| Report: Stablecoin market expected to reach $2.8 trillion within the next 5 years; Microsoft partners with Aptos (August 10th)
Headlines
Report: Stablecoin Market Size to Grow to $2.8 Trillion within 5 Years
Bernstein, the Wall Street investment bank, stated in a research report on Wednesday that the stablecoin market is expected to grow from the current $125 billion to $2.8 trillion in tokenized digital currency within the next five years. The report notes that integration with consumer platforms will lead to a "growth spiral" for stablecoins, enabling them to attract users and expand beyond native blockchain platforms.
Industry News
Microsoft Partners with Aptos to Explore Digital Payments and Tokenization
Aptos Labs announced a new partnership with the tech giant Microsoft. In addition to exploring "innovative solutions" related to asset tokenization, digital payments, and central bank digital currencies, Aptos will also leverage Microsoft's Azure OpenAI services.
The two companies said in a statement that the initial focus of their collaboration is to use Microsoft's AI capabilities to simplify the process of onboarding users into Web 3 and assist "developers in building smart contracts and decentralized applications".
Using Microsoft's AI technology, Aptos plans to introduce Aptos Assistant, a "user-friendly and secure" digital assistant that can answer questions about the Aptos blockchain.
Federal Reserve to Strengthen Bank Cryptocurrency Enforcement and Oversight
The Federal Reserve has announced plans to strengthen oversight of banks engaging in digital asset and blockchain technology activities under its supervision.
National banks in the United States must obtain approval from the Federal Reserve before issuing, holding, or trading dollar tokens, and they must demonstrate they have adequate safeguards and controls in place to mitigate risks, including liquidity, cybersecurity, and illicit finance risks. They must also demonstrate the ability to monitor these issues on an ongoing basis.
Banks should provide notice to the Federal Reserve before engaging in activities and wait for a "non-objection letter" before proceeding.
FTX Former Executive Ryan Salame Negotiating Guilty Plea with Prosecutors
Former Co-CEO of FTX Digital Markets, Ryan Salame, is negotiating a guilty plea with prosecutors, admitting to criminal charges following the collapse of FTX. According to sources, this Republican mega-donor may plead next month to charges including campaign finance violations.
It is currently unclear whether he will sign a cooperation agreement with prosecutors and testify against SBF. Earlier, Gary Wang, Caroline Ellison, and Nishad Singh have already pleaded guilty and are expected to be key witnesses in the U.S. government's case against SBF.
Temasek, Sequoia Capital, SoftBank, and 18 other FTX investment institutions have been named as defendants in a class-action lawsuit filed in Miami due to their association with now-bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX.
The plaintiffs allege that these investment firms are responsible for "aiding and abetting" FTX fraud. They pointed out that FTX cryptocurrency exchange violated multiple securities laws and embezzled customer funds, while the defendants claim to have conducted due diligence.
Maple Finance Tokenizes Short-Term Treasury Bills, Receives SEC Exemption, Opens to U.S. Investors
DeFi lending protocol Maple Finance announced on Wednesday that it has opened its cash pool supported by tokenized short-term treasury bills (T-bills) to U.S. investors. Maple has obtained an exemption under Regulation D Rule 506(c) from the U.S. SEC. Previously, only non-U.S. entities could access Maple's cash pool.
Maple's cash management pool allows accredited investors, companies, and DAOs to deposit their idle USDC and USDT into a one-month U.S. Treasury bond and earn an annual yield of 4-5%. Since its launch in April, the pool has attracted $22 million in deposits.
According to data from the real-world asset data platform RWA.wyz, the market size of tokenized short-term government bonds has grown six-fold this year, reaching nearly $700 million.
Non-profit organization Better Markets states in their submitted letter that the U.S. SEC should reject recent applications for a large number of spot Bitcoin ETFs because it is concerned about potential harm to investors.
Better Markets' Director of Law and Securities Expert Stephen Hall stated in a statement on Wednesday that the cryptocurrency industry has suffered trillions of dollars in losses, multiple enforcement actions, bankruptcies, lawsuits, and criminal prosecutions.
Hall explained, "At the same time, the primary beneficiaries of the cryptocurrency frenzy are criminals who use cryptocurrency for ransomware, money laundering, and various illegal activities. It is in this context that the U.S. SEC must evaluate the latest wave of Bitcoin ETF applications this month."
Data Changes
Coinglass data shows that yesterday CEX Bitcoin futures open interest increased by $1 billion, the largest daily increase in a month. Meanwhile, the open interest in Bitcoin futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) did not show significant fluctuations, proving that the aforementioned volatility was primarily driven by retail investors.
Exchange data shows that the rise in Bitcoin is also reflected in active spot trading, most notably on Binance, while trading activity on Coinbase is relatively subdued.
Data: ETH Staking Volume Hits All-Time High, Over 27.12 Million ETH Staked
According to glassnode alerts monitoring, the staking volume of ETH 2.0 smart contracts has reached a historical high, with a total of 27,123,401 coins staked.
