The Ethereum network's revenue has reached $10 billion in seven years, but its decentralization is now threatened as it relies on only four relayers, raising concerns among investors about highly centralized operations. The transition to Proof-of-Stake and the lack of fees for relayers has contributed to this issue, prompting experts to suggest the activation of a relayer fee mechanism to address the problem.
Ripple has decided to back out of its acquisition of Fortress Trust, but will remain an investor in the company's parent company; the decision comes after a security incident involving a third-party analytics vendor resulted in a loss of $12-15 million.
PayPal has filed a patent application for a nonfungible token (NFT) purchase and transfer system that could handle fractionalization, decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs), and royalties through a third-party provider, potentially revolutionizing the music industry by tokenizing music royalties as NFTs.
Valkyrie Investments has become the first asset manager to win approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission to offer an exchange-traded fund (ETF) featuring Ethereum futures, paving the way for retail investors to bet on the future price of the cryptocurrency.
Gemini, a cryptocurrency exchange, refutes allegations that its co-founders secretly withdrew millions of dollars from the crypto bank Genesis, stating that the $282 million pulled was actually diverted to a liquidity reserve for the benefit of its customers, while accusing DCG and Genesis' CEO of planting the story in the New York Post.
Investors are expected to shift from traditional bond investments to Bitcoin as a hedge against US dollar debasement, according to Bloomberg Intelligence crypto market analyst Jamie Coutts.
The founder of FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried, may face a lengthy sentence if convicted at his upcoming fraud trial, according to the judge overseeing the case. The judge denied Bankman-Fried's request to be released from jail temporarily during the trial, stating that he is a flight risk. Bankman-Fried is facing seven counts of fraud and conspiracy related to FTX's collapse and could potentially receive a maximum sentence of 110 years in prison.
Epic Games, the creator of Fortnite, is laying off approximately 16% of its staff due to financial difficulties caused by overspending and a decrease in income from its creator content revenue-sharing model.
Despite the prevalence of private blockchains in the banking sector, the co-founder of Chainlink predicts that public blockchain protocols will ultimately become the biggest market for banks' tokenized real-world assets, as they offer diversified collateral and attractive yields. However, financial institutions in the US may proceed with caution due to regulatory uncertainty. On the other hand, European and Asian banks are progressing in this area, with companies such as Citi and JPMorgan exploring tokenization on public blockchains like Ethereum. Franklin Templeton has also embraced public blockchains, recognizing their cost efficiency and rate of innovation. Interoperability and cross-border liquidity are key considerations for banks as they adopt tokenization and explore ways to move assets across chains.
Startup IYK has raised $16.8 million in seed funding to expand its infrastructure for NFT-driven apparel and launched a platform to automate the process for brands to add digital elements to their products, allowing consumers to scan items and access tokenized certificates of authenticity and digital content.
Bitcoin (BTC) reached new weekly highs as markets anticipated news from the US Federal Reserve, with BTC reacting positively to US macroeconomic data and approaching the $27,000 mark, while traders remained cautious about potential volatility and resistance levels.
dYdX, a decentralized perpetual-swap exchange, has gained user adoption among professional traders for three main reasons: transparency, regulatory arbitrage, and cheaper trades, and its upcoming version four (v4) release aims to further enhance its market position with features such as permissionless market pairs and fee distributions to token holders.
CoinDesk, a leading news outlet on cryptocurrency and digital assets, has updated its privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and personal information policies, while also disclosing that some of its employees may receive exposure to equity in Digital Currency Group, its parent company.
Cryptocurrency exchange Gemini has responded to allegations that the Winklevoss twins withdrew $282 million from Genesis Global Capital, stating that the funds were from its Earn users and not their own personal or corporate funds.
Former FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried will remain in jail for the duration of his trial, as a federal judge ruled that he has had enough time to review material in preparation for the trial.
Crypto strategist Kaleo predicts a significant drop in the value of Pepe (PEPE), a Dogecoin rival, indicating that it could dip by more than 16% and revisit its previous level.
