Headlines
Blast announces the points distribution details for the second phase of airdrops, and will distribute 10 billion BLAST
Blast published a post announcing the points distribution details for the second phase of the airdrop. In the second phase, Blast will distribute 10 billion BLAST airdrops, of which 50% will be allocated to ordinary points (Points). Users can earn Points by holding ETH, WETH, USDB and BLAST, and the Point accumulation rate of each asset is the same; 50% will be allocated to gold points (Gold). Dapps can earn Gold (and then distribute it to users) based on their comprehensive appeal on the Blast mainnet and in future Big Bang competitions. Gold will be distributed in the first week of each month, and the first phase will be announced on July 8.
In addition, users who have installed the Blast App will receive a "Golden Ticket" based on their ETH, WETH, USDB, and BLAST balances. The Golden Ticket gives users the opportunity to earn more Points and Gold.
The mechanisms that existed in the first phase, such as Jackpot, points multiplier, and invitation points return, will continue to exist, but invitations in the second phase will be calculated independently.
Starknet founder: About 400 million STRKs reserved for future airdrop rounds
Starknet founder Eli Ben-Sasson wrote today reflecting on the project’s completed first round of airdrops (Provisions).
Eli stated in the article that about 400 million STRKs are reserved for future airdrop rounds, and hopes that the community can provide more ideas about the token distribution mechanism to help the team find more effective ways to distribute tokens to different groups who care about Starknet’s long-term vision and mission.
Capriole Investments founder: Mt.Gox may have started creditor repayment
Charles Edward, founder of digital asset hedge fund Capriole Investments, said that Mt.Gox may have begun to repay creditors. He disclosed data showing that a large amount of Bitcoin was moving on the chain, 10 times more than the previous peak, and it seemed that the distribution of Mt.Gox was really coming. (Cointelegraph)
marginfi will launch mrgnswap, allowing users to leverage long/short any Meme token
Solana lending protocol marginfi announced on the X platform that it will launch mrgnswap, allowing users to leverage long/short any Meme token.
The official introduction page shows that even if the token has just been created, leveraged long and short transactions are allowed and will be traded immediately. Currently, you are in the early testing qualification stage of filling in your email address.
Industry News
Mantra to tokenize $500 million in real estate for Dubai builder MAG Group
Mantra Chain said in a press release that it will tokenize $500 million worth of assets of Dubai real estate developer MAG Group.
Middle East-focused Mantra will split the assets into multiple tranches, the first of which will include Keturah Reserve, a residential project being built by MAG in Meydan, Dubai, and a mega-mansion in the $75 million The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Dubai, Creekside development.
Investors will earn yield in both stablecoins and Mantra’s OM tokens, and are expected to earn an 8% yield in stablecoins and receive additional OM tokens.
The number of initial jobless claims in the United States for the week ending June 29 was 238,000, expected to be 235,000, and the previous value was 233,000
The number of initial jobless claims in the United States for the week ending June 29 was 238,000, compared with expectations of 235,000 and a previous value of 233,000.
The four-week average of initial jobless claims in the United States for the week ending June 29 was 238,500, compared with 236,000 in the previous week.
The number of people continuing to claim unemployment benefits in the United States for the week ending June 22 was 1.858 million, compared with expectations of 1.84 million and the previous value of 1.839 million.
Project News
Consensys acquires Wallet Guard to protect MetaMask users from hackers and scammers
Consensys has acquired the crypto security application Wallet Guard to help enhance the security of MetaMask. The specific amount has not been disclosed. As part of the transaction, the entire Wallet Guard team will join Consensys. Consensys intends to integrate Wallet Guard's browser extension and security engine functions to further protect MetaMask users' wallets, digital assets and data from theft, scams and fraud. (Theblock)
CoW DAO launches $1 million token grant proposal, planned for CEX listing
The snapshot shows that DEX CoW DAO initiated a grant proposal to apply for the allocation of $1 million worth of COW tokens and stablecoins as listing fees and marketing expenses to promote the listing of COW tokens on CEX.
