TLDR Crypto 2024-01-24

The infamous defunct crypto exchange, Mt. Gox, is reportedly moving forward with customer repayments following its 2014 hack which resulted in a loss of 850,000 BTC. Some former clients have reported receiving emails requesting verification of identity and account details. Bitcoin has been faltering in recent weeks due to sell pressure from GBTC. This provides another potential overhang for the market to digest.

Coinbase has unveiled plans to diversify Ethereum execution clients due to increasing concerns over the dominance of Geth. Geth's overwhelming dominance has raised security issues, as a bug could potentially disrupt a large portion of the Ethereum network. This announcement comes after a recent incident where provider Nethermind's validators went offline due to a bug issue. An official update from Coinbase is expected by the end of February.

Magic Eden is rolling out a long-term cross-chain NFT rewards program. Starting with Solana, from February 2, Magic Eden will give out Retroactive Diamond Drops for past activities since 2021. Magic Ticket owners will also be included in the reward system. The rewards program will extend to Solana, Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Polygon, honoring all past, present, and future activity on those chains.

The gaming industry, with a $282 billion market value, is entering the web3 era. Blockchain technology enables web3 gaming, bringing blockchain-driven ownership, programmability, and composability to games. The technology is maturing and numerous AA studios are intensifying their web3 gaming endeavors. There are exciting investment opportunities in both horizontal gaming platforms and individual games across various genres.

In the world of DeFi, spotting airdrop opportunities can be one of the best returns on investment and time for crypto participants. This blog walks through some of the best ways to approach airdrop farming. Users can utilize a free airdrop dashboard on platforms like DeFillama to locate potentially profitable airdrops. The value of airdrops can be determined by analyzing the project's community support, funding, and age. Some key metrics to look for in this analysis are high TVLs and solid VC backing.

In this thread, Punk6529 gives tips on how to get a job in crypto. He discourages individuals from jumping into full-time trading as their “job” and instead encourages longer-term investments in the space. He advocates for the “Read, Write, Do” approach to landing a gig in crypto. This allows individuals to dive into the space, understand it, and showcase their understanding, all while maintaining whatever current employment they have.

Janet Yellen may take measures to boost liquidity through issuing short-term Treasury bills, potentially providing a $1 trillion injection to markets. Simultaneously, the Federal Reserve is suggesting rate cuts might occur this year. Stock markets have been rallying, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 reaching new highs. However, Bitcoin's price decline might hint at a possible mini financial crisis if the liquidity provided by the Bank Term Funding Program isn't renewed.

Celebrating its 20th anniversary, Nick Grossman from Union Square Ventures, one of the premier VC funds in crypto, reflects on the firm’s journey from the time of the dot-com bubble to what the internet has become today. Having invested in 14 funds with more than 230 investments across multiple sectors, USV has consistently embraced changes brought on by technology and societal factors.

EIP-7251, a proposal for Ethereum, aims to increase the max effective balance for validators to 2048 ETH.

2023's consumer crypto surge highlighted the unresolved challenge of establishing reliable digital identities as a key bottleneck for the industry's growth.