A fund worth $50 million has been introduced to provide support to startups utilizing the Wormhole cross-chain messaging protocol, as announced on May 18. Borderless Capital, a venture capital fund, will manage the fund, which has received backing from more than 20 blockchain development teams and venture capital firms, including Circle, Polygon Ventures, Solana Foundation, and JumpCrypto, among others.
The fund aims to assist startups that are creating innovative applications, infrastructure, or tools that span multiple blockchain ecosystems, promoting the idea that utilizing more than one blockchain can effectively address users’ problems.
David Garcia, CEO & Managing Partner of Borderless Capital, expressed his belief that the new fund will contribute to the growth of the Web3 economy and enable applications to attract new users. He emphasized the goal of empowering builders to overcome the limitations of individual ecosystems, thereby unlocking the full potential of blockchain applications and protocols.
How Wormhole serves
The protocol serves as a cross-chain messaging protocol, facilitating communication between different blockchain networks. It is commonly used to bridge assets from one network to another. For example, it allows users to transfer Ether (ETH) from the Ethereum network to the Solana network. The protocol is connected to more than 20 different networks, according to the announcement.
Several other cross-chain messaging protocols, such as LayerZero, Celer, and DeBridge, exist alongside Wormhole. The platform has expanded its network of partners in recent months, including being chosen as the official bridging protocol for cross-chain governance between Ethereum and BNB Network by crypto exchange Uniswap in January. Additionally, on April 26, Wormhole integrated with Circle’s Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol, facilitating simpler transfers of US Dollar Coin from Ethereum to Avalanche.
It is worth noting that Wormhole has faced security concerns in the past. In February 2022, the Solana bridge associated with Wormhole experienced a hack resulting in $321 million in losses. However, developers promptly addressed the faulty code that led to the exploit and reimbursed all affected users.
