn in Q3
compared to $3.8bn in Q1, a decline of nearly 74%
• Many of the large raises between Q2
2017 and Q1 2018 have failed to
produce substantial returns for
investors. This combined with the dip
in Bitcoin’s prices are the key reasons
for the lack of retail interest in token
generation events.
• Tokens have also risen to be an
“illiquid asset’ much like equity in
many cases due to the challenges
involved in listing a token at a large
enough exchange. A report from
Diar.co suggests that over 324 tokens
that did their ICO in 2017-2018 to
raise a collective $2.3 billion are yet to
be listed on exchanges.
• TGEs have had their worst quarter
since Q3 2017. Startups have begun
moving to SAFTs and secondary raises
as an alternative to ICOs.
29
950
1890
2900
3867
2161
1031
0
500
1000
1500
2000
2500
3000
3500
4000
4500
Q1 2017 Q2 2017 Q3 2017 Q4 2017 Q1 2018 Q2 2018 Q3 2018
FundsRaisedIn$Millions
Quarter
16. VCs are replacing retail, piling in with
nearly $3bn this year, up 316% from 2017
• The quarter continued the
ongoing uptrend in VC funding for
the ecosystem. At close to $3
billion, the year has seen more
venture capital inflow than all
previous years combined.
• Bitmain raised an additional $422
million this quarter, bringing their
total raise to $872 million. One of
the highest raises in terms of
equity in the space.
• There has been a dip in $100+
million raises with only Seba and
Dfinity announcing raises in the
range. There is an uptick in series
A and series B sized firms taking
the equity route as ICOs struggle
to close raises.
$500.00
$600.00 $580.00
$900.00
$2,850.00
$-
$500.00
$1,000.00
$1,500.00
$2,000.00
$2,500.00
$3,000.00
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 (YTD)
Source: Crunchbase
17. VCs are active across all funding stages
with 119 deals disclosed this quarter the most ever
• Seed stage investments in
blockchain continue to set
new highs each quarter as the
ecosystem evolves with 119
in the last quarter up from
102.
• Late stage raises beyond $25
million have become far
more common in Q1 and Q2
2018 when compared to the
same period last year as
organisations have begun
finding product-market fit
and have begun competing
for market share.
• Capital raises in the late
stages are usually used for
acquisitions (e.g. Circle) or a
geographic expansions.
17
15
19
22
53
56
5 6
3
27
35
47
3 4 4 4
7 8
0 1
5
1
4 5
0 0
5
0
3 3
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
Q1 2017 Q2 2017 Q3 2017 Q4 2017 Q1 2018 Q2 2018
FrequencyOfDeals
Upto $1 Million $1 Million - $10 Million $10 Million - $25 Million $25 Million-$50 Million $50 Million+
Source: Crunchbase
18. Source: TokenData
8
12
45
47
15
10
6
27
48
90
62
49
78
0
8
13
30
46
29
0
3
5
9
7
3
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Q1 2017 Q2 2017 Q3 2017 Q4 2017 Q1 2018 Q2 2018
FrequencyOfDeal
Upto $1 Million $1 Million - $10 Million $10 Million - $25 Million $25 Million-$50 Million $50 Million+
ICOs are no longer just “whitepaper” projects, instead
money is moving to later-stage projects • Token sales have evolved
from communities
backing seed stage
projects to investors
battling for a piece of the
next big raise
• The dip in appetite for
token sales have become
evident from Q2 2018 as
seed stage raises reduce
to ten from a high of 47
and late stage raises
reduce to a third of what it
was in Q4 2017
• Seed stage deals may
have reduced due to the
capital expenses involved
in doing a token sale.
Large capital raises have
moved to private raises
due to lack of public
appetite
19. Public token sales are being replaced by private sales
at the beginning of the funding cycle
• The current state of the token markets have affected projects that
earlier intended to do public token sales. More projects have
switched to doing private SAFT rounds instead of going through a
public raise initially.
• Lock-in periods enforced in the SAFT ensures the project’s token
does not witness heavy sell offs right after listing.
• It is likely that we see more projects choose to raise solely from
private investors and incentivise developers in the network through
tokens.
• This is a positive signal more broadly in the maturation of the
industry reflecting how the equity markets developed over time.
