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Bitcoin Network Stacks Devs 'Can See the Finish Line' With Nakamoto Upgrade
“We've been consistently shipping very complicated systems,” Stacks co-founder Muneeb Ali tells Decrypt as the Bitcoin network enters its next stage.
After facing multiple delays, Bitcoin layer-2 network Stacks moved forward with the first part of its highly anticipated Nakamoto upgrade this week. The upgrade is expected to decouple block production from the Bitcoin blockchain, enabling faster and more efficient processing.
The Nakamoto upgrade, partly rolled out in April, introduced mock-signing transactions using Stacks' proof-of-transfer (POX) consensus, where miners burn BTC to earn STX rewards. Activation was delayed for eight weeks to focus on security and code audits, but the full upgrade finally started rolling out last Wednesday. Once fully implemented, Stacks is expected to confirm transactions dramatically faster than before.
Stacks co-founder Muneeb Ali spoke with Decrypt about the upgrade, the factors contributing to the delay, the future potential of sBTC, and more
“We can see the finish line now,” Ali said. “And obviously, some of the developers have been waiting for a while, so they're very excited about it.” Read More
HashKey and Kaia partner to boost Web3 adoption in Asia
HashKey Group and Kaia collaborate post-rebrand to accelerate Web3 adoption, coinciding with the Kaia-Finschia merger and new mainnet launch.
HashKey Group, a digital asset services provider in Asia, has announced its partnership with Kaia, formerly Klaytn.
According to a press release shared with Cointelegraph, the partnership aims to accelerate the adoption of Web3 technology in the Asian and global markets.
The collaboration will focus on digital finance, content creation and security and coincides with the merger between Kaia and Finschia, which was initially approved on Feb. 15.
Finschia is a blockchain platform developed by Line Tech Plus, a subsidiary of the Japanese messaging corporate Line. Line Tech Plus is primarily focused on providing digital services to Line’s user base. Read More
Exploring the Rise and Impact of Restaking
In 2024, the restaking sector evolved from an emerging concept to a significant reality of the DeFi (decentralized finance) ecosystem.
The success of restaking is closely tied to the limitations of layer-one blockchains, which can only guarantee the validation of information held within the chain.
While developers could easily leverage each layer-one trust network to secure DApps (decentralized applications), whose operations performed solely inside the chain, distributed systems such as bridges, sequencers and data availability layers have not enjoyed the same level of security.
For such DApps, developers had to establish their own trust networks to secure these systems, making the process more complex and resource-intensive.
Restaking seeks to address a major issue – the fragmented blockchain security – thus, extending each layer-one trust network to all services operating with off-chain information. Read More
Bluesky Signups Soar By 1 Million After X is Banned in Brazil
The decentralized alternative to X is flooded with new users and sees 15 times its normal traffic over the weekend.
Bluesky, the decentralized X (formerly Twitter) alternative—co-founded by former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey—has catapulted to prominence in Brazil, gaining a staggering 1 million new users in just three days. The surge comes on the heels of a court-ordered suspension of X in the South American nation.
The rapid influx of Brazilian users was more than welcomed by the social media platform.
“Welcome to the one million new users in the last three days,” the platform said in what is also its most-liked post ever. “This is now a Brazilian app,” it replied—in Portuguese only.
The influx of new users caused some technical issues, with a Bluesky backend engineer reporting Monday that the service saw 20 times its normal server load. The engineer’s public dashboard of Bluesky metrics shows there are now nearly 7.8 million registered users. Read More
The New Mini Blog Newsfeed Is Here At Markethive! A significant achievement unlocked, with many more to come
The Markethive Social Market Broadcasting Network is rapidly gaining prominence as a blockchain-based ecosystem that empowers entrepreneurs with a unique blend of uncensored expression and impartial dialogue, fostering a spirit of collaboration. This sets it apart from the often divisive and restrictive social media landscape.
At Markethive, your experience is our top priority. That's why we're recognized for our evolutionary and innovative ethos. We consistently broaden our decentralized, all-encompassing platform, creating a distinctive news feed interface that fully captures the user's experience.
We operate as an Inbound Marketing platform similar to Marketo and Paragon. The platform is comparable to popular platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter. However, we aim to surpass these traditional Web 2.0 media platforms with the upcoming release of Markethive 2.0, which includes various new features and an improved layout.
In contrast to traditional social media platforms, which rely on a single, primary news feed algorithmically set by the central authorities, Markethive's innovative approach will incorporate four distinct news feeds tailored to support the diverse range of features and functions within the Markethive ecosystem.
