Date: 08/14/2021
“Ethereum appears on an enduring path as the go-to platform for the crypto ecosystem and decentralization of finance akin to Amazon Inc. and e-commerce.” — Mike McGlone, the Bloomberg Intelligence analyst
Weekly News Report:
1. The combined value of the world’s cryptocurrencies hit $2 trillion Wednesday afternoon for the first time in nearly three months, reflecting a wave of renewed optimism in the space that’s bolstered top cryptocurrencies bitcoin and ether alongside a slew of smaller cryptocurrencies.
2. Blockchain companies raised $30.4bn in total funding, a massive 44% increase in a year. Blockchain startups raised around $8bn YTD, a staggering 515% increase compared to a year ago period, and 20% more than in 2019 and 2020 combined. US blockchain startups raised $12.5B, more than European and Asian companies combined.
3. Coinbase says Ethereum volume tops bitcoin as DeFi and NFTs gain popularity. Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, was responsible for 26% of the trading volume on Coinbase, compared to 24% for Bitcoin. The total trading volume during the second quarter was $462 billion, up 1,550% from $28 billion a year ago.
4. Paypal-owned Venmo on Tuesday rolled out a feature that would allow holders of its credit cards to automatically buy cryptocurrencies with the cashback earned on their purchases. Cardholders will be able to buy Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, and Bitcoin Cash through the “Cash Back to Crypto” feature and will not be charged fees for the transaction.
5. Polygon merges with Hermez Network in a $250M deal. This is the first complete merger of one blockchain network into another.
6. Bitcoin’s price rose Friday, back above $46,000 after dipping as low as $43,800 the prior day. The largest cryptocurrency by market value was trading close to its highest level in more than two months, sitting on a 60% year-to-date gain after rallying from a low of around $29,000 as recently as June.
7. Italian haute couture fashion label Dolce & Gabbana will debut its NFT collection on the luxury marketplace UNXD later this month in a bid to “bridge the physical with the metaphysical.” UNXD is built on Polygon, the layer 2 network meant to offer cheaper transactions than the Ethereum main net.
8. Business magazine Fortune has raised over $1.3 million in its first NFT sale. Fortune auctioned a set of limited-edition NFTs of the cover of its crypto-themed August/September 2021 issue. The auction raised 429 ETH, the equivalent of over $1.3 million.
9. OpenSea trading volume explodes 76,240% YTD amid the NFT boom. The nonfungible token marketplace processed 1.18 million transactions worth $1.06 billion in the last 30 days alone.
10. Polkadot (DOT) price rallies 100% and derivatives data points to more upside. Strong fundamentals on the development side and derivatives data suggest that the DOT price could extend its 100% rally over the short term.