We expect private investors to increasingly dominate the earlier
stages of a projects funding lifecycle when risk is highest, and for
projects to only offer tokens to the public markets when the
network if more developed and risk has been reduced significantly
for retail investors.
Source: Diar.co
Period Project Token Raised ($)
Apr-18 Telegram 1.7 billion
Aug-18 Hedera Hashgraph 100 million
Apr-18 Basecoin 125 million
Aug-18 t0 134 million
Oct-17 Polkadot 144 million
Sep-17 Filecoin 200 million
Dec-17 Blockstack 52 million
Feb-18 DFinity 61 million
20. Just as ICOs didn’t replace VCs, they also didn’t
replace the US as the dominant investor
• We studied 850 deals since
Jan 2017 to make a map of
venture capital activity based
on frequency of deals.
• The United States lead with
over 306 deals from the
region. China followed a
distant second with 96 deals.
• Over 60% of the organisations
in the space continue to be at
seed stages. Frequency of
follow on rounds have only
recently begun increasing
Source: Crunchbase. Note: Activity map only an indicator of frequency of deals. Follow on rounds in the ecosystem typically involve investors from different countries. Map would
look different if accounted for deal sizes in each region
21. As the market matures M&A is thriving
with 50 already this year focusing mainly on acquihires
• At a little over 50 acquisitions for the
year, the sector seems to be in an
accumulation phase. Large
organisations have been on an
‘acquihire’ spree to solve scaling related
challenges at speed instead of solving
them in-house.
• Huobi acquired Pantronics Holding Ltd
for $70 million. Similarly, Binance
acquired Trust wallet over the course of
the year. Exchanges have been actively
deploying capital into acquisitions as
they seek to both build out their
technology but also increase the number
of channels they engage with users.
• The bulk of the mergers in the market
remain for small scale organisations. We
may witness exchanges merging in the
future to maintain market share and
geographic distribution.
Source: Crunchbase
7
19
22
30
50
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 (YTD)
NumberofAcquisitions
22. Regardless of the market or startup fundraising,
corporate blockchain activity continues apace
• MasterCard was granted two blockchain related patents this quarter. One focuses on a scaling
solution that combines a cryptocurrency transaction with traditional payments infrastructure for the
purpose of speeding up transaction validation. The second is a mechanism to combine information
from multiple blockchains into a single system without necessarily requiring the maintenance of
multiple blockchains.
• JPMorgan has built a blockchain-powered cross-border payment product: the Interbank Information
Network (IIN). The info-sharing program is built on their own blockchain platform called Quorum. 75
banks including Santander and SocGen have now signed up to test it. IIN is a shared ledger for cross-
border payments that allows banks to quickly add correct info necessary for payments between
banks.
• ING announced further developments in their zero knowledge proofs solution. The organisation
open-sourced a tool for enterprises to verify a piece of data belongs to a specific set without verifying
its full characteristics. The code is currently open-sourced, allowing anyone to contribute.
• Sony announced the launch of a Digital Rights management system aimed at helping content
creators lay claims to their work without the involvement of third parties. The system launched by
Sony will be used for authenticating, sharing and rights management.
• HTC announced the launch of a blockchain-enabled smartphone called Exodus One. It will ship with a
wallet named Zion allowing users to securely store tokens. HTC will only be accepting Bitcoin and
Ethereum for the phone expected to ship in December 2018.
23. It’s not just corporates; Governments and regulators
also smell opportunity
The ecosystem has evolved from struggling to find banking partners to governments becoming increasingly sensitive of the possibility of regional startups
moving abroad in search of more friendly environments. Forward looking nations have begun engaging with regional banking entities to create a friendly
environment.
• The United Kingdom. The UK Crypto Assets Taskforce published a report on crypto-assets. It identified concerns around volatility of token prices, the
lack of consumer protection and the possibility of money laundering through tokens. The report also suggested however that regulations could work in
the best interest of customers and enable sustainable growth. Currently, token sales are not within the scope of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)
and as such pose as a heavy risk asset for investors. The report suggested that regulating the space could enable the UK to become a global centre for
blockchain related innovation.
• Switzerland. The Swiss Bankers Association recently issued guidelines for members looking to engage with token-backed startups. It categorises
companies depending on the nature of how an organisation uses blockchains. If the entity does not intent to do a token sale, it would be treated the
same as any small or medium enterprise looking to open a bank account. In the event that a token sale is anticipated, strict requirements for AML/KYC
will be enforced. The organization will also be required to follow the FINMA ICO guidelines in order to describe their tokens.
