RBV Weekly Newsletter🧔📖

Open Deals, Portfolio Updates, Crypto News, RBV Fund I Closing & More

Author

Joshua Howard
September 02, 2023

Hello, to all the amazing readers and fellow adventurers in our world of investments!
Welcome to the latest edition of the Red Beard Ventures newsletter, where we dive into exciting updates and insights from our dynamic universe. 🚀 

In this week's RBV Weekly Newsletter:

📻Red Beard Radio 📻:
RBV launched Red Beard Radio on Wednesday August 30th Red Beard Radio - John Crain, Founder and CEO of SuperRare.
Our hosts: Drew, Elana, Frankie & Mitchell will bring you in-depth conversations with founders, experts, and changemakers who are shaping the future of their industries

Our goals for Red Beard Radio are to further our own understanding of the innovations happening around us, enabling us to identify best in-class investment opportunities and to educate our RBV LP’s

In each episode, we’ll explore the latest trends, share our own insights and opinions, discuss the challenges and opportunities facing the industry, & give the inside scoop on what's coming.



Each Wednesday at 3pm, Join us for a weekly dose of crypto knowledge and inspiration.
Subscribe now!!! → @red-beard-radio


Denarii Labs 🧪:

We're excited to remind you of our Tokenomics Accelerator, Denarii Labs.

Should the allure of this exceptional opportunity resonate with you, or if you happen to know someone in that wavelength, don't hesitate to swiftly register at ➜ 🔗www.denariilabs.xyz.
Seize the golden moment to be an integral part of this trailblazing endeavor.

Until next week, stay curious and keep exploring the frontiers of Web3!


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🚨 TL;DR: This Week in Crypto

This Week:

  • SWIFT Integrates Chainlink's CCIP for Enhanced Decentralized Data Connectivity

  • Ripple Gains Momentum After Grayscale's SEC Lawsuit Victory

  • Bitcoin Doubters Reevaluate as BTC Aims for $23K Rally

  • 📉 CoinSwitch Trims Workforce Amid Dropping Trading Volumes

  • Blockchain's Impact on Football: Innovations and Application

  • 🎨 RarePass by SuperRare: Unlocking Exclusive NFT Experiences

  • Twitter Dives Deeper Into Crypto: Secures License for Bitcoin and Crypto Activities

  • 🔥Tinder Enters the NFT Arena with SynFutures Partnership

    Want to learn more about NFTs: Mastering NFTs: Zero to Hero

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📣 As a reminder, Red Beard Ventures has both a syndicate and fund:

  • The Red Beard Ventures Syndicate is stage agnostic and invests in Frontier Technology with a focus on Web3, Space, FinTech, Robotics, Biotech, and Climate. We invest anywhere between $100k - $1.5M.

  • The Red Beard Ventures Fund I invests $100k - $1M in Pre-seed and Seed blockchain-based companies.



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🪙 Crypto News:

SWIFT Integrates Chainlink's CCIP for Enhanced Decentralized Data Connectivity

  • SWIFT: the global financial messaging network, has integrated Chainlink's Common Consensus Reference Price (CCIP) to enhance decentralized oracle solution in the financial sector.
The integration of Chainlink's CCIP by SWIFT underlines the industry's recognition of blockchain's potential to revolutionize traditional financial processes through improved data connectivity, security, and reliability.

  • Cross-Industry Collaboration: Collaboration between traditional financial networks like SWIFT and decentralized oracle providers like Chainlink highlights the growing synergy between traditional and blockchain-based financial infrastructures.
    This integration demonstrates the potential for blockchain technology to address long-standing challenges in the financial space.

  • Supporting Financial Operations: The integration of Chainlink's CCIP can streamline various financial operations, ensuring that accurate and tamper-proof data is available for crucial decision-making processes.SWIFT's adoption of blockchain-based solutions reflects the industry's recognition of the benefits that decentralized technology can bring to traditional financial systems.

  • Decentralized Data Solution: Common Consensus Reference Price: CCIP serves as a standardized reference point for various financial instruments, offering a consensus-driven approach to pricing data.
By utilizing multiple data sources and validators, CCIP enhances transparency and trustworthiness in determining reference prices.

