Ben Strack

Crypto media company Blockworks has launched a platform to track crypto bounties, grants and requests for proposal (RFPs) as a means to connect grantees to grantors and their funding opportunities.



Blockworks <a href="https://blockworks.co/grants">Grantfarm</a> organizes and tracks a list of programs and available RFPs. Individual and team users can filter results based on grant type, ecosystem and reward size.



The platform is free, and additional features are planned in the coming months.&nbsp;



&#8220;It&#8217;s our goal to provide a comprehensive public good that proactively tracks all grants programs,&#8221; Blockworks co-founder Jason Yanowitz said. &#8220;We believe this is an enormous value-add to our space, and we look forward to working with programs directly to keep their entries current over time.&#8221;



Blockworks’ director of grants and governance, who goes by the name Sov, joined the company in January to lead the effort.&nbsp;



Though sites such as <a href="https://sovs.notion.site/The-Common-Good-5f456493a9c44474a054d3d82c19ab56" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Common Good</a> and <a href="https://wiki.defillama.com/wiki/LlamaoGrants" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">LlamaoGrants</a> were well received by the community, Sov said, Grantfarm seeks to differentiate itself by including grant programs, as well as individual RFPs and bounties — and by allowing “dynamic search.”



One can narrow a search by selecting from five grant types: analytics, community, content, development or other. Project category buckets on the site include artificial intelligence, DeFi, centralized exchanges, NFTs, oracles, stablecoins and more than a dozen others.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1600" height="900" src="https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/grantfarm_programs-1.jpg?w=1024&amp;h=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-49682" srcset="https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/grantfarm_programs-1.jpg?w=1600 1600w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/grantfarm_programs-1.jpg?w=300 300w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/grantfarm_programs-1.jpg?w=1024 1024w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/grantfarm_programs-1.jpg?w=768 768w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/grantfarm_programs-1.jpg?w=1536 1536w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/grantfarm_programs-1.jpg?w=428 428w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/grantfarm_programs-1.jpg?w=464 464w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/grantfarm_programs-1.jpg?w=389 389w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/grantfarm_programs-1.jpg?w=80 80w" sizes="(max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Screenshot of the Grantfarm database</figcaption></figure>



In addition to providing a place for these listings, Blockworks intends to feature content for grant programs on its website, including research, reports, and announcements from active programs in the sector.



“By providing a comprehensive, evolving list of grants, we can help give clarity to applicants and greater visibility and awareness to grant programs,” Sov said.&nbsp;



The launch comes 10 months after Blockworks <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/blockworks-unveils-new-research-offering">unveiled a new research offering</a> during its inaugural Permissionless event in Palm Beach, Florida.



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New ‘Grantfarm’ Platform to Track Crypto Grants

Bessie Liu

<div id="highlights-block_632c547e14184" class="highlights">
 <ul>
 <li>Most recently Immunefi facilitated a 400 ETH transaction from Arbitrum to a white hacker</li>
 <li>Investors that participated in the round include Electric Capital, Polygon Ventures and Samsung Next</li>
 </ul>
 
</div>



Immunefi, a Web3 bug bounty platform adopted by prominent projects including MakerDAO, Compound and Chainlink, has secured a $24 million Series A led by Framework Ventures.



Framework Ventures previously led Immunefi’s seed round in May last year, but the latest round will be the largest check the prominent venture capital firm has ever publicly written, Roy Learner, principal at Framework Ventures said in a statement.



“As it stands, Immunefi is by far and away the most widely adopted solution in the crypto security and bug bounties space,” Learner said. “We’re excited to see the company scale and amass talent as more and more key projects onboard into their ecosystem.”



Other investors that participated in the round include Electric Capital, Polygon Ventures and Samsung Next.



Mitchell Amador, co-founder of Immunefi came up with the idea for the company after losing a significant amount of money to smart contract hacks.



“There is a whole world that is enabled by [blockchain] technology and it can not exist without security…we mapped the whole stack and concluded that the most critical piece, which the space will not solve on its own, is the disclosure layer — the 911,” Amador said.



The security company rewards white hat hackers for reviewing blockchain projects and disclosing vulnerabilities — creating monetary incentives for experts to make dapps safer. It currently boasts a community of over 11,000 developers, auditors, CTOs and hackers.



According to Amador, rewards can range from a few thousand dollars to upwards of millions of dollars for a single bug report.



