COSMOS CRYPTO NEWS: ATOM, TIA, DYDX, AKT & MORE!!
Hello, Cosmonauts!
Welcome to the Cosmos ecosystem news roundup — here are the top stories in Cosmos Ecosystem during the first half of July.
TLDR:
COSMOS HUB AND CONSUMER CHAINS: Interchain Foundation to Recruitment New Council Members, Evmos to become a Consumer Chain, KiChain is a Consumer Chain now, Cosmos Hub at EthCC, Gaia v18 Upgrade, Proposal for Vote Power Tax for Sustainability, and moreNAMADA: Namada Mainnet Candidate Released
DYDX: 2024 Product Roadmap and $166 Billion in Trading Volume
OSMOSIS: Enhanced Asset Pages
KUJIRA: Kraken Listing
CELESTIA: RISC Blobstream Zero Collaboration
SEI: Parallel Execution with Sei v2 Beta
PERSISTENCE: Focus on Bitcoin Layer-2 Solutions
SECRET NETWORK: Joins DeCC Alliance to Promote Data Protection, Integrates Confidential Computing Layer with Scroll
AKASH: Prime Intellect Integration
OTHER ECOSYSTEM NEWS: Cosmoverse 2024 in Dubai, Skip Protocol Connect & Go, Penumbra Mainnet Phase 0, and more
All this and much more. Let’s dive in and unpack the biggest news within Cosmos:
Cosmos Hub and Consumer Chains (Neutron & Stride)
Interchain Foundation Announces Recruitment Drive for New Council Members
The Interchain Foundation (ICF) has announced the start of a public recruitment drive to onboard new Foundation Council members. The ICF is committed to supporting the development and adoption of open-source technologies central to the interchain ecosystem, and the Foundation Council plays a crucial role in achieving this mission. By expanding the diversity of skills, voices, and experiences within the council, the ICF aims to ensure the longevity and sustainability of the Interchain Stack. At least two new members will be onboarded by the end of the year.
Managing Director Maria Gomez Leaves Interchain Foundation
The Interchain Foundation (ICF) has announced that Maria Gomez, the Managing Director, is stepping down from her role. Maria Gomez joined the ICF in 2021 during a pivotal moment for the organization and the broader ecosystem. Under her leadership, the ICF implemented a clear roadmap, refined its funding initiatives, and solidified its role in supporting the development and maintenance of the Interchain Stack. The ICF, its stewards, and the entire interchain ecosystem are grateful to Maria for her dedication and contributions over the past three years.
Proposal: Add Evmos as a Consumer Chain
A new proposal suggests launching Evmos as an opt-in consumer chain under the Cosmos Hub’s Interchain Security (ICS) framework. Transitioning Evmos to use ICS involves integrating its validation with the Cosmos Hub’s validator set. Leveraging the Cosmos Hub’s reliable infrastructure to become a consumer chain will improve Evmos’s security and network performance. It can also enhance Evmos’s liquidity, cross-chain composability, and overall network performance.
Cosmos Hub Welcomes KiChain as New Consumer Chain
Cosmos Hub has announced the addition of KiChain as a consumer chain. KiChain, a modular Layer 1 blockchain, is set to transform financial services in emerging markets, especially the tokenization of Real World Assets (RWA), decentralized finance (DeFi), payment settlements, and more. This marks a notable expansion of the Atom Economic Zone (AEZ). KiChain is the first Layer 1 blockchain from Latin America to join the Cosmos ecosystem.
Cosmos Hub at EthCC: A Must-Attend Event for Cosmonauts
Cosmos Hub is gearing up for a major presence at EthCC, promising an event packed with insightful workshops and networking opportunities. With limited workshop capacity, attendees should register promptly to secure their spot.
Gaia v18 Upgrade: A Major Milestone for Cosmos Hub
The Cosmos Hub community is voting on Proposal #937, which focuses on the significant Gaia v18 upgrade. This proposal is set to introduce major enhancements and features aimed at improving the functionality and efficiency of the Cosmos Hub.
The voting ends on July 15th, 2024, at 22:30:09. Cast your votes soon.
Cosmos Hub Forum Introduces Proposal for Vote Power Tax to Enhance Validator Sustainability
The Cosmos Hub forum has unveiled a new proposal to address the economic and centralization challenges faced by the Hub’s validator set. The proposal, spearheaded by EffortCapital and funded by the Atom Accelerator DAO (AADAO), introduces the concept of a “Vote Power Tax” designed to balance the distribution of stakes and improve the financial sustainability of validators contributing to Interchain Security (ICS).
Namada
Namada Mainnet Candidate Released and Security Program Launched
Anoma Foundation has announced the release of the Namada Mainnet candidate, a crucial step towards the official launch of the Namada blockchain network. This release, ready for community review, comes alongside the launch of the Namada Mainnet Security Program (NMSP), which aims to incentivize the discovery and reporting of security-critical bugs.
