Block Inc. CEO Jack Dorsey gehörte zu den Befürwortern des Vorschlags, Satoshis als Bitcoin-Basiseinheit abzuschaffen, andere lehnen diese Änderung hingegen entschieden ab.
Ethereum sees smart wallet activity spike as Pectra impact is felt
- Ethereum’s Pectra upgrade, live since May 7, marks a major leap in staking, scalability, and smart wallet functionality.
- Pectra slashed blob fees and doubled blob capacity, significantly enhancing Ethereum’s scalability and rollup efficiency.
- ETH market cap soared 42% post-upgrade, fueled by investor confidence and rising futures market interest.
Ethereum’s long-awaited Pectra upgrade has already made its mark on the Proof-of-Stake network.
Pectra – a portmanteau of Prague (execution layer) and Electra (consensus layer) upgrades intended to deliver a raft of significant improvements – has occupied an oversized presence in the Ethereum mindshare since going live on May 7.
And it’s little wonder given the way the upgrade’s been greeted by the wider community.
With TradFi institutions now better positioned to engage in native ETH staking, Pectra could be the greatest boon for the network since 2022’s The Merge.
Smart wallets take center stage
One of the standout achievements of Pectra so far is the notable surge in smart wallet activity.
Driven by EIP-7702, which allows Externally Owned Accounts (EOAs) to temporarily delegate control to smart contracts, the rise has seen no fewer than 11,000 smart wallet authorizations recorded.
EIP-7702 has been wholeheartedly embraced by dApps and wallets, with benefits flowing to end users; post-Pectra, EOA wallets are able to authorize smart contracts to act in their stead, obviating the need to migrate to a new smart contract-based wallet and enabling features like transaction batching, gas sponsorship, and privilege de-escalation.
EOAs are just the tip of the iceberg. On the scalability front, blob fees have dropped to near-zero, slashing costs for rollup operations, while EIP-7691 has seen blob capacity double – enhancing app scalability.
Pectra’s impact is being felt across the board.
Needless to say, market optimism has been fueled as a result, with ETH’s market cap soaring by 42% by May 12, reflecting renewed investor confidence.
The ETH futures market has seen a similar uptick, with open interest rising from $21.3 billion to $30.4 billion between May 8 and May 11, indicating heightened market activity and interest from traders.
Staking infrastructure steps up
Staking infrastructure provider P2P.org was among the first to fully support Pectra’s major features – including validator consolidation, auto-compounding, partial withdrawals, and operator switching – through a live, production-ready staking dApp and API.
Indeed, these key features were made operational within a week of the upgrade.
In addition, the provider has launched a live calculator to help users compare their current staking setup with a consolidated one, empowering them to optimize their validator sets immediately and capitalize on Pectra’s many benefits.
Artemiy Parshakov, vice president of institutions at P2P.org, has called Pectra “a major unlock for institutional staking, especially with account abstraction paving the way for smarter, automated strategies.”
Notably, Pectra raises the staking limit from 32 ETH to 2,048 ETH, giving rise to the prospect of boosted rewards and streamlined validator management.
Ethereum’s steady evolution
The tangible improvements bundled up in the Pectra upgrade have been welcomed by users, developers, and institutions alike, and the increased inflows into staking protocols tell only part of the story.
While these advancements have generated the lion’s share of coverage, the impact of Pectra is multifaceted, encompassing scalability, ease of use, and convenience.
As Ethereum continues its methodical evolution, Pectra sets a strong foundation for future innovations, proving that slow and steady indeed wins the race in building lasting blockchain infrastructure.
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Pavel Durov unter Druck von EU-Land: Zensur bei rumänischer Wahl abgelehnt
Durov nannte das EU-Land, das ihn aufgefordert hatte, „konservative Stimmen“ auf der Plattform zu zensieren, zwar nicht namentlich, umschrieb es aber mit einem Baguette-Emoji.
Bitcoin blasts past $106K: is Trump’s remittance tax bill crypto’s new rocket fuel?
