Dear DeFi enthusiasts,

The highly anticipated EIP 1559 launch date has been confirmed! The upgrade will take place on August 4th at 9 PM Taipei time, officially marking the era of Ethereum's coin burning. In addition, various mainstream DeFi projects have been active recently, so come and see which projects have released what news!

This week's headlines include: Ethereum developer meeting: If there are no major security issues, the Ethereum mainnet will undergo the London upgrade on August 4th; Synthetix will launch Optimistic Ethereum on July 26th, advancing towards Ethereum L2; Balancer stablecoin pool goes live; Circle announces upcoming SPAC listing; How to play Axie Infinity, a NFT pet battling game where you can earn while playing?

This week's selected insights feature Bankless promoter Ryan Adams and renowned developer Hazu discussing EIP 1559; Uniswap founder Hayden Adams makes us ponder where the gains go when your bank invests the money you deposit? And Su Zhu, the founder of Three Arrows Capital, surprisingly says we are not discussing profit or loss?

✨ This Week's Headlines

Ethereum Developer Meeting: Ethereum Mainnet to Undergo London Upgrade on August 4th Unless Major Security Issues Arise

The Ethereum developer meeting indicated that all client teams currently agree on the timing of the mainnet upgrade. Barring any major security issues, the mainnet will undergo the London upgrade at block height 12965000, scheduled for after 9:00 PM Taipei time on August 4th.

Synthetix to Launch Optimistic Ethereum on July 26th, Advancing to Ethereum Layer 2

Synthetix, a well-known synthetic asset protocol on Ethereum, announced that it plans to launch on the Layer 2 scaling solution, Optimistic Ethereum, on July 26th. According to the improvement proposal SIP-121, the initial synthetic assets available on L2 will include sETH, sBTC, sLINK, with price feeds provided by the oracle Chainlink. More synthetic assets and functionalities are expected to be introduced in the future, encompassing a wider range of asset types.

Balancer Introduces Stablecoin Pools

The decentralized exchange Balancer has launched stablecoin pools aimed at providing traders with lower fees and more competitive yields. Balancer Labs has initially created two stable pools, staBAL3-BTC — WBTC/renBTC/sBTC, and staBAL3-USD — DAI/USDC/USDT. Balancer now offers three types of trading pools: weighted pools, Element, and stablecoin pools.

USDC Issuer Circle Seeks SPAC Listing in the Fourth Quarter

Circle, the issuer of the USD Coin (USDC) and a major operator, provides various USDC payment solutions adopted by numerous blockchain companies. USDC is currently the most widely supported USD stablecoin in DeFi projects. Its announced listing should be the second-largest blockchain company listing following Coinbase, which coincidentally is another issuer of USDC.

Getting Started with Axie Infinity: How to Play NFT Pet-Battling Game and Earn While Playing?

"Play-to-Earn" game Axie Infinity, a battle and nurturing game, has recently surged in popularity. We've compiled a guide with five images to help you quickly understand how to enter the realm of battling creatures! Additionally, Delphi Digital explains why Axie Infinity has rapidly gained traction, offering insights and analysis on "exclusive sidechains, breeding and market fees, low Gas Fees." For more details, check out this article.

😎 Industry Insights

Bankless advocate Ryan Adams: Discussing EIP 1559 with renowned developer Hazu

Uniswap founder Hayden Adams: Imagine your bank investing your deposited money and still returning your interest as usual...

Founder of Three Arrows Capital, Su Zhu: If you're discussing profit, your mindset isn't big enough.

📈 On-Chain Data

DeFi: Uniswap V3 Surpasses V2 in 7-Day Trading Volume

Dune Analysis now shows the differences in data between Uniswap V3 and V2. The data indicates that within just two months of its launch, V3 has gradually caught up with V2 in various aspects, with the 7-day trading volume even surpassing Uniswap V2's performance.

Ethereum: Ethereum 2.0 Staking Rate Exceeds 5%

The smart contract staking rate for Ethereum 2.0 officially surpassed 6.2 million ETH last week, accounting for 5% of the circulating Ethereum supply. Regarding transaction volume, Bitcoin and Ethereum on-chain transaction frequency returns to January levels. Both Bitcoin and Ethereum on-chain transaction volume has been declining since the major price drop in May, now reaching levels similar to early this year.

BTC: Large Amount of GBTC Unlocking Soon

Grayscale will gradually unlock the GBTC holdings this week. Historically, during previous large unlocking periods, BTC prices have seen a bearish trend over four consecutive weeks. However, not everyone shares this view; Mira from Messari pointed out that institutions may not be willing to sell GBTC holdings at this time due to GBTC's current discount.

Institutions: Exchange Funding Rates Remain Negative

Funding rates reflect the difference in long and short positions in perpetual contract trading. Long-term, there are more bullish positions, but since the major price drop in May, funding rates have generally remained negative, indicating ongoing market caution.

🐥 Nasduck Index: 3.0

Project Development 4, Institutional Attitude 3, Regulatory Attitude 2, On-Chain Data 3

The Nasduck Index is a bullish-bearish indicator we compile weekly based on the latest cryptocurrency news and data, aiming to provide a simple forecast for the upcoming cryptocurrency & DeFi market trends. A score of 1 indicates a bearish trend brewing, while 5 signifies a bullish market ahead. The Nasduck Index is derived from the average of project development, financial institution attitudes, regulatory agencies, and on-chain data analysis each week (note: as optimistic news tends to dominate, the Nasduck Index is more suitable for comparison with past and future trends rather than considering anything above 3 as bullish).

🐶 Weekly Memes

The Little Fundamentals That Could pic.twitter.com/Qr0uzOMHyc

— Bankless 🏴 (@BanklessHQ) July 10, 2021