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👀Consensys's L2 Exits Alpha Launch Phase
The Defiant Daily
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Consensys announced the mainnet rollout of its highly-anticipated Layer 2, Linea, is now complete. Linea's ERC-20 token bridge is now live, allowing users to begin exploring the network's DeFi ecosystem.
PayPal is expanding its presence in the crypto sector, announcing the launch of a fiat on-ramp in partnership with Ledger. The news comes roughly one week after PayPal revealed the surprise launch of its Ethereum-based PYUSD stablecoin.
Bitcoin and Ether are holding relatively strong while the broader digital markets retrace, with only five of the top 100 cryptocurrencies gaining more than 1% in the past 24 hours, and 43 tokens slumping more than 5%.
And Gitcoin has garnered controversy after teaming up with the global oil and gas behemoth, Shell, on a year-long partnership to explore open-source climate solutions.
✍️ In today’s newsletter:
- Consensys announces completion of Linea mainnet launch
- PayPal unveils fiat on-ramp in partnership with Ledger
- BTC and ETH resist broader crypto pull-back
- Crypto community pushes back against Gitcoin partnering with Shell
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📈 Markets in last 24 hrs:
| Ticker | Value | 24h |
|---|---|---|
| BTC | $29,772 | ↙ -0.46% |
| ETH | $1,865 | ↙ -1.44% |
| S&P 500 | $4,536 | ↗ 0.03% |
| GOLD | $1,964 | ↙ -0.2% |
| Arch WEB3 | 0.93pts | ↙ -0.3% |
| ↳ FINANCE | 0.98pts | ↙ -0.5% |
| ↳ INFRA | 0.85pts | ↙ -0.22% |
| ↳ CONSUMER | 1.10pts | ↗ 0.2% |
Learn more about Arch Indices here.
🎬 WATCH
Watch our video on Base going live. And check out our podcast with Erick Calderon, the founder of Art Blocks.
THANKING OUR NEWSLETTER SPONSORS
| Newsletter continues below |
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Layer 2
Linea Completes Public Mainnet Rollout
TLDR Consensys, a leading Ethereum software development firm, completed the mainnet launch of its long-awaited Layer 2 network. The announcement follows Linea's alpha launch phase, which hosted more than 2.7M transactions from 100,000 weekly active users over five weeks.
SO WHAT Linea marks Consensys's enterance into the increasingly competitive Ethereum Layer 2 sector. In recent months, Optimism shipped its Bedrock upgrade, Coinbase launched its L2, Base, Polygon announced its Polygon 2.0 revamp.
Business
PayPal Teams Up With Ledger On Fiat Onramp For US Users
TLDR PayPal is teaming up with hardware wallet manufacturer Ledger to offer a new fiat on-ramp for U.S. users. The product allows Ledger Live users to purchase BTC, ETH, LTC, and BCH via PayPal.
SO WHAT The announcement demonstrates PayPal's deepening commitment to expanding its presence in the digital asset sector, following up on the launch of its PYUSD stablecoin last week. The news comes as PayPal's stock is suffering losses despite its latest earnings reports beating out expectation.
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Markets
Bitcoin and Ether Hold Up Amid Market Selloff
TLDR Bitcoin and Ether are holding fairly strong despite the broader digital asset pulling back. Only seven of the top 100 cryptocurrencies by market cap posted a gain over the past seven days.
SO WHAT Glassnode, a crypto data provider, recently reported that digital asset markets are experiencing a period defined by extreme volatility trending towards all-time lows. With extended sideways price-action, investors anxiously await crypto's next major move.
Business
Gitcoin’s Collaboration With Shell Angers Crypto Community
TLDR Shell, the global energy firm, is teaming up with Gitcoin, a web3-focussed open-source development funding platform, to provide $500,000 to support research into climate change solutions. However, Gitcoin is facing backlash for the crypto community, with its GTC token falling 8.5% in 24 hours.
SO WHAT Shell's efforts to buy goodwill from the crypto community are backfiring, with critics slamming Gitcoin's willingness to work the global conglomerate. "$500k is a pittance, especially if you look at Shell's contribution to the climate crisis," said Kevin Owocki, formerly of Gitcoin. "The brand damage to Gitcoin is immense."
🔎 OUR REPORTERS ARE WATCHING
🌍 ELSEWHERE
- Bitcoin-friendly El Salvador sees bond returns soar to 70% in 2023 (Cointelegraph)
- Binance to shut crypto payment infrastructure as market dominance dips (Forkast)
- Arbitrum Will Unlock $1.2B ARB in March 2024: Token Unlocks (CoinDesk)
