Shalini Nagarajan

A string of findings by an independent examiner show Celsius operated its business in a manner completely unlike what it advertised, a <a href="https://cases.stretto.com/public/x191/11749/PLEADINGS/1174901312380000000039.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">report</a>, published Tuesday, revealed.



Shoba Pillay, the <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/celsius-to-shell-out-some-5m-on-independent-examiner">court-appointed examiner</a> in Celsius’ bankruptcy case, was given a mandate to review its native currency CEL, its representations to customers and to examine claims that its operations qualified as a “Ponzi scheme.”



She wrote that customers were sold on the concept that the lender offered better returns than a traditional bank, but it “was not the business that Celsius actually operated.”



Celsius emphasized that it puts its “community first,” with former CEO Alex Mashinsky convincing investors that customer-deposits coins “are your coins, not our coins,” she said. He also promised that coins would be returned to owners even in the event of a bankruptcy, her report alleged.



Another foundational marketing ploy the firm is said to have used is trading in its CEL token. Customers were allegedly told they would score CEL rewards that Celsius would procure from the company’s internal treasury or by buying CEL in the secondary market — what it described as a self-sustaining “flywheel.”



“From its inception, however, Celsius and the driving force behind its operations, Mr. Mashinsky, did not deliver on these promises. Behind the scenes, Celsius conducted its business in a starkly different manner than how it marketed itself to its customers in every key respect,” Pillay said.



Blockworks has reached out for comment on the examiner’s report.



<h3>Celsius abandoned transparency promises from the get-go</h3>



Celsius allegedly failed to tell customers about its flop initial coin offering (ICO). Mashinsky had initially promised to snap up any unsold tokens from the ICO, but failed to deliver on that pledge.&nbsp;



However, the company chose to “substantially expand” its CEL purchases in 2020, with the intention to boost its price, and timed purchases in a way that would create a market buzz around the token. So although Celsius customers were aware the company would purchase CEL tokens, the lengths to which it would go was kept hidden.



The report stated that Celsius’ head of trading desk wrote to colleagues including the CFO: “Just to clarify between us three: The last 3-4 months we bought always more CEL than what we pay as interest per week but we did not buy it for the interest payments, that is just what we told the community.”



They later praised their secretive purchases and discussed how it led to “people thinking [the price of CEL] is going to the moon haha.”



<h3>Edits to Ask Me Anything interactions</h3>



Internal managers noted that several statements Mashinsky made in his tweets and during AMAs weren’t accurate. The chief risk office proposed editing the AMAs beginning May 2021 even though investors may have heard them, and before they were posted to YouTube, “to eliminate any misleading statements.” However, Mashinsky thwarted this effort as he felt delays would lead to doubts.



“Throughout 2021 and up through the bankruptcy filing, Celsius continued to identify incorrect statements Mr. Mashinsky made during the AMAs,” the report said. “In some instances, Celsius was able to edit the AMAs after posting; in other instances, it was not.”



<h3>Employee concerns about CEL</h3>



The examiner noted that CEL had limited utility as it could only be used on Celsius, that employees often discussed it was “worthless” and that its price should have been zero.



Celsius also engaged in protecting the price of its token if insiders like Mashinsky wanted to cash out and make millions on his CEL holdings.



The report noted an employee saying internally on Slack: “if anyone ever found out our position and how much our founders took in USD could be a very very bad look…We are using users USDC to pay for employees’ worthless CEL…All because the company is the one inflating the price to get the valuations to be able to sell back to the company.”



Dean Happen, coin deployment specialist at Celsius, noticed that customer funds were being used to fund CEL purchases. In January 2021, he said internally that his title at Celsius should be “Ponzi Consultant.” And last year, Tappen called Celsius’ practice of using customer assets to fund CEL purchases as “very Ponzi like.”&nbsp;



<h3>Use of new customer funds to support withdrawals</h3>



The examiner found that Celsius didn’t have enough liquidity to cover future withdrawals in the period leading up to its withdrawal pause, and that it had to rely on new customers to fund further claims. This would be typical of a Ponzi case, but the examiner didn’t explicitly state that it amounted to one.



“If Celsius had not instituted the Pause and the run on the bank continued, new customer deposits inevitably would have become the only liquid source of coins for Celsius to fund withdrawals,” Pillay found.



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Celsius Execs Joked that Investors Thought the CEL Token Was ‘Going to the Moon’

Sebastian Sinclair

As the next Bitcoin halving approaches, industry experts are closely examining the implications for price and hash rate over a long-term horizon.



The <a href="https://www.blockworksresearch.com/glossary#halving" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">halving</a> event, set to occur around mid-April 2024, is expected to have a significant impact on the crypto market, according to a report published Monday by research firm BitOoda.



The report suggests the key driver of bitcoin&#8217;s (<a href="https://blockworks.co/price/btc" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">BTC</a>) price is the flow of funds into the ecosystem — currently amounting to about $25 million per day — to absorb the roughly 900 new BTC entering circulation through <a href="https://blockworks.co/tag/bitcoin-mining" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">mining</a>; blocks are mined, on average, every 10 minutes, minting 6.25 bitcoins each.



At the halving, the supply of new bitcoins received by miners — also known as the coinbase reward — is reduced by half. This happens all at once, from one bitcoin block to the next.



The report also notes sentiment can play a role in price discovery — where the investors see the bitcoin market going.&nbsp;



Looking at historical data, BitOoda said the six months following each of the prior halvings have seen an increase in price, with the most significant increase occurring after the first halving in 2012 when the price surged more than ten times its value.



In 2016, bitcoin’s price increased by 53% six months post-halving while the 2020 halving was preceded by a mostly flat price — excluding the exogenous shock of the March COVID-driven sell-off, 60 days prior to the event, BitOoda said. Bitcoin’s price then gained more than 70% over the following 180 days.



While the dollar value of mined BTC initially fell after each halving, the post-halving fund flows have always caused the price to recover throughout Bitcoin’s history, <a href="https://cryptoquant.com/asset/btc/chart/exchange-flows/exchange-netflow-total?exchange=all_exchange&amp;window=DAY&amp;sma=0&amp;ema=0&amp;priceScale=log&amp;metricScale=linear&amp;chartStyle=column" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">data</a> by CryptoQuant shows.



The effect has become more muted over time, CryptoQuant told Blockworks, with the impact of each halving’s reduction in supply, diminishing relative to other factors.



“Adoption, institutional demand, easier access to bitcoin and macro factors become more important for bitcoin’s price growth,” Julio Moreno, CryptoQuant’s head of research, said.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1280" height="571" src="https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/image-4.png?w=1024&amp;h=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-49674" srcset="https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/image-4.png?w=1280 1280w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/image-4.png?w=300 300w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/image-4.png?w=1024 1024w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/image-4.png?w=768 768w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/image-4.png?w=428 428w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/image-4.png?w=470 470w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/image-4.png?w=389 389w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/image-4.png?w=80 80w" sizes="(max-width: 1280px) 100vw, 1280px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Price of bitcoin compared against the flows of capital to derivative exchanges | Source: CryptoQuant</figcaption></figure>



Moreno pointed out that when capital flows are growing — meaning demand to trade bitcoin is increasing — the asset appreciates and vice versa.



<h2>The Bitcoin price correlation to hash rate</h2>



The Bitcoin ecosystem is likely to continue experiencing significant growth in the coming years, with both price and hash rate expected to increase steadily leading up to the next halving event in 2024, the report notes.



Price moves tend to lead hash rate, with sustained hash rate growth typically driven by price appreciation, the firm said, although this is <a href="https://www.bitrawr.com/terminal/hashrate-vs-price" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">debated</a>.



The Bitcoin network’s hash rate is a measure of the computing power dedicated to the network by miners worldwide. It represents the total number of hashes that can be performed by all miners in a given period and is measured in exahashes per second (EH/s).



Based on <a href="https://ycharts.com/indicators/bitcoin_network_hash_rate#:~:text=Bitcoin%20Network%20Hash%20Rate%20is,51.48%25%20from%20one%20year%20ago." target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">data</a> from YCharts, the current bitcoin network hash rate is 320.42 EH/s — up about 51% from a year ago but down 8.6% on the day. 



The increase in hash rate over the past year is likely due to the increasing number of miners joining the network, as well as the adoption of more powerful mining equipment. 



This has resulted in greater competition for mining rewards and an increase in the network&#8217;s overall security.



The increasing number of bitcoin miners is a reflection of the improving market sentiment, as seen in the upward movement of spot prices for digital assets. This comes at a time when industry participants are re-evaluating a risk-on approach to <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/bitcoin-momentum-store-of-value-banking-turmoil">protect wealth</a>.



An analysis of hash rate scenarios shows a link to the estimated power price curve, suggesting the convergence of ASIC technology to leading-edge semiconductor processes will bring next-gen hardware to the market in late 2023, with volume shipments expected in 2024. 



“As more powerful and efficient ASICs have been developed, hashrate has experienced an acceleration as miners enjoy a lower capital and operational cost per terahash deployed,” Moreno said. “The latest generation of ASICs are about 50% to 100% more powerful than the previous models.”



BitOoda estimates the theoretical &#8220;marginal maximum hashrates&#8221; could achieve 432 EH/s by the end of 2023 and 721 EH/s by the end of 2024, assuming power prices remain below $50 per megawatt hour.



Though the reality is likely to be closer to 400 EH/s by the end of 2023, reflecting a significant amount of older equipment still in use, the research firm said.



Longer term, the security of the Bitcoin network will depend more on transaction fees. Miners’ production costs will become less a function of their expectations of coinbase rewards, as Satoshi observed.



