Will Small Businesses Lead the Way in Making Bitcoin a Payments Choice?
Why are crypto exchanges delisting Litecoin?
GM, welcome to another edition of Cryptocracy. I’d like to start this issue with an invitation, but first … this:
I’ve gone back and forth on ways I can monetize my writing, and I’ve given it a fair amount of thought for years. With regard to Substack, I think there are two ways forward if I ever want to see some fruit from my efforts:
Put some content behind a gated wall and charge users to access that content;
Turn Cryptocracy into a reader-supported newsletter where all content is open and free while offering readers practical ways to show their appreciation beyond the heart button.
Both approaches have their advantages. After some consideration, I’ve decided to try something completely different. Thanks Monty Python!
Rather than gate content that readers have been able to access for free, I’ve decided to open the door to subscriptions while keeping the current format of the newsletter. In other words, going forward, I’ll continue to publish multiple times a week and all content will be free and public. However, there is a caveat. I reserve the right to put some content behind a paywall, not to “sell it” but as a reward for my faithful subscribers.
I’ve received some positive comments from some readers over the last year including this praise from one very active reader: “… the best synopsis arriving in my inbox! I don't know how you juggle all those irons in the fire - but you're doing a great job!”
I love those kind of comments, but they don’t put butter on my bread. Therefore, I’d like to ask you to consider clicking the subscribe button below if you think Cryptocracy adds value to your life in some way. As a show of solidarity, I’m offering all new subscribers a 40% discount (off a $5/month subscription) until the end of June. Your monetary support will encourage me to continue providing incredible insight into the world of crypto and strive to improve the content even more.
At this point, I’m not certain where Cryptocracy is headed, but here are some ideas I have for rewarding my subscribers with extra benefits along the way (these are just ideas, no promises yet):
Early access to future books I write.
The ability to provide feedback on books I write and help provide direction on those books as I write them.
Should I decide to launch a creator token (and I’m heavily considering it), subscribers will be the first to receive such tokens.
The ability to make content suggestions for future issues.
Invitations to contribute to Cryptocracy and become an influencer to my growing audience.
Early access to future community tools (such as a Discord channel) with the opportunity to help me develop the community and increase your own reputation and influence within that community.
Your suggestions.
My goal is to make Cryptocracy a thriving community centered on making crypto as common to the lives of ordinary citizens as oxygen and fossil fuels. I’d like to invite you to go on that journey with me. If you’re on board, let me know by supporting me, or send this newsletter to someone you believe could benefit from it.
And Now For Something Very Special
Bitcoin miners in Washington state will see a 29 percent increase in hydroelectric energy cost. Speaking of bitcoin, could it be that small businesses will usher in the grand old age of BTC as a payments channel? That’s possible, but Ethereum founding member Anthony Donofrio throws bitcoin a sucker punch. Before you know it, all the bitcoin miners in the U.S. will end up moving to Texas. If that leads to mass adoption, so be it. Screw the sucker punches.
An anonymous petition calls for the ouster of three Coinbase executives. CEO Brian Armstrong lashed out in a Twitter thread saying remote work is the problem. Remote work didn’t cause employees, if the petition was circulated by employees, to suddenly take issue with Coinbase management. On the other hand, if you’ve got a beef with company management, take it to company management—and put your freaking name on it. Fortune doesn’t favor sissies.
Some crypto exchanges are delisting Litecoin. Can you guess why?
Good ol’ boy Do Kwon and Terraform Labs, creator of the Terra blockchain, allegedly hold 42 million LUNA in secret wallets.
Ethereum Co-Founder and Cardano Founder Charles Hoskinson says Ethereum’s Merge won’t happen until 2023. He also says the Terra fiasco has caused his development team to be more cautious with their Vasil upgrade.
One crypto ATM user swears to never use one again.
Former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey is jumping from Web3 to Web5. He believes the decentralized web should be about data and identity, not tokens. Social networking protocol Zion, which uses Bitcoin’s Lightning Network, is migrating to Dorsey’s new platform. I’ve been a member of Zion since the beginning of this year. I still haven’t figure out what I’m supposed to do with it. I hope v2 is an improvement, but I can’t help but wonder if Dorsey’s attempt to bypass Web3 is just another land grab.
Tether is launching USDT on Tezos, but is it losing the stablecoin war? I’ve been watching USDC slowly gaining on USDT. Tether is currently third in market cap ranking while USDC is fourth. There’s only $20 billion between them. By the next bull run, however, that $20 billion could disappear, or flip. USDC is far more trustworthy than USDT. Is there anyone who would disagree?
PayPal CEO Dan Schulman says allowing crypto to move out of PayPal is the “first step” from a fiat-dominated world to a digital currency-dominated planet. I thought the creation of bitcoin was the first step.
MasterCard is allowing its cardholders to purchase NFTs. And Salesforce is launching its own NFT platform. Why? Seriously, why?
What would Ripple look like today if this had happened?
Neal Stephenson, the science fiction writer who coined the word “metaverse” is creating his own metaverse. Perhaps he should change his name to Meta Verse.
You can now hang your NFTs on the wall of your tiny home for just $9,000. At least it doesn’t cost an arm and a leg.
Sir Anthony Hopkins, 84, has purchased an ENS domain name and asked other celebrities for advice on what NFT to buy. He should issue a series of Hannibal Lecter NFTs. I’d like to see a mad rush on a psychotic serial killer.
Russian feminist protest group Pussy Riot staged a defiant jab to manhood at the Texas State Capitol and minted a commemorative NFT to immortalize the moment.
U.S. Deputy Secretary wants to KYC your private crypto wallet. This has been suggested before. My answer is still the same: Fourth Amendment!
Alex Bentley doesn’t fully trust Web3, and he doesn’t want you to either. Mattel wants your children to play with its cryptoys, NFT versions of Barbie and Hot Wheels. And for mom and dad, you can have your own NFT toys (warning: it involves something people used to do and didn’t talk about). Somehow, I don’t think these toys will be nearly as fun to play with. The children’s toys, I mean.
Snark and commentary are like gravy. Not necessary, but they make the food taste better. I hope you enjoy the gravy.
Cryptocracy is a decentralized newsletter published 4 times a week. I curate the latest news and crypto analysis from some of the brightest minds in crypto, and sometimes offer a little insightful and snarky commentary. Always fresh, always interesting, and always crypto.
First published at Cryptocracy. Not to be construed as financial advice.