Coin Hebdo, back to this week’s crypto, NFT, Metaverse & Web3 news. On the program: Sushi will launch Vortex, Coinbase releases a layer 2, Binance has its deal with Voyager delayed, Coinbase exceeds its revenue estimates.
Sushi will launch Vortex, a derivative platform
Sushi, the developer of decentralized exchange (DEX) SushiSwap, is set to launch a new decentralized derivatives platform called Vortex on the blockchain sei in the Cosmos ecosystem. The launch is scheduled for the second quarter of 2023, which coincides with Sei’s planned mainnet launch, and follows the recent acquisition of Vortex by Sushi.
Vortex will be one of the first applications on Sei, a blockchain layer 1 designed for on-chain commerce for the Cosmos ecosystem. Expansion into products derivatives is a strategic move for Sushi, which has historically focused on the spot market and lagged behind other protocols in the derivatives space. The move to Sei is an opportunity for Sushi to expand its offering in this space, and its CEO, Jared Grey, said the cross-chain expansion ofEthereum to the Sei network is at the heart of this plan.
“Ultimately, the goal is to increase offerings by providing value to all stakeholders in the Sushi ecosystem, with product launches like Vortex on Sei. Sei is the best infrastructure to launch this specific product, with a deadline and cross-channel communication that we liked“said Mr. Gray.
Sushi’s move to Cosmos is significant, as it makes it one of the first protocols Challenge to announce an expansion on Cosmos. Last year, dYdXcurrently the largest decentralized derivatives exchange, revealed a plan to move to Cosmos, which is also expected to happen in 2023.
Sei Labs, the lead developer of the blockchain Sei, is raising Series A funds at a valuation of $400 million in tokens. With Sei’s mainnet launch slated for the second quarter of 2023, it will be interesting to see how Sushi’s Vortex fares as one of the first applications of the new blockchain.
A BAYC collector dumps his collections
Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) NFT holders, who run investment firm Degenz Finance, cashed in over $7,000 ETH, or $11 million, on Wednesday, taking advantage of the increased liquidity provided by the NFT Blur marketplace. This made BAYC the top collection by volume, half of which comes from just two traders. The sale was orchestrated by anonymous traders known as Mando and OSF.
The decision to sell has been described as difficult and emotional, but is not a reflection or opinion on Yuga Labs. An article on their site states: “We remain bullish on Yuga Labs, holding Otherside, Mutants, Sewer Passes, APE and also being angel investors.” The liquidity provided by Blur was the main reason for the sale, as it was seen as an opportunity to monetize their position without having a big impact on the market.
THE NFT’s BAYC were listed on Blur on Monday, and the NFT community saw all 71 BAYC NFTs listed for around 5,545 ETH. In total more than 90 BAYC, 191 MAYC112 Azuki and 308 Otherdeed were listed.
Binance US has its deal with Voyager delayed
The acquisition of the assets of the Voyager cryptocurrency lender by Binance.US is struggling. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS), and the New York State Attorney General have filed objections in the bankruptcy proceedings of Voyager in the Southern District of New York.
In December 2022, Binance.US had entered into a good faith agreement with Voyager to acquire the assets from the cryptocurrency lender for $1 billion, ahead of other players in the sector such as CrossTower and Wave Financial. The acquisition is still subject to regulatory approval.
The SEC opposed Voyager’s plans to sell assets in crypto as part of its rebalancing plan and raised concerns about the safety of assets on the Binance.US platform. SEC lead counsel said the transactions in the crypto assets necessary to effect the rebalancing may violate securities lawthe sale or delivery after the unrecorded sale of securities.
The SEC also questioned whether Voyager could demonstrate that this plan complied with federal laws. The SEC also expressed that the plan did not include enough detail about the impact of a stock potential regulatory on buyer, Binance.US.
