Polygon Announces Upcoming Hard Fork to Address Gas Spikes and Chain Reorganizations – Blockchain Bitcoin News
The Ethereum scaling blockchain, Polygon, has revealed plans to initiate a hard fork on Jan. 17, 2023. According to the team, the network upgrade will “reduce the severity of gas spikes” and “address chain reorganizations (reorgs) in an effort to reduce time to finality.”
Polygon Team Outlines Network Upgrades to Improve User Experience
On Jan. 12, 2023, the Polygon team told the community to “get ready for the hard fork” as developers have plans to upgrade the chain on Jan. 17, 2023. “The proposed hard fork for the Polygon PoS chain will make key upgrades to the network on Jan. 17,” the team tweeted. “This is good news for developers and users and will make for better user experience (UX). You will not need to do anything differently,” the developers insisted. Polygon (MATIC) developers have been discussing the upgrade since Dec. 2022.
The V0.3.1 Hard Fork aims to reduce gas spikes and address blockchain reorganizations (reorgs). A reorg is an occurrence in which a new chain’s branch emerges and supersedes the previously accepted blockchain branch. Reorganizations can cause previously confirmed transactions to be invalidated and replaced with new ones. In order to alleviate the reorg problem, Polygon plans to decrease the network’s sprint length from 64 to 16 blocks. “Doing so will decrease the depth of reorgs,” Polygon developers declare.
In order to reduce gas spikes, Polygon aims to change the “basefeechangedenominator” from the current value of 8 to 16. “This will help smooth out the increase/decrease rate in basefee for when the gas exceeds or falls below the target gas limits in a block,” according to the Polygon team’s blog post about the subject.
Polygon’s native token, MATIC, has recently entered the top ten standings in terms of crypto assets ranked by market capitalization. MATIC is up 23.4% over the last week against the U.S. dollar. However, Polygon’s current $0.987 per unit value is down 66.2% since the digital asset’s all-time high of $2.92 per unit on Dec. 27, 2021.
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What do you think about the proposed upgrade to the Polygon network? Will these changes improve your overall experience as a user or developer on the platform? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
Polygon Announces Upcoming Hard Fork to Address Gas Spikes and Chain Reorganizations – Blockchain Bitcoin News
The Ethereum scaling blockchain, Polygon, has revealed plans to initiate a hard fork on Jan. 17, 2023. According to the team, the network upgrade will “reduce the severity of gas spikes” and “address chain reorganizations (reorgs) in an effort to reduce time to finality.
Polygon Team Outlines Network Upgrades to Improve User Experience
On Jan. 12, 2023, the Polygon team told the community to “get ready for the hard fork” as developers have plans to upgrade the chain on Jan. 17, 2023. “The proposed hard fork for the Polygon PoS chain will make key upgrades to the network on Jan. 17,” the team tweeted. “This is good news for developers and users and will make for better user experience (UX). You will not need to do anything differently,” the developers insisted. Polygon (MATIC) developers have been discussing the upgrade since Dec. 2022.
The V0.3.1 Hard Fork aims to reduce gas spikes and address blockchain reorganizations (reorgs). A reorg is an occurrence in which a new chain’s branch emerges and supersedes the previously accepted blockchain branch. Reorganizations can cause previously confirmed transactions to be invalidated and replaced with new ones. In order to alleviate the reorg problem, Polygon plans to decrease the network’s sprint length from 64 to 16 blocks. “Doing so will decrease the depth of reorgs,” Polygon developers declare.
In order to reduce gas spikes, Polygon aims to change the “basefeechangedenominator” from the current value of 8 to 16. “This will help smooth out the increase/decrease rate in basefee for when the gas exceeds or falls below the target gas limits in a block,” according to the Polygon team’s blog post about the subject.
Polygon’s native token, MATIC, has recently entered the top ten standings in terms of crypto assets ranked by market capitalization. MATIC is up 23.4% over the last week against the U.S. dollar. However, Polygon’s current $0.987 per unit value is down 66.2% since the digital asset’s all-time high of $2.92 per unit on Dec. 27, 2021.
