Karsten Wenzlaff, Advisor
August 26th, 2025
Karsten Wenzlaff is a Crowdfunding and Fintech Expert from Germany. He is Secretary-General of Digit[...]
Category Archives: Web3, Decentralization, DAOs
Blockchain and NFT Projects are Rebranding (Some of them)
Decrypt | Stephen Graves | Feb 25, 2023
Image: Freepik
As the bear market bites, crypto projects are abandoning terms like NFTs and Web3. Here's how branding experts think they should weather the storm.
- Rebranding examples and perspectives: Are you looking for NFTs on Reddit or Instagram? You’ll have much better luck searching for “digital collectibles” instead. Remember when blockchain was briefly sexy?
- The Bitcoin mining firm formerly known as Riot Blockchain recently rebranded itself as Riot Platforms.
- The World Economic Forum’s head of blockchain and digital assets, Brynly Llyr, has even suggested that the crypto space rebrand itself entirely around “decentralized systems.”
- Are you looking for NFTs on Reddit or Instagram? You’ll have much better luck searching for “digital collectibles” instead. Remember when blockchain was briefly sexy? The Bitcoin mining firm formerly known as Riot Blockchain recently rebranded itself as Riot Platforms. The World Economic Forum’s head of blockchain and digital assets, Brynly Llyr, has even suggested that the crypto space rebrand itself entirely around “decentralized systems.”
- Crypto—and all its associated jargon—are now toxic words. Where once simply adding the word “blockchain” to your name increased your company’s valuation, now crypto, Web3, NFT and the rest of the buzzwords that conjured up images of a brave new world are, to paraphrase Charlie Munger, rat poison.
- For Dickon Laws, global head of innovation services at advertising agency Ogilvy, terms like “crypto” and “Web3” have become toxic not just because of the bad actors in the space, but because of “terrible product-market fit.”
See: Tencent’s Finally Marching into Web3
- Compounding the problem was the fact that brands and businesses “didn’t follow their usual due diligence when investing,” Laws said, meaning that they hadn’t made long-term plans to support their investment in blockchain technology. “So while lots of headlines were generated for ‘world first,’ they don’t have answers for their stakeholders on what their money was spent on and its impact, meaning that growth and ongoing investment–good money after bad–is a really tricky sell.”
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The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Tencent’s Finally Marching into Web3
TechCrunch | Rita Liao | Feb 22, 2023
Image: Tencent Cloud
China’s web3 community is rallying around the news of Tencent’s march into the decentralized land.
- Interest and backing: On Wednesday, the social and gaming giant held its first global web3 summit in Singapore, which has emerged as a refuge for China’s blockchain developers after Beijing cracked down on cryptocurrencies in 2021.
- It’s hard to overlook the timing of the event. On Monday, Hong Kong announced plans to let retail investors trade Ether and Bitcoin starting in June, a boost of confidence that China might have softened its stance on cryptocurrencies.
- Indeed, Bloomberg reported yesterday that Hong Kong’s ambition to become a crypto hub had “quiet backing” from Chinese officials.
- Partnerships: Tencent Cloud is also partnering with a few other popular web3 infrastructure builders, including Avalanche, a blockchain that focuses on speed and low transaction fees; Scroll, a Layer 2 scaling solution for Ethereum; and Sui, a relatively young Layer 1 blockchain created by ex-Meta employees.
See: NFT Use Cases are Establishing New Legal Frontiers
- Digital collectibles: Like its peers, Tencent branded its NFT platform as a “digital collectible” marketplace and prohibited secondary trading after China warned of speculation around non-fungible tokens. Huanhe, its digital collectible platform, shut down only a year after launching.
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The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Whispers of Ancient Wisdom: Crypto and CBDCs
Tristram for Bitvo | Feb 24, 2023
What is civilization? The answer, of course, is highly contextual. Your answer will be based on what you believe.
- You may have been taught that civilization was a progression from hunter-gatherer to agricultural revolution to industrial revolution. And this progression is precisely the narrative behind the concept of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. In this version, the state is the ultimate form of civilization. Here, people are units in the vast enterprise of the nation. This managed economic model is the idea behind the CBDC (Central Bank Digital Currencies).
- On the other hand, we might have another vision of civilization. This idea of civilization is that human beings have always been intelligent and sophisticated in their political and economic arrangements. In this vision, people assemble, debate, and structure their associations in a way that counteracts the various ills of central authority. Authority is tempered with various informal checks and balances.
- These are like the core principles of crypto. And in 2023, we are seeing the start of the existential battle for the world play out. CBDCs are a visible manifestation of this battle. And the appearance of crypto represents something much deeper than merely a form of currency or payment system. It could be argued that it’s a reflection of ancient wisdom.
See: Signal Boss Warns The Company Will Leave the UK If Laws Weaken End-to-end Encryption
- CBDCs are a digital control grid: A Central Bank Digital Currency is a centralized control grid controlled by the central bank of a nation. It is designed to facilitate trade and remittances. But it is also designed to express power through the ability to control how and where remittances can be used and exchanged.
