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- Bitcoin, Ethereum, Cosmos and more Week 43 2023
Bitcoin, Ethereum, Cosmos and more Week 43 2023
Keeping you updated on crypto, web3 and blockchain
TLDR: Mastercard and MoonPay Team Up, BlackRock iShares ETF Listed on Nasdaq, POL Live on Ethereum Mainnet, BlockFi Re-emerges, dYdX Launches Own Chain, Osmosis Introduces Pipette, SBF Takes to the Stand & Uniswap Visa Card Proposal.
This week’s newsletter is sponsored by Amulet Finance:
Amulet Finance is a pioneering non-custodial lending protocol designed to power DeFi on Cosmos. Launching on Neutron in 2023, Amulet will empower users to access the value in staking rewards and other forms of yield upfront with self-repaying loans.
Starting with ATOM, users will be able to stake ATOM on Cosmos via smart contracts operating cross-chain from Neutron and obtain an Advance on their future staking rewards in a matching synthetic, “amATOM”.
By enabling loans against a variety of assets deployed on a range of strategies, Amulet is designed to release value for users and increase liquidity across Cosmos.
Bitcoin Highlights of the Week
The United Kingdom passes legislation that enable authorities to seize Bitcoin used for illicit and criminal purposes, namely the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill. With this bill passing, it will enable UK authorities to double down on the use of cryptocurrency in crimes like cybercrime, scams and drug trafficking.
Global financial giant Mastercard take one step further into the world of cryptocurrency as they announced a new collaboration with crypto payment platform MoonPay. With this collab, Mastercard will advance with their services into Web3 with the channels already estabilished by MoonPay.
The SEC and asset manager Hashdex have a sit down due to their Bitcoin ETF application. The SEC has raised concerns to Hashdex because of their wish to offer spot Bitcoins for their users.
BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF has been listed on a Nasdaq trade clearing firm, Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC). The iShares Bitcoin ETF will be traded under ticker $IBTC.
Crypto exchange Coinbase discarded rumors that circled in the crypto community, that a withdrawal limit on Bitcoin of $5,000 per week was in place. Coinbase has then confirmed, that currently there are no withdrawal limits on Bitcoin.
Ethereum Highlights of the Week
Polygon 2.0 reach a major milestone as the POL token goes live on Ethereum Mainnet. POL is a next-gen hyperproductive token which is designed to power a vast ecosystem of zero knowledge-based Layer 2 chains via a native re-staking protocol.
BlockFi, who recently went bankrupt, has risen from its ashes and is again firing on all cylinders. With BlockFi back in the game, they have announced the ‘Plan’ in which clients are paid back their funds which where lost due to FTX’s collapse.
A new liquid staking protocol sees the light of day in the Ethereum ecosystem. With Leequid Staking Protocol, users get an user-friendly, no-technical experience interphase to get started staking their crypto. Leequid is built on Lukso, a layer-1 blockchain focused on improving the UX within Web3.
Base Layer-2 Network Code Goes Open Source
In a recent move towards greater transparency and collaboration, the Base network has decided to open source its code repositories and smart contracts, reinforcing its commitment to a transparent and community-driven development approach.
Uniswap’s Fee Addition
In a significant move that has sent shockwaves through the world of decentralized finance (DeFi), Uniswap Labs recently activated a game-changing fee switch on selected frontends. Uniswap, the largest and most structurally important decentralized exchange, implemented this fee with remarkable results, raking in $120,000 in its first 48 hours.
Cosmos Highlights of the Week
Secret Network introduces their development roadmap for 2024 which feature plans to increase interoperability with EVM chains, integrate additional cryptographic technologies, and overall position Secret as a leader in web3 confidentiality.
With the foundation of Interchain Stack, dYdX becomes the largest on-chain DEX on Cosmos. With this stable, dYdX fuels the next generation of decentralized exchanges in Web3.
Osmosis, the cutting edge cross-chain, introduces Pipette which is a liquidity and bridging hub for TIA and the modular ecosystem. With this introduction, Osmosis will utilize Hyperlane’s ‘cw-hyperlane’ for CosmWasm implementation and allow said bridge to the modular ecosystem.
Celestia integrates with Arbitrum Orbit and the full Nitro stack so developers can deploy high-throughput via the Orbit chain with seamlessly smart contracts by using Celestia as modular DA. This integration, is the first external contribution to the Arbitrum Orbit protocol layer, and the first modular DA layer for Orbit.
The Cosmos Hub Proposal #839 opened for voting which proposes the funding of the 2024 hub development by Informal Systems and Hypha. If the vote passes, Informal and Hypha are to cover an array of improvements, such as; maintenance and perfection of the Interchain Security protocol, mantenance of the Cosmos Hub Gaia core software and improvements to the testnet program for the Hub and consumer chains and many more.
Other Highlights of the Week
Relai, Switzerlands only Bitcoin app, announced its integration of Lightning which will allow its users to sign up for the beta and stack sats through self custodial Lighting using Breeze SDK.
SBF took to the stand testifying in the ongoing lawsuit of the FTX collapse. In his testimony, he proclaimed he did not fraud anyone, and the bankruptcy of FTX was due to poor management and advisory.
A governance proposal from Fiat 24 bank about issuing a Uniswap Visa card with the unicorn logo is facing opposition so far, with majority of token holders voting no. The proposal was initiated by Fiat24, a Swiss bank that operates solely on the Arbitrum blockchain. The bank proposed to release a co-branded Visa debit card with Uniswap.
This week’s newsletter is sponsored by Black Jack:
Black Jack is an exciting card shedding game of both skill and chance - It's highly volatile, where circumstances can change in only a few turns!
You can play casually with your friends or strangers, or you can compete in the regular tournaments to win cash prizes every match, and even win bigger tournament prizes if you top the leaderboard!
To get started, follow these simple steps:
1. Visit the Black Jack dApp here
2. Setup an alias and viewing key - use the wiki page for any help
3. Head to settings, and reserve your free username with our Referral Code: COSMOS_CLUB
4. Start playing and win cash prizes!
In Black Jack there are both singleplayer and multiplayer options. Singleplayer is great for beginners to familiarise with the game, while multiplayer offers a wide range of choices:
Reserve a private game just for you and your friends
Play friendly public matches with strangers online
Compete in tournaments for cash prizes, and even move up the leaderboard to get the tournament prize and any additional special prizes.
Black Jack is compatible with web and mobile wallets Keplr, Leap, Fina and MetaMask. Just visit via web or your mobile wallet's browser.
Easter egg 🥚: if you stake 100 SCRT with AART's validator, all non tournament games will automatically become free to enter, and you also gain an extra 10% from cash prizes. You can activate this promotion in the settings!
This week’s newsletter is sponsored by Everstake:
Everstake is a responsible validator trusted by 625k+ users across 70+ blockchain networks. Created by engineers for the entire community in 2018 with the purpose of bringing staking rewards to the crypto community. Get started staking your SOL ETH INJ POL ATOM below with following unique promos:
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