Tags in this story
All time high, baseFee, BaseFeeChangeDenominator, better user experience, block, Blockchain, Blog Post, Chain, chain reorganizations, community, crypto assets, current value, Developers, Ethereum, gas spikes, Hard Fork, increase/decrease rate, key upgrades, Market Capitalization, matic, network upgrade, Polygon, Polygon (MATIC), Polygon developers, reorg problem, reorgs, Scaling, smooth, sprint length, target gas limits, team, time to finality, U.S. dollar, Upgrade, UX, V0.3.1
What do you think about the proposed upgrade to the Polygon network? Will these changes improve your overall experience as a user or developer on the platform? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
Samsung investment arm to launch Bitcoin Futures ETF amid rising crypto interest
Hong Kong investors can now gain exposure to Bitcoin through Samsung’s new ETF listing, launching on Jan. 13.
In Hong Kong, the bell rings for Bitcoin
BTC$18,202. Samsung Asset Management Hong Kong (SAMHK), a subsidiary of Samsung’s investment arm Samsung Asset Management, is set to list the “Samsung Bitcoin Futures Active ETF” on the Hong Kong stock market on Jan. 13.
The move comes amid a surge in interest from both the government and institutional investors in the region.
The ETF, or exchange-traded fund, will track the spot price of Bitcoin by investing in Bitcoin futures products listed on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME). The ETF will primarily invest in the CME Bitcoin Futures, with some investments in the CME Micro-Bitcoin Futures.
Currently, Hong Kong is the only market in Asia where Bitcoin futures ETFs can be traded. The Samsung Bitcoin Futures ETF joins the Hong Kong Crypto Futures ETF, which began trading to the tune of $70 million in 2022. Other markets worldwide include Canada, the U.S., Australia, and some European countries such as Switzerland.
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Park Seong-jin, head of Samsung Asset Management Hong Kong, commented:
“Hong Kong is the only market in Asia where Bitcoin futures ETFs are listed and traded in the institutional market. It will be a new option for investors who are interested in Bitcoin as a competitive product that reflects their experience in risk management.”
This ETF listing will provide retail and institutional investors with a new way to gain exposure to Bitcoin, which may help to attract more mainstream investors to the cryptocurrency space. With Samsung’s reputation and brand power, the ETF could be an attractive option for investors who are looking for a way to invest in Bitcoin without buying and holding their own private keys directly.
The move by Samsung comes as the price of Bitcoin surpassed the $18,000 level, indicating a potential rise in positive sentiment among traders. Other cryptocurrencies have also followed suit, recording a recovery in the broader crypto market.
In 2022, Samsung Asset Management Hong Kong Limited held $1.4 bn assets under management, while the globally recognized brand of Samsung continues to be actively involved in the crypto space. The South Korean company, valued at over $300 billion, boasts a blockchain wallet while the flagship smartphone, Galaxy S22 comes with a preinstalled crypto.
The ETF is a further indication that the global brand is looking to capitalize on the growing interest in cryptocurrencies.
Fanatic sells 60% stake in Candy Digital amid ‘imploding NFT market’
The sports merchandise giant has got cold feet in the shrinking NFT market.
Sports merchandise firm Fanatics is divesting its stake in nonfungible token (NFT) company Candy Digital as confidence in the asset class wanes.
On Jan. 4, it was reported that Michael Rubin’s sports company Fanatics was offloading its majority 60% stake in the NFT startup.
Fanatics was started in 2011 and has become a known name in sports merchandising and e-commerce, valued at $31 billion.
However, the crypto bear market has hit the NFT sector hard in 2022, and Rubin’s firm is seemingly now looking to turn away from “standalone” NFT businesses.
The investor group led by Novogratz’s Galaxy Digital will be purchasing the stake in Candy Digital, according to CNBC. In an email shared with the outlet, Rubin wrote:
“Over the past year, it has become clear that NFTs are unlikely to be sustainable or profitable as a standalone business.”
He stated that divesting ownership in Candy Digital “allowed us to ensure investors were able to recoup most of their investment via cash or additional shares in Fanatics.”
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This was a favorable outcome for investors “especially in an imploding NFT market that has seen precipitous drops in both transaction volumes and prices for standalone NFTs,” he added. NFTs alone would not create much value, according to Rubin, who said:
“We believe digital products will have more value and utility when connected to physical collectibles to create the best experience for collectors.”
Fanatics acquired Topps trading cards for roughly $500 million in Jan. 2022. Furthermore, it acquired the rights to produce Major League Baseball trading cards and then NFTs following the launch of Candy Digital last year.
Related: What remains in the NFT market now that the dust has settled?