- This isn’t cash converted into electronic money.
- This is an entire system of governance facilitated by digitizing value exchange and placing it in control of one entity. It’s a digital centralized control grid. Augustin Carstens of the BIS (Bank of International Settlements) has said so publicly.
- While it will look like each country is developing a separate fiat like CBDC, it’s also programmable money. Which begs the question, how hard would it be to convert every national CBDC into one supranational CBDC under the control of the BIS?
- Crypto, by design, is the antithesis of a control grid: Crypto gives users the ability to opt out of the national payment infrastructure. You can exchange value and interact freely with whomever you please, when and wherever you please. As a result, the user is avoiding numerous toll booths in various peer-to-peer exchanges. The system can be utilized as a storage system or a payment system allowing you a certain freedom.
- Crypto also gives you the option to participate in whatever project you want and engage with that community. Or choose to participate in multiple projects and communities simultaneously.
- It represents a new approach to financial literacy.
- It can be used as a form of pure financial independence through self-custody. Otherwise known as being your own bank.
- And there is the concept of going to crypto school. You are learning the concepts of caveat emptor and how to employ a fiduciary standard to your own financial interactions.
See: NBA Top Shot NFT Case: Judge Says May Have to Register with Regulators
- Freedom is ancient wisdom: In the book The Dawn of Everything: A New History of Humanity, David Graeber and David Wengrow take you on a journey of ancient peoples and traditions. They ask important questions about the origins of equality, freedom, and the state. As I read this book, I thought about how crypto, in a sense, embodies some of the core principles of the ancient Americas. Although the narratives and arguments around crypto have at times muddied the core principles of the innovation by focusing on the pursuit of capital gains.
- The book describes three specific rights that the various people of the Americas held up to the 17th century. Wengrow and Graeber described these rights as “the freedom to relocate or move away from one’s surroundings, the freedom to disobey orders and commands given by others, and the freedom to shape entirely new social realities or to shift back and forth between different ones.”
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The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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NBA Top Shot NFT Case: Judge Says May Have to Register with Regulators
The Defiant | Samuel Haig | Feb 23, 2023
Image: Pexels/Markus Winkler
Judge Says It’s ‘Plausible’ NBA Top Shot Moments NFTs May Have to Be Registered With Regulators
- On Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Victor Marrero ruled a lawsuit against Dapper Labs may move forward and rejected the company’s request to dismiss the action after concluding it is “plausible” that its tokenized collectibles may prove to be securities.
- The plaintiffs are a group of collectors of NBA Top Shot Moments, videos of professional basketball stars making famous plays. The videos are made unique by effectively watermarking them with NFT technology. The plaintiffs have accused Dapper Labs, NBA Top Shot’s creator, of earning hundreds of millions of dollars by selling unregistered securities.
- They claim Dapper also abused its position by propping up the market for Moments and restricting users from withdrawing their money from the platform.
- While Top Shot opened its doors to the public in October 2020, it did not start allowing users to withdraw funds from the platform until May 2021. The plaintiffs say that Dapper Labs frequently flaunted high-priced Moment sales at users while they were unable to remove their funds from the platform in a bid to entice further trading activity.
See: Landmark Legal NFT Decision Favours Intellectual Property Owners
- Investors will closely watch this case as the SEC continues to press cryptocurrency issuers to register their tokens. This month, the regulator defined staking-as-a-service as a registrable security in a settlement with Kraken, the No. 3 cryptocurrency exchange. The SEC also broadened its definition of cryptocurrencies as securities in a lawsuit filed against Do Kwon and Terraform Labs last week for alleged fraud.
- Dapper’s lawyers refuted the suggestion Top Shot NFTs are securities.
- “Basketball cards are not securities,” they said. “Pokémon cards are not securities. Baseball cards are not securities. Common sense says so. The law says so. And, courts say so.”
- Dapper’s lawyers argue that securities must be linked to capital fundraising efforts, and cannot be “formed products” like the Top Shot Moments the company sold. “This was not a capital investment drive, not an appeal to passive investors, but the sale of cards to collectors,” they said.
- Judge Marrero also said that the case should not be seen as establishing a precedent for NFT litigation broadly. “Not all NFTs offered or sold by any company will constitute a security, and each scheme must be assessed on a case-by-case basis,” he said.
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The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Landmark Legal NFT Decision Favours Intellectual Property Owners
Herbert Smith Freehills | Sue Gilchrist, Aaron Hayward, Byron Turner and Joshua Sanchez-Lawson | Feb 10, 2023
Image: Freepik/vectorjuice
The Manhattan federal jury's decision suggests registered brands can be protected against NFT infringements
- Hermès has succeeded in its case of trade mark infringement against non-fungible token (NFT) artist Mason Rothschild. This was the first US trial considering the enforceability of intellectual property rights against the creator of NFTs. The outcome represents a win for IP owners in the fight for protection of their brand, and offers a cautionary tale for creators of NFTs.
