Author: NBTC
The promise of decentralized finance (DeFi) is intoxicating: an open, borderless financial ecosystem that operates without the need for intermediaries. But alongside its meteoric rise, DeFi has stumbled—hard. Billions of dollars have been lost in rug pulls, hacks, and protocol failures, leaving consumers exposed and the industry’s credibility in tatters. From the downfall of Terra and Celsius to the myriad smaller projects that collapsed under poor governance or outright fraud, the DeFi experiment has often looked less like a revolution and more like a high-stakes casino. Why did this happen? At its core, blockchain technology doesn’t govern the people who…
Ethereum (ETH) price has climbed over 4% in the last 24 hours, although it remains down 17% over the past 30 days. In the last few days, ETH has been trying to stay above the $3,000 level, a key psychological and technical area that could influence its next move. Indicators such as the Relative Strength Index (RSI) and Directional Movement Index (DMI) reveal that while ETH recently showed signs of bullish momentum, that strength appears to be fading. Whether ETH can regain its uptrend or face further corrections depends on its ability to hold critical support levels and overcome nearby…
Cathie Wood, CEO and Chief Investment Officer of Ark Investment Management (ARKK), has drawn attention after offloading $17 million worth of Palantir (NASDAQ: PLTR) stock in the first week of January 2025. The sale, which saw Wood’s ARK Funds unload 221,950 shares between January 3 and January 7, comes as concerns mount over Palantir’s lofty valuation following its sharp rally in 2024. Despite trimming the position, Palantir remains a major holding in the ARK Innovation ETF, accounting for 5.7% of the fund’s portfolio, according to data from StockCircle. The stock, however, has struggled in early 2025. As of the market…
By joining the Chainlink Scale program, Optimism developers can access Chainlink’s high-quality Oracle services at a reduced cost. The integration is expected to significantly improve decentralized finance (DeFi), gaming, and other blockchain applications by providing faster, more secure tools for connecting Web2 data to Web3 apps. Optimism has officially announced the integration of three key Chainlink services into its OP Mainnet. These include Chainlink Data Streams, Chainlink Functions, and Chainlink Verifiable Random Function (VRF). With this collaboration, Optimism is also entering the Chainlink Scale program, which aims to support the long-term adoption and sustainable growth of OP Mainnet. A Look…
Donald Trump’s upcoming executive orders immediately after his inauguration (day 1) will create a Bitcoin reserve and end ‘debanking’. The promised day-one executive orders will also include the nomination of Paul Atkins for the U.S. SEC Chair and the appointment of David Sacks as AI and crypto czar. The Washington Post reported that Trump was expected to issue an executive order repealing the controversial crypto accounting policy requiring banks holding digital assets to count them as liabilities on their balance sheets. Venture capital billionaire Marc Andreessen and his peers were also pressing Trump to revoke Biden’s anti-crypto policies and establish…
The popular crypto analyst PlanB believes Bitcoin (BTC) may not see a market correction until after breaking into the six-figure range due to one key metric. The pseudonymous trader tells his 2 million followers on the social media platform X that Bitcoin holders appear to be selling ahead of a possible $100,000 price target. According to the analyst, the Bitcoin profit-taking may actually mean a significant dip at the six-figure target will not occur. “Who sells Bitcoin now? Easy: sellers are profit-takers. On average November sellers sold at more than 60% profit (red) with a cost price of $55,000. I…
ETH is in the news as blockchain analysts saw a newly registered wallet making a withdrawal of 2,884 ETH which is equivalent to $9.57 million from Binance, today on January 16, 2025. The substantial outflow occurs shortly after the publication of the latest consumer price index (CPI) report, indicating rotation in the crypto market towards accumulation. Another newly created wallet withdrew 2,884 $ETH($9.57M) from #Binance 30 mins ago.https://t.co/ZQIzpIO1SChttps://t.co/HKuBcemhy6 pic.twitter.com/2MakMwwGgX — Lookonchain (@lookonchain) January 16, 2025 The wallet received two big transactions previously: the initial 0.1 ETH deposit and the 2,884 ETH withdrawal, both from Binance. ETH Value Rises as CPI…
This is a segment from the Empire newsletter. To read full editions, subscribe. The crypto credit market hasn’t quite recovered since 2022, when we saw the downfall of most of the major players. Honestly, perhaps that’s been for the best given how much damage was done. But it’s not an area of crypto that we can expect to stay dormant, especially if crypto’s truly set for another golden year (or even four). Clearly, a lot of changes will have to take place. And there’ll have to be far more transparency. Data platform Accountable, which operates in the undercollaterized crypto credit…
Arbitrum Foundation has introduced a $1 million grants program aimed at boosting artificial intelligence innovation on the Arbitrum network. The Trailblazer AI Grant is an initiative that will offer grant support for builders looking to bring innovative AI projects to Arbitrum (ARB). Developers and creators who built dedicated AI agents on the Ethereum layer-2 scaling solution will receive grants targeted at impactful AI products, the Arbitrum Foundation noted in a blog post on Nov. 27. Arbitrum continues to see increased adoption as the platform for AI tech stack, with projects such as Allora Network, ARC Agents, Eternal AI, Hyperbolic and…
Ron Hammond from the Blockchain Association shared some thoughts on the future of the SEC under the leadership of Paul Atkins. In an interview with Tony Edwards of Thinking Crypto, when asked if the SEC might drop some non-fraud cases, like the ongoing Ripple lawsuit, Hammond expressed optimism. He believes there could be a push to settle cases like Ripple’s quickly, allowing the industry to move forward. However, he said that it’s still unclear exactly how Atkins will handle the current litigation. Still, there’s hope that the new leadership will speed up settlements and resolve cases that have been lingering…