Fanatics raised $700 million in fresh capital in Dec. 2022. The funding will be used on potential merger and acquisition opportunities across its collectibles, sports betting, and gaming businesses, according to CNBC.
Candy Digital secured $100 million in funding in Oct. 2021 with a valuation of $1.5 billion at the time.
However, the NFT markets have shrunk considerably during the 2022 crypto winter. According to the Nonfungible.com market tracker, daily sales volumes have slumped from over 100,000 sales in January 2022 to around 15,000 today.
Cointelegraph reached out for comment from Fanatics and Candy Digital but had not received a reply at the time of publication.
Philippine Central Bank Thinks Stablecoins Could ‘Revolutionize’ the Payment System
Stablecoins have the potential to “revolutionize both domestic and cross-border payments,” Mhel Plabasan claimed.
Mhel Plabasan – a top executive at Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (the central bank of the Philippines), said the institution is highly in favor of stablecoins as they can aid the monetary system and ensure “affordable and faster” cross-border transactions.
The organization also plans to launch a pilot version of its CBDC by the end of 2022.
On that note, it is worth noting that the central banks of Israel, Norway, and Sweden collaborated with the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) to explore how CBDCs could take part in transnational payments.
Stablecoins Could Aid the Philippines’ Financial Wellbeing
During a panel discussion at Forkast’s “Crypto Rising: CBDCs & Stablecoins: The Asia Perspective,” Mhel Plabasan – Director at the central bank of the Philippines – said stablecoins could benefit the payment network of the country:
“We have seen it really has the potential to revolutionize both domestic and cross-border payment more affordable, faster, and even the possibility of using stablecoins to make cross-border remittance efficient.”
According to estimations, nearly 12 million people of Filipino origin live outside their homeland. Their number is the highest in the USA – over four million.
Despite advocating for embracing stablecoins, Plabasan argued that regulators should closely monitor new technology:
“That’s why it’s important for us to constantly engage the private sector [and] we learn together. We are part of the journey to get to improving digital payments using stablecoins,” he added.
The executive further revealed that the financial institution will soon launch its central bank digital currency (CBDC) in a pilot phase. Project CBDCPh, as the authorities called it, should see the light of day by the year’s end.
The BIS and the Central Banks
Speaking of CBDCs, it is worth mentioning the mutual endeavor between the Bank of International Settlements and the central banks of Israel, Norway, and Sweden, going by the name “Project Icebreaker.”
The entities joined forces to explore how such financial instruments could settle international retail and remittance payments. The team will check if CBDCs enable low-cost and faster transactions than traditional methods.
It will run through the end of 2022, while a final report with the results will follow during the first quarter of next year. Commenting on the matter was Beju Shah – Head of the BIS Innovation Hub Nordic Centre:
“This first-of-a-kind experiment will dig deeper into the technology, architecture, and design choices and trade-offs and explore related policy questions. These learnings will be invaluable for central banks thinking about implementing CBDCs for cross-border payments.”
Mithra Sundberg – a top executive at the Swedish central bank – said Sweden joined the project so it could double down on its e-krona efforts. The country’s authorities have been among the most active on the CBDC scene. Last year, the Riksbank said it should be ready with its digital currency by the end of 2026.SPECIAL OFFER (Sponsored)Binance Free $100 (Exclusive): Use this link to register and receive $100 free and 10% off fees on Binance Futures first month (terms).
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Bitcoin Reclaims $19K, Terra Classic (LUNC) Jumps 7% (Market Watch)
Terra Classic has jumped by 7% despite the latest developments on the Terra-South Korean prosecutors front.
Following yesterday’s enhanced volatility in which bitcoin slumped by over $1,500 in hours, the asset has bounced off and jumped above $19,000.
Most altcoins are also slightly in the green today, with Terra Classic jumping by almost 7% daily.
Bitcoin Back Above $19K
The primary cryptocurrency was quite stable during the weekend at $19,000. This came after last week’s price slump from $20,000 to a three-month low of $18,100 as the US Federal Reserve announced its latest interest rate hike.
However, bitcoin doesn’t tend to stay in one place for long and dipped to $18,600 on Monday before it shot up to over $20,000 on Tuesday. The latter was a 12-day high.
As reports emerged that many investors had put sell orders at the psychological $20,000 line, the asset somewhat expectedly tumbled by about $1,500 and found itself struggling below $19,000 hours later.
