Staking Ether: A Risky Trade

Along with bitcoin price, prices for Ethereum’s ether also jumped last week. Depending on your data source, the world’s second biggest cryptocurrency’s price posted weekly gains of anywhere between 13% (at Messari) to 20% (at Coinmarketcap and Coingecko). Underlying that price increase was a corresponding surge in market valuations for tokens at liquid staking derivatives (LSD) platforms. Such venues multiply trading volumes and supply by … Continue reading Staking Ether: A Risky Trade

Notes 9/15: The Merge, Ether As Wall Street Asset, and Payments Industry Regulation

Ethereum’s Merge – a transition from the Proof of Work consensus mechanism to Proof of Stake – was finalized at 6:59 AM this morning. The Merge has been in the making for many years and was implemented by nine teams and more than 100 developers spread out across the globe. As has been repeated many times across multiple media platforms, the event cuts down the … Continue reading Notes 9/15: The Merge, Ether As Wall Street Asset, and Payments Industry Regulation

Notes 9/14: Ethereum’s Merge

When Bitcoin was launched, it had ambitions to become a peer-to-peer payment system powered by electronic cash. It is yet to fulfill that promise. Ethereum, another monetary system underpinned by blockchain, has much grander ambitions. Released six years after Bitcoin’s, Ethereum’s whitepaper outlines a raft of ambitious applications – a platform for financial derivatives to voting mechanisms to decentralized governance that works across borders – … Continue reading Notes 9/14: Ethereum’s Merge

Notes 9/13: Bitcoin Falls On Weak CPI Data, ETHW Sputters to Life, and the Max Pain of Mining Crypto

Crypto markets were awash in a sea of red after the release of unexpected figures for the Consumer Price Inflation (CPI) index. Bitcoin was down by almost 6% from its price 24 hours ago and trading at $20,964.21. Ethereum tumbled by 9% and is changing hands at $1,583.35. The overall market capitalization of cryptocurrency markets 5.1% to $1 trillion. CPI rose by 0.1% and declined … Continue reading Notes 9/13: Bitcoin Falls On Weak CPI Data, ETHW Sputters to Life, and the Max Pain of Mining Crypto

Notes 9/12: Ether Prices and Staking

Ethereum’s transition from Proof of Work (PoW) to Proof of Stake (PoS), more popularly known as The Merge, continues to dominate crypto narrative. The price for Ethereum’s ether, which had been on a tear in recent weeks, fell this morning. Like most things crypto, it is difficult to pinpoint an exact reason. While Bitcoin’s price is influenced by global macroeconomic factors, the catalysts for ether’s … Continue reading Notes 9/12: Ether Prices and Staking

Notes 8/9: Tornado Cash Gets Sanctioned, Ether Price Surges As Gas Prices Fall

The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), a unit of the Treasury Department, has sanctioned crypto mixing service Tornado Cash. This means that it cannot be used on American soil. Tornado Cash is a decentralized app on the Ethereum blockchain that enables anonymization of transaction data. According to the Treasury department, it has been used by hackers, notably the North Korea-linked Lazarus group, to launder … Continue reading Notes 8/9: Tornado Cash Gets Sanctioned, Ether Price Surges As Gas Prices Fall

Is Investor Enthusiasm for The Merge Misplaced?

Amidst a crypto winter that has wiped off billions in token valuations, the price of Ethereum’s ether popped recently. It skyrocketed by more than 50% to trade at $1636.17 and has, since, fallen by 15%. Analysts are attributing the surge in Ether’s prices as a vote of confidence by investors to a possible September event called The Merge. The Merge is expected to make Ethereum’s … Continue reading Is Investor Enthusiasm for The Merge Misplaced?

Miner Extractable Value: A Source of Profits and Future Regulation

I have written about Ethereum’s expensive gas fees earlier. The fees are an important source of revenue for miners in a volatile crypto market where double-digit price swings are not uncommon. But they are not the only source of profits. The Bank of International Settlements (BIS) released a bulletin last month highlighting the need to design regulations pertaining to Miner Extractable Value (MEV) – another … Continue reading Miner Extractable Value: A Source of Profits and Future Regulation

An Experiment In Ethereum’s Gas Fees

Ethereum has ambitions to become a hub for decentralized finance (DeFi) – one where millions of users conduct sophisticated transactions using financial applications and payment systems on its network. The platform’s selling point is its decentralized and peer-to-peer design that reduces costs and transaction times. But transactions on Ethereum are time-consuming. A technical and complicated interface also ensures that users have little control over the … Continue reading An Experiment In Ethereum’s Gas Fees

Ethereum Cofounder Joseph Lubin May Be Sued For $13 Million By Former Colleague

Joseph Lubin, the co-founder of Ethereum, may be sued by Harrison Hines, a former employee at his company ConsenSys. Hines intends to seek over $13 million for “breach of contract, alleged fraud, unpaid profits and unjust enrichment”. He began the legal process against Lubin in June. Based on the summons brought by Hines’ lawyer, the relief they intend to get is monetary damages for unpaid … Continue reading Ethereum Cofounder Joseph Lubin May Be Sued For $13 Million By Former Colleague

CFTC Seeks Public Comment On Ether And Ethereum

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has asked for public comment for use cases and risks of ethereum’s blockchain and ether, its cryptocurrency. “The input from this request will advance the CFTC’s mission of ensuring the integrity of the derivative markets as well as ensuring the integrity of monitoring and systemic risk by enhancing legal certainty in the markets,” the federal agency wrote in a … Continue reading CFTC Seeks Public Comment On Ether And Ethereum

Is Ethereum Studio ConsenSys Faltering?

