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This article shares five perspectives on stablecoins and what a post-stablecoin world looks like. It focuses on thoughts that shift from “should stablecoins exist” to “assuming stablecoins, then what” and explores a wide spectrum of views from academics to policymakers.
In its 13F filing, Susquehanna revealed it purchased $1.3 billion of Bitcoin ETFs. The purchase was spread across various ETFS, with Grayscale's GBTC accounting for over $1 billion. This is the largest recorded holding of the ETF to date. Hightower, a $130B asset manager, recently bought $68 million in Bitcoin ETFs.
Pantera Capital is launching a new $1 billion venture fund, Pantera Fund V, to invest across the spectrum of venture equity, early-stage tokens, treasury tokens, and liquid tokens.
This thread briefly touts the benefits of using the Cosmos chain due to the IBC bridge's cheap, fast settlement and bigger Dapps like DyDx leveraging Cosmos' app chain capabilities
An Argentinian state-owned energy firm, YPF Luz, is working with Genesis Digital Assets to launch a Bitcoin mining operation powered by stranded gas from oil fields.
Human rights activists are using Bitcoin to maintain financial independence despite authoritarian regimes trying to weaponize traditional finance systems to strip them of their assets.
In an appearance on CNBC, SEC Chairman Gary Gensler said he believes there is a disproportionate amount of scams, fraud, and media attention in crypto compared to its market cap. He believes that the attention given to the SEC's crypto enforcement is a function of the fact that that's where the media's attention is and that he is frequently asked about crypto by financial media. Gensler did not comment on recent Wells notices or lawsuits facing Robinhood, Consensys, and others.
Revolut has announced Revolut X, a dedicated cryptocurrency exchange catering to professional traders, making it the first banking institution to venture into this arena. With a user base of 40 million worldwide, Revolut aims to provide specialized trading experiences with lower transaction fees and access to digital assets like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and XRP, initially available on desktops for UK customers with plans for further expansion.
Jorge Izquierdo, co-founder of Aragon, has introduced Tuyo, a simple self-custodial crypto wallet designed to simplify DEX interactions across multiple blockchain networks. Tuyo prioritizes user-friendliness, abstracting complex details like switching between blockchains. It integrates technologies like account abstraction to streamline transactions.
EIP-3074 is an upgrade for normal Ethereum wallets that adds some smart wallet functionality. It was slated for inclusion in the next Ethereum upgrade. After it was approved, Vitalik Buterin and other Ethereum researchers expressed concern about compatibility between 3074 and 4337 (standard smart contract wallet) wallets and the potential of 3074 to be broken by quantum computers. EIP-7702 fixes both of these issues.
Farcon was the first conference for the decentralized social media protocol Farcaster. Greater personalization is coming to Web3, with services like Daylight creating a more unique and catered Web3 experience. As part of its growth strategy, Farcaster is creating Legos for developers to build on, like its frames feature. It is encouraging users to take as many chances as possible and try out several apps and mechanisms to increase consumer adoption.
One of the biggest issues for new DeFi protocols is bootstrapping liquidity. Much like how EigenLayer connects ETH validators with Web3 protocols for economic security, Berachain's Proof of Liquidity system allows DeFi protocols to get liquidity from validators through a staked token pool. BGT is a staking and governance token, which is non-transferable and rewarded to liquidity providers, and BERA is a gas token. The liquidity flywheel is expected to work as long as the APRs on liquidity provision are sufficiently high.
This thread discusses the phenomenon of trading meme coins, attributing it to a broader trend of disillusionment among young people due to economic disparities and unfulfilled promises. It suggests that trading meme coins represents a response to a perceived failure of previous generations, exacerbated by regulatory hurdles and privatized opportunities.
Points-based airdrops create a rift between private and public markets as the abundance of VC funding and lack of new market entrants incentivize companies to stay private longer and open at multi-billion dollar valuations. The SEC's regulatory pressure has further exacerbated this issue by making it harder for startups to distribute tokens to users, which forces retail users to farm projects for an allocation. A new, more thoughtful approach is needed to balance the interests of regulators, investors, and the community.
