Scenius Sync (Issue #45)

Gensler Waffles Before Congress, MiCA Crypto Law Passes in EU, & Solana Now Measures Network Carbon Emissions

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. SEC Chair Gensler Grilled by Committee Republicans and He Can’t (or refuses) to Answer Basic Questions about Ethereum, Denies Lack of Clarity Plaguing Crypto

   • Regardless of your politics, it seems pretty clear that Gensler has a credibility problem. Here’s video of Chairman McHenry Questioning SEC Chair Gensler on Ether at the Hearing to Conduct Oversight of the SEC.

2. Republicans Have Moved to Take Regulatory Power Over Stablecoins From Gensler, SEC

   • House Republicans fed up with the SEC’s stance on crypto proposed new draft stablecoin legislation that would take jurisdiction away from the agency over payment stablecoins.  

   • In a busy week for the SEC on the receiving end of things, Coinbase also sued the SEC for an answer on rule specific to digital assets. The lawsuit follows on a petition for a rulemaking that the company filed with the SEC last summer, requesting the commission draft and approve a rule specific to digital assets. The lawsuit aims to force the agency to provide a yes or no to Coinbase's ask. 

3. EU Lauds 'Comprehensive Regulation' as MiCA Crypto Law Passes

   • The European Parliament has voted through landmark legislation on cryptocurrency which will bring in new rules for the industry across the 27-country bloc. Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) passed with 517 votes in favor and 38 against, with 18 abstentions, at a meeting in Strasbourg today. Crypto firms welcomed the passing of the landmark legislation.

4. Three-way Bidding War for Celsius To Begin Tuesday

   • Celsius is scheduled to go to auction Tuesday, with new bidders hoping to take over the failed crypto lending service. NovaWulf Digital Management is the stalking horse bidder for the auction, meaning the company set the initial low-end bid. Other bidders are Fahrenheit LLC and the Blockchain Recovery Investment Committee, according to a Saturday court filing. 

5. Bored Ape Creator Yuga Labs Claims 'Landmark Legal Victory' Over Copycat NFTs

   • Bored Ape Yacht Club creator Yuga Labs is entitled to an injunction and damages from Ryder Ripps and Jeremy Cahen over their copycat RR/BAYC NFT collection, a federal judge declared late Friday in a pre-trial summary judgement in a trademark infringement case filed by the startup last summer.

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Innovation & Adoption 💡📈

1. Introducing Gemini Foundation — A Non-US Crypto Derivatives Platform

   • The platform’s first derivatives contract will be a BTC perpetual contract denominated in Gemini dollars (GUSD). An ETH/GUSD perpetual contract will launch soon thereafter. Gemini Foundation will allow eligible customers to leverage their crypto assets to achieve long or short crypto exposure in order to manage risk, generate returns, and gain directional exposure within a secure and trusted platform. The platform will not be available for customers in the U.S. but will launch in countries including Singapore, Hong Kong, India, Argentina, Bahamas, Bermuda, Brazil, El Salvador, Israel, Nigeria, South Africa, South Korea, Switzerland, Thailand, urkey, Uruguay, and Vietnam

2. World’s Largest Crypto Options Exchange Deribit to Launch Zero-Fee Spot Trading

   • The company announced late Wednesday that it is launching a zero-fee spot exchange on April 24. At launch, Deribit will offer spot trading with three pairs: BTC/USDC, ETH/USDC and ETH/BTC. It might list more coins, but zero fees won't last for the long term. Free trading will exist "for the foreseeable future," he said.

3. Société Générale’s Digital Arm has Launched a Regulated EUR-Pegged Stablecoin on Ethereum

   • The token, ‘EUR CoinVertible’ (EURCV), is designed for on-chain transactions, treasury management, ‘on-chain liquidity funding and refinancing solutions,’ and meeting liquidity needs such as margin calls.

4. Zimbabwe to Introduce Gold-Backed Digital Currency

   • The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, or RBZ, plans to introduce a gold-backed digital currency as legal tender to help stabilize the local currency. The Zim dollar will be a form of electronic money backed by the country's gold reserves, which will be held by the central bank. The RBZ wants people holding Zim dollars to be able to exchange their money for the gold-backed token to help them hedge against the volatility of the local currency.

5. Solana Now Measures Network Carbon Emissions Data in Real Time

   • Solana is now measuring data pertaining to its carbon emissions in real time, the Solana Foundation announced . It’s a claimed first-of-its-kind move for "a major smart contract blockchain network." Solana will regularly update a dedicated dashboard with statistics monitoring key environmental metrics for the network: its energy consumption, carbon footprint, and network power intensity, among other data.