The lawyer said that “THE actions Regulatory regulations, whether they relate to Voyager, Binance.US, or both, could render the Plan’s transactions unconsumable, thus rendering the Plan unworkable.“
Learn more: Binance takeover of Voyager further delayed by SEC
Coinbase launches a layer 2: BASE
Coinbaserevealed Base, a testnet version of its new Ethereum Layer 2 network, at ETHDenver. The Layer 2 network is modeled after Ethereum’s Goerli testnet and is designed to eventually connect to the Ethereum mainnet. According to Jesse Pollack, Senior Manager at Coinbase, the goal of Base is to make it easy for developers to build apps and then integrate them with the Coinbase suite of products to make it easier for users to use those apps.
Base is built on the open-source OP Stack, which is a blueprint for Tier 2 blockchain-enabled networks, created by Optimism. Coinbase will also join Optimism as the lead developer of the OP Stack. Coinbase’s existing suite of developer tools will be integrated into the OP stack to make it inexpensive, decentralized, and secure.
Coinbase and its venture capital subsidiary, Coinbase Ventures, will launch the Base Ecosystem Fund to make investments in companies and organizations that rely on Base. An important aspect of Base is that it will not have its own dedicated token. Mr. Pollack pointed out that these networks do not need tokens to be successful.
Coinbase expects there to be many tier 2 specialty chains, and that’s why they’re building on top of the OpenStack which is open-source and can be used to perform either of these L2s or roll-ups.
Learn more: Coinbase launches its Base blockchain, a Layer 2 Ethereum powered by Optimism
Binance closes Australian derivatives accounts
Binance, the exchange of crypto currenciesclosed the derivatives trading accounts of some investors in Australia after it found they did not meet those investors’ criteria.
According to a Binance spokesperson, the affected accounts have been closed and the owners of these accounts will no longer be able to access the derivatives market on Binance. The exchange also informed customers of the restrictions on their accounts.
In Australia, Binance offers crypto derivatives trading only to certain licensed institutional investors. However, it is important to meet the criteria for these investors to be able to trade on the platform. These criteria are in place to protect investors from potential losses due to the high risks associated with derivatives trading.
These requirements include a minimum net worth of $2.5 million Australian dollars or gross income of $250,000 Australian dollars per year over the past two years. The investor must also have a certificate issued by a qualified accountant confirming that he meets the criteria.
Binance said it was working on a remediation and compensation plan for affected customers. This plan will be developed by Binance Australia Derivatives.
Coinbase Exceeds Earnings Estimates
Coinbase, the US-based cryptocurrency exchange, exceeded its revenue estimates for the fourth quarter of 2022, thanks to interest income from USDC. Interest income for the quarter was $146 million, up more than 100% from the prior quarter. Despite a 57% drop in revenue for the full year compared to 2021, the exchange remains optimistic about its future.
The industry and Coinbase itself have been “largely resilient” despite the “major shocks to the system” in the quarter and a 64% decline in the price of crypto assets in 2022.
According to John Todaro, analyst, “the quarter was marked by much higher than expected interest income on USDC.“Management’s outlook is “positive, with the company, in our view, having a clear path to positive Adjusted EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest) for 2023, with the new expense safeguards management has put in place.“
The Subscription and Services segment, which includes the staking and the USDC ecosystem, experienced the strongest quarterly and annual growth for Coinbase and caught the attention of regulators. The SEC recently warned that it has turned its attention to staking services.
While interest income was encouraging, retail transaction volumes continued to deteriorate in the quarter and came in worse than expected, down 23% from Q3 2023. Nonetheless, estimates of gross margin for 2024 were raised by 12%, due to a 40% evolution of the capitalization of the crypto market since the last revision of the model.
The news in brief:
- Mining difficulty has increased by 9.95%, with the arrival of new machines as part of the recent rebound.
- Archblock will use Chainlink’s proof of reserves system for verification of TrueUSD.
- Lido Finance records the highest number of daily stakings ever with more than 150,000 ETH.
- Platypus Finance says French police have taken the suspected hackers into custody.
The article Crypto news for the week of February 20, 2023: Coin Hebdo #86 appeared first on Corner Academy