The SEC has delayed a decision on the Invesco Galaxy Ethereum ETF until July 5, 2024.
Franklin Templeton Digital Assets and Securitize Markets, BlackRock's BUIDL fund distributor, have applied for ArbitrumDAO's Stable Treasury Endowment Program (STEP).
Zora has acquired Mint.fun to combine the best creator tools with the best collector tools and bring the world's creativity onchain.
Robinhood Crypto received a Wells Notice from the SEC, signaling a potential enforcement action for alleged securities violations. The notice is one of many that the SEC has recently issued to crypto firms (e.g., UniSwap & Consensys) challenging the classification of digital assets on their platforms.
Ethereum's daily ETH burn rate has hit a yearly low, mainly due to significantly reduced gas fees (gas on Ethereum is now 5 to 10 gwei). The decrease in gas fees, the lowest this year, is affecting the network's deflationary mechanism established by the London hard fork.
Hermetica is launching the first Bitcoin-backed synthetic dollar, USDh, in June, offering a 25% yield to users. It argues the yield is sustainable because it is based on futures funding rates and a demand for Bitcoin futures. The company says that USDh will be a pivotal asset for increasing liquidity and functionality in Bitcoin DeFi.
3Jane is a derivatives protocol that allows users to collateralize yield-bearing ETH in options contracts, earning options premiums on top of staking and restaking yield. By sourcing yield within DeFi derivatives, 3Jane mitigates the opportunity costs of holding restaked ETH and alleviates the burden off AVS security budgets. It is a proof of concept of the potential of tokenizing cryptoeconomic security and derivatives on a shared ledger.
Modularity is a horizontal scaling technique that breaks blockchain down to its core components to make block creation more efficient. Vertical scaling involves increasing the hardware requirements of nodes and optimizing on the software level. Both modular and monolithic chains can employ horizontal and vertical scaling techniques. The endgame of Ethereum scalability will combine horizontal scaling through sharding and vertical scaling through parallelized VMs, which the =nil; L2 is working towards by incorporating modularity, zkSharding, and intra-shard parallelization.
This article discusses EigenLayer's "Universal Intersubjective Work Token" ($EIGEN) and its significance, breaking down its key features and complexities into 30 tweets. It explains how $EIGEN transforms Ethereum's $ETH into a universal objective work token, allowing for validation of external services and addressing intersubjective faults through a dual-token model while incorporating mechanisms like forking and social consensus.
The memecoin ecosystem has expanded dramatically since 2020-21, when the only options were DOGE, SHIB, and a few other Ethereum-based tokens. New tooling has made creating memecoins significantly easier, requiring no coding skills, and new token standards like Runes and DN404 create more opportunities for unique designs. Supply far outstrips demand, making memecoins a high-risk, low-reward opportunity.
Fantasy Top is a new game on Blast that turns crypto influencers into NFT trading cards. It allows players to compete based on the real-world Twitter engagement of their NFT trading card lineups. The game offers crypto and in-game rewards and is rapidly gaining popularity on Crypto Twitter.
Stablecoins are expected to pass $4 trillion in volume in Q2 2024, barely surpassing Visa's processing volume.
Fantasy Top, a new social finance game that allows players to draft teams of Twitter influencers, rewards players with crypto or native platform rewards based on the engagement metrics of the team members during set competition periods, turning Twitter activity into a competitive and potentially profitable venture.
Prominent Bitcoin mixers such as Samourai Wallet, Wasabi Wallet, and hardware wallet Trezor are exiting the U.S. market or ending mixer services to avoid potential legal challenges.
Ethereum developers are actively integrating EIP-3074 to simplify wallet usability.
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Alexander Vinnik, co-founder of BTC-e, pleaded guilty to charges related to a $9 billion money laundering scheme that enabled illegal transactions from various crimes like hacking and drug trafficking. The DOJ stated that BTC-e lacked crucial legal compliance measures and that Vinnik used shell companies for illicit fund transfers, resulting in substantial criminal financial losses.