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote">“If you do good for the community, not only will you become rich, but you will also become a hero,” Amador said.</blockquote>



Immunefi has previously facilitated a $10 million bug bounty payment for a vulnerability discovered in the cross-chain messaging solution Wormhole, and a $6 million exposure discovered on a bridge and scaling solution Aurora.&nbsp;



Most recently, Arbitrum, a layer-2 Ethereum scaling solution, <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/arbitrum-saved-from-major-eth-loss-by-white-hat-hacker/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">paid 400 ETH</a> (almost $550k USD) to a white hat hacker through Immunefi as a reward for uncovering a vulnerability.



The latest fundraise will be going toward growing the Immunefi team, Amador said.&nbsp;



“We need better technical expertise — we cannot keep up with the level of activity,” Amador said. “We just need more people.”



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Framework Makes its Largest Single Bet Yet on Immunefi

Macauley Peterson

<div id="highlights-block_6308bd1b44346" class="highlights">
 <ul>
 <li>All testnets have been successfully merged</li>
 <li>Proof-of-work mining on Ethereum will soon be no more</li>
 </ul>
 
</div>



Ethereum’s Merge — years in the making as one of cryptocurrency’s most complicated endeavors yet — is moving ahead apace.



Like NASA’s Artemis 1 rocket <a href="https://www.kennedyspacecenter.com/launches-and-events/events-calendar/2022/august/rocket-launch-nasa-sls-artemis-i" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">on the launch pad</a> at Cape Canaveral, Florida ahead of a launch to orbit the moon, preparations for the Merge — slated for Thursday, Sept. 15 — are also in the final stages. 



The long-awaited transition from the blockchain’s founding proof-of-work transaction validating mechanism to proof-of-stake is now slated for Sept. 15. In the weeks leading up to the Merge, there’s been <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/what-could-happen-to-the-ether-price-following-the-merge/">a notable uptick</a> in both ether spot trading volumes and derivatives bets, wagers hinging on its outcome, as big-money traders put substantial capital behind their predictions.&nbsp;&nbsp;



Ethereum has successfully Merged the <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/ethereum-ropsten-testnet-successfully-merged-to-proof-of-stake/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ropston</a> and <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/ethereum-steps-closer-to-pos-as-goerli-testnet-merge-goes-live/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Goerli</a> testnets, as well as 11 “<a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/shadow-forks-and-testnets-the-ethereum-merge-approaches/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">shadow forks</a>” — the latest of which occurred last week ahead of a meeting of the protocol’s core developers.



The final Merge-ready clients were <a href="https://blog.ethereum.org/2022/08/24/mainnet-merge-announcement" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">unveiled</a> Tuesday by the Ethereum Foundation’s <a href="https://blog.ethereum.org/2022/08/24/mainnet-merge-announcement/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">mainnet Merge announcement</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">.<a href="https://twitter.com/ethereum?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Ethereum</a>’s transition to proof-of-stake is happening 🎉 Client releases are out &#8211; update your node! First part of The Merge, Bellatrix, happens on Sept 6. Full transition ETA: Sept 15. Mark your calendar 📆! <a href="https://t.co/X0DKUmcZHJ">https://t.co/X0DKUmcZHJ</a>&mdash; Tim Beiko | timbeiko.eth 🐼 (@TimBeiko) <a href="https://twitter.com/TimBeiko/status/1562418377582419968?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 24, 2022</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
</div></figure>



An Ethereum client “verifies data against the protocol rules and keeps the network secure,” the Foundation <a href="https://ethereum.org/en/developers/docs/nodes-and-clients" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a>.



The Merge requires updates to clients both on the Beacon Chain — the new proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus layer — and the execution layer, clients that currently run decentralized applications (dapps) on the blockchain’s existing proof-of-work (PoW) mainnet.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">A snag in Geth</h3>



Unlike many blockchains, the Ethereum Community deliberately encouraged multiple independent developer teams to write client software.



Even so, on the execution layer, Geth — short for <a href="https://twitter.com/peter_szilagyi/status/1562372292612587520" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Go Ethereum</a> — currently accounts for an overwhelming majority, <a href="https://ethernodes.org/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">75%</a>, of all Ethereum nodes. The rationale behind promoting client diversity was on display as the Geth team uncovered <a href="https://twitter.com/peter_szilagyi/status/1561947614471507968" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">a critical bug</a> in what was supposed to be a Merge-ready release.