Markethive's feeds, including the Conglomerate or general newsfeed, video content, blogging, and curated content, are all about putting you in control. With advanced algorithms, you can tailor these feeds to your preferences, giving you the power to shape your Markethive experience. Markethive's reach is vast, as it consolidates the various features of other platforms into a single, unified system. Read More
Cardano’s Chang Hard Fork Introduces On-Chain Governance
Cardano’s Chang hard fork turns ADA into a governance token, bringing the layer-1 blockchain into its “Voltaire Era.”
On Sept. 1 at 21:44 UTC, layer-1 blockchain Cardano executed the 'Chang' hard fork at block 10,764,778, entering the “Voltaire Era” and introducing on-chain governance using its native token ADA.
Following the hard fork, ADA token holders now have the power to elect representatives and vote on key development proposals.
According to the Cardano roadmap, the Voltaire era “will provide the final pieces required for the Cardano network to become a self-sustaining system.” It added that the introduction of a voting and treasury system will enable network participants to “use their stake and voting rights to influence the future development of the network.”
Not mincing his words, Cardano co-founder Charles Hoskinson lauded the hard fork as “one of the greatest technical achievements in human history.”
In a tweet, the Cardano Foundation wrote that the hard fork “marks a major milestone for the Cardano blockchain, ecosystem, and community––fulfilling the promise of a truly self-governing, decentralized network.” Read More
New zero-KYC proposal aims to secure P2P crypto transactions
A Reddit user’s draft proposal aims to prevent MitM scams in P2P cryptocurrency markets by securing transactions without KYC.
A Reddit user, ShadowOfHarbringer, has introduced a draft proposal for a “Zero-KYC Assurance Mechanism for Fiduciary Money Transfer” (ZKAM-FMT).
The proposal aims to prevent man-in-the-middle (MitM) financial scams in peer-to-peer (P2P) cryptocurrency markets.
ZKAM-FMT sets out to secure transactions without relying on Know Your Customer (KYC) processes, which have been seen as burdensome and invasive by users who prioritize their privacy.
In a common MitM scam, the bad actor intercepts a transaction between two honest parties, tricking an unsuspecting buyer into transferring funds to a crypto seller account.
The crypto seller then unknowingly releases funds to the bad actor, leaving the buyer without their purchase and the seller with potential legal consequences.
The ZKAM-FMT proposed solution suggests an integrated browser within P2P market applications that verifies transaction details, including amount, transfer title, and account number.
The process verifies the data without storing sensitive user data or bank system interaction, ensures funds are handled appropriately, and mitigates privacy concerns. Read More
Why is the SEC going after digital art and monkey pictures? Law Decoded
OpenSea faces SEC scrutiny as the debate over NFTs as unregistered securities heats up, causing a stir in the crypto world.
On Aug. 28, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission issued a Wells notice to OpenSea, the non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace.
OpenSea CEO Devin Finzer was “shocked” when the SEC accused the exchange of being a marketplace for unregistered securities.
The announcement resulted in an uprising in the crypto community, led by Finzer’s statement that OpenSea was prepared to “stand up and fight.”
Although the Wells notice serves as a potential warning that the SEC may take enforcement action against the recipient, it does not indicate that the regulatory body will pursue legal action. Read More
Chain abstraction to tackle the interoperability challenges: AMA recap with zkCross Network
Blockchain interoperability issues have long hindered the mass adoption of DeFi, creating a fragmented landscape where users struggle to navigate multiple chains and protocols. zkCross Network seeks to overcome these hurdles by abstracting away complexities.
“We compare ourselves to Visa and Mastercard in the 80s and 90s,“ said Shivam Tandon while presenting his cross-chain interoperability protocol zkCross Network, “just one approval and everything is completely abstracted from your view. Make it really easy for the end-user.“
Complex user experiences combined with a set of other challenges – security concerns, scalability issues, slow transactions, fragmentation, and ensuring sufficient liquidity across multiple chains – is what cross-chain interoperability faces today. And zkCross Network is ready to provide solutions.
Tandon emphasized that zkCross Network is neither a blockchain nor a wallet, but rather a platform that connects existing DeFi infrastructure by providing advanced chain abstraction infrastructure and enabling blockchains to streamline liquidity onboarding and user engagement. According to the speaker, zkCross Network has surpassed 20,000 activated users and reached $67 million in transaction volume.
While acknowledging that many projects take the easier route of creating their own wallets for chain abstraction, the platform has chosen a more challenging path. Read More
Disclaimer: These articles are provided for informational purposes only. They are not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or any other advice.
Featured Image Source: Pixabay
