@ 662f9bff:8960f6b2

I have been really busy this week with work - albeit back in Madeira - so I had little time to read or do much other than work. In the coming weeks I should have more time - I am taking a few weeks off work and have quite a list of things to do.

First thing is to relax a bit and enjoy the pleasant weather here in Funchal for a few days. With 1st May tomorrow it does seem that there will be quite a bit to do..

Some food for thought for you. Who takes and makes your decisions? Do you make them yourself based on information that you have and know to be true or do you allow other people to take and make decisions for you? For example - do you allow governments or unaccountable beaureaucrats and others to decide for you and even to compell you?

In theory Governments should respect Consent of the Governed and the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that "The will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of government". For you to decide if and to what extent governments today are acting in line with these principles. If not, what can you do about it? I dive into this below and do refer back to letter 9 - section: So What can you do about it.

First, a few things to read, watch and listen to

• I Finance the Current Thing by Allen Farrington - when money is political, everything is political...

• Prediction for 2030 (the Great Reset). Sorelle explains things pretty clearly if you care to watch and listen...

• The Global Pandemic Treaty: What You Need to Know . James Corbett is pretty clear too... is this being done with your support? Did you miss something?

• Why the Past 10 Years of American Life Have Been Uniquely Stupid - fascinating thinking on how quite a few recent things came about...

And a few classics - you ought to know these already and the important messages in them should be much more obvious now...

• 1984 by George Orwell - look for the perpetual war & conflict, ubiquitous surveillance and censorship not to mention Room 101

• Animal farm - also by George Orwell - note how the pigs end up living in the farmhouse exceeding all the worst behaviour of the farmer and how the constitution on the wall changes. Things did not end well for loyal Boxer.

• Brave New World by Aldous Huxley- A World State, inhabited by genetically modified citizens and an intelligence-based social hierarchy - the novel anticipates large scale psychological manipulation and classical conditioning that are combined to make a dystopian society which is challenged by only a single individual who does not take the Soma.

For more - refer to the References and Reading List

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

One of the most transformative books that I ever read was 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Steven Covey. Over many years and from researching hstorical literature he found seven traits that successful people typically display. By default everyone does the opposite of each of these! Check how you do - be honest...

• Habits 1-3 are habits of Self - they determine how you behave and feel

• Habits 4-6 are habits of interpersonal behaviour - they determine how you deal with and interact with others

• Habit 7 is about regeneration and self care - foundation for happy and healthy life and success

One: Be proactive

Choose your responses to all situations and provocations - your reaction to a situation determines how you feel about it.

By default people will be reactive and this controls their emotions

Two: Begin with the end in mind

When you start to work on something, have a clear view of the goal to be achieved; it should be something substantial that you need and will value.

By default people will begin with what is in front of them or work on details that they can do or progress without having a clear view on the end result to be achieved

Three: Put First things First

Be clear on, and begin with, the Big Rocks- the most important things. If you do not put the Big Rocks into your planning daily activities, your days will be full of sand and gravel! All things can be categorised as Urgent or Not-Urgent and Important or Not-Important.

By Default people will focus on Urgent regardless of importance - all of the results come from focusing on Important Non-Urgent things. All of the 7 Habits are in this category!

Four: Seek Win-Win in all dealings with people and in all negotiations

This is the only sustainable outcome; if you cannot achieve Win-Win then no-deal is the sustainable alternative.

By default people will seek Win-Loose - this leads to failed relationships

Five: Seek first to understand - only then to be understood.

Once you visibly understand the needs and expectations of your counterpart they will be open to listening to your point of view and suggestions/requests - not before!

By default people will expound their point of view or desired result causing their counterpart to want to do the same - this ends in "the dialogue of the deaf"

Six: Synergise - Seek the 3rd alternative in all problems and challenges

Work together to find a proposal that is better than what each of you had in mind

By default people will focus on their own desired results and items, regardless of what the other party could bring to help/facilitate or make available

Seven: Sharpen the saw

Take time to re-invigorate and to be healthy - do nothing to excess. Do not be the forrester who persists in cutting the tree with a blunt saw bcause sharpening it is inconvenient or would "take too much time"!

By default people tend to persist on activities and avoid taking time to reflect, prepare and recover

Mindaps - a technique by Tony Buzan

Many years ago I summarised this in a Mind Map (another technique that was transformative for me - a topic for another Letter from around the world!) see below. Let me know if this interests you - happy to do an explainer video on this!

That's it!

No one can be told what The Matrix is.\ You have to see it for yourself.**

Do share this newsletter with any of your friends and family who might be interested.

You can also email me at: LetterFrom@rogerprice.me

💡Enjoy the newsletters in your own language : Dutch, French, German, Serbian, Chinese Traditional & Simplified, Thai and Burmese.

@ 502ab02a:a2860397

แหม่ ต้องรีบแวะมาเขียนไว้ก่อน ของกำลังร้อนๆ #ตัวหนังสือมีเสียง เพลง ลานกรองมันส์ นั้นเรื่องที่มาที่ไปน่าจะไปตามอ่านในเพจ ลานกรองมันส์ ได้ครับ recap คร่าวๆคือมันคือ พื้นที่สร้างสรรค์ที่เปิดให้มาทำกิจกรรมต่างๆนานากันได้ครับ

วันนี้เลยจะมาเล่าเรื่องวิธีการใช้คำ ซึ่งมันส์ดีตามชื่อลาน ฮาๆๆๆ ผมตั้งโจทย์ไว้เลยว่า ต้องมีคำว่า ลานกรองมันส์ แน่ๆแล้ว เพราะเป็นชื่อสถานที่ จากนั้นก็เอาคำว่า ลานกองมัน มาแตกขยายความเพราะมันคือต้นกำเนิดเดิมของพื้นที่นั้น คือเป็นลานที่เอาหัวมันมากองกันเอาไว้ รอนำไปผลิตต่อเป็นสินค้าการเกษตรต่างๆ

ตอนนี้เขาเลิกทำไปแล้ว จึงกลายมาเป็น ลานกรองมันส์ ที่เอาชื่อเดิมมาแปลง

เมื่อได้คำหลักๆแล้วผมก็เอาพยัญชนะเลย ลอลิง กอไก่ มอม้า คือตัวหลักของเพลง

โทนดนตรีไม่ต้องเลือกเลยหนีไม่พ้นสามช่าแน่นอน โทนมันมาตั้งแต่เริ่มคิดจะเขียนเลยครับ ฮาๆๆๆ

ผมพยายามแบ่งวรรคไว้ชัดๆ เผื่อไว้เลยว่าอนาคตอาจมีการทำดนตรีแบบแบ่งกันร้อง วรรคของมันเลยเป็น หมู่ เดี่ยว หมู่ เดี่ยว หมู่ เดี่ยว หมู่ แบบสามโทนเลย

ท่อนหมู่นั้น คิดแบบหลายชั้นมากครับ โดยเฉพาะคำว่า มัน เอามันมากอง มันที่ว่าได้ทั้งเป็นคำกิริยา คือ เอามันมากองๆ หรือ มันที่ว่าอาจหมายถึงตัวความฝันเองเป็นคำลักษณะนามเรียกความฝัน "ลานกรองมันส์ เรามาลองกัน มาร่วมกันมอง ลานกรองมันส์ มาร่วมสร้างฝัน เอามันมากอง"

หรือแม้แต่ท่อนต่างๆ ก็เล่นคำว่า มัน กอง เพื่อให้รู้สึกย้ำท่อนหมู่ ที่มีคำว่ามัน เป็นพระเอกหลายหน้า ทั้งความสนุก ทั้งลักษณะนามความฝัน ทั้งกิริยา "ทุกคน ต่างมี ความฝัน เอามา รวมกัน ให้มันเป็นกอง"

อีกท่อนที่ชอบมากตอนเขียนคือ ทำที่ ลานกรองมันส์ idea for fun everyone can do เพราะรู้สึกว่า การพูดภาษาอังกฤษสำเนียงไทยๆ มันตูดหมึกดี ฮาๆๆๆๆ

หัวใจของเพลงคือจะบอกว่า ใครมีฝันก็มาเลย มาทำฝันกัน เรามีที่ให้คุณ ไม่ต้องกลัวอะไรที่จะทำฝันของตัวเอง เล็กใหญ่ ผิดถูก ขอให้ทำมัน อย่าให้ใครหยุดฝันของคุณ นอกจากตัวคุณเอง

เพลงนี้ไม่ได้ลงแพลทฟอร์ม เพราะส่งมอบให้ทาง ลานกรองมันส์เขาครับ ใช้ตามอิสระไปเลย ดังนั้นก็อาจต้องฟังในโพสนี้ หรือ ในยูทูปนะครับ https://youtu.be/W-1OH3YldtM?si=36dFbHgKjiI_9DI8

เนื้อเพลง "ลานกรองมันส์"

ลานกรองมันส์ ขอเชิญทุกท่าน มามันกันดู นะโฉมตรู มาลองดูกัน อ๊ะ มาลันดูกอง

มีงาน คุยกัน สังสรรค์ ดื่มนม ชมจันทร์ ปันฝัน กันเพลิน ทุกคน ต่างล้วน มีดี เรานั้น มีที่ พี่นี้มีโชว์ เอ้า

ลานกรองมันส์ เรามาลองกัน มาร่วมกันมอง ลานกรองมันส์ มาร่วมสร้างฝัน เอามันมากอง

จะเล็ก จะใหญ่ ให้ลอง เราเป็น พี่น้อง เพื่อนพ้อง ต้องตา ทุกคน ต่างมี ความฝัน เอามา รวมกัน ให้มันเป็นกอง เอ้า

ลานกรองมันส์ เรามาลองกัน มาร่วมกันมอง ลานกรองมันส์ มาร่วมสร้างฝัน เอามันมากอง

ชีวิต เราคิดเราทำ ทุกสิ่งที่ย้ำ คือทำสุดใจ จะเขียน จะเรียน จะรำ ทำที่ ลานกรองมันส์ idea for fun everyone can do

ลานกรองมันส์ เรามาลองกัน มาร่วมกันมอง ลานกรองมันส์ มาร่วมสร้างฝัน เอามันมากอง

เรามา ลั่นกลองให้มัน เฮไหนเฮกัน ที่ลานกรองมันส์ ให้ฝัน บันเทิง…

ตัวหนังสือมีเสียง #pirateketo #siamstr

@ e97aaffa:2ebd765d

Passou alguns dias, após as eleições legislativas, a cabeça está mais fria, é um bom momento para um rescaldo e para um pouco de futurologia. Esta análise vai ser limitada apenas aos grandes partidos.

