Dave C

Investor & Builder @animocabrands 20+ yrs in VCs/ HFs 🚀 @UniofOxford @MorganStanley @BankOfAmerica

[Dave C @abcdave]

I never imagined I would one day see myself on an MTR (HK subway) advertisement next to actual celebrities 😂

Nearly 20 years ago, I graduated from Oxford with an engineering degree, straight into the teeth of the Global Financial Crisis. Breaking into finance was brutal.

The CFA Program changed my life.

It gave me technical grounding, credibility, a global network, and a community that opened doors I didn’t even know existed.

From investment banking to chief strategist, to running a book as a hedge fund PM, to where I am now investing in AI, fintech and emerging technologies at a VC fund. CFA has been one of the few constants across every stage of my career.

It also gave me something even more valuable: #TRUST.

This matters more than ever in the age of AI.

In finance, we are dealing with people’s savings, pensions, capital, and future. When you sit across the table from another CFA charterholder, there is an immediate shared understanding of standards, ethics, and professional responsibility.

That is why I am incredibly proud to represent CFA Institute in the latest #SetTheStandard campaign. For nearly 80 years, CFA Institute has supported investment professionals to excel and to lead a profession that works for the ultimate benefit of society.

I am also proud to lead CFA Society Hong Kong, where we continue to build one of the world’s leading investment communities.

So yes, it feels slightly surreal to see my CFA story across MTR Central Station, Hong Kong Station, Kowloon Tong Station, trams, and financial media over the next few weeks.

But more than anything, it reminds me of where I started.

The best learning opens doors you didn’t even know existed.

Where has your learning taken you?

Reach out if you want to learn more about the CFA Program, or how to partner with the CFA community!

[Dave C @abcdave]

Our institutional-grade RWA marketplace @NUVAFinance is live on @ethereum .

Built by @animocabrands + @NUVALabs , it brings institutional-grade RWAs onchain with full composability.

Day 1:
nvYLDS (SEC-registered, T-bill + deposits)
nvPRIME (exposure to $17.4B HELOC pool via Figure)

This is a real bridge between TradFi liquidity and DeFi rails.

Explore here: https://t.co/hqnf28VRnx

[Animoca Brands @animocabrands]

NUVA (@NUVAFinance), the institutional-grade RWA marketplace we co-created with Nuva Labs (@NUVALabs), today announced it has launched on the Ethereum Mainnet. NUVA is a new non-custodial platform that unlocks access to institutional-grade real-world assets (RWAs) leveraging ERC-20 standards, enabling composability and deployment across DeFi. Access the NUVA marketplace today at https://t.co/HlN2dLaK4v

[Mantle @Mantle_Official]

We didn’t optimize for comfort.

18 judges, spanning across AI infrastructure, venture capital, onchain analytics, and institutional finance.

Phase 2: AI Awakening will be evaluated by these goated individuals who set the standard and rarely need any introductions.

[Dave C @abcdave]

Our goal is to unlock the full potential of agentic AI with this $10m investment program for anyone building incredible stuff with @hellominds_ check it out at https://t.co/OihA2G4WWC
More to come!

[Animoca Brands @animocabrands]

We are announcing an investment programme for select projects building with Minds by Animoca Brands (“Minds”), also known as Animoca Minds, with up to US$10 million available for investment.

Minds is a persistent AI agent platform that removes complexity while preserving full control and customization for both builders and general users.

It enables anyone to deploy and direct sovereign, always-on AI agents, called Minds, without having to operate local servers or manage any hardware or software.

📥Applications for the Minds investment programme are now open at https://t.co/8BOA1RmSW9.

https://t.co/AWUloJmCx9

[Dave C @abcdave]

Excited to announce the next phase of @NUVAFinance with a round led by @morgancreekcap. Excited to bring institutional-grade RWAs to the world!

[Animoca Brands @animocabrands]

NUVA Digital, the software development company behind the RWA marketplace @NUVAFinance developed by us and @NuvaLabs, today announced the successful closing of a US$5.2 million fundraising seed round led by Morgan Creek Digital (@DigitalCurrents).

NUVA is the non-custodial, unified distribution layer for high-quality real-world asset (RWA) vaults. It offers users one-click access, enabling them to deposit stablecoins to mint liquid, composable tokens that provide exposure to RWAs.

Details: https://t.co/UFwHM3fzgQ

[Dave C @abcdave]

Thanks for inviting to this amazing panel with @PanteraCapital and @HashKey_Capital

AI Agents will dominate future payments and blockchain is the perfect solution!

