Governance
Merge
Ethereum prints year-to-date high vs Bitcoin after Bellatrix hard fork ahead of The Merge
Ethereum continues to gain ground, up 6% on Bitcoin as the Bellatrix upgrade readies the network for the Merge later this month.
Gaming
The Play to Earn craze may be over with new coalition of gameplay-first communities
Polkastarter, Xborg, and Ultra make quite the team as they lead the charge in web3 gaming by removing the Play-to-Earn gimmick and focusing on gameplay
Regulation
Research: HODL waves show short-term holders at level lower than 2019 bear market bottom
On-chain data indicates a drastic fall in short-term Bitcoin holders with the number dropping to 27.4%. Market bottoms historically correlate with short-term holders falling below 29%
Analysis
Stablecoin wars heat up as USDC and USDT battle for market share
Today, the stablecoin market is worth a combined $153 billion, with the two most prominent players still $USDT and $USDC.
Research
Research: Liquidations, volatility expected ahead of Ethereum’s Merge as leverage, open interest and shorts hit all-time high
High volatility is likely in the coming days as on-chain metrics suggest a leveraged rollercoaster of a ride heading into The Merge.
Gaming
Study discovers 40% of web3 gaming accounts are bots using on-chain data
Jigger has shown that blockchain can help solve the problem of online bots that plagues so many games.
Web3
Inside the metaverse with Big Time on how web3 can add value to hardcore gamers – SlateCast #17
CryptoSlate speaks with Big Time, a web3 game that doesn't force gamers to interact with blockchain.
Macro
Federal Reserve Chair urges everyone to factor inflation into financial decisions during Jackson Hole speech
Bitcoin falls 4% as FED chair Jerome Powell gave little away during his speech at Jackson Hole Friday stating that "restoring price stability will take some time."
Stablecoins
USDN loses peg again as Neutrino upgrade to “stabilize protocol” goes live
Stablecoin USDN fell 4% as network upgrade is confirmed as "urgent measures" are implemented
Behind Waves USDN depeg and how Sasha Ivanov worked to restore the peg by taking on $500M in debt – SlateCast #16
Waves founder Sash Ivanov spoke to CryptoSlate about how it feels to be called a Ponzi, corruption within web3, the depeg of USDN, and how it felt to take on $500M in debt to attempt to save the ecosystem.
Ethernal labs building AAA metaverse on top of Ethernity ecosystem with Nick Rose – SlateCast #15
CryptoSlate's Akiba spoke to Ethernity and Ethernal Labs founder Nick Rose about the upcoming Exorians Metaverse and other Ethernal Labs projects.
Censorship
Could Gitcoin Grants address be under sanctions from the U.S. amid Tornado Cash saga?
A smart contract written by Martin Köppelmann, Co-founder of Gnosis has revealed evidence of miner censorship on the Ethereum blockchain.
