Visa’s crypto team recently wrote a paper describing the differences between monolithic and modular blockchain technologies. Monolithic blockchains, such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, focus on security and decentralization but face scalability challenges. In contrast, modular blockchains aim to optimize specific tasks for efficiency and scalability. They break down the blockchain into interconnected modules, offering flexibility and customization. The article compares the two approaches across various factors, including scalability, adaptability, security, and developer familiarity. The paper makes the point that as the technology advances, the spectrum of modularity in blockchain design will continue to expand, catering to specific use cases and driving future innovation.
This thread provides an in-depth walkthrough of Zora's ZoraNFTCreatorV1.sol contract, which is used when creating ERC721 Drops or Editions on Zora's website. The thread explains how the contract interacts with other components, the functions it contains and how they operate, and the differences between Drops and Editions. It also provides a link to the GitHub repo containing the contract, so you can use it to learn how to build a contract with similar functionality.
This blog explains how crypto apps struggle to auto-scale like traditional cloud-based apps due to the constraints of their underlying networks, leading to higher usage costs. While some attempt horizontal scaling across multiple chains or vertical scaling via offchain logic, such methods have had limited success. The author proposes that an alternative approach of customized, vertical scaling might offer a promising solution.
Alameda, SBF’s infamous hedge fund and part of the FTX empire, is attempting to reclaim $700 million it previously gave to "super networkers" Michael Kives and Bryan Baum of K5 Global. A court filing alleges that Bankman-Fried intended to expand his influence among celebrities and political figures via Kives and Baum. FTX and Bankman-Fried had been known for their extensive spending in sports, arts, and politics. K5 Global denies any wrongdoing and calls the lawsuit meritless, arguing that they believed Bankman-Fried was legitimate when entering into their business relationship with him.
This article explains how LLMs like ChatGPT can enhance blockchain interfaces, assisting user intent translation into transactions and enabling AI-managed projects, potentially helping to foster mass adoption.
Creditors of the bankrupt crypto lending platform, Celsius, have accused crypto market maker Wintermute of colluding with Celsius executives to manipulate the price of the platform's native cryptocurrency CEL through illicit market practices.
Matter Labs, the team behind Ethereum L2 rollup zkSync, has published a “ZK Credo” document outlining its vision for the “Internet of Value.” The principles emphasize trustlessness, security, reliability, censorship-resistance, privacy, scalability, accessibility, and sovereignty, with a focus on enabling user groups to exit or fork from the network at minimal cost.
Mythical Games' free-to-play game, NFL Rivals, has surpassed a million downloads despite launching in a tough crypto environment during NFL's off-season. CEO John Linden reports that about 10% of players have interacted with the marketplace for trading cards.
EDX Markets, a cryptocurrency exchange backed by Citadel Securities, Fidelity Investments, and Charles Schwab, recently launched, quietly beginning to execute trades in the past few weeks. The platform aims to differentiate itself by operating as a noncustodial exchange, thus not directly handling customers' assets. Instead, it serves as a marketplace for firms to negotiate prices and settle trades independently. EDX intends to target brokers and institutional investors rather than individual ones. As of now, the exchange plans to list only four cryptocurrencies - BTC, ETH, LTC, and BCH, aiming to avoid potential issues with the SEC.
Bitwise has revived its proposal for a spot Bitcoin ETF following a similar move by BlackRock and rumors of Fidelity pursuing one as well, even though the SEC has never approved such an offering. The Bitwise filing, like BlackRock's, emphasizes surveillance of Bitcoin via the CME futures markets. Analysts suggest Bitwise's move is a direct response to BlackRock's bid, and both filings cite the SEC's approval of a Bitcoin futures fund by Teucrium as a precedent. The outcome of Grayscale Investments' lawsuit against the SEC could further influence the prospects for approval of a spot Bitcoin ETF.
This proposal introduces the concept of an optimistic pool as a co-processor to Ethereum mainnet. It explains that an optimistic pool is a universal contract that offloads computations off-chain and validates them more efficiently on-chain, similar to roll-ups but without holding user tokens. The article mentions existing examples of co-processors being developed, such as WAX and Axiom. The optimistic pool being discussed is funded by Nouns DAO and aims to provide a low-cost solution for checking zk-proofs in a private voting system. This write-up provides an overview of how the optimistic pool works, covering claim kinds, blesser priority queue mechanics, and the blesser payout mechanism. It also suggests potential applications for the optimistic pool, such as private voting, Tornado Cash contracts, smart contract wallets, and optimistic aggregation of signatures.
Osmosis, a decentralized exchange built on the Cosmos network, has received community approval to deploy supercharged liquidity pools. This upgrade allows liquidity providers to concentrate their assets and earn more rewards based on actual usage. The proposal received over 96% of the community's votes. The first supercharged pool will involve the DAI/OSMO assets. The migration of existing pools and the creation of new pools will follow a governance process until all curve pools on Osmosis are migrated. Whitelisted assets, including OSMO, USDC, and DAI, will be initially available for permissionless pool creation. The v16 upgrade is scheduled for late June.
