Headlines
Scroll may hint at upcoming airdrops
Scroll released a video on the X platform. The video showed multiple scrolls falling. The words Scroll.Soon. appeared at the end of the video, which may imply an upcoming airdrop.
Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers said the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy is not as tight as investors may think, which makes the market more vulnerable to entering bubble territory. In an interview with Bloomberg on Saturday, Summers said the U.S. economy remains strong, employment is good, and economic growth remains resilient. This surprised some Wall Street giants such as JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon and Bridgewater founder Ray Dalio, who had previously predicted that the economy would fall into recession as the Fed began to fight inflation. But Summers pointed out that a strong U.S. economy could actually be bad news for U.S. stocks because it suggests that the Fed’s monetary policy is not as tight as the market thinks. Summers warned that the probability of the Fed not cutting interest rates in 2024 may have increased slightly to more than 15%, which is bearish for U.S. stocks. (Jinshi)
Bitcoin network computing power surges to 804 EH/s, a record high
According to HOD L1 5 Capital monitoring, the Bitcoin network computing power has reached 804 EH/s, and the mining difficulty has increased to 89.47 T, a record high.
Industry News
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced on its official website that Galois Capital misled fund investors about the notice period required for redemptions. In order to settle, Galois agreed to pay a civil penalty of $225,000, which will be distributed to the damaged investors of its funds.
Galois Capital violated the custody rules of the Investment Advisers Act by failing to insure certain crypto assets held by the private funds it advised beginning in July 2022. Galois Capital held certain crypto assets in online trading accounts at crypto asset trading platforms, including FTX Trading Ltd., that were not qualified custodians, and from early to mid-November 2022, approximately half of the assets under management of the fund were lost due to the collapse of FTX.
Market News: Venezuelan President says “must return to the crypto world”
According to Bitcoin Magazine, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said we must return to the world of cryptocurrency.
The Peoples Court Daily published an article entitled The Judicial Disposal of Virtual Currency Must Be Standardized, which pointed out that the standardization of the judicial disposal of virtual currency is crucial to maintaining financial stability and promoting the healthy development of the market. According to statistics from the SAFEIS Security Research Institute, the total number of virtual currency crime cases in China in 2023 was 428, a decrease of 88.9% from 2022, but the amount involved increased sharply to 430.719 billion yuan, about 12.36 times that of 2022.
The article emphasizes that the current disposal of virtual currencies faces multiple challenges such as ownership identification, value assessment and legal realization. To address these issues, it is recommended to issue comprehensive guidance on the judicial disposal of virtual currencies as soon as possible to clarify its legal status, compliance requirements, asset disposal procedures and legal responsibilities.
At the same time, the article calls for strengthening international cooperation to jointly respond to the global challenges brought by virtual currencies and lay a legal foundation for the development of the digital economy and digital finance.
South Koreas Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) announced that it will conduct its first inspection of virtual asset service providers, the first action since the implementation of the Virtual Asset User Protection Act in July. The FSS plans to inspect six institutions, including two won market exchanges, three token market exchanges, and one wallet/custodian service provider. It is worth noting that two of the major won market trading platforms, including Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Gopax, and Korbit, will be selected for inspection.
The inspection focuses on compliance with regulations, user protection systems, internal control mechanisms, and unfair trading supervision. FSS will review aspects such as user asset management, cold wallet use, insurance and reserve status, transaction record maintenance, and abnormal transaction monitoring systems. For illegal acts, FSS said it will impose strict sanctions to maintain market order, while supporting operators to strengthen self-regulation.
Project News
Binance plans to launch Solana’s liquidity staking token BNSOL by the end of September
Binance plans to launch a Solana (SOL) staking product by the end of September, according to an announcement on Tuesday.
The tool, called BNSOL, will allow users to stake SOL tokens to receive a portion of the fees paid by the network and mint a liquidity staking token that can be used while those underlying tokens are locked. “Unlike native staking, BNSOL allows users to unlock liquidity, enjoy ongoing reward accumulation, and seamlessly participate in the Binance platform and the broader DeFi ecosystem, making it an ideal solution for those looking to maximize the potential of their staked Solana tokens,” said Vishal Sacheendran, Binance’s head of regional markets, in the statement.
