Today’s edition is brought to you by PayPal - who is charting a new course in the digital landscape with the launch of PYUSD, a stablecoin designed for payments.
Explore the new PayPal USD stablecoin!
GM. This is Milk Road. We turn crypto’s 100-mph fastballs into easy, underhand pitches.
With us, you’ll be hitting nothing but home runs. (Yahtzee!)
It was a busy weekend. Let’s get you caught up with 6 things smart people are talking about:
- Crypto investment products broke a new record 🏆
- The stablecoin market cap is on the rise 📈
- 1 market to watch: on-chain predictions 🔮
- Meet the crypto founder who hacked the CIA 🕵️
- Kevin Hart stole a $20M NFT 🧐
- Bitcoin makes Fidelity’s homepage 👀
- BONUS: MakerDAO is making it rain money (again) 🍪
Prices as of 8:30 AM ET. Click here for our Fear & Greed Index
6 THINGS SMART PEOPLE ARE TALKING ABOUT 🗣️
1/ Digital asset investment products hit $17.5B in trading volume last week.
That’s the highest weekly volume on record. Period.
In total, digital asset investment products saw $1.18B of inflows.
Here’s everything you need to know about the latest report:
- Digital asset investment products saw $1.18B in total inflows. That’s 3x more than any weekly flows from last year.
- Trading volumes hit $17.5B (a new record). For reference, the average weekly trading volume last year was ~$2B.
- These volumes represented ~90% of daily trading volumes on trusted exchanges last Friday. They typically average between 2%-10%.
- It was a tale of two regions. The U.S. saw $1.24B in total inflows, while Europe had minor outflows.
- BTC led the way with $1.14B. ETH came in second place with $26M in inflows.
- Most altcoins saw minor inflows. XRP, SOL, DOT, and ADA all saw inflows ranging between $0.2M → $5.6M.
- Blockchain equities had another BIG week with $98M in total inflows. This brings the total inflows over the last 7 weeks to... **checks notes**... $608M.
That’s right. Crypto doesn’t just break hearts, it breaks records sometimes too.
We’ll see if the momentum continues this week.
2/ The stablecoin market cap is slowly recovering
Over the last 3 months, the stablecoin market cap has been steadily increasing…
- It’s up $11B since mid-October.
- It’s up $4B in January alone.
Why this matters: Stablecoins are the casino chips of crypto. More stablecoins = more money people have to spend in the crypto casino.
This is a good sign that investors are getting their chips ready to make more big moves soon.
3/ The on-chain prediction market is on fire
Polymarket is a decentralized prediction market built on Polygon. It lets you bet on stuff like…
- Will the Detroit Pistons end the season as the worst NBA team of all time? (For reference, they’re 4-36 and couldn’t beat your local YMCA team if they tried).
- Will Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce break up by March 1?
- Will another plane’s cabin door blow off in January?
And Polymarket's daily volume has exploded recently.
Source: Dune Analytics (@rchen8)
Polymarket has already done $26M+ in monthly volume…. (the most since 2021) — and we’re only halfway through January.
Why this matters: Many investors think 2024 will be a breakout year for the on-chain predictions market.
- Bitwise predicts that $100M+ will be staked in the prediction market as it emerges as crypto’s new “killer app.”
- Nick Tomaino from 1confirmation thinks Polymarket will pass $1B in volume and 1M users this year .
We could see it happening too. If there’s one thing we’ve learned it’s… birds fly, fish swim, and degens degen.
And on-chain betting + predictions seem like a match made in degenerate heaven.
**static noise**
We interrupt your regularly scheduled programming to bring you a quick word from our sponsor…
THE NEXT STEP IN MODERNIZING PAYMENTS
Volatility can make crypto payments unpredictable. While stablecoins help address this concern, not all issuers are the same.
Well, in the world of payments, there are few names more well known than PayPal.
PayPal partnered with Paxos to become a pioneer in blockchain-based payments, launching the PYUSD stablecoin.
Here’s what you need to know:
- PYUSD leverages blockchain to bring users faster and more accessible payments than traditional methods.
- PayPal educated the public on their Web3 roadmap and the future of crypto payments through an exciting Open Letter.
- Available today, you can send crypto to your US PayPal account, convert it to PYUSD, and use PYUSD to checkout at millions of online stores.
Explore the new PayPal USD stablecoin!
**static noise**
And now back to your regularly scheduled programming…
4/ The Celestia founder hacked the CIA when he was 16
Pop Quiz: What’s one thing that gets nerdy guys all hot and bothered?
No, not Margot Robbie.
It’s Celestia! A new modular data availability (DA) network that lets anyone easily launch their own blockchain.
It’s crypto’s hottest project right now.
Well, check it out. Turns out the founder, Mustafa Al-Bassam, has a CRAZY background:
- He hacked the CIA when he was 16.
- He was a core member of LulzSec (a famous hacking group).
- He was part of Anonymous (another famous hacking group, except they dress up like it’s Halloween).
- He’s been part of major hacks on Sony, the UK’s National Health Service (NHS), News International, and more.
Basically, this guy is the Jason Bourne of crypto.
(Btw, here’s the video of him explaining how he hacked the CIA).
6/ Kevin Hart 🤝 Netflix 🤝 NFTs
Kevin Hart is one of the biggest stars on the planet.
He’s Mr. My-Momma-Told-Me-To-Tell-You. (If you know, you know. If you don’t know, you need to watch this clip).
Anyway, Kevin has a new movie called “Lift” on Netflix.
But there’s a twist: in the movie, Kevin Hart steals a $20M NFT.
Here’s a sneak peek.
Pretty crazy to see NFTs mentioned in a movie with one of the biggest stars in the world, on one of the most popular streaming services out there.
7/ Trillion-dollar asset managers change their homepages to focus on Bitcoin
11 Bitcoin ETFs were approved last week.
Now, Bitcoin is front and center on Fidelity’s home page:
VanEck, BlackRock, and other asset managers are also promoting Bitcoin on their home pages.
Bitcoin went from “I can’t get into the party” → “I am the party.”
BITE-SIZED COOKIES FOR THE ROAD 🍪
The WebAuth Wallet has carved out a unique spot for itself, utilizing its native XPR blockchain to support cryptocurrencies across a number of different blockchains. Featuring gas-free transfer with their wrapped tokens and a system where wallet addresses are just simple text names, WebAuth has created a very user-friendly experience. Check out our review of their platform here.
MakerDAO’s $2.4bn in crypto loans just became the protocol’s biggest moneymaker. Crypto-backed lending currently accounts for $122M of MakerDAO’s $243M (~50%) in total projected annual revenue. —DL News
Larry Fink (BlackRock’s CEO) says he sees value in having an Ethereum ETF. “These are just stepping stones towards tokenization, and I really do believe this is where we’re going to be going.” - Larry “MoneyMan” Fink.
GameStop is winding down its NFT marketplace. According to a company statement, it’s because of "the continuing regulatory uncertainty of the crypto space." (R.I.P.)
Mercedes-Benz unveiled its new “in-car NFT gallery” at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES). The car also comes with an A.I. virtual assistant that interacts with drivers using one of four “emotional profiles” - natural, predictive, personal, and empathetic modes.
Google Cloud is now a validator and infrastructure provider for the Flare blockchain. Flare’s token, $FLR, is up 8% after the news.
MILKY MEMES 🤣
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