Welcome to the first December edition of the Decentral Weekly Crypto News Wrap-Up, where Neil and Em review trending crypto news and try, every week, to answer the ever-relevant question: “Is this a thing?”
In last week’s news, we had quite the shake-up with the sudden passing of Mr. Goxx, the beloved trading hamster.
This week, though, Neil and Em are getting their groove back and there’s a lot to for Neil and Em to discuss this week: the NFT craze getting a bit out of hand, Bitcoin beating out PayPal, Jack Dorsey stepping down from Twitter, and more.
Are we turning everything into NFTs
The crypto news in 2021 has been dominated by NFTs: record NFT sales, NFT startups getting funding, and artists being able to make life-changing money by selling their work as an NFT. There’s only one issue: NFT news is also getting much weirder.
Jimmy Wales is the co-founder of Wikipedia, and he’s decided to sell its first edit as an NFT. Christie’s estimates that it will sell for over $100,000, and Wales has also decided to throw in his strawberry iMac. Proceeds will go towards another project from Wales: WT.social, an “alternative social media” platform.
As if that wasn’t enough, two award-winning artists want to go platinum, but NFT style. Deadmau5, an internationally known DJ, and Portugal the Man, a rock band from Alaska, have created 1 million NFT units of their new single. A quarter million units were available for sale at Art Basel. Michael Cohen is also making an NFT out of his prison badge.
This NFT thing is great…but should we pump the brakes a bit? Or should we all just start hashtagging #makemeanNFT so we can monetize every aspect of our existence?
Neil says:
I understand that NFTs are here to stay, but I do feel like it’s getting a bit weird. I think that when you really saturate the space it can give more legitimacy to criticisms about “hype.” I feel like anyone and everyone is hopping in for a quick buck, and that it could end up being an issue down the line.
Em says:
It’s beanie babies, it’s furbies, it’s tickle me elmo, it’s weird and cringey but crazes and fads are part of cultural phenomena. I don’t necessarily think it means longevity (where are all your Beanie Babies now, amirite?), but it certainly will make a stamp in cultural history.
Bottom line:
Neil thinks this is a bad thing, Em thinks it’s a part of cultural history. Who’s right?
What do you think about the NFT craze? Comment online using the hashtag #MakeMeAnNFTStar and tag @decentralpub. Your comment could be featured in an upcoming article.
The metaverse effect
Many tokens have soared in value over the past several years, but it’s clear there’s a new trend in town. Metaverse tokens are outperforming other tokens in terms of “theme,” by a lot.
Facebook’s rebrand to Meta has a lot to do with recent interest in the metaverse, but it appears like investing in the metaverse will only increase. While some may have dismissed the metaverse at first, we should also recognize that virtual land sales are reaching new records. Not only that, but virtual land is now leading the NFT sector.
What’s further proof that the metaverse is here to stay? It looks like the metaverse’s first nightclub is about to open. However, you will need an NFT to enter. It also begs new questions: how do we make sure the metaverse remains decentralized? Which metaverse platforms will succeed?
Is the fact that the metaverse is currently the best-performing cryptocurrency sector something we should take a closer look at? If they build it, will “they” come?
Neil says:
The metaverse is going to grow, and the fact that NFTs and crypto will undoubtedly have a role is huge for the sector in general. Will the metaverse be worth trillions of dollars, like some people believe? I’m not sure…but I can see metaverse tokens doing well for a while.
Em says:
We’re in the sci-fi future. This is 1984 and Brave New World. Maybe that’s a boomer take…but I don’t think the metaverse is completely bad, I just think we need to be careful about what we let happen. There is a real danger that technology can dehumanize society rather than advance it.
Bottom line:
Neil thinks the metaverse is a bullish thing, Em thinks it’s a dangerous thing.
Who’s right? What do you think about the rise of the metaverse?
Bitcoin is beating PayPal
PayPal remains a fintech giant, but it looks like good crypto news for bullish investors: Bitcoin is beating it out in terms of transaction volume. Now, many crypto enthusiasts are wondering whether Bitcoin will beat out other titans in the payments industry.
There’s now a new question arising for the payment sector: will Bitcoin eventually catch up with Mastercard? This is even more interesting when you consider that Mastercard has been pretty open about embracing the cryptocurrency sector. Is it inevitable that Bitcoin eventually handles more transactions than major credit card companies, or is that still a ways away?
Is Bitcoin beating PayPal a “thing,” or not really? Should we care?
Neil says:
This was inevitable and I’m a bit surprised it didn’t happen sooner. Yes, Bitcoin beats out PayPal in transaction volume…but is this really that noteworthy? If we are talking trillions in market cap, that’s worth celebrating. This? Not so much.
Em says:
I was at the hairdresser and she was asking me what Bitcoin even was. Yes, there are still people who have no idea. Everyone, however, knows what PayPal is. The more tech becomes ubiquitous, the less people will have to understand it. It will just be another option. Let it be so.
Bottom line:
No surprise here. Neil thinks this is not a thing, Em thinks it’s a thing.
Who’s right?
SEC Chair Gensler states the obvious
Many cryptocurrency enthusiasts thought that Gary Gensler would be a great SEC chair, but it is looking more and more like that may not be the case. Gensler has recently offered comments that seem incredibly obvious to most crypto traders and investors: that Bitcoin is in competition with the U.S. banking system.
What is the point of these comments, and why isn’t Gensler trying to offer some more concrete thoughts regarding regulation? It’s clear that he doesn’t want to give any concrete answers regarding regulation…but then what exactly is his job? Is he playing hardball because crypto enthusiasts finally got their Bitcoin ETF recently?
