Avalanche

A significant wave of traditional financial institutions has established presence on the Avalanche blockchain network. The list includes: **Banking & Asset Management:** - Major banks: Citi, J.P. Morgan's Kinexys, Woori Bank - Asset managers: BlackRock, VanEck, WisdomTree, Franklin Templeton, Wellington Management, Apollo Global Management - Investment firms: SkyBridge Capital, Cumberland, Inversion Capital **Payment & Technology:** - Payment networks: Visa - Fintech platforms: Grab, Intain, OpenTrade **Tokenization & RWA Platforms:** - Securitize, Republic, Dinari, Ondo, Homium, Balcony, StraitX **Other Notable Participants:** - State of Wyoming (government entity) - Various specialized platforms: ReFi, STIS, Rain, Grove, ParaFi, Nonco, BDACS This institutional adoption follows the recent Ondo Summit in New York, which brought together similar players to discuss tokenization's future. The convergence of traditional finance giants on Avalanche signals growing institutional confidence in blockchain infrastructure for real-world asset tokenization and financial services.

Jason Desimone has acquired and transformed **The Arena** into a leading blockchain social application. The platform operates on **Avalanche**, leveraging its technology, community, and builder support. **Key Points:** - Desimone's acquisition has driven The Arena to new prominence in web3 social - Platform built on Avalanche infrastructure - Focus on community-driven social experiences The Arena represents a growing trend of social applications migrating to blockchain rails, offering users new ways to connect and engage in decentralized environments.

Giga, a long-time Avalanche community member, has been appointed to a judging panel. He recently launched **@bears_salmon**, a gamified startup accelerator on the network. This appointment follows Avalanche's growing startup ecosystem, which includes: - **Codebase incubator** selecting 5 startups for Season 2 from 100+ applications across 20 countries - Selected teams include @thedisgo, @xkovapay, @FinnaHQ, @encryptechAI, and @lucero_labs - Participants receive training in tokenomics, go-to-market strategy, and product development The Bears Salmon accelerator adds another layer to Avalanche's startup support infrastructure.

**Lame Hillbilly**, founder of [Pharaoh Exchange](https://twitter.com/PharaohExchange), has been welcomed to an upcoming panel discussion. Known as a community-first builder in the Avalanche ecosystem, Lame Hillbilly brings both technical expertise and grassroots leadership to the conversation. His approach emphasizes transparency and integrity within the DeFi space. Pharaoh Exchange operates on Avalanche, contributing to the network's growing DeFi infrastructure. The founder's reputation stems from consistent community engagement and hands-on development work. The panel appearance marks another step in Pharaoh Exchange's visibility within the broader Avalanche community.

A $1 million hackathon called the Build Games has revealed its initial group of judges, focusing on experienced native builders in the space. **Key Details:** - First cohort of judges includes @LHBCrypto, @giga_alpha, and @jasonmdesimone - The hackathon features a substantial $1 million prize pool - Judge selection emphasizes native builders with hands-on experience The announcement marks an important milestone as the competition takes shape, with more judge cohorts likely to be revealed in the coming weeks.

**Sumitomo Corporation**, a Fortune Global 500 company, has become a validator on the Avalanche network. This marks a significant institutional adoption milestone for Avalanche's blockchain infrastructure. Validators play a crucial role in securing and maintaining blockchain networks by processing transactions and creating new blocks. Sumitomo Corporation's participation signals growing enterprise interest in blockchain validation and infrastructure. The move demonstrates how major corporations are moving beyond experimentation to active participation in decentralized networks. [Source](https://x.com/naritaiki/status/2017075069814792427)

A panel discussion featuring legal experts from major blockchain projects: **Participants:** - General Counsel from Ava Labs - General Counsel from Plume - Hosts Young Sparks and Steve Gates - Lee Laughs as additional guest **Focus Areas:** The conversation brings together legal perspectives from two significant blockchain ecosystems - Avalanche (via Ava Labs) and Plume Network. These general counsels provide insights into the regulatory and legal frameworks shaping the web3 space. **Why It Matters:** As blockchain projects navigate increasingly complex regulatory environments, understanding legal considerations from experienced in-house counsel offers valuable perspective for builders and participants in the ecosystem. The discussion represents an opportunity to hear directly from legal professionals working at the intersection of innovation and compliance in decentralized networks.

**The Block** has released Episode 5 of their Layer One Podcast, focusing on the future direction of cryptocurrency regulation. The episode provides insights into: - Expected regulatory developments in the crypto space - Key policy considerations shaping the industry - Expert perspectives on compliance and legal frameworks This discussion comes as the crypto industry continues to navigate evolving regulatory landscapes globally. Understanding these potential changes is crucial for projects, investors, and participants in the ecosystem. [Watch the full episode](https://twitter.com/TheBlock__) to stay informed about regulatory trends that may impact the crypto sector.

Interactive Brokers (IBKR), one of the world's largest online brokerages, has integrated native USDC on Avalanche for account funding. The integration, powered by Zero Hash, allows users to deposit funds around the clock. **Key Details:** - IBKR users can now fund accounts 24/7 using USDC on Avalanche - Integration facilitated through Zero Hash - Adds to growing institutional adoption of Avalanche This follows Deribit's recent launch of USDC-settled AVAX options trading in mid-January, signaling continued institutional interest in the Avalanche ecosystem.

**Avalanche is experiencing a significant surge in developer activity** over the past six months. Key growth metrics include: - Builder Hub accounts increased **20x** - Unique contract deployers surpassed **400,000** - Verified contracts onchain exceeded **700,000** - Tracked projects reached over **550** This dramatic increase in builder engagement suggests **strong momentum** for the Avalanche ecosystem heading into 2025. The growth follows previous spikes in development activity, including nearly 3 million contracts deployed in a single week earlier this year. *These metrics indicate healthy ecosystem expansion* as more developers choose Avalanche for their blockchain projects.