Hi, everyone! It’s Friday, October 6th, and we’re delighted to present another edition of Weekly Blocks!
We’ve curated a special selection of the latest news and updates just for you. So, grab your favorite beverage, and let’s get started! ☕️
A QUICK BRIEF 💭
👩🏼⚖️ Sam Bankman-Fried Trial Has Begun
🤝🏻 Moncler and Adidas Originals Are Partnering
🚀 Manifold Finance Rolls Out an MEV Auction Protocol
[THE BLOCK WITH THE TOP HEADLINES OF THE WEEK]
This Week’s Headlines 🔍
👩🏼⚖️ Sam Bankman-Fried Trial Has Begun
Sam Bankman-Fried’s trial, the biggest financial fraud case since Bernie Madoff, has started.
Sam Bankman-Fried, the man behind the FTX collapse, is facing 7 criminal charges including fraud and money laundering and could be sentenced to 100+ years in prison.
The first day, October 3rd, was all about picking the jury which continued on for second day. SBF was informed that in case he wants to testify, he would only need to stand up. It also came out, that SBF was not offered a plea deal.
EXTRA: Day 1 covered by Carly from OPJ, Laura from UnChained, and live updates by Blockworks.
On day two, 18 jurors were selected in total (list of jurors), both sides made their opening statements, and the first two witnesses testified. The first one was Marc-Antoine Julliard, a London-based cocoa broker and a FTX customer. The next one was Adam Yedidia, a longtime friend of Bankman-Fried, one of the infamous Bahamian penthouse’s nine residents, and a former FTX employee.
EXTRA: Day 2 covered by Carly from OPJ, Laura from UnChained, and live updates by Blockworks.
On the third day of the trial on Thursday, three witnesses testified. Among them were Adam Yedidia, who continued testifying, Paradigm co-founder Matt Huang, and FTX co-founder Gary Wang.
EXTRA: Day 3 covered by Carly from OPJ,Laura from UnChained, and live updates by Blockworks.
The whole trial is expected to last an estimated six weeks.
⚖️ Former Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky’s trial is scheduled for September 2024
Alex Mashinsky, the former CEO of Celsius, is scheduled to face a fraud trial in September 2024, as decided by US District Judge John Koeltl.
The trial will be preceded by three pretrial conferences in March, July, and September, and Mashinsky is currently on bail amounting to $40 million, subject to travel and financial transaction restrictions.
VanEck To Support Ethereum Development
VanEck has committed to contributing 10% of the profits generated by its forthcoming Ether ETF to assist Ethereum developers.
These funds will be directed to the Protocol Guild, a consortium comprising 152 core protocol contributors, for a minimum of a decade.
This move underscores VanEck’s dedication to supporting the Ethereum community and encourages other traditional financial firms benefiting from web3 developers’ efforts to consider similar initiatives.
🚔 Co-Founder of 3AC, Su Zhu, Arrested
Su Zhu, co-founder of Three Arrows Capital (3AC), was arrested at Singapore’s Changi airport while trying to leave the country on Friday.
This was followed by a court order sentencing him to four months in prison for non-compliance with a court order, as reported by 3AC’s liquidator, Teneo.
🥶 Ether Funds Linked to FTX Account Drainer Are Moving
A wallet associated with the FTX account drainer has shown movement for the first time in nearly 12 months. Approximately 2,500 ETH (equivalent to $4 million) has been transferred.
These funds were split and sent in several transactions, including 700 ETH routed through the Thorchain Router, 1,200 ETH transferred via the privacy-centric DeFi wallet Railgun, and 550 ETH held in a separate wallet.
The main wallet still holds 12,500 ETH, worth approximately $21 million, remaining untouched.
🇸🇬 Coinbase Receives Full License from Monetary Authority of Singapore
After a year of in-principle approval, Singapore’s Monetary Authority has officially granted Coinbase a Major Payment Institution (MPI) license. This license enables Coinbase to provide digital payment token services to individuals and institutions in Singapore without the previous transaction limits.
Hassan Ahmed, the country director of Coinbase Singapore stated: “This license enshrines our commitment to the market and marks the end of our licensing journey. Our experience in Singapore in some ways contrasts what’s going on in the U.S. By providing this level of regulatory clarity and by providing clear rules that the industry has to play by, that’s really important for us as we’re thinking about our international strategy.”
ESPRESSO-SIZED NEWS ☕️️
🇧🇷 Brazil is set to implement blockchain technology for digital identity, with over 214 million citizens gaining access to on-chain identification documents, starting with Rio de Janeiro, Goiás, and Paraná states and expanding nationwide by November 6. earn more.
🎙️ Crypto-friendly House Speaker Kevin McCarthy ousted, with Rep. Patrick McHenry to become speaker pro tempore; both have shown support for blockchain and digital asset legislation. Read more.