A lawsuit was filed against Coinbase by a few individuals in California and Florida alleging that Coinbase violated state securities laws with its digital asset sales. The lawsuit claims that SOL, MATIC, NEAR, MANA, ALGO, UNI, XTZ, and XLM as securities. Coinbase has previously argued that secondary crypto asset sales are not securities transactions.
Vodafone is planning to integrate crypto wallets into SIM cards, aiming to enable mobile users to leverage blockchain technology globally. Amidst these tech advancements, the company is also managing a substantial debt strategy involving raising nearly $3 billion, including a $1.8 billion loan initiative.
As part of Maker's Endgame rebranding, it will release two new tokens with to-be-released names. NewStable is an upgraded version of DAI with greater stability features and a design that facilitates broader adoption. NewGovToken is the next version of MKR, incentivizing more participation and dynamic decision-making. MKR can be converted to NewGovToken at a rate of 1:24,000.
Liquid crypto, defined as funds investing in already liquid assets without encumbrances, presents a significant investment opportunity but faces challenges including fund performance volatility and reputational risks from potential asset theft. Despite the rise of low-fee ETF alternatives, liquid funds may continue to be dominated by proprietary capital from Chicago and Asia due to these complexities and the need for strong risk tolerance from top management.
For L2 to L2 transactions, Orbiter offers low fees, high speed, and a points system for future tokens. For USDC, Circle's CCTP offers a flat $1 fee, but takes 20-30 minutes. Squid Router is the best choice for Cosmos-based bridging. DeBridge is fast, has a points system, and can bridge between EVM chains and Solana.
Capital formation incentives in crypto are heavily influenced by existing market dynamics, with pressure to conform to established norms affecting both new teams and investors. Despite the shift away from ICOs, retail investors have been disadvantaged, leading to distorted market structures and challenges for startups trying to break the mold.
The trend of companies staying private longer reflects a shift similar to what happened with VC and IPO markets, where significant gains are captured by private equity, sidelining retail investors from early profits. In crypto, a similar pattern has emerged with key L1 and L2s raising substantial funds from VCsl, excluding retail investors from early, lucrative investing opportunities.
Hayden Adams, the founder of Uniswap, says that token distributions should be ethical and transparent and discourages the use of ambiguous or manipulative tactics (e.g., points).
A 26-year-old man has been arrested in connection with a large-scale scam involving the alleged gambling platform ZKasino, which attracted over 30 million US dollars in crypto investments.
Airdrops started as a way to decentralize a community and incentivize their participation in the DAO or network.
BlackRock's Ethereum-based money market fund has reached an AUM of approximately $400 million.
Idin Dalpour was arrested for allegedly orchestrating a $43 million Ponzi scheme, falsely promising high returns from his hospitality and crypto trading businesses but using investor funds to cover personal expenses. The FBI indictment detailed Dalpour's misuse of funds, including $1.7 million for gambling debts, and charges of wire fraud. This could lead to up to 20 years in prison.
Block reported first-quarter revenues of $5.97 billion and an adjusted profit of 85 cents per share, surpassing expectations. It announced plans to allocate 10% of gross profit from bitcoin transactions into bitcoin each month and is open-sourcing its "crypto treasury blueprint" to help other companies manage its crypto assets.
Privy is launching a new cloud-based recovery system that enables users to secure their embedded wallet recovery shares on Google Drive. This should improve the user experience by offering a simpler, more secure method of wallet recovery without the need to remember passwords.
Royco enables efficient liquidity coordination for crypto, which today is inexact and done through airdrops, liquidity mining, and other un-optimized methods. Royco's Liquidity Coordinator allows programmability and order books to create liquidity negotiation, allowing providers to know exactly what they will get in return. Since every position is tokenized, users can sell or exchange positions, providing flexibility for locked assets.
Solana influencer and CEO of Helius Labs, Mert, has curated a list of high-quality articles about Solana. The list provides a comprehensive overview of Solana's history, investor theses, tech deep dives, and programming.
Blast points are earned passively through liquidity provision or holding certain tokens. Blast Gold, which may be worth $10 to $60 each, is farmed by actively interacting with protocols or games. This thread lays out three strategies for various capital and time commitment levels to maximize airdrop distribution.