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- Bitcoin, Ethereum, Cosmos and more Week 25 2024
Bitcoin, Ethereum, Cosmos and more Week 25 2024
Keeping you updated on crypto, web3 and blockchain
TL;DR
Winklevoss Twins Donate $2M in Bitcoin to Trump
Standard Chartered Launches Bitcoin Trading Desk
Vitalik Buterin Introduces Key Ethereum Security Practice
SEC Ends Ethereum Investigation to Avoid Court Battle
DEGA Launches on Injective: GameFi Expansion Begins
Osmosis DAO Adopts Fee-Free Bitcoin Bridge via Nomic
Trump Pledges to Stop Biden's Crypto Crackdown
RFK Jr. Pledges to Pardon Silk Road’s Ross Ulbricht if Elected
and much more!
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Bitcoin Highlights of the Week
Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, co-founders of Gemini, donated over $2 million in Bitcoin to former President Donald Trump's campaign. They announced their contributions on social media, aiming to counter the Biden Administration's regulatory approach towards cryptocurrency, which they view as hostile.
Tyler Winklevoss criticized the administration for allegedly using government agencies to stifle crypto innovation and target businesses, citing "Operation Choke Point 2.0." He argued that these actions harm the American economy and stifle innovation in the crypto sector.
CleanSpark, a Bitcoin mining company utilizing clean energy, announced the acquisition of five mining facilities in Georgia through a $25.8-million deal. The acquisition, expected to close immediately, will add a combined processing power exceeding 3.7 exahashes per second (EH/s). The facilities vary in capacity, ranging from 8 to 15 megawatts (MW) of power, totaling 60 MW. CleanSpark anticipates its total hashrate will surpass 20 EH/s by the end of June.
The newly acquired sites come with interruptible-load power purchase agreements (PPAs), enabling them to offer load-balancing services to the local electrical grid. CleanSpark CEO Zach Bradford highlighted the positive impact of the acquisition on both the company and regional energy infrastructure, emphasizing the synergy between Bitcoin mining operations and local power resources.
After a year of development, Lava is unveiling its first two financial products—Lava Free Pay and Lava Exchange. Lava CEO Shezhan Maredia discussed with Bitcoin Magazine how these new tools aim to revolutionize digital dollar handling and Bitcoin access, enhancing the mobile self-custodial experience.
Lava Free Pay promises to streamline global payments by eliminating the need for intermediary steps and fees, such as those associated with converting to volatile currencies. This service offers seamless stablecoin integration within Bitcoin wallets, enabling free, instant, and global transactions. Lava’s innovation aims to make digital dollars more practical and accessible for everyday use, simplifying the user experience significantly.
Hashdex has filed a proposal with the SEC for a combined spot Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) exchange-traded fund (ETF) on Nasdaq. The ETF aims to mirror the market capitalization-weighted proportions of 70.54% BTC and 29.46% ETH as of May 27, tracking the Nasdaq Crypto US Settlement Price Index passively rather than attempting to outperform it.
The ETF's strategy is designed to adapt if additional cryptocurrencies become eligible for inclusion based on specific criteria, such as being listed on U.S.-regulated digital asset or derivatives platforms. Custodianship for BTC and ETH assets will be managed by Coinbase and BitGo, ensuring the security of holdings through segregated accounts for individual shareholders.
Standard Chartered, a global banking giant, is set to launch a Bitcoin and ether spot trading desk, becoming one of the first major banks to directly offer such services. The new London-based trading desk, integrated within the bank's FX trading unit, is poised to meet increasing institutional demand for cryptocurrency trading.
Having maintained a positive stance on Bitcoin for years, Standard Chartered has worked closely with regulators to facilitate trading opportunities for its institutional clients. The bank's existing involvement in crypto includes offering custody services through Zodia Custody and investment in Zodia Markets, which caters to institutional Bitcoin and crypto trading.
Ethereum Highlights of the Week
Vitalik Buterin has advocated for implementing mixed-case checksum addresses in Ethereum to enhance network security. This proposal, detailed in ERC-3770, aims to mitigate risks associated with transaction errors and potential losses by requiring wallets to generate and validate checksummed addresses. By incorporating both uppercase and lowercase letters in Ethereum addresses, checksums can significantly reduce the likelihood of mistakenly inputting incorrect addresses during transactions.
Buterin emphasizes the importance of adopting checksum addresses across all Ethereum wallets, particularly those utilizing ERC-3770 standards. This practice aligns with EIP-55 guidelines, which specify the use of checksums to verify the accuracy of address inputs.
The SEC has decided to halt its investigation into whether Ethereum (ETH) should be classified as a security, marking a significant development in regulatory clarity for the cryptocurrency. This decision came as a surprise to many in the crypto industry on June 19, 2024, following the SEC's approval of spot Ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
Despite the SEC's approval of Ether ETFs, legal experts like Carol Goforth caution that this does not definitively classify Ethereum as a commodity. Goforth, a professor at the University of Arkansas School of Law specializing in securities regulation, explained that ETF approvals are independent of asset classification and do not determine whether the underlying asset—such as commodities—truly fits that classification.
Bitwise has updated its Form S-1 filing with the SEC for its forthcoming spot Ether ETF, revealing that Pantera Capital Management has expressed interest in investing up to $100 million in the ETF upon its launch. However, the filing clarifies that these expressions of interest are non-binding and do not guarantee the exact amount Pantera will ultimately invest.
The revised filing represents a crucial step in the approval process required before the spot Ether ETF can begin trading publicly. SEC Chair Gary Gensler has indicated expectations for the ETF to debut "sometime over the course of this summer," underscoring the anticipation and regulatory milestones involved in bringing such financial products to market.
