Author: NBTC

This is a segment from the Lightspeed newsletter. To read full editions, subscribe. A month ago, Solana Mobile announced that the Solana Seeker would ship in mid-2025. This will mark the second iteration of the Solana phone experiment. Partly driven by speculation that the phone will come with lucrative token airdrops, Seeker has seen good early returns. The phone has garnered 145,000 pre-orders, Solana Mobile general manager Emmett Hollyer confirmed to me. What has slipped a bit below the radar is how Solana’s broader app ecosystem is also quietly shifting into mobile. The Solana DeFi giant Jupiter just debuted its…

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is still unsure if tariffs are off after a lengthy meeting with United States President-elect Donald Trump. According to reports, the meeting finished without Trump specifically saying he would hand off every tariff move he intended to make after being sworn in as president next year. Donald Trump has been vocal about his intentions to levy tariffs on specific countries, especially those with trading agreements with the country. Although Trump views the meeting as ‘productive’, he remains unsold on the idea of abandoning his tariff plans. Canada, on the other hand, has been lumped into…

Open interest in Bitcoin reached a new all-time high of $19.8 billion on October 15, according to data from CryptoQuant shared by certified analyst EgyhashX. The milestone highlights the increasing demand for the flagship asset and the flow of funds into the crypto markets over the past few months. According to EgyhashX, this is a sign of bullish sentiment among investors. Funding rates also reached their highest positive level since August, an indication that most of the open interest was in long positions. He said: “This upward trend in the derivatives market indicates a growing influx of liquidity and increased…

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s 100% tariff threat against BRICS nations over a shared currency highlights rising tensions, potentially elevating bitcoin’s role as a global financial hedge. Trump’s BRICS Tariff Threat Could Strengthen Bitcoin’s Savings Role Alongside US Dollar’s Trade Utility U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has escalated his criticism of the BRICS nations, warning of significant economic consequences if they move forward with plans for a single currency. On Saturday, Trump posted on his social media platform, Truth Social, outlining plans for a 100% tariff on BRICS countries if they attempt to undermine the U.S. dollar in international trade. His remarks…

MARA Holdings, formerly Marathon Digital, has announced plans to acquire a wind farm in Hansford County, Texas, to power its sustainable Bitcoin mining data center. The wind farm, with 240 megawatts of interconnection capacity and 114 MW of operational wind generation, will allow MARA to create a vertically integrated operation with zero-marginal energy costs, according to a company press release. The deal represents a strategic shift for MARA as it aims to integrate renewable energy into its mining operations, which require substantial computational power. Mining involves solving complex mathematical problems to validate transactions on the Bitcoin (BTC) network, consuming significant…

Bitcoin surged over 5% yesterday, following a positive day across the crypto market. This sudden price boost has sparked optimism among investors and analysts, anticipating even bigger gains in the coming months. Market sentiment is improving alongside price action, fueling hopes for a sustained rally. Key data from CryptoQuant suggests that Bitcoin demand is rising, supporting the idea that Bitcoin could continue to climb. This growing demand and the improving market sentiment create a favorable environment for bullish momentum. Continuing the recent price surge could set the stage for Bitcoin to reach new highs, while any hesitation might lead to…

Gen Z remains the most likely to use crypto instead of cash, with 34% (the highest figure among all age groups). This is according to the survey by Empower, conducted in July 2024 on 1,009 American adults. Gen Z stands out for crypto adoption compared even to the “cash king” 55% of Gen Z in the USA already invest in crypto The richest generation Gen Z stands out for crypto adoption compared even to the “cash king” Gen Z stands out as the age group that most prefers to use crypto. This is stated in the report by Empower, which…

A new analysis from LunarCrush Social Intelligence reveals the notable journey of BRETT. BRETT is a meme coin that transformed from an obscure launch in early 2023 to achieving $100 million market capitalization by year’s end. Unlike many cryptocurrency projects backed by major investors or extensive marketing campaigns, BRETT’s success stems primarily from grassroots community engagement. By mid-2023, BRETT’s community had exploded. It quickly became one of the most talked-about tokens in the meme coin space. More and more users were getting involved, sharing content, and hyping the project. BRETT was finally gaining momentum. pic.twitter.com/VNOfGL3Joz — LunarCrush Social Intelligence (@LunarCrush)…

Canadian Bitcoin mining giant Hive Digital is betting big on Paraguay. The public firm—which trades on both the Toronto stock exchange and Nasdaq—announced Tuesday it bought 13,480 units of new mining machines to expand its operations in the South American country. Priced at over $60 million, the deal will help it secure 2% of the global Bitcoin network. The machines—Bitmain Antminer S21+ Hydros—deliver a hashrate capacity of 4.3 exahashes per second (EH/s). An exahash is a measure of a Bitcoin mining machine’s processing power. The firm also secured an option to purchase an additional 4.3 EH/s worth of the same…

Key Takeaways John Deaton sees Bitcoin as a revolutionary tool that can help people avoid predatory fees associated with traditional banking systems. He believes that Warren’s policies do not align with the needs of the working class and instead favor established financial institutions. Bitcoin could help eliminate the need for predatory banks and middlemen, allowing people without access to traditional banking services to participate in the financial system, said pro-crypto attorney John Deaton in his first Massachusetts Senate debate against Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren on Tuesday. Deaton referred to his personal experience with his mother’s struggles with traditional banks, specifically…