This blog from Vitalik discusses the importance of considering L1 + cross-L2 support, wallet security, and privacy as necessary features of the ecosystem stack. It focuses on the technical aspects of enabling easier reading between different layers of the chain and proposes various proof schemes, including Merkle proofs, ZK-SNARKs, special-purpose KZG proofs, and Verkle tree proofs. The article also emphasizes the need to optimize cross-chain proofs, minimize latency, and preserve privacy in the wallet ecosystem.
Fragmented liquidity is a condition in the DeFi market where liquidity is dispersed among various trading platforms instead of being concentrated in one pool. This can create challenges in finding sufficient liquidity, executing trades at desired prices, and ensuring efficient trading across different protocols. To address this, 1inch, a liquidity aggregator, combines liquidity from multiple exchanges and protocols to provide users with optimal prices and efficient transactions. By aggregating liquidity and splitting trades across different pools, DEX aggregators minimize slippage and maximize price efficiency.
Nike and Fortnite have collaborated on an in-game experience titled "Airphoria" in Fortnite's Creative Mode, allowing players to participate in a sneaker hunt within the game. While the experience does not directly involve NFTs, it does incorporate crypto elements. Users who connect their Epic Games and .Swoosh accounts and purchase non-NFT apparel items in Fortnite can unlock achievements on the .Swoosh platform.
Polygon has proposed an upgrade to its main chain to make it compatible with ZK tech, an upgrade that would transform the Polygon POS into a zkEVM validium, maintaining EVM compatibility. The change would also enhance security, eliminate reorganizations, speed up transactions, and scale the blockchain. This upgrade is being considered as part of Polygon 2.0, a rebranding initiative that will include various announcements about the blockchain, token, and governance.
Deutsche Bank is seeking regulatory approval from Germany's BaFin to provide a custody service for digital assets, including cryptocurrencies, expanding its digital asset income stream.
Alex Obadia, co-founder of Flashbots, has announced his departure from the company, citing the need for personal and organizational growth and warning of potential centralization threats to the system.
Mastercard has filed a trademark application for a suite of blockchain and cryptocurrency-related technologies. According to these filings, the company plans to create an API to streamline blockchain transactions and crypto trading, bolstering its growing presence in the sector.
A fraudulent app named "Trezor Wallet Suite" has surfaced on the Apple App Store, potentially endangering users' funds by asking for their seed phrases.
Fidelity, the third-largest global asset manager, is rumored to be planning a big move in the crypto markets. This could involve either buying out Grayscale or filing an application for a Bitcoin spot ETF. Such a move, along with BlackRock's recent filing of a Bitcoin spot ETF application, could position these firms to dominate the US digital asset space. Grayscale, which operates several cryptocurrency trusts, has been unsuccessful in its attempts to convert its Bitcoin Trust into a spot Bitcoin ETF due to regulatory obstacles.
The UK Parliament has approved the Financial Services and Markets Bill, which could help set a regulatory framework for the country. Introduced to leverage post-Brexit freedoms and empower regulators over the UK financial system, the bill is now entering its final stages before enactment. While the bill initially proposed to regulate stablecoins, amendments to cover all crypto activities and supervise promotions were later included. With the bill's approval, specific rules for the crypto sector could arrive within a year, as the UK seeks to align with the EU's crypto regulations.
BNB Chain has launched an L2 network, opBNB, on testnet. opBNB is based on the Optimism OP Stack, uses optimistic rollups, and aims to enhance transaction speed and lower fees. In comparison to BNB Smart Chain's 2,000 tps and average cost of $0.109 per transaction, opBNB is expected to support over 4,000 tps and cost less than $0.005 per transaction. The EVM-compatible nature of opBNB will allow for seamless interaction with Ethereum-based applications. OpBNB’s mainnet is anticipated to launch in the third quarter of this year.
Ethereum blockchain explorer Etherscan has introduced an AI tool to help users understand smart contract source code. Developed using OpenAI's technology, the tool allows users to query the entirety or parts of a smart contract's code and understand the "read" and "write" functions of the contract. This allows users to make better decisions when interacting with the contracts and understand how to use these contracts in their applications.
This blog explains from a firsthand account how to get into web3 while working a demanding full-time job. Key lessons learned in this process included identifying a reason or purpose for the career change, setting clear and achievable goals, and structuring daily routines to maximize efficiency. Staying focused on one learning journey and contest at a time helped this engineer manage his workload, and acknowledging that everyone's journey is different allowed him to take inspiration from others without trying to mimic them.