Voting closes on July 10, with support currently at 99.72%.
Investment and Financing
Galaxy Digital: Cryptocurrency sector received $3.19 billion in venture capital in Q2, and the financing environment remains active
Crypto venture funding continued to rebound in the second quarter despite the market downturn, with founders and investors generally reporting a more active funding environment than in previous quarters, according to data from Galaxy Digital.
“Crypto venture sentiment continues to improve, though levels remain well below the 2021-2022 bull run,” Galaxy Digital research analysts Alex Thorn and Gabe Parker wrote in a note on Tuesday.
Galaxy reported that venture capitalists invested $3.19 billion in cryptocurrency and blockchain companies in Q2, slightly higher than the $3.16 billion in the first quarter.
Bitcoin on-chain scaling protocol QED completes $6 million seed round, with Blockchain Capital participating
QED, the Bitcoin on-chain expansion protocol, announced the completion of a $6 million seed round of financing, with Blockchain Capital as the only investor. Its founder revealed that this round of financing has brought QED's valuation to "9 figures", or at least $100 million. As of now, QED's total financing has reached $10.6 million. Previously, the company had received $3.25 million in pre-seed financing from companies such as Arrington Capital, StarkWare, and Draper Dragon, and $1.35 million in angel round financing from companies such as Sparkle Ventures, which is supported by Animoca Brands. (Theblock)
Solana-based GPU tokenization protocol Compute Labs completes $3 million Pre-Seed round of financing, led by Protocol Labs
Compute Labs, a Solana-based GPU tokenization protocol, has completed a $3 million Pre-Seed round of financing at a valuation of $30 million, led by Protocol Labs, with participation from Blockchain Coinvestors, OKX Ventures, CMS Holdings, HashKey Capital, Amber Group, and P2 Ventures (formerly Polygon Ventures). Compute Labs founder and CEO Albert Z said that Compute Labs is also currently raising seed rounds at a significantly higher valuation. It is reported that Compute Labs is building a real-world asset (RWA) tokenization protocol based on computing as the underlying asset. Computing refers to the processing power of CPUs and GPUs, which is key to tasks such as data processing and running software. Z said that computing is one of the most valuable commodities today, especially in the era of artificial intelligence, and he called it "the currency of the future." He said that most ordinary investors cannot invest in enterprise-grade GPUs today, and Compute Labs will make it "possible for everyone to invest in computing."
OKX Ventures announces investment in Lombard to drive innovation in Bitcoin re-staking ecosystem
On July 3, OKX Ventures announced an investment in Lombard, a Babylon-based solution that provides cross-chain liquidity staking for Bitcoin.
Lombard's flagship product is LBTC. Lombard has partnered with Babylon, whose staking protocol allows Bitcoin assets to be staked in a trustless and self-custodial manner, providing economic security for Proof of Stake (PoS) systems. Through Babylon, staked Bitcoin assets are converted to LBTC, allowing them to be integrated into the most commonly used DeFi protocols on the Ethereum mainnet and future popular Layer 2 chains. LBTC moves seamlessly across chains and is used as collateral in decentralized finance, aiming to unlock more than $1.3 trillion in Bitcoin for lending and trading. This move will not only bring new capital opportunities to Bitcoin holders, but will also drive the growth of various ecosystems and DeFi protocols, thereby enhancing the utility and liquidity of Bitcoin.
Regulatory trends
Major parties remain silent on crypto issues ahead of UK election
The Labour Party, the favorite to win tomorrow’s UK general election, barely mentioned cryptocurrencies during its campaign, which could mean the future of the crypto industry in the country remains uncertain. Aside from briefly stating that it wants the UK to become a tokenization hub and supporting plans for a digital pound, the party has been silent on cryptocurrencies.