- Bitcoin price surged to $106,000 on Sunday, May 18, achieving its highest weekly close ever.
- The rally saw Bitcoin’s market cap reach $2.11 trillion, liquidating over $44M in short positions.
- Trump’s proposed 5% remittance tax on non-US citizens is seen as a key driver, likely pushing users to crypto.
Bitcoin surged to a new peak over the weekend, reaching $106,000 per coin on Sunday, May 18, marking its highest valuation since early February of this year.
This rally propelled the flagship cryptocurrency’s market capitalization to an impressive $2.11 trillion and triggered significant liquidations in the derivatives market.
The recent price action reportedly culminated in the highest weekly closing price for Bitcoin to date, surpassing a previous benchmark of $104,298.70 set in December of the prior year.
Reports indicated that this surge led to the liquidation of over $44 million in short positions tied to Bitcoin across various derivatives platforms, underscoring the potent buying pressure.
Market observers point to two primary catalysts providing the impetus for Bitcoin’s latest ascent.
A significant factor appears to be a legislative proposal from US President Donald Trump, dubbed the “big, beautiful bill.”
This package of legislative priorities includes a contentious five percent tax on remittances sent by non-US citizens residing in the US to their home countries.
The remittance tax ripple effect: a crypto catalyst?
This proposed remittance tax is projected to affect over 40 million individuals in the US who regularly send portions of their income to support families abroad.
While the measure has faced opposition from countries like Mexico, President Trump’s bill has reportedly advanced, having been cleared by the US House Budget Committee in a late-night vote on Sunday.
Analysts have voiced concerns that this bill could inadvertently drive migrants towards alternative, “unauthorised channels” such as cryptocurrencies to make remittances and circumvent the proposed tax.
Crypto advocacy group Coin Center has noted that self-hosted crypto wallets fall outside the purview of the bill, as they do not meet the definition of remittance-transfer providers.
This potential shift towards crypto for cross-border payments is seen as a bullish driver for Bitcoin.
Regulatory horizon: stablecoin bill sparks optimism
Another significant factor potentially fueling the increased buying interest in Bitcoin is the anticipation of upcoming regulation.
For years, the cryptocurrency industry has advocated for clear regulatory frameworks as a means to formally integrate digital assets into the established financial system.
Now, a US bill specifically designed to regulate stablecoin issuers is slated to be taken up by the US Congress this week.
Republican Senator Bill Hagerty, one of the sponsors of the ‘Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins (Genius) Act,’ expressed optimism about the legislative progress.
“Next week, the Senate will make history when we debate and pass the Genius Act that establishes the first ever pro-growth regulatory framework for payment stablecoins,” Hagerty was quoted as saying.
According to a report by Coindesk, the bill was reportedly redrafted at the eleventh hour to address concerns raised by Democrats regarding consumer protection and national security elements.
The prospect of clearer rules for stablecoins, a cornerstone of the crypto ecosystem, is likely contributing to broader market confidence.
A year of volatility: navigating economic crosscurrents
Bitcoin’s journey this year has been characterized by extreme price swings.
These fluctuations have occurred amidst broader economic anxieties, including panic over the potential collapse of the US dollar, spurred by President Trump’s imposition of tariffs on China and other nations.
For instance, in April, Bitcoin’s price experienced a sharp downturn, plummeting by 30 percent from its all-time high of nearly $110,000 to around $75,000 per coin, illustrating the asset’s sensitivity to macroeconomic developments and market sentiment.
The current rally above $106,000 marks a significant recovery and a renewed wave of bullish momentum.
The post Bitcoin blasts past $106K: is Trump’s remittance tax bill crypto’s new rocket fuel? appeared first on CoinJournal.
Bitcoin-Kurs dank „wilder Sprünge“ bald auf 250.000 US-Dollar – Scott Melker
Krypto-Experte Scott Melker betont die Stärke des Kryptomarktes und hält es für denkbar, dass Bitcoin noch in diesem Jahr eine Steigerung um das 2,5-Fache schafft.