Bitwise has launched its inaugural spot Ether exchange-traded fund (ETF) advertisement, offering enthusiasts the opportunity to mint the 39-second clip as a non-fungible token (NFT) on the Ethereum blockchain. The proceeds from these NFT mints will go to Protocol Guild, a funding mechanism established by Ethereum core contributors and the actors featured in the ad.
The commercial, styled around Ethereum's continuous operation compared to traditional finance's downtime, draws parallels reminiscent of Apple's iconic Mac vs. PC campaign from the early 2000s. It features a dialogue between a representative of Ethereum and a character symbolizing "Big Finance," portrayed as settling in for the night after managing global transactions worth billions.
BEVM, with support from Bitman, has launched a relay chain on the OP Stack that utilizes Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC) as gas, enhancing the interoperability between Ethereum and the BEVM network. This development aims to facilitate seamless asset transfers and establish a critical bridge for token movements, crucially supporting future compatibility with ZK-Rollup technology.
BEVM-Stack has initiated a testnet event to demonstrate these functionalities, marking a substantial advancement in transaction efficiency and utility expansion within decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystems. Leveraging WBTC's liquidity for gas payments underscores the initiative's strategic approach to enhancing transactional capabilities across blockchain networks.
Cosmos Highlights of the Week
DEGA has integrated with Injective, marking Injective's entry into the gaming sector. This collaboration introduces new opportunities for developers within the Injective ecosystem to create games. The integration includes cross-community events, airdrops of exclusive Elements & Characters, and other joint initiatives.
DEGA CEO Carlos Rene highlighted shared values of ease of use, financial inclusion, and AI between the two platforms. Injective, known for its Cosmos SDK-based Layer 1 blockchain, offers fast transaction speeds and modular dApp development capabilities. The partnership also sees the return of the Great Benediction on DEGA Elements, enhancing gaming innovation.
pSTAKE Finance has launched its Bitcoin Liquid Staking Testnet on Babylon Chain. Users can join the testnet using the invite code 'bitcoinyields' to deposit and withdraw testnet $BTC ($sBTC). Participants will receive extra points in an upcoming points program, set to be unveiled at the mainnet launch of Bitcoin Liquid Staking in the coming weeks.
The testnet introduces v1 of pSTAKE's BTC yield and liquid staking solution. Access is semi-public, requiring invite codes shared daily on pSTAKE's Telegram and Discord channels. Following the mainnet launch, pSTAKE aims to expand to include yield-generating BTC tokens and additional Bitcoin yield sources.
Osmosis DAO is poised to approve a proposal to integrate a "fee-free" bitcoin bridge using the Nomic decentralized bridging protocol. With 91.7% of votes in favor and 46.4% voter turnout, the proposal is set to pass. This integration aims to enhance bitcoin liquidity on Osmosis by allowing seamless bitcoin transfers into the Cosmos ecosystem for decentralized finance (DeFi) activities.
The initiative will eliminate the current 1% deposit fee and 0.5% transfer fee for transactions involving Osmosis, though a flat bitcoin miner fee may still apply to withdrawals to cover network transaction costs. The proposal also introduces a new revenue-sharing arrangement between Nomic and Osmosis, designed to replace the existing bridging costs and attract new liquidity to the platform.
Injective has integrated The Graph to enable robust access to on-chain Injective data, empowering developers to scale innovative decentralized applications (dApps). This collaboration allows Injective builders to leverage The Graph's powerful indexing solutions, including substreams and subgraphs, to efficiently and securely access blockchain data necessary for application development.
As the first IBC-compatible chain to utilize these tools, Injective sets a new standard for data accessibility and application development, making it easier for developers to create dynamic and responsive dApps through a global network of open APIs.
DAO DAO is poised to be the first app to utilize the permissioned CosmWasm, which will be added to the Cosmos Hub with the v18 upgrade expected around mid-July. This integration, developed in collaboration with ATOM Accelerator, aims to bring a suite of governance and organizational tools to the Cosmos ecosystem.
DAO DAO offers extensive capabilities for decentralized groups, including creating complex SubDAO hierarchies, managing cross-chain accounts, handling treasury operations, and enabling DAO-managed validators, all through an intuitive interface.The implementation of permissioned CosmWasm on the Cosmos Hub marks a significant step forward in enhancing operational efficiency and decision-making within the community.
Other Highlights of the Week
Former President Donald Trump has vowed to end President Joe Biden’s crackdown on cryptocurrency if re-elected, emphasizing his support for fostering America's crypto future, particularly in Florida. Speaking on his 78th birthday in West Palm Beach, Florida, Trump criticized Biden’s handling of the crypto industry, pledging to ensure its growth and innovation remain within the United States.
Trump's criticism of Biden’s approach to crypto isn't new; he previously lambasted Biden for what he views as detrimental policies towards the industry. Trump has positioned himself as a proponent of maintaining America’s leadership in the crypto sector, contrasting Biden’s alleged desire to diminish its prospects.
The National Taipei University of Technology (NTUT), also known as Taipei Tech, has forged a partnership with Tether to advance blockchain and digital asset education. This collaboration is aimed at enriching students' understanding and practical skills in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and stablecoins such as Tether's USDT.
The partnership emphasizes equipping students with comprehensive knowledge of blockchain technology and digital assets, preparing them for informed participation in this dynamic sector.
United States presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has promised to pardon Ross Ulbricht, the founder of Silk Road, if he is elected in November. Kennedy criticized the harshness of Ulbricht’s two life sentences for running the Silk Road e-commerce platform, calling for a more lenient approach.
He shared a petition demanding Ulbricht's release, highlighting his stance on criminal justice reform. Kennedy’s support for the cryptocurrency community is evident through his previous statements and actions. In 2023, he proposed backing the U.S. dollar with Bitcoin and eliminating capital gains tax on it.
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