It’s Friday! In today’s Daily, MicroStrategy buys an additional 18,300 Bitcoins for $1.1 billion, Wormhole brings Worldcoin’s World ID to Solana, Starknet community votes to implement STRK token staking, and more.
Meanwhile, the SEC argued that referring to the tokens as “cryptocurrency asset securities” did not mean that the tokens were actually securities.
Let’s get started.
MicroStrategy Buys 18,300 Additional Bitcoins for $1.1 Billion
MicroStrategy, a business intelligence firm and corporate Bitcoin holding company, has purchased an additional 18,300 BTC for approximately $1.11 billion, bringing its total holdings to 244,800 BTC, or approximately 1.2% of the total Bitcoin supply of 21 million.
- According to an 8-K form filed with the SEC on Friday, MicroStrategy’s latest acquisition took place between August 6 and September 12 at an average price of $60,408 per bitcoin.
- The purchase was made using proceeds from the issuance and sale of 8,048,449 shares, valued at $1.11 billion.
- The move follows MicroStrategy’s acquisition of 12,222 BTC for $805 million in August, when the company also introduced new key performance indicators for its Bitcoin strategy.
- According to Michael Saylor, the company’s founder and chairman, the total value of the company’s Bitcoin holdings is now over $14.6 billion, with the total acquisition cost being approximately $9.5 billion and the average purchase price per Bitcoin being $38,585.
- MicroStrategy’s stock price is up 7.9% on the day, trading at around $141.10, according to TradingView.
Wormhole brings Worldcoin’s World ID to Solana.
Wormhole has integrated Worldcoin’s World ID into Solana, allowing developers to “put real humans first” in their blockchain applications, a feature that was previously more readily available to Ethereum developers.
- WorldCoin aims to build trust on the Internet by assigning people digital identities through visually verifiable Orbs and distinguishing between human and non-human actors through the exchange of WLD tokens.
- The project reportedly has around 6.6 million subscribers, and received additional attention when Tools for Humanity, a core Worldcoin contributor, was co-founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.
- The Worldcoin Foundation provided grants to Wormhole contributors in June to complete the integration.
Starknet Community Votes to Approve STRK Token Staking Implementation
Starknet has approved a governance proposal to implement staking on the network by the end of 2024, allowing STRK token holders to earn rewards that further advance decentralization.
- The majority of Starknet token holders ratified a proposal submitted by core developer Starkware on Friday.
- Staking requires a minimum of 20,000 STRK tokens (approximately $8,000), and holders below the threshold can participate by delegating their tokens to an eligible staker.
- There is a 21-day lock-up period before staked funds can be withdrawn, and a mining mechanism designed to balance rewards and inflation is also in place.
- Starknet token staking will be available on testnet soon, with mainnet deployment expected in Q4.
ZKsync, Enabling Decentralized Governance Systems with On-Chain Contracts
ZKsync activates a decentralized community governance system by releasing smart contracts on the mainnet.
- The project states that its governance model includes three bodies: the Token Assembly, the Security Committee, and the Guardian, and is designed to provide a balanced distribution of governance powers so that no one party has overall control.
- Token Assembly allows token holders to propose and vote on changes, the Security Committee reviews the code, and Guardians exercise veto power to “ensure that all decisions are consistent with the core values of the ZKsync ecosystem.”
- Developer Matter Labs launched the ZKsync Era mainnet in March 2023, with the ZK tokens launched in June 2024, along with plans for an airdrop and governance system.
Polygon’s POL Token Surges After Binance Listing
Polygon’s POL token surged more than 15% after being listed on Binance on Friday, signaling the unofficial end of the MATIC migration.
- The upgrade from MATIC to POL was announced in July, and the transition began on September 4, making POL the native token of Polygon’s PoS chain.
- POL maintains the token economics of MATIC with a 1:1 exchange rate and a gradual 2% emission increase over 10 years to support growth.
Looking forward to next week
UK and Eurozone CPI figures are released on Wednesday, followed by the latest interest rate decision from the US Federal Reserve, which is due on Thursday, as are US unemployment claims data.
- ECB President Christine Lagarde and U.S. FOMC member Patrick Harker are scheduled to speak on Friday.
- Both TOKEN2049 and Solana Breakpoint 2024 will take place in Singapore over the next 7 days.
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