The US consumer price index hit a 40-year high in December, marking a year of strong price gains.
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Fintech startup Seashell has raised $6 million in seed investments from some of crypto’s biggest venture capital funds and project founders as they look to build a finance app. anti-inflation – a timely initiative as consumers grapple with rising cost pressures.
The investment round was co-led by Khosla Ventures and Kindred Ventures, with additional participation from Robinhood co-founder Vlad Tenev, billionaire investor Mark Cuban, former Chairman of the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission J. Christopher Giancarlo and Coinbase Ventures. Founders of crypto-focused projects Terra, Polygon, Avalanche and Solana are also among the investors.
Seashell is launching a consumer app that provides users with a simple way to earn a higher return on their money. The company claims that their Seashell Conserve product gives users up to 10% interest on their funds, with flexible return options. The app is available on both Android and iOS devices.
Company founder and CEO Daryl Hok, who also served as executive vice president and chief operating officer at blockchain security firm CertiK, told Cointelegraph that the app generates profits from both “sources above and beyond.” on-chain and off-chain” despite not being an actual DeFi product. He further explained:
“Similar to how traditional banks use customer funds by lending capital, Seashell invests customer funds over DeFi protocols and lends off-chain to generate higher yields for users. ”
While Seashell isn’t built on blockchain, the app could still appeal to savers who are worried about inflation and their eroding purchasing power.
The Fed goes wild. M1 money supply version.
Activity word: Well.$ SPX # M1 pic.twitter.com/DQlxOqznZZ
– Sven Henrich (@NorthmanTrader) April 6, 2020
Inflation has been on the front page for the past six months as governments have struggled to rein in soaring prices. Although politicians have blamed a lack of supply for the price increase, the more likely explanation is that the money supply is skyrocketing. For example, the US Federal Reserve has printed more money in the past two years than in all of the country’s previous history combined.
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Cost pressures picked up again in December, with the US consumer price index, or CPI, rising .5% on the month to a total of 7% year-on-year. That’s the highest year-to-date gain since 1982. Sarah Residence, senior economist at Wells Fargo, told the Wall Street Journal that “There’s still huge momentum when it comes to inflation right now,” adding that there is a possibility of a peak price increase in the coming months.