Coin Week

Coinweek
  • bitcoinBitcoin$28,340.005.75%
  • ethereumEthereum$1,809.545.23%
  • binancecoinBNB$317.222.73%
  • rippleXRP$0.5717.10%
  • dogecoinDogecoin$0.0759735.08%
  • solanaSolana$21.157.08%

Chainspace NFT project bridges Bitcoin and Ethereum

Larry Jansen Larry Jansen on March 27, 2023

Chainspace – Since the Ordinals project inspires a fresh wave of innovation, Bitcoin NFTs have emerged as the most popular subject in the Web3 community.

Chainspace, an experiment integrating Bitcoin and Ethereum via lo-fi video rendering from an app connected to the two chains, is one of the most well-known projects today.

The project

Chainspace is a digital artifact that “emits infinite art,” according to its pseudonymous inventors Timshel and el-ranye.

There are 800 total on-chain apps in the project.

Each online application manipulates the image from the computer or mobile device’s camera in a manner akin to a Snapchat filter.

Using an Ordinals inscription, the app is also preserved on the Bitcoin blockchain.

Chainspace transforms the image into ASCII art using detailed selfie camera video.

The end product employs letters and symbols to provide an abstract real-time visual image of the user.

Chainspace portals are distinctive and have various effects; some were influenced by Web3 projects like Loot and Terraforms.

A sense of community

Timshel, the co-creator, is a prominent member of the growing Lootverse gaming scene and frequently takes part in on-chain publishing initiatives.

He said that Chainspace gives Web3 users a method to interact with communities while yet keeping some of their humanity to themselves.

Timshel used a screenshot from Chainspace’s Discord to demonstrate his point.

“This is beautiful because this ‘GM’ [good morning] is much more essential and resonant and human than [a] random Pepe emoji,” said the co-creator.

“There’s something really cool and special to see how people are using this, sharing their feelings, their selves, and their faces.”

Portals

There is no “access pass” to events held on other blockchains provided by the NFT/inscription.

The whole web application is recorded on the Bitcoin blockchain since Ordinals have the capacity to store more on-chain data than Ethereum NFTs.

Each Chainspace gateway functions as an individual, transferrable Ordinals inscription.

“The Ordinals innovation and the idea of inscribing up to now 4MB of content onto a single Satoshi on Bitcoin – it just immediately clicked to me,” said Timshel.

“It opened up a whole blossom of ideas in my head about things you can do that are higher fidelity that what’s possible on ETH, but still create a token on ETH that’s tradable and ownable.”

Read also: BAYC #1626 burned off Ethereum, likely to land in Bitcoin

Cross-chain

Timshel’s remarks allude to the Ethereum element of the Chainspace equation.

The suggestion, however, seems to be layered heavily.

On Thursday, there will be an Ethereum NFT mint.

A unique Ethereum NFT that can be created using Zora and exchanged on various exchanges serves as the representation for each portal.

Via a smart contract, the Ethereum NFT is connected to the Bitcoin-based Ordinal on-chain.

Iain Nash, a software engineer from Zora, created the code that powers decentralized applications and NFT projects, and it is stored in the smart contract.

The artworks created using Ethereum that can be found on markets like OpenSea are really images taken from the Ordinal Inscription.

NFT purchasers can opt to trade in Ethereum and acquire possession of the Bitcoin Ordinal since the NFT and Inscriptions are coupled.

Swapping

Timshel and el-ranye can currently manage a manual procedure.

When additional Ordinals infrastructures go live, they want to create a simpler automated procedure.

Timshel said that Chainspace is “200% on-chains,” i.e., it is entirely based on the Ethereum and Bitcoin blockchains.

The exchange of the Ethereum NFT for custody of the Bitcoin Ordinal is a one-way transaction, though.

Users are not able to hold both versions at once or switch between them.

Timshel cautioned that the condition of Ordinals, which has generated debate among some Bitcoin enthusiasts, partially determines the capacity to trade.

Accessibility

In order to make it clear that NFT collectors are not purchasing an exclusive pass, chainspace portals are open to the whole public.

Any user may use any of the portals to take a still photo from the video feed and then use it anyway they see fit.

On Thursday, 620 NFTs will go for sale from Timshel and El-Ranye, giving active Discord users precedence on the allowlist.

Thereafter, they will be able to purchase an Ethereum NFT for 0.33 ETH ($550), and an additional 100 NFT will be given away as an airdrop to Web3 builders who took part in or had an effect over Chainspace.