Ether declined nearly 3% in short order after news of the large security vulnerability spread Tuesday.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="698" src="https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screenshot-2022-08-25-at-18.46.20-1024x698.png" alt="Ether 10-minute chart from Aug. 23" class="wp-image-29402" srcset="https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screenshot-2022-08-25-at-18.46.20-1024x698.png?w=1024 1024w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screenshot-2022-08-25-at-18.46.20-1024x698.png?w=300 300w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screenshot-2022-08-25-at-18.46.20-1024x698.png?w=768 768w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screenshot-2022-08-25-at-18.46.20-1024x698.png?w=377 377w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screenshot-2022-08-25-at-18.46.20-1024x698.png?w=383 383w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screenshot-2022-08-25-at-18.46.20-1024x698.png?w=321 321w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screenshot-2022-08-25-at-18.46.20-1024x698.png?w=80 80w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screenshot-2022-08-25-at-18.46.20-1024x698.png?w=50 50w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screenshot-2022-08-25-at-18.46.20-1024x698.png?w=1232 1232w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption>Ether 10-minute chart from 5:10 to 6:10 UTC; Source: TradingView</figcaption></figure>



The software <a href="https://twitter.com/peter_szilagyi/status/1562369620740276224" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">was quickly patched</a> and should have no adverse effect on the Merge. The Ethereum Foundation has turbo-charged <a href="https://ethereum.org/en/bug-bounty/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">a bug bounty program</a> through Sept. 8, earmarking up to $1 million for developers who uncover critical Merge-related bugs.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">What happens next?</h3>



The Beacon Chain is <a href="https://twitter.com/JBSchweitzer/status/1562416320611852290" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">scheduled to undergo</a> an upgrade called Bellatrix on Sept. 6. That will activate the Merge transition on the PoS chain.



The PoW mainnet doesn’t have a fixed time to execute the Merge, but instead uses a scary sounding technical term — Terminal Total Difficulty — to determine when exactly the magic happens. That figure is now set, and it puts <a href="https://bordel.wtf/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">the best estimate</a> for the consummation of these parallel chains — known as the Paris upgrade — at shortly after 1:00 am ET on Sept. 15.



The precise time will fluctuate based on the mining hashrate between now and then. But, so far, the impending end of PoW mining on Ethereum hasn’t <a href="https://ycharts.com/indicators/ethereum_network_hash_rate">put much of a dent</a> on its hashrate, which has remained stable between 900 and 950 terahashes per second (Th/s).



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="270" src="https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screenshot-2022-08-25-at-19.09.57-1024x270.png" alt="Ethereum mining hashrate" class="wp-image-29403" srcset="https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screenshot-2022-08-25-at-19.09.57-1024x270.png?w=1024 1024w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screenshot-2022-08-25-at-19.09.57-1024x270.png?w=300 300w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screenshot-2022-08-25-at-19.09.57-1024x270.png?w=768 768w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screenshot-2022-08-25-at-19.09.57-1024x270.png?w=1536 1536w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screenshot-2022-08-25-at-19.09.57-1024x270.png?w=428 428w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screenshot-2022-08-25-at-19.09.57-1024x270.png?w=470 470w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screenshot-2022-08-25-at-19.09.57-1024x270.png?w=389 389w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screenshot-2022-08-25-at-19.09.57-1024x270.png?w=80 80w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screenshot-2022-08-25-at-19.09.57-1024x270.png?w=50 50w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screenshot-2022-08-25-at-19.09.57-1024x270.png?w=1848 1848w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption>Ethereum mining hashrate, past 30 days in terahashes per second (Th/s); Source: <a href="https://ycharts.com/indicators/ethereum_network_hash_rate">ycharts</a></figcaption></figure>



Miners have a financial incentive to continue processing Ethereum transactions until the very last second before the Merge — so, while some winding down of mining is expected, it’s unlikely to significantly delay things.



If Artemis 1 encounters snags, it will have <a href="https://www.space.com/nasa-artemis-1-sls-moon-rocket-launch-webcasts">two further chances</a>, on Sept. 2 and Sept. 5, to pull it all off. Since this maiden voyage is uncrewed, if it also goes wrong, the only casualty is money.



Ethereum’s design gives developers more leeway to delay the Merge, if needed. A market cap of $200 billion is riding on a smooth launch.



If recent history is any guide, though, the clock will inexorably tick down toward Ethereum’s <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/seven-crypto-miners-show-disturbing-energy-use-lawmakers-say/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">politically palatable</a> energy-efficient future. A crypto moon mission for which <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/crypto-markets-bet-big-on-whats-next-for-ethereum-miners/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">everyone but PoW miners</a> are on board.



