TLDR CRYPTO 2023-11-15

BLACKROCK SPOTLIGHTS STABLECOIN RISKS IN BITCOIN ETF FILING

BlackRock, a leading global asset manager, has called attention to the risks posed by stablecoins such as USDC and USDT in its application for a Bitcoin ETF. Although not directly allocating funds to stablecoins, the firm acknowledges the potential risks they present to Bitcoin and the crypto market as a whole. While outlining any and all risks in disclosures is simply standard practice in any filing, these statements still raised eyebrows as BlackRock provides financial products to Circle, the company behind USDC.

COIN CENTER CALLS ON CLEARER REGULATIONS IN THE US - IS CONGRESS OPEN TO IT?

Cryptocurrency advocacy group Coin Center has proposed recommendations to US Senators Ron Wyden and Mike Crapo about legislation related to crypto taxation. These proposals include requiring the IRS to create an exemption for minor cryptocurrency transactions, excluding digital assets from secondary reporting obligations under US tax law, and clarifying the definition of a broker to exclude certain individuals within the crypto space. The suggestions also advocated for more clear guidelines on block rewards, airdrops, and hard forks for tax purposes.

CRYPTOCURRENCY EXCHANGE OKX COMING OUT WITH LAYER 2 ‘X1’ BUILT ON POLYGON TECHNOLOGY

OKX announced plans to launch an L2 network named 'X1' using Polygon's Chain Development Kit. The network, anticipated to launch in Q1 of 2024, will employ Polygon's zk tech stack, a burgeoning type of cryptography in the blockchain space. OKX's native token, OKB, will be used for gas fees on X1. This move comes on the heels of Coinbase’s successful launch of Base and Kraken’s announcement of its own L2.

DISNEY AND DAPPER LABS LAUNCH STAR WARS, PIXAR 'DIGITAL PIN' PLATFORM

Disney is partnering with NBA Top Shot creator Dapper Labs to launch a platform for users to buy and trade branded NFTs in the form of “digital pins”. The initiative, named Disney Pinnacle, aims to digitize pin collecting and will feature characters from Disney, Pixar, and Star Wars. The platform, informed by lessons from Dapper Lab's NBA Top Shot experience, is set to launch on the Apple App Store by the end of the year.

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HOW TO USE DEX SCREENER THE RIGHT WAY

This thread details how to use DEX Screener, a tool for tracking real-time crypto price and market data, to spot potentially profitable trades ahead of the crowd. The thread goes through DEX Screener's various functions, including multichart and portfolio tracking, and how to set filters for better analysis. It also advises going off of DEX Screener and checking the project's website, team, community, and papers to conduct more thorough research.

PROGRESSIVE OWNERSHIP: A MODEL FOR APPLICATION TOKENS

This post from Variant details a new token distribution model that it is coining as ‘progressive ownership’. This framework involves measuring value with tokens, which would incentivize users to deepen their engagement with protocols or apps. Variant also outlined the shortcomings of previous token distribution models, such as the proof of work model, ICOs, and airdrops. It argues that tokens should be used thoughtfully, targeting power users to maintain engagement and encourage sustainable growth.

EXIT GAMES FOR EVM VALIDIUMS: THE RETURN OF PLASMA

This post from Vitalik Buterin discusses the evolution of Plasma, a blockchain scaling solution, and its applications. Despite initial hurdles like high data storage costs and issues in generalizing beyond payments, the introduction of validity proofs or ZK-SNARKs has potentially breathed new life into Plasma. These proofs could efficiently address the biggest challenge faced by Plasma. Buterin delves into more technical aspects of Plasma and how it would work for NFTs, fungible tokens, and the EVM.

THE BUILDER’S PERSPECTIVE ON CONSUMER CRYPTO

This builder report reveals that consumer crypto application developers are focusing on making user onboarding and fund activation more seamless for newcomers. The builders believe that key factors for successful applications are a smooth transaction experience, a fast activation funnel, secure processes, and engaging experiences. There's also increased emphasis on developing mobile-first, social, and media-rich applications that require little technical knowledge. High transaction fees and bridging are persistent issues that developers in the space are still grappling with and looking for solutions for.

A SHORT REPORT ON BITTENSOR AND AI: WHAT IN THE WORLD IS A BITTENSOR AND WHY SHOULD ANYONE CARE?

This post provides an in-depth analysis of Bittensor, an AI x crypto project, discussing its architecture, tokenomics, and challenges, aiming to clarify misconceptions and highlight its potential in the space.

NFT TRADING VOLUME HITS 4-MONTH HIGH

NFT trading volume has reached a four-month high, driven partly by airdrop farmers returning to Blur ahead of its next round of airdrops.

DELAWARE AUTHORITIES REFER FAKE BLACKROCK XRP TRUST FILING TO STATE’S JUSTICE DEPARTMENT

Delaware authorities are referring a fake BlackRock "iShares XRP Trust" filing to the state's Department of Justice for potential investigation.

AGROTOKEN LAUNCHING ON POLKADOT TO TRANSFORM AGRICULTURAL COMMODITY MARKET

Agrotoken is partnering up with Visa and launching on Polkadot, having tokenized $105 million in agricultural commodities already and aiming to revolutionize agriculture with stablecoins backed by grains and food.