Binance is programming a “dynamic annualized rate of return” (APR) for these tokens, which will be adjusted based on current Solana staking returns and follow a commission rate related to the amount of accrued rewards and the value of BNSOL relative to SOL. Users will be subject to a redemption waiting period when redeeming their tokens. Binance will officially announce the launch of the protocol later this month. (TheBlock)
Sky: Starting September 18, eligible users can upgrade DAI to USDS at a 1:1 ratio
Sky Ecosystem announced on the X platform that starting from September 18, eligible users can upgrade DAI to USDS at a 1:1 ratio, or exchange supported cryptocurrencies for USDS.
USDS is a decentralized stablecoin with native rewards that unlocks access to Sky Token rewards in the form of SKY Tokens and Sky Savings Rate.
ZKsync developer Matter Labs announces 16% layoffs, first layoffs in six years
Matter Labs, the company behind ZKsync, announced that it will lay off 16% of its staff, or 24 employees. This is reportedly the first layoff since the company was founded six years ago. It is also part of Matter Labs entry into the next stage of decentralization, which requires honing the right roles that need to be in place to ensure that the company has the right roles and people to effectively accomplish its mission. Matter Labs CEO Alex Gluchowski clarified that the decision to lay off employees was not due to the companys financial situation and that the company still plans to make strategic hires. (Blockworks)
On September 3, only 2 wallet addresses bridged funds to the ZKsync network
According to Dune data, on September 3, only 2 wallet addresses bridged funds into ZKsync, with a value of 0.01 ETH, a significant drop from before. Previously, on August 17, 2023, the ZKsync network set a record of 5,618 wallet addresses bridged funds to ZKsync in a single day, with a cross-bridge amount of 37,986 ETH.
Yesterday, ZKsync development company Matter Labs announced that it would lay off 16% of its employees, a total of 24 people.
Uniswap Labs: UniswapX mobile app and extension now live
Uniswap Labs announced the launch of the UniswapX mobile app and extension on the X platform. UniswapX uses a network of fillers to obtain liquidity outside the Uniswap protocol.
Lombard will launch a public beta application, allowing users to mint LBTC
Lombard posted on the X platform that it will launch a public Beta version of the application at 19:00 on September 3. Eligible users can enter the invitation code to obtain Lombard early experience qualifications and pledge BTC to obtain LBTC. Lombard currently supports OKX wallet, Xverse and Bitget wallet to mint LBTC.
CryptoKitties announces All The Zen Telegram game
CryptoKitties posted a message on the X platform, announcing the launch of a new Telegram mini-game: All The Zen. The project has now opened a Telegram channel, and users can join it to get on the waitlist. Previously, CryptoKitties launched the Egg series of NFTs, and the floor price once exceeded 0.3 ETH.
OKX changes HMSTR pre-market trading settlement date to September 26
OKX announced that it will modify the settlement time of HMSTR pre-market trading. HMSTR pre-market contracts will be settled 3 hours after the spot market goes online. Previously, OKX stated that it will officially settle HMSTR/USDT pre-market trading on September 25 and launch Hamster Kombat (HMSTR) on September 26.
Character*Voice
Arthur Hayes: Short-term bearish, but won’t sell cryptocurrencies
Arthur Hayes, co-founder of BitMEX, wrote on the X platform that although the Federal Reserve has been trying to curb inflation by continuously raising interest rates since 2022, the governments huge fiscal spending is still the main reason for high inflation. Hayes believes that due to political pressure and the election cycle, it is difficult for the government to significantly cut spending or increase taxes, which will cause the US economy to continue to hover under the dual pressure of inflation and growth. Faced with this situation, the Federal Reserve may no longer raise interest rates further, and the market itself may respond to high debt financing costs by adjusting interest rates. The 10-year US Treasury yield may climb to 5% again, triggering a new round of fluctuations in the financial market.
