Web3 stories

Sentinel Global rebuilds its AI-driven venture team around GIC veteran Jeremy Kranz and expands Sentinel Labs, targeting a 2026 fundraise.

SoFi and Mastercard will use SoFiUSD stablecoin for card settlement worldwide, targeting faster payments, remittances and B2B transfers.

Bitget launches a global Blockchain4Her drive for International Women's Day, pushing gender inclusion and women's leadership in Web3.

Crypto enters 2026 swinging as regulation, stablecoins, Bitcoin and DeFi trade blows in a defining bout for digital finance's future.

Unicity Labs raises USD $3m seed round to build peer-to-peer protocol powering high-throughput autonomous agentic AI marketplaces.

Australia Post launches $15 blockchain-enabled Lunar New Year DigiStamps, pairing physical horse stamps with scannable digital collectables.

Animoca partners with CryptoSlam's Ethoswarm on Animoca Minds, a cloud platform for always-on AI agents aimed at non-technical users.

FinTech Australia opens entries for the 2026 Finnie Awards, marking the programme's tenth year with revamped categories and a new Sydney venue.

Binance restores AUD bank transfers and PayID deposits for all Australian users, easing fiat access after months of card-only funding.

YAP Global appoints Otto Jacobsson as CEO, signalling expansion and a broader service mix as the crypto and digital assets sector matures.

Ben Goertzel and Jaron Lanier clash over whether increasingly autonomous AI deserves moral standing or must always remain under human control.

Singapore's Atlantis Lab has launched Atlantis, a web hub unifying crypto wallets and exchanges while keeping users in full self-custody control.

INVNT appoints James Nicholas Kinney as its first Global Chief AI Officer, tasked with scaling client-facing AI innovation, led from APAC.

NeoSapien will tie Solana-based LPM tokens to discounted, priority pre-orders for its new LapTouch MacBook touchscreen accessory.

Tiny Away now lets guests book eco tiny houses with Bitcoin, Ethereum and USDT, offering 20% off crypto stays via Coinbase Commerce.

Moca Network launches MocaProof beta on Moca Chain testnet, gamifying privacy-preserving Web3 identity with rewards and NFT campaigns.

ShapeShift makes Zcash its default payment rail in V4 upgrade, boosting DeFi privacy with NEAR Intents and new hardware wallet support.

North Korean hackers stole USD $300M via fake Zoom calls; robust identity checks could have broken the scam's chain of trust.

Crypto exchange KuCoin is opening a Sydney HQ, ramping up local hiring and regulation-first products as it chases Australian growth.

Io.net unveils a dynamic token model to tie IDE rewards to real AI GPU usage after processing over $20m in decentralised compute leases.