“In later years, when new coin generation is a small percentage of the existing supply, market price will dictate the cost of production more than the other way around,” Satoshi <a href="https://satoshi.nakamotoinstitute.org/posts/bitcointalk/65/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">wrote</a> in 2010.



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Bitcoin Halving a Year Out: Here’s What To Expect

Casey Wagner

The SEC on Tuesday served a subpoena on Tuesday to decentralized crypto exchange SushiSwap — presumably regarding concerns over its native token, Sushi.&nbsp;



In a governance proposal released Tuesday afternoon, the DEX said it hopes to sell 15% of its treasury to fund legal defense efforts.&nbsp;



“The international regulatory environment for DAOs remains in flux, and the options for contributor insurance policies remain limited,” Jared Grey, Sushi head chef, wrote in the governance forum Tuesday. “Therefore, we propose Sushi DAO make available a legal defense fund of 3M USDT.



Sushi and Grey were both served, the forum noted.&nbsp;



“We’re cooperating with the SEC,” Grey said in the proposal. “We do not intend to comment publicly on ongoing investigations or other legal matters.”



The proposal received six votes in the first 30 minutes after being published, all of which were in favor of establishing the legal defense fund.&nbsp;



The subpoena is only the latest in a series of recent SEC actions to look into various crypto tokens and projects over concerns of unregistered securities offerings. Ripple has been fighting its case in court over accusations that its XRP token is an unregistered security for more than two years.&nbsp;



When a crypto company is served a subpoena, or a Wells notice, or an enforcement action — and <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/sec-crypto-enforcement-actions-accelerate">there have been no shortage lately</a> — they need to operate under the assumption that the SEC’s case is already decided, Stuart Alderoty, chief legal officer at Ripple, said.



“The fix is in, and do what you what you need to do to cooperate under the law but don&#8217;t fool yourself into believing that you&#8217;re going to curry favor with [the SEC] or that you&#8217;re going to be able to sway them, because you never will and their goal ultimately will be to crush you or destroy your business,” Alderoty said.&nbsp;



Grey declined Blockworks’ request for comment.



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SushiSwap Defense Fund Against SEC Subpoena Already in Works

Ben Strack

Ethereum has been deflationary for two months straight due to a surge in on-chain activity on protocols such as Uniswap and Blur.



The network pushed an upgrade (EIP-1559) in August 2021 that meant transaction fees would be burned instead of directed to the network’s miners — a precursor to <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/proof-of-work-vs-proof-of-stake-whats-the-difference">Ethereum’s switch to proof-of-stake</a> last September.



EIP-1559 at times inspired Ethereum to produce deflationary blocks (more ETH burned than distributed). But the asset has now been solidly deflationary every day since late January, per network tracker <a href="https://ultrasound.money/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ultrasound.money.</a>



Prior to that, <a href="https://blockworks.co/tag/ethereum" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ethereum</a> had briefly entered deflationary status in November 2022, about two months after <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/ethereum-switches-to-proof-of-stake-after-7-years-of-work">Ethereum’s Merge</a> cut issuance by more than 90%, before slipping back to inflationary by December.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1458" height="922" src="https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/image-3.png?w=1024&amp;h=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-49645" srcset="https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/image-3.png?w=1458 1458w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/image-3.png?w=300 300w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/image-3.png?w=1024 1024w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/image-3.png?w=768 768w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/image-3.png?w=406 406w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/image-3.png?w=413 413w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/image-3.png?w=346 346w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/image-3.png?w=80 80w" sizes="(max-width: 1458px) 100vw, 1458px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Ultrasound.money only maps Ethereum’s deflationary status since the Merge — making its recent streak the longest on record for this particular tracker.</figcaption></figure>



Research analysts at Compass Point Research and Trading said in a research report earlier this month that the increase in burned <a href="https://blockworks.co/price/eth" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ETH</a> has largely been driven by increased Uniswap usage in response to centralized exchange uncertainty, as well as continued usage of the <a href="https://blockworks.co/tag/blur" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Blur NFT marketplace</a>.



Uniswap tops the ETH burned leaderboard in the past 30 days, with roughly 8,766 ETH ($16 million) burned in that span. NFT marketplace and aggregator Blur has burned about 6,535 ETH ($11.9 million) over the last month.&nbsp;



“The amount of ETH burned has seen a steady climb over the past two months due to an increase in on-chain activity, with the largest surge occurring on March 10 as fear surrounding USDC’s backing caused a depeg,” <a href="https://twitter.com/blockworksres" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Blockworks Research</a> Analyst <a href="https://twitter.com/swmartin19" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Sam Martin</a> said.&nbsp;



“On-chain users scrambled to dump USDC for USDT, which led to the largest daily burn since the Merge’s implementation.”



<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-wp-embed is-provider-flourish wp-block-embed-flourish"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<iframe class="wp-embedded-content" sandbox="allow-scripts" security="restricted" title="Interactive or visual content" src="https://flo.uri.sh/visualisation/13146312/embed#?secret=VXXui9FAc2" data-secret="VXXui9FAc2" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" height="575" width="700"></iframe>
</div></figure>



Read More: <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/blur-nft-volume-crypto-airdrop">Blur Still Sees Record NFT Volumes Even After Crypto Airdrop</a>



The depegging of USDC followed the collapse of <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/silicon-valley-bank-meltdown-has-little-to-do-with-crypto">Silicon Valley Bank</a> (SVB). <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/circle-stand-behind-usdc">It plunged to as low as $0.87</a> before ultimately returning to its $1 peg.&nbsp;&nbsp;



The failures of financial institutions in recent weeks, including Silvergate, SVB and Signature Bank, have prompted crypto industry participants <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/banking-sector-versus-defi">to advocate for decentralized financial infrastructure</a> as a more secure and reliable alternative.&nbsp;&nbsp;



Compass Point’s March 9 report predicted that the introduction of layer-2 blockchains can take market share away from so-called <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/competition-in-layer-1-space-continues-to-heat-up">&#8220;ETH killers&#8221;</a> and bring users back to the Ethereum network.



“We continue to believe that L2 scaling and liquid staking growth have the potential to be significant catalysts for Ethereum this year, and help drive on-boarding of users, adoption and overall demand and activity of the network,” analysts wrote.



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Ethereum Now Deflationary for 2 Months Straight

Bessie Liu

Nouns-inspired HeadlineDAO is looking to find a way to sponsor crypto journalism through its media-focused decentralized autonomous organization (DAO).



The purpose of Headline is to reward journalists for producing good content and to fund their projects.



Unlike a traditional newsroom, Headline does not have a core team of reporters and editors but relies on NFT token holders to determine which journalists are funded.



<h2>What is NounsDAO?</h2>



NounsDAO generates one <a href="https://blockworks.co/tag/nfts" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">NFT</a> per day — known as a Noun — which is auctioned on its website to bidders. The purpose of the DAO is to create an on-chain hub of people and capital that supports community projects.



Recent Nouns have been sold for around 30 <a href="https://blockworks.co/price/eth" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ETH</a> (~$54,000) or more, and all money from the sale goes into an on-chain treasury, currently valued at about $24 million.



The concept has been <a href="https://nouns.wtf/vote/248">likened</a> to an investment syndicate, with each NFT analogous to a class A share — holders vote on how to allocate the ether held by the Nouns treasury.



The DAO distributes funding of varying sizes, from small grants for creators to larger proposals put forward on Prop House — the public infrastructure of NounsDAO.



<h2>Nounish DAOs</h2>



HeadlineDAO is one of many Nouns-inspired DAOs, otherwise known as a “<a href="https://www.nounish.world/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nounish DAO</a>.” It was created via a <a href="https://prop.house/builder/dao-incubator-round-2/3493" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">proposal</a> on Prop House in January 2023.



Reporters sponsored by Headline would be responsible for fact-checking their own work, and those who apply for funding do not necessarily need to have journalistic experience.



The first “request for content,” which enables creatives to submit their work, has been <a href="https://prop.house/headline/request-for-content" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">live</a> on Prop House since March 8.



There are now 22 proposals looking to be funded, ranging from written investigative pieces to video coverage to tweets.



Only five projects will be selected, and winning proposals will be rewarded with 2 ETH ($3,500) each.



If selected, individual journalists will be responsible for the distribution of their own work, as there will not be a centralized collection of work.



Headline was founded by the pseudonymous “Brian,” <a href="https://twitter.com/pbrianandj" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">pbrainandj</a> on Twitter. The project&#8217;s notion of what “crypto journalism” means was left intentionally vague and imposes no restrictions on content creators in terms of format, length, subject or style.



The only requirement for work funded by the project is that it “make clear that they are funded by Headline,” the request for content states.



<a href="https://twitter.com/pbrianandj">Pbrianandj</a> told Blockworks that, “Lots of people have written about how the Nouns model can be applied beyond proliferating the Nouns meme but we’re one of the first groups to run the experiment for real.”



The submission deadline was extended from Wednesday to Sunday, March 25, to enable additional content creators to request funding, pbrianandj said.



“I’m thrilled that so far we’ve received 26 amazing proposals with more on the way,” he said.



Updated March 21, 2023 at 1:29 pm: Added comment from HeadlineDAO founder Pbrianandj.



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Nouns-inspired DAO Wants To Re-evaluate How Crypto Journalism Is Funded

Jon Rice

Tiresome marketing stunts are hardly new in crypto.&nbsp;



So it was no surprise when last week, two men notable partly for their dubious achievements (yet primarily for their capacity for inserting themselves into trending narratives) did what they do best.



They got lots of people to talk about them.



