As always, it was an eventful week for the crypto community, with activities spread across different community spheres from infrastructural upgrades, use case expansion, partnerships, legal battles, games and more. Let’s take a deep dive into the details.
Shiba Eternity launch date announced
Following the just concluded 2022 Gamescom event, William Volk, The Shiba game developer, revealed that the global launch of the highly anticipated Shiba Inu card collectible game (CCG), Shiba Eternity is almost here. Volk suggested that the game might hit the mainstream in September this year. Volk, however, stated that the game will undergo thorough testing to ensure it is free from technical glitches.
The second team, known as Shib: Intake, Marketing, Sponsorships/Partnerships Aid, or the SHIB Growth team, includes influencers such as Milkshake, Based and FIRSTWORD. The team will serve as the connecting link between the Shiba community and the core development team to ensure that development efforts reflect the desires of the community.
Finally, Shiba has released the maiden HUB of the SHIB Metaverse, Wagmi. The Hubs were inspired by six of the world's most beautiful temples, including the Temple of Heaven (Beijing), Kinkaku-Ji Temple (Kyoto, Japan), and Gawdawpalin Temple (Bagan, Myanmar), among others. The WAGMI temple is only the tip of the iceberg when completely unravelling the several Zen-infused dimensions of the SHIB Metaverse.
August has been a very successful month for Ripple
Recent transaction volume analysis shows a significant increase in XRP transactions and interest from whale investors. Crypto Basic reported an increase in XRP transaction volumes, which are in the billions of dollars across exchanges and other platforms. Crypto Basic also detailed that 742 million XRP was moved on August 30, another 500 million were transferred from Kraken on August 29, 340 million XRP was moved on August 24, 296 million XRP was sent from an unknown wallet to Binance on August 19. , while over 844 million XRP were moved on August 18th and another 300 million XRP were transferred to unknown wallets on August 16th. This indicates a sharp increase in the volume of XRP transactions.
In the face of legal battles, Ripple continues to deliver on its promise to expand and drive the sustainable growth of the cryptocurrency market. Moreover, the crypto giant continues to actively expand in Asia, which is proof of its technological effectiveness. Last week, Ripple partnered with Coin.ph to deploy its on-demand liquidity (ODL) to enable cross-border settlement between Japan and the Philippines. Crypto Basic also reports that the Croatian insurance company will now accept XRP for auto insurance payouts, further indicating the crypto giant’s steady growth.
Ethereum Classic (ETC) hashrate hits new high ahead of Ethereum merger
Ethereum Classic rounded off the month of August with another all-time high hash rate at block 15,850,811. The network's hash power surpassed the 40 terahash per second (TH/s) to hit 40.73 (TH/s). As Ethereum's Merge inches closer, miners on the Ethereum platform are faced with the option to mine on other platforms as the transition from the Proof-of-Work consensus to Proof-of-Stake will render miners and their gears obsolete on the Ethereum network. The expected transformation of the Ethereum network has brought attention to Ethereum's forked version, Ethereum Classic, in recent weeks. While the hash rate of other alternatives such as Ravencoin, Beam and Ergo may have experienced a slight increase, their uptick is nothing compared to the hash rate increase recorded by the Ethereum Classic network in the past month.
Even though Antpool and Ethpool have pledged support for Eth 2.0, which would see these companies transition to mine on the new Ethereum PoS platform, other miners have been encouraged to migrate to alternative PoW platforms, of which ETC stands out. Based on its current position and functionality as a PoW platform, Ethereum Classic is expected to experience even more uptick and growth as more miners migrate to the platform from the Ethereum network.
Bitcoin stretches further in usage
From a modest beginning in May 2022, Mode Global Holdings' cashback program has grown to include more than 300 retail service providers in the United Kingdom. Mode Global Holdings is an LSE-listed Fintech company which provides shopping, earning and investment capabilities for Bitcoin holders. The company is FCA registered and created the cashback program to reward and encourage Bitcoin usage.
Rita Liu, Chief executive of Mode Global Holdings, remarked, "we've worked hard to improve user experience, and we hope that providing the chance to earn Bitcoin for shopping with quality retailers will help encourage more users to use our platform regularly, so they too can have the chance to buy, sell, earn, and get paid in crypto." Mode Global Holdings provides coverage for fashion, travel, and sports retail partners. The company plans to continuously expand its reach via leveraging the unlimited capabilities of cryptocurrencies.
September is a historically bad month for the crypto market
Analyzing previous years, it can be noted that September is the most difficult month for cryptocurrencies. Interestingly, the annual fall in the BTC exchange rate repeats the downturns in the stock market. Analysts explain this by the fact that investors, having returned from summer holidays, exit their positions in the market to fix profits or cover tax losses before the end of the year.
The number of permanently lost BTC has reached 4.7 million coins
Lost bitcoins include those coins whose owners have lost the private key to the wallet. This means that they no longer have access to assets. According to analysts, about 4.7 million BTC remained without movement for the last decade, that is, they can be considered lost. Now Bitcoin is mined by miners, they receive coins as a reward for new blocks. According to the algorithm laid down by Satoshi Nakamoto, the reward for mining a coin in the Bitcoin network is reduced by 50% every 210,000 blocks. This event is called a halving. The next halving is expected in 2024. According to a preliminary calculation, the last coin will be mined around 2140.
Whales buy more ETH before the global update of the Ethereum network
The Ethereum network upgrade will take place from September 10 to 20. Waiting for this event affects the rate of the coin. Whales reacted ambiguously to this news. Justin Sun, the founder of Tron, replenished his wallet with 20,633 ETH this week. The total balance of the address became 268,280 ETH.
But not all whales are so supportive of the upcoming merger. According to analytics firm Santiment, large Ethereum cold wallets have recently reduced their holdings of ETH coins by 11%, moving them to exchanges. These actions can be regarded as a bad sign, since sending coins to exchanges signals that investors are selling or exchanging coins for other cryptocurrencies.
Vitalik Buterin will soon release a book called "Proof of Stake"
The creator of the Ethereum network, Vitalik Buterin, has announced the release of a book called "Proof of Stake", which includes his notes from the last 10 years. Rezyl books will happen on September 27th. The paper version will be available to order on multiple platforms for prices ranging from $16.99 to $18.95. The digital book will be signed by Buterin and NFT for donation. He also stated that 90% of the profits from book sales will go to the Gitcoin fund for grant payments, 10% to the publisher Seven Stories Press.
