It’s 2024, and a special week of Term Sheet. In a longstanding tradition for this newsletter, we ask readers to weigh in on what the new year will bring for the private markets. This year,we’ve dedicated the whole first week of January to the Crystal Ball, and today’s edition features a collection of predictions readers made ondata, cybersecurity, fintech, and crypto.

We’ve spent all of 2023 doubling down on the real crypto projects of substance — but 2024 is when they will really take off

After 2022’s market crash and the implosion of several notable blockchain companies, this has been a year of doubling down on projects of substance. Web3 has taken 2023 as its year of reflection and constitution.

That said, I firmly believe that 2024 will see builders’ hard work and grit pay off — next year, the public will see the fruits of our bear market labor.

“I'm always humbled by how Cornell has helped shape my life,” says blockchain entrepreneur John Wu ’92, president of Ava Labs and a graduate of the Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management. Recalling several instances when faculty, staff, and alumni opened doors for him, he draws a clear connection between his experiences as a student, his Wall Street career on the buy side as a tech investor, the Cornell connections that led to him becoming a tech entrepreneur, and why he’s happy to come back to campus to give students a practitioner’s perspective.

John Wu, President of the development firm AVA Labs, highlighted the transformative potential of NFTs in an interview with me: "NFTs provide a way for artists to establish ownership of their digital creations, create new revenue streams, and engage communities around artists' work".

Today’s property insurance industry stands at a crossroads. Process inefficiencies and the growing threat of fraud are making current business models increasingly unsustainable. And external developments like the extreme weather conditions caused by global warming are complicating matters even further.

Avalanche Foundation to invest $50M in asset tokenization on its blockchain

The Avalanche Foundation is allocating up to $50 million to purchase tokenized assets created on its layer-1 blockchain, the company exclusively told TechCrunch.

The initiative, Avalanche Vista, aims to highlight the value of tokenization in different sectors like equity, credit, real estate and commodities.

Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao has reportedly hired lawyers to represent him personally as Binance faces multiple investigations from regulators.

Legal pressure on Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, has underscored the potentially “chilling” effect of a U.S. crackdown on crypto, legal experts have told Decrypt.

T. Rowe to Test Avalanche Blockchain in Renewed Push on Wall Street

Firms explore possible efficiencies of blockchain application

WisdomTree, Wellington and Cumberland included in partnership

Wisdom Tree, T. Rowe Price Among TradFi Firms to Test Avalanche's Blockchain Subnet

The subnet will offer the company's opportunity to make trade execution and settlements more efficient.

Doing things with blockchain: How Ty Haney is reimagining community building

The Outdoor Voices founder has a new vision for blockchain-powered relationships between brands and fans.

Ava Labs Hires New Heads in Asia as US Regulatory Concerns Grow

New York-based startup makes hires in Japan, South Korea

The news follows several similar moves among crypto firms
Ava Labs, the main developer behind blockchain project Avalanche, has become the latest digital-asset firm to expand its management teams in Asia as a regulatory pushback deepens in the US. New York-based Ava Labs said it hired Justin Kim, a former investment banker at the Korea Development Bank, and startup veteran Roi Hirata as the heads of its business in South Korea and Japan, respectively. 

'Everyone Is Freaking Out.' What's Going On With Silicon Valley Bank? Federal Government Takes Control.

Panic spread as the financial losses of one slightly obscure California bank rippled in the stock value of banks in the U.S. — and now, the federal government has stepped in.

The government is stepping in again — just don't call it a "bailout."

After Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) went under, marking the largest bank failure since the 2008 recession, the federal government announced on Sunday that all depositors in the failed Silicon Valley Bank would be covered in full.

What’s Going on With Silicon Valley Bank?

‘Stay calm’

Silicon Valley Bank was founded in 1983 and over the decades became the go-to financial institution for startups. Today, it’s a household name in the Bay Area, deeply enmeshed in tech companies’ networks and infrastructure. SVB isn’t just a bank — it makes equity investments, patronizes startups’ services and sponsors lavish industry parties.

Esports Giant TSM Forges Ahead With Web3 Gaming on Avalanche

Team SoloMid will host tournaments on Blitz Esports’ Avalanche Subnet.

Despite the collapse of FTX and a scrapped $210 million naming rights deal, Team SoloMid’s affinity for crypto hasn’t soured. In fact, the esports org also known as TSM is now building its own crypto sub-network on Avalanche to facilitate esports transactions and tournaments, TSM parent company Swift announced Tuesday.

Esports Giant TSM Enters Into Web3 Gaming Partnership With Avalanche

Avalanche will be TSM's exclusive blockchain partner as it builds out its competitive gaming platform, Blitz.

Top esports team TSM said Tuesday that Avalanche will be its exclusive blockchain partner as TSM builds out its competitive gaming platform, Blitz.

As part of the deal, Avalanche will be launching a custom subnet that uses its native AVAX token as gas to bring Blitz on-chain.

America’s Best Startup Employers

About 50% of startups dissolve within five years, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. With that uncertainty hanging over employees’ heads, it’s no easy feat when they feel engaged, inspired and supported.

But that’s exactly what the companies on Forbes’ fifth annual list of America’s Best Startup Employers have done. Energy businesses searching for sustainable power solutions dominate the very top of the list, while a wide range of industries—well beyond the traditional tech and software sectors—are also some of the highest-rated companies.

Powell Testimony in US Congress could wash out Silvergate FUD from crypto market

Traders are gearing up for Jerome Powell’s hearing before the US Senate committee for the Semiannual Monetary Policy Report.

The cryptocurrency ecosystem is expected to come up during the discussion as crypto prices failed to recover despite Monday’s stock market rally.

The crypto market is currently exposed to FUD around the Silvergate crisis.

Crypto Companies Have a New Crisis: Banks May Not Take Their Money

Silvergate Capital is in crisis mode after the crypto bank warned about its ability to “continue as a going concern.” The disclosure, made in a securities filing late Wednesday, sent its stock crashing 55% on Thursday to around $6 a share.

The disclosure also raised questions about the future of crypto companies’ relationships with banks; liquidity in the token market; and whether anyone could step into Silvergate‘s (ticker: SI) shoes if the company doesn’t survive its latest crisis of confidence.

Shopify’s blockchain partnerships are simplifying NFTs for merchants

Sellers are turning to plug-and-play solutions to experiment with Web3.

Canadian e-commerce platform Shopify is often lauded for lowering the barrier to entry for small businesses looking to succeed in the challenging world of online sales. With more than 2 million individual merchants in 175 countries, and an estimated $650 billion in total sales, it would be hard to overstate Shopify’s relevance in today’s retail landscape.

Loco will create esports and streaming experiences on the Avalanche blockchain

Indian game streaming platform Loco has teamed up with the Avalanche blockchain to create new kinds of fan experiences.

Loco is joining the Avalanche Multiverse incentive program and is launching a subnet, expanding Avalanche’s growing footprint in Asia.