Zerion is Mission Control for Web3. Trade tokens, transfer across chains, and display NFTs.
Dear Bankless Nation,
Crypto embarrassed itself again this week.
But at least this time it was entertaining.
You know it’s always the silly crypto news that makes the headlines. Not the important things. The bizarre. The sensational. I think this gives the rest of the world a distorted view of what’s really going on in this movement.
To be fair the big crypto story this week was impossible not to talk about.
When it turns out that one of the largest cryptos heists of all time was committed by a struggling influencer and wanna-be-rapper, it’s hard to stay crypto seriously.
I mean, what am I looking at?!
Let me back up. Earlier this week, husband and wife duo Ilya Lichtenstein and Heather Morgan were arrested for stealing $3,600,000,000 worth of Bitcoins from a 2016 Bitfinex hack.
After the DoJ announced the news, internet sleuths went down the rabbithole and surfaced an ungodly amount of cringe. What happened next? MSM ate it up.
To outsiders looking in, crypto is a bizarre and scammy industry full of bad actors. The massive social potential keeps getting overshadowed by incredible levels of cringe. Remember this?
Do you know what should have been bigger news this week?
You have to sift through the stupidity on the surface to see the hidden genius.
The brightest minds are working in this space. Academics and PhDs, dot-com era builders, FAANG executives, economic researchers, ambitious college dropouts, and talented engineers are all flocking here because they are excited to play in the sandbox of opportunity that Web 3 presents.
On the surface level crypto is synonymous with hacks, criminals, million-dollar JPEGs, and an environmental crisis. But when you peel back the layers, you see the signal. The brilliant minds working together. The novel experiments that create equitable outcomes. The values that keep us aligned.
Most people don’t put in the work to see past the shenanigans.
That’s our alpha.
We dig past the absurdity to see the true potential for technology.
As long as the world thinks crypto is a joke I’ll know we’re early.
Here’s what’s lined up for next week:
-
We talk to Rep. Tom Remmer on Crypto in D.C.
-
Our guide on how to get started in DeFi – 2022 Edition
-
A deep dive into the veTOKEN model and why everyone’s adopting it
Have a 🪓 weekend,
– RSA
🙏 Sponsor: Polymarket—Bet on your Beliefs & Harness the Power of Free Markets
Recap for the week of February 7th, 2022
🎙️ WEEKLY PODCAST EPISODE
🎙️ Listen to podcast episode | Apple | Spotify | YouTube | RSS Feed
Tune in to the exclusive debrief episode. Need access? Join the Bankless Nation
📘 Why Alt L1s Are Bullish (Premium Version)
TL;DR
-
More Users: We are onboarding people at a faster rate, thanks to every successful L1 ecosystem.
-
More Private Keys: Every new user that newer blockchains bring into crypto means that power tilts further away from institutions and towards individuals.
-
More Aggregate Decentralization: Regardless of how decentralized alt-L1s and Ethereum are, they move the needle compared to the current systems.
-
Even if they’re not decentralized as we would like, they’ve still added more decentralization world and that’s something to celebrate.
-
More Anti-Fragility: Alternative L1s allows us to test all of the ideas at once. Multiple approaches increase the certainty some experiments succeed.
-
More Development: With a larger pool of potential users and lower costs of experimentation on alt-L1s, crypto is producing more developer activity.
📘 How to get ready for L2 tokens
TL;DR
-
Many of Ethereum’s most promising layer 2 (L2) scaling solutions will launch native tokens over the next couple of years. What we do on these L2s today will affect our token distributions of tomorrow.
-
There are three concrete ways for the average user to prepare for L2 token season: (1) Transacting on L2s, (2) Using their apps, (3) Using bridges
-
Explore some bridges and apps on zkSync, Arbitrum, and Optimism
📘 Why DAOs need to diversify
TL;DR
-
DAO treasuries have exploded. The top 50 DAOs are worth $15B. But most of this capital is in native tokens, which are illiquid compared to treasury size.
-
DAOs are deploying capital. Meaning that during bear markets, they will need to constrict native token spending… unless they diversify to stables.
-
Diversifying stables allows them to (1) De-risk the treasury, (2) Manage a predictable budget, and (3) Pay contributors.
-
DAOs can diversify by (1) Earning revenue in stablecoins, (2) Selling native tokens for stablecoins, (3) Forming Strategic Partnerships, (4) Borrow against native tokens, and (5) Collaborate with stablecoin issuers
📘 Best Yields on Layer 2 | Q1 2022 (Premium Version)
TL;DR
-
Yields on L2s are juiced up for a few reasons: (1) Gains on L2 > L1s, (2) Transacting on L2s is cheap, and (3) Activity on L2s could qualify you for airdrops!
-
Arbitrum (8-225% APYs) – Curve Finance, Dopex, Hundreds Finance, and more for Bankless Premium Subscribers!
-
Optimism (5-500% APYs) – Synapse, Barnbridge, and more for Bankless Premium Subscribers!
💬 What book should we read?
-
Bankless Nation is a community of well-read thinkers. Share some of your favorites, doesn’t matter the genre – fantasy, non-fiction, self-help, thriller, all books are nourishment for the soul!
P.S. Thoughts on the new format? Leave a comment or say something on Twitter!
-
📺 Watch Panel: Finding Common Ground | Solana, Avalanche, & Terra
-
📺 Watch SotN: Finding Common Ground | Solana, Avalanche, & Terra
-
📺 Watch Rollup: Bitfinex Hack | Super Crypto Bowl | Aave Social Network
-
📘 Read NFT project red flags
-
📘 Read We are mint to be
-
📺 Watch OJ: Zynga & Storyverse Co-Founder on NFT Social Gaming
-
🎙️ Listen Moment of Zen(eca): Meta Angels, Pak x Assange, The Rebels, & More
-
📘 Read Museums Showcase Top-Shelf NFTs IRL | Decentralized Arts
-
📘 Read Bankless Consulting, InfoSec & NFT Auction | Gearing Up (NEW 🔥)
Weekly Subscriber Perks 🔥
Bankless Premium Members get access to perks like these:
Launch your own raffle for Bankless Badge holders! Go ahead. We can’t stop you.
🎙️ CRYPTO PANEL
Listen to podcast episode | iTunes | Spotify | YouTube | RSS Feed
🎙️ NEW ROLLUP
Listen to podcast episode | Apple | Spotify | YouTube | RSS Feed
Jobs opportunities 🧑💼
✨ See all listings on the Bankless Job Board✨
Go Bankless. $22 / mo. Includes archive access, Inner Circle & Badge—(pay w/ crypto)
🙏Thanks to our sponsor
👉 Use code “bankless” to get up to $100 reimbursed on your first day of trading!
Polymarket may not be available in all jurisdictions
Polymarket is an information markets platform that lets you trade on the world’s most highly-debated topics. On Polymarket, build a portfolio based on your forecasts and earn a return if you are right.
When you buy shares in a market, you are weighing in with your own knowledge, research, and view on the future. Market prices reflect what traders think are the odds of events happening, turning trading activity into actionable insights that help people better plan for their future.
Tag Bankless on twitter and tell us how you’re going bankless for 3 x 🔥
Go, Brittany! Mind and body 💪
Want to get featured on Bankless? Send your article to submissions@banklesshq.com
Not financial or tax advice. This newsletter is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. This newsletter is not tax advice. Talk to your accountant. Do your own research.
Disclosure. From time-to-time I may add links in this newsletter to products I use. I may receive commission if you make a purchase through one of these links. Additionally, the Bankless writers hold crypto assets. See our investment disclosures here.