Vitalik Buterin Speaks at Shielding Summit on July 10, 2024
The Shielding Summit, a premier event focused on advancing privacy in Web3, took place on July 10, 2024. This year’s summit featured Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin as a keynote speaker, underscoring the importance of privacy in the evolving landscape of decentralized technologies.
dYdX v4
dYdX Unveils Ambitious 2024 Product Roadmap to Revolutionize DeFi Trading
dYdX, a leading player in the decentralized finance (DeFi) space, has unveiled its 2024 product roadmap, outlining an ambitious plan to enhance the trading experience and broaden access to financial opportunities. The roadmap focuses on three primary areas: Permissionless Markets, Core Trading Improvements, and UX/Onboarding Upgrades.
dYdX Foundation Releases 2024 Semi-Annual Ecosystem Report
The dYdX Foundation has published its 2024 Semi-Annual Ecosystem Report. This report details the impressive progress, product innovations, and community initiatives that have solidified dYdX’s reputation as a leader in the DeFi landscape. The first half of 2024 has seen numerous milestones achieved, reflecting the growing influence and success of the dYdX ecosystem.
$166B trading volume achieved.
$32M in payments distributed to Stakers and Validators.
62 Governance Proposals passed.
iOS and Android apps launched
Osmosis
Osmosis Introduces Enhanced Asset Pages for Improved User Experience
To further enhance the user experience, Osmosis has launched a series of upgrades to its asset pages. These updates are designed to provide traders with more comprehensive and accessible information about their assets, facilitating better-informed trading decisions on the platform. Key Features of the Asset Page Upgrades include Liquidity Pool Discovery, Alloyed Asset Composition, and an Enhanced ‘Info’ Section.
Kujira
Kraken Announces KUJI Token Listing
Kraken, one of the largest centralized crypto exchanges, has announced the addition of KUJI to its trading platform. This enhances KUJI liquidity and provides more trading options for users. KUJI is the gateway to the extensive Kujira DeFi ecosystem, making it easier for users to onboard and explore DeFi opportunities.
Celestia
RISC Zero and Celestia Announce Blobstream Zero Collaboration
RISC Zero has teamed up with Celestia to launch Blobstream Zero, a zkVM-based Blobstream bridge. This collaboration brings Celestia’s modular data availability layer to major blockchain networks, including Ethereum, Optimism, Bitcoin, and Solana.
Sei
Sei Network Unveils Parallel Execution with Sei v2 Beta
Sei Network has announced the launch of Sei v2 Beta. Sei v2 Beta offers parallel execution capabilities on the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM), significantly enhancing transaction throughput and efficiency. The upgrade enables developers and innovators to build and deploy on the Sei network, leveraging its high-performance infrastructure.
Persistence
Persistence One Shifts Focus to Bitcoin Layer-2 Solutions
Persistence One has announced a strategic pivot towards Bitcoin Layer-2 (L2) solutions, aiming to leverage the rapidly expanding BTCfi industry. The move comes after extensive evaluation of the layer2 potential within the Cosmos ecosystem. The team believes that Bitcoin’s growing relevance, particularly in the context of potential hyperinflation, presents an unparalleled opportunity.
Secret Network
Secret Network Joins DeCC Alliance to Promote Data Protection and Confidential Computing
The DeCC Alliance, which includes Secret Network, brings together over 20 blockchain projects to improve Web3 privacy and data protection. Decentralized Confidential Computing (DeCC) technologies offer secure and confidential blockchain data processing. The alliance was born out of discussions at ETHDenver 2024, where participants recognized the necessity of distinguishing DeCC projects from traditional “privacy coins.” Unlike privacy coins, which only offer transactional privacy, DeCC technologies allow for creating smart contracts with encrypted data, confidential on-chain and off-chain calculations, and secure data storage on blockchains.
Secret Network Announces Integration with Scroll
Secret Network has announced a strategic partnership and integration of its Confidential Computing Layer with Scroll, a Layer 2 network developed by Ethereum devs for Ethereum devs. This collaboration aims to enhance the Scroll ecosystem by providing Secret’s decentralized confidential computing (DeCC) tools, documentation, and support, unlocking powerful new capabilities for Scroll applications.
Akash
Prime Intellect Integrates Akash Supercloud into New Compute Platform
Prime Intellect has announced the integration of the Akash Supercloud into its new computing platform. This integration allows developers to directly access high-performance GPUs from Akash’s permissionless marketplace, including NVIDIA H100 GPUs, at competitive rates as low as $1.65 per hour through Prime Intellect. To begin utilizing Akash GPU clusters via Prime Intellect, developers can visit the Prime Intellect website and look for the Akash logo during the GPU provider selection process.