Project News
Musk's Lawyer Files Motion to Dismiss Dogecoin Insider Trading Lawsuit
Musk's lawyer has filed a motion to dismiss the insider trading lawsuit against him by Dogecoin investors. The lawyer argues that posting supportive messages or funny pictures about cryptocurrencies on Twitter is not illegal. Furthermore, the lawsuit is baseless as it accuses Musk of selling Dogecoin wallets that have no real connection to Musk or Tesla.
The lawsuit was initially filed in June 22, demanding $2.58 trillion in compensation, alleging that Musk manipulated and engaged in insider trading with Dogecoin.
MakerDAO Founder Proposes Adjusting EDSR to Ensure Regular DAI Holders' Interests
Rune, the founder of MakerDAO, has issued a proposal on the governance forum. He states that within 48 hours of the release of EDSR, DAI supply increased by nearly 500 million, and DSR utilization has approached the 20% threshold, causing the EDSR to automatically decrease to around 5.8%. This allows the market to self-balance and absorb excess returns.
The proposal points out that the current EDSR structure favors large ETH and ETH stakers. To ensure the interests of regular DAI holders, the proposal suggests reducing the maximum value of EDSR from 8% to 5%, increasing borrowing rates to match EDSR, and avoiding large-scale borrowing arbitrage.
Saddle Finance initiates a proposal to halt protocol operation and distribute ARB tokens
Saddle Finance has initiated a proposal to halt protocol operation and distribute ARB tokens. The proposal states that due to many core contributors no longer intending to participate in protocol development, difficulties in multisig coordination and management, and potential vulnerabilities exposed by recent events involving Vyper, it is planned to stop the protocol's operation for the safety of funds and airdrop 1.54 million ARB tokens to token holders.
Aave proposal to lower CRV LT, LTV, and debt ceilings on Ethereum and Polygon has passed
The governance page shows that the Aave proposal to lower CRV LT, LTV, and debt ceilings on Ethereum and Polygon has passed with a support rate of 100%. The changes are as follows:
On Ethereum, CRV LT is lowered from 61% to 41%, LTV is lowered from 55% to 35%, and debt ceiling is lowered from $20 million to $5 million.
On Polygon, CRV LT is lowered from 75% to 65%, and LTV is lowered from 70% to 35%.
AKB48 producer Yasushi Akimoto launches Web 3 girl group and completes token issuance
AKB, Sakamichi Series and other extremely popular Japanese girl group producer Yasushi Akimoto, recently launched a new Web 3.0 girl group project called "Idol 3.0 Project". The overall plan will start in March. From the 10,000 applicants, 114 members have been selected. These 114 members will undergo various training and auditions, and ultimately, 9 to 11 members will debut as a completely new girl group at the end of the year.
The innovative content of Idol 3.0 Project lies in the utilization of Web 3.0 technology to expand the activities of idols. This includes activities in the metaverse and the development of NFT, as well as the integration with the Japanese girl group token Nippon Idol Token (NIDT).
The total supply of NIDT tokens is 1 billion, with 300 million tokens issued in the initial IEO phase. The IEO was completed in April with the assistance of Coinbook and DMM Bitcoin. The listing time on the exchange has not been announced yet.
Earning.Farm suffers reentrancy attack, loses 154 WETH
Phalcon, the trading browser under BlockSec, tweeted that Earning.Farm suffered a reentrancy attack, resulting in a loss of 154 WETH (280,000 USD).
OKX Web 3 wallet now supports Layer 2 network Base
According to official sources, the OKX Web 3 wallet has now integrated with the Layer 2 network Base and supports Base DApps in the Discover section. Users can switch to the Base network with one click without manual configuration. OKX Web 3 wallet facilitates seamless trading, storage, and management of Base ecosystem assets, as well as exploration of Base DApps. Additionally, the OKX Web 3 wallet will soon support single-chain and cross-chain transactions for Base ecosystem assets.
Base Mainnet Officially Launched, Over 100 DApps and Service Providers Included in the Ecosystem
The Base mainnet is now open to the public, with over 100 DApps and service providers included as part of the Base ecosystem.
Jesse Pollak, Head of the Base Protocol, stated that users can explore these DApps and benefit from lower transaction fees and faster transaction speeds compared to Ethereum.
NFT
Gas Consumption for NFT Market on Ethereum Drops to Two-Year Low
The gas consumption for NFT markets on the Ethereum network is significantly decreasing and has reached levels seen in June 2021. Specifically, the transaction activities on platforms like OpenSea, Blur, LooksRare, Rarible, and SuperRare currently account for approximately 1.85% of the total gas consumption on the Ethereum network.
This number has significantly dropped compared to the previous high point on January 9, 2022, when NFT transactions on OpenSea alone accounted for 28.69% of the total Gas consumption on Ethereum.