Balaji Srinivasan threw a million bucks at a silly bet. Predicting US hyperinflation and a price of a million dollars for one bitcoin within 90 days, he put his $1M up against some lucky rube’s 1 BTC. (Naturally, one of crypto’s biggest celebrities was chosen to hold the stakes.)



Justin Sun, meanwhile, made the alarming — and nonsensical — claim that he would buy Credit Suisse for $1.5 billion, shortly after UBS’ billion-dollar offer had been rejected.



Balaji Srinivasan was the CTO of Coinbase at one point, an exchange not noted for its technical prowess during busy periods, while Justin Sun’s TRON ripped off other <a href="https://www.plagiarismtoday.com/2018/02/01/the-multi-billion-dollar-plagiarism-scandal/">projects</a>’ innovations. Neither man has a resume that most people would consider entirely admirable, but both have made a very, very, large sum of money.



And it’s the grotesque flaunting of this cash that is the first hint that the two men have more in common than they might like to admit. A million here, a billion there… tweeted with barely a concern in the world, despite representing life-changing money to 99% of the people on this planet.



Without getting deep into the abject silliness of Balaji’s bet itself (as commentators noted, the least of your worries would be the price of a bitcoin, in that war-torn world) or the fact that no self-respecting bank would ever consider Sun’s proposal, both are perfect examples of carnival-barking pitchmen making headlines rather than sense.



Srinivasan is a bold prognosticator, a self-appointed tech Nostradamus, whose apparently prescient analysis of the COVID-19 pandemic’s early stages conferred upon him some sense of mystical power among a certain subset of the Twitterati.



He certainly sounds clever. He probably is clever. But above all, Balaji is a critic, a Trumpian media character whose calling seems to be to inject chaos into every system.



He’s adept at inserting himself into narratives, making controversial proclamations regarding crypto, or AI, or inflation, or whatever happens to be the trending topic of the day.



With this latest stunt, questions have abounded regarding Balaji’s intentions: Is he serious? Is he concerned? Is he shorting bank stocks? Is he heavy enough into Bitcoin that a small movement up could offset his wager?



Who knows. Who cares? It’s a silly gambit that got him lots of attention on Twitter, and even write-ups from serious media outlets like Fortune and CNBC.



Meanwhile, Justin Sun’s $1.5 billion offer for Credit Suisse was met with ridicule rather than astonishment.



Because this is the same Justin Sun who promised to give away a Tesla in an early marketing stunt (the giveaway was a complete <a href="https://cryptobriefing.com/tron-tesla-giveaway-flat/">flustercluck</a>, and it’s not clear he ever gave the car to anyone).



The same Justin Sun who canceled on Warren Buffett (although to be fair, that lunch eventually happened).



The same Justin Sun who “missed the launch” of the trip to <a href="https://twitter.com/justinsuntron/status/1473641965979897862">space</a> he won with a $28 million bid, promising instead that he’d take five people with him in 2022. (He didn’t.)



The same Justin Sun who <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/tron-obstructed-legitimate-attempts-to-claim-its-1-million-twitter-hack-bounty">bowed out</a> of a $1M bounty he promised for anyone who identified the Twitter hacker in 2020… who exploited the FTX drama with a stunt to “rescue investors” that only allowed withdrawals of Tron (TRX) tokens.



That list can go on and on.



Justin Sun was never going to buy Credit Suisse. Justin Sun can’t give away a Tesla without ballsing up the entire operation.



No, Justin Sun inserts himself into these conversations to fixate media attention on himself, and his cryptocurrency projects.



Which is precisely why Balaji and Justin are so similar, even though Balaji is the beneficiary of an adoring ensemble of fans who hang on his every five-dollar word, while Justin is roundly mocked by those accustomed to his antics.



Their currency is currency. They need to be part of the conversation. Their brands are, very specifically, tied to their adjacency to the national debate.



To what end?



Whatever it is, you can bet it’s not to make themselves poorer.&nbsp;



And you can safely ignore them. That ‘mute’ button on Twitter is there for a reason.



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Why Balaji and Justin Are Two Peas in a Pod

Recent closures of US banks and Credit Suisse’s distress sale appear to have acted as a catalyst for bitcoin’s <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/microstrategy-nearly-even-on-bitcoin" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">recent rally</a> and highlighted the utility of crypto self-custody.



According to Yat Siu, co-founder at Web3 venture capital firm Animoca Brands, the <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/silicon-valley-bank-meltdown-has-little-to-do-with-crypto" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">collapse</a> of Silicon Valley Bank showed the fragility of the banking system. 



A number of tech entrepreneurs and startups saw their assets suddenly frozen, under the control of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.&nbsp;



Meanwhile, the rise of crypto has made self-custody more practical, to the point that digital assets can serve as a potential future safety net, Siu <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/zinnialee/2023/03/20/animocas-yat-siu-says-crypto-is-becoming-a-safety-net-amid-banking-crisis" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reportedly</a> said during a Web3 investment summit in Hong Kong on Monday.



“Crypto, and specifically bitcoin and ether, become attractive alternative ways to store value without those particular traditional banking risks,&#8221; Siu told Forbes. 



Bitcoin now trades around $27,780, up 68% in the year-to-date period, but down 32% in the last year. Ether is hovering at $1,750, up 46% year-to-date and down 39% in the last 12 months.



Siu reasoned the situation reflects a “flight of regular money to some cryptocurrencies.” Blockworks has reached out to Siu for comment.



Animoca’s portfolio counts more than <a href="https://www.animocabrands.com/mission-and-vision" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">380 investments</a>, including Axie Infinity, OpenSea and Dapper Labs. Siu said Animoca hasn’t been directly impacted by recently failed banks, but some of its investments could have exposure. Still, he said their deposits are safe and the problem isn’t significant. 



Animoca’s investors were <a href="https://www.animocabrands.com/information-for-shareholders-animoca-brands-does-not-bank-with-silvergate-or-svb" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">informed</a> on March 11 that neither Silvergate nor Silicon Valley Bank was a partner. 



Vineeth Bhuvanagiri, managing director of Cardano’s commercial arm EMURGO Fintech, weighed in on bitcoin’s strength during the crisis, claiming it’s a hedge against fiat currency debasement.



“This banking crisis has led to huge injections of liquidity into the market so as to shore up wobbling financial institutions, with a consequence of this being more debasement of the dollar. This is a key reason why bitcoin is surging,” he told Blockworks.



The US dollar, as represented by the DXY index, is down 0.4% year to date but up 4.67% over the past year, and 15.19% across the past five years.



“I think this marks a broader recognition that Bitcoin can serve as a safe haven for storing wealth because there is no counterparty risk involved — you are your own bank with Bitcoin,” Bhuvanagiri said.



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Crypto Self-Custody a ‘Future Safety Net’: Animoca Co-Founder

Two powerhouse Ethereum scaling solutions have teamed up to build a gaming blockchain in a push to accelerate the adoption of Web3 gaming.



Immutable announced Monday that it would use Polygon’s zero-knowledge technology to create a new network called Immutable zkEVM, a roll-up designed to make the process of developing Web3-enabled games faster and easier.



It “will allow both large game studios and independent developers to build high-quality games that support true asset ownership,” Immutable said in a <a href="https://www.immutable.com/blog/immutable-and-polygon">statement</a>.



The network isn’t live yet and has to wait for the launch of Polygon’s zkEVM, which utilizes the power of zero knowledge proofs to reduce transaction costs and processing time while being fully Ethereum-compatible.&nbsp;



After launching <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/polygon-and-matter-labs-compete-on-zkevm-rollups">a public testnet in October</a>, the mainnnet is <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/polygon-zkevm-beta-live-on-ethereum">slated to go live</a> on <a href="https://twitter.com/MihailoBjelic/status/1625532387235971076">March 27</a>. Some of the biggest DeFi platforms, including Aave and Uniswap, will be among the first protocols to deploy on the zkEVM as they continue to scale their decentralized apps.



Polygon co-founder Sandeep Nailwal <a href="https://twitter.com/sandeepnailwal/status/1637934814136266752" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a> all gaming studios building on Immutable will end up using Polygon (<a href="https://blockworks.co/price/matic">MATIC</a>) validators. These studios will launch their own app-specific chains, which will require staked MATIC, and gas fees, paid in Immutable’s token (<a href="https://blockworks.co/price/imx">IMX</a>), from all such chains will go to MATIC stakers, he added.



<h2>Consequences for Gaming</h2>



Immutable and Polygon’s strategic alliance will build “an Ethereum-centric gaming ecosystem that is poised to take Web3 mainstream and bring digital ownership to millions of people around the world,” said Robbie Ferguson, co-founder at Immutable.



Gaming is one of the fastest-growing subsections of the blockchain industry, with brands like Ubisoft, Nintendo, Electronic Arts and <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/epic-games-fortnite-store-crypto-blockchain">Epic Games</a> diving into decentralized gaming. Both projects combined reported nearly <a href="https://twitter.com/Immutable/status/1637877713120948224">$2 billion</a> invested in Web3 games in 2022.



“Billions of dollars of skins are sold each year with no rights for players — we’re changing that, so players are in control, and ownership is the expectation.” The Immutable zkEVM will be an additional option for game developers. It does not replace the platform’s Starkware-based solution, Immutable X.



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Immutable and Polygon Join Forces To Attract Web3 Game Developers

Blockchain data provider DeFi Llama has walked back claims about an internal conflict that led to the split of its website and Twitter handle.



0xngmi, a member of the project said to be responsible for 90% of DeFi Llama’s success, initially claimed on Twitter that the team was undergoing a “hostile takeover” as another member wanted to launch a token. Apparently, this was a move the rest of the team didn’t approve of.