Meanwhile, the team has exclusive access to 60 NFTs.

Image source: CNBC

Dogecoin suffers major losses in overnight plummet

Anna Evans Anna Evans on March 27, 2023

Image source: Marca

Dogecoin (DOGE), the cryptocurrency industry’s top meme coin by market capitalization, plunged more than 9% overnight.

Liquidations

The meme coin is now trading around $0.088 after its latest decline.

In addition, the Bears have controlled the token over the past week.

To further elaborate, Dogecoin has been down nearly 16% over the past seven days.

After Ethereum and Bitcoin, DOGE has generated the third-highest liquidations in the last 24 hours.

Meanwhile, Coinglass reports a total of $6.34 million in DOGE settlements.

Most of the liquidation took place on the cryptocurrency exchange Binance, and about half of the liquidation ($3.79 million) was cleared in the past 12 hours.

Read also: Jon Tester, US Senator, remains skeptical of crypto

Losses

The cumulative losses have yet to impact gains made in late November following speculation that Elon Musk would integrate Dogecoin into Twitter.

During a recent presentation, Musk shared user metrics for the site with new updates like encrypted messaging and long-form tweets.

However, the last box next to “Payments” is left blank, fueling speculation that Musk has big plans to launch a cryptocurrency, especially Dogecoin.

Despite speculation, there is no indication that he will go ahead with the plans.

Other drops

While Dogecoin suffered the most significant losses among the top 10 largest cryptocurrencies, it wasn’t the only one to lose points.

Over the past 24 hours, Bitcoin and Ethereum are down -0.7% and -1.5%, respectively.

Bitcoin is currently trading for $17,028.75, while Ethereum is selling for $1,252.90.

Ethereum led liquidations during the same period, posting $12.57 million in leveraged positions.

Meanwhile, Bitcoin traders lost $9.25 million in the latest bearish momentum.

Read also: Yuga Labs’ founders stand with creators for marketplace creator royalties

Other notes

In the crypto space, people are focused on Tuesday’s meeting with the House Financial Services Committee.

Sam Bankman-Fried of FTX and Alameda Research is expected to testify and explain how his cryptocurrency exchange collapsed in November.

“I still do not have access to much of my data – professional or personal,” he said in a Twitter conversation with House Chairwoman Maxine Waters.

“So there is a limit to what I will be able to say, and I won’t be as helpful as I’d like.”

“But as the committee still thinks it would be useful, I am willing to testify on the 13th.”

The Federal Reserve also meets this Wednesday.

The market expects the central bank to raise rates by 50 basis points.

Previous rate hikes were 75 basis points, suggesting the Fed is on track to slow its attack on inflation given recent data points.

Reference:

Dogecoin plummets 9% as crypto markets flash red

Report: Bitcoin takes a major dip, trading for less than $19,000

Greg Jackson Greg Jackson on March 20, 2023

Image source: Coin Gape

Since the crypto crash months ago, many cryptocurrencies have suffered significant drops in value, especially Bitcoin.

Bitcoin recently fell below the $19,000 line for the first time since the United States’ Independence Day.

Bitcoin

As of this writing, Bitcoin is trading for $18,745.70.

The last time the top cryptocurrency hit similar lows was on July 4 when it traded for $18,600.

Previously, Bitcoin traded for $18,900 in November 2020 before it hit an all-time high of over $60,000 in 2021.

As a result, investors have been shedding the crypto asset for various reasons.

Bitcoin’s sell-off correlated with the US stock market, and stocks were down following a volatile trading session that came from fears of the Federal Reserve continuing to hike interest rates.

Additionally, the Fed’s monetary policy of hiking up interest rates to combat four-decade high inflation prompted investors to sell risky assets like stocks and cryptocurrency.

Sell-off

According to experts, Bitcoin’s sell-off intensified when news broke out that Russia shut down the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, halting gas to Europe and spooking markets.

On Monday, the Russian government claimed it would restore gas supplies if sanctions were lifted.

Despite the ominous news, Bitcoin fans remain unfazed.

Other cryptocurrencies

Of the top ten cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin suffered the heaviest drops, falling by 5.16% in 24 hours.

Meanwhile, Ethereum, the second biggest cryptocurrency, fell by 7.89%, selling at $1,534.49.

Reference:

Bitcoin falls below $19k for the first time in 2 months

US government sanctions Iranian ransomware group and their BTC addresses

Larry Jansen Larry Jansen on March 13, 2023

Image source: Crypto Slate

Security has been a longstanding issue in the digital age, and the issue has only grown more prominent within the crypto space.

