TLDR Crypto 2024-08-05

The CFTC has subpoenaed Hit Network, a crypto-focused media company that previously had Ben 'BitBoy' Armstrong as its public face. It has requested information about trading activity and wallets associated with 15 tokens featured in the company's media content, some that were in videos speculating about 100x returns. Armstrong, who was forcibly removed from the company after legal issues, "could not be more happy about" the subpoena.

Jump Crypto has been actively liquidating its crypto holdings since July 25th, including hundreds of millions of dollars in stEth. This coincides with the recent launch of US-based spot ether ETFs and a broader downturn in crypto asset prices.

Lava is creating a modular and decentralized RPC infrastructure layer for all blockchains. RPC providers can stake LAVA on a Cosmos-based chain and earn incentives from any chains they support. The LAVA token is launching DEX-first with high float and a market-derived FDV, contrary to the "low float, high FDV" meta.

ORE is a Solana-based token that uses a CPU-friendly proof-of-work mining mechanism. Its v2 update will introduce ORE staking to boost mining rewards and change the algorithm so that mobile phones can mine. With a total supply of 21 million, Ore is similar to Bitcoin and could ultimately become the BTC of Solana if its high early inflation does not hinder adoption.

AI x Crypto primarily focuses on decentralized compute networks, model coordination platforms, AI tools and services, and applications. AI agents are becoming an increasingly popular way to seamlessly interact with onchain protocols and open-source AI coordination is fostering greater innovation and development into model training. Over $230 million was invested in the space in July alone.

Scammers manipulate DEX Screener's Trending tokens by using wash trading to inflate the number of holders and trading volume, which makes these tokens seem legitimate. For example, the $FWILLY token scam involved distributing supply across multiple wallets and manipulating transaction data before ultimately rugging token holders, where the developers withdrew all liquidity, leaving holders with worthless tokens.

While a large portion of Polymarket's growth this year can be attributed to the U.S. election, the platform has also seen an increase in non-election-related trading. Although 42% of new users initially traded in election-related markets, there has been a 391% YTD growth in volume across various other markets, indicating consumer interest beyond political events.

Investors and market makers of the ZKX DEX were surprised by its shutdown, claiming they received no notice. Blockchain investigators claim that this might have been a rug pull. The token's value has decreased ~93.6% since it was launched.

Ethereum is the clear leader in L1 revenue, with $2.2B in the past year, though the transition to L2s is hurting its profits.

This post provides a look into companies that Paradigm has invested in since the token's generation event - even top VC token investments can generate negative returns.

DeFi has been increasingly good at minimizing deadweight loss - the amount of value leaking to useless third parties.

Investing in stablecoin adoption is a promising strategy as stablecoin supply growth and revenue increases for platforms like Coinbase.