From AltLayer airdropping millions of tokens to Base struggling to acquire users, here is a 2-minute breakdown of everything important that happened in crypto today.
While Bitcoin and Ethereum dominated headlines last year due to the ETF hype, Polygon quietly became the crypto world’s rising star. The layer-2 scaling solution onboarded a jaw-dropping 15 million new users in 2023 – almost matching Ethereum’s 15.4 million new users. This growth signals Polygon’s standing as a major player in Web3.
Let’s discuss that story in detail along with other updates. Here’s a quick rundown of what we’ll be covering:
- Mining companies sweat ahead of Bitcoin halving 😰
- Shanghai to pilot digital yuan use cases 🇨🇳
- Polygon goes beast mode, Base struggles ⚔️
- Swan Bitcoin emerges with mining ambitions ⛏️
- AltLayer concludes $100M token airdrop 🪂
- Crypto bank Sygnum raises $40M 🏦💵
Now, let’s dive deeper into each of these stories!
Mining Companies Are in Danger! 😰
A bunch of public Bitcoin mining companies are on thin ice ahead of Bitcoin's upcoming halving event.
According to Cantor Fitzgerald, over 10 listed miners may get rekt and struggle to mine profitably if BTC prices linger around $40K post-halving.
Of course, halvings are generally bullish as they choke BTC supply. But they also slash miner block rewards by 50%, so inefficient operations are sweating hard.
With miners' toplines directly tied to Bitcoin prices, those with high operational costs face serious challenges if the OG crypto doesn't pump after the halving.
But which companies are exactly in danger? Read the full story!
Shanghai Zone To Pilot Digital Yuan
An ambitious blueprint lays out the path for Shanghai's Pudong New Area to transform into a world-leading hub of finance, trade and innovation within five years.
The high-level plan calls for extensive infrastructure upgrading - including new port facilities, nearby special economic zones and the international airport.
Pudong will also pilot use cases for China's CBDC, from cross-border settlements to carbon credit payments.
Polygon Goes Beast Mode, Base Struggles ⚔️
Coinbase's attempt to ride the layer-2 train didn’t turn out well last year.
According to Flipside Crypto, Base has onboarded less than 2 million users since its launch. Base saw its initial hype taper off as big chains and more mature L2s like Arbitrum sucked all air out of the room.
Meanwhile, Polygon has exploded, adding over 15 million new users last year.
In fact, Polygon nearly matched ETH's 15.4 million new users in 2023 - a crazy stat for a layer 2.
Wondering which other chains experienced massive growth? Read the full story!
Talking about scaling solutions, it’s time for some quick blockchain education!
Today, our Word of the Day is “Fusion Rollups.”
Fusion rollups are a way to scale blockchains that let different apps communicate with each other quickly while still working separately.
Normally apps on blockchains are slowed down when they try to share information. Fusion rollups give each app its own "lane" to work in fast. But there is also a "bridge" that connects these lanes so apps can share information when they need to.
So fusion rollups combine:
1) Separate lanes for each app to work quickly on its own
2) Bridges between lanes so apps can communicate instantly when needed
This balances customization for each app with shared coordination between apps. The result is faster and smoother operation overall.
But does this help with the cost? Is this technology going to help the current rollups we have? Read more!
Now back to our daily stories!
Swan Bitcoin Goes Public
Top Bitcoin financial services provider Swan Bitcoin has emerged from stealth mode with its own mining unit, Swan Mining. The company now aims to list publicly within a year.
Swan says its mining offshoot already stacked 750 BTC since secretly launching last summer. Its current hash rate capacity stands at 4.5 EH/s, with plans to double that in March.
The move aligns with Swan's mission to expand its institutional offerings beyond core financial products and services.
So we are finally seeing crypto companies going public. Isn’t this what mass adoption is? Read the full story!
Airdrop Tokens… 🪂
AltLayer has concluded a mega token airdrop worth over $100 million.
The Web3 startup distributed 300 million ALT tokens to its community this week, including NFT holders, stakers and testnet participants.
Roughly 500K wallets qualified to claim the tokens, which became tradeable on Thursday following an initial offering on Binance.
ALT quickly rallied nearly 12% out the door, hitting $0.31 with substantial volume topping $650 million over 24 hours.
Will the project feature another round of airdrops? Read the full story!
Crypto Bank Sygnum Nabs $40M
Sygnum has topped up its chest with $40 million.
It brings Sygnum's valuation to $900 million - knocking on the doors of an exclusive crypto club: the Unicorns!
The cash infusion comes courtesy of investment manager Azimut Holdings.
A good sign for crypto? Read the full story!
And that's the tea for today! Stay tuned for more hot stories tomorrow.
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