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This thread lays out how Rollbit, a leading online crypto casino, is well-positioned to capitalize on the growth in online gambling. With revenue in online sports betting projected to reach $131 billion by 2027, Rollbit has gained popularity for its wide range of offerings such as sports betting, NFTs, and crypto futures. Despite concerns regarding centralization and risk management, Rollbit is a clear frontrunner for the crypto-enabled online gambling scene.
This post from Variant explains how DeFi projects have successfully achieved rapid product-market fit by capitalizing on financial speculation. This strategy, faced with criticism in the consumer social category, is considered the norm in the DeFi sector. New DeFi protocols often struggle for initial liquidity, as users are wary of the risks involved with new smart contracts. To overcome this, these protocols offer a product that presents an opportunity for rewards significant enough to attract early adopters and speculators. This post argues that this strategy could be implemented beyond just the DeFi sector.
Bitwise Asset Management CIO Matthew Hougan predicts that proposed U.S.-listed spot bitcoin ETFs could see $55 billion in net inflows over the next five years. The estimate is based on the performance of bitcoin ETFs in other markets and could potentially include funds converting from the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust. Hougan also cited the need for investors to select asset managers familiar with the crypto space.
Development in quantum computing could potentially disrupt the security of cryptocurrencies, particularly Bitcoin. Bitcoin uses blockchain technology for transaction safety, which some argue can be compromised by quantum computers due to their ability to perform calculations exponentially faster than classical computers. However, experts believe post-quantum encryption algorithms and soft forks in Bitcoin's protocol could help secure it from quantum computer attacks.
It was revealed at his trial that Sam Bankman-Fried allegedly drafted a tweet preparing for Alameda Research's shutdown but never ended up submitting it.
WOO Network is working with Teneo to repurchase shares and tokens from bankrupt 3AC. This is an interesting challenge that some companies might face as a number of investors are facing bankruptcy in the midst of the bear market.
Alameda Research's lax security due to prioritizing speed led to major financial losses from frequent security incidents. This thread from an ex-Alameda employee details a few of these security breaches.
First Abu Dhabi Bank used JPMorgan's Onyx for cross-border payment, marking another step forward for Onyx and JPMorgan’s involvement in the space.
Bitfinex's parent iFinex Inc. is considering a $150 million share buyback that would allow it to exert more control amid increasing regulatory oversight. iFinex’s owners also own Tether, the largest stablecoin issuer. The purchase would be done through an all-cash injection from a subsidiary and open to those who bought iFinex shares via a 2016 investment platform swap deal.
A US bankruptcy judge is pushing BlockFi and 3AC into mediation over a $284 million dispute. If not resolved, a hearing is set for February to determine repayments to 3AC during its liquidation. The main contention is the date 3AC became insolvent and how this relates to payments made to BlockFi, with lawyers indicating up to $270 million was paid out in a potentially preferential manner.
The Superbridge, a gateway into various rollup ecosystems, has officially launched. It allows users to bridge Ether and other tokens from base layer networks to rollups. New updates include a redesigned home screen for easier rollup discovery and a Conduit x Superbridge integration for smoother operation. The team behind Superbridge also developed a feature called 'Easy Mode', which simplifies the withdrawal process from rollups, handling gas costs of subsequent transactions on behalf of users.
Morpho, a top lending platform on Ethereum, has launched a new lending protocol called Morpho Blue. Aimed at enabling efficient, trustless lending and borrowing, Morpho Blue offers higher collateralization factors, improved interest rates, and reduced gas costs. Diverging from current DeFi lending approaches, it separates risk management from its core protocol and allows users to create markets without requiring permission. Morpho Blue aims to redesign decentralized lending to overcome existing limitations and enhance flexibility.
The Multicoin Summit took place in Austin, featuring various crypto industry leaders. It consisted of numerous presentations, focusing on key issues including the modular versus integrated debate, value capture in DeFi, and the potential in DePIN. Talks also highlighted the evolving crypto regulatory environment, with input from Coinbase's Chief Legal Officer and Blockchain Association's CEO. This post provides summaries of each talk and links to the full presentations as well.
Base and Optimism agreed on a deal that gives Base 118 million OP tokens over the next six years. This post analyzes the deal and the dynamics of it for both Base and Optimism. In exchange, Base will give Optimism a percentage of its sequencer revenue. The move mirrors Didi's purchase of Uber in 2016 and could be a clever solution to regulatory concerns about issuing tokens. It also acts as a significant OTC purchase of OP tokens, providing off-exchange liquidity to Optimism amid upcoming unlocks and vesting periods.