In addition, Hayes also suggested that U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen may respond to market instability by issuing more short-term Treasury bonds (T-bills) and adjusting fiscal policies, aiming to increase market liquidity to prevent the financial system from getting into trouble due to rising debt costs. Hayes predicts that these measures will have an important impact on risky assets, including cryptocurrencies. Once the U.S. Treasury Department sends a signal of increasing liquidity, the cryptocurrency market may usher in new opportunities for growth. Especially as global central bank policies continue to swing, crypto assets are expected to become the main choice for investors seeking hedging and risk aversion. Hayes emphasized that although Bitcoin prices may fluctuate in the short term due to liquidity tightening, in the long run, as liquidity is re-injected into the market, the bull market in cryptocurrencies is expected to restart.
“My shift in perspective has kept my hand hovering over the buy button,” Hayes said. “I am not selling crypto because of short-term bearishness. As I explained, my bearishness is only temporary.”
Tom Lee, co-founder and head of research at Fundstrat, expects some turbulence in the stock market over the next eight weeks, though he expects pullbacks could be buying opportunities for investors. “The next thing you have is the September Fed meeting, the U.S. election, and those things are going to make people nervous,” Lee told CNBC’s “SquawkBox Europe” on Tuesday. “I think investors should be cautious over the next eight weeks.”
However, he continued, I think there are opportunities for people to buy over the next eight weeks. That is, it is good to be cautious, but also be prepared to buy on dips. According to CMEs Fed Watch tool, the market is pricing in a 67% chance of a 25 basis point rate cut by the Fed in September, while others see a 50 basis point cut. (Jinshi)
Andrei Grachev, partner of DWF Labs, wrote on the X platform that FTXs repayment of claims may stimulate the release of a considerable amount of retail funds in the fourth quarter, and the battle to attract retail investors to deposit funds into certain products and buy certain tokens should begin soon.
Justin Sun posted on the X platform that regarding the issue of SunPumps revenue repurchase and destruction, the community previously suggested destroying the liquidity LP tokens because this method is adopted by mainstream Meme tokens such as SHIB. Destroying LP tokens has several advantages, including increasing the depth of token liquidity, making the destroyed liquidity still available, and being more in line with regulatory requirements. However, many community members do not fully understand the destruction mechanism of LP tokens, which can easily lead to misunderstandings.
After discussion, the community agreed to adopt a better approach, that is, SunPump revenue is returned to the community directly through a 100% on-chain repurchase and destruction process. This method is easier to verify, and all fund destruction is recorded on the chain.
Blum CEO: 50% of Telegram Click-to-earn players are new to cryptocurrencies
Gleb Kostarev, former Binance VP and regional head and Blum CEO, said at the Korea Blockchain Week that about half of the tap-to-earn game players on Telegram are new to cryptocurrencies. Kostarev now operates the Telegram Mini App game and exchange Blum, which has 50 million registered users, about 50% of whom have never been exposed to Web3 before. He emphasized that these users are real and can be converted into Web3 users.
Kostarev believes that education is key because it is not enough to just bring in a large number of users, they also need to be taught how to use it and prevent scams. He also pointed out that Telegram can help increase access to decentralized finance (DeFi) applications, which are currently hindered by Apple and Googles restrictive mobile application policies. Apples App Store and Googles Play Store have a lot of problems with DeFi and NFTs.
Self Chain founder: Increasing token supply aims to strengthen network security
In response to the recent community concern about the increase in token supply, Self Chain founder and CEO Ravindra Kumar posted a message on the X platform to respond to the doubts and FUD faced by the project after migrating from FRONT to SLF.
Kumar emphasized that Self Chain was not taken over by a new team, but the original team was strategically reshaped, expanding from a wallet project to a Layer 1 blockchain based on Cosmos-SDK. Regarding the increase in token supply, Kumar explained the distribution of the 360 million total supply: 36 million are permanently locked for foundation nodes, 90 million are migrated from FRONT to SLF, 10 million are allocated to new investors as validators (18 months lock-up period), 36 million are allocated to equity investors (36 months lock-up period), 30 million are allocated to the core team (6 years lock-up period), and 68 million are used for the ecosystem (1.5 million are released per month). Kumar said that the increase in supply is aimed at strengthening network security, preventing 51% attacks, and attracting more investors and validators to participate.