• France. A bill exploring the possibility of providing a legal framework for the sale of tokens is in active discussion in France. It would make the regional
stock market regulator the body responsible for regulating the space. Organisations looking to hold a token sale could optionally verify themselves and
make necessary disclosures through the government. This would lend legitimacy to startups looking to conduct a token sale.
• United States. The New York Attorney General’s office looked at the operations of ten of the largest token oriented exchanges over the quarter. They
explored exchange policies regarding insider trading and possible market manipulation. The report found that a number of leading exchanges did not
have the requisite frameworks in place to avoid money laundering and did not collect necessary information on their users. The report was aimed
at finding the inner procedures exchanges followed before listing a token too. Although not much may come of it, it is becoming evident that the
United States government is closely monitoring the exchange ecosystem closely.
24. China isn’t being left behind, with capital flight on its
mind
• China’s government has its eyes set on monitoring blockchain-enabled
products. A draft regulation that would require users to provide real
names and national ID card numbers when registered get for blockchain
enabled services has been introduced in the region. This is in addition to
a complete ban on exchanges enabling token exchanges in fear of
concerns about capital flight from the country.
• Service providers are also expected to to monitor on-chain transactions,
censor content and allow user data to be inspected by authorities on
demand.
• The move may have risen due to concerns about the censorship resistant
nature of p2p, public blockchains. In April 2018, the Ethereum
Blockchain was used to publish information about alleged sexual
misconduct at Peking University. Public blockchains are emerging as a
censorship resistant alternative that ensures a permanent record.
• Although China had previously issued a ban on token generation events
and token exchanges, the region has been at the forefront of (private)
blockchain innovation. The Public Bank of China has filed 40+
blockchain related patents.
26. Key Takeaways
1. The empire strikes back: VC investments in the space at all time high as
professionalization of the industry continues. The drastic reduction in the frequency and size
of token sales have created a gap that is now being filled by venture capital. VC financing is
moving earlier in the funding cycle at Seed or Series A instead of the later stage, pre-ICO
rounds we witnessed in Q2. Legal expenses, marketing costs and community building
efforts are part of the reason why startups that don't necessarily require a network or token
have been avoiding token generation events completely. Until we see a recovery in Bitcoin’s
price, it is likely that the model of token generation events that took center stage in 2017
would never return.
2. Crypto Winter bites. Total ICO raised in the quarter down nearly 74% as speculators flee.
Although number and size of public token fundraises has reduced, startups, corporates and
regulators continue to believe that tokens are foundational to Web 3.0 infrastructure and
represent the opportunity for new business models. This quarter has witnessed a
considerable improvement in both the amount of traction and complexity of token design
by startups before they approach private capital or public capital markets. There is a shift in
thinking in the industry in the role of tokens not just as fundraising mechanism but also as a
business model innovation. Large, venture funded businesses will begin using tokens as a
way to engage, retain and attract users.
3. Regulators catching FOMO. There is a key difference between the bear markets of 2014
and 2018. The former witnessed governments around the world rushing to issue bans on
tokens. The latter has regulators around the world pushing their jurisdictions to explore
blockchains as a means to maintain their edge as innovation and commercial hubs. France,
Thailand, Singapore, Switzerland and Thailand have pushed for the creation of ecosystems
that enable token issuance this past quarter. Japan’s Financial Services Agency has enabled
self-regulation by the token ecosystem in the region through the setting up of a
‘Virtual Currency Exchange Association” consisting of industry leaders in the region.
27. Outlier Ventures Proprietary Information
This research is private and confidential and has been provided to you to help build knowledge and understanding in
the emerging blockchain and DLT space. This information is provided ‘off the record’ and we would appreciate it if this
content is not quoted directly. We would be glad to prepare comment for publication, please contact using the details
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28. Disclaimer
This document (the “Document”) has been prepared by Outlier Ventures Operations Limited (“Outlier Ventures”). Outlier Ventures Operations Ltd is registered in
England and Wales, company registration number 10722638. Outlier Ventures Operations Ltd is an appointed representative of Sapia Partners LLP (“Sapia”) which is
authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (Firm Reference Number 550103).
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