The "boy math" trend has emerged on social media, with men using exaggerated calculations to justify their actions or beliefs, including in the world of cryptocurrency, although the reality is that crypto is not exclusive to men, as an increasing number of women are investing in the digital assets.
Bitcoin lending firm Ledn is launching an Ethereum yield product in response to user demand for an alternative to manually staking Ether.
FTX creditors are expected to receive a significantly higher payout after the recovery of over $7 billion in assets, including a stake in Anthropic and the potential restart of the exchange, boosting the bankruptcy claims market.
The Ethereum Merge, which transformed Ethereum from a proof-of-work asset to a proof-of-stake asset, has made staking an attractive option for holders as it allows them to generate returns and weather bear markets, with the recent State of Staking report showing total staking rewards for all cryptocurrencies at $5 billion on an annualized basis during Q2 2023. Additionally, the implementation of the Shapella upgrade has removed barriers to entry and enabled holders to withdraw their staking rewards, leading to a net inflow of over 7.5 million ETH into staking. Despite some challenges such as long queues and increased strain on the network, staking on Ethereum continues to grow in popularity and play a pivotal role in the network's future.
Crypto exchange Coinbase has received approval from the Bermuda Monetary Authority to offer perpetual futures contracts to non-U.S. retail customers, a move that aligns with its strategy to collaborate with regulatory authorities and shape the global legal framework for cryptocurrencies.
Coinbase and a group of crypto entrepreneurs visited Washington, D.C. to persuade lawmakers to establish clear regulations for the cryptocurrency industry.
Coinbase International Exchange, the Bermuda-based subsidiary of Coinbase, has received regulatory approval to offer perpetual futures trading to non-US retail customers, providing them access to the derivatives market dominated by institutions.
Universal Pictures and Aptos Labs are partnering to create a digital fan experience for the upcoming release of "The Exorcist: Believer," allowing horror fans to immerse themselves in the movie with exclusive artwork, behind-the-scenes footage, and an Exorcist-themed augmented reality filter.
Major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and XRP are anticipating a potential surge in price due to a "worst-case" scenario from the Federal Reserve, according to JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon.
Ethereum developers successfully launched the Holesky test network on their second attempt, which will serve as a testing ground for scaling plans and address supply issues, allowing for double the number of validators compared to the main Ethereum blockchain.
The trial of Sam Bankman-Fried, founder of FTX and Alameda Research, could have significant consequences for the entire crypto industry depending on the evidence presented, potentially further damaging its already tarnished reputation. Bankman-Fried is facing multiple criminal charges, including wire fraud and conspiracy, and the trial may expose fraudulent practices within the industry along with exposing the involvement of others. The trial may also reveal damaging information about Bankman-Fried's conduct and intentions, potentially causing collateral damage for individuals and companies associated with him.
Changpeng Zhao, CEO of Binance, denied being the owner of CommEX, the company that acquired Binance's business in Russia, following reports of a US Department of Justice investigation into sanctions violations; caution is signaled to bulls as the number of MKR tokens held in centralized exchanges has increased by 5%, potentially leading to price volatility; the European Commission has issued a contract seeking to mitigate the environmental impact of cryptocurrencies; credit card default rates have increased, suggesting decreased demand for risky assets like cryptocurrencies.
Bitcoin is on the verge of reaching levels that offer accumulation opportunities and could potentially start an uptrend, according to crypto trader Michaël van de Poppe, who compares the current price action to that of a pre-halving year.
Europe is seen as a favorable environment for the cryptocurrency ecosystem due to its regulatory clarity and adoption by institutional players, in contrast to the uncertain regulatory landscape in the United States.
Investors could find compelling investment opportunities in the bitcoin mining space, with potentially higher returns than investing directly in bitcoin, by buying discounted and diversified portfolios of publicly listed bitcoin mining companies, according to a report by Matrixport.
Story Protocol is a blockchain-based digital repository that allows fans to contribute to the creation and evolution of movies, books, games, and music, offering a potential solution for copyright holders looking to protect their content from artificial intelligence.