Nevertheless, it reacted rather positively at this point and bounced off to over $19,000, reaching an intraday high of $19,800. As of now, it has retraced by a few hundred dollars, but its market capitalization is at $370 billion, and its dominance over the altcoins has touched 40%.
LUNC Up 7% Daily
The altcoins suffered just as badly as BTC yesterday, but the landscape seems quite different today.
Ethereum, which has been underperforming ever since the Merge took place two weeks ago, dumped to around $1,200 at one point yesterday. A similar increase to bitcoin’s on a daily scale has now pushed ETH to over $1,300.
Binance Coin, Ripple, and Solana have added up to 4% in a day and trade at $281, $0.44, and $33, respectively.
Albeit more modest, Cardano, Dogecoin, Polkadot, Shiba Inu, TRON, MATIC, and Avalanche are also in the green today.
LUNC has jumped by about 7% in a day as the battle between South Korean prosecutors and Do Kwon rages on.
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This New MetaMask Portfolio dApp Will Make Your Web3 Experience 10 Times Better
Software cryptocurrency wallet MetaMask has launched its Portfolio dApp in beta to aggregate multiple performance tracking tools and platforms under one roof.
As per the product release, Portfolio.metamask.io combines accounts and assets across several chains and is accessible to Extension and Mobile users.
An array of new offerings in one place
With Portfolio Dapp, users may add additional accounts like an offline wallet or hardware wallet utilizing the “watch any wallet” feature and give them names of their choosing in addition to connecting their MetaMask wallet and multiple accounts.
It also allows a friend’s public or ENS address to be added to your list. In addition, it provides an option of adding, changing, or removing many accounts or watchlists from the screen. This essentially means that users can get a view of all their NFTs and multi-chain assets while tracking new options.
Portfolio View is also accessible to even non-MetaMask users by using the “watch any account” option.
MetaMask doesn’t come without risks
While the platform will release more features in the coming weeks, users need to be aware of the risk with the decentralized platform. NordVPN highlighted earlier this year a serious privacy flaw involving user IP leaks citing a security expert and cryptographer. It noted that a malicious actor can get access to a user’s IP address by sending an NFT to MetaMask users who are using mobile wallets. The cyber security platform noted that it happens when MetaMask retrieves IP address information from a centralized server.
Research by co-creator of the OMNIA protocol and security expert Alexandru Lupascu noted weakness in the well-known web3 wallet in January. It remarked that users of the cryptocurrency wallet may be at risk of physical threats as well as the loss of all of their digital assets.
Lupascu added that “if malicious actors derive more information from the IP address (think geolocation, GSM carrier, etc.), they can turn it into physical risks, such as kidnapping.”
In addition, the platform also holds risks associated with a hot wallet and browser extension.
That said, a few months back, phishing assaults targeted users of CoinGecko and Etherscan as they were asked to connect their MetaMask wallets to a scammy NFT site
With that, MetaMask has also issued several security warnings in the past. Be[In]Crypto reported in April that a customer reported losing $650,000 with MetaMask leading to the platform warning iPhone, Mac, and iPad users about phishing attacks.
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All the information contained on our website is published in good faith and for general information purposes only. Any action the reader takes upon the information found on our website is strictly at their own risk.
Crypto Cross Border Payments Are Approved in Russia: Report
The Ministry of Finance and the central bank have found common ground in using crypto for international payments.
Russia’s central bank and Ministry of Finance have agreed on legislation to enable cross-border payments using cryptocurrency, according to a report from the Russian outlet Kommersant on Wednesday.
The policy change is reportedly intended to let Russian nationals access digital wallets.
Taking Advantage of Blockchain
According to Russian Deputy Finance Minister Alexei Moiseev, the bill has already been agreed to by the central bank “on the whole.”
“It generally describes how to acquire cryptocurrency, what can be done with it, and how it can or cannot be settled with it in the first place in cross-border settlements,” he explained at the 14th International Banking Forum “Banks of Russia – 21st Century”.
Earlier this month, a local news agency reported that the central bank was weighing the possibility of permitting cross-border crypto payments in the near future. According to the Finance Minister, both the central bank and Ministry of Finance had agreed that “it is impossible to do without cross-border settlements in cryptocurrency.”
“Now people open crypto wallets outside the Russian Federation,” he said. “It is necessary that this can be done in Russia, that this is done by entities supervised by the Central Bank, which are required to comply with the requirements of anti-money laundering legislation.”