In this essay, Hayes examines the US financial system, discussing why long-term bonds continue to be held in portfolios despite low returns. He discusses the difference between the behaviors of the "mass affluent" and the "extremely wealthy," and how capital's fungibility supports crypto despite regulatory uncertainties. He also highlights the ongoing trade war between China and Japan and its potential to boost crypto. Despite uncertainties around regulations and market downturns, Hayes has high conviction and sees the potential devaluation of the Chinese Yuan as a catalyst for crypto.
Ethereum core developers are contemplating increasing the maximum validator balance from 32 ETH to 2,048 ETH, while the minimum would remain at 32 ETH. This change would help larger node operators manage their resources more efficiently and provide auto-compounding validator rewards, boosting staking yields. However, it also carries risks such as higher penalties for errors. Currently, the network has 600,000 active validators and 90,000 more waiting for activation. If this proposal were to go through, it would decrease the count of individual validator nodes running, giving a more accurate picture of the number of entities actually staking.
A debate is set to occur among financial institutions like the Bank of England, JPMorgan, and the Monetary Authority of Singapore on the topic of stablecoins vs tokenized bank deposits. Contrary to the commonly held view that stablecoins are riskier, this thread previewing the debate suggests that tokenized deposits may carry more risk due to their fractional reserve models. Further, it's argued that the future of stablecoins could likely incorporate aspects of tokenized deposits and Treasury Bills as the market strives to deliver perceived stability and increased yield.
Yearn's "yTrades" multisig contract was recently compromised, leading to an unusable Gnosis Safe and trapping about $1M in assets. The situation was resolved using EIP-1271, leaving all user funds completely intact.
In 2022, successful cryptocurrency litigator Kyle Roche was secretly recorded discussing his potentially unethical relationship with client Ava Labs during a business meeting. The recordings, later released, insinuated Roche had manipulated cases for Ava Labs' benefit. This led to lawsuits, a damaged reputation, and Roche's resignation from his own firm.
BlackRock has applied to the SEC to launch a Bitcoin ETF named iShares Bitcoin Trust. The proposed ETF aims to provide investors with simplified exposure to Bitcoin. However, approval for such an ETF remains uncertain, as the SEC has previously resisted such launches. Currently, the SEC is involved in a legal dispute with Grayscale regarding a similar proposal. Interestingly, Coinbase is listed as the custodian of the Bitcoin the trust would be holding even though they are currently being sued by the SEC.
Sotheby's capped off its Grails auction of the NFT portfolio seized from the bankrupt crypto hedge fund, 3AC, and the auction brought in over $10.9 million in sales overall. The highlight was Dmitri Cherniak's Ringers #879, ‘The Goose’, which sold for $6.2 million after fees, marking it as the second-highest sale ever for a generative artwork. The multi-part sale of NFTs from 3AC's collection has so far raised nearly $17 million. Most of the pieces were acquired during the NFT bull run of 2021, and the proceeds from their sale are being used to recoup funds following 3AC's bankruptcy.
A new layer-3 network called Xai, built on Arbitrum, an Ethereum L2 network, will specifically cater to game creators. Xai promises enhanced scalability, efficiency, and cost reductions, with plans for even lower fees and faster transactions for smoother gaming experiences. Developed in collaboration with Offchain Labs and Ex Populus, Xai aims to provide a more user-friendly platform for token-powered games akin to what ImmutableX is doing with its gaming-centric chain. The first games to launch on the Xai network will be developed by Ex Populus, aiming to attract traditional gamers with a frictionless gaming experience backed by blockchain tech.
Block, Jack Dorsey's FinTech firm, will integrate its upcoming self-custody bitcoin wallet, Bitkey, with its financial services platform, Cashapp, and US's largest cryptocurrency exchange, Coinbase. Bitkey, a multi-sig hardware wallet with a mobile app, is scheduled for a global launch later this year after a few weeks of public beta testing. These integrations will allow Bitkey users to directly purchase and sell bitcoin via both platforms from within the wallet app.
Uniswap v4 is introducing a new feature called hooks, which operate like plugins and allow developers to introduce code at specific points in a pool's lifecycle, such as before or after a swap. This feature allows developers to enhance Uniswap’s liquidity and security with custom features. Uniswap has shared sample hooks in hopes to spark ideas for a variety of use cases. Some proposed ideas include time-weighted average market makers, customized on-chain oracles, on-chain limit orders, dynamic fees, internalized MEV, and automatic LP fee compounding.
"The Value Prop" is a new database from the Polygon team that showcases diverse blockchain applications across sectors like education, governance, finance, social impact, security, and more. The aim is to highlight the significant positive impacts that blockchain technology can have and is having globally. The database includes use cases from a variety of different blockchains, demonstrating the wide-ranging utility of blockchain and cryptocurrency technology. It’s a great way to see the broad set of use cases that are already being tackled and to help generate ideas for new use cases.