Podemos resumir esta eleição, numa única palavra: Terramoto.

A AD ganhou, mas o grande destaque foi a queda do PS e a subida do Chega. Se a governação do país estava difícil, agora com este novo desenho da assembleia, será quase impossível, piorou bastante. Neste momento, ainda falta contabilizar os votos da emigração, mas o mais provável é o Chega ultrapassar o PS.

A queda do PS foi tremenda, ninguém esperava tal coisa, o partido está em estado de choque. O partido vai necessitar de tempo para estabilizar e para se reconstruir.

Devido a motivos constitucionais (6 meses antes e 6 meses depois da eleição do presidente da República) só poderá existir eleições no final do próximo ano, isso garante que o novo governo da AD vai estar no poder pelo menos um ano. Isso vai obrigar a aprovação do próximo orçamento de estado, como o PS necessita de tirar os holofotes sobre si, vai facilitar o governo. Provavelmente vai existir um acordo de cavalheiro, um pacto de não agressão entre o governo e o PS, o PS vai se abster na votação do orçamento de estado e a governo não fará revisão constituicional sem o consentimento do PS e também não fará reformas nas leis ou políticas que sejam contra os princípios básicos do partido socialista. Em suma, não haverá grandes reformas, será um governo de gestão com ligeiramente mais poderes.

Não será um governo de bloco central, nem um governo da AD com apoio PS, será apenas um governo da AD com uma falsa oposição do PS. Um governo de bloco central, é uma bomba nuclear, ainda seria demasiado cedo para utilizá-la.

O Partido Socialista sabe que, para ter algumas hipóteses de vencer a próxima eleição, necessita de estar bem e o governo da AD tem que demonstrar algum desgaste, uma queda na popularidade. Eu não acredito que um ano seja suficiente, talvez, seja necessário 2 anos. Isto significa que o país poderá ficar estagnado 1 ou 2 anos, se o governo não conseguir fazer grandes reformas, se os cidadãos não virem/sentirem sinais de mudança, vai dar ainda mais força ao Chega.

Eu acredito que o ponto chave, é a imigração, o governo terá que demonstrar muito trabalho e minimizar o problema, para “esvaziar” um pouco o Chega, caso não faça será um problema.

XXVI Governo

Assim, nessa próxima eleição, talvez em 2027, acredito que as percentagens ficarão mais ou menos como esta eleição, com um partido ligeiramente à frente e os outros dois mais equilibrados. Só que o vencedor seria o Chega, ficando a AD(provavelmente o PSD) e o PS a disputa pelo 2º lugar.

Seria um novo terramoto, mas aqui seria necessário utilizar a bomba nuclear, iria surgir uma nova geringonça. Apesar da vitória do Ventura, iria surgir o governo bloco central, com o PSD e PS, não haveria outra alternativa.

O governo de bloco central, teria que ser muito competente, porque se não o for, iria para novas eleições. Se o governo for um fiasco, PS corre o risco de ser esvaziado, cairá ainda mais, correrá um risco de existência, poderá tornar-se num partido insignificante na nossa política.

XXVII Governo

Agora o terramoto ainda maior, nessa futura eleição, o Chega venceria com maioria absoluta, aí sim, seria um verdadeiro terramoto, ao nível de 1755.

O Chega tem o tempo a seu fazer, tem uma forte penetração nos jovens. Cada jovem que faça 18 anos, existe uma forte possibilidade de ser eleitor do Chega, o seu oposto, acontece com o PCP e o PS, os mais velhos vão morrendo, não existe renovação geracional. Mas o ponto fulcral é a ausência de competência generalizada nos partidos e políticos que têm governado o nosso país nos últimos anos, o descontentamento da população é completo. Esses políticos vivem na sua bolha, não tem noção do mundo real, nem compreendem quais são os problemas das pessoas simples, do cidadão comum.

Ventura

Na minha opinião só existirá três situações, que poderão travar as ascensão do André Ventura a primeiro-ministro:

• Ou existe um óptimo governo, que crie um bom crescimento na qualidade de vida das pessoas e que resolva os 3 problemas que mais anseiam actualmente os portugueses: Habitação, Saúde e Imigração. A probabilidade de isso acontecer é quase nula.
• Ou se o André Ventura desistir, a batalha será muito longa e ele poderá ficar cansado. Pouco provável.
• Ou então, um Argumentum ad hominem, terá que surgir algo, factos concretos que manche a imagem do André Ventura, que destrua por completo a sua reputação.

---

É a minha a linha leitura da bola de cristal, poderão dizer é uma visão pessimista, eu acho que é realista e pragmática, não vejo qualquer competência na classe política para resolver os problemas do país. Esta é a opinião de um recorrente crítico do Chega.

@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

May 13, 2025 – We are proud to announce that My First Bitcoin has received a $1 million grant from #startsmall. With this financial support from Jack Dorsey’s philanthropic initiative, we will continue to serve grassroots Bitcoin education initiatives worldwide.

This grant accelerates our work in the creation and distribution of free and open-source Bitcoin education materials and infrastructure.

It will not only help us improve existing resources, such as the Bitcoin Diploma, Bitcoin Intro Course, and teacher training workshops, but also to scale our digital platforms like our Online School and Community Hub. 

As a non-profit, founded in 2021, we have grown from a local project into a global movement. Besides creating curricula and frameworks, our team has directly taught tens of thousands of in-person students, as we workshop and refine our materials based on real world feedback.

In 2023, we launched the Independent Bitcoin Educators Node Network, providing a space for others to join us on our mission. The network spans 65+ projects from 35+ countries, including circular economies, meetup organizers and other grassroots projects.

All commit to the same six pillars: that their education is independent, impartial, community-led, Bitcoin-only, quality, and focused on empowerment over profit.

While we support that network, it is now self-governing. We always seek to give power-to, rather than have power-over.

John Dennehy, founder and Executive Director of My First Bitcoin, explains:

“The revolution of Bitcoin education is that it teaches students HOW to think, not WHAT to think. Funding from sources with their own incentives is the greatest vulnerability that threatens that. Education will be captured by whoever funds it.

“We will never take any government money and frequently turn down funding from corporations and companies. The subtle influence of funding has ruined fiat education and we need to create alternative models for the revolution of Bitcoin education to realize its full potential.”

Funding for Bitcoin education must be transparent.

This grant is a huge win for all of us. For Bitcoin itself, but even more for Independent Bitcoin Education as a whole. It enables us to serve the global community better than ever before. It shows everyone what can be achieved if you stay close to your values.

“My First Bitcoin is a proof-of-concept for all independent Bitcoin educators that if you stay on the mission, even when it’s challenging, then you will come out the other side even stronger,” added Dennehy.

Arnold Hubach, Director of Communications of My First Bitcoin, continued:

“Open source money deserves open source education. Over the past few years, we’ve seen growing demand for our resources around the world, and we remain committed to serving everyone in the Bitcoin space who needs support.

“This funding enables us to plan further into the future and continue being the first-stop provider of free educational tools.”

We’re grateful to #startsmall for believing in our mission and for understanding that Bitcoin education should always be free from external influence. We’re also grateful to the community for helping us arrive at this point where we are ready to receive such a grant.

You lead us to where we are today. You have been our primary funding source. You will continue to lead us forward.

We will always serve the community.

We’re also grateful for our amazing team and their proof of work. The grant will accelerate the work that they are already doing, such as curricula development, teacher training programs, the expansion of the global network, building online platforms, and providing in-person classes.

We will continue to lead by example, we will continue to push the limits, and we will continue to reimagine what’s possible.

We do not seek to please power in this world, we seek to create a proof-of-concept for a better one where the individual is empowered and able to think critically.

If you are an educator in need of tools or infrastructure; please contact us.

If you can help us continue to build out these tools and maintain this growing global movement; please contact us.

If you are aligned with our mission and are a supporter of independent Bitcoin education, please donate.

We work for the public. In public.

@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

Donald Trump’s recent four-day visit took the President to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. This visit has intertwined diplomatic relations with business interests, while simultaneously influencing the bitcoin market.

In Qatar, the President met with Emir Tanim bin Hamad Al Thani, resulting in over $243 billion in deals including major defense agreements, according to Bloomberg.

On May 15, the President made his visit to the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi alongside Crown Prince Khaled bin Mohamed Al Nahyan. This occurs as the Trump family expands its business presence in the Middle East.

The Trump Organization is developing luxury properties across the region, including Trump Tower Dubai, real estate projects in Riyadh, and development in Jeddah and Oman.

Donald Trump and Mohammed bin Salman in King Khalid International Airport — NBCNews

Eric Trump publicly announced construction plans for Trump Tower Dubai just last month, highlighting the family’s ongoing commercial footprint in the region.

These business connections extend into the digital asset ecosystem as UAE-backed investment firm MGX recently announced it would use USD1, World Liberty Financial’s stablecoin to support a $2 billion investment in Binance, the world’s largest digital asset exchange, according to APNews.

This connection between Trump-aligned interests and major digital asset investments creates a potential avenue for market influence. 

Historically, stability in the Middle East, especially among oil-rich nations, reduces global market volatility. This encourages risk appetite among investors, often leading to increased allocations to digital assets like bitcoin.

Middle East diplomacy directly affects global oil prices. Stable oil prices can lower inflation expectations and lead to interest rate cuts by the Fed. Lower rates lead to an increase in liquidity, having positive effects on bitcoin, an asset that benefits from money printing.

Related: Fed Rate Cuts Could Lead to Major Price Swings for Bitcoin

On the investment front, Abu Dhabi’s Wealth Fund, Mubadala Investment Company, has been focused on increasing their shares in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT).