But late on Monday, 0xngmi provided an update to say the <a href="https://twitter.com/0xngmi/status/1637425043482222599" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">argument</a> had been resolved, the fork had been canceled, and the website would continue to work on a single <a href="http://defillama.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">domain</a>.



<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">For everybody who is asking: everything has been solved and all work will continue on <a href="https://t.co/8b11M6Yk9u">https://t.co/8b11M6Yk9u</a>, <a href="https://t.co/G0h4uBo2mL">https://t.co/G0h4uBo2mL</a> will just be redirecting there&mdash; 0xngmi (llamazip arc) (@0xngmi) <a href="https://twitter.com/0xngmi/status/1637955928887533570?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 20, 2023</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
</div></figure>



DeFi Llama <a href="https://twitter.com/DefiLlama/status/1637910941550489605" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">confirmed</a> the development via Twitter, apologizing for “poor communication” and “misunderstanding within the team.” 



“We would like to put what happened behind us. There is no LLAMA token currently planned, and any airdrop will be discussed with the community, as every important decision is,” the project said.



“We will take steps to operate in a more transparent manner to ensure this doesn&#8217;t happen again.” It added that each arm of LlamaCorp would cooperate with the other.



The team caused quite a stir over the weekend after 0xngmi and another individual contributor Tendeeno openly indicated on Twitter that DeFi Llama’s co-founder 0xLLam4 didn’t care about the opinions of the rest of the team.



Tendeeno had said DeFi Llama was the most successful project under the LlamaCorp umbrella, which includes other services like DL News and LlamaPay. Developments surrounding the conflict have not affected DL News, and it continues to be business as usual at the new outlet, according to a person familiar with the matter.&nbsp;



However, DeFi Llama itself was not generating revenue, which is why the co-founder thought launching a token would solve this.&nbsp;



Tendeeno said the team didn’t want this because “the project’s value and reputation would be wrapped up in this token.” He further claimed that the co-founder behind the hostile takeover had not contributed any work to DeFi Llama and had not paid employee salaries.&nbsp;



DeFi Llama did not comment on the claims laid out in Tendeeno’s tweets.



Tendeeno added to the narrative late Monday, saying the team wants to move on without continuing the conversation publicly, “but rest assured everyone at DL is happy with the outcome.”



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DeFi Llama Quells Internal Squabbles, Scraps Token Launch Plans

Singapore-headquartered fintech startup Trovio is ending support for its gold-backed crypto due to alleged breaches of Australian and US laws by partner Perth Mint.&nbsp;



Perth Mint is the country’s official gold bullion mint, owned by the Western Australian government. Trovio (formerly InfiniGold), which also has offices in Sydney, Nassau and Amsterdam, launched the Perth Mint Gold Token (PMGT) in late 2019 on Ethereum, as an ERC-20 token.



Each PMGT is backed by the mint’s GoldPass certificates, which are in turn backed by physical gold stored at Perth Mint. PGMT holders can redeem their tokens for GoldPass certificates, which can be sold back to the mint or exchanged for other products.



Trovio marketed PMGT as an alternative to standard cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin and ether. But a string of controversies has hit the mint, leading to Trovio’s decision to back away from PMGT altogether.&nbsp;



The future of GoldPass, an adjacent service that enables users to buy, sell, and trade gold from their smartphones, is also in doubt, ABC News <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-03-21/trivio-dumps-perth-mint-cryptocurrency-questions-for-goldpass/102120160" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported</a> Monday.



The London Bullion Market Association had found Perth Mint sold gold bars that didn’t meet stringent rules set out by the Shanghai Gold Exchange, per a Four Corners <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-03-06/perth-mint-gold-doping-china-cover-up-four-corners/102048622" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">investigation</a> earlier this month.



A separate issue struck last September, when the mint acknowledged violating the US Model Commodity Code by storing clients&#8217; gold in its vaults. It self-reported historic breaches of the code stretching back more than 25 years, affecting at least 900 accounts reportedly worth around $250 million at the time.



An AUSTRAC probe into Perth Mint was also reported in September. The Australian financial crimes agency is investigating the firm for potential anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism funding breaches.



Trovio winding down PGMT is noteworthy considering the token was apparently the first crypto deployed to a public blockchain backed by government-guaranteed gold.&nbsp;



<a href="https://etherscan.io/token/0xaffcdd96531bcd66faed95fc61e443d08f79efef" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Etherscan</a> shows there’s currently 1,196 tokens in circulation across 255 holders, with a market capitalization of $2.3 million — much smaller than the other two primary gold-backed <a href="https://www.coingecko.com/en/categories/tokenized-gold" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">offerings</a>, Pax Gold and Tether Gold, both of which command market values of around $500 million.



For the meantime, PMGT is still being promoted on <a href="https://www.perthmint.com/invest/goldpass/perth-mint-gold-token-pmgt/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Perth Mint&#8217;s website</a> and there is a link to a Trovio-operated site that markets the product.&nbsp;It&#8217;s also unclear whether PGMT will wind down completely. A Perth Mint spokesperson told ABC News that the token is still available as the details of the mint&#8217;s exit from the project haven&#8217;t yet been finalized.



Jeff Yew, CEO of Australian digital asset manager Monochrome, told Blockworks the structure of the partnership and the centralized nature of the token meant its design has been problematic from the onset.



In PMGT’s case, a private company issued tokens derived from an asset held by another centralized organization. The benefits of using a decentralized governance structure are immediately canceled when a centralized agency is involved in a critical operational layer, he said.



“Gold&#8217;s physical nature means it cannot ‘live’ in the digital space without human central points of control and failures,” Yew said.



Updated Mar. 21, 2023 at 7:47 am ET: Updated headline, clarified Perth Mint context including potential future for PMGT.



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Australia’s Gold-Backed Crypto Under Threat As Issuer Backs Away

Bitcoin’s price is approaching the average buy-in the largest public holder of bitcoin paid for its massive BTC stash.



Business intelligence firm MicroStrategy held 132,500 bitcoins, as of Dec. 31. The original cost basis for the <a href="https://blockworks.co/price/btc" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">BTC</a> pile was nearly $4 billion, reflecting an average cost per bitcoin of about $30,137. 



The price of <a href="https://blockworks.co/tag/bitcoin" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">bitcoin</a> was about $28,200 at 3 pm ET Monday, up roughly 26% from a week ago.



<a href="https://blockworks.co/tag/microstrategy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">MicroStrategy</a>’s net loss was $250 million during the fourth quarter of 2022, the company reported in February. Its digital asset impairment charges — which comes into play if the market value of bitcoin decreases below its market-adjusted purchase value — were $198 million during the quarter.



Executives said on an earnings call last month that the firm planned to continue its longtime strategy of buying and holding bitcoin on its balance sheet.



Dan Weiskopf — a co-portfolio manager of the Amplify Transformational Data Sharing ETF (BLOK) — told Blockworks that bitcoin’s price is more relevant to traders than to MicroStrategy co-founder <a href="https://blockworks.co/tag/michael-saylor" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Michael Saylor</a>.



Saylor has made it clear his company will be a strategic longterm bitcoin owner.



“Some investors may mark the moment when MicroStrategy’s 132,500 BTC is at a breakeven level; I don’t think Saylor ever thought that was not a high probability,” Weiskopf told Blockworks. “In fact, I am confident for him it is a short-term mark and only the beginning for what he expects bitcoin will accomplish.”



A MicroStrategy spokesperson did not immediately return a request for comment.&nbsp;



<a href="https://blockworks.co/news/microstrategy-buys-the-bitcoin-dip-draws-criticism-from-analysts">Analysts have been critical of the company</a> in the past about its buying and holding strategy amid market volatility.&nbsp;&nbsp;



Edward Moya, a senior market analyst for foreign exchange company OANDA, said last June that MicroStrategy “has failed to capitalize on the way up and find protection when things got ugly,” adding that the company has been “reckless with their portfolio management.”



The company’s unrealized losses when bitcoin dropped to below $16,000 in November, MicroStrategy’s totaled nearly $2 billion.&nbsp;



<h2>New bull indicator&nbsp;</h2>



Bitcoin’s rally of late has closed that unrealized gap.



“Microstrategy has survived a crypto ice age and now has an opportunity to take advantage of growing interest in DeFi and all the other crypto protocols with better growth potential,” Moya told Blockworks Monday. “With no true bitcoin ETF coming, Microstrategy is still positioned to attract new investors.”



MicroStrategy’s stock price was $261.50 at 3 pm ET Monday — up about 80% year to date, but down roughly 2% on the day. 



Weiskopf said the latest bitcoin price gains have been caused in part by the broadening of BTC use cases — such as <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/new-bitcoin-ordinals-marketplace">bitcoin ordinals</a> — that could spur MicroStrategy to buy even more of the asset.&nbsp;



Marcus Sotiriou, a market analyst at GlobalBlock, said in a research note that bitcoin reaching $28,000 over the weekend signals the start of a new bull trend.&nbsp;



“The recent closures of US banking giants have acted as a catalyst for bitcoin’s price increase,” Sotiriou wrote. “The drawbacks of the banking system are a key proponent for decentralized assets such as bitcoin.”



Morningstar senior research analyst Madeline Hume said MicroStrategy has vowed to add to its bitcoin position while cash flows are in excess of working capital— and while equity raises are feasible.&nbsp;



MicroStrategy’s working capital is negative, Hume said, suggesting additional purchases are unlikely in the short term.