[499 @499_DAO]

🇭🇰 The Scaling Summit HK 2026 | Session Recap

Host: @499_DAO × City University of Hong Kong
Co-host: @0G_labs × OpenSchool x IDM of CityU
Special Partner: @BAI_AGI x @hetu_protocol

📌 Topic: Pricing the Real Utility of AI x Crypto

Separating signal from noise in decentralized AI. 📊
Leading VCs gathered to discuss how they price the real utility of AI x Crypto projects, sharing insights on value capture, sustainable tokenomics, and navigating the hype cycle.

🎙️ Speakers & Mod:

▪️ @Cyph3rVae, General Partner, @PlutosCap (Mod)
▪️ @0xfishylosopher, Junior Partner at @PanteraCapital
▪️ @abcdave, Investment Director at @animocabrands
▪️ @Lepus_xbt, Investment Manager at @HashKey_Capital
▪️ Jiahao Xu, Co-Founder, Grace Investment Machine

#TheScalingSummit #VentureCapital #Web3AI

[Dave C @abcdave]

@499_DAO @0G_labs @BAI_AGI @hetu_protocol amazing alpha from a great panel!

[499 @499_DAO]

🇭🇰The Scaling Summit: AI Agents & Autonomous Systems | Panel Highlight

🔗 https://t.co/Qkshd48TEg

Host: @499_DAO × City University of Hong Kong
Co-host: @0G_labs × OpenSchool x IDM of CityU
Special Partner: @BAI_AGI x @hetu_protocol

⭐️Beyond the Hype Cycle: Pricing the Real Utility of Decentralized AI

🎙️Speakers:

🔹@0xfishylosopher, Junior Partner at @PanteraCapital
🔹@abcdave, Investment Director at @animocabrands
🔹@Lepus_xbt, Investment Manager at @HashKey_Capital
🔹Jiahao Xu, Co-founder of Grace Investment Machine

🎤Mod:

🔹@Cyph3rVae — General Partner, @PlutosCap

📅 April 20 | ⏰ 15:00-15:40

Join leading voices shaping the next phase of AI Agents & Autonomous Systems.

🔗https://t.co/62ixF1s9ei

[Dave C @abcdave]

@animocabrands @StanChart @hkmagovhk Congratulations @animocabrands ! A major milestone for the Hong Kong digital asset space

[Dave C @abcdave]

Congrats Anchorpoint - our @animocabrands @StanChart JV for being awarded Hong Kong’s first stablecoin licenses! https://t.co/P3r8KqMdam

#stablecoin

[Techub News @Techub_News]

AI赋能数字资产投资｜量化资管与交易实践论坛
本次活动由 @Techub_News 主办，德商奇点科技 @DesunHK 联合主办

聚焦AI赋能数字资产投资前沿，多名行业嘉宾分享人工智能在量化资管、交易实践与风险管理中的最新应用与趋势！

📌 讨论方向
◎ AI如何重塑数字资产投资逻辑与市场模式？
◎ 量化策略在波动市场的智能化实战
◎ 大数据与AI工具如何辅助投资决策
◎ 智能化风险控制与效率提升
◎ AI驱动数字资管的创新机遇与未来趋势

富途牛牛 @futufriends 作为本次活动的核心合作伙伴，为交易者提供精美周边礼品！
特别鸣谢本次活动的合作机构：@zr_securities、 @Web3LabsClub、@HashKeyExchange、@animocabrands、@VDXofficial、@mankunlaw、@MetalphaPro、@DigiFTTech、@UAQCAI、@ambergroup_io、@Uweb_agent、@FireX_vip

时间：2026年4月21日
地点：香港
报名链接：https://t.co/j8lxJlH35F

商务咨询请联系：
微信:Bobby00V
TG: @bobbyhub

[Dave C @abcdave]

Absolute game changer. 🔥 What @Claude just dropped fundamentally changes how I think about autonomous agent architecture and natural language reasoning.

@openclaw was an ambitious experiment — a full-stack AI agent system wired into production workflows. But with this update, Claude essentially becomes the agent. Real-time reasoning, persistent context, and tool orchestration handled natively.

Goodbye, OpenClaw. Time to rebuild on something that understands execution as well as thought.

[Claude @claudeai]

Introducing Claude Managed Agents: everything you need to build and deploy agents at scale.

It pairs an agent harness tuned for performance with production infrastructure, so you can go from prototype to launch in days.

Now in public beta on the Claude Platform.

[Dave C @abcdave]

Check out my latest podcast here for @dealflowpodcast with @RealMissAI to understand more about our latest investment direction @animocabrands

[Dealflow @dealflowpodcast]

[EP #41] Tokenize or Your Business Dies

w/ @abcdave (@animocabrands) hosted by @RealMissAI

Animoca backed 600+ companies.

David Ching: Tokenize assets or miss it like the internet in the '90s. Onchain identity, agent reputation & the founder question

[499 @499_DAO]

🇭🇰 The Scaling Summit: AI Agents & Autonomous Systems

David Ching @abcdave, CFA, Investment Director at @animocabrands, Vice President of the CFA Society Hong Kong, and Founding Chairman of the Web3 & FinTech Committee.