  • Future Data Integration: SWIFT's move to integrate decentralized data solutions like Chainlink's CCIP suggests that such integrations could become more prevalent as the financial industry seeks to enhance data accuracy and security.

  • Grayscale's Success: Grayscale, a prominent digital asset management company, recently achieved a victory in an SEC lawsuit, which has had a positive impact on Ripple's performance. This favorable outcome has contributed to renewed interest in the cryptocurrency.

  • Ripple's Response: The news of Grayscale's success in the lawsuit has led to increased optimism within the Ripple community. This has translated into a notable surge in Ripple's price, as investors react positively to the improved regulatory outlook.

  • Market Sentiment: The improved sentiment surrounding Ripple highlights the significance of regulatory clarity in the cryptocurrency space. Investors and traders are closely monitoring legal developments that can impact the overall market dynamics.

  • Price Movement: Ripple's price has seen a significant uptick in response to the positive news. This momentum reflects the market's perception that a favorable regulatory environment can have a substantial impact on the value and growth potential of cryptocurrencies.

  • Price Momentum: Bitcoin has experienced a significant price rally, raising its value by a substantial margin. This impressive momentum has led many doubters to reevaluate their skepticism and consider the possibility of further gains.

  • $23K Target: Analysts and experts are eyeing the $23,000 price level as the next target for Bitcoin's rally. If achieved, this would mark a substantial milestone and further solidify Bitcoin's position as a valuable asset in the market.

  • Skeptic Turnaround: Some market observers who were previously skeptical about Bitcoin's potential are now acknowledging its resilience and growth. The asset's ability to recover from market downturns and surpass previous price levels has impressed even the doubters.

  • Market Dynamics: Factors such as increased institutional adoption, growing mainstream awareness, and improved market infrastructure have contributed to Bitcoin's recent price surge. These dynamics are reshaping the narrative around the cryptocurrency.

  • Whales bought $388M of Bitcoin: Just before the Grayscale-SEC news
    Signaling that they may have known a thing or two about the outcome of the Grayscale and SEC lawsuit before the public.

  • Result: Even though Grayscale won the case against the SEC, this outcome means that the SEC must properly review Grayscale’s ETF application & nothing more.
    The SEC can still delay & reject the application.

  • Workforce Reduction: CoinSwitch, a major player in the Indian crypto exchange landscape, has recently announced the layoff of 44 employees. The move is attributed to the decline in trading volumes, which has impacted the platform's overall business operations.

  • Challenging Market Conditions: The cryptocurrency market has experienced periods of volatility and regulatory uncertainty in various regions, including India. These factors, coupled with a drop in trading activity, have led to a challenging environment for crypto exchanges.

  • Strategic Response: CoinSwitch's decision to reduce its workforce is seen as a strategic response to adapt to the evolving market conditions. The exchange aims to align its operations with the current trading landscape and optimize its resources accordingly.

  • Industry Adaptation: The cryptocurrency industry has seen numerous exchanges adapting their strategies to remain competitive and navigate through market fluctuations. This includes efforts to enhance user experience, offer diversified services, and ensure compliance with evolving regulations.

  • Ticketing and Fan Engagement: Blockchain is enhancing the ticketing process by ensuring the authenticity of tickets and preventing fraud.

  • Player Transfers and Contracts: Blockchain streamlines player transfers and contract management, providing tamper-proof records of player histories and negotiations.Smart contracts automate payment releases, ensuring that contract terms are met before funds are transferred.Decentralized player marketplaces allow clubs to scout talent more efficiently and directly connect with players.

  • Authenticity of Memorabilia: Blockchain verifies the authenticity of football memorabilia, reducing the risk of counterfeits.* Collectors can verify the provenance of items and trade them securely on blockchain-based marketplaces.

  • Club Governance and Fan Tokens: Fan tokens on blockchain platforms enable fans to participate in club decisions, such as kit designs and charity partnerships.

Blockchain enhances transparency in club governance and strengthens fan engagement.