“Across the capital markets, liquidity raises have ground to a halt given the jittery macro environment,” she told Blockworks. “Any additional tactical moves, including a liquidation of some portion of the bitcoin holdings, would depend on the firm’s ability to finance its activities in other ways, including the firm’s ability to borrow.”



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MicroStrategy Nearly Even on Bitcoin Buys After Latest Rally

Ordinals infrastructure is taking shape, with multiple marketplaces now servicing the budding Bitcoin digital collectible community.



Gamma.io is the latest, having built its presence by supporting creation and auctions for NFTs issued on Stacks, the smart contract layer for Bitcoin.



The platform now supports <a href="https://blockworks.co/tag/ordinals" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ordinals</a> auctions in the same vein as Ethereum NFT marketplace <a href="https://blockworks.co/tag/opensea" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">OpenSea</a>, allowing users to trade inscribed satoshis peer-to-peer. (Stacks NFTs are a separate concept to Bitcoin-native Ordinals.)



Gamma also launched a “no-code” Ordinals creation tool last month, allowing users to upload and inscribe any image to the Bitcoin blockchain. The firm says it has assisted production of more than 30,000 inscriptions to date, making up almost 10% of all Ordinals on the network.



&#8220;As Ordinals become the bright spot in this crypto winter, our trustless Bitcoin ordinals marketplace showcases our commitment to an exceptional Web3-native experience,&#8221; Jamil Dhanani, founder and CEO of Gamma, said in a statement.&nbsp;



Currently, Gamma allows access to only Stacks NFTs and Ordinals, but not Ethereum NFTs. However, Ethereum wallets can be connected to a single profile, enabling users to showcase NFTs across the three networks.



Stacks NFTs can be purchased with the network’s native token, STX, while Ordinals can be bought with bitcoin (<a href="https://blockworks.co/price/btc" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">BTC</a>).



<h2>What are Bitcoin Ordinals</h2>



Casey Rodarmor wanted to <a href="https://twitter.com/rodarmor/status/1619520557934059521?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1619520557934059521%7Ctwgr%5E40fa2a2936070d9aecda805f93c7d8eba4a4ec98%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.coindesk.com%2Fconsensus-magazine%2F2023%2F02%2F23%2Fcasey-rodarmor-why-i-developed-the-ordinals-bitcoin-nft-project-coindesk%2F" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">make Bitcoin fun again</a>. 



Following the Taproot upgrade in 2021, he <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/cant-ignore-bitcoin-nfts" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">identified</a> a way to store text, images, SVGs and HTML to be stored individually on the Bitcoin blockchain using a numbering scheme for satoshis — the smallest denomination of bitcoin.



Using an accounting-like method, individual satoshis were made non-fungible once they were able to be differentiated in a closed-off system, making them uniquely identifiable.&nbsp;



Many in the industry are excited about this new development, with Stacks co-founder Muneeb Ali saying: “Ordinals came out of nowhere and at the right time that has ignited interest in the Bitcoin builders culture again.”



“Overall, that is a very healthy thing for Bitcoin,” Muneeb said. “So many people who forgot about Bitcoin because they wanted to play with NFTs and other types of experimental things, they&#8217;re now booting up Bitcoin nodes and reconnecting with Bitcoin.”



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/XdDYTpa9OjNMF_oG6v8nOq691SFNF7ymi-gNow9UJCI9pu_P9kRL0fbbtRpZKUP4-7JXrY4xowJKF0AV7zL81CqZjc_c-JEGxTLlfBupvmO4yiX4KkXNU5yb2HMQYF7Dltf-JrnWHmLGZ-CZqFi3Ddc" alt=""/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">“Ordinals Sock Monster” is one of the first Bitcoin-bound collections to hit Gamma</figcaption></figure>



This sentiment is shared by Nick Sainato, Gamma co-founder, who told Blockworks that “as the most secure, decentralized and trusted settlement layer available, Bitcoin is the logical choice for creators to utilize for art, open-source code, historical and cultural artifacts, important documents, and more.”



“Though other innovative ways of using Ordinals remain to be discovered, we are committed, as we have been for the last 18 months, to providing accessible tools and a platform for everyone to discover the potential of Bitcoin,” Sainato said.



Gamma’s Ordinals marketplace will not be the first in the market. ORDX and Ordswap were the first two trustless marketplaces to have launched in the space. Other marketplaces such as scarce.city also exist.



These marketplaces all have relatively similar functionality, allowing its users to buy and sell inscriptions. Ordswap also acts as an Ordinals wallet so that no external wallets need to be connected to the site to execute transactions.



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NFT Marketplaces Battle for Bitcoin Ordinals Mindshare

The SEC’s current agenda may be too packed to pass important regulatory guidelines, in crypto or other areas of securities policy, Commissioner Hester Peirce said Monday.&nbsp;



“Gensler has a tremendous amount of energy, and I think that&#8217;s reflected in a very busy regulatory agenda for the commission,” <a href="https://blockworks.co/tag/hester-peirce" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Peirce</a> said during a discussion with Florida International University law students.



“I do have grave concerns about the number of things we&#8217;re trying to do at the same time,” she said.&nbsp;



In terms of recent enforcement actions from the SEC, <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/sec-under-gensler-crypto-power-grab-effective-protection">which many industry advocates argue has slowed progress</a> by targeting companies that are unable to go to court and set a precedent, Peirce said the agency may be putting the cart before the horse.&nbsp;



“There is a more efficient way to do this,” she added. “If we think that there&#8217;s a problem in the industry, we need to deal with it through regulation, and then enforcement should follow the regulation.”&nbsp;



Before issuing an enforcement action or agreeing to a settlement, regulators might be better off opening the discussion up to public forums to create policy, Peirce said.



“Repeatedly, I have dissented from settlements in this space because I think what we&#8217;re trying to do is we&#8217;re trying to set the law through these settlements,” the <a href="https://blockworks.co/tag/sec" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">SEC</a> commissioner added. “Why not — for each of these major topics, where we see there to be some sort of securities angle — why not spell that out in some sort of preliminary written documents?” 



In terms of what is next for crypto policy, Peirce said the industry and regulators need to start thinking critically about digital asset use cases. Trading is only one aspect of crypto, she said.&nbsp;



“But trading can&#8217;t be the only thing that crypto is about, and I think critics rightly have pointed to that,” Peirce said. “So ‘listen to your critics’ is another lesson that I think is important for the industry.”&nbsp;



It’s difficult to put crypto into the current regulatory framework we have for traditional financial markets, Peirce said, but agencies should be encouraged to move faster in order to protect investors and promote innovation.&nbsp;



“Some people in the regulatory world are perfectly fine with having innovation in crypto move away from the United States because they don&#8217;t think that there&#8217;s anything positive that&#8217;s going to come out of it,” Peirce said. “I tend to be of a different mindset.”



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SEC’s Peirce: Gensler Is Trying To Do Too Much Too Fast

A subsidiary of the New York Community Bankcorp, Inc. has entered an agreement to purchase Signature Bank, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) said in a press release on Sunday.



The latest deal includes all $38.4 billion in Signature’s assets and $12.9 billion in loans, which were purchased at a significant discount of $2.7 billion.&nbsp;



What’s not included in the acquisition is approximately $60 billion in loans — which will remain under the receivership of the FDIC until later distribution — and $4 billion in deposits from Signature’s cryptocurrency business.&nbsp;



All <a href="https://blockworks.co/tag/signature" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Signature</a> customers with cryptocurrency-related deposits with Signature bank will receive their funds directly from the <a href="https://blockworks.co/tag/fdic" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">FDIC</a>. 



The 40 branches of Signature Bank will operate during normal business hours under the subsidiary Flagstar Bank, starting today.



Signature Bank was the third bank to close its doors this month, <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/banking-sector-versus-defi">following the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Silvergate Bank</a>.&nbsp;



Unlike the other two banks, however, Signature bank <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/crypto-regulation-policy-law">was shut down by New York state regulators</a>, ostensibly, to protect the US banking system, although not due to insolvency.



Its closure has drawn concern across the broader cryptocurrency industry, as it was one of the few traditional financial institutions that recognized cryptoassets.&nbsp;



A CoinGecko <a href="https://www.coingecko.com/research/publications/svb-signature-bank-crypto-exposure" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">report</a> shows that the crypto company which has had the most exposure to the bank failures is <a href="https://blockworks.co/tag/circle" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Circle</a> — the issuer of the <a href="https://blockworks.co/tag/usdc" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">USDC</a> stablecoin.



Circle announced last week that it was accelerating the onboarding of a <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/new-circle-bank-after-usdc-depeg">new banking partner</a>, Cross River Bank.



Paxos, Coinbase, BlockFi also have material exposure to the shuttered bank. Paxos reported $250 million held at Signature, while Coinbase had $240 million with Signature Bank, and BlockFi noted $227 million in assets were affected.



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New York Community Bank Will Acquire Signature — But Not Crypto Holdings

Microsoft is reportedly working on an Ethereum-based Web3 wallet for its flagship browser, allowing users to send and receive digital assets and NFTs.&nbsp;



The wallet is currently in a limited testing phase and is not yet available to the public, IT media outlet <a href="https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/microsoft/microsoft-is-testing-a-built-in-crypto-wallet-in-microsoft-edge/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bleeping Computer</a> reported Friday.



First reported by Microsoft sleuth <a href="https://twitter.com/thebookisclosed/status/1636759487829917698?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Albacore</a>, who shared screenshots of the wallet on Twitter, Microsoft is asking “testers” via its Edge browser to put up their own assets.