What, exactly, is Gary Gensler’s deal <Seinfeld voice>?
Neil says:
’m genuinely confused about what exactly this guy thinks about cryptocurrency. I mean, he used to teach a blockchain class at MIT, but now he’s all about regulation rather than innovation. I get that he has to walk that line, but what is the point of stating something this obvious and unhelpful?
Em says:
At this point, good ol’ Gar is meme fodder. People thought he was pro-crypto coming in but now he’s stating the obvious like it’s a revelation. Did he get amnesia or has he been heel’d by TPTB? Maybe we’ll never know (though I think we know).
Bottom line:
Neil thinks this is a bad thing, Emily agrees…but at least there are the memes.
Who’s right?
Crypto enthusiast and Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey steps down to focus on Block
We have seen various high-profile executives decide to make their way to the crypto sector, but this may take the cake. Jack Dorsey, the billionaire founder of Twitter, has decided to step down from the social media company to focus on Square. There’s another thing: Square is now undergoing a massive rebranding effort, and will now be known as Block. This is an obvious nod to blockchain technology.
Does this mean that Dorsey, one of the most influential Silicon Valley CEOs, will now be focusing his efforts entirely on the crypto sector? It would certainly appear that way. It’s also significant given the fact that Facebook has rebranded as Meta, hoping to be closely associated with the metaverse.
Is this proof that Jack will now become a Bitcoin missionary, or is that just wishful thinking?
Neil says:
I feel like Jack Dorsey has been signaling this for a while, and that he’s going full crypto. Yes, I do think this is a big deal. Square is one of the most important companies in the sector, and the name change to “Block” definitely means that he will be more involved in blockchain-based projects than before.
Em says:
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I don’t trust Jack. Sure, people can change, views can be updated. But I don’t have any reason to believe that Jack isn’t still a power and wealth seeking bandwagoner. Let me be proven wrong, I’ll eat my words.
Bottom line:
Neil thinks this is a thing, Em’s thing is distrusting Jack Dorsey and what he represents.
Who do you agree with?
The search and seizure business is booming
Around this time last year, one of the biggest crypto news headlines was the fact that the U.S. government had seized the largest amount of cryptocurrency in history: to the tune of around $1 billion. What’s changed since then? Well, its value has tripled. The $1 billion in Bitcoin seized was associated with the underground Silk Road marketplace.
The government has seized profits from criminals throughout history: but this marks an interesting case where the U.S. government is now profiting from the cryptocurrency it seized, given Bitcoin’s rise in value. The profits will go directly towards funding future investigations.
Ross Ulbright is the creator of Silk Road. In other crypto news, he is apparently launching an NFT drop of his own. Also, a DAO has been formed to not only purchase the NFTs, but protest his imprisonment, as well.
Is it right that the government profits this way, and do recent IRS numbers mean that the government is trying to regulate crypto not through legislation, but law enforcement?
Neil says:
The government seizes a lot of assets, and that’s a problem. You won’t get any argument from me there. On the flip side…I’m wondering about the alternative. If the government seizes $100 million from an international human trafficker, or something, are we supposed to declare that they sell it immediately all at once, so that they don’t “profit” from the seizure? In bear markets, to be fair, the government will end up seizing “less” Bitcoin than it took originally.
Em says:
Das some bullshit. Look, I’m no proponent of wrecking people’s lives with drug trafficking and criminal activity. But that’s a danger of freedom isn’t it? The government coming in to rekt people’s lives in the name of arbitrary control and then profiting from it gets some serious side-eye from me.
Bottom line:
Neil thinks this a bad but unavoidable thing, Em thinks it’s a bad thing.
We sort of have a consensus…Who’s side are you on?
Weird idea of the week: ‘Star Trek’ creator’s signature goes where no NFT has gone before: DNA
We try not to be too judgmental at Decentral Publishing, so we’re calling this the “weird idea” of the week instead of “the bad idea.” Earlier in this newsletter, we spoke about how NFTs might be getting a bit…stranger. This story certainly confirms that trend.
A long time ago, Gene Rodenberry signed the first contract to create Star Trek, one of the biggest American science fiction franchises. Now, that signature has been turned into DNA code that has been implanted into a living bacterial cell.
The Star Trek NFT is live on the Solana blockchain.
Who really wants a Roddenberry’s DNA? How much weirder can NFTs get?
Neil says:
If you’re a crypto enthusiast, you’re all about privacy and autonomy. The reason why NFTs are interesting is because they offer verifiable ownership…but what does DNA have to do with all of that? Why are people trying to make “living” NFTs a thing? It’s too dystopian for me.
Em says:
This is kinda weird, ngl. It’s one of the things I’d say we should be kinda careful about with new tech that intersections with biology. It’s cool and all in some ways, but it’s also blurring lines we may regret blurring in the future.
Bottom line:
Neil and Em both think this is weird.
Consensus. Duh.
Meme of the week
And just like that, we made it to December. Here’s your beloved meme of the week from our very own Em.
You can tell it’s getting to be the holiday season and the news cycle is slowing down a bit. The markets have cooled off considerably as people sell off their stocks and cryptos at the end of the year for tax purposes and presumably to pay off that holiday overspending (no more socks, mom!).
No need to panic! It’s a part of the January effect, where stock prices rise in the first month of the year after a mass-end-of-year sell-off.
In the meantime, be sure to follow and interact with us at @decentralpub on Twitter so you can comment on this week’s headline, and check out the Uncensored Crypto podcast, as well, where we discuss hot topics around DeFi and cryptocurrency.
We will be back next week on December 17th with our Decentral Publishing Weekly Crypto News Wrap-Up. Until then!