According to a 13F filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Mubdala held 8.7 million IBIT shares, totaling $408.5 million as of March 31, 2025. 

The Abu Dhabi Wealth Fund increased its shares by 500,000 since its last filing in December of 2024.

Back in March, the United States created a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve. The executive order states that the U.S. will not sell the bitcoin they already hold, and will create budget-neutral ways to increase their holdings.

The time has come where governments and wealth funds alike are jumping on board the Bitcoin train.

Trump’s recent visit to the Middle East illustrates how financial, diplomatic, and personal interests are becoming increasingly intertwined with Bitcoin and digital assets, serving as a new axis of influence in the U.S.-Middle East relations.

The combination of diplomatic progress and business expansion has heightened short-term volatility and trading volumes in the bitcoin market.

Trump’s business and digital asset ties in the region may further boost institutional interest and create an opportunity for more players to enter the market.

@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

Panama City may be the next Latin American city to adopt bitcoin, after El Salvador.

Panama City Mayor Mayer Mizrachi has got the bitcoin world excited after hinting that the city might have a bitcoin reserve. The speculation started on May 16 when Mizrachi posted a simple but powerful message on X:

Two words. That’s it. What makes it special is that it came after a high-profile meeting with Max Keiser and Stacy Herbert, two key figures behind El Salvador’s bitcoin strategy.

Keiser is an advisor to El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele and Herbert leads the country’s Bitcoin Office.

El Salvador became the first country to adopt bitcoin as legal tender back in 2021. Since then, it has been building a national bitcoin reserve, currently holding 6,179 BTC worth around $640 million. It’s also using geothermal energy to power bitcoin mining in an eco-friendly way.

El Salvador’s bitcoin treasury — Bitcoin.gob.sv

Mizrachi’s meeting with Keiser and Herbert was about how Panama could do the same. While the details of the conversation are private, Keiser shared on social media that the two countries will play a big role in the future of Bitcoin.

“Bitcoin is transforming Central America,” Keiser wrote. “El Salvador’s geothermal & Panama’s hydro-electric will power the Bitcoin revolution.”

Max Keiser on X

Panama with its hydroelectric power could be a hub for green bitcoin mining.

Mizrachi has not announced a bitcoin reserve plan nor submitted a proposal to the National Assembly. But his post and public appearances suggest it’s being considered.

He will be speaking at the upcoming Bitcoin 2025 Conference in Las Vegas just days after his social media post. Many expect he will share more about Panama City’s bitcoin plans during his talk.

If Mizrachi pushes for a bitcoin reserve, he will need to work with national lawmakers to pass new legislation. So far, there is no evidence of that.

Even without a bitcoin reserve, Panama City is already going big on digital assets.

In April 2025, the city council approved a measure to allow residents to pay taxes, fees, fines and permits with digital currencies. Supported tokens are bitcoin (BTC), ethereum (ETH), USD Coin (USDC) and Tether (USDT).

To comply with financial laws, the city has partnered with a bank that instantly converts these digital assets into U.S. dollars. According to Mizrachi, this way it’s easier for residents to use digital assets and the city’s financial operations will be transparent and legal.

Another part of the meeting with El Salvador’s advisors was education.

Stacy Herbert confirmed that Panama City will be integrating El Salvador’s financial literacy book, “What is Money?” into their digital library system. The goal is to help students, teachers and the general public understand bitcoin and digital currencies in modern finance.

This is a trend in Latin America where countries are looking for alternatives to traditional banking systems. Inflation, economic instability and the rise of decentralized finance are forcing governments to look into new financial tools.

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

Bank run on every crypto bank then bank run on every "real" bank.

— ODELL (@ODELL) December 14, 2022

The four main banks of bitcoin and “crypto” are Signature, Prime Trust, Silvergate, and Silicon Valley Bank. Prime Trust does not custody funds themselves but rather maintains deposit accounts at BMO Harris Bank, Cross River, Lexicon Bank, MVB Bank, and Signature Bank. Silvergate and Silicon Valley Bank have already stopped withdrawals. More banks will go down before the chaos stops. None of them have sufficient reserves to meet withdrawals.

Bitcoin gives us all the ability to opt out of a system that has massive layers of counterparty risk built in, years of cheap money and broken incentives have layered risk on top of risk throughout the entire global economy. If you thought the FTX bank run was painful to watch, I have bad news for you: every major bank in the world is fractional reserve. Bitcoin held in self custody is unique in its lack of counterparty risk, as global market chaos unwinds this will become much more obvious.

The rules of bitcoin are extremely hard to change by design. Anyone can access the network directly without a trusted third party by using their own node. Owning more bitcoin does not give you more control over the network with all participants on equal footing.

Bitcoin is:
- money that is not controlled by a company or government
- money that can be spent or saved without permission
- money that is provably scarce and should increase in purchasing power with adoption

Bitcoin is money without trust. Whether you are a nation state, corporation, or an individual, you can use bitcoin to spend or save without permission. Social media will accelerate the already deteriorating trust in our institutions and as this trust continues to crumble the value of trust minimized money will become obvious. As adoption increases so should the purchasing power of bitcoin.

A quick note on "stablecoins," such as USDC - it is important to remember that they rely on trusted custodians. They have the same risk as funds held directly in bank accounts with additional counterparty risk on top. The trusted custodians can be pressured by gov, exit scam, or caught up in fraud. Funds can and will be frozen at will. This is a distinctly different trust model than bitcoin, which is a native bearer token that does not rely on any centralized entity or custodian.

Most bitcoin exchanges have exposure to these failing banks. Expect more chaos and confusion as this all unwinds. Withdraw any bitcoin to your own wallet ASAP.

Simple Self Custody Guide: https://werunbtc.com/muun
More Secure Cold Storage Guide: https://werunbtc.com/coldcard

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@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

The newly proposed RESTRICT ACT - is being advertised as a TikTok Ban, but is much broader than that, carries a $1M Fine and up to 20 years in prison️! It is unconstitutional and would create massive legal restrictions on the open source movement and free speech throughout the internet.

The Bill was proposed by: Senator Warner, Senator Thune, Senator Baldwin, Senator Fischer, Senator Manchin, Senator Moran, Senator Bennet, Senator Sullivan, Senator Gillibrand, Senator Collins, Senator Heinrich, and Senator Romney. It has broad support across Senators of both parties.

Corrupt politicians will not protect us. They are part of the problem. We must build, support, and learn how to use censorship resistant tools in order to defend our natural rights.

The RESTRICT Act, introduced by Senators Warner and Thune, aims to block or disrupt transactions and financial holdings involving foreign adversaries that pose risks to national security. Although the primary targets of this legislation are companies like Tik-Tok, the language of the bill could potentially be used to block or disrupt cryptocurrency transactions and, in extreme cases, block Americans’ access to open source tools or protocols like Bitcoin.

The Act creates a redundant regime paralleling OFAC without clear justification, it significantly limits the ability for injured parties to challenge actions raising due process concerns, and unlike OFAC it lacks any carve-out for protected speech. COINCENTER ON THE RESTRICT ACT

Full Text of Bill

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@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

What is KYC/AML?

• The acronym stands for Know Your Customer / Anti Money Laundering.
• In practice it stands for the surveillance measures companies are often compelled to take against their customers by financial regulators.
• Methods differ but often include: Passport Scans, Driver License Uploads, Social Security Numbers, Home Address, Phone Number, Face Scans.
• Bitcoin companies will also store all withdrawal and deposit addresses which can then be used to track bitcoin transactions on the bitcoin block chain.
• This data is then stored and shared. Regulations often require companies to hold this information for a set number of years but in practice users should assume this data will be held indefinitely. Data is often stored insecurely, which results in frequent hacks and leaks.  
• KYC/AML data collection puts all honest users at risk of theft, extortion, and persecution while being ineffective at stopping crime. Criminals often use counterfeit, bought, or stolen credentials to get around the requirements. Criminals can buy "verified" accounts for as little as $200. Furthermore, billions of people are excluded from financial services as a result of KYC/AML requirements.

During the early days of bitcoin most services did not require this sensitive user data, but as adoption increased so did the surveillance measures. At this point, most large bitcoin companies are collecting and storing massive lists of bitcoiners, our sensitive personal information, and our transaction history.

Lists of Bitcoiners

KYC/AML policies are a direct attack on bitcoiners. Lists of bitcoiners and our transaction history will inevitably be used against us.

Once you are on a list with your bitcoin transaction history that record will always exist. Generally speaking, tracking bitcoin is based on probability analysis of ownership change. Surveillance firms use various heuristics to determine if you are sending bitcoin to yourself or if ownership is actually changing hands.  You can obtain better privacy going forward by using collaborative transactions such as coinjoin to break this probability analysis.

Fortunately, you can buy bitcoin without providing intimate personal information. Tools such as peach, hodlhodl, robosats, azteco and bisq help; mining is also a solid option: anyone can plug a miner into power and internet and earn bitcoin by mining privately.

You can also earn bitcoin by providing goods and/or services that can be purchased with bitcoin. Long term, circular economies will mitigate this threat: most people will not buy bitcoin - they will earn bitcoin - most people will not sell bitcoin - they will spend bitcoin.

There is no such thing as KYC or No KYC bitcoin, there are bitcoiners on lists and those that are not on lists.

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@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

The former seems to have found solid product market fit. Expect significant volume, adoption, and usage going forward.

The latter's future remains to be seen. Dependence on Tor, which has had massive reliability issues, and lack of strong privacy guarantees put it at risk.

— ODELL (@ODELL) October 27, 2022

The Basics

• Lightning is a protocol that enables cheap and fast native bitcoin transactions.
• At the core of the protocol is the ability for bitcoin users to create a payment channel with another user.
• These payment channels enable users to make many bitcoin transactions between each other with only two on-chain bitcoin transactions: the channel open transaction and the channel close transaction.
• Essentially lightning is a protocol for interoperable batched bitcoin transactions.
• It is expected that on chain bitcoin transaction fees will increase with adoption and the ability to easily batch transactions will save users significant money.
• As these lightning transactions are processed, liquidity flows from one side of a channel to the other side, on chain transactions are signed by both parties but not broadcasted to update this balance.
• Lightning is designed to be trust minimized, either party in a payment channel can close the channel at any time and their bitcoin will be settled on chain without trusting the other party.

