F|T: FinTech Times – Signature Bank collapses another blow to crypto

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After Losing $10,000 in Crypto, Staging Labs Co-Founder Develops Solutions to Protect Digital Assets (BETAKIT)

“Our goal is to act as the ultimate line of defense for crypto, increasing user security even after the verification process has started, regardless of whether it was initiated by the user themselves or as a result of phishing and malicious activities,” said Staging Labs co-founder François Le Nguyen .

Stripe raises new funding that values ​​it at $50 billion (THE NEW YORK TIMES)

Stripe said Wednesday it had raised new funding that values ​​it at $50 billion, down from $95 billion in 2021.

The drop in Stripe’s valuation reflects a difficult period for start-ups. Over the past year or so, as interest rates and inflation rose and the global economy began to soften, seed funding — which had been fueled by low interest rates and cheap money — fell.

Regulators force Silicon Valley Bank Canada into liquidation, paving way for auction (BETAKIT)

The order was approved on Wednesday after The Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions Canada (OSFI) took over permanent control of SVB Canada.

OSFI said the restructuring is intended to be done “in a manner that best serves the interests of creditors and will allow the operations of Silicon Valley Bank to continue in Canada.”

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Signature Bank shutdown deals another blow to the crypto industry
(BNN BLOOMBERG)

Signature began pulling back from digital assets in the wake of the FTX exchange implosion, but still had $16.5 billion in crypto-related client deposits as of March 8.

The closure comes shortly after the twin collapses of Silvergate Capital Corp. and Silicon Valley Bank. All of the banks were, at least at one point, considered among America’s most crypto-friendly financial institutions.

As regulators take over SVB Canada, companies still have questions about impact (BETAKIT)

Beyond companies with SVB Canada lines of credit, SVB’s collapse will affect startups that do their US banking with SVB, or ostensibly Canadian companies that are legally domiciled in the US for tax purposes and use SVB.

Sam Bankman-Fried received billions from FTX-related entities (CRUNCHBASE)

Disgraced FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried and other related executives received $3.2 billion in payments and loans, mostly from FTX-related crypto hedge fund Alameda Research, according to FTX’s new executives.

CVCA CEO: The technology still needs capital inflow given possible investor withdrawal, even if liquidity is about calm (BETAKIT)

CVCA CEO Kim Furlong and a number of other industry leaders have urged the FBI to curb a possible “full-blown” liquidity crisis in the nation’s technology sector following SVB’s collapse. While Furlong concedes that regulators have addressed SVB’s liquidity concerns for now, she argues that there is still a need for the government to accelerate its spending.

Justice Department Probes Collapse of Do Kwon’s TerraUSD Stablecoin (THE WALL STREET JOURNAL)

The Securities and Exchange Commission filed a civil fraud suit last month against Mr. Kwon and Singapore-based Terraform Labs, accusing Mr. Kwon and the firm of misleading investors about the risks of TerraUSD, a so-called stablecoin designed to maintain a price of $1. .

The coin lost its peg in May 2022, causing a chain reaction that wiped out about $40 billion in market capitalization and cost some investors their savings.

Venture funding increased in the technology sectors of Québec and Alberta during 2022, bucking the national trend (BETAKIT)

According to new data from briefed.in, Alberta tech companies raised $675 million in 2022, an increase of 89 percent from 2021 and a 121 percent increase from 2020. In Québec, venture funding totaled $2.3 billion in 2022, an increase of 21 per cent from 2021 and an increase of 76 per cent from 2020.

Rippling collects $500 million in emergency funds after SVB fails
(BNN BLOOMBERG)

The emergency round facilitated by Greenoaks Capital gives Rippling the same valuation it obtained in a fundraising last year, despite a market correction that has prevented most startups from raising money on favorable terms.

The deal came together in about 12 hours after Rippling scrambled when it couldn’t get $300 million frozen at SVB when it collapsed on Friday, according to Rippling co-founder Parker Conrad.

BDC Appoints Sévrine Labelle to Lead $100 Million Thrive Lab for Women Entrepreneurs (BETAKIT)

Labelle is focused on meeting ecosystem players to understand where BDCs Lab may be able to fill the gaps for women-led companies. She noted that the lab will likely work with partner organizations—from support groups and accelerators to venture funds—on education and co-investment opportunities.