Luc Jose A.

Week after week, the crypto sector continues to innovate and redefine the boundaries of finance and technology with boldness and creativity. In this weekly recap, we will delve into the most significant news of the past week, from El Salvador's pioneering Bitcoin bonds initiative to Donald Trump's controversial NFT collection, and the promising prospects of SEC approval for Bitcoin Spot ETFs. We will also examine the security incident at Ledger, the implications of BlackRock's entry into Bitcoin mining, and current trends surrounding Ethereum and Solana.

On the smart contract market, Solana has been particularly dynamic this year. So much so that some analysts nickname this crypto platform the Ethereum “killer,” the current market leader. A position that, according to the exchange Coinbase, should not be called into question in 2024.

The next two years are expected to see a significant increase in the volume of asset trading on the blockchain, according to Mathew McDermott, Global Head of Crypto Assets at Goldman Sachs. He explains that since the beginning of 2023, the bank's clients have shown a “huge appetite” for crypto assets and crypto derivative trading. This was reported during an interview with Reuters.

Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) are not popular. They are strongly criticized for the threats they pose to individual privacy. However, the crypto firm Ripple has just released a white paper that promotes the utility of these controversial assets.

"In the Web3 gaming space, gas fees have always been one of the main barriers to widespread adoption. Now, this challenge is solved in the Immutable ecosystem. Web3 gaming company, Immutable, has just launched the industry's first blockchain that offers a transaction-free Web3 gaming experience. Called zkVEM Immutable, it is a next-generation upgrade developed in collaboration with Polygon Labs. All the details in the following."

Jimmy Wales, the co-founder of Wikipedia, recently criticized Bitcoin (BTC). He derided the flagship cryptocurrency, claiming that it lacks functional relevance and causes monetary losses to its users, unlike a traditional bank account. The crypto community did not hesitate to respond to him.

The Lightning Network is certainly one of the major advancements in the Bitcoin ecosystem. Many users are fond of it. However, a recent incident has shown the limitations of this technology. A crypto user has indeed noticed the draining of their BTC assets, linked precisely to operational vulnerabilities of the Lightning Network plugin.

It has emerged that despite its $4.3 million deal with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Binance is still facing attacks from the SEC. But apparently, Binance is not backing down. The exchange recently challenged the regulatory legitimacy of the financial regulator, particularly forcefully.

In a world where cryptocurrency is redefining the boundaries of the digital economy, El Salvador boldly positions itself at the forefront with its “Freedom Visa” program. This initiative, born from a partnership between the Salvadoran government and Tether, a cryptocurrency giant, promises to transform not only immigration but also investment in the country. As El Salvador is already famous for adopting bitcoin as legal tender, this new investment visa program raises important questions: is it a revolutionary innovation or a costly gamble for investors? In a context where investment visas are gaining popularity around the world and offer unique opportunities for wealthy investors, El Salvador's “Freedom Visa” stands out for its close connection with crypto.

These last days, several cryptos show a remarkable dynamism. This is the case of AVAX, the native crypto of the Avalanche company. This one saw its valuation explode by 79% in a week. Here's how this result was possible.

While making bitcoin (BTC) a legal currency in its territory, El Salvador worked to provide financial instruments favorable to this policy. The country has made progress in this direction, with the Digital Assets Commission (CNAD) approving the issuance of the world's first bitcoin (BTC) bonds.

The International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) is actively preparing for the 2026 World Cup, which is scheduled to take place in approximately 3 years. The global governing body of football plans to launch a collection of Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs), the acquisition of which will grant the first 100 crypto users access to the final match.

Week after week, the crypto sector continues to innovate and redefine the boundaries of finance and technology with boldness and creativity. In this weekly recap, we will delve into the most significant news of the past week, from the unexpected resilience of Bitcoin in the face of pessimistic predictions from the ECB, to the soaring rise of XRP, and the latest legal developments regarding Binance.