This post draws a parallel between Ethereum and Solana and iOS and Android. Ethereum and its vast network of L2s and L3s is compared to Android, giving users and developers lots of optionality. However, this diverse set of networks creates a challenging environment for developers due to differences in operating systems and user experience fragmentation. Solana, on the other hand, attributes its fast and cost-effective nature to its unified network, offering a more consistent user experience and making it equivalent to Apple’s iOS in this analogy. The article underscores that both systems offer unique advantages depending on users' needs.
The courtroom spectacle continues in the lawsuit involving Sam Bankman-Fried. This thread provides a summary of the discussions the witnesses are having on the stand with the attorneys in the case. The highlight of the thread is Caroline Ellison’s testimony, in which she revealed details about her involvement in the alleged fraud, her relationship with SBF, and the dynamics of working as Alameda’s CEO.
This directory provides a community-curated collection of all the various implementations of Uniswap v4 hooks that have been created so far.
Spencer Ventures is acquiring 144 Pudgy Penguin NFTs from 3AC via Sotheby's. The deal includes rare and unminted pieces. The fund has no plans of reselling anytime soon.
Trader Joe's is suing DEX Trader Joe for trademark infringement. The supermarket alleges the crypto platform mimicked its brand. After failed private resolutions, Trader Joe's is now demanding a jury trial.
Binance's Industry Recovery Initiative, meant to aid the crypto industry post-FTX collapse, has spent only 2.7% of its $1.1 billion commitment - the few specific beneficiaries have remained undisclosed.
BitVM, a new computing framework, allows the execution of Turing-complete Bitcoin contracts without needing to modify the network's consensus rules. Instead of running computations on Bitcoin, they're validated, similar to optimistic rollups. If any false claims are made, a verifier can enact a succinct fraud proof to punish the false claimer. The framework can potentially give Bitcoin some smart contract-like capabilities and create a bridge between BTC and other chains.
Financial authorities are considering new regulations that would require banks to disclose crypto holdings. This comes from the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, which determines norms for traditional finance lenders. Its proposal follows a turbulent year in cryptocurrency markets, including the fall of crypto exchange FTX and startup-focused banks Signature and SVB.
Fundraising activity for crypto companies in Q3 2023 hit levels unseen since Q4 2020, with total quarterly funding clocking in at just under $2.1 billion across 297 deals. Funding trends showed a pivot to early-stage projects, indicating investors' strategy to back projects with high upside potential in the bear market. The prevalence of strategic investments suggests that harsh conditions have forced projects to seek short-term funding or look to be acquired.
zkUniswap is a novel proof-of-concept demonstrating a version of UniswapV3 with an off-chain computation of a swap. Execution involves using a zero-knowledge proof-based system to validate transactions, potentially reducing on-chain computation costs. zkUniswap minimizes 'front running' by utilizing a pool locking system to prevent state changes during swap transactions. Despite the still-high computation cost, parallelization of swaps and alternative implementations of request methods could make zkAMMs increasingly efficient.
Volcano Energy and Luxor Technology have initiated El Salvador's first Bitcoin mining pool, dubbed Lava Pool, that leverages the country's geothermal energy resources. Volcano Energy will mine bitcoin exclusively via this pool and contribute 23% of its net income to the El Salvador government as part of a public partnership initiative. This move seeks to integrate Bitcoin into El Salvador's energy infrastructure and boost economic growth.
This blog post discusses an array of open problems in crypto from verticals like DeFi to ZK and even AI. Topics range from DeFi issues like automated risk scoring and managing risk for lenders to Mechanism Design issues like Restaking Equilibria, privacy-information tradeoff for DEXs, and Mechanism Design for a ZK World. Other topics discussed include issues in MEV, Zero Knowledge crossovers, pitching a ZK benchmark, issues around wallet security and user experience, gas derivatives, state rent issues, decentralized sequencers, Oracle systems, and reputation systems. Innovation in these areas is vital for the evolution and growth of the space.
This research report explains how MakerDAO, through its protocol, facilitates crypto-backed loans, generating significant revenue regardless of market state. Despite a recent dip in TVL, it remains a top DeFi protocol, with its $MKR token crucial for governance and system recapitalization, aligning holder interests towards prudent ecosystem management.
Urbit has created a completely new internet model from scratch. It consists of an operating system, an identity system, and a consensus network that delivers a peer-to-peer, sovereign implementation. While it is not a blockchain network (but rather a decentralized computing network), it can be a great complement to blockchains, extending their capabilities. This post provides a deep dive into how it works and why it’s a compelling model.
Enshrinement is becoming a prominent theme within Ethereum and Cosmos as these ecosystems contemplate incorporating important features directly into their respective protocols. Issues like centralization risks and user experience enhancement are driving this change. However, trade-offs, including unpredictable user behavior and potential disincentivization for builders, pose challenges.