Tether, the company behind USDT, has fulfilled its obligation to the New York Attorney General’s Office by reporting about its reserves quarterly for two years, as per their 2021 settlement agreement. CoinDesk made a request for public disclosure of these materials and Tether chose to hand them over this week. Around the time these documents were handed off, there was an attack on the USDT CRV pool causing rumors and concerns to start flying about USDT and its solvency. In this blog post, Tether claims there is no reason for concern and questions the coincidental timing of these two events.
This thread attempts to explain China’s strategy when it “banned” crypto in 2021 and its recent embrace of the crypto ecosystem through new regulations in Hong Kong. The piece also suggests that US attempts to curb the crypto industry could drive other nations, particularly geopolitical rivals, to adopt it more rapidly. It further criticizes major banks for being hesitant to embrace cryptocurrency and alleges that regulators and politicians tolerate money laundering in large banks as part of a political game.
This thread provides a great bullet-point summary of the top events of the week in crypto and highlights important governance proposals, news, and tweets along with next week’s alpha.
Do Kwon and associate Han Chang-Joon are facing more time in jail in Montenegro, with potential extradition to South Korea and the US on the table. Charged over a $60 billion fraud related to the collapse of Terra and detained for allegedly falsifying identification documents, they remain incarcerated in Montenegro despite bail being granted.
In May, Ethereum experienced network disruptions due to consensus layer clients processing old attestations, causing CPU resource depletion and transaction delays. The disruptions had minimal impact on users' transaction experiences in terms of cost and inclusion time despite affecting peer-to-peer networks and increasing missed duties.
Delio, a South Korean digital asset manager and lending platform, has temporarily halted customer withdrawals to protect user assets amid heightened market volatility and confusion following Haru Invest's recent suspension of crypto deposits and withdrawals. Delio has committed to regularly update its users about the situation and measures taken to safeguard their assets. Founded in 2018, Delio reportedly holds an estimated $1 billion in Bitcoin, $200 million in Ether and about $8.1 billion in altcoins.
Prometheum, a company that has been around since 2017, recently made headlines for getting approval for a Special Purpose Broker-Dealer license and for testifying in front of Congress earlier this week. Despite raising $50M through a Reg A+ filing, having ex-SEC and FINRA staff on their team, and gaining approval from SEC and FINRA, the firm has yet to launch a product. Their activities, including a fundraising event associated with an entity with a checkered past and hiring ex-SEC and FINRA personnel without a clear product, have sparked suspicion. Their sudden approvals and their listing of tokens in 2022, despite claiming no operational ability in 2023, have added to the suspicion.
EigenLayer has launched restaking on Ethereum's mainnet. This Stage 1 launch allows Ethereum stakers to securely manage their liquid staking tokens. The next phases will introduce Operators for validation tasks and multiple AVSs. Initial restaking limits have been set for safety, supporting three types of staked Ether and a 7-day withdrawal delay. The protocol has undergone rigorous security analyses and is offering a bug bounty to developers that find issues. EigenLayer aims for decentralization with three governance multisigs initially responsible for decision-making. As the protocol matures, the goal is to foster a decentralized, sustainable network.
The Graph, a decentralized protocol that indexes and queries blockchain data, has commenced the last phase of its transition from Ethereum to L2 solution Arbitrum. The move by Graph developers Edge & Node aims to lower barriers to entry for developers by reducing gas costs and speeding up transactions. With this shift, The Graph will now record and settle its own transactions on Arbitrum as opposed to Ethereum, potentially attracting more indexers and delegators due to the reduced costs.
The author of this thread, a full-time FAANG software developer, shares how he stays up to speed on the latest in crypto through various newsletters and social media accounts. He highlights Linn's comprehensive newsletter, Viktor's level-headed market updates, @thedailydegenhq's stats-focused daily updates, PageOne's unique narrative insights, and Chung's varied daily notes.
This blog post discusses the rise of 'digiphysicals', goods which exist physically but are linked to a digital (on-chain) record using NFC technology, in the crypto space. They allow real-world objects to interact with blockchain technology, granting wallet-like abilities and unlocking new consumer experiences. Digiphysicals are poised to revolutionize consumer goods by bringing on-chain interactions to physical environments, giving physical products their own on-chain history, creating new distribution channels for brands, and adding utility for consumers in both digital and physical realms. The post covers the evolution of these products, potential applications, and future predictions.
The Federal Reserve has decided to pause the interest rate hikes that had been ongoing for 15 months, keeping the current federal funds rate between 5% and 5.25%. Most policymakers believe further tightening is required, with projections suggesting two additional quarter-point rate hikes or one half-point increase by the year's end. Fed Chair Jerome Powell signaled that rates might rise "somewhat further" in 2023 to control inflation, although he refrained from specifying when the next hike could be. Despite this, inflation remains high and above the 2% target set by the Fed.