🥳 The Big 2024 Kickoff

Read time: 6 minutes

GM GM and a warm welcome to a very special Family & Friends update (your unusual 🎣w3.catch-of-the-week edition).

The year 2023 was probably the most exciting for the w3.fund. Whether it was crypto ups and downs, events all over the world, our first fund closing, or the BETA opening of Web3’s new home in Berlin, the w3.hub 🗝️!

We have experienced a lot together and would like to use this edition to summarize the highlights for you. I bet you participated in most of these. Feel free to reply to this email with what you enjoyed / engaged with the most 🫶🏽.

By the way: All updates on the market, our investment highlights, and events can be followed on the w3.fund LinkedIn or X account, as well as the personal LinkedIn account of our co-founder Vicky (aka me, vickchick030 😎).

Enough talk. Let’s dive in 🌊:

🌍 Crypto Market Highlights - from bear to bull

The year began with unease. The FTX scandal was still fresh in everyone's minds. This was especially true for Solana, which some had prematurely declared dead at the start of the year. Spoiler: Solana is SO BACK! 🎉

We already launched our most favorite use cases in the “End-of-Year Edition”.

However, it's worth highlighting again that over the year, the market capitalization of cryptocurrencies nearly doubled, soaring from 1 trillion to almost 1.7 trillion.

Other Highlights worth mentioning:

• VISA is integrating cryptocurrency transactions into its core payment network. In 2023 they announced their partnership with Solana.

• Everyone seems to talk about Stablecoins. And while you may have never been familiar with them, you might be very soon, as PayPal is launching their own $PYUSD.

• BlackRock's involvement with a Bitcoin Spot ETF signals a seismic shift in institutional investment strategies, blending traditional finance with the burgeoning world of cryptocurrency.

• Brands are all in - for real. While Nike’s .Swoosh platform becomes a central hub for digital apparel and virtual experiences, Lufthansa launched their Loyalty Program Uptrip on Polygon. Have you scanned your boarding pass already?

• Talking about Loyalty - VISA just surprised us with another announcement 😎.

• Sam Altman’s Worldcoin emerges as a key player in digital identity and global financial inclusion, utilizing blockchain to connect a broader demographic to the digital economy. Have you scanned your Iris, yet?

• Bitcoin Ordinals revolutionize the Bitcoin ecosystem by enabling intricate NFT-like functionalities directly on the Bitcoin network, diversifying its use cases.

• 2023 witnesses a surge in the tokenization of real-world assets, bridging the gap between physical assets and digital ownership, and unlocking new possibilities in investment and asset management.

💸 w3.fund First Closing + Second Closing incoming

During what was likely the most challenging time for the crypto market, we completed our first closing with the w3.fund (You can check out the LinkedIn announcement and our publication at “deutsche startups”).

Our conviction and readiness to invest long-term in the Web3 ecosystem have brought us to where we stand today.

💪🏽 Backed by the trust of LPs who also believe in the space and the application layer of blockchain technology.

We are right before our Second Closing 🔥!

Of course, it's not too late to invest in the future of the internet together with us.

💸 w3.fund Investment Highlights

We are pleased to announce that this year, we have diligently expanded our portfolio with exciting companies. We want to highlight the following rockets 🚀:

• 🪙 Mento Labs is supporting projects with the issuing of stable coins (they work closely with the carbon-neutral Blockchain Celo)

• 📚 Learn.xyz brings education on a whole new level - powered by AI. Check out their latest announcement here.

• ⚽️ Virtex brings esports experiences right into your home. Virtual Stadiums on steroids 🌪️

• 💸 Tokenize.it supports you with tokenizing your GmbH and how to innovate “Mitarbeiterbeteilungen”. Basically a very long German word for incentivizing your employees with shares powered by Blockchain technology.

• 🏦 Pave Bank is leading the way in programmable money (& yes, they are fully regulated). They got just out of stealth. Check our our announcement here.