  •  Anti-Doping and Health Data: Anti-doping efforts benefit from secure and immutable records, promoting fair play and athlete well-being. Blockchain secures medical and performance data, ensuring player privacy and preventing unauthorized access.

  • Sponsorship and Revenue Sharing: Transparent revenue distribution increases trust and accountability in sponsorship deals.



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🗃️ Portfolio News

🎨RarePass by SuperRare: Unlocking Exclusive NFT Experiences

August RarePass Special Release artist is @SamSpratt Around 12:00 pm EST tomorrow Thursday 08/31/23, 3 unique 1/1s will be randomly airdropped to 3 RarePass holders.

Exclusive NFT Access: RarePass enables NFT collectors to access exclusive content and experiences that are not available to the general public.

Through RarePass, collectors can unlock unique NFT drops, artworks, and interactions with artists, enhancing their engagement with the NFT ecosystem.


Enhanced Collector Benefits:

Collectors who participate in RarePass gain priority access to special NFT drops, limited editions, and collaborations.This initiative aims to reward dedicated collectors and provide them with a sense of belonging within the NFT community.


Strengthening Community Engagement:By providing exclusive experiences, RarePass seeks to foster deeper connections between collectors and creators, as well as within the wider NFT community.

This initiative enhances the value proposition for collectors, encouraging ongoing participation and support for the artists and platforms involved.


Evolution of NFT Ecosystems:RarePass reflects the evolving nature of the NFT ecosystem, where platforms continually innovate to provide unique offerings to collectors.Initiatives like RarePass contribute to the growth and diversification of the NFT market, attracting new participants and expanding the possibilities within the digital art and collectibles space.

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💸 NFT Alpha 

🛍️ Twitter Dives Deeper Into Crypto: Secures License for Bitcoin and Crypto Activities

  • Licensing Achievement: Twitter has secured a license that grants the company the authority to engage in various cryptocurrency-related activities, including storing, transferring, and trading Bitcoin and other digital currencies.This move demonstrates Twitter's growing interest in the blockchain and cryptocurrency space and showcases its intentions to be part of the evolving crypto ecosystem.

  • Diversification Strategy: By obtaining the license for crypto-related operations, Twitter is broadening its portfolio and exploring new avenues for user engagement and revenue generation.The integration of cryptocurrency features could potentially enhance user experiences on the platform and provide additional functionalities to its global user base.

  • Industry Trends: Twitter's entry into the crypto space aligns with the growing trend of major tech companies embracing digital assets and blockchain technology.

As more prominent players adopt cryptocurrencies, the industry's mainstream adoption continues to gain momentum, bolstering the overall credibility and legitimacy of the crypto sector.

  • User Benefits: Twitter users could potentially benefit from the incorporation of cryptocurrency-related features, which might include features like tipping in cryptocurrencies, NFT integrations, and more. This development further blurs the lines between traditional social media and the blockchain world, potentially opening up new avenues for innovation.

  • Implications and Outlook: Twitter's licensing move showcases its proactive approach to staying relevant in a rapidly evolving digital landscape. It also indicates a deeper integration of blockchain and cryptocurrencies into mainstream platforms.

  • NFT Leverage: In an intriguing move, popular dating app Tinder has partnered with SynFutures to explore the world of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) Tinder's partnership with SynFutures marks its foray into the NFT space, adding a fresh twist to its traditional dating platform. SynFutures is a decentralized derivatives trading platform that enables users to create and trade NFT-based futures contracts, harnessing the uniqueness of NFTs for financial activities.

  • Synergistic Potential Broader Implications: The Tinder-SynFutures partnership reflects a broader trend of traditional platforms exploring the potential of NFTs to enhance user engagement and offer novel experiences .As NFTs continue to bridge the gap between digital ownership and entertainment, their integration into diverse platforms could lead to new forms of value creation and user interaction.

  • NFTures Concept: SynFutures' expertise in decentralized finance (DeFi) and NFT derivatives, combined with Tinder's massive user base, could potentially pave the way for a unique marriage of entertainment, engagement, and financial innovation.

