From the thrilling world of cryptocurrencies, five significant stories have emerged this week. These include updates on Ethereum ETFs, Terraform Labs’ reemergence following Do Kwon’s departure, Jump Trading’s strategic shift, South Korea’s pension fund’s investment in Coinbase, and a surge in transactions on Polygon due to Ordinal-like tokens.
Developments in Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs
Asset management giants, BlackRock and Fidelity, have submitted applications to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for Ethereum ETFs. The iShares Ethereum Trust from BlackRock aims to mirror Ethereum’s price, with Coinbase serving as its custodian. Fidelity, on the other hand, has underscored the significance of these ETFs for the protection of U.S. investors, asserting that investors are exploring riskier avenues for exposure.
Simultaneously, the SEC has postponed its verdict on the Hashdex Nasdaq Ethereum ETF, which would comprise both spot ether and futures, until January 2024. The delay, attributed to the need for additional time to evaluate the proposal and associated issues, has also impacted a decision regarding a Hashdex Bitcoin futures ETF application.
Terraform Labs’ Comeback and Acquisition
Terraform Labs, recognized for the creation of the Terra blockchain, has made its first significant acquisition since Do Kwon’s departure, purchasing Pulsar Finance, a cross-chain portfolio management and analytics startup. Despite ongoing legal battles, including a significant lawsuit with the SEC over alleged unregistered securities sales, Terraform continues to expand its capabilities while its original co-founder Do Kwon remains incarcerated in Montenegro.
Chris Amani, who stepped in as CEO after Kwon, highlighted the strategic value of the Pulsar acquisition, which will bolster Terraform’s technology stack and expedite the introduction of cross-chain applications.
South Korea’s Pension Fund Investment in Coinbase
The National Pension Service (NPS) of South Korea, the third-largest pension fund in the world by assets, has ventured into the cryptocurrency domain by purchasing $19.9 million worth of Coinbase shares. This acquisition, revealed in the NPS’ recent holdings report, marks the first time the pension fund, with assets under management of $755 billion as of June, has included a crypto-related security in its investment portfolio.
Jump Trading’s Strategic Shift and Wormhole Spinoff
Jump Trading has announced the conversion of its cross-chain protocol Wormhole into an independent business entity, amidst a significant reduction of Jump Crypto, the company’s cryptocurrency division, which has seen a 50% staff reduction from its 2022 peak of 150. This shift in focus and resources follows Jump Trading’s reduction of its crypto market activities due to U.S. regulatory uncertainties and the termination of its long-standing partnership with Robinhood.
In early 2022, Jump Crypto had swiftly intervened to recover $323 million worth of ETH lost in a major hack on Wormhole, marking one of the largest exploits in decentralized finance history.
Polygon’s Transaction Surge with Ordinals-like Tokens
Polygon’s network saw a dramatic increase in daily transaction volume, attributed to the large-scale minting of “PRC-20” tokens, an Ordinals-inspired token standard unique to Polygon. This surge, which saw daily transactions rise from 2.89 million to over 6 million, led to a significant increase in gas fees, peaking at over 7,000 Gwei before stabilizing.
Despite the temporary increase in transaction costs, fees on the Polygon network remained significantly lower than those on the Ethereum mainnet, underscoring Polygon’s efficiency and cost-effectiveness for blockchain transactions.
For those interested in keeping up with the latest ETF updates and Terraform Labs’ reemergence, among other crypto news, the cryptoview.io application offers a comprehensive and user-friendly platform.