The central bank’s stance stood in stark contrast to some of the bank’s past positions, which sought to ban crypto assets in their entirety.
However, the central bank was opposed by the Ministry of Finance, which suggested that crypto ought to be regulated instead.
The State Duma also rejected a blanket-ban approach. In fact, a Russian MP said in March that Russia might begin accepting Bitcoin for oil payments, following international sanctions levied against the country.
Within a few months, the central bank revised its position, saying that it doesn’t object to using cryptocurrencies “in principle” for cross-border payments.
What Does Putin Think?
In June, Russia agreed to pass legislation banning cryptocurrencies as a domestic means of payment, in order to reinforce the Russian ruble’s primacy as the national currency. The president – Vladimir Putin – signed the legislation into law by July.
However, Putin has previously shown interest in leveraging Russia’s climate and energy resources in the Bitcoin mining sector.
“We have certain competitive advantages here, especially in the so-called mining,” he said. “ I mean the surplus of electricity and the well-trained personnel available in the country.”
Bitcoin Struggles Below $19K, XRP Only Green Asset in Top 10 (Market Watch)
While bitcoin and most larger-cap alts are in the red again, XRP stands out as the only gainer.
Yesterday’s 6% recovery from bitcoin was somewhat short-lived, as the asset has returned below $19,000 as of now.
Most alternative coins are in a similar state, with minor daily losses. XRP has popped out as the only gainer (once again) from the larger-cap alts.
BTC Back Below $19K
Ever since bitcoin was rejected at $23,000 last week, the situation with the asset has been quite dire. It fell by several thousand dollars once the US CPI numbers came out and dropped to $20,000.
While that level held at first, it gave in a day later, and bitcoin found itself trading below it for the first time in weeks. It spent most of the weekend around $20,000 and briefly pumped to $20,500 on Sunday.
However, Monday came with more price losses, and bitcoin slumped to a three-month low of $18,300. The bears intercepted the move and didn’t allow any further nosedives. They pushed the cryptocurrency north, and BTC touched $19,500 yesterday.
Voyager said the proceeds of the credit facility will be used only if it needs to safeguard customer assets in light of current market volatility.
The bankrupt crypto lender, Voyager, has signed a non-binding term sheet with SBF-controlled quantitative trading firm, Alameda Research, to secure loans amid the turmoil in the market.
The two loans will be primarily denominated in crypto.
Voyager-Alameda Deal
As per the announcement, the first part of Voyager’s line of credit involves a mix of cash and USDC-based credit facility with an aggregate principal amount of $200 million. The second revolving credit facility is for 15,000 BTC, worth approximately $309 million.
In exchange for the loan, Alameda will receive around $160 million as pledged collateral in the form of 4.65 million FTT ($112 million approx.) and 63.75 million in SRM (nearly $49 million).
In a statement, Voyager’s Chief Executive Officer, Stephen Ehrlich, said,
“Today’s actions give Voyager more flexibility to mitigate current market conditions and strengthen our relationship with one of the industry leaders. Safeguarding customer assets is always our top priority, and ongoing, prudent risk management as well as a strong balance sheet are two ways that we continue to demonstrate that priority.”
In addition to the loans, Voyager Digital revealed that its balance sheet is now worth more than $200 million.
After suffering huge losses from its exposure to crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital (3AC), Voyager Digital filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in New York in July this year. The lender held an asset auction where its bidders were kept confidential.
However, FTX and Alameda went on to announce their bid on social media, which led to a public spat as well as a court tussle. Voyager then said the bailout deal offered by three companies connected to Sam Bankman-Fried “openly disparaged” the lender and made “misleading and outrightly false” assertions.
Voyager Drama
Voyager reportedly planned to pay $1.6 million in bonuses to its top 34 staff members. The lender detailed that those employees are part of the accounting, legal, and IT infrastructure branches and will receive an extra 22.5% of their annual paychecks. Voyager attorneys believe that offering bonuses to the team’s most important members is an important step since those professionals should guide the firm’s rescue plan.
The troubles for Voyager also dragged Mark Cuban, the owner of the NBA team, The Dallas Mavericks. A lawsuit was filed last month alleging that he and Stephen Ehrlich lured “young and inexperienced investors” to put their savings into the company by promoting Voyager products on multiple occasions.
The plaintiffs accused Voyager of running a “Ponzi Scheme” and claimed the duo went on to great lengths to dupe millions of Americans by using their experience as investors.