NFTures allow users to speculate on the future value of specific NFTs, introducing an innovative blend of NFTs and derivatives trading. The partnership's core concept revolves around "NFTures," which are NFT-based futures contracts. These contracts are created on the SynFutures platform and are linked to the price performance of various NFT collections.
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🔔 Active Investment Opportunities:

The National Thoroughbred League (NTL) : Pioneer of team-based horse racing A groundbreaking investment opportunity that is reshaping the landscape of America's oldest spectator sport – horse racing.

  • Investment from Red Beard Ventures and 100% ownership of the New Jersey Horse Racing team.
    Team Transformation: Shifts horse racing to a dynamic team-based forma

  • Key figures include rappers Nelly and Rick Ross, NFL star Kayvan Thibodeux, the NBA's Danny Green and retired basketball player Baron Davis.

  • Tom Ludt, former chairman of the Breeders' Cup, hired as President of Horse Operations. Greg Economou, former CMO of the NBA, hired to oversee Business Operations.

  • Revenue streams from league-wide, mixed, and local sources.

  • Upcoming launch in Nashville with a $500,000 race and a concert by Anderson Paak.

  • Centralized model to drive down costs and increase efficiency.

  • Standardized races to optimize strategic horse usage and simplify sports betting.

  • Agreements with notable tracks and partnerships with Web3 companies.

  • Web3 Integration: NTL incorporates Web3 concepts for NFTs, digital games, virtual experiences, metaverse activations, and DAO participation.

  • Link to invest

Terran Biosciences: Pioneers in Psychedelic Therapeutics:
Focused on mental and neurological health: Depression, anxiety, PTSD, schizophrenia, and Parkinson’s.

  • Opportunity: Neurodegenerative diseases represent a $15B market and are expected to grow dramatically with a continued aging population around the globe. Psychedelic treatments represent a pioneering new approach to address these diseases. Beyond severe diseases, they also represent an opportunity to improve lives and help a much broader population.

  • Backed by notable investors: Valhalla Ventures, Peter Thiel, Christian Angermayer, Presign Ventures.Pharma Powerhouse Partnership: Collaboration with a top-10 big pharma company; 120+ patents filed.

  • Game-Changing Treatment for Alzheimer's: Isazoxan with once-daily dosing - a breakthrough advancement.

  • Growth: Terran has acquired the exclusive license to develop and commercialize late-stage clinical neuro assets. They have filed 120 patents for their psychedelic compounds and developed the largest manufacturing plant in the space.

  • Strong Early Partners: They are partnering with Sanofi, which is one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world and represents the first big pharma partnership around psychedelic research.

  • Responsible for AI Neuroimaging Software Platform: Disrupting Parkinson's Diagnosis via a crucial Parkinson's biomarker

  • FDA Application: Seeking 510(k) clearance after testing in hundreds of patients.

  • Link to invest


FlickPlay: Digital Toy Infrastructure & Gamified Social Experiences

  • A unified automated ecosystem that integrates collection release, minting and transfer, and ownership - under a Web2 Umbrella. It is the first platform to digitalize the experience of playing with toys in the real world.

  • Frictionless + Walletless user onboarding; multi-chain wallet aggregation system.
    FlickPlay is the only platform in the market to connect the commerce experience of digital toys to real-world locations with the goal of activating cities all over the world.

  • Ownership verification without requiring any private information, index-owned assets across chains (Ethereum & Polygon right now. FLOW coming up.

  • Flickplay has built a robust technical pipeline that enables 2-way interoperability.

  • The Majority of digital assets marketplaces provide a pretty centralized experience for digital assets— meaning that owners can only interact with the digital assets they purchased in the respective platform.

  • Partnership Pipeline: Disney, Bandai, PinkFung (BabyShark) - 90M+ subscribers, Payaso Plim Plim - 80M+ subscribers. SEGA, The Little Prince IP.

  • Link to invest

Innerwell (Greycroft):Behavioral health care through data & psychedelics

  • Product launched 9 months ago,went from 0 to $2.4m annualized run rate, path to profitability by October.

  • First company focused on commercially scaling true ketamine-assisted psychotherapy.