A seasoned investor and business builder, David brings over two decades of experience spanning traditional finance and emerging technologies, with deep expertise and distinctive insights in digital assets, artificial intelligence, and energy transition.

Don’t just watch this shift happen.
Be in the room where it’s being built.

👉 Luma: https://t.co/62ixF1s9ei

[Dave C @abcdave]

@dealflowpodcast @animocabrands @RealMissAI Thanks so much for the invitation @RealMissAI ! Great chat!

[Dave C @abcdave]

🚨Google JUST gives Bitcoin a 3-year expiration date

Quantum computers will crack it in just 9 minutes.

i) Google's quantum team cracked a 20x more efficient version of Shor's algorithm

ii) breaking Bitcoin now takes ~500K qubits. (instead of billions)

iii) Attack time? 9 minutes. Bitcoin block confirmation? 10 minutes.

iv) Success rate is sitting above 41%

v) Their new deadline: 2029

Google thinks this is so serious that they REFUSED to publish the actual quantum circuits.

Instead, they dropped a zero-knowledge proof saying "trust us, we know how to do this."

For years, crypto bros said "quantum is decades away, relax"

Now Google is saying: you have 3 years.

Maybe less.

Every blockchain running ECDSA is now on a countdown clock.

Bitcoin. Ethereum. Solana. All of it.

Post-quantum cryptography isnt a "nice to have" anymore.

It's evolve or die.

[Dave C @abcdave]

The internet is shifting from human users to autonomous AI agents as its primary actors. The key move: from UX to "Agent Experience," where specialized agent squads handle discovery, execution, and transactions on your behalf, with blockchain as the economic layer for agent-native commerce. Humans move up the stack to define goals, values, and ownership while agents do the rest.

Users are no longer merely sources of data or attention. Instead, users become the principals of multiple intelligent economic extensions of themselves #animocaminds

[Yat Siu @ysiu]

https://t.co/F0WgjgbBs4

[Dave C @abcdave]

@blinkdotnew Claw

[Dave C @abcdave]

💳 Mastercard acquired BVNK for $1.8B. It's not buying tech. It's buying TIME ⏰

Seven weeks before the deal, Mastercard CPO Jorn Lambert told analysts stablecoins were "not currently a universal payments tool." Seven weeks later: largest crypto acquisition ever.

The judgment didn't change. The window did.

Stripe bought Bridge for $1.1B. Visa locked in Rain and Reap. Coinbase nearly closed BVNK at ~$2B before talks collapsed in November. The universe of independent, acquirable stablecoin infrastructure at scale is shrinking fast. Mastercard had to move before the window closed. ⏩

First movers can partner — their lead is already priced in. Second movers have to acquire, because partnership speed cannot close the gap.

Some numbers:
Stablecoin volume last 12 months: $46T gross, ~$9T real-payments basis — flowing through 0 cards. Mastercard's 2025 volume: $10.6T. In stablecoin payments cards specifically, Visa already commands >90% volume. Mastercard didn't just miss the first wave. It lost the consumer interface entirely.

The $1.8B is the cost of buying back into the game. 🏇

Stablecoin market cap ~$320B in Mar 2026. Total 2025 volume >$33T, surpassing Visa's $16.7T. Payments-specific volume >$390B, 60% B2B, Asia-led 🌐, +72% YoY. Mastercard: $32.8B net revenue (+16%), $21.3T global volume, 3.7B cards, 19% market share.

What BVNK brings:
$30B+ annualised stablecoin payments, 130+ countries, enterprise clients including Worldpay and Deel. Targets $6.4T in total payments value across 154M wallets — 1–2 min settlement at ~8x lower cost than legacy corridors. The $300M in contingent payments signals Mastercard is buying future scale, not present revenue.

BVNK is not standalone. It completes a stack: Multi-Token Network for settlement, Crypto Credential for identity, Paxos for issuance/compliance, merchant acceptance — and now BVNK's fiat-to-onchain bridge closing the loop. No other incumbent has this end-to-end.

What this means:
1. Stablecoins become embedded infrastructure inside the world's second-largest payments network.
2. Payments go hybrid. Cards own the consumer interface. Stablecoins improve settlement — faster, cheaper, programmable. B2B and treasury flows are the immediate case. Next is 🤖 agentic commerce: AI agents need always-on, programmable rails. Stablecoins are built for that.
3. Cards aren't being disrupted — they're being extended. Virtual cards hit $674B by 2026. The touchpoint stays. What changes is what runs underneath. Mastercard is buying the right to own that layer, not rent it.

#Mastercard #BVNK #Stablecoins #Payments #Web3 #Fintech #Crypto #RWA #DigitalAssets #Visa #creditcard