There is no 'Lightning Network'

• Many people refer to the aggregate of all lightning channels as 'The Lightning Network' but this is a false premise.
• There are many lightning channels between many different users and funds can flow across interconnected channels as long as there is a route through peers.
• If a lightning transaction requires multiple hops it will flow through multiple interconnected channels, adjusting the balance of all channels along the route, and paying lightning transaction fees that are set by each node on the route.

Example: You have a channel with Bob. Bob has a channel with Charlie. You can pay Charlie through your channel with Bob and Bob's channel with User C.

• As a result, it is not guaranteed that every lightning user can pay every other lightning user, they must have a route of interconnected channels between sender and receiver.

Lightning in Practice

• Lightning has already found product market fit and usage as an interconnected payment protocol between large professional custodians.
• They are able to easily manage channels and liquidity between each other without trust using this interoperable protocol.
• Lightning payments between large custodians are fast and easy. End users do not have to run their own node or manage their channels and liquidity. These payments rarely fail due to professional management of custodial nodes.
• The tradeoff is one inherent to custodians and other trusted third parties. Custodial wallets can steal funds and compromise user privacy.

Sovereign Lightning

• Trusted third parties are security holes.
• Users must run their own node and manage their own channels in order to use lightning without trusting a third party. This remains the single largest friction point for sovereign lightning usage: the mental burden of actively running a lightning node and associated liquidity management.
• Bitcoin development prioritizes node accessibility so cost to self host your own node is low but if a node is run at home or office, Tor or a VPN is recommended to mask your IP address: otherwise it is visible to the entire network and represents a privacy risk.
• This privacy risk is heightened due to the potential for certain governments to go after sovereign lightning users and compel them to shutdown their nodes. If their IP Address is exposed they are easier to target.
• Fortunately the tools to run and manage nodes continue to get easier but it is important to understand that this will always be a friction point when compared to custodial services.

The Potential Fracture of Lightning

• Any lightning user can choose which users are allowed to open channels with them.
• One potential is that professional custodians only peer with other professional custodians.
• We already see nodes like those run by CashApp only have channels open with other regulated counterparties. This could be due to performance goals, liability reduction, or regulatory pressure.

• Fortunately some of their peers are connected to non-regulated parties so payments to and from sovereign lightning users are still successfully processed by CashApp but this may not always be the case going forward.

Summary

• Many people refer to the aggregate of all lightning channels as 'The Lightning Network' but this is a false premise. There is no singular 'Lightning Network' but rather many payment channels between distinct peers, some connected with each other and some not.
• Lightning as an interoperable payment protocol between professional custodians seems to have found solid product market fit. Expect significant volume, adoption, and usage going forward.
• Lightning as a robust sovereign payment protocol has yet to be battle tested. Heavy reliance on Tor, which has had massive reliability issues, the friction of active liquidity management, significant on chain fee burden for small amounts, interactivity constraints on mobile, and lack of strong privacy guarantees put it at risk.

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If you have never used lightning before, use this guide to get started on your phone.

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@ eb0157af:77ab6c55

According to CEO Jamie Dimon, the banking giant will open the door to spot Bitcoin ETFs.

As reported by CNBC, JPMorgan has announced that it will allow its clients to buy Bitcoin, without offering custody services. The bank will give clients access to exchange-traded funds (spot ETFs) on Bitcoin, according to sources familiar with the matter.

During a recent investor event, CEO Jamie Dimon confirmed that the bank will open up to Bitcoin for its clients, while refraining from taking on the responsibility of asset custody. “I am not a fan” of Bitcoin, Dimon clarified during the event.

This decision marks a shift from the position Dimon held in 2017, when he labeled Bitcoin a “fraud,” compared it to the tulip mania bubble, and predicted its imminent collapse. At the time, Dimon had even threatened to fire any JPMorgan employee caught trading Bitcoin, calling such activity “stupid” and against company policy.

Despite this operational turnaround, Dimon continues to personally maintain a skeptical stance toward the cryptocurrency. In a 2024 interview with CNBC, he stated he no longer wanted to discuss Bitcoin publicly, emphasizing that, in his view, it lacks “intrinsic value” and is used for criminal activities such as sex trafficking, money laundering, and ransomware.

These comments from Dimon contrast with the recent optimism shown by JPMorgan analysts regarding Bitcoin’s market prospects. According to reports from the bank, Bitcoin could continue gaining ground at the expense of gold in the second half of the year, driven by rising corporate demand and growing support from various U.S. states.

The post JPMorgan to allow clients to buy Bitcoin ETFs: no custody services appeared first on Atlas21.

@ dfa02707:41ca50e3

Contribute to keep No Bullshit Bitcoin news going.

• Wasabi Wallet v2.6.0 "Prometheus" is a major update for the project, focused on resilience and independence from centralized systems.
• Key features include support for BIP 158 block filters for direct node synchronization, a revamped full node integration for easier setup without third-party reliance, SLIP 39 share backups for flexible wallet recovery (sponsored by Trezor), and a Nostr-based update manager for censorship-resistant updates.
• Additional improvements include UI bug fixes, a new fallback for transaction broadcasting, updated code signing, stricter JSON serialization, and options to avoid third-party rate providers, alongside various under-the-hood enhancements.

This new version brings us closer to our ultimate goal: ensuring Wasabi is future-proof," said the developers, while also highlighting the following key areas of focus for the project:

• Ensuring users can always fully and securely use their client.
• Making contribution and forks easy through a codebase of the highest quality possible: understandable, maintainable, and improvable.

"As we achieve our survival goals, expect more cutting-edge improvements in Bitcoin privacy and self-custody. Thank you for the trust you place in us by using Wasabi," was stated in the release notes.

What's new

• Support for Standard BIP 158 Block Filters. Wasabi now syncs using BIP 158 filters without a backend/indexer, connecting directly to a user's node. This boosts sync speed, resilience, and allows full sovereignty without specific server dependency.
• Full Node Integration Rework. The old integration has been replaced with a simpler, more adaptable system. It’s not tied to a specific Bitcoin node fork, doesn’t need the node on the same machine as Wasabi, and requires no changes to the node’s setup.
  • "Simply enable the RPC server on your node and point Wasabi to it," said the developers. This ensures all Bitcoin network activities—like retrieving blocks, fee estimations, block filters, and transaction broadcasting—go through your own node, avoiding reliance on third parties.
• Create & Recover SLIP 39 Shares. Users now create and recover wallets with multiple share backups using SLIP 39 standard.

"Special thanks to Trezor (SatoshiLabs) for sponsoring this amazing feature."

• Nostr Update Manager. This version implements a pioneering system with the Nostr protocol for update information and downloads, replacing reliance on GitHub. This enhances the project's resilience, ensuring updates even if GitHub is unavailable, while still verifying updates with the project's secure certificate.
• Updated Avalonia to v11.2.7, fixes for UI bugs (including restoring Minimize on macOS Sequoia).
• Added a configurable third-party fallback for broadcasting transactions if other methods fail.
• Replaced Windows Code Signing Certificate with Azure Trusted Signing.
• Many bug fixes, improved codebase, and enhanced CI pipeline.
• Added the option to avoid using any third-party Exchange Rate and Fee Rate providers (Wasabi can work without them).
• Rebuilt all JSON Serialization mechanisms avoiding default .NET converters. Serialization is now stricter.

Full Changelog: v2.5.1...v2.6.0

Announcement / Archive
GitHub Repo

@ b1ddb4d7:471244e7

Asia has emerged as a powerhouse for bitcoin adoption, with diverse countries across the region embracing the world’s leading digital currency in unique ways.

From institutional investors in Singapore to grassroots movements in Indonesia, the Asian bitcoin ecosystem presents a fascinating tapestry of innovation, regulation, and community-driven initiatives.

We dive deep into the current state of bitcoin adoption across key Asian markets, providing investors with actionable insights into this dynamic region.

The Numbers: Asia’s Bitcoin Dominance

As of early 2025, over 500 million people worldwide hold some form of digital currency, with bitcoin remaining the most widely adopted digital asset. Asia stands at the forefront of this adoption wave, with the Central & Southern Asia and Oceania (CSAO) region leading the world in digital currency adoption according to Chainalysis’s 2024 Global Crypto Adoption Index.

The statistics paint a compelling picture:

• Seven of the top 20 countries in global crypto adoption are located in the CSAO region.
• India and China together comprise almost half of the world’s digital currency user base.
• Japan’s digital currency market is expected to reach 19.43 million users by the end of 2025, with a penetration rate of 15.93%.

Behind these impressive numbers lies a complex ecosystem shaped by diverse factors including regulatory environments, technological infrastructure, economic necessities, and vibrant community initiatives.

Photo Source: Chainalysis

Country-by-Country Analysis

India: The Grassroots Powerhouse

India ranks first in Chainalysis’s Global Crypto Adoption Index, with bitcoin adoption thriving particularly in tier-2 and tier-3 cities. This grassroots movement is driven primarily by:

• Financial inclusion: Bitcoin offers banking-like services to India’s large unbanked population.
• Remittance solutions: Lower fees for the significant Indian diaspora sending money home.
• Mobile wallet proliferation: India’s high smartphone penetration enables easy access to bitcoin services.

Japan: The Regulatory Pioneer

Japan has long played a significant role in bitcoin’s evolution, from hosting some of the earliest exchanges to pioneering regulatory clarity. In 2025, Japan finds itself at a fascinating crossroads:

• The Japan Financial Services Agency is considering reclassifying digital currency assets as financial products akin to stocks, potentially enhancing user protection.
• Major corporations like Metaplanet Inc. are expanding their bitcoin holdings, with plans to increase holdings by 470% to reach 10,000 BTC in 2025.
• The country boasts a thriving grassroots bitcoin community and a strong developer ecosystem.

Bitcoin adoption in Japan is uniquely balanced between institutional involvement and community enthusiasm, with initiatives like Blockstream’s Tokyo office working to promote layer-2 solutions, self-custody, and developer education.

