The last lap before Ethereum’s Merge

Good morning! Welcome to The Daily Moon. There’s some relief for WazirX. India’s financial crimes investigator unfroze the crypto exchange’s bank accounts after 35 days. WazirX had insisted that it did nothing wrong. Now, it’s back to business as usual. 

The markets were a mixed bag. Bitcoin zoomed above $22,000 while Ethereum shed some of its gains at $1,750 levels. Nasdaq gained in early trade. Back home, Sensex and Nifty rose in hopes of a lower US inflation rate. 

Merge’s Last Journey

Ethereum is on the last leg of its Merge. The final shadow fork is complete and the switch to proof-of-stake (the environment-friendly version) is less than three days away. Google’s excited, too, and has started a live countdown.  

Source: Watcher.Guru, as of 6:50 PM IST

Taking stockWith the Merge round the corner, there’s a flurry of activity. Speculators, for instance, are hoarding Ethereum. Their hope is that if there is a hard fork, there is a good chance they will get airdropped (free) tokens. Unfortunately, it isn’t the best tactic because there is no clarity if there even will be a hard fork. But punters will punt. 

But there seems to be an interest in the party. Singapore, Switzerland, and Australia top the charts in countries whose residents have shown interest in the Merge. In fact, Ethereum’s lead developer, Preston Van Loon, believes The Merge will “break the internet”.  

Let’s talk moneyThe FOMO means the value of the token is on an upward march. In fact, over the past two weeks, Ethereum has risen 24%. Some analysts predict that the price could go up $1,900 by the time the Merge concludes. 

But just to warn youEthereum’s shift to proof-of-stake has raised concerns over potential attacks. Amidst crypto winter and bankrupt lenders, Ethereum’s Merge is a positive distraction.

Fantom Wants To Be Friends

Fantom is out of the woods, at least for now. The DeFi project’s token gained after being battered over the past week. 

FYI Fantom is a DeFi project that offers smart contract networks for decentralised applications or dApps. Its native token is Fantom. 

What’s driving it?The 241 projects that are being built on Fantom. Primarily that. Oh right, also HyperChain Capital pumped in another $15 million into Fantom not too long ago.

Now that it has recovered. Fantom has 36,800 daily active users. Its social metrics, which include mentions on social media platforms, have surged too. 

What’s next?Analysts say there are a lot more dApps to be built on Fantom. Prices could go up in the future. 

Solana Has Got NFT Fever

The NFT market may have a new hero in Solana. The larger market is down, but Solana-based NFTs are making heads turn. There has been an eightfold increase in NFTs minted on Solana within the past three days. The number of NFTs minted on Solana went from 39,000 on September 4 to an all-time high of 312,000 on September 7. 

What’s changing?Perception. Solana has successfully changed the perception that its low entry barrier facilitates copycat NFT collections. But Solana NFT protocol maker Metaplex says the current cost structure is compelling for creators. It gives them 1 million mints for 50 SOL.

The y00t collectionThe y00ts NFT collection from Dust Labs seems to be responsible, at least partly, for this new milestone for Solana. Last week, it raised $7 million and had secondary sales of its “y00ts mint t00b” collection for $9.6 million. 

Who Is Satoshi?

Is Craig Wright the real Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonymous identity of the Bitcoin founder? Or is he a fraud? We may get an answer this week. Kinda. An Oslo court is going to hear the case between crypto Twitter star Hodlonaut and Wright. 

But why?Hodlonaut called Wright a fraud and accused him of lying. And that did not make Wright very happy. He then decided to sue Hodlonaut. 

Look, we know. Why should the world care about a rando on the internet who calls himself Satoshi? But Wright isn’t just another guy who DMs you on Discord. He is reportedly backed by a Canadian billionaire and has filed innumerable patents. He is an Australian scientist who has been around. 

So?If Hodlonaut wins the lawsuit in Oslo, the one in the UK will have to be dropped because of precedent. But if he loses, we will finally get to meet the creator of Bitcoin.

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