👩🏼⚖️ The SEC criticizes Coinbase’s motion to dismiss arguments, characterizing the exchange’s misinterpretation of securities laws and alleging that it is deflecting responsibility onto the SEC for its existing legal challenges. Learn more.
[THE BLOCK WITH NFT & DEFI UPDATES]
Dive into NFT and DeFi News 🗞️
Moncler 🤝🏻 Adidas Originals
Adidas and Moncler have introduced an innovative fashion campaign called “The Art of Explorers” that integrates generative AI and NFT collectibles.
This collaboration merges Moncler’s iconic designs with Adidas Originals’ elements, resulting in a visually striking and functional clothing collection. The experience is enhanced through an interactive digital platform on moncler.com and the introduction of NFTs, providing a unique and digitalized shopping and ownership experience.
The collection will be accessible online starting from October 4, with select in-store availability beginning on October 5, combining exclusivity with wide accessibility.
Sotheby’s 🤝🏻 Ledger
Sotheby’s and Ledger have partnered to offer exclusive Ledger Nano X devices to collectors for long-term security and preservation of digital art and assets.
Sebastian Fahey, Sotheby’s Managing Director of Global Fine Art and Executive Lead for Sotheby’s Metaverse, commented: “Ledger is one of the most trusted and reputable brands in digital asset security, and to partner with them to provide Sotheby’s purchasers with their industry-leading hardware wallets marks a significant step forward in our web3 evolution.
💅🏻 Boss Beauties Is Acquiring BFF
Boss Beauties, a women-focused media and entertainment brand, is acquiring BFF, a community dedicated to educating and connecting people in the emerging tech space, particularly Web3 and NFTs.
This consolidation aims to empower more women and girls with accessible educational resources in the crypto industry. Lisa Mayer, Co-Founder and CEO of Boss Beauties, highlighted the importance of diverse educational resources for women in the rapidly growing Web3 sector.
This move follows Boss Beauties’ earlier collaborations and donations aimed at promoting gender diversity in Web3.
ESPRESSO-SIZED NFT NEWS ☕️
🏞️ The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is launching “MoMA Postcard,” an interactive NFT-based initiative enabling users to create collaborative art on the blockchain by sending digital chain letters with themed “stamps” to chosen collaborators. Learn more.
🇬🇧 The Saatchi Gallery is set to host its inaugural NFT and crypto art exhibition, named “Long Live London,” during the Focus Art Fair at the gallery from October 4 to 6. Learn more.
🤩 The OKX Crypto Cricket Club is offering a significant prize pool of over $200,000 along with cricket-themed NFTs as part of the OKX Crypto Cricket Cup 2023, running until November 5th. Learn more.
WEEKLY DOSE OF DEFI NEWS
🚀 Manifold Finance Rolls Out an MEV Auction Protocol
Manifold Finance has launched a MEV protocol featuring a multi-winner auction system, challenging the conventional “one winner per slot” model seen in Ethereum.
This innovative MEV protocol aims to reshape value capture and distribution within the Ethereum network, prioritizing optimal MEV revenue for validators, and positions itself as a competitor to Flashbots’ existing MEV protocol.
🦋 Pirex ETH is live on Ethereum testnet!
This week, Redacted announced the deployment of Pirex ETH (pxETH) on the Goerli Ethereum testnet, a pivotal step in the Dinero project.
Following a testing period on Goerli, pxETH will transition to Holesky testnet. Dinero aims to integrate Ethereum staking, block creation, an RPC, and more within a unified protocol, featuring pxETH, the DINERO stablecoin, and the Redacted Relayer RPC, with a phased rollout starting with pxETH.
☕️ Espresso Systems Introduces the Cortado Testnet
Espresso Systems and Caldera collaboratively introduced Vienna, an OP Stack rollup integrated into the Espresso Sequencer’s third testnet, known as the Cortado Testnet to the public.
This testnet has the capability to sequence transactions for both the OP Stack rollup and the Polygon zkEVM-based rollup, previously integrated in a prior testnet.
ESPRESSO-SIZED DEFI NEWS ☕️
📉 Yield Protocol, a DeFi platform that once boasted $22 million in TVL, is closing down its operations, citing the persisting bear market conditions. Learn more.
✋🏻 Jaynti Kanani, co-founder of Polygon, has announced that he is stepping back from his day-to-day role in the network’s operations to explore new ventures while continuing to contribute to Polygon in a supportive capacity. Learn more.
🙅🏼Utopia has announced it will wind down its operations on November 6, 2023, but clarifies that this marks a change in operations rather than the end of the company. Learn more.
Thank you for reading and enjoy your weekend!
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Not financial advice. This newsletter is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or make other financial decisions. Always do your own research.