Hackers allegedly tied to the Iranian military have been penalized by the US government, blacklisting their BTC addresses.

The news

Today, the US Treasury announced sanctions against ten individuals and two entities for alleged ransomware attacks.

According to them, the individuals and two companies associated with a ransomware group are tied to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps or IRGC.

As a result, they have blocked their Bitcoin wallet addresses.

The department said that those added to the government’s sanctions lists have participated in coordinated ransomware attacks.

Their targets include an array of United States-based companies and organizations – the attacks have been going on as far as 2020.

Ransomware

Since the digital age became the norm, ransomware has become more prominent.

These types of attacks involve hackers remotely locking a device or network by exploiting software flaws.

Once they get in, they demand payment for the user to unlock access.

For a couple of years, cryptocurrency has been the demanded mode of payment as it can be more difficult to track compared to other digital payment methods.

Despite transparency in several blockchain networks like Bitcoin, tracking still proves to be a challenge.

The targets

According to Treasury officials, the Iranian group’s targets included a children’s hospital, a city in New Jersey, a rural electric utility company, and many other businesses.

The individuals involved in the attack have been identified as employees or associates of two companies: Najee Technology Hooshmand Fater LLC and Afkar System Yazd Company.

With the alleged attackers and their businesses on the OFAC sanctions list, American citizens, companies, and organizations from interacting with them.

High-profile attackers

The Treasury focused on three individuals: Mansour Ahmadi, Ahmad Khatigi Aghda, and Amir Hossein Nikaeen Ravari.

The three individuals have been charged by the US Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey in connection to the ransomware attack.

Meanwhile, the state of New Jersey is offering rewards up to $10 million for information tied to the attackers.

Tornado Cash

The attacks have prompted the Treasury to add an Ethereum coin mixing tool designed to obscure crypto funds movement called Tornado Cash to its sanctions list last month.

According to the Treasury, Tornado Cash has been primarily used to launder money and stolen crypto funds.

Like other decentralized apps, it runs autonomously through a programmed smart contract so it isn’t operated by people or a company.

The decision has been divisive, drawing criticism from the crypto space and questions from US Representative Tom Emmer.

Amid the pushback, the Treasury clarified its position on the use of Tornado Cash, noting that people who sent funds via Tornado Cash without their consent will not be punished.

Reference:

Treasury blacklist Bitcoin addresses linked to Iranian ransomware group

Cryptocurrency rally raises caution in the crypto space

Anna Evans Anna Evans on February 27, 2023

Image source: Business Today

Cryptocurrency: Cryptocurrencies have recently made positive progress with an upswing price, especially Bitcoin and Ethereum.

However, the good news also revives a common debate in such situations: is the market set for a rebound, or are the trends just going to lead to another heavy crash?

In November 2021, Bitcoin hit an all-time high selling price of $69,000.

Since then, the digital coin has been struck with higher interest rates and the collapse of high-profile firms, including FTX and Three Arrows Capital (3AC), among others.

Cryptocurrency movement

The leading cryptocurrency is down almost 67% from the November 2021 prices, but digital assets, including stocks, are off to a good start for 2023.

This month, Bitcoin rose by 38%, selling for $22,893.39 – its highest price since August 2022.

Ethereum’s cryptocurrency (ETH) also rose by 38%, selling for $1,635.68.

So far, cryptocurrency prices have risen in January in anticipation of the economic report that indicated inflation cooling in December.

The reading has also been positive, raising the possibility of the Federal Reserve increasing rates at a slower pace than last year in an attempt to slow down soaring prices.

Warnings

Although it has mainly been good news, many are giving warnings of caution.

Crypto commentators believe the recent surge is too good to be true, labeling the current rally a trap.

Commentators also anticipate the increase will abruptly come crashing down, burning naive traders who believed it was the start of a new uptrend.

Others are also skeptical of the crypto rally.

On Twitter, a popular Bitcoin page held a poll with 18,000 participants calling the rally a bull trap.

Meanwhile, a prominent crypto enthusiast and self-titled crypto analyst, il Capo Of Crypto, agreed with his sentiments.

Read also: CBDC report shows how it could impact global financial systems

“I’ve been checking charts all this time, avoiding noise from Twitter,” he wrote.

“The way the upward movement is happening, the way htf resistances are being tested…it clearly looks manipulated, no real demand.”

