Arthur Hayes, co-founder and former CEO of BitMEX and current chief investment officer at Maelstrom, is introducing a grant program aimed at enhancing Bitcoin’s “resilience, scalability, and privacy features.” This initiative seeks to support blockchain developers tackling scalability and privacy challenges within the Bitcoin network.
Arthur Hayes’ Maelstrom fund is launching the “Bitcoin Grant Program” aimed at advancing the technical development of Bitcoin. According to the initiative’s description, its mission centers on bolstering the network’s resilience, scalability, censorship resistance, and privacy features.
“We are equipped to assist Bitcoin developers and are dedicated to conducting an open and transparent grant process.”
Maelstrom
Applications for the program will remain open until August 25, offering grants for a 12-month period. Payments will be distributed monthly in Bitcoin (BTC), USD Coin (USDC), and Tether (USDT), ranging from a minimum of $50,000 to a maximum of $150,000 per developer. Maelstrom plans to award grants in Q3 or Q4 2024, with candidates undergoing at least one interview with either Arthur Hayes or Jonathan Bier before receiving funding.
The announcement follows BitMEX’s recent guilty plea for violating the Bank Secrecy Act. According to Attorney Damian Williams, BitMEX failed to implement an adequate anti-money laundering program intentionally. Previously, Hayes and his colleagues Samuel Reed, Benjamin Delo, and Gregory Dwyer had also pleaded guilty to a similar charge.