Vietnam: The P2P Leader

Vietnam consistently ranks among the top countries for bitcoin adoption per capita. The country’s relationship with bitcoin is characterized by:

• Strong peer-to-peer (P2P) platform usage for daily transactions and remittances.
• High mobile wallet adoption driving grassroots usage.
• Bitcoin serving as a hedge against local currency fluctuations.
• Relatively favorable regulatory attitude compared to some neighboring countries.

Singapore: The Institutional Hub

Singapore has established itself as Asia’s premier institutional bitcoin destination through:

• Clear and forward-thinking regulatory frameworks, particularly the Payment Services Act.
• Growing presence of global digital currency firms including Gemini, OKX, and HashKey, which have received regulatory approvals.
• A robust financial infrastructure catering to high-net-worth individuals and institutional investors.

While Singapore’s consumer protection-focused framework restricts promotional activities and public advertising by digital currency service providers, the city-state remains a beacon for institutional bitcoin adoption in Asia.

South Korea: Retail Dominance Transitioning to Institutional

South Korea presents a fascinating case study of a market in transition:

• Retail investors currently dominate digital currency trading volume, while institutional participation significantly lags behind.
• Experts expect institutional involvement to increase, though a significant shift may not occur until around 2027.
• The local finance watchdog recently launched a crypto committee to assess permissions for corporate digital currency investors and ETFs.
• Users must access fiat-to-digital currency services through local exchanges with official banking partnerships, linking digital currency activities to legal identities.

Bitcoin Communities: The Grassroots Movements

What truly sets Asia apart in the global bitcoin landscape is the vibrant tapestry of community-driven initiatives across the region. These grassroots movements are instrumental in driving adoption from the ground up.

Bitcoin House Bali: A Community Hub

In Indonesia, the Bitcoin House Bali project exemplifies grassroots innovation. This initiative has transformed an old mining container into a vibrant hub for bitcoin education and community engagement.

Key features include:

• Free workshops (including “Bitcoin for Beginners” and “Bitcoin for Kids”).
• Developer programs including online classes, BitDevs Workshops, and Hackathons.
• A closed-loop economic system that turns bitcoin into community points.
• Merchant onboarding—from restaurants and drivers to scooter rentals and street vendors.

Bitcoin Seoul 2025: Bringing the Community Together

The upcoming Bitcoin Seoul 2025 conference (June 4-6, 2025) represents Asia’s largest bitcoin-focused gathering, bringing together global leaders, executives, and community members.

The event will feature:

• The Bitcoin Policy Summit: Seoul Edition, providing insights into regulatory trends.
• The Bitcoin Finance Forum, addressing institutional investment and treasury management.
• A Global Bitcoin Community Assembly for bitcoin grassroots and community leaders.
• Live Lightning Network payments demonstrations at the on-site Lightning Market.

This event underscores South Korea’s emerging role in the global Bitcoin ecosystem and highlights the growing institutional interest in the region.

Regulatory Landscapes: A Mixed Picture

The regulatory environment for bitcoin across Asia presents a complex and evolving picture that significantly impacts adoption patterns.

Japan’s Regulatory Evolution

Japan is considering tightening regulations on digital asset transactions by reclassifying them as financial products similar to stocks. If implemented, these changes would:

• Require issuers to disclose more detailed information on their corporate status.
• Potentially enhance user protection.
• Come into effect after June 2025, following policy direction outlines by the administration.

Current regulations in Japan are relatively digital currency-friendly, with bitcoin recognized as a legal form of payment under the Payment Services Act since 2016.

Singapore’s Balanced Approach

Singapore maintains a regulatory framework that emphasizes market stability and consumer protection, including:

• Restrictions on promoting digital services in public areas.
• The Payment Services Act that regulates digital currency exchanges.
• A general approach that supports institutional adoption while carefully managing retail exposure.

This balanced approach has helped establish Singapore as a trusted hub for bitcoin businesses and institutional investors.

South Korea’s Transitional Framework

South Korea’s regulatory landscape is in flux, with several developments impacting the bitcoin ecosystem:

• Corporate access to digital currenc

@ b1ddb4d7:471244e7

Custodial Lightning wallets allow users to transact without managing private keys or channel liquidity. The provider handles technical complexities, but this convenience comes with critical trade-offs:

• You don’t control your keys: The custodian holds your bitcoin.
• Centralized points of failure: Servers can be hacked or shut down.
• Surveillance risks: Providers track transaction metadata.

Key Risks of Custodial Lightning Wallets

*1. Hacks and Exit Scams*

Custodians centralize large amounts of bitcoin, attracting hackers:

• Nearly $2.2 billion worth of funds were stolen from hacks in 2024.
• Lightning custodians suffered breaches, losing user funds.

Unlike non-custodial wallets, victims have no recourse since they don’t hold keys.

*2. Censorship and Account Freezes*

Custodians comply with regulators, risking fund seizures:

• Strike (a custodial Lightning app) froze accounts of users in sanctioned regions.
• A U.K. court in 2020 ordered Bitfinex to freeze bitcoin worth $860,000 after the exchange and blockchain sleuthing firm Chainalysis traced the funds to a ransomware payment.

*3. Privacy Erosion*

Custodians log user activity, exposing sensitive data:

• Transaction amounts, receiver addresses, and IPs are recorded.

*4. Service Downtime*

Centralized infrastructure risks outages.

*5. Inflation of Lightning Network Centralization*

Custodians dominate liquidity, weakening network resilience:

• At the moment, 10% of the nodes on Lightning control 80% of the liquidity.
• This centralization contradicts bitcoin’s decentralized ethos.

How to Switch to Self-Custodial Lightning Wallets

Migrating from custodial services is straightforward:

*1. Choose a Non-Custodial Wallet*

Opt for wallets that let you control keys and channels:

• Flash: The self-custodial tool that lets you own your keys, control your coins, and transact instantly.
• Breez Wallet : Non-custodial, POS integrations.
• Core Lightning : Advanced, for self-hosted node operators.

*2. Transfer Funds Securely*

• Withdraw funds from your custodial wallet to a bitcoin on-chain address.
• Send bitcoin to your non-custodial Lightning wallet.

*3. Set Up Channel Backups*

Use tools like Static Channel Backups (SCB) to recover channels if needed.

*4. Best Practices*

• Enable Tor: Mask your IP (e.g., Breez’s built-in Tor support).
• Verify Receiving Addresses: Avoid phishing scams.
• Regularly Rebalance Channels: Use tools like Lightning Pool for liquidity.

Why Self-Custodial Lightning Matters

• Self-custody: Control your keys and funds.
• Censorship resistance: No third party can block transactions.
• Network health: Decentralized liquidity strengthens Lightning.

Self-custodial wallets now rival custodial ease.

Custodial Lightning wallets sacrifice security for convenience, putting users at risk of hacks, surveillance, and frozen funds. As bitcoin adoption grows, so does the urgency to embrace self-custodial solutions.

Take action today:

1. Withdraw custodial funds to a hardware wallet.
2. Migrate to a self-custodial Lightning wallet.
3. Educate others on the risks of custodial control.

The Lightning Network’s potential hinges on decentralization—don’t let custodians become its Achilles’ heel.

@ b1ddb4d7:471244e7

The upcoming Bitcoin 2025 conference, scheduled from May 27–29 at the Venetian Conference Center in Las Vegas, is set to make history with an official attempt to break the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS® title for the most Bitcoin point-of-sale transactions in an eight-hour period.

Organized by BTC Inc, the event will showcase Bitcoin’s evolution from a digital capital asset to a practical medium of exchange, leveraging the latest advancements in payment technology.

Tap-to-Pay with Lightning-Ready Bolt Cards

To facilitate this record-setting attempt, 4,000 Lightning-ready Bolt Cards will be distributed to conference attendees.

pic.twitter.com/Iy7P361u6u

— Uncle Rockstar Developer (@r0ckstardev) May 15, 2025

These NFC-enabled cards allow users to make instant, contactless Bitcoin payments at vendor booths throughout the expo-no apps or QR codes required, just a simple tap. 

The cards are available in four collectible designs, each featuring a prominent figure in Bitcoin’s history: Senator Cynthia Lummis, Michael Saylor, Satoshi Nakamoto, and Jack Dorsey. 

Each attendee will receive a randomly assigned card, making them both functional and collectible souvenirs.

Senator Lummis: A Playful Provocation

Notably, one of the card designs features Senator Cynthia Lummis with laser eyes-a playful nod to her reputation as a leading Bitcoin advocate in US politics. 

While Lummis is known for her legislative efforts to promote Bitcoin integration, she has publicly stated she prefers to “spend dollars and save Bitcoin,” viewing BTC as a long-term store of value rather than a daily currency. 

The choice to feature her on the Bolt Card, could be suggested by Rockstar Dev of the BTC Pay Server Foundation, perhaps a lighthearted way to highlight the ongoing debate about Bitcoin’s role in everyday payments.

Nothing cracks me up quite like a senator that wants the US to buy millions of Bitcoin use dollars to buy a beer at a Bitcoin bar.

This is how unserious some of you are. pic.twitter.com/jftIEggmip

— Magoo PhD (@HodlMagoo) April 4, 2025

How Bolt Cards and the Lightning Network Work

Bolt Cards are physical cards equipped with NFC (Near Field Communication) technology, similar to contactless credit or debit cards. When linked to a compatible Lightning wallet, they enable users to make Bitcoin payments over the Lightning Network by simply tapping the card at a point-of-sale terminal. 

The Lightning Network is a second-layer protocol built on top of Bitcoin, designed to facilitate instant, low-cost transactions ideal for everyday purchases. 

This integration aims to make Bitcoin as easy to use as traditional payment methods, eliminating the need for QR code scanning or mobile apps.

A Showcase for Bitcoin’s Real-World Usability

With over 30,000 attendees, 300 exhibitors, and 500 speakers expected, the Bitcoin 2025 conference is poised to be the largest Bitcoin event of the year-and potentially the most transactional. 

