Scenius Sync (Issue #114)

Crypto Missing From Dems Party Platform, Kamala Reportedly To Consider Gensler for Treasury Sec, Drift Launches Prediction Market, Bitwise Expands Into Europe Via Acquisition, & Binance Back in India

Scenius: The intelligence and the intuition of a whole cultural scene. The communal form of the concept of genius.

Welcome to The Scenius Sync.

Our mission with this concise publication is twofold:

1. Share the essential stories driving the crypto industry and markets.

2. Highlight innovative applications and mainstream adoption of crypto and blockchain technology.

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Essential News 🗞

1. Crypto missing from Democrats party platform as national convention kicks off

   • The Democrats' newly released party platform may come as a bit of a disappointment for left-leaning voters who are considering voting their way come November but also seek a renewed vision for the U.S. government’s handling of cryptocurrency. The Democrats' party platform fails to mention crypto once as the party's national convention kicks off Monday. How politicians view crypto could prove to be an important issue among many voters during this year's election. This comes in stark contrast to the Republican platform, in which the party promised to both “end Democrats' unlawful and unAmerican Crypto crackdown” and “defend the right to mine Bitcoin.” Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has made multiple efforts to demonstrate he is the pro-crypto candidate, including speaking at the Bitcoin Conference in Nashville last month.

   • In related news, Kamala Harris is reportedly considering Gary Gensler as Treasury Secretary if elected President, according to senate sources.

2. Goldman Sachs Discloses $418M in Bitcoin ETF Holdings

   • Goldman Sachs has disclosed that it holds approximately $418.65 million in spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) shares as of June 30. This revelation came through the bank’s quarterly 13F filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, providing a glimpse into the financial giant’s growing interest in Bitcoin and other digital assets. The report underscores Goldman Sachs’ substantial investment in several prominent Bitcoin ETFs, solidifying its position as a major player in the burgeoning crypto market.

3. Binance re-enters India after settling $2.25 million penalty with FIU

   • Binance announced today that its website and app are now fully available for Indian users. One Binance spokesperson told The Block that the exchange has paid the $2.25 million penalty previously imposed by Indian regulators.

   • In other Binance news, Binance to Pay $1.7M to Brazilian Securities Commission to End Probe Into Unauthorized Derivatives Offering

4. Senator Schumer Vows to Pass Crypto Regulation This Year in Bid to Win Over Voters

   • Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY), majority leader in the U.S. Senate, speaking during a digital town hall meeting on Wednesday, vowed to pass crypto legislation by the end of the year. “I believe Washington cannot just look away from crypto, stick our heads in the sand, and do nothing,” Schumer said during the Crypto4Harris livestream. “My goal is to get something passed out of the Senate and into law by the end of the year, and I believe we can make that happen.”

5. Former SEC crypto enforcement chief David Hirsh leaves for private practice

   • Former U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission crypto and cyber security lead David Hirsh has joined private law firm McGuireWoods. Hirsh previously played a leading role in establishing the agency’s crypto enforcement action strategy.

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Innovation & Adoption 💡📈

1. MetaMask Starts Rollout of Blockchain-Based Debit Card Developed With Mastercard, Baanx

   • MetaMask, the popular self-custodial crypto wallet for the Ethereum network, is starting the rollout of its blockchain-based debit card developed with payments giant Mastercard (MA) and crypto payments specialist Baanx.

     The MetaMask Card will initially be available in a "limited pilot of a few thousand digital-only cards" to users based in the European Union countries and the UK, Metamask told CoinDesk on Wednesday. The company plans broader distribution later this year, with a "full rollout" in the EU and UK and more pilot launches in other regions through the coming quarters.

2. Solana-based Drift Protocol launches prediction market

   • The Solana-based perpetual trading protocol Drift has launched a prediction market called BET. The new betting market lets traders earn yield on their positions and supports over 30 crypto assets as collateral, Drift Labs co-founder Cindy Leow said on the social media platform X on Monday. "When you’re trading perps, you’re synthetically betting on the price of an underlying going up. In prediction markets, the same concept applies. Fundamentally, both are ways of creating financial ties to an outcome," Leow wrote. Perpetual swaps, a type of futures contract that do not expire, enable investors to speculate on an asset's price without needing to own it.

3. Chaos Labs Raises $55M as Demand Grows for On-Chain Risk Management

   • Chaos Labs, a New York crypto startup known for its suite of on-chain risk management tools, has raised $55 million in a Series A funding round led by the venture capital firm Haun Ventures. The influx of capital comes as Chaos Labs, founded in 2021, looks to expand its platform, designed to address the growing need for automated risk management in decentralized finance (DeFi).

     The project has tripled its customer base in the past year, helping more than 20 protocols including Aave, GMX and Jupiter to secure, monitor and grow their products, according to a statement. The funding round attracted a mix of familiar faces and new backers, with participants including F-Prime Capital, Slow Ventures and Spartan Capital, alongside larger investors like Lightspeed Venture Partners, Galaxy Ventures and PayPal Ventures. Chaos Labs was also backed by angel investors such as Solana’s Anatoly Yakovenko and Phantom’s Francesco Agosti.

4. Bitwise Expands Into Europe With Acquisition of ETC Group, Issuer of the Largest Physical Bitcoin ETP in Europe (BTCE)

   • Bitwise Asset Management today announced the acquisition of ETC Group, a London-based crypto ETP issuer with over $1 billion in assets under management. The news marks Bitwise’s expansion into Europe and adds nine European-listed crypto ETPs to Bitwise’s broad suite of ETPs, hedge fund solutions, and separately managed accounts. Founded in 2019, ETC Group’s ETP suite includes the largest and most heavily traded physical Bitcoin ETP (BTCE), Ethereum with staking (ET32), Solana (ESOL), XRP (GXRP), and the MSCI Digital Assets Select 20 (DA20). All of ETC Group’s products are physically backed and will be renamed with the Bitwise brand in the coming months. No material changes to the construction or objectives of the existing ETC investment strategies are planned at this time.

5. Dubai court recognizes crypto as valid salary payment

   • Dubai's latest ruling marks a significant shift in the legal acceptance of cryptocurrencies, aligning the UAE with global trends in digital finance.