  • Patients who are diagnosed by licensed medical professionals have the option to receive therapy during their psychedelic experience.

  • Link to invest

Thrive Fantasy: Sports-betting made simple and more accessible

  • ThriveFantasy has exceeded $50M in entry fees, showing a 250% YoY growth, and anticipates reaching over $90M in 2023.

  • They're finalizing their white-label tech and aiming to launch by Q3, targeting $450K MRR in the first 6 months.

  • A revamped 2.0 UX is launching for the NFL season with the team planning for a whopping $10M/month in bets – the new UX is also expected to support multiple languages, opening the platform to an even larger audience.

  • Link to invest

Baibys Fertility: AI-Controlled Cell Selection for IVF

  • The male infertility crisis and increasing average age of motherhood has caused IVF procedures to skyrocket

  • Selecting the sperm cells is currently human-driven; slow, expensive, and error prone

  • Baibys device selects cells with a more stringent criteria, and arranges them by quality

  • Link to invest

Setscale: a Key Financing Tool for SMBs

  • Solves the cashflow gap that small/medium size businesses suffer: Post payment, pre sale

  • While large businesses have credit partners, SMBs generally have to float every shipment

  • Setscale solves this by covering the shipment payment in return for a small premium after the sale

  • Link to invite

Venus Aerospace: LA to Tokyo in ONE HOUR at Hypersonic Speed

  • A promise of the space age finally fulfilled, the craft designed by Venus Aerospace will be the fastest reusable hypersonic system in the world.

  • Their patented rotating detonation rocket engine (RDTE) will propel passengers at speeds up to Mach 9

  • The craft is designed to fly just outside of our atmosphere, where air friction poses no risk to the craft

  • Link to invest

Tafi: The Global Leader in 3D Assets and Text-to-3D genAI

  • Largest commercial library of 3D assets in the world; customers include Coca-Cola, HBO, Warner/DC, Coinbase, and others

  • Their product DAZ 3D (link to demo here) creates ultra-HD fully compatible and customizable characters

  • Exclusive partnership with NVIDIA to train even greater AI capabilities

  • Link to invest

Edison AI Systems: Zapier for AI, Link Multiple Models into One Workflow

  • Edison AI is building a web platform to build complex, interoperable AI systems

  • Developers can cut their time and costs by 60–90%, deploying in days, not months

  • The platform can operate as no-code or low-code, meaning even novices can link together StableDiffusion, GPT-4, a voice mimicking AI, and more!

  • Link to invest

Siegelman Stable: Streetwear with a Conscience - Gary Vaynerchuk Lead

  • Rapidly gaining mass appeal and A-list celebrity endorsements

  • Nearly one million dollars in gross revenue in 2022

  • Founded by the son of a top horse racing family, Max Siegelman, past collaborator with Kanye West, NBA teams, Puma, Hypebeast, Lexus, and more

  • Link to invest

One Earth Rising: Ownable Interoperability for Modern Gaming

  • Their standard has self-sovereignty and a format game engines can understand

  • This format seeks to become industry standard

  • All facets of the asset - items, moments, stats - are able to be minted

  • Link to invest

GET protocol: The Premium NFT Ticketing Solution

  • GET has been building NFT ticketing since 2016

  • They have a full range of ticketing products for event holders, from self-service to full concierge, and also whitelabel solutions

  • Issued nearly 3.4 Million tickets (1.7M in 2022 alone), over 17k events

  • Investment includes a token grant AND discounted token purchase rights

  • Link to invest

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🥳 Upcoming Events:

We will have two of the RBV team at Messari’s Mainnet NYC, September 20-22, 2023! Please reach out if you will also be in attendance!

We will be sure to keep you updated on the latest & greatest!

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🤝 We are hiring!

We are looking for part-time syndicate vertical leads in the following categories - if you are interested please reach out and we can discuss the opportunity in greater detail:

  • Biotech

  • Space

  • Robotics & Automation

  • Climate

  • Fintech & SaaS

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Onwards 🚀 
Drew, Elana, Mitchell, Frankie, and Lauren