Scenius Sync (Issue #60)

PayPal Launches Stablecoin on Ethereum, Coinbase’s Base Set for Public Launch, Litecoin’s Third Halving, & Curve Recoups 73% of Hacked Funds

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.

If you find this newsletter valuable, please subscribe and share The Scenius Sync with your network 💪

---

---

Essential News 🗞

1. Coinbase pushes to dismiss SEC lawsuit

   • Coinbase filed a motion to dismiss in the US SEC’s case against the crypto company on Friday. In the newest filing, Coinbase argues that the SEC has “violated due process, abused its discretion and abandoned its own earlier interpretations of the securities laws.”  However, the reason for dismissal as reiterated by Coinbase is the fact that the “subject matter falls outside of the agency’s delegated authority.”

2. Litecoin Undergoes Third 'Halving,' in Milestone for 12-Year-Old Blockchain

   • Litecoin, one of the oldest and largest blockchains, underwent the third “halving” in its 12-year history, a key milestone for a project often referred to as “digital silver” in comparison to Bitcoin’s reputation as “digital gold.”

3. Huobi sees $73.3 million net outflow in past week as investigation rumors swirl

   • Cryptocurrency exchange Huobi saw net outflows of more than $73.3 million in the past seven days — a period in which some of its executives were reportedly taken in by Chinese police.

4. Looter Behind $61M Curve Hack Starts Returning Assets, Raising Hope for Recovery

   • The transactions spur hope that most of the stolen assets will be recovered to victims in one of the most dramatic crypto exploit this year. Curve, Metronome and Alchemix lost $61.7 million of crypto assets over the weekend when an unknown hacker exploited a coding bug to loot multiple trading pools. On Thursday, the affected protocols offered a 10% bounty for returning the assets by Aug. 6, CoinDesk reported.

   • As of August 7, Curve Recouped 73% of Hacked Funds, Bolstering CRV Sentiment

5. Tether and Bitfinex class-action lawsuit dismissed by SDNY

   • Anderson's and Dolifka's complaint centered around allegations that Tether's statements regarding its stablecoin, USDT, being backed one-to-one by the U.S. dollar were false. The entirety of the class action complaint being dismissed at this very early stage of the proceedings punctuate the fact that plaintiffs’ claims were void of any legal merit," the stablecoin issuer wrote in an official blog post.

---

Innovation & Adoption 💡📈

1. Coinbase’s blockchain Base to launch to the public next week

   • The platform has been operating on the testnet, which is a test phase of the blockchain network, from late February until mid-July, when it launched its “builder only phase” for developers, Jesse Pollak, lead for Base and head of protocols at Coinbase said. “We’ve reached a point where we felt there was a critical mass and we wanted to turn on this thing for everyone.” Users can start bridging their funds onchain to mint NFTs and get a “taste for Base,” Pollak said.

   • Meanwhile, Bridged assets to Coinbase's Layer 2 have already topped $100 million. Base's roll out is part of what Coinbase is describing as "Onchain Summer," which will see a number of brands--including Coca-Cola and OpenSea--collaborate with the crypto exchange on on-chain events. 

2. PayPal launches stablecoin on Ethereum, citing 'shift toward digital currencies'

   • Silicon Valley-based payments firm PayPal announced it is launching a U.S. dollar stablecoin in conjunction with Paxos.

     The new digital token will be pegged to the dollar and “gradually” made available to PayPal’s customers in the U.S., the company said in a press release. Paxos will issue the coin labeled PayPal USD, or PYUSD. Issued on the Ethereum blockchain, PYUSD will be “fully backed by U.S. dollar deposits, short-term Treasuries and similar cash equivalents," the company also said.

   • Read here to learn why some believe PayPal PYUSD Stablecoin Could Breed Competition and Force Regulators to Act.

3. ProShares and Bitwise file for more bitcoin and ether ETFs in deluge of applications

   • ProShares and Bitwise have filed applications with the SEC for exchange traded funds that offer exposure to both bitcoin and ether.  “We’re up to a full dozen ether futures ETF filings now,” Bloomberg analyst James Seyffart noted.

4. Etihad Airways 'Horizon Club' Web3 Loyalty Program Will Let You Stake NFTs for Miles

   • United Arab Emirates national airline Etihad Airways will soon release a new 300-edition expansion to its Polygon-based EY-ZERO1 NFT collection, promising holders a slate of new benefits like Etihad Guest Silver Tier Status, priority check-in, lounge access and the ability to stake their assets to earn miles.

5. Cash App bitcoin sales jumped 34% in Q2 to $2.4 billion

   • Payment company Block, Inc. said that bitcoin sales on its Cash App platform jumped 34% in the second quarter from the same period last year to a whopping $2.4 billion. Gross profit from the bitcoin sales came in at $44 million, up 7% year over year. The company said customers were buying more of the digital asset, even with declining prices.