“Once again, the biggest bull trap I’ve ever seen. But they won’t trap me.”

The self-proclaimed crypto analysts’ suspicions were shared across the space.

It also reached Reddit, with one user pushing against observations with a market bottom in a news article.

“Hard to believe that it was only a week or so ago that everyone and their analyst was solemnly and confidently proclaiming that [Bitcoin at] 12k was inevitable and unavoidable,” said the user.

Jim Cramer

CNBC’s Mad Money host Jim Cramer chimed in last Wednesday, calling the crypto bounce a manipulation.

“The manipulation higher of crypto shows you this is truly a sham market,” Cramer tweeted.

Cramer’s commentary was received with mixed accuracy.

It became the subject of mockery, with memes emerging and a series of parody accounts.

For example, one account goes by the name “Inverse Cramer ETF,” a false Exchange-Traded Fund that offers the opposite of Cramer’s advice.

Several accounts also took a swipe at the Mad Money host’s sentiments, taking his pessimism as a positive sign.

Dan Held, the head of growth marketing at crypto exchange Kraken, mockingly raised a toast, replying, “Bottom is in!”

A positive outlook

While others were wary, other influential accounts were bullish.

PlanB declared that a new bull market in digital assets had started as the Bitcoin pump occurred.

Meanwhile, other community members decided to take it as an opportunity to mock people who are cautious of digital assets dealing with more losses.

Wall Street

The surging cryptocurrency prices have also confused Wall Street.

Last Friday, JP Morgan analysts released a research report that couldn’t fully explain the rally confidently.

However, they acknowledged that market conditions had improved for riskier assets, citing the recent inflation report.

“We don’t have a great answer on the January-to-date rally of crypto, we do think it is emblematic of the underlying conviction many still have in cryptocurrencies,” they wrote.

“The crypto-bulls and whales seem to have been reinvigorated.”

BAYC #1626 burned off Ethereum, likely to land in Bitcoin

Gary Roberts Gary Roberts on February 21, 2023

BAYC – Since the 2021 boom, The Bored Ape Yacht Club has been the NFT with the most attention.

The BAYC NFTs remained one of the most popular tokens on the market even after the collapse of the cryptocurrency market last year.

One of the most expensive Bored Ape NFTs changed significantly this year.

BAYC #1626 was permanently taken out of circulation over the weekend.

The news

Many people were astonished by the Bored Ape’s removal, but its owner had a reason.

The Ape’s owner said that they wished to symbolically switch its underlying blockchain from Ethereum to Bitcoin.

In November 2022, the NFT was last offered for sale on OpenSea.

It cost 108 ETH, or about $432,000 at the time or $169,000 at the time.

Burning NFTs

Before being burned, BAYC #1626’s ownership was verified on the Ethereum network, similar to the majority of NFTs.

NFTs can be burned to remove them permanently from circulation, which usually entails sending the NFT someplace it can’t be recovered.

The owner of BAYC #1626, Jason Williams, claimed to have destroyed it over the weekend, making it impossible to ever resell on the Ethereum network.

“Essentially throwing a Lamborghini into a trash compactor – it’s kind of fun,” said Williams.

“Whether putting bloated JPEGs on Bitcoin’s base chain is smart or not is a whole ‘nother [SIC] discussion, but I think it’s going to be a lot of fun seeing how it plays out.”

Ordinals

Jason Williams isn’t entirely certain where his Ape is right now despite burning the NFT, but he believes BAYC #1626 is currently on Bitcoin.

His conjecture can be linked to an Inscription using Ordinals.

Casey Rodarmor invented the game Ordinals.

It is a project that places material (such as pictures and films) on specific satoshis, the smallest unit of currency that can be divided, where they will remain as Inscriptions on the Bitcoin network in perpetuity.

Even if there are almost 100,000 Inscriptions on Bitcoin, there are still markets where individuals may sell them.

Currently, Ordinal’s Discord server connects a lot of buyers and merchants.

The burn took place using a brand-new Teleburn tool for Ordinals, which generates a distinct location with each new Inscription so that digital assets may be burnt.

Teleburn

Users can remove an asset from circulation by assigning it to a Bitcoin Inscription using Teleburn.

The developers of Teleburn can monitor how it moves the token across chains.

For the creation of Teleburn, Rob Hamilton worked with Rodarmor, and he stated:

“The idea is that you are one-way, permanently burning an asset on another chain and pointing it to the ordinal that lives on the Bitcoin chain.”