The event will feature on-site activations such as the Official Bitcoin Magazine Store, where all merchandise will be available at a 21% discount for those paying with Bitcoin via the Lightning Network-a nod to Bitcoin’s 21 million coin supply limit.

By deeply integrating Lightning payments into the conference experience, organizers hope to demonstrate Bitcoin’s readiness for mainstream commerce and set a new benchmark for its practical use as a currency.

Conclusion

The Guinness World Record attempt at Bitcoin 2025 is more than a publicity stunt-it’s a bold demonstration of Bitcoin’s technological maturity and its potential to function as a modern, everyday payment method.

Whether or not the record is set, the event will serve as a milestone in the ongoing journey to make Bitcoin a truly global, user-friendly currency

@ b1ddb4d7:471244e7

Flash, an all-in-one Bitcoin payment platform, has announced the launch of Flash 2.0, the most intuitive and powerful Bitcoin payment solution to date.

With a completely redesigned interface, expanded e-commerce integrations, and a frictionless onboarding process, Flash 2.0 makes accepting Bitcoin easier than ever for businesses worldwide.

We did the unthinkable!

Website monetization used to be super complicated.

"Buy me a coffee" — But only if we both have a bank account.

WHAT IF WE DON'T?

Thanks to @paywflash and bitcoin, it's just 5 CLICKS – and no banks!

Start accepting donations on your website… pic.twitter.com/uwZUrvmEZ1

— Flash • The Bitcoin Payment Gateway (@paywflash) May 13, 2025

Accept Bitcoin in Three Minutes

Setting up Bitcoin payments has long been a challenge for merchants, requiring technical expertise, third-party processors, and lengthy verification procedures. Flash 2.0 eliminates these barriers, allowing any business to start accepting Bitcoin in just three minutes, with no technical set-up and full control over their funds.

The Bitcoin Payment Revolution

The world is witnessing a seismic shift in finance. Governments are backing Bitcoin funds, major companies are adding Bitcoin to their balance sheets, and political figures are embracing it as the future of money. Just as Stripe revolutionized internet payments, Flash is now doing the same for Bitcoin. Businesses that adapt today will gain a competitive edge in a rapidly evolving financial landscape.

With Bitcoin adoption accelerating, consumers are looking for places to spend it. Flash 2.0 ensures businesses of all sizes can seamlessly accept Bitcoin and position themselves at the forefront of this financial revolution.

All-in-One Monetization Platform

More than just a payment gateway, Flash 2.0 is a complete Bitcoin monetization suite, providing multiple ways for businesses to integrate Bitcoin into their operations. Merchants can accept payments online and in-store, content creators can monetize with donations and paywalls, and freelancers can send instant invoices via payment links.

For example, a jewelry designer selling products on WooCommerce can now integrate Flash for online payments, use Flash’s Point-of-Sale system at trade shows, enable Bitcoin donations for her digital artwork, and lock premium content behind Flash Paywalls. The possibilities are endless.

E-Commerce for Everyone

With built-in integrations for Shopify, WooCommerce, and soon Wix and OpenCart, Flash 2.0 enables Bitcoin payments on 95% of e-commerce stores worldwide. Businesses can now add Bitcoin as a payment option in just a few clicks—without needing developers or external payment processors.

And for those looking to start selling, Flash’s built-in e-commerce features allow users to create online stores, showcase products, and manage payments seamlessly.

No Middlemen, No Chargebacks, No Limits

Unlike traditional payment platforms, Flash does not hold or process funds. Businesses receive Bitcoin directly, instantly, and securely. There are no chargebacks, giving merchants full control over refunds and eliminating fraud. Flash also remains KYC-free, ensuring a seamless experience for businesses and customers alike.

A Completely Redesigned Experience

“The world is waking up to Bitcoin. Just like the internet revolutionized commerce, Bitcoin is reshaping finance. Businesses need solutions that are simple, efficient, and truly decentralized. Flash 2.0 is more than just a payment processor—it’s a gateway to the future of digital transactions, putting financial power back into the hands of businesses.”

— Pierre Corbin, CEO at Flash.

Flash 2.0 introduces a brand-new user interface, making it easier than ever to navigate, set up payments, and manage transactions. With an intuitive dashboard, streamlined checkout, and enhanced mobile compatibility, the platform is built for both new and experienced Bitcoin users.

About Flash

Flash is an all-in-one Bitcoin payment platform that empowers businesses, creators, and freelancers to accept, manage, and grow with Bitcoin. With a mission to make Bitcoin payments accessible to everyone, Flash eliminates complexity and gives users full control over their funds.

To learn more or get started, visit www.paywithflash.com.

Press Contact:

Julien Bouvier
Head of Marketing
+3360941039

@ b1ddb4d7:471244e7

Bitcoin FilmFest (BFF25) returns to Warsaw for its third edition, blending independent cinema—from feature films and commercials to AI-driven experimental visuals—with education and entertainment.

Hundreds of attendees from around the world will gather for three days of screenings, discussions, workshops, and networking at the iconic Kinoteka Cinema (PKiN), the same venue that hosted the festival’s first two editions in March 2023 and April 2024.

This year’s festival, themed “Beyond the Frame,” introduces new dimensions to its program, including an extra day on May 22 to celebrate Bitcoin Pizza Day, the first real-world bitcoin transaction, with what promises to be one of Europe’s largest commemorations of this milestone.

BFF25 bridges independent film, culture, and technology, with a bold focus on decentralized storytelling and creative expression. As a community-driven cultural experience with a slightly rebellious spirit, Bitcoin FilmFest goes beyond movies, yet cinema remains at its heart.

Here’s a sneak peek at the lineup, specially curated for movie buffs:

Generative Cinema –  A special slot with exclusive shorts and a thematic debate on the intersection of AI and filmmaking. Featured titles include, for example: BREAK FREE, SATOSHI: THE CREATION OF BITCOIN, STRANGE CURRENCIES, and BITCOIN IS THE MYCELIUM OF MONEY,  exploring financial independence, traps of the fiat system, and a better future built on sound money.

Upcoming Productions Preview – A bit over an hour-long block of unreleased pilots and works-in-progress. Attendees will get exclusive first looks at projects like FINDING HOME (a travel-meets-personal-journey series), PARALLEL SPACES (a story about alternative communities), and THE LEGEND OF LANDI (a mysterious narrative).

Freedom-Focused Ads & Campaigns – Unique screenings of video commercials, animations, and visual projects, culminating in “The PoWies” (Proof of Work-ies)—the first ever awards show honoring the best Bitcoin-only awareness campaigns.

To get an idea of what might come up at the event, here, you can preview 6 selected ads combined into two 2 videos:

• Unique Bitcoin-Video Ads: Part One
• Unique Bitcoin-Video Ads: Part Two

Open Pitch Competition – A chance for filmmakers to present fresh ideas and unfinished projects to an audience of a dedicated jury, movie fans and potential collaborators. This competitive block isn’t just entertaining—it’s a real opportunity for creators to secure funding and partnerships.

Golden Rabbit Awards: A lively gala honoring films from the festival’s Official Selection, with awards in categories like Best Feature, Best Story, Best Short, and Audience Choice.

BFF25 Main Screenings

Sample titles from BFF25’s Official Selection:

REVOLUCIÓN BITCOIN – A documentary by Juan Pablo, making its first screening outside the Spanish-speaking world in Warsaw this May. Three years of important work, 80 powerful minutes to experience. The film explores Bitcoin’s impact across Argentina, Colombia, Mexico, El Salvador, and Spain through around 40 diverse perspectives. Screening in Spanish with English subtitles, followed by a Q&A with the director.

UNBANKABLE – Luke Willms’ directorial debut, drawing from his multicultural roots and his father’s pioneering HIV/AIDS research. An investigative documentary based on Luke’s journeys through seven African countries, diving into financial experiments and innovations—from mobile money and digital lending to Bitcoin—raising smart questions and offering potential lessons for the West. Its May appearance at BFF25 marks its largest European event to date, following festival screenings and nominations across multiple continents over the past year.

HOTEL BITCOIN – A Spanish comedy directed by Manuel Sanabria and Carlos “Pocho” Villaverde. Four friends, 4,000 bitcoins , and one laptop spark a chaotic adventure of parties, love, crime, and a dash of madness. Exploring sound money, value, and relationships through a twisting plot. The film premiered at the Tarazona and Moncayo Comedy Film Festival in August 2024. Its Warsaw screening at BFF25 (in Spanish with English subtitles) marks its first public showing outside the Spanish-speaking world.

Check out trailers for this year’s BFF25 and past editions on YouTube.

Tickets & Info:

• Detailed program and tickets are available at bitcoinfilmfest.com/bff25.
• Stay updated via the festival’s official channels (links provided on the website).
• Use ‘LN-NEWS’ to get 10% of tickets

@ b1ddb4d7:471244e7

Starting January 1, 2026, the United Kingdom will impose some of the world’s most stringent reporting requirements on cryptocurrency firms.

All platforms operating in or serving UK customers-domestic and foreign alike-must collect and disclose extensive personal and transactional data for every user, including individuals, companies, trusts, and charities. 

This regulatory drive marks the UK’s formal adoption of the OECD’s Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF), a global initiative designed to bring crypto oversight in line with traditional banking and to curb tax evasion in the rapidly expanding digital asset sector.

What Will Be Reported?

Crypto firms must gather and submit the following for each transaction:

• User’s full legal name, home address, and taxpayer identification number
• Detailed data on every trade or transfer: type of cryptocurrency, amount, and nature of the transaction
• Identifying information for corporate, trust, and charitable clients

The obligation extends to all digital asset activities, including crypto-to-crypto and crypto-to-fiat trades, and applies to both UK residents and non-residents using UK-based platforms. The first annual reports covering 2026 activity are due by May 31, 2027.

Enforcement and Penalties

Non-compliance will carry stiff financial penalties, with fines of up to £300 per user account for inaccurate or missing data-a potentially enormous liability for large exchanges. The UK government has urged crypto firms to begin collecting this information immediately to ensure operational readiness.