Helius CEO: Solana ABI issues are out of control, but no one cares
Mert Mumtaz, CEO of Solana ecosystem development platform Helius, posted on the X platform that Solana ABI (cluster binary interface) issues have gotten out of control. Unreadable browsers, inconsistent statistics, and constantly broken ecosystem integration (wallet history, contract calls) have resulted. Can anyone help me understand why no one seems to care about these? Multicoin Capital partner KyleSamani replied in the comment section: There is no profit drive.
Investment and Financing
Web3 security company Hypernative completes $16 million Series A financing, led by Quantstamp
Web3 security company Hypernative announced the completion of a $16 million Series A financing round, led by Quantstamp, with participation from Bloccelerate VC, Boldstart Ventures, Borderless Capital, CMT Digital, IBI Tech Fund, Re 7 Capital, etc. Hypernative co-founder and CEO Gal Sagie revealed that the company started its Series A financing earlier this year and completed the financing in mid-2024. As of now, Hypernatives total financing has reached $27 million. (TheBlock)
Blockchain gaming platform Yooldo announced the completion of a new round of financing. Consensys participated in the investment through its Linea Ecosystem Investment Alliance. The specific amount and valuation information have not been disclosed yet. The new funds will be used to promote its integration of Web3 games into the Linea ecosystem.
According to previous news, Yooldo completed a US$1.5 million investment in February this year. Investors at the time included Bedrock Ventures, Double jump.tokyo, Edimus, Hyperithm, Klaytn Foundation, Manta Network, Neopin, Planetarium, Presto Labs, Vista Labs, etc.
P2E gaming platform CryptoHunter World announced the completion of a $2.8 million private round of financing, with participation from IOST, HG Ventures, Mindfulness Capital, Bigcandle Capital, Web3 Wave and Layer-OTC. The new funds will support its construction of blockchain RPG games. The project uses GPS technology to provide gaming experience and allows players to own game assets on the chain. It is reported that the project plans to release a closed beta test between September and October. (streetinsider)
UXLINK Announces Strategic Investment from Animoca Brands
According to official news, UXLINK announced that it has received strategic investment from Animoca Brands. UXLINK will work closely with Animocas investment portfolio to accelerate user growth and ecosystem construction.
Layer 2 blockchain solution provider Kroma completes Series A financing
Layer 2 blockchain solution provider Kroma announced the completion of its Series A financing, with Asia Advisors Korea, Gate Ventures, ICC Venture, Planetarium, Presto, RFD Capital, Taisu Ventures, The Spartan Group, Waterdrip Capital and others participating. Specific financing and valuation information has not yet been disclosed. Kroma, built on OP Stack, currently launches native account abstraction (AA) in the Superchain ecosystem to provide a seamless Web3 gaming experience.
It is reported that Kroma has recently completed the adjustment of its equity structure, and the new funds are intended to be used to promote Kromas infrastructure construction and enhance L2 solutions, with a focus on expanding its functions and strengthening platform development.
AI companion platform Nectar AI officially announced on X platform that it has completed a $3.9 million seed round of financing led by @MechanismCap and Karatage, with participation from Synergis, Maelstrom (Arthur Hayes family office), Builder Capital, Baboon and Decima, and angel investors including Tekin Salimi and George Lambeth (Dao 5), Albert Chon (Injective co-founder), Charles Lu (Espresso Systems co-founder), Gabby Dizon (YGG co-founder). It is understood that the project aims to build an uncensored immersive AI companion.
Security incidents
Pendle posted on the X platform that “after a thorough investigation, we can confirm that the funds on Pendle remain safe.
The team discovered a security vulnerability in Penpie, an independent protocol built on top of Pendle. As a precautionary measure, Pendle has temporarily suspended all contract operations and will maintain close communication with the Penpie team to actively assist Penpie in resolving this issue as soon as possible.
Earlier news said that the Penpie reward protocol was attacked, with losses worth approximately US$27 million.
SunPump issued an announcement to remind the community to be wary of fake SunPump accounts
SunPump issued an announcement to remind the community to be wary of fake SunPump accounts. It is said that a large number of fake accounts claiming to be the official SunPump team have appeared on Telegram and X (formerly Twitter). In order to ensure the safety of assets, users should carefully verify the source of information, be wary of any information from unofficial sources, and only rely on updates from official SunPump channels. They should also avoid granting wallet authorization on unfamiliar platforms to protect themselves from fraud and potential losses.