Read also: Centre Pompidou to hold exhibit with NFTs in 2023

Last weekend at Bitcoin Park, Hamilton contacted Rodarmor about creating the Teleburn function.

A coworking space in Nashville, Tennessee, called Bitcoin Park was created specifically for the Bitcoin community.

After Hamilton revealed to Rodarmor that Williams intended to fire BAYC #1626, they worked together.

“Let’s go write some code right now,” said Rodarmor, who was excited at the prospect of burning a BAYC NFT.

Potential

They had previously utilized the Teleburn function of Ordinal, as seen in BAYC #1626.

It was initially tested on Casey Rodarmor’s ENS domain.

Later, he and Hamilton managed Jason Williams.

Combining the phrases teleport and burn, Rodarmor initially coined the moniker “Teleburn,” alluding to its fast growth.

Rob Hamilton is certain that Teleburn will take off and become a popular way for individuals to connect their digital valuables.

Additionally, Rodarmor wants to expand the functionality to include assets from other chains, such as Tezos and Solana.

“This has now set the standard of representing an asset across the chain,” said Hamilton.

“It’s going to be the way to actually have skin in the game.”

Additionally, he made mention of how burnt assets are permanently removed from the market.

Reaction

One of the co-founders of Yuga Labs, Greg Solano, commented on the BAYC burn after knowledge of it spread online.

He said that because Williams no longer owns the Inscription on the Ethereum network, it is an unauthorized copy of the original that is tied to BAYC #1626.

“If you transfer your Ape to an address you no longer control (even if it’s the ‘burn’ address), you have effectively given up your license,” said Solano.

He further disputed the notion that BAYC #1626 is no longer present because it is still there on the blockchain.

The Ape, however, is no longer accessible.

Image source: NFT Culture

Ordinal Punks become platform’s most popular NFT project

Madelyn Stewart Madelyn Stewart on February 13, 2023

Ordinal Punks – Since the late January launch of the Ordinals project, Bitcoin NFTs have become the hottest topic in the Web3 space.

In the past NFT network launches, CryptoPunks was one of Ethereum’s pioneering and memorable NFTs.

Now, cloned versions of the influential tokens are becoming a hot topic in association with Ordinals.

Origins

Larva Labs developed CryptoPunks in 2017, a seminal NFT project that laid the foundations for the modern NFT trend of being used as PFPs.

With a collection of 10,000 Ethereum assets, they were initially launched at a free mint before the NFT market started gaining momentum.

Since then, CryptoPunks have generated nearly $2.5 billion worth of trading volume.

A different kind of clone

In late January, the Bitcoin blockchain welcomed the arrival of Ordinals.

Although fairly new, there are already multiple CryptoPunks-inspired projects gaining traction on the platform.

Amid the multiple rising projects, Ordinal Punks have been the most prominent of the fray.

Ordinal Punks are 100-pixel avatars “inscribed” on Bitcoin via the Ordinals project.

They can also be traded.

Compared to other CryptoPunks clones seen in the last few years, Ordinal Punks aren’t direct clones of the original collection.

Ordinal Punks

The project has Crypto Twitter stirring as some believe the project takes more after a different derivative Ethereum collection: Mutant Punks.

However, one user linked to Ordinal Punks clarified that the project used an open-source algorithm, utilizing CCo Punk sprite sheet to come up with new Punks.

On Wednesday, an Ordinal Punk for 9.5 BTC, almost $215,000 worth.

The price is around double the entry level for a legitimate CryptoPunk (64 ETH or nearly $106,000).

One particular Ordinal Punk is based on a rare alien CryptoPunks, which previously  sold for almost $24 million worth of ETH.

Read also: Ordinals project continues to divide the Bitcoin community

Price & difference

One NFT collector and investor shared that he bought a bundle of seven Ordinal Punks for 15.2 BTC on Wednesday, translating to a worth of around $349,000 at the time.

However, due to Ordinal’s fresh introduction, they function in a unique way compared to other normal NFTs on platforms like Ethereum and Solana.

Currently, there’s a lack of infrastructure to support buying and selling NFTs once they’re described.

For lack of better terms, Ordinals don’t have Bitcoin NFT marketplaces at the moment.

Trades

Trades are occurring over the counter (OTC) between users or escrow services at the moment.

Asking prices and bids are tracked through online spreadsheets.

The trades are facilitated via Twitter and Discord as collectors are keeping tabs on the Ordinal Punks.