Regulatory Context and Market Impact

This move is part of a broader UK strategy to position itself as a global fintech hub while clamping down on fraud and illicit finance. UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves has championed these measures, stating, “Britain is open for business – but closed to fraud, abuse, and instability”. The regulatory expansion comes amid a surge in crypto adoption: the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority reported that 12% of UK adults owned crypto in 2024, up from just 4% in 2021.

Enormous Risks for Consumers: Lessons from the Coinbase Data Breach

While the new framework aims to enhance transparency and protect consumers, it also dramatically increases the volume of sensitive personal data held by crypto firms-raising the stakes for cybersecurity.

The risks are underscored by the recent high-profile breach at Coinbase, one of the world’s largest exchanges.

In May 2025, Coinbase disclosed that cybercriminals, aided by bribed offshore contractors, accessed and exfiltrated customer data including names, addresses, government IDs, and partial bank details. 

The attackers then used this information for sophisticated phishing campaigns, successfully deceiving some customers into surrendering account credentials and funds.

“While private encryption keys remained secure, sufficient customer information was exposed to enable sophisticated phishing attacks by criminals posing as Coinbase personnel.”

Coinbase now faces up to $400 million in compensation costs and has pledged to reimburse affected users, but the incident highlights the systemic vulnerability created when large troves of personal data are centralized-even if passwords and private keys are not directly compromised. The breach also triggered a notable drop in Coinbase’s share price and prompted a $20 million bounty for information leading to the attackers’ capture.

The Bottom Line

The UK’s forthcoming crypto reporting regime represents a landmark in financial regulation, promising greater transparency and tax compliance. However, as the Coinbase episode demonstrates, the aggregation of sensitive user data at scale poses a significant cybersecurity risk.

As regulators push for more oversight, the challenge will be ensuring that consumer protection does not become a double-edged sword-exposing users to new threats even as it seeks to shield them from old ones.

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Bahrain-based Al Abraaj Restaurants Group has made history by becoming the first publicly-traded company in the Middle East to add bitcoin to its corporate treasury. This is a major step forward for regional bitcoin adoption.

On May 15, 2025, Al Abraaj Restaurants Group, a well-known restaurant chain listed on the Bahrain Bourse, announced it had bought 5 bitcoin (BTC) as part of a new treasury strategy. This makes the company the first in Bahrain, the GCC and the Middle East to officially hold bitcoin as a reserve asset.

Al Abraaj adds bitcoin to its treasury — Zawya

This is a growing trend globally where companies are treating bitcoin not just as an investment but as a long-term store of value. Major companies like Strategy, Tesla and Metaplanet have already done this — and now Al Abraaj is following suit.

Metaplanet recently added 1,241 BTC to its treasury, boosting the company’s holdings above El Salvador’s.

Related: Metaplanet Overtakes El Salvador in Bitcoin Holdings After $126M Purchase

“Our initiative towards becoming a Bitcoin Treasury Company reflects our forward-thinking approach and dedication to maximizing shareholder value,” said Abdulla Isa, Chairman of the Bitcoin Treasury Committee at Al Abraaj.

Al Abraaj’s move is largely inspired by Michael Saylor, Executive Chairman of Strategy, the world’s largest corporate holder of bitcoin. Saylor’s strategy of allocating billions to bitcoin has set a model that other companies — now including Al Abraaj — are following.

A photo shared by the company even showed a meeting between an Al Abraaj representative and Saylor, with the company calling itself the “MicroStrategy of the Middle East”.

“We believe that Bitcoin will play a pivotal role in the future of finance, and we are excited to be at the forefront of this transformation in the Kingdom of Bahrain,” Isa added.

To support its bitcoin initiative, Al Abraaj has partnered with 10X Capital, a New York-based investment firm that specializes in digital assets.

10X Capital has a strong track record in bitcoin treasury strategies, and recently advised Nakamoto Holdings on a $710 million deal — the largest of its kind.

With 10X’s help, Al Abraaj looks to raise more capital and increase its bitcoin holdings over time to maximize bitcoin-per-share for its investors. The company will also develop Sharia-compliant financial instruments so Islamic investors can get exposure to bitcoin in a halal way.

“Bahrain continues to be a leader in the Middle East in Bitcoin adoption,” said Hans Thomas, CEO of 10X Capital. He noted, with a combined GDP of $2.2 trillion and over $6 trillion in sovereign wealth, the GCC now has its first publicly listed bitcoin treasury company.

This is not just a first for Al Abraaj — it’s a first for the region. Bahrain has been positioning itself as a fintech hub and Al Abraaj’s move will encourage more non-fintech companies in the region to look into bitcoin.

The company said the decision was made after thorough due diligence and is in line with the regulations set by the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB). Al Abraaj will be fully compliant with all digital asset transaction rules, including transparency, security and governance.

A special Bitcoin Committee has been formed to oversee the treasury strategy. It includes experienced bitcoin investors, financial experts and portfolio managers who will manage risk, monitor market conditions and ensure best practices in custody and disclosure.

The initial purchase was 5 BTC, but Al Abraaj sees this as just the beginning. The company stated that there are plans in motion to allocate a significant portion of their treasury into bitcoin over time.

According to the company’s reports, Al Abraaj is financially sound with $12.5 million in EBITDA in 2024. This strong financial foundation gives the company the confidence to explore new strategies like bitcoin investment.

@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

Steak ‘n Shake recently made headlines by officially accepting bitcoin payments via the Lightning Network across all its U.S. locations. The integration of Bitcoin payments at over 500 locations is a monumental moment for both the fast food industry and the broader retail sector.

This is not just something that Steak ‘n Shake is testing in a handful of locations, they are doing a full-scale rollout, fully embracing Bitcoin. 

With more than 100 million customers a year, Steak ‘n Shake’s integration of Lightning—Bitcoin’s fast, low-fee payment layer—makes it easier than ever to use Bitcoin in day-to-day life. Buying a burger and a shake with sats? That’s now a real option.

The process is straightforward. Customers simply scan a Lightning QR code at the register, completing their payment in seconds, while Steak ‘n Shake receives instant USD conversion, ensuring price stability and ease of use.

So what does this mean for Bitcoin and E-commerce?

For starters, Steak ‘n Shake becomes the first of eventually many to fully embrace a digital world. As Bitcoin continues to grow, consumers will continue to realize the benefits of saving in a currency that is truly scarce and decentralized.

This is a huge step forward for Bitcoin as it shows it is not just for holding, it’s for spending, too. And by using the Lightning Network, Steak n’ Shake is helping prove that Bitcoin can scale for everyday transactions. 

This now creates a seamless checkout experience, making bitcoin a viable alternative to credit cards and cash.

More importantly, it signals a significant shift in mainstream attitudes towards Bitcoin. As a well-known brand across America, this move serves as a powerful endorsement, likely to influence other chains and retailers to consider similar integrations.

Related: Spar Supermarket in Switzerland Now Accepts Bitcoin Via Lightning

What can this mean for your business? 

Accepting bitcoin as payment can open the door to a new demographic of tech-savvy, financially engaged consumers who prefer digital assets.

As we know, companies that adopt Bitcoin receive a fascinating amount of love from the Bitcoin community and I would assume Steak n’ Shake will be receiving the same amount of attention.

From a business perspective, accepting bitcoin has become more than just a payment method—it’s a marketing tool. It sets your business apart and gets people talking. And in a crowded market, that kind of edge matters.

Steak ‘n Shake’s embrace of Bitcoin is likely to accelerate the adoption of digital assets in both physical retail and e-commerce.

As more businesses witness the operational and marketing benefits, industry experts anticipate a ripple effect that will increase interaction between consumers and digital currencies, further regulatory clarity, and bring continued innovation in payment technology.

Steak ‘n Shake’s nationwide Bitcoin payments rollout is more than a novelty. It’s a pivotal development for digital payments, setting a precedent for other retailers and signaling the growing integration of digital assets into everyday commerce.

@ b1ddb4d7:471244e7

This article was originally published on aier.org

Even after eleven years experience, and a per Bitcoin price of nearly $20,000, the incredulous are still with us. I understand why. Bitcoin is not like other traditional financial assets.

Even describing it as an asset is misleading. It is not the same as a stock, as a payment system, or a money. It has features of all these but it is not identical to them.

What Bitcoin is depends on its use as a means of storing and porting value, which in turn rests of secure titles to ownership of a scarce good. Those without experience in the sector look at all of this and get frustrated that understanding why it is valuable is not so easy to grasp. 

In this article, I’m updating an analysis I wrote six years ago. It still holds up. For those who don’t want to slog through the entire article, my thesis is that Bitcoin’s value obtains from its underlying technology, which is an open-source ledger that keeps track of ownership rights and permits the transfer of these rights. Bitcoin managed to bundle its unit of account with a payment system that lives on the ledger. That’s its innovation and why it obtained a value and that value continues to rise. 

Consider the criticism offered by traditional gold advocates, who have, for decades, pushed the idea that sound money must be backed by something real, hard, and independently valuable. Bitcoin doesn’t qualify, right? Maybe it does. 

Bitcoin first emerged as a possible competitor to national, government-managed money in 2009. Satoshi Nakamoto’s white paper was released October 31, 2008. The structure and language of this paper sent the message: This currency is for computer technicians, not economists nor political pundits. The paper’s circulation was limited; novices who read it were mystified. 

But the lack of interest didn’t stop history from moving forward. Two months later, those who were paying attention saw the emergence of the “Genesis Block,” the first group of bitcoins generated through Nakamoto’s concept of a distributed ledger that lived on any computer node in the world that wanted to host it.

Here we are all these years later and a single bitcoin trades at $18,500. The currency is held and accepted by many thousands of institutions, both online and offline. Its payment system is very popular in poor countries without vast banking infrastructures but also in developed countries. And major institutions—including the Federal Reserve, the OECD, the World Bank, and major investment houses—are paying respectful attention and weaving blockchain technology into their operations.

Enthusiasts, who are found in every country, say that its exchange value will soar even more in the future because its supply is strictly limited and it provides a system vastly superior to government money. Bitcoin is transferred between individuals without a third party. It is relatively low-cost to exchange. It has a predictable supply. It is durable, fungible, and divisible: all crucial features of money. It creates a monetary system that doesn’t depend on trust and identity, much less on central banks and government. It is a new system for the digital age.