The topic did not come up during the last debate between Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Labour MP Keir Starmer, which was about welfare, immigration and relations with the European Union. While the Conservative government has introduced a range of cryptocurrency policies, its current manifesto does not mention it.
Labour leads in the polls, with 42% of voters in favor. The Conservatives are at 19%, according to a June Ipsos survey of voting intentions. When seats are counted, Starmer is likely to become prime minister with a majority in Parliament. (CoinDesk)
Xu Zhengyu: Hong Kong regulators will review rules for cryptocurrency-related activities "as appropriate"
Hong Kong SAR government's Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Paul Chan said that as the cryptocurrency industry develops, regulators will review requirements for cryptocurrency-related activities as needed.
Hui said today that the Hong Kong Monetary Authority and the Securities and Futures Commission will "closely monitor market developments and review regulations on virtual asset-related activities where appropriate." He made the comments when a lawmaker asked whether regulators would speed up the review process for cryptocurrency licenses and relax rules for intermediaries to distribute crypto assets. (The Block)
Character Voice
1 0x Research founder: Bitcoin ETF average entry price is $60,000-61,000, 30% of inflows are metal basis trading
1 0x Research founder Markus Thielen said that the estimated average entry price for Bitcoin ETFs is $60,000 to $61,000, and retesting this level may trigger a wave of liquidations. In addition, 30% of the inflows belong to a non-directional arbitrage strategy, namely basis trading, rather than direct bullish bets.
Markus Thielen added: “When Bitcoin fell to $56,500 on May 2, BlackRock claimed that ‘sovereign wealth funds and pension funds’ were coming, which helped to stop the decline, but now BlackRock says that 80% of their purchases of the Bitcoin IBIT ETF came from retail investors, not institutions.” (Coindesk)
Galaxy executives: Spot Ethereum ETF is expected to be listed in July, optimistic about the approval of more crypto ETFs
Steve Kurz, head of Galaxy Digital Asset Management, said the U.S. SEC could approve a spot Ethereum ETF by the end of July and described the prospects for other crypto ETFs.
Kurz said he expects an Ethereum spot ETF could be approved in “weeks, not days,” but within a month.
He said Galaxy has been working with the SEC on the application for months, noting that the company’s upcoming spot Ethereum ETF is similar to the existing spot Bitcoin ETF (BTCO). Galaxy partnered with investment management firm Invesco to create both funds.
Kurz also expressed optimism that other spot crypto ETFs besides Ethereum will be approved. He said legislation, including laws defining securities, is necessary, and he believes that process will proceed even if Biden remains president. (CryptoSlate)
Fed spokesperson: Powell puts rate cuts back on the agenda, highlighting cautious optimism
Nick Timiraos, a Wall Street Journal reporter and the "Federal Reserve's mouthpiece," wrote in his latest article that Federal Reserve Chairman Powell has put interest rate cuts back on the radar. Powell's speech highlighted a cautious optimism that had faded after disappointing inflation data in April. He said the economy had made "significant progress," "real progress," and "considerable progress" in reducing inflation while achieving stable growth. But he remained cautious about cutting rates, suggesting that the Fed's chances of cutting rates at its meeting later this month remain slim. In addition, Powell declined to say whether he was preparing for a rate cut in September. "I'm not going to set any specific dates here today," he said.
VanEck: Solana ETF approval odds increase if Gensler no longer serves as SEC chairman
Matthew Sigel, head of digital asset research at VanEck, said that the chances of VanEck applying to issue a spot Solana ETF depend largely on the outcome of the 20204 presidential election and whether Gary Gensler continues to serve as chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. "It is very likely that cryptocurrency voters will play a major role in this election. We have already seen a change in the regulatory environment at the level of elected officials. Multiple Democrats voted for legislation that supports cryptocurrency."
Sigel expressed agreement with SEC Chairman Gary Gensler’s recent comments that “Ethereum applications are progressing well,” adding, “This is probably the only time in three years that I agree with Gary Gensler.” (Decrypt)