Some collectors anticipate that the early Bitcoin “inscriptions” will become more valuable over time.

dingaling, the pseudonymous NFT collector who bought the Ordinal Punks bundle, tweeted about the potential the platform has.

“There’s [a] real moment behind Ordinals and things are still very very early,” they wrote.

“There are opportunities everywhere.”

“Orderbooks are currently updated on shared spreadsheets and sales are only done via OTC/escrow. But there’s lots of building being done behind the scenes.” 

Potential dangers

While Ordinals is a promising platform, it also has its downsides.

For example, it lacks infrastructure, which means the current trading model is prone to scams and hacks.

Crypto Twitter users have already raised the issue online.

Pseudonymous NFT collector, TheNorwegian, wrote a viral Twitter thread calling out possible issues with the collection, asking if it’s the “biggest NFT scam of all time.”

Other projects

Apart from Ordinal Punks, the platform also has another notable project called Bitcoin Punks.

The project holds replicas of the original 10,000 CryptoPunks on Bitcoin.

Bitcoin Punks is dubbed as the first 10,000-piece NFT project launched through Ordinals.

The assets have already been minted by collectors at zero cost.

However, it’s unclear how much trading demand there is for the Bitcoin Punks collection at the moment.

A project moderator warned holders on the official Discord server to be careful when trading before they complete a code audit.

Image source: LinkedIn

Ordinals project continues to divide the Bitcoin community

Greg Jackson Greg Jackson on February 13, 2023

Ordinals – In January, the Bitcoin blockchain launched a project that enables Bitcoin-native on-chain NFTs, creating a divide in the Bitcoin community.

Advocates, developers, and enthusiasts argued against the merits of a JPEG’s inclusion on the blockchain.

As debates continue, a Dune report showed that the number of Bitcoin inscriptions using Ordinals already went beyond the 11,000 mark on Tuesday.

The project

Ordinals is Bitcoin’s latest project in an effort to bridge NFTs to the Bitcoin ecosystem.

In 2014, they launched Counterparty to introduce NFTs to Bitcoin with the Rare Pepes collection.

Three years later, they launched Stacks.

However, the latest project is different due to the assets (JPEGs and video games) being directly inscribed on satoshis on the blockchain.

In addition, they no longer need sidechains or additional tokens.

A divide

The Ordinals project has become a hot topic within the Bitcoin community, spurring debates and questions about the Bitcoin network endgame.

Others say the project opened the network to a series of threats, such as malware attacks and surging transaction fees.

However, it isn’t all negative.

Dan Held, a veteran Bitcoiner, tweeted his support, saying Ordinals is good for Bitcoin.

“Hal Finney would like Bitcoin NFTs,” he wrote, attaching a screenshot of an email by the late Hal Finney, who wrote about crypto trading cards.

Hal Finney is a figure believed to be the pseudonymous creator Satoshi Nakamoto of Bitcoin.

Finney passed away in 2014.

Inscriptions

Ordinals have dubbed NFTs “digital artifacts,” while the rest of the Bitcoin community members call it “inscriptions.”

The inscriptions are live thanks to a Bitcoin Taproot feature upgrade in November 2021, allowing arbitrary data storage.

Interest in the project has increased following developer Casey Rodarmor’s project launch on January 21, 2023.

Many are eager to push the limits of the inscriptions on a satoshi.

Read also: Crypto ads won’t feature as much in Super Bowl

Application innovation

Alex Adelman, the co-founder and CEO of Lolli, called Ordinals a homecoming moment for the top cryptocurrency project.

“The Ordinals project is a milestone for bitcoin [SIC], demonstrating how innovation on the bitcoin network can give rise to a breadth of new applications beyond its use as sound money,” said Adelman.

Despite his praise for Ordinals, Adelman still believes Bitcoin still lags behind Ethereum when it comes to the investment and talent committed to innovating and developing new applications.

However, Bitcoin NFTs will likely lure in new interest and capital, creating opportunities for developers to build unique solutions that can facilitate scalability and efficiency.

A lack of features

Although Bitcoin has spurred attention to the original blockchain with NFT minting, Ordinal inscriptions still lack features typically associated with NFTs.

For example, Ordinals don’t have smart contracts, a feature the Bitcoin blockchain doesn’t natively support.

Brian Laughlan, a Satoshibles developer, offered that the limitations will bring more attention to other projects like Stacks.

“The reason I am bullish on Stacks even more now is because people will eventually start to feel the limitations of Ordinals – high main chain fees, no smart contracts, etc,” said Laughlan.

