Research Summary
The report discusses significant events in the crypto world, including Chainlink’s staking expansion, dYdX Chain’s trading launch, and Cosmos’s inflation cap. It also covers KyberSwap’s exploitation, Cakepie’s PancakeSwap lock, and Sei’s V2 announcement. Other topics include Circle’s Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol, UniDex’s Molten Network, Wormhole’s funding, Jito’s tokenomics, and StakeWise’s V3 launch. The report also mentions governance proposals from ApeCoin DAO, Lido DAO, and Aladdin DAO, and news from Celsius, FTX, SEC, Poloniex, HTX, Binance, Voyager Digital, FCA, OKX, Robinhood, and others.
Key Takeaways
Significant Developments in DeFi
- Chainlink’s Staking Expansion: Chainlink has launched version 0.2 of its staking, increasing the pool size to 45 million LINK. Existing stakers have priority to migrate their staked LINK before early access users and the general public.
- dYdX Chain’s Trading Launch: dYdX has initiated trading on its chain, featuring a six-month $20 million DYDX Launch Incentives program and daily trading rewards of 50,000 DYDX worth $162,000. It is also set to unlock 84.4% of its circulating supply worth $488 million.
- Cosmos’s Inflation Cap: Cosmos has capped ATOM inflation at 10%, leading to a proposal by co-founder Jae Kwon to fork the network and launch a new token named ATOM1.
Security Incidents and Exploits
- KyberSwap’s Exploitation: KyberSwap was exploited for $47 million but managed to recover approximately $4.7 million. The team offered a 10% bounty to the hacker, who counter-offered, demanding complete ownership over the Kyber company and assets for the return of the assets.
- Velodrome and Aerodrome’s Exploit: The frontend of Velodrome and Aerodrome was exploited, resulting in users losing approximately $70,000 in total.
Noteworthy Partnerships and Launches
- Circle’s Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol: Circle’s Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol is now live on the Noble mainnet, allowing USDC transfers between Ethereum, Arbitrum, Avalanche, Base, and Optimism. This is the first non-EVM implementation of the protocol.
- UniDex’s Molten Network: UniDex, a perp aggregator, has announced Molten Network, a chain built on the OP Stack and integrated with Celestia’s modular data availability tech, featuring 100x reduced gas fees.
- Maple Finance and Circle Partnership: Maple Finance and Circle have partnered to expand USDC adoption through Maple’s Secured Lending pool.
Actionable Insights
- Monitor Chainlink’s Staking Expansion: Keep an eye on Chainlink’s staking expansion and its potential impact on the LINK token’s value and the overall DeFi ecosystem.
- Assess Security Measures: The exploits of KyberSwap and Velodrome and Aerodrome highlight the importance of robust security measures in DeFi projects. Evaluate the security protocols of platforms before engaging in transactions.
- Explore New Developments: Consider the potential of new developments like UniDex’s Molten Network and Circle’s Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol. These could offer opportunities for improved transaction efficiency and cross-chain interoperability.