Update: Aug. 29 at 8:45 am ET: The Artemis I rocket launch <a href="https://twitter.com/CNET/status/1564232050684608512" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">has been scrubbed</a> for today due to a technical glitch. NASA may be able to reschedule for Sept. 2, pending evaluation of current data and the severity of the problem.



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Ethereum Merge Countdown at T-20 Days

Sam Martin

<div id="highlights-block_616f463ba7861" class="highlights">
 <ul>
 <li>Hidenburg announces a $1,000,000 bounty program for any individuals with knowledge of the reserves backing the world’s largest stablecoin</li>
 <li>Despite numerous probes, fines, and questionable activities surrounding Tether Limited, they have yet to be proven guilty of any major wrongdoing</li>
 </ul>
 
</div>



Forensic financial research and famous short selling firm, Hindenburg Research, announced a <a href="https://hindenburgresearch.com/tether-tos/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Tether Bounty Program</a> with a reward of up to $1 million for anyone who can provide deeper insight into the backing of the largest stablecoin in the digital asset space.



<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">We have doubts about the legitimacy of Tether, so today we announce the Hindenburg Tether Bounty Program, a reward of up to $1,000,000 for details on Tether’s backing. (1/x)<a href="https://t.co/DP5dWDcYmJ">https://t.co/DP5dWDcYmJ</a>&mdash; Hindenburg Research (@HindenburgRes) <a href="https://twitter.com/HindenburgRes/status/1450562260993298433?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 19, 2021</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
</div></figure>



The stablecoin issuer had long claimed to be backed one-to-one by traditional currency reserves. However, the company has since revealed that it is only backed by a small percentage of what many people consider to be traditional currencies.&nbsp;



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="512" height="383" src="https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Tether.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-9611" srcset="https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Tether.jpg?w=512 512w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Tether.jpg?w=300 300w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Tether.jpg?w=344 344w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Tether.jpg?w=349 349w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Tether.jpg?w=293 293w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Tether.jpg?w=80 80w" sizes="(max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px" /></figure></div>



Tether has been under scrutiny for quite some time, with the tempo increasing this year as regulators have directed a regulatory hammer towards the company. They have <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/tether-settles-with-cftc-for-42-5m/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">paid out</a> numerous fines, <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/tether-remains-stable-amid-reports-of-doj-probe/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">been probed</a> by the DOJ, and reportedly <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/celsius-reportedly-borrowed-1b-from-tether-with-bitcoin-as-collateral/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">lent out USDT</a> in exchange for cryptocurrencies used as collateral.



On October 18, the New York Attorney General <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/new-york-attorney-general-orders-crypto-lending-platforms-to-halt-operations-in-state/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">took aim</a> at the crypto lending industry, announcing investigations into Nexo and Celsius, and probing ties to Tether Limited.



Upon Tether’s release of information regarding its reserves, there have been <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/342966af-98dc-4b48-b997-38c00804270a" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reports</a> of Tether being among the largest holders of commercial paper in the world.&nbsp;



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Regulatory attention</h3>



Lately, Tether has garnered the attention of <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/secs-gensler-stablecoins-are-poker-chips/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">regulators</a> who worry that the stablecoin could present systemic issues in debt markets if there were ever to be a bank-run situation where Tether was forced to liquidate their reserves to pay out redemptions.&nbsp;



According to Hindenburg&#8217;s <a href="https://hindenburgresearch.com/tether/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">press release</a>, the bounty program incentivizes users to submit any relevant information on Tether’s backing for a chance to earn up to $1 million if the information is deemed useful.&nbsp;



“We feel strongly that Tether should fully and thoroughly disclose its holdings to the public. In the absence of that disclosure, we are offering a $1,000,000 bounty to anyone who can provide us exclusive detail on Tether’s supposed reserves,” said Hindenburg Research founder, Nathan Anderson.&nbsp;



Hindenburg claims they are seeking to advance the public knowledge of a growing threat to crypto markets. The firm also <a href="https://twitter.com/HindenburgRes/status/1450562266919841798?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">disclosed</a> that they do not hold positions, either long or short, in Tether, bitcoin or any cryptocurrency.



As of press time, <a href="https://coinmarketcap.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Tether</a> has a market capitalization of $69,050,000,000, making it the fifth-largest cryptocurrency in the entire digital asset market.



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



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