Read in the Digest:
Bitcoin steadies above $23k – non-zero addresses hit new all time-high.
AAVE approves proposal to launch overcollateralized stablecoin, GHO.
Tether will support ETH 2.0 amid speculations of another Merge delay.
MINEXMR, Monero’s largest mining Pool, to shutdown on August 12.
U.S. and U.K. regulators collaborate for stronger crypto regulations.
Bitcoin Steadies Above $23k – Non-zero Addresses Hit New All Time-High
Bitcoin ended July with its best recovery period of 2022 so far, gaining approximately 25% over the course the month. However, Bitcoin is now retracing despite the rally in the last week of July that saw the price of BTC hit $24,572.
The 7 day price chart for Bitcoin. Source: CoinMarketCap
Although Bitcoin is down 3% in value over the last 24 hours, the world’s largest crypto has managed to hold firm above the $23k level. If the price of Bitcoin is maintained above the minor $23,250 support level, the crypto could potentially mount an attempt to breach the $25k level in the coming days.
The 24 hour price chart for Bitcoin (BTC). Source: CoinMarketCap
The Bitcoin network experienced a significant activity spike alongside the rally in the last week of July. According to data published by Glassnode, the number of non-zero BTC addresses touched an all-time high of 42.6 million on July 31st, 2022.
Non-zero BTC addresses is a metric used to show how much bitcoin is being used by users opening accounts on exchanges. Glassnode also reported that the profitability of Bitcoin spiked, as the number of BTC addresses in profit reached 25.6 million on Sunday, July 31st.
Flipsider:
The overall number of Bitcoin whale addresses is shrinking as Glassnode reports that the number of crypto addresses holding at least 1,000 BTC on Monday, August 1st, stood at 2,135, the lowest level in five months.
AAVE Approves Proposal to Launch Overcollateralized Stablecoin, GHO
Leading open source DeFi protocol, Aave has announced that it is preparing to launch a new overcollateralized stablecoin for AAVE, GHO, after the proposal to introduce the stablecoin was greenlit by community members.
Voting on the GHO proposal started on July 28th and ended on July 31st, with 99% of the total votes being made in support of the launch. The Aave community staked over 501k AAVE tokens in favor of the proposal, while just 12 AAVE tokens were staked in opposition.
The Aave team stated that community members should “look out for a proposal next week on the governance forum” for the future of GHO. GHO will be an overcollateralized stablecoin built on the Ethereum network and pegged to the USD.
In order to mint GHO, user’s must supply collateral, at a specified collateral ratio. Furthermore, all GHO minted is required to be overcollateralized at every point, meaning that there will always be a higher level of liquidity behind the stablecoin than GHO tokens in circulation.
Flipsider:
GHO will generate additional revenue for the Aave DAO, as 100% of interest payments made on GHO loans will be routed to the DAO.
Why You Should Care
AAVE is creating GHO to be an overcollateralized stablecoin in order to avoid the pitfalls that led to the collapse of TerraUSD and that currently plague other collateralized stablecoins.
Tether Will Support ETH 2.0 Amid Speculation of Another Merge Delay
Paolo Ardoino, chief technology officer of Bitfinex and Tether, announced on Sunday, July 31st, via Twitter, that Tether plans to support ETH 2.0 amid widespread speculation that the Ethereum mainnet Merge will suffer additional delays.
According to Ardoino, Tether may be treading a safer route by announcing support for a later stage. However, he also stated that, despite the delays, the network’s “support of ETH 2.0 will be seamless.”
Ethereum core developers had previously announced a tentative launch date for sometime during the week starting September 19th, 2022. However, rumors are circulating that ‘The Merge‘ may be delayed even further.
The Merge, which will transition Ethereum to a PoS consensus mechanism, will bring numerous benefits to the network, including scalability, increased security, reduced centralization, and a 99.95% reduction in the network’s electricity consumption.
Flipsider:
Although the Georli and Sepolia testnet underwent successful merges, they are yet to migrate to the Proof of Stake (PoS) model from the Proof of Work (PoW) consensus mechanism.
Why You Should Care
Ardoino explained that it’s not about what he or Tether prefers but how the support for ETH 2.0 and PoS can be done, avoiding user disruptions.
MINEXMR, Monero’s Largest Mining Pool, to Shutdown on August 12th
MINEXMR, the largest mining pool on privacy blockchain network Monero, has announced that it will cease all XMR mining pool operations on August 12th.
The closure of MINEXMR has been welcomed by many Monero users, amid concerns that the mining pool currently controls as much as 48% of Monero’s network hashrate. Additionally, the contribution of MINEXMR has been a source of decentralization concerns for users on the network.
In the announcement, MINEXMR provided miners with information pertaining to the reconfiguration of their mining devices for use in different pools, which they were advised to carry out before August 12th, at which time the pool with halt operations.
MINEXMR has advised miners to move to decentralized Monero mining pool p2pool. MINEXMR recommends p2pool due to its zero pool fees and decentralization, which will help to support the Monero network.
Flipsider:
Decentralization continues to be an issue for Monero, as the three largest mining pools constitute more than 80% of Monero’s global hash power.
Why You Should Care
The closure of MINEXMR could lead to a major change in terms of miner contribution, and reduces the chances of Monero falling victim to a 51% attack.
U.S. and U.K. Regulators Collaborate for Stronger Crypto Regulations
Regulators in the U.S. and the U.K. held a virtual meeting on July 21st to discuss broader crypto regulatory initiatives. The meeting was held between the U.S Department of the Treasury, and the Financial Regulatory Working Group of the U.K. and the U.S.
The regulators reflected on the outcomes of the June U.S.-U.K. Financial Innovation Partnership meeting concerning the discussion of financial innovation topics.
In an official statement, the U.S. Treasury explained that the collaboration would help strengthen bilateral regulatory cooperation, promote financial stability, improve investor protection, as well as foster fair, orderly, and efficient markets, and capital formation in both jurisdictions.
According to the press release, the regulatory bodies scrutinized current market developments, such as the rising issue of stablecoins and the exploration of central bank digital currencies (CBDC).
Flipsider:
While the U.K. plans on becoming a global crypto hub and “a hospitable place for crypto,” the U.S.’ SEC has been accused of cracking down on crypto outside its jurisdiction.
Why You Should Care
The regulators of the two economic powerhouses agreed to conduct follow-up work on crypto regulation as the industry continues to grow.