“We encourage you to test our first Web3 wallet and provide candid feedback along the journey,” Microsoft said in one of the <a href="https://twitter.com/thebookisclosed/status/1636759487829917698/photo/2" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">screenshots</a>. “As the first testers, you have the unique opportunity to shape our foray into cryptocurrencies and NFTs.”



The wallet is non-custodial, meaning users are in control of their funds and the tech giant will not have access to their passwords or recovery keys. The wallet generates an Ethereum address that allows users to receive funds through the Ethereum network.&nbsp;



Users can also manage multiple Ethereum accounts and choose between the built-in Edge wallet or an extension.



Microsoft has partnered with Consensys to make available a <a href="https://twitter.com/thebookisclosed/status/1636761695216451588/photo/3" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">swap feature</a> supporting ETH, DAI, UNI, USDC, and USDT, according to Bleeping Computer.&nbsp;



Microsoft and Consensys did not immediately respond to requests for comment.



It remains to be seen if Microsoft will add support for other digital assets in the future.



According to Albacore, the wallet may launch soon.



“Enabling the crypto wallet ended up being less complex than I anticipated, which is also why I think that a launch might not be far away,” he told Blockworks.



According to the <a href="https://twitter.com/thebookisclosed/status/1636759748207845378/photo/3" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">screenshots</a>, the beta version of the wallet also features a news section to keep track of industry developments, which includes the ability to connect to decentralized apps.



Simon Kertonegoro, who previously helped usher in the implementation of a collaborative program between Microsoft and Enjin known as Azure Heroes, told Blockworks the tech giant’s Web3 wallet was a “savvy play” as it sought to “gain an upper hand” against rival Google Chrome.



“This would be amazing for us as users too, we&#8217;ll no longer need to input our credit card information every time we make a payment,” the founder of MyMetaverse said.



While the Edge crypto wallet is still in the testing phase, it could be a significant development for Microsoft, as it allows users to easily send and receive crypto without installing additional extensions or apps.&nbsp;



The move signals a pivot from its previous Web3 endeavors; Microsoft <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/microsoft-culls-metaverse-team">axed its metaverse unit</a> in February, just four months after it had created a team tasked with building industrial networks.



Jane Ma, co-founder of zkLend, a layer-2 money-market protocol built on StarkNet, told Blockworks the emergence of Web3 technologies has spurred a growing trend of Web2 infrastructure companies looking to explore ways to integrate these decentralized solutions into their platforms.



“Microsoft&#8217;s prototype crypto wallet for its Edge browser is a prime example of this trend, as it aims to simplify the onboarding process for new users,” Ma said. “With a massive user base of over 200 million, Microsoft Edge&#8217;s approach of providing a ready-made, packaged solution within its browser would break down technical barriers,” she said.



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Microsoft Edge Testing Built-In Ethereum Crypto Wallet, Screenshots Show

In Taiwan, the top financial watchdog is set to become the main oversight body for the local crypto industry, in what would mark a first for East Asia.



Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) chairman Huang Tien-mu said in parliament Monday that initially only crypto payments and transactions will come under his agency’s ambit, Reuters reported. 



The FSC regulates securities markets, insurance providers and the banking sector. The only key rule for crypto, for now, is that domestic platforms are meant to comply with anti-money laundering rules. 



Huang <a href="https://www.reuters.com/technology/taiwan-financial-regulator-says-will-oversee-crypto-currencies-2023-03-20/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reportedly</a> said it’s too early to debate forming separate legislation especially for crypto. He&#8217;s also yet to discuss details around self-regulation and other aspects of the crypto industry with governmental departments. 



The official appointment of the FSC is expected to be made by the end of March, per <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-03-20/taiwan-s-fsc-set-to-be-named-as-main-crypto-regulatory-body" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bloomberg</a>, which cited a person familiar with the matter. 



Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) won’t fall under the FSC’s purview and could instead be assigned to another department, such as the IT-focused Digital Affairs Ministry. Stablecoins could have an association with the central bank.



While crypto has been outright banned in nearby mainland China since 2021, Taiwan instead introduced anti-money laundering laws for crypto services providers in July of that year.&nbsp;



One year later, some 24 crypto firms registered under Taiwan’s Money Laundering Control Act including MaiCoin, BitoPro and XREX.



In the first half of 2022, crypto trading volumes in Taiwan <a href="https://restofworld.org/2023/taiwan-asia-crypto-capital/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">shot up</a> more than 30%. Its biggest crypto exchange MaiCoin saw over $20 million in daily trading volume (for scale, Coinbase currently processes about $2 billion per day, according to CoinGecko).



Taiwan moving to formally regulate crypto payments comes after a chaotic year for cryptocurrencies, earmarked by crypto exchange FTX filing for bankruptcy in November, having failed to handle an $8-billion-plus influx of user withdrawals.&nbsp;



Regulators around the world have called for more scrutiny of crypto exchanges and warned investors of risks associated with digital assets.



The securities watchdog <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/taiwan-bans-crypto-purchases-using-credit-cards" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">banned</a> digital asset transactions via credit cards in July, asking the banking industry not to grant “merchant status” to crypto service providers.



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Taiwan Securities Watchdog Will Regulate Crypto — But Not NFTs

As central banks continue to struggle with economic uncertainty amid concerns of hyperinflation, investors are turning to digital assets to protect their wealth.



Bellwether bitcoin (<a href="https://blockworks.co/price/btc">BTC</a>) climbed to its highest level in nine months, just above $28,400, on Sunday — representing a 69% increase on a year-to-date basis.



Price action is being driven by spot buys which is positive for the health of the trend, with the market yet to see froth and euphoria in capital allocation, Kurt Grumelart, a trader at Zerocap told Blockworks.



“The majority of this flow is hedge funds and other large market players positioning themselves in anticipation of a flight to safety more so than the actual flight to safety itself.”



Despite this, a comparison to global markets over the last two weeks shows that bitcoin is being actively considered as a risk hedge alongside and, potentially, instead of gold by serious players, Grumelart added.



By comparison, traditional markets have fared much worse, impressing long time crypto market watchers.



<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">WHY IT&#39;S DIFFERENT THIS TIME During the Covid crisis, did bitcoin have its moment? Not really, it nuked harder than anything instead of acting as a safe haven—and then traded like a junk risk stock on steroids, mooning at the same time as dogecoin and monkey jpegs. During the… <a href="https://t.co/L9t6clLudF">https://t.co/L9t6clLudF</a> <a href="https://t.co/CZZ9eMtMFG">pic.twitter.com/CZZ9eMtMFG</a>&mdash; Eric Wall 🧙‍♂️ Taproot Wizard #2 (@ercwl) <a href="https://twitter.com/ercwl/status/1637573829642862595?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 19, 2023</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
</div></figure>



The Dow Jones Industrial Average, which measures the performance of stocks listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and the Nasdaq, is down about 3.8% for the year.



US oil, as reflected by the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil index, has also performed poorly, posting a more than 13% loss over the same period. Meanwhile, gold — often considered a hedge against inflation and market uncertainty — is up around 9% year-to-date.



Bitcoin’s recent outperformance can be attributed to a number of factors, including the narrative of store-of-value, which has returned to prominence despite its past inability to perform that role in practice.



Grumelart pointed to bitcoin’s storied origins in the 2008 financial crisis, as a tool to combat negligence within the existing financial system, and said the current economic climate marked “a perfect storm” for bitcoin to prove its worth.



That climate is the culmination of a series of spectacular bank failures in the US and abroad which threatened to boil over this month, prompting regulators to step in and provide a backstop for depositors.



After the <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/silicon-valley-bank-meltdown-has-little-to-do-with-crypto">collapse of Silicon Valley Bank</a> and the <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/fdic-sells-signature-bank">FDIC shut down of Signature Bank</a>, First Republic Bank was also propped up by a private sector rescue and banks drew on nearly $12 billion of loans from the US Federal Reserve’s <a href="https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/monetary20230312a.htm" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">new emergency lending program</a>.



And on Sundsy, Swiss banking giant Credit Suisse was saved from collapse by a takeover from rival UBS in a <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/9fe40e6a-f01f-4205-b885-7771d305721e">$3.25 billion deal</a>.



<h2>Short-term liquidity boost is bitcoin’s gain</h2>



In total, nearly <a href="https://twitter.com/LynAldenContact/status/1636470293068644358?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">$300 billion</a> has been supplied via expansion of the US Federal Reserve’s balance sheet, including of a record <a href="https://www.marketwatch.com/story/fed-balance-sheet-balloons-by-almost-300-billion-after-svb-failure-and-effort-to-stop-bank-runs-f58cd3d8" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">$153 billion drawn</a> from the Fed’s discount window. 



All eyes are now locked on the outcome of the next FOMC meeting on Wednesday where the Fed will decide either to scale back its campaign of increased rate hikes, designed to combat inflation, or continue business as usual which has contributed to the breaking of the US retail banking sector.



“A number of central banks are stuck between a rock and a hard place, they simply cannot afford to let the banking sector collapse,” Grumelart said. “While the liquidity spike is positive for all assets, the implications of the action just taken are still unknown.”



The <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/stocks-and-crypto-correlation-shows-signs-of-weakening">correlation between bitcoin and equities</a> has been largely influenced by the perception the crypto industry, until the recent crisis, served as a risk-on indicator that was closely connected to the economic performance and monetary policies of the US and global markets.



While financial companies have been struggling, the <a href="https://www.barrons.com/articles/bank-crisis-apple-google-tech-stocks-fd937612" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">tech sector has been resilient</a>, with the Nasdaq Composite up over 4% and the Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund up about 17% for the year.



