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Sponsor: Mantle — Mass adoption of decentralized & token-governed technologies.
📊 ETH holds steady. Crypto prices met resistance this week; Ether rejected off $3k, Bitcoin defended $50k, and the total crypto market cap struggled to crack $2T. What else happened in markets?
| Prices as of 10am ET | 24hr | 7d |
|
Crypto $1.96T | ↗ 0.7% | ↗ 2.6% |
|
BTC $51,134 | ↗ 0.4% | ↗ 0.2% |
|
ETH $2,957 | ↗ 1.0% | ↗ 7.3% |
1️⃣ Worldcoin Keeps Running
OpenAI's preview of text-to-video offering Sora, Sam Altman's theorized $7 trillion raise, and strong Nvidia earnings have done wonders for Worldcoin (WLD) in the past two weeks, up ~240% overall thanks to another ~95% boost this week.
The project's first wallet, World App, also surpassed 1 million daily users. AI x Crypto has become the hottest narrative in our industry right now, with funds like Galaxy Digital and VanEck publishing their reports on why this intersection stands to be so important.
If you're an eyeball coin holders living large, it might be worth locking in your gains before massive insider token unlocks kick off in July.
2️⃣ STRK Distribution and Unlock Drama
It’s been a big week of back and forth for Starknet. After officially launching their airdrop on Tuesday to more than 1.3 million users, they seemingly spent the rest of the week on defense.
On Thursday, Starkware announced an amendment to the token unlocking schedule that greatly slows the release of the 13.4% tranche of tokens originally intended to be unlocked in April. The rest will now be gradually released monthly til March 2027.
STRK responded positively to this news, jumping around ~10% in its aftermath. Also, if you’re a Bankless citizen, make sure to check your Claimables since, on average, citizens pocketed $1600 from the airdrop. Not bad.
3️⃣ a16z's EigenLayer Investment
Everyone wants in on EigenLayer, especially Andreessen Horowitz, who announced this week they had invested $100M in Eigen Labs.
This round marks a 2x from the $50m Eigen raised in their Series A last year. The protocol now holds a total value locked (TVL) of ~$8B, nearly quadrupling in February. Before you rush to add your ETH to the pot though, it may be good to learn more about the risks of this hyped protocol and how EigenLayer approaches them.
4️⃣ Do Kwon Will Be Extradited to USA
At long last, Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon will be extradited to the United States to face fraud charges related to Terra’s collapse.
After being arrested in Montenegro last March for document forgery, Kwon spent four months in jail amid appeals from his lawyers. With his trial scheduled for March 25, we'll see how much of an example prosecutors attempt to make out of him.
5️⃣ Kraken Fights Back Against SEC Overreach
On Thursday, Kraken moved to dismiss a suit the SEC had filed against them last May. Their blog outlines the timeline of the suit and what they believe to be the cause.
On May 10, 2023, Kraken testified before the House Financial Services Committee and House Agriculture Committee, calling for Congress, instead of the overreaching SEC, to make clearer laws protecting consumers and investors from the industry's grey areas. The next day, the SEC sued them, which Kraken sees as retaliation for their call for regulatory clarity. Kraken’s pushback argues that the SEC's lawsuit — claiming only that Kraken operates as an unlicensed security exchange instead of alleging fraud or consumer harm — lacks legal standing, introduces a new theory of securities, and unjustly extends the SEC’s jurisdiction.
Overall, we can hope that this will be a rallying call for Congress to double down on developing sensible regulation. It will be in everybody’s best interest and is really not that hard.
Mass adoption of token-governed technologies. With Mantle Network – an Ethereum rollup, Mantle Treasury, and a token holder governed roadmap for products and initiatives.
The AI + Crypto narrative entered hyperdrive this week.
In this latest episode of the weekly rollup, Ryan and David talk market action and TradFi's all-time highs, the STRK launch and the Yuga acquisition of Moonbirds-maker Proof.
There are many reasons to be creative around NFTs, like exploring new artistic ideas, experimenting with new tools, and reaching new audiences. Yet, this space also has a way of rewarding creativity and curiosity. Just mint it.
Interested in what's new in NFTs this week? Let's dive in 👇
📰 Articles:
- 🟠 6 Ways to Invest in Bitcoin in 2024
- 🐶 The Crypto Phone Comeback
- 🎨 An Intro to Solana NFTs
- 😱 EigenLayer's Risk Management
- 🚂 What Monad Brings to the Table
📺 Shows:
Many Bankless Citizens who completed the Jito quests in our Airdrop Hunter app just earned five-figure airdrop paydays!
It's airdrop season, and plenty of other protocols are preparing to reward early users. Get on their lists. Start hunting!
Not financial or tax advice. This newsletter is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. This newsletter is not tax advice. Talk to your accountant. Do your own research.
Disclosure. From time-to-time I may add links in this newsletter to products I use. I may receive commission if you make a purchase through one of these links. Additionally, the Bankless writers hold crypto assets. See our investment disclosures here.