See: NFT Use Cases are Establishing New Legal Frontiers
- In late 2021, digital designer Mason Rothschild created 100 'MetaBirkins'. These were NFTs featuring stylised digital depictions of the Birkin bag. The first MetaBirkin to be auctioned sold for $40,000.
- Birkins are highly exclusive handbags, valued in the tens-to-hundreds of thousands of dollars
- Hermès filed a complaint against Rothschild in New York, alleging various causes of action including registered trademark infringement and other claims such as trademark dilution, common law trademark infringement and cybersquatting on ‘metabirkin’ domain names.
- Rothschild claimed in defence that the MetaBirkins were works of art – artistic commentary on the cultural status of the iconic handbag and constituted a lawful use of Hermès’ IP under protections in the US for artistic expression.
- Decision: A Manhattan federal jury found in favour of Hermès, awarding damages. Hermès had sought damages to (in part) compensate for losses resulting from the impact on its plans to enter the NFT market itself.
See: A Litmus Test for the Future of Branded NFTs: Starbucks new Web3 Loyalty Program
- Going forward: Brand owners should use this decision as an opportunity to reconsider their trademarks and the protection they offer over the digital aspects of their business. This is particularly important for brands that want to use NFTs or other digital assets to engage consumers, or simply prevent third parties using their brands to do the same.
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The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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BUSD Depegged and Fell to $0.20 on Binance After Single $647k Sell Order
Protos | Feb 22, 2023
Liquidity on crypto exchange Binance evaporated on Wednesday morning as its stablecoin, BUSD, dropped to a low of $0.20 against the DAI stablecoin.
- A single sell order of $647,000 triggered the steep tumble. However, BUSD instantly regained its peg against DAI, as arbitrage traders snapped up the discount and sold it for $1 on other exchanges. Binance’s orderbook revealed $3.38 million in aggregated sell orders made while BUSD depegged against the DAI, CoinDesk reports.
- Last week, Paxos announced that it will no longer issue new BUSD tokens in compliance with demands made by the New York Department of Financial Services (NYFDS). Paxos itself is also under investigation by NYFDS.
- BUSD not always fully backed: Protos previously reported that, in the past, Binance has undercollateralized its stablecoin on its own blockchain. Investigative reporter Jonathan Reiter of Data Finnovation collaborated with Patrick Tan of Novum Alpha to initially publicize the shortfall.
See: Will Binance Severes U.S. Ties in Face of Crypto Crackdown
- Commingling: Growing regulatory scrutiny hasn’t just affected Binance’s stablecoin, either. The major crypto exchange recently admitted to commingling customer funds with token reserves, amid US authorities cracking down on Bitzlato and darknet market Hydra — both of which enjoyed deep ties with Binance.
- Binance itself is expected to reach a settlement with the Department of Justice over a longstanding investigation into potential US money laundering.
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The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Stanford Faculty Members Emerge as Bankman-Fried’s $250M Bail Guarantors
BNN Bloomberg | | Feb 15, 2023
The two co-signers of SBF’s $250M bail bond were both members of Stanford University. Co-signer Andreas Paepcke is pictured on the left and co-signer Larry Kramer is pictured on the right.
Two people who co-signed FTX co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried’s $250 million bail package have been have been publicly identified as the former dean of Stanford’s law school and a senior research scientist at the elite university.
- A New York federal judge on Wednesday unsealed the names of Larry Kramer, who served as Stanford Law School dean from 2004 to 2012, and computer scientist Andreas Paepcke.
- Kramer remains an emeritus dean at Stanford Law, according to his online biography page, and is also president of the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, one of the nation’s largest charitable foundations with around $15 billion in assets.
- Bankman-Fried, who has pleaded not guilty to fraud charges over the collapse of FTX, has deep ties to Stanford. Both his parents are law school professors there, and he is currently living with them near campus.
- Bankman-Fried’s parents also acted as guarantors and put their home up as security, though the land is actually owned by the university
- Kramer and Paepcke had signed on as sureties for separate bonds of $500,000 and $200,000, respectively.
See: Claw-back Risk: 1 in 3 Members of Congress Received ‘Cash Donation’ from FTX/SBF
- Kramer said he and his wife had been close friends with Bankman-Fried’s parents, Joseph Bankman and Barbara Fried, since the mid-1990s. “During the past two years, while my family faced a harrowing battle with cancer, they have been the truest of friends — bringing food, providing moral support, and frequently stepping in at moment’s notice to help,” Kramer said.
- “In turn, we have sought to support them as they face their own crisis. My actions are in my personal capacity, and I have no business dealings or interest in this matter other than to help our loyal and steadfast friends. Nor do I have any comment or position regarding the substance of the legal matter itself, which is what the trial will be for.”
- Kramer remains an emeritus dean at Stanford Law, according to his online biography page, and is also president of the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, one of the nation’s largest charitable foundations with around $15 billion in assets.
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The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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