On July 14, IOHK, the Cardano network developers, announced the project’s latest testnet called Alonzo white has been deployed. IOHK detailed that it has onboarded new participants and the move will help the project move “closer to smart contracts.” Two days later, a Cardano-based project called Spores raised $2.3 million to build a non-fungible token (NFT) and decentralized finance (defi) marketplace.

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1. Cardano Launches Alonzo White

2. Full-Stack NFT and Defi Marketplace Project Spores Raises $2.3 Million

3. Polymarket Odds Bet Against Cardano Producing Smart Contracts by October 1

3.1. 1% Deposit Bonus & Withdrawal Fees On Crypto Deposit in BuyUcoin

3.2. A Decade in the Making: US SEC Approves 11 Bitcoin ETFs, Igniting Market Enthusiasm

3.3. Will Bitcoin Price Increase 200% When Bitcoin ETF Is Approved?

3.4. 10 Must-Have Features on Bitcoin Staking Site

3.5. Christmas in the cryptocurrency world arrives early as the pre-holiday crypto market heats up

Cardano Launches Alonzo White

This week the Cardano (ADA) network launched the project’s successful hard fork of the Alonzo Blue testnet to the Alonzo White node. The upgrade aims to increase participation but also will help bolster functional Cardano-based smart contracts.

“Hard fork successful,” IOHK tweeted on Wednesday. “Delighted to report around 19.44 UTC today we successfully forked the Alonzo testnet to the new Alonzo White node. The new network is happily making blocks already. Over the past week, we have spun up a new network and onboarded our new intake ready to help us move us closer to smart contracts. Now the next stage of the journey begins,” IOHK added.

The recent testnet upgrade follows the recent backlash the founder of Cardano, Charles Hoskinson, saw on Twitter in recent times. Hoskinson was criticized for making projections that hadn’t satisfied some of the expectations within the crypto community.

“As well as our core SPO group, we’re now joined by members of the Project Catalyst crew and more Plutus partners. Plus a few more pioneers to move us forward before opening up further. You can hear more about the journey in our mid-month update,” IOHK said on Wednesday.

NEW VIDEO: On Wednesday, we successfully hardforked into the #AlonzoWhite testnet phase. @timbharrison caught up on the day of the hardfork with some of the team working on the program. Here’s our mid-month update on the progress so far #Cardano https://t.co/kh8qCeSAd1

— Input Output (@InputOutputHK) July 16, 2021

Full-Stack NFT and Defi Marketplace Project Spores Raises $2.3 Million

On Friday, a Cardano-based project called Spores revealed the startup has raised $2.3 million in new funding. According to the announcement, Spores aims to build “the first full-stack NFTs and decentralized finance (defi) marketplace.” Investors who participated in the Spores funding round include NGC, SVC, Exnetwork, SL2, Twin Apex, Focus Labs, Maven Capital, OIG, and Vivian Capital.

Duc Luu, the Spores’ executive chairman, hopes the company can become a crypto-infused marketplace similar to the likes of giants like Alibaba. “We will launch Asia’s premier NFT marketplace and decentralized financing tools to be the Alibaba and Alipay of the crypto world,” Luu said in a statement on Friday.

Polymarket Odds Bet Against Cardano Producing Smart Contracts by October 1

Meanwhile, a polymarket prediction market has been launched that shows participants wagering on whether or not Cardano will release smart contracts by October 1, 2021. At the time of writing, the prediction market betting on Cardano smart contracts has $255,075 in trade volume. Odds show it is currently 58-42 against the project producing functional smart contract technology by that date.

The polymarket prediction market odds on July 16, 2021.

Additionally, two days ago, Bitcoin.com News columnist Terence Zimwara reported on Save the Children in Rwanda partnering with the Cardano Foundation. The arrangement became possible after Cardano “installed a payment gateway that allows [cardano] donations to come directly to the project without intermediaries,” the report notes.

What do you think about IOHK launching the Alonzo White testnet and the recent Spores’ fundraise? What do you think about the polymarket prediction market betting on the outcome of Cardano smart contracts? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

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