SoftBank Receives $2 Billion From Four Startup Exits & Cryptocurrency Investment Fraud Hit $2.57 Billion

🗞️ TODAY’S MAJOR UPDATES

• SoftBank took home $1.8-1.9 billion from four listed Indian portfolio companies

• Do Kwon, founder Terraform Labs violated U.S. laws by not registering TerraUSD and Luna, resulting in $40B losses.

• Cryptocurrency investment fraud complaints rose from $907 million to $2.57 billion in single year

• Featured Tweet : Slack Founder, Stewart Butterfield On Evaluating Startup Ideas

• What do you think: Slack Or Telegram, for community?

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💰 MASSIVE FUNDING UPDATES

Cumulus Encrypted Storage System (CESS), Decentralized storage platform has raised $8 million from more than 13 venture capital firms like HTX Ventures, Infinity Ventures Crypto, DWF Labs, Mentha Partners, Vespertine Capital, Web3 Foundation, Singchain Investment, 7 O’Clock Capital, SolrDAO, FishDAO, OneBlock+, Winkrypto and Polkadot Ecology Research Institute participated in the raise. More Here

Retik Finance (RETIK), a US based startup pioneering real-world crypto utility through its innovative DeFi Debit Cards. It has raised over $1.5 million from leading venture capital firms. More Here

Element3, a Fort Worth, TX-based material extraction company specializing in oil and gas wastewater, raised an undisclosed amount in Seed funding. The round saw participation from EIC Rose Rock. More Here

Proto Hologram, a Los Angeles, CA-based provider of a patented hologram device, received an investment from Cartan Capital. The amount of the deal was not disclosed. Proto has previously received backing from Tim Draper (Tesla, CoinDesk, Skype, Twitch), Mike Walsh (Uber), True Capital Management and Christie’s Ventures. Athlete investors in Proto include Brittany Griner, Marshawn Lynch, Robert Griffin III, and Albert Pujols. More Here

Giga ML, a US based startup building a platform that lets companies deploy LLMs on-premise — ostensibly cutting costs and preserving privacy in the process. Giga ML, which has raised ~$3.74 million in VC funding to date from Nexus Venture Partners, Y Combinator, Liquid 2 Ventures, 8vdx and several others. More Here

Labrys Technologies, London based startup defense AI startup raised $5.5 million in seed funding from Project A Ventures (backed ARX and Quantum Systems) with participation from international Defense Tech-focused investors, including MD-One, Offset Ventures, Marque Ventures, and Expedition Fund. More Here

💰 VENTURE CAPITAL UPDATES

SoftBank took home $1.8-1.9 billion from four listed Indian portfolio companies: SoftBank, a major investor in Indian startups, is planning to divest stakes in IPO-bound Ola Electric and FirstCry (Indian Startups). The Japanese investor has already sold stakes worth $1.8-1.9 billion in Indian startups like Paytm, Zomato, PB Fintech, and Delhivery through public offerings and post-listing sales. SoftBank's strategy involves diluting holdings through secondary sales while refraining from new investments, aligning with the cautious approach of growth and late-stage investors in the current market. More Here

Rally Ventures, California based Venture capital firm has closed on a new, $240 million fund that will invest in early-stage startups. Fund V is especially focused toward companies in the fields of artificial intelligence and machine learning, cybersecurity, fintech and software-as-a-service. More Here

𝕏 FEATURED: TODAY’S FEATURED TWEETS

Slack Founder, Stewart Butterfield On Evaluating Startup Ideas

"Idea generation is a natural flow refined through the pattern recognition!"

Recently we shared a tweet on “Sam Altman & Stewart” discussion on how to come up with ideas and evaluate them. He shared that - “Getting Ideas is easy but the hardest part is to evaluate them on which idea is good or not.” He shared a great framework for this… Read More Here

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💡 SARTUP’S LATEST BUZZ

People

US prosecutors have decided not to pursue a second trial against Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of FTX, who was previously found guilty on seven counts of fraud and conspiracy related to FTX's collapse. The second trial on five additional charges has been dropped, with sentencing set for March 2024, where Bankman-Fried faces up to 110 years in prison. The government cited the practicality of presenting evidence already offered in the first trial as a reason for the decision. More Here

In 2023, the net worth of the world's 500 richest individuals surged by $1.5 trillion, led by Elon Musk's $95.4 billion increase, reaching $232 billion. Other notable gains include Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, and Steve Ballmer, while L'Oreal heiress Francoise Bettencourt Meyers became the first woman to surpass $100 billion. Indian billionaire Gautam Adani faced substantial losses, plummeting by $37.3 billion amid allegations of stock manipulation and fraud. More Here

Cryptocurrency entrepreneur Do Kwon and Terraform Labs were ruled by a U.S. judge to have violated laws by not registering collapsed digital currencies TerraUSD and Luna with $40B Loss. The SEC's fraud claims will proceed to a trial on Jan. 29, 2024, with Kwon also facing fraud charges. The SEC argues that TerraUSD and Luna were unregistered securities, but the defense disputes this and asserts their tokens were not securities. More Here

🤖 LATEST IN EMERGING TECH

Humane, a startup backed by Sam Altman, has unveiled Ai Pin, a voice-controlled wearable gadget with a displayless design that uses AI chatbot technology. Priced at $699 with a $24 monthly subscription, the device, set to ship in March 2024, boasts collaborations with Microsoft and OpenAI, potentially utilizing GPT-4. Prioritizing privacy, Ai Pin offers features such as hands-free message composition and restricted camera functionality. More Here

FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, convicted of seven counts related to a massive financial fraud, stole billions from customers, investors, and lenders, according to U.S. Attorney Damian Williams. Cryptocurrency investment fraud complaints rose from $907 million in 2021 to $2.57 billion in 2022, with federal prosecutors facing challenges in tracing funds through multiple exchanges and dealing with dark web criminals. More Here

📰 TODAY’S MUST READ ON: STARTUP, TECH & VC

• Users Will Determine How Your Product Is Used By Fred Wilson Read Here (Startups)

• What Every Founder Should Know About Valuations? Read Here (Startup Fundraising)

• Why Do VC Firms Want an Option Pool Before the VC Round? Read Here (Startups & Venture Capital)

• How To Raise Money By Paul Graham Read Here (Startups Fundraising)

🤔 WHAT DO YOU THINK?

Previous Poll: 44.44% readers recommended Telegram followed by Slack and Discord. I am still confused between two of them! Let’s go one more time between Slack & Telegram…

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That’s It For Today! Will Meet You Tomorrow!
Happy Tuesday! 🥂

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✍️Written By Sahil R | Venture Crew Team