Within the ethereum ecosystem, ConsenSys occupies a special place. It is the most well-funded and, some would say, the most well-known company in the space. Started in 2014 by Joseph Lubin, the NYC-based outfit is a “venture production studio” – a model which incorporates an array of business and funding activities within ethereum. But it may have spread itself too thin, according to a recent … Continue reading Is Ethereum Studio ConsenSys Faltering?

After Steemit, Consensys Announces Layoffs. Are Crashing Crypto Markets To Blame?

The crypto winter is getting colder.  Crashing valuations in cryptocurrency markets and a chill in the initial coin offerings (ICO) market have affected operations at two more ventures involved in the space.  Blockchain and smart contract consulting company Consensys, which dominates ethereum research and development, has confirmed to online publication Coindesk that it is laying off 13% of its staff. Meanwhile, ETCDEV, a team involved … Continue reading After Steemit, Consensys Announces Layoffs. Are Crashing Crypto Markets To Blame?

Is Ether Useless?

Ethereum’s ether was among the biggest losers in the cryptocurrency crash that occurred earlier this week. Since Wednesday, the cryptocurrency has lost approximately 23% of its value, shedding a substantial portion of gains it eked out during a decline in bitcoin’s price. On an overall basis, ether is down by 84.3% from its peak during the second week of January this year. Ether’s ebbs and … Continue reading Is Ether Useless?

Mobile Ethereum Client Status Partners With OmiseGo

Status, the mobile ethereum client which reportedly raised $100 million within 24 hours during its ICO last year, plans to integrate decentralized exchange DEX onto its platform. DEX is being developed by OmiseGO, a subsidiary of Omise, a Singapore-based payment gateway. In its online guide, the company describes DEX as being a scalable and secure Proof-of-Stake blockchain on which any form of digital asset can … Continue reading Mobile Ethereum Client Status Partners With OmiseGo

Two Reasons Crypto Prices Shot Up This Week

After weeks of floundering about in a decline, cryptocurrency markets gained $40 billion in two days. Bitcoin led the rally in crypto prices with two bumps in its price in less than five days. In the first instance, it vaulted 8.5% to $6408 in five hours on Friday night. But that was not the end of its rally. On Monday, it pushed another 4.4%, rising … Continue reading Two Reasons Crypto Prices Shot Up This Week

Bitcoin Is Not A Security: SEC Chairman Jay Clayton

Even as his agency cracks down on token offerings, SEC Chairman Jay Clayton is letting bitcoin off the hook. Clayton, who has been vocal about regulating tokens as securities, told CNBC in an interview that cryptocurrencies do not qualify as securities under current SEC provisions. “Cryptocurrencies…are replacements for sovereign currencies, (they) replace yen, US dollar, Euro with bitcoin. That type of currency is not a … Continue reading Bitcoin Is Not A Security: SEC Chairman Jay Clayton

Evaluating The EOS ICO

Almost a year long, it was the longest initial coin offering (ICO) in the world. The ICO by EOS, a blockchain that is building an alternative to ethereum’s smart contracts, finally finished this past week. Launch of its mainnet is still in progress. One billion tokens were offered during the ICO. Those tokens garnered $4 billion in funding from investors, according to Block.one, the largest … Continue reading Evaluating The EOS ICO

The Case For Ethereum As A Security Token

During a Congressional hearing last month, SEC Chairman Jay Clayton said all ICO tokens he had seen were securities. That remark, with all its attendant implications, has spooked investors and snowballed into a series of actions that might end up radically reshaping cryptocurrency markets. Since Clayton’s remark, the SEC has tightened the screws on coin offerings and exchanges. Just last week, the agency threatened to … Continue reading The Case For Ethereum As A Security Token

Ethereum Derivatives Might Bring Institutional Investors To The Cryptocurrency

Ethereum’s ether might be next in line to attract funding from institutional investors after bitcoin. Consensys, a firm started by Joseph Lubin, ethereum cofounder, to implement smart contracts, is partnering with TrueDigital, an affiliate of New York-based TrueEx, to develop a benchmark rate for ether and “the infrastructure needed for the broad adoption of digital assets by the institutional community.” The first product of the … Continue reading Ethereum Derivatives Might Bring Institutional Investors To The Cryptocurrency