In This Week’s Recap:
- BTC Surpasses 100k
- Google’s Quantum Leap
- Vancouver Adopts BTC
- Uniswap Disrupts ETH
- Hot Topics
The Big Idea
BTC Passes 100k
The cryptocurrency market hit a historic milestone last week with Bitcoin surpassing $100,000 for the first time, but the broader influence of crypto is even more significant. Digital currencies and the underlying distributed ledger technology (DLT) that backs them continue to reshape financial systems, offering alternatives to traditional banking and investments. Recent U.S. inflation data, which met expectations, fueled optimism that the Federal Reserve might ease interest rates soon, giving a boost to risk assets like crypto.
As more investors and institutions embrace cryptocurrencies, their growing role in the global economy signals that digital currencies and DLT are becoming an increasingly important part of the financial landscape.
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Tech News
Google’s Quantum Leap
Google has unveiled its new quantum chip, “Willow,” claiming it can solve a problem in five minutes that would take today’s fastest supercomputers 10 septillion years. While this marks a significant leap in quantum computing, experts warn it’s still experimental, and practical, real-world applications are years away. Willow’s key breakthrough is in error correction, addressing a major challenge in the field. By reducing errors as the chip’s qubits increase, Google has made a major step forward, but there’s still a long road to developing a fully functional quantum computer. While the technology could eventually revolutionize fields like drug development and energy, it’s clear we’re just at the beginning of the quantum journey.
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Crypto News
Vancouver Explores Crypto
Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim is urging the city to explore integrating Bitcoin into its financial strategies to protect its purchasing power from inflation and volatility in fiat currencies. Sim, who accepted crypto donations during his 2022 mayoral campaign, pointed to cities like Zug, Lugano, and El Salvador that have benefited from Bitcoin adoption. He proposed diversifying Vancouver’s financial reserves by adding Bitcoin and even accepting taxes and fees in the cryptocurrency. Sim also called for a report on the feasibility and potential benefits of Bitcoin adoption by the end of Q1 2025.
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CEX, Rugs, and Block and Roll
Uniswap Disrupts Ethereum
Uniswap’s announcement of its new blockchain, Unichain, marks a major shift in the decentralized finance (DeFi) landscape. As Ethereum’s dominant decentralized exchange, Uniswap has been a cornerstone of the network, accounting for a large portion of its transaction volume and fees. Its departure poses a serious challenge to Ethereum’s economic model, potentially cutting millions in revenue for validators and diminishing the effectiveness of Ethereum’s deflationary burn mechanism. Uniswap’s move to build its own “superchain” using Optimism’s Layer 2 stack highlights the growing tension between Ethereum’s scaling strategy and the desire for more autonomy within the DeFi ecosystem.
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Hot Topics
What’s on everyone’s mind?
A Texas bill proposes creating a strategic bitcoin reserve, allowing the state to accept bitcoin for taxes, fees, and donations, holding the funds for at least five years.
Italy plans to reduce a proposed tax hike on cryptocurrency capital gains after industry criticism and internal political disagreements. The 2025 budget initially aimed to raise the tax from 26% to 42%, but lawmakers from the League party argued it could fuel the shadow economy.
Ethereum’s Total Value Locked has hit a new all time high!
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All The Love and All The Power!
was originally published in BankSocial News on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.