🎪 w3.vision x DMEXCO - Europes biggest Web3 Use Case Conference

In September last year, we hosted the second w3.vision event as part of DMEXCO, one of the largest marketing and technology expos. Our mission was to bring Web3 natives and brands into the spotlight, making topics like Virtual Worlds, Digital Identity, Ownership, and Co-Creation socially mainstream.

👉🏽 You can find the complete list of speakers here.

Additionally, in collaboration with our partners, we utilized an entire area to make Web3 experiences tangible, whether through VR headsets or a scavenger hunt. Everyone had the opportunity to learn something new.

🔥 We are planning our next bigger event during Berlin Blockchain Week in May. If you are interested to work with us, feel free to book a call here.

🍻 w3.fund takes over Wiesn

Right after w3.vision, we all went to Munich together and raised a toast with nearly 100 friends from our network.

The dress code: Lederhosen & Dirndl 🥨.

You’ve heard it right, we celebrated the debut of w3.wiesn.

For those who may not be familiar with the Wiesn: it's probably the most famous event straight out of Bavaria, where everyone enjoys drinking a lot of beer and eating Weisswurst.

The perfect opportunity to celebrate with the Web3 Community (& our LPs)! 🏅

The feedback was incredible. It seems like we'll have to do it again next year 🥹.

🏢 Web3 found a new home

What do Celestia, Solana, Polygon, and Coinbase have in common?

💥 They have all already hosted events at w3.hub (or are sitting here with their teams).

On December 1, 2022, we invited nearly 300 of you to the then “empty” w3.hub. We wanted to introduce you to the building and find out how you would react to the idea of creating the go-to space for the Web3 community.

After receiving very positive feedback, we moved in.

And this is what it looked like in January.

Started from the bottom...

.. Now we're here.

We now have members from various ecosystems, such as Celestia, Solana, Cosmos, as well as pioneers from the art, gaming, and licensing sectors.

The mission is to bring the brightest Web3 Builders into a new home and to create a vibrant community around a technology that we all believe in.

Applications for the next phase are open.

🥵 Let’s add some extra sauce.

A couple of weeks ago we announced our partnership with “The Outpost”, a premier clubhouse for international Web3 entrepreneurs and businesses in Paris.

Wondering what this means for w3.hub members? Check it out here.

🏢 Open House Day @ w3.hub - Get to Know the Community

You should also have the opportunity to experience our major upgrades and the community up close - so work with us at the w3.hub for a whole day 🔥

​This is why we are excited to invite you to our very first Open House day at w3.hub - an exclusive opportunity to co-work with the w3.fund team and the w3.hub family.

​⏱️ Schedule:

• ​9:30 AM - Open Doors, Co-Working

• ​4 - 6 PM - Members Presentation & Insights

• ​6 - 8 PM - Pizza & Drinks

​👉🏽 Please note that there are only 45 spots available for the Open House Day. We encourage you to apply only if you are genuinely interested in a w3.hub membership.

🍕 w3.hub Event Highlights

When we're talking about events…

Our first w3.pizza event in our old office feels like it was ages ago.

Started alone and with just about 40 people, we are more than proud that this year:

• We were able to have a unique kickoff with Supercrypto. We invited 12 other VCs to present their focus at w3.hub as a side event of Superreturn.

• We were able to celebrate Coinbase's Layer 2 kickoff with them. The most well-known crypto exchange used the opportunity during the Berlin Blockchain Week to introduce their BASE blockchain.

• We organized our first event with Consensys in Lisbon.

But what we also want to celebrate just as much are the events that have arisen independently of us at w3.hub.

🥰 The Solana Foundation transformed our third floor into the “Build Station” twice, where they were able to conduct a global hackathon with the community.

🫡 Celestia invited their global team to a huge offsite event.

😎 Polygon also made a stop in Berlin during their World Tour and invited their developer community.

✨ Looking back…

We would like to thank all of you who have supported and motivated us the last year. Regardless of the market phase, we never felt like we were without a strong network by our side.

We will continue to initiate projects that seize opportunities and have brought us to where we are now. We will also maintain our investment in the Web3 ecosystem through content, community, and cash.

Until then: Have a great start to the new year.

Your w3.team <3