Research Summary
This report discusses the recent market events that have influenced token prices, focusing on the activities of Stride, Ethereum, GMX, and Rollbit. It covers Stride’s proposal to merge with Cosmos, the SEC’s approval of the first Ethereum Futures ETF, GMX’s struggle to maintain its market share, and Rollbit’s move to on-chain token buy-and-burn.
Key Takeaways
Stride’s Proposed Merger with Cosmos
- Stride’s Decentralization Proposal: Stride, a liquid staking protocol of the Cosmos ecosystem, proposed a merger with Cosmos. The STRD token, currently serving as a governance token, would be replaced by the ATOM token for governing the Stride chain.
- Unclear Details: The specifics of the buyout price and the source of ATOM tokens for the swap are yet to be disclosed. The Stride community’s initial feedback has not been negative.
- Potential M&A Event: This proposal is still developing and could lead to an interesting M&A event in the future.
Ethereum’s ETF Approval
- SEC’s Approval: The SEC approved the first Ethereum Futures ETF from Valkyrie Investments, along with additional ETFs from Van Eck, Proshares, and Bitwise. These ETFs went live on Monday.
- VanEck’s Donation: VanEck announced it would donate 10% of its ETF’s proceeds to Protocol Guild, a collective of Ethereum core contributors, to support Ethereum’s continued development.
- Ethereum’s Price Movement: Ethereum initially rallied about 5% on the news of approval but has since retraced and is up 3.6% on the week.
GMX’s Market Share Struggle
- GMX’s Proposal: GMX, a decentralized derivatives project, submitted a proposal for 13M tokens, just under 25% of the available total, from Arbitrum’s ARB grants.
- GMX’s Market Share: GMX has been losing its market share lead established last year and early this year. If approved, the ARB grant could help increase volumes on GMX.
- GMX’s Current Volume: GMX currently accounts for less than 10% of overall decentralized derivatives volume, down from its high of over 30% back in November 2022.
Rollbit’s On-chain Token Buy-and-Burn
- Rollbit’s Announcement: Rollbit, a blockchain-based casino, announced that it has moved its token buy-and-burn on-chain, providing more certainty around its revenues and burns.
- Rollbit’s Prominence: Rollbit gained prominence at the beginning of 2023 by signing numerous Twitter personalities as partners. It offers leveraged crypto trading, slots, Black Jack, and other card games, along with sports betting.
- Rollbit’s Revenue: Anywhere from 10-30% of revenue (depending on the business line) flows to buying and burning the RLB token. The buybacks are now verifiable on-chain in a bid to promote transparency.
Actionable Insights
- Stride’s Potential Merger: Monitor the developments around Stride’s proposed merger with Cosmos, as it could lead to significant changes in the governance of the Stride chain.
- Ethereum’s ETF Impact: Investigate the potential long-term effects of the SEC’s approval of Ethereum Futures ETFs on Ethereum’s price and development.
- GMX’s Market Position: Keep an eye on GMX’s market share and the potential impact of the ARB grant on its trading volumes.
- Rollbit’s On-chain Transparency: Assess the implications of Rollbit’s move to on-chain token buy-and-burn for its revenue transparency and potential market trust.