Tesla and Nvidia, up 67% and 79% YTD respectively, have their own unique drivers that have propelled their prices in recent months, Grumelart said. High-beta risk assets are primarily affected by <a href="https://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/pr/date/2023/html/ecb.pr230319~744758829c.en.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">market liquidity</a> and risk appetite, leading to periods of correlation. 



Although many risk assets have seen short-term gains, should economic conditions continue to deteriorate, high-growth equities are expected to suffer. But Grumelart is looking for bitcoin to decouple from Big Tech and follow commodities instead.



“If inflation reaches a double peak, it is likely that most high-performing assets, with the exception of commodities and bitcoin, will reverse most of their gains for the year,” he said. &#8220;The world should be glad that we have bitcoin as an option to protect our wealth in moments like this.&#8221;



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Bitcoin Price Gains Momentum as ‘Store of Value’ Amidst Banking Turmoil

EffortCapital

COSMOS

Mars Protocol: Cosmos' DeFi Superapp

Permissionless is the brainchild of Blockworks and Bankless. Over 5,500 people attended the inaugural event in 2022, making Permissionless the world’s largest DeFi conference.&nbsp;



What sets Permissionless apart? It’s a crypto native’s paradise, crafted specifically for both builders and investors who are dedicated to scaling the industry.&nbsp;



Permissionless is headed to Austin in 2023, and you know what they say… Everything is bigger in Texas.&nbsp;



Permissionless 2023 will feature the biggest names in Web3, a gargantuan exposition hall filled with the top brands in the space, an awe-inspiring NFT Gallery, inclusive, community-focused parties and events, metaverse experiences, and so much more.



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Speakers

Erik Voorhees

Mary-Catherine (MC) Lader is the Chief Operating Officer of Uniswap Labs, a developer of foundational web3-based products and applications. In this role, she oversees the company’s growth efforts, strategic initiatives, and operations. Previously, she held various leadership roles at BlackRock, including as the Global Head of the firm’s digital sustainability business, Chief Operating Officer of the firm’s digital wealth business, and leader of the firm’s strategic fintech investments and blockchain activities. MC began her career as an investor in Goldman Sachs’ Special Situations Group. She received her J.D. and M.B.A. degrees at Harvard Law School and Harvard Business School, respectively, and her B.A. at Brown University.

Mary-Catherine Lader

Zaki Manian is a Co-Founder of Sommelier, the most powerful coprocessor yet for DeFi traders and Liquidity Providers. He’s also a Co-Founder of iqlusion, which provides infrastructure like a data center and a Cosmos validator for next-gen crypto technologies. Previously, Zaki helped build the Cosmos ecosystem, including launching the first public Cosmos testnet, and served as a director of Tendermint. Zaki has been a leading developer in the blockchain space since 2014, when he taught himself cryptography and began contributing to projects including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Zcash, and Tendermint. Having studied history of science at the University of Pennsylvania, Zaki’s skill sets in software engineering, programming, and computer science are largely self-taught.

Zaki Manian

Justin Drake

At Alluvial, Chief Growth Officer Mara Schmiedt focuses on advancing industry participation and adoption of Liquid Collective, seeking out world-class partnership opportunities, and overseeing Business Development, Sales, and other strategic functions. Mara recently joined Alluvial as Chief Growth Officer from Coinbase, where she served as the Head of Sales for Coinbase Cloud, the leading developer platform for blockchain-based infrastructure products and APIs. She expanded Cloud's staking business, supporting large-scale organizations, enterprises, and institutional investors. Prior to joining Coinbase, she managed Business Development at Bison Trails, a leading provider of blockchain-based infrastructure acquired by Coinbase in February 2021. Mara also served as Strategy Manager at ConsenSys, where she supported the strategic development of Codefi, the blockchain application suite for Web3 Commerce and Finance.



Mara is passionate about open-source technology and has published multiple research reports and papers on liquid staking, such as <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/13-s15SvCIUBukhSZiNkpd0sTff3izQ5G/view">The Internet Bond</a> and <a href="https://consensys.net/insights/eth-2-staking-ecosystem-report/">Ethereum 2.0 Staking Ecosystem Report</a>.&nbsp;



Additionally, she has led various industry initiatives, including leading the working group with the Ethereum Foundation that developed the Ethereum Launchpad and the first distributed validator technology (DVT) PoCs. Mara's deep experience in bringing technology and blockchain-based products and services to market — as well as her track record of building world-class business and sales organizations — bolsters Alluvial's support of Liquid Collective.

Mara Schmiedt

Stani Kulechov

Hasu

Christine is a Partner and Head of Digital Asset Strategy at Apollo Global Management, Inc. In this newly created position, Christine leads digital asset strategy across the firm, exploring more ways to apply blockchain technologies to Apollo’s business. She also plays a key role in Apollo’s strategy to invest in some of the most innovative digital asset companies and founders, with a specific focus on those transforming the financial services sector where Apollo can serve as a validator and enabler of new technologies. Previously, she was a Managing Director at J.P. Morgan and led its Blockchain/Crypto/Metaverse program through initiatives in digital assets, tokenized payments, internet of-things, decentralized identity, NFTs, and virtual worlds. She is a graduate of Brown University. Christine was named in Fortune’s The Ledger 40 Under 40 list of “the most impressive, young superstars transforming business at the leading edge of finance and technology.”

Christine Moy

Santiago Roel Santos (CryptoPunk #9159) is an investor focusing at the intersection of DeFi and the Web3 metaverse (NFTs/gaming). Most recently was a Partner at ParaFi Capital, one of the largest crypto funds specializing in DeFi. Prior to that, he was at Sageview Capital investing in Internet and software and, before that, at JP Morgan investment banking. Santiago began investing in crypto in 2012.

Santiago Roel Santos

Michael Anderson is the co-founder of Framework Ventures, one of earliest and largest VC firms to enter the “DeFi” or Decentralized Finance industry. With over $1B in AUM, the firm has since expanded into additional maturing verticals like blockchain gaming and social crypto. Prior to Framework, Michael and his co-founder Vance Spencer launched Hashletes, a digital collectible startup with official licensing from the NFL. Before entering crypto, Michael served as a product manager at both Snapchat and Dropbox, where he helped build out their monetization platforms.

Michael Anderson

Soona Amhaz is founder and GP of Volt Capital, a venture firm that focuses on pre-seed and seed companies in the digital assets space. Soona is also an advisor to On Deck, Forbes 30 under 30 in VC, and an alum from the University of Michigan School of Engineering.

Soona Amhaz

Colleen Sullivan is Co-Head of Ventures at Brevan Howard Digital. Prior to joining Brevan Howard Digital, Colleen co-founded and served as CEO of CMT Digital, where she was also a partner with the broader CMT Group and commenced activities in the crypto industry in 2013. Prior to starting CMT Digital, Colleen co-founded Sullivan Wolf Kailus, a boutique law firm that specializes in hedge fund, private equity, venture capital, digital assets, and other alternative investment products. Colleen also previously practiced law in the Investment Funds and Derivatives group at Sidley Austin LLP and, at age 25, co-founded a company called iOptions Group LLC, which developed hedging and monetization strategies for holders of employee stock options. Ms. Sullivan currently serves on the Advisory Board of the Chamber of Digital Commerce.

Colleen Sullivan

Tarun is an alumni of D. E. Shaw Research (DESRES), Vatic Labs, an HFT firm, and Cornell. He fell into the blockchain world in 2011, when he was working on ASICs at DESRES and observed Bitcoin ASIC mining rigs substantially delay DESRES’s ASIC production. He has spent the last seven years working on simulation-based R&amp;D at the intersection of high-performance computing and AI and is applying this knowledge to the blockchain ecosystem.

Tarun Chitra

Kevin Owocki is the founder of Gitcoin.co — Where builders &amp; funders come together to build the open web.  Gitcoin has delivered <a href="http://gitcoin.co/results">$50mm worth of value</a> to OSS devs in the last several years. He has a BS in Computer Science, 15 years of engineering leadership experience in Open Source Software and Web Startups. Kevin is a community organizer in the Boulder Colorado Tech Scene.

Kevin Owocki

Meltem Demirors is Chief Strategy Officer of CoinShares, a publicly listed investment firm that manages over five billion in digital assets on behalf of a global investor base, and is a trusted partner to investors and entrepreneurs navigating the digital asset ecosystem.



 An established veteran of digital asset investing, Meltem draws on her substantial experience and widespread influence to accelerate growth and acceptance of the asset class. Prior to joining CoinShares, Meltem helped build and grow Digital Currency Group, raising capital from the world’s largest corporations and managing a portfolio of 120 companies and 4 subsidiaries. Before she was bitten with the bitcoin bug, Meltem worked in the Oil &amp; Gas industry in trading, corporate treasury, and M&amp;A roles. 



Meltem has been recognized for her personal contributions to the industry and serves as an outspoken advocate. She is a founding member of the World Economic Forum Blockchain Council. Meltem teaches at her alma mater MIT as well as Oxford, and is passionate about privacy and civil rights.

Meltem Demirors

Vance is the co-founders of Framework Ventures, a thesis-driven venture capital firm whose team of technologists, researchers, and investors partner with founders and teams to build token-based networks and develop the requisite cryptoeconomics, governance, and community to scale.

Vance Spencer

Jim Bianco is President and Macro Strategist at Bianco Research, L.L.C. Since 1990 Jim’s commentaries have offered a unique perspective on the global economy and financial markets. Unencumbered by the biases of traditional Wall Street research, Jim has built a decades long reputation for objective, incisive commentary that challenges consensus thinking. In nearly 20 years at Bianco Research, Jim’s wide ranging commentaries have addressed monetary policy, the intersection of markets and politics, the role of government in the economy, fund flows and positioning in financial markets.