Other ecosystem news
Cosmonauts Set to Converge in Dubai for Cosmoverse 2024
The highly anticipated Cosmoverse 2024 is officially set to take place in Dubai, marking its fourth edition in one of the world’s most dynamic cities. Scheduled from October 21 to 23, the event promises to be bigger and bolder than ever, featuring an exciting lineup of speakers and projects in an innovative new format.
OmniFlix Network: Revolutionizing Decentralized Media on the Interchain
OmniFlix Network is revolutionizing the media industry by harnessing the potential of the Interchain Stack. OmniFlix Network offers a comprehensive platform that empowers creators and communities across the Interchain ecosystem. Utilizing the Cosmos SDK’s interoperability, OmniFlix supports Publishing and trading video NFTs, Creating on-chain engagement campaigns, and Streaming tokens across accounts in multiple denominations. This can completely reshape how creators and communities handle and profit from their media assets.
Skip Protocol Enhances Connectivity with New Updates for Connect & Go
Skip Protocol has announced significant upcoming developments for its Connect and Go platforms, promising to enhance accessibility and programmability for users. Known for powering major decentralized exchanges (DEXes) like dYdX, Skip Protocol’s latest advancements aim to extend its reach beyond price data to sovereign communities.
Union Brings ZK Interoperability to Arbitrum Orbit Chains
Union, a modular interoperability network integrating its zk-powered interoperability solution with Arbitrum’s Orbit ecosystem. This collaboration can bring liquidity flows between Ethereum Layer 2 chains, EVM-compatible Layer 1 chains, and Cosmos/IBC chains, enhancing the overall user and developer experience.
Penumbra Mainnet Phase 0 is Live
Penumbra has officially launched its mainnet. The network is currently in Phase 0 of a three-stage rollout process, offering practical functionality while laying the groundwork for future capabilities.
Key Aspects of Phase 0:
Validator Onboarding: New validators can join the network, and users can delegate their tokens to these validators, further decentralizing the system.
Community Involvement: Community members are encouraged to host front ends, allowing airdrop claimants to check their balances and stake their tokens.
Currently, the network does not support decentralized exchange (DEX), IBC connections, or transfers. Subsequent phases will enable these features.
Crypto regulations & compliance news with MME
UK Law Commission sees no need for DAO-specific Legal Entity
The UK Law Commission has published a scoping paper on DAOs. UK Law Commission has concluded that decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) do not warrant a separate legal entity and can be regulated within the current financial and tax laws. Their scoping paper highlights the lack of consensus on DAOs’ characteristics, making a one-size-fits-all law impractical. They propose a review of the Companies Act 2006 to better accommodate DAOs, including limited liability partnerships and non-profit structures, and suggest an international effort to create a global anti-money laundering (AML) and tax framework for DAOs.
The commission also recommended examining trust laws to consider more flexible structures that could benefit DAOs without targeting them specifically. This approach acknowledges the variety of DAOs, including pure DAOs, hybrid models, and digital legal entities, which complicates efforts to standardize their regulation.
Moreover, the Law Commission calls for international cooperation to address AML and tax issues related to DAOs. This would involve creating a global framework to ensure consistent oversight and compliance across jurisdictions.
European Supervisory Authorities (EBA, EIOPA and ESMA — the ESAs) publish a Consultation Paper on Guidelines under the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA)
On July 12, 2024, the European Supervisory Authorities (EBA, EIOPA, and ESMA) released a consultation paper on Guidelines under the Markets in Crypto-assets Regulation (MiCA). These guidelines aim to standardize the classification of crypto-assets, providing templates for explanations and legal opinions. They introduce a standardized test to ensure a uniform approach.
For Asset-Referenced Tokens (ARTs), the guidelines require that issuance white papers include a legal opinion explaining the classification and confirming that the ART is neither an Electronic Money Token (EMT) nor excluded from MiCA. For other crypto-assets, white papers must clarify that the asset is not an EMT, ART, or otherwise excluded from MiCA.
Interested parties can submit comments on the consultation paper until October 12, 2024. Contributions will be published after the consultation unless confidentiality is requested.
MiCA provides a regulatory framework for the issuance, offering, and trading of EMTs, ARTs, and other crypto-assets. It also establishes guidelines for crypto-asset service provision, with these guidelines representing the only joint policy mandate under MiCA by the ESAs.
Conclusion
That’s a wrap for our Cosmos ecosystem news roundup! Thanks for tuning in and staying up-to-date with the latest in the world of crypto. If you enjoyed this video, be sure to hit like, subscribe, and ring the bell for more exciting updates. Until next time, keep exploring the cosmos and stay cosmic! See you soon!
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