“They will look to L2 solutions, and Stacks is ready to fill that gap.”

The Satoshibles developer explained that the backlash from Bitcoin extremists have drowned out Stacks’ voice from being heart.

He also said Ordinals is the best thing that could have happened for Stacks.

“Now more people are looking at Bitcoin than ever,” said Laughlan.

“You got ETH Maxis running Bitcoin nodes and Bitcoin Maxis loving jpegs all of a sudden. The world has gone mad.”

The debate around Ordinals is set to continue, widening the gap in the community.

However, whether Bitcoin maxis like it or not, the inscriptions on the Bitcoin blockchains are going to stay for a long time.

Image source: Forbes

Aave CEO Stani Kulechov believes Twitter isn’t ready for Web3

Greg Jackson Greg Jackson on January 16, 2023

Image source: Coin Desk

Aave CEO Stani Kulechov is under the impression that Twitter will not shift to Web3 anytime soon.

Kulechov believes that Web3 will play a significant role in social media.

Lens

The Aave CEO outlined his vision for Lens Protocol.

It is a blockchain-based social media verse that allows users to retain and import their social capital across different platforms.

Kulechov defines social capital as “followers” and “profiles.”

He added that with the current Web2 paradigm, users would have to leave their social capital behind with every account they make with a new service.

Lens, launched in May, is built on the Ethereum scaling solution Polygon.

It uses smart contracts to tokenize social stats like NFTs.

Lens hopes to reinvent the wheel to create a decentralized, interoperable social media protocol.

“I have an audience on Twitter, and I can share my ideas, make connections – that’s social capital that I create there,” said the Aave CEO.

“But I can’t take my followers or my profile and put it in another application that has a better experience for me, reflects my values better, or I have better alignment with.”

Read also: Andreessen Horowitz lends a hand to the new Twitter

Bitcoin

Stani Kulechov compared Lens Protocol to Bitcoin, saying the comparison offers a close analogy between Web2 and Web3 technologies.

“In Bitcoin, you basically own your money, your store of value,” the Aave CEO explained.

“With Lens Protocol, you effectively own your social capital, your social presence.”

Regarding the challenge of scaling Lens Protocol and attracting social media developers to work on it, Kulechov shared they are not looking to get involved with Twitter.

“We have to build new things.”

Twitter

The popular social media platform was recently taken over by Elon Musk, who is bullish on Dogecoin and owns millions of dollars worth of Bitcoin through Tesla.

Many are under the impression that Musk will bring Twitter into Web3.

Meanwhile, Kulechov says he doubts Twitter will become completely Web3-based soon.

Read also: Dogecoin value shoots up after Elon Musk buys Twitter

Web3

Blockchain technology is still hailed as one of the key drivers of Web3, a decentralized form of the current internet where ownership is distributed among users.

However, the Aave CEO isn’t the first to propose decentralizing social media.

Jack Dorsey, Twitter’s co-founder, former CEO, and first user, wanted to create a decentralized standard for social media platforms before leaving Twitter in 2021.

In 2019, Dorsey funded Blue Sky, an independent initiative led by Twitter’s then-CTO Paral Agrawal.

Last year, Dorsey tapped Jay Graber, who took over as project lead from Agrawal.

Agrawal became Twitter’s CEO after Dorsey left before Musk fired him towards the end of October.

Blue Sky recently launched the beta test for its new protocol, opening the waitlist for its app.

About 30,000 people signed up within two days of the announcement.

Reference:

Twitter won’t go Web3 ‘anytime soon’: Aave CEO Stani Kulechov

Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum: Meet the top 5 cryptocurrencies in 2022

Anna Evans Anna Evans on January 2, 2023

Bitcoin, Litecoin, and Ethereum are just a few of the top cryptocurrencies in the world. Over the past few years, there has been an incredible amount of growth in the cryptocurrency market. Although you may not hear about Litecoin (LTC) as much as Bitcoin (BTC), it is still one of the most popular cryptocurrencies and second only to Bitcoin in terms of age. As such, this digital asset has been around for a long time and continues to be highly sought after by many crypto investors. Litecoin trading has become increasingly popular in recent years as more and more people are looking to invest in this growing digital asset. This blog post will look at some of the top currencies expected to be around in 2022.

The concept of Cryptocurrencies?

Cryptocurrency is a decentralized digital asset, meaning it operates without the authorization of a bank or government. There are currently 21,954 cryptocurrency projects in the industry, collectively worth more than $854 billion.

