GM. This is the Milk Road. The newsletter throwing you assist after assist to help you score in crypto.

We're the Stockton to your Malone.

Here's what we got today:

• Stripe launches a crypto product

• Apple and Coinbase going at it?

• Funding Friday

• Milky Memes

STRIPE LAUNCHES A CRYPTO PRODUCT

Stripe is the hottest private tech company since Facebook.

In just 12 years since being founded, it's worth $75b.

Stripe does one thing really well - they make it easy for anyone on the internet to receive money with one line of code.

And now they're bringing that cheat code to crypto.

Check it out, it’s an on-ramp that converts your fiat to crypto in less than a minute:

All you need to do is confirm your email, put in your credit card information, and convert the money.

If you own a website or an app, all you have to do is input 10 lines of code and the widget embeds into your DEX, NFT platform, wallet, or dApp.

You can already use the widget on the decentralized music streaming platform, Audius, and NFT marketplace, Magic Eden. Plus 16 other projects (11 of them are on Solana).

So, why do we care?

Tech companies integrating web3 features like this should increase adoption.

Right now, the only way you can use Decentralized Apps and DeFi is through a self-custodial digital wallet. The issue is it's hard to get crypto to your wallet.

You have to create an account with a centralized exchange, buy crypto on the exchange, then send it to your wallet. Sometimes this process takes more than a week to complete.

You also gotta dodge CEX bankruptcies like Neo here.

Stripe is tryna change that.

APPLE AND COINBASE GOING AT IT?

Apple's been in the news a lot recently.

First, it was Elon Musk, saying he'd rather "go to war" then pay Apple's 30% platform fee.

Now, it's Coinbase.

Yesterday, Coinbase Wallet announced iOS users can no longer send NFTs to each other because Apple is asking for a 30% cut of gas fees on mobile transactions.

On the surface, this seems irrelevant to Coinbase, because well, their NFT marketplace hasn't exactly picked up traction. They've only done ~$7m of volume since the launch in May.

OpenSea did ~$250m of volume in November alone making Coinbase look like...

But a lot of people use the Coinbase Wallet to mint and collect NFTs from other marketplaces. Apple just made it impossible for Coinbase Wallet's iOS users to transfer NFTs because Coinbase literally doesn't receive the gas fee that Apple wants 30% of.

The bigger issue here is how the Apple Tax will affect other popular mobile wallets like Rainbow and MetaMask. Crypto already has a bad mobile experience. Taxes like these will further slow down innovation.

TODAY'S EDITION IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY HELIX

I’ve learned one thing over the last month…

There’s no such thing as safe CEX in crypto. (Centralized exchanges, that is).

Which is exactly why you should check out Helix - a decentralized exchange built on Injective for trading cross-chain crypto assets and derivatives. Some of the pros:

• On ramp from fiat to crypto. Helix just added a feature called Kado that allows users to convert between fiat and digital assets in a single transaction.

• Fully decentralized. All trades on Helix are fully visible on-chain

• Advanced order types. With stop-loss and take-profit orders

• Easy to use. Helix has zero gas fees and a sleek UI to make the experience as smooth as butter

• Highly interoperable. Users can trade cross-chain assets and connect multiple crypto wallets (i.e. MetaMask, Ledger, Trezor, Cosmostation, etc)

There’s never been a better time to get started on a decentralized exchange. And Helix is shipping new features to make sure you have everything you need.

Get started here! Just connect your crypto wallet and boom! You’re ready to start trading.

FUNDING FRIDAY

Each Friday we give you a rundown of Web3 companies that got funded during the week.

This week, we saw ~$108m get invested into crypto companies & funds. Here’s who got the money:

Lyra got $3m to build a decentralized option trading protocol on Optimism.

Catapult got $5m in funding to onboard users into web3 communities. For once, I may actually know what is going on in Discord.

Pearpop got $18m to build a platform for creators to earn a living.

Liqwid Labs got $2.7m to build a DeFi lending and borrowing protocol. 

Keyrock got $72m to build a crypto market maker that executes trades, facilitates over the counter (OTC) transactions, and invests in startups.  

If you wanna check out the complete database of companies that raised money in 2022, we got 'em for you right here.

MILKY MEMES

That's a wrap for the week. Stay thirsty & see ya on Monday! If you want more, be sure to follow our Twitter (@MilkRoadDaily)

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DISCLAIMER: None of this is financial advice. This newsletter is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. Please be careful and do your own research.