Hard lessons for hard money

To those educated in the “hard money” tradition, the whole idea has been a serious challenge. Speaking for myself, I had been reading about bitcoin for two years before I came anywhere close to understanding it. There was just something about the whole idea that bugged me. You can’t make money out of nothing, much less out of computer code. Why does it have value then? There must be something amiss. This is not how we expected money to be reformed.

There’s the problem: our expectations. We should have been paying closer attention to Ludwig von Mises’ theory of money’s origins—not to what we think he wrote, but to what he actually did write. 

In 1912, Mises released The Theory of Money and Credit. It was a huge hit in Europe when it came out in German, and it was translated into English. While covering every aspect of money, his core contribution was in tracing the value and price of money—and not just money itself—to its origins. That is, he explained how money gets its price in terms of the goods and services it obtains. He later called this process the “regression theorem,” and as it turns out, bitcoin satisfies the conditions of the theorem.

Mises’ teacher, Carl Menger, demonstrated that money itself originates from the market—not from the State and not from social contract. It emerges gradually as monetary entrepreneurs seek out an ideal form of commodity for indirect exchange. Instead of merely bartering with each other, people acquire a good not to consume, but to trade. That good becomes money, the most marketable commodity.

But Mises added that the value of money traces backward in time to its value as a bartered commodity. Mises said that this is the only way money can have value.

The theory of the value of money as such can trace back the objective exchange value of money only to that point where it ceases to be the value of money and becomes merely the value of a commodity…. If in this way we continually go farther and farther back we must eventually arrive at a point where we no longer find any component in the objective exchange value of money that arises from valuations based on the function of money as a common medium of exchange; where the value of money is nothing other than the value of an object that is useful in some other way than as money…. Before it was usual to acquire goods in the market, not for personal consumption, but simply in order to exchange them again for the goods that were really wanted, each individual commodity was only accredited with that value given by the subjective valuations based on its direct utility.

Mises’ explanation solved a major problem that had long mystified economists. It is a narrative of conjectural history, and yet it makes perfect sense. Would salt have become money had it otherwise been completely useless? Would beaver pelts have obtained monetary value had they not been useful for clothing? Would silver or gold have had money value if they had no value as commodities first? The answer in all cases of monetary history is clearly no. The initial value of money, before it becomes widely traded as money, originates in its direct utility. It’s an explanation that is demonstrated through historical reconstruction. That’s Mises’ regression theorem.

Bitcoin’s Use Value

At first glance, bitcoin would seem to be an exception. You can’t use a bitcoin for anything other than money. It can’t be worn as jewelry. You can’t make a machine out of it. You can’t eat it or even decorate with it. Its value is only realized as a unit that facilitates indirect exchange. And yet, bitcoin already is money. It’s used every day. You can see the exchanges in real time. It’s not a myth. It’s the real deal.

It might seem like we have to choose. Is Mises wrong? Maybe we have to toss out his whole theory. Or maybe his point was purely historical and doesn’t apply in the future of a digital age. Or maybe his regression theorem is proof that bitcoin is just an empty mania with no staying power, because it can’t be reduced to its value as a useful commodity.

And yet, you don’t have to resort to complicated monetary theory in order to understand the sense of alarm surrounding bitcoin. Many people, as I did, just have a feeling of uneasiness about a money that has no basis in anything physical. Sure, you can print out a bitcoin on a piece of paper, but having a paper with a QR code or a public key is not enough to relieve that sense of unease.

How can we resolve this problem? In my own mind, I toyed with the issue for more than a year. It puzzled me. I wondered if Mises’ insight applied only in a pre-digital age. I followed the speculations online that the value of bitcoin would be zero but for the national currencies into which it is converted. Perhaps the demand for bitcoin overcame the demands of Mises’ scenario because of a desperate need for something other than the dollar.

As time passed—and I read the work of Konrad Graf, Peter Surda, and Daniel Krawisz—finally the resolution came. Bitcoin is both a payment system and a money. The payment system is the source of value, while the accounting unit merely expresses that value in terms of price. The unity of money and payment is its most unusual feature, and the one that most commentators have had trouble wrapping their heads around.

We are all used to thinking of currency as separate from payment systems. This thinking is a reflection of the technological limitations of history. There is the dollar and there are credit cards. There is the euro and there is PayPal. There is the yen and there are wire services. In each case, money transfer relies on third-party service providers. In order to use them, you need to establish what is called a “trust relationship” with them, which is to say that the institution arranging the deal has to believe that you are going to pay.

This wedge between money and payment has always been with us, except for the case of physical proximity.

If I give you a dollar for your pizza slice, there is no third party. But payment systems, third parties, and trust relationships become necessary once you leave geographic proximity. That’s when companies like Visa and institutions like banks become indispensable. They are the application that makes the monetary software do what you want it to do.

The hitch is that

@ b1ddb4d7:471244e7

Breez, a leader in Lightning Network infrastructure, and Spark, a bitcoin-native Layer 2 (L2) platform, today announced a groundbreaking collaboration to empower developers with tools to seamlessly integrate self-custodial bitcoin payments into everyday applications.

The partnership introduces a new implementation of the Breez SDK built on Spark’s bitcoin-native infrastructure, accelerating the evolution of bitcoin from “digital gold” to a global, permissionless currency.

The Breez SDK is expanding

We’re joining forces with @buildonspark to release a new nodeless implementation of the Breez SDK — giving developers the tools they need to bring Bitcoin payments to everyday apps.

→ https://t.co/iWjZhWRwsx

Bitcoin-Native
Powered by Spark’s…

— Breez (@Breez_Tech) May 22, 2025

A Bitcoin-Native Leap for Developers

The updated Breez SDK leverages Spark’s L2 architecture to deliver a frictionless, bitcoin-native experience for developers.

Key features include:

• Universal Compatibility: Bindings for all major programming languages and frameworks.
• LNURL & Lightning Address Support: Streamlined integration for peer-to-peer transactions.
• Real-Time Interaction: Instant mobile notifications for payment confirmations.
• No External Reliance: Built directly on bitcoin via Spark, eliminating bridges or third-party consensus.

This implementation unlocks use cases such as streaming content payments, social app monetization, in-game currencies, cross-border remittances, and AI micro-settlements—all powered by Bitcoin’s decentralized network.

Quotes from Leadership

Roy Sheinfeld, CEO of Breez:
“Developers are critical to bringing bitcoin into daily life. By building the Breez SDK on Spark’s revolutionary architecture, we’re giving builders a bitcoin-native toolkit to strengthen Lightning as the universal language of bitcoin payments.”

Kevin Hurley, Creator of Spark:
“This collaboration sets the standard for global peer-to-peer transactions. Fast, open, and embedded in everyday apps—this is bitcoin’s future. Together, we’re equipping developers to create next-generation payment experiences.”

David Marcus, Co-Founder and CEO of Lightspark:
“We’re thrilled to see developers harness Spark’s potential. This partnership marks an exciting milestone for the ecosystem.”

Collaboration Details
As part of the agreement, Breez will operate as a Spark Service Provider (SSP), joining Lightspark in facilitating payments and expanding Spark’s ecosystem. Technical specifications for the SDK will be released later this year, with the full implementation slated for launch in 2025.

About Breez
Breez pioneers Lightning Network solutions, enabling developers to embed self-custodial bitcoin payments into apps. Its SDK powers seamless, secure, and decentralized financial interactions.

About Spark
Spark is a bitcoin-native Layer 2 infrastructure designed for payments and settlement, allowing developers to build directly on Bitcoin’s base layer without compromises.

@ 9c9d2765:16f8c2c2

CHAPTER TWENTY SIX

"The streets teach you a lot. It teaches you how to survive, how to fight, how to bend the world to your will. But there’s something else it teaches you how to rise above the petty battles and claim the empire that’s rightfully yours."

Just then, the door opened again, and Charles entered, his usual calm demeanor replaced with a rare air of urgency.

"James," he said, his voice serious. "There’s something you need to know. The press is getting more aggressive. They’ve caught wind of your plans, and they’re pushing for an exclusive interview. They want the story of how you rose from nothing to everything. It’s becoming a media frenzy."

James didn’t flinch. His eyes remained steady as he absorbed the news.

"Let them come," he said. "They can write whatever they want. Let the world see how I turned my destiny around. But they’ll never write the full story. They’ll never know the price I paid to get here."

Charles raised an eyebrow, impressed by James’s unshakable resolve. "And what about Mark and Helen?"

James’s expression darkened, the calm facade cracking just enough to reveal the fire beneath. "They’ll face the consequences of their actions. And I’ll make sure they do."

Rita stepped forward, her tone soft yet firm. "But there’s still a part of you that wants more than just their downfall. You want to rebuild this company, don’t you?"

James glanced at her, his eyes hardening.

"Rebuilding is just the beginning," he replied. "I didn’t fight for what’s mine just to watch it crumble. JP Enterprises will become something greater. Something unbreakable. A legacy that no one can touch, no one can tarnish."

The sound of footsteps echoed through the hallway, and moments later, Mrs. JP entered the room. There was a subtle weight in her posture, but also a sense of pride in her eyes.

"You’ve handled this situation with strength and wisdom, James," she said, her voice full of warmth. "Your father and I could never be prouder. You’ve surpassed every expectation we ever had."

James met her gaze and nodded. "Thank you. But this isn’t just about your approval. It’s about proving to myself in the world that I’m not the man I was before. I’m the man I’ve chosen to be."

Mrs. JP smiled, her eyes softening. "And you’ve become that man with grace. You’ve earned everything that’s come your way."

James’s gaze lingered for a moment before he spoke again. "It’s not over yet. There’s still work to be done. We have to ensure that JP Enterprises remains strong, remains untouchable. This is just the first step."

Charles exchanged a knowing look with Rita, then turned back to James. "We’re with you, every step of the way."

The room fell into a brief, heavy silence. Outside, the city continued to hum, indifferent to the dramatic shifts taking place within the walls of JP Enterprises. But James knew that the storm was far from over. He had won the battle, but the war was only just beginning.

As he looked around at the people who now stood by him, he realized that this victory