5/29/24: BlackRock's Dominance 🗿🆔🧪

Author

Valko
May 29, 2024

Top News

  1. BlackRock flips Grayscales spot Bitcoin ETF at $20B AUM

  2. ENS Labs proposes ENS v2 upgrade to migrate to a layer 2

  3. Semler Scientific adds $40M to its balance sheet

Specs’ Breakdown

1. BlackRock flips Grayscales spot Bitcoin ETF at $20B AUM

⌐◪-◪ → BlackRock is officially the largest Bitcoin ETF in the world after overtaking Grayscale at nearly $20B Bitcoin under management.

This is a major milestone for BlackRock considering Grayscale launched their Trust 2013 (before converting to an ETF) which gave them a massive headstart on all ETFs.

  • BlackRock (IBIT) → 288,668 BTC

  • Grayscale (GBTC) → 287,453 BTC

  • Fidelity (FBTC) → 162,040 BTC

  • Ark (ARKB) → 48,564 BTC

  • Bitwise (BITB) → 36,234

This is what Grayscale gets for having the highest fees out of all the ETFs — a fatal mistake.

2. ENS Labs proposes ENSv2 upgrade to migrate to a layer 2

⌐◪-◪ → ENS Labs just proposed ENS v2 — a major upgrade to migrate ENS Domains to a Layer 2 network. Here are the major benefits:

  • lower gas fees

  • lower barrier to entry

  • easier subdomains

  • build your own (sub)registry)

  • naming every wallet

The team hasn’t yet determined which Layer 2 stack will be used for the migration, but whichever they choose will send a major signal to the entire industry. Watch the chain for insiders on this one.

Let me know which L2 you think they’ll pick in Specs Chat!

3. Semler Scientific adds $40M to its balance sheet

⌐◪-◪ → Semler Scientific just announced a purchase of 581 BTC for $40M — their stock subsequently jumped 42.5%.

They are taking a page out of MicroStrategy’s playbook, and Michael Saylor seems pretty happy about it.

Their Chairman commented on the matter saying:

  • “Our purchase of BTC underscores our belief that BTC is a reliable store of value”.

  • “We believe that BTC has the potential to generate outsize returns as it gains increasing acceptance as digital gold.”

It’s only a matter of time before all companies have BTC on their balance sheet — it’s a brilliant inflation hedge and haven amid global instability.

First corps, then banks, then states, then nations.

Everything Else

⛓️ Crypto & DeFi

  • Researchers help man recover password to $3M BTC wallet

  • LayerZero daily messages hit lowest level in over a year

  • Opera, a crypto-friendly browser, integrates Google Gemini AI

  • EasyA Hackathon offers $250k prize at Consensus 2024

  • Maple Finance unveils Syrup yield platform, promises 15% yield

  • MoonPay launches new Web3 tool for brands venturing into crypto

  • Polygon Labs exec takes on additional role as Chief Business Officer

  • Dune launches enterprise solution for blockchain data integration

  • ZKasino, alleged scam, gives users 72-hr window to reclaim ETH

🏦 Wallstreet & VC

🏛️ Legal & Regulatory

  • DOJ holds first hearing against Samourai Wallet developers

  • Ripple donates an additional $25M crypto PAC Fairshake

  • FTX Exec Ryan Salame sentenced to 7.5 years in prison

  • Mt. Gox trustee says they are not selling BTC imminently

  • Trump explores BTC to address US National Debt

  • Judge orders SEC to pay $1.8M legal fees to Debt Box

🌎 Rest of the World

  • Binance exec jailed in Nigeria might have malaria

  • Metaplanet, Japan’s MicroStrategy, to buy another ¥250M BTC

  • Cathie Wood says El Salvador’s GDP could 10x in 5 yrs due to BTC

  • OKX announces 19th proof of assets reserves snapshot

🖼️ NFTs & Metaverse

  • Sandbox launches Sandbox DAO with $11M/year budget

  • $PEPE active wallets double as ETH memecoin hits all-time highs

  • Iggy Azelea launches $IGGY memecoin, hits $15M market cap

  • Caitlyn Jenner says memecoin dev owes her 'lots of money'

  • ‘Tickle-to-Earn’ cat game prompts surge in Aptos transactions

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