Here are the top 5 cryptocurrencies in 2022:

      1. Bitcoin (BTC)

  • The market capitalization of this cryptocurrency stands at an impressive $327.2 billion.

As the world’s first cryptocurrency, Bitcoin (BTC) was brought to life in 2009 by Satoshi Nakamoto. Using a blockchain-based ledger, Bitcoin (BTC) is supported by thousands of computers that record and store its transactions. This technology makes it one of the most reliable cryptocurrencies on the market today. To ensure its security and resistance to fraudulence, Bitcoin utilizes a verification system called proof of work that requires solving a cryptographic puzzle. This process guarantees the accuracy of additions made to the distributed ledgers.

Bitcoin has become a phenomenon in six years, and its worth has skyrocketed exponentially. In May 2016, one Bitcoin was valued at around $500, while in December 2022, it had increased to an astonishing $17,020, a growth of over 3304%. It is no surprise that more people are investing in cryptocurrency as this trend continues.

      2. Litecoin (LTC)

  • With its impressive $5.5 billion market capitalization, Litecoin is a dominant player in the cryptocurrency sphere.

Developed by ex-Google engineer Charlie Lee, Litecoin emerged as one of the first alternative cryptocurrencies to Bitcoin and Ethereum. Its creation was to refine certain aspects of the Bitcoin blockchain technology. With lightning-fast transactions of up to 54 per second, Litecoin offers an advantage over other cryptocurrencies. Even though Litecoin needs six confirmations from exchanges to be considered irreversible, many peer-to-peer crypto payment networks can often settle Litecoin transactions immediately.

Litecoin and Bitcoin have many commonalities. They are both open-source projects that employ the proof of work model to validate transactions.

Litecoin is similar to Bitcoin, but it has some notable differences too. For example, the processing speed for Litecoin is different from Bitcoin. In addition, the maximum supply for Litecoin is capped at 84 million coins, while Bitcoin is capped at 21 million coins.

Litecoin is an incredibly liquid crypto, making it the perfect currency for swift trades. You’ll be delighted to learn that numerous merchants and nonprofits will gladly accept Litecoin as payment – from Newegg to SlingTV and even the American Red Cross.

Unlock the power of digital currency apps like BitPay and CryptoPay, enabling you to make payments via Litecoin (LTC). Furthermore, if peer-to-peer payments are your thing, Binance has a nifty app that allows you to pay someone with LTC.

      3. Ethereum (ETH)

  • With a market capitalization of $153.9 billion, this cryptocurrency is well-positioned to take advantage of future opportunities.

Ethereum is a blockchain platform and cryptocurrency that has captured the attention of software developers due to its potential applications, such as smart contracts with automated functionality when predetermined conditions are met or non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

Ethereum has made remarkable gains since April 2016, from roughly $11 to its current price of around $1,258. This is equivalent to a stunning 11,336% market appreciation in under six years.

      4. Tether (USDT)

  • Revered for its impressive market cap of $65.6 billion, this cryptocurrency has demonstrated that it is a formidable force in the industry.

Unlike other cryptocurrencies, Tether (USDT) is a stablecoin; it’s backed by fiat currencies such as the U.S. dollar and Euro, ensuring its value is nearly equivalent to that of one of these denominations. Thanks to its stable nature, Tether has become the go-to choice for investors who are wary of other cryptocurrencies’ extreme volatility. In theory, this digital currency should be more predictable than other coins.

      5. Binance Coin (BNB)

  • The total market capitalization for this cryptocurrency is estimated at a staggering $46.2 billion.

Binance Coin (BNB) is a digital currency that can be used to trade, execute transactions, and pay fees on Binance – one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the global market. Since its inception in 2017, Binance Coin has gone beyond just facilitating trades on the Binance platform by offering various services and benefits. Not only can you use Binance coin for trading, payment processing or booking travel arrangements, but it can also be converted into other forms of cryptocurrency such as Ethereum and Bitcoin.

In 2017, BNB’s cost was a mere 10 cents per coin. However, as of December 2022, it had skyrocketed to an impressive $289 – representing a 288,900% increase in value.

Conclusion

With its lightning-fast transactions, low transaction fees, and high liquidity, Litecoin is one of the top cryptocurrencies to watch in 2022. Other promising coins include Ethereum, Tether, and Binance Coin – all of which have shown considerable growth since their launch and are well-positioned to continue dominating the cryptocurrency landscape in the future.