Following the recent news that the Solana-based NFT wallet app Backpack will launch a cryptocurrency exchange based in Dubai, the company has added former FTX general counsel Can Sun to lead the exchange. And now Backpack’s associated NFT project, Solana’s Mad Lads, has soared to an all-time high price.
Sun will lead Trek Labs, according to The Wall Street Journal, the Dubai-based startup tied to Backpack and its maker Coral. The news comes just weeks after Sun testified against ex-boss Sam Bankman-Fried in the U.S. government’s fraud trial against the FTX co-founder and former CEO. Sun cooperated with prosecutors and signed a non-prosecution agreement.
According to the report, Trek Labs aims to sell a 10% stake of the company to investors at a valuation above $100 million.
Coral co-founder and CEO Armani Ferrante is listed as a minority shareholder in Trek Labs, per the report, while his wife Claire Zhang also holds a stake. Zhang was previously Sun’s deputy at FTX, while Ferrante himself worked at both Alameda and FTX before founding Coral.
Solana NFT App Backpack Launching Crypto Exchange With Dubai License
Backpack, a Solana-based NFT wallet app, announced Tuesday it will launch a regulated cryptocurrency exchange called Backpack Exchange. The exchange received a Virtual Asset Service Provider license for Exchange Services from the Dubai Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA). VARA, which oversees virtual asset activities in Dubai, granted the license after a "rigorous" evaluation process, according to a VARA spokesperson. The spokesperson said in a statement that Backpack Exchange "must be re...
Trek Labs announced in October that it obtained a Virtual Asset Service Provider license from the Dubai Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) to launch a regulated exchange in the country. Sun disclosed his history with FTX during the regulatory application process, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Amid rising prices and demand for NFTs in recent weeks, Coral’s Mad Lads profile picture (PFP) project on Solana has surged to an all-time high price as measured in U.S. dollars.
Mad Lads Gave Solana NFTs a ‘New Heartbeat’ After Losing DeGods: Coral CEO
Mad Lads is the biggest thing in NFTs right now, as the Solana profile picture (PFP) project overcame alleged extortion threats and DDOS attacks to mint out last week—and has generated over $15 million worth of trading volume since. It’s a bright spot for the Solana world after some rough months. Solana’s token and vibes were rocked by the collapse of exchange FTX and the downfall of close ally Sam Bankman-Fried in November. And then in December, the creator of Solana’s prominent NFT projects De...
Mad Lads NFTs currently start at a price of 82.37 SOL on secondary marketplaces, which equates to $4,480 based on the current price of Solana. That’s about twice as much as the previous all-time USD high for Mad Lads before November, as Solana has surged in recent weeks—it’s up 148% over the past 30 days alone, to a current price above $54.
Trek Labs opened up beta signups for the Backpack exchange on Sunday, and it’s exclusively for Mad Lads NFT holders in the first wave. That early access benefit may also be spurring purchases of the Solana NFTs.