Bitcoin miners are experiencing increased profitability due to ordinal inscriptions, but research indicates that the upcoming block subsidy halving could have a severe impact on their income.
The U.S. SEC has extended the deadline for approving Ethereum spot exchange-traded fund (ETF) applications by Ark Invest and VanEck to December 26, 2023, while optimism remains high for the approval of a futures-based ETH product next week.
Ibiza, known for its nightlife and electronic music festivals, is embracing blockchain and crypto technologies to revolutionize its nightlife scene, introducing cashless payments, loyalty programs, and immersive experiences through partnerships with platforms like KlubCoin, making it a model example for other cities around the world.
The Bank for International Settlements, along with the central banks of France, Singapore, and Switzerland, successfully tested cross-border trading of wholesale central bank digital currencies (wCBDC) as part of Project Mariana, using a common token standard on a public blockchain to facilitate interoperability and seamless exchange of wCBDC.
Bitcoin and ether have seen little change in the past 24 hours as both spot and futures markets experience fading volumes, with cryptocurrencies needing financial chaos for sustainable growth momentum.
PayPal's stablecoin, backed by the US dollar, has become available on the Crypto.com exchange, which now holds the deepest liquidity for trading pairs with the PayPal USD (PYUSD) stablecoin globally.
The Bank for International Settlements (BIS), along with the central banks of France, Singapore, and Switzerland, successfully tested the cross-border trading and settlement of wholesale CBDCs using decentralized finance (DeFi) technology concepts on a public blockchain under a project called Mariana.
Bitcoin's recent price stability around the 0.236 Fib line suggests a potential crash to $21,500, similar to the 2018 price correction, while a strong US dollar and mixed on-chain metrics add to downside risks; analysts are divided on BTC's future direction.
Brazil's central bank has observed a significant increase in crypto adoption in the country, leading to plans to tighten digital asset regulations, as imports of crypto rose by 44.2% from January to August 2023 compared to the previous year.
The recent hack on various decentralized platforms has revived the debate on the true meaning of decentralization in the crypto industry, with some claiming that the term is often used as a buzzword to attract capital rather than being implemented in practice. The co-founder of Chainlink, Sergey Nazarov, emphasizes that true decentralization serves as a security mechanism and highlights the importance of security, censorship resistance, and transparency as key goals. However, decentralization is a spectrum, and there are concerns about the extent of decentralization in protocols like Ethereum, which has faced criticism due to the presence of VCs and threats to overall decentralization. Nazarov believes that the industry needs to move beyond buzzwords and focus on building systems that offer proper security and reliability, while individuals need to become more educated consumers.
PEPE Coin has outperformed other meme coins, such as Dogecoin and Shiba Inu, in terms of price gains, with a 4% increase in the last 24 hours and a 17% surge in the last seven days, although the exact reason for its sudden surge is unclear.
Binance urges European users to convert their euros to Tether (USDT) following the loss of support from its banking partner.
SEC Chair Gary Gensler faces criticism from lawmakers, including accusations of kneecapping capital markets and calls for his firing, during a congressional hearing on market oversight, while also dodging questions about Bitcoin and Pokemon cards.
Shiba Inu (SHIB) experienced a 1000% increase in burn rate as 164 million tokens were permanently removed from circulation, suggesting the emergence of new whales in the market. Meanwhile, the Shiba Inu development team is nearing completion of the minting process for the remaining BONE supply, with rewards shifting to a new token named "TREAT".
The launch of Ethereum futures ETFs in the U.S. may be expedited due to the possibility of a government shutdown, with analysts suggesting that trading could begin as early as next week.
Major cryptocurrencies experienced an uptick in price following a statement from the SEC Chair expressing concerns about how cryptocurrency companies handle customer funds.
Terraform Labs co-founder, Do Kwon, has requested a federal court to reject the SEC's request to question him in the US, citing his detainment in Montenegro and the inconsistency with his right to due process.
Despite nine months passing since Logan Paul promised to refund $1.8M to those affected by his CryptoZoo project, he has only recently provided a vague update, claiming they are "close to a resolution."