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Vitalik Buterin Disappointed With Lack of Embrace for Blockchain “Casinos”

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin expressed his disappointment with some ETH community members who thought it was “bad” that the ecosystem was not more welcoming for “casinos.” During an ask-me-anything (AMA) on Tako, Buterin responded to a question about whether he had felt disappointed at the Ethereum Foundation, the crypto industry or the community. He answered “of course,” especially when others question why Ethereum has not been more open to applications with blockchain gambling, seemingly taking a jab at its competitor, Solana, and how their ecosystem has embraced a lot of memecoin activity over the past year. Buterin’s comment comes as the Ethereum community has faced backlash from members raising the alarm that the chain will lose its competitive advantage to rivals if it doesn’t address some core issues, while Solana has attracted more new developers than Ethereum and has poached top talent . Buterin also said that if the community continues on with this “moral reversal,” he would no longer participate in the Ethereum ecosystem. “But I found an interesting point: on the internet, many people will say those things, but when I chat with the community in person, everyone’s values are the same as before, so I feel like I have a responsibility to this community and can’t abandon them,” Buterin added. Read more: Ethereum`s Vitalik Buterin Goes on Offense Amid Major Leadership Shake-up Bitcoin.com

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NEAR Protocol gets institutional boost with new Laser Digital fund

Laser Digital, the digital assets subsidiary of Japanese financial services giant Nomura, has launched a new investment fund targeting institutional adoption of NEAR. The Laser Digital NEAR Adoption Fund will offer long-term exposure to NEAR ( NEAR ), the native token of the artificial intelligence-focused blockchain, NEAR Protocol. Laser launched a Bitcoin ( BTC ) adoption fund in Sept. 2023. According to Laser Digital, the new fund will be powered by TruStake, an institutional-grade staking solution developed by the crypto platform TruFin. The fund will allow ecosystem participants to engage in blockchain consensus and earn rewards from staking. Laser Digitalb CEO Jez Mohideen commented : “The Fund gives Investors a seamless way to gain exposure to digital assets through a long orientated exposure to the NEAR protocol that combines two major investment themes of digital assets and AI, alongside a carry overlay via the staking.” This initiative provides institutional investors with an opportunity to leverage NEAR Protocol for economic returns while supporting its growth and adoption. You might also like: BitGo, Copper launch trading solution with off-exchange settlement on Deribit With NEAR a top AI token focused on the future of decentralized AI, the fund may be the gateway that brings this future into reality. Growth for AI and web3 includes the explosion of AI agents and NEAR stands at this intersection with crypto and blockchain. The outlook is down to NEAR Protocol’s key features, including user-owned AI, Chain Abstraction, sharded blockchain and intents, the new transaction model also championed by the Ethereum Foundation. According to Laser Digital, the NEAR Adoption Fund will be available to eligible institutional and professional investors in selected jurisdictions, but it will not be available to investors in the U.S. Laser Digital and TruFin plan to offer the fund in both traditional formats and via wealth management platforms. The Fund will be available in traditional format, after registration, in selected jurisdictions (with the exclusion of the US) to eligible institutional and professional investors. The Fund will also be available through various wealth management platforms. You might also like: South Korea to allow institutional investors to trade crypto: report Bitcoin.com