Jim appears regularly on CNBC, Bloomberg and Fox Business, and is often featured in the Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg News, Grants Interest Rate Observer, and MarketWatch. Prior to joining Arbor and Bianco Research, Jim was a Market Strategist in equity and fixed income research at UBS Securities and Equity Technical Analyst at First Boston and Shearson Lehman Brothers. He is a Chartered Market Technician (CMT) and a member of the Market Technicians Association (MTA). Jim has a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance from Marquette University (1984) and an MBA from Fordham University (1989).

Jim Bianco

Mr. Forman is the Founder and Managing Partner of ParaFi Capital. ParaFi is a leading investment firm focused on the blockchain and digital asset markets, and an early pioneer in decentralized finance (“DeFi”). ParaFi is one of the largest investors, users, and governance participants within the DeFi ecosystem, spanning the full network lifecycle from pre-launch to full decentralization. Mr. Forman serves as the Chief Investment Officer across the firm’s strategies, which include investing in public and private cryptoassets, systematic credit and market neutral DeFi strategies, and blockchain-focused venture capital and growth equity investing.



Prior to founding ParaFi in 2018, Mr. Forman spent 10 years at leading alternative investment managers, including KKR and TPG. While at KKR, Mr. Forman served as a Director in the Credit business, investing across a wide array of industry sectors and strategies, including distressed special situations, private credit, and opportunistic and liquid credit. Prior to KKR, Mr. Forman served as a Vice President with TPG’s former credit business, Sixth Street Partners, as one of the first investment professionals to join the platform, helping scale its private credit vehicle, TPG Specialty Lending, which listed publicly in 2014. Earlier in his career, Mr. Forman worked in private equity at Littlejohn &amp; Company and investment banking at Rothschild &amp; Co. Mr. Forman graduated with a B.A. in Philosophy, Politics and Economics, magna cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania.

Ben Forman

Haseeb is a Managing Partner at Dragonfly. He was previously a partner at Metastable Capital, and has a background in software engineering at Airbnb and Earn.com (acquired by Coinbase).

Haseeb Qureshi

Vanessa Grellet is a Managing Partner at Aglaé Ventures. Vanessa is a Global Executive with over 20 years of expertise in the Financial Services and Tech industry. At Aglaé Ventures she manages the Web 3 focused fund. Prior to joining Aglae she has Head of Portfolio growth at CoinFund and Executive director at ConsenSys where she focused on driving adoption for Ethereum based products,  Strategic initiatives, Alliances and Channels.  She was involved in setting up the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance (EEA), the Accounting Blockchain Coalition (ABC) and the Blockchain for Social Impact Coalition (BSIC). Prior to ConsenSys she was a Strategy Executive at NYSE focused on investments and M&amp;A and a key member of PwC’s global wealth management team. Vanessa is a Founding Board member of AABC focused on Blockchain and Art, a member of the Advisory Council of ConsenSys, a Milken Institute Associate, a contributor to the  World Economic Forum Digital Future Council and part of <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/top-people-in-crypto-and-blockchain-2022/vanessa-grellet">Cointelegraph’s list of 100 most influential people for 2022</a>. Mrs. Grellet graduated Cum Laude from Law School (Paris II Assas) and Business School (HEC).

Vanessa Grellet

Mihailo Bjelic received his MSc in CS from the University of Belgrade. Prior to entering Web3/blockchain industry, he co-founded an AI/ML-powered platform for automotive industry and several other smaller startups and side projects. In 2017, he decided to join the Web3 movement full-time, primarily as a researcher interested in Ethereum scaling and multi-chain paradigms. In parallel with his work, he became one of the prominent Ethereum proponents and community members. In 2019, he started working on Polygon and conceptualized its architecture, vision and brand. In 2020, he joined hands with the Matic Network team and they have been working together on Polygon since then.

Mihailo Bjelic

Ben is a co-founder of Optimism, a leading Ethereum L2 ecosystem. He served as Chief Scientist before becoming a director at the Optimism Foundation. In his free time, he makes Ethereum-based parody songs under his stage name, Weird ETH Yankovic.

Ben Jones

Kristin is the CEO of the Blockchain Association, the Washington, D.C.-based trade association representing more than 100 of the industry’s leading companies. She also serves as a board member of the Filecoin Foundation for the Decentralized Web. Kristin serves as a liaison between policymakers and the cryptocurrency industry to assist in the creation of legislation and regulation that promotes the growth of the cryptocurrency ecosystem in the U.S. She is also a leading, public voice advocating for the cryptocurrency and blockchain industry through top-tier media interviews, op-eds and letters to the editor, and global speaking engagements. Kristin is a renowned voice for the industry, having been featured on Fortune’s 2020 40 under 40 list, CoinDesk’s 2021 50 people who defined the year in crypto, and CoinTelegraph’s 2022 top 100 Influencers in Crypto and Blockchain. Prior to leading the Blockchain Association, Kristin helped blockchain and technology companies achieve their public policy objectives in Washington. She served as a Senate and congressional aide on Capitol Hill for nearly ten years, much of which was spent focusing on technology policy.

Kristin Smith

Avichal is a successful entrepreneur with executive experience at Google and Facebook, which acquired his previous company. As an angel investor, Avichal has invested in 15 unicorns and 5 decacorns including Airtable, Boom Supersonic, Color Genomics, Cruise, Deel, Figma, Newfront Insurance, Notion, Nova Credit, Pulley, and others. He co-founded Electric Capital in 2018 and has grown it to one of the largest crypto venture firms globally. Electric is an investor in many of the leading web3 protocols and companies such as Bitwise, Bitnomial, dYdX, Frax, Kraken, Magic Eden, NEAR, and Solana.

Avichal Garg

Matt Hougan is one of the world’s leading experts on crypto, ETFs, and financial technology. He is Chief Investment Officer for Bitwise Asset Management, a pioneer in cryptoasset index funds with more than $1.2 billion in assets under management. He was previously CEO of ETF.com, where he helped build the world’s first ETF data and analytics system, the leading ETF media site, and the world’s largest ETF conference, Inside ETFs. Hougan is co-author of both “A Comprehensive Guide to Exchange-Traded Funds” and “Cryptoassets: The Guide to Bitcoin, Blockchain and Cryptocurrencies for Professional Investors” from the CFA Institute’s Research Foundation. He is a crypto columnist for Forbes, and a three-time member of the Barron’s ETF Roundtable.

Matt Hougan

Li Jin

Ethan is the co-founder of the Cosmos network and serves as the CEO of Informal Systems. Informal Systems is a member-driven worker’s cooperative building software that enables trustworthy relationships between protocols and people to flourish. Ethan also serves as the President of the Interchain Foundation which funds and coordinates development of public goods in the Cosmos ecosystem. Ethan sees local money systems as the basis for self-sufficient local economies to prosper. With a background in cell biology, neuroscience, mathematics, machine learning, and distributed systems, his goal is to build systems that encourage humans to work cooperatively through methods of self-organization. He is currently focused on blockchain technology as a means to bring greater political and economic sovereignty to local communities around the globe. Prior to Informal Systems, Ethan co-founded the Tendermint and Cosmos projects, and served as CTO of Tendermint Inc. Today, dozens of projects are adopting technology conceived in the original Cosmos whitepaper, including the Inter-Blockchain (IBC) Communication protocol – an industry-standard for permissionless communication between sovereign blockchains. Today, the Cosmos ecosystem continues to pioneer technological paradigms for building interoperable application-specific blockchains.

Ethan Buchman

Tyrone leads J.P. Morgan’s Blockchain team and is responsible for creating innovative Web3-focused products &amp; solutions for J.P. Morgan’s businesses and clients, and for engaging with the industry at large in order to provide a holistic blockchain strategy for the firm. Tyrone is also the Head of Onyx Digital Assets, a multi-asset tokenization platform that enables the exchange of value for various types of digital assets. Tyrone was previously a Senior Blockchain Product Manager in J.P. Morgan’s Blockchain Center of Excellence and was also the Head of Product for Quorum, an open-sourced Ethereum-based blockchain platform built for Enterprise use. Prior to moving into the blockchain industry in 2015, Tyrone was a software engineer within J.P. Morgan's Credit Markets business, and before that he spent several years in Product transformation, managing and delivering large strategic programs across various businesses within J.P. Morgan, across Front, Middle and Back Office risk and trading systems. Tyrone sits on the Board of Directors of The Enterprise Ethereum Alliance and The Hyperledger Foundation.

Tyrone Lobban

Rich is a Co-Founder and President of GSR and leads the group across strategic initiatives and growth. He began his career at Goldman Sachs where he spent 11 years between New York and London in commodities trading as a Managing Director and Global Head of Crude Oil and Derivatives Trading. Prior to joining GSR, he spent a few years on the buy-side, running energy trading teams at two New York-based hedge funds. Rich earned a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from Columbia University.

Rich Rosenblum

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<h2>Why Sponsor Permissionless 2023?</h2>
If you’re serious about crypto, you have to be at Permissionless. Permissionless brings together DeFi builders, DAO participants, protocol developers, crypto companies, funds and institutions, and more. It’s a true crypto-native’s paradise, where you’ll have the opportunity to showcase your offerings and form lasting connections with the community.
We’ll work with your team to define the perfect sponsorship opportunity that best fits your needs and budget. Want to do something completely revolutionary? Our team can help design a bespoke package that brings your vision to life.
Get in touch with us at <a href="mailto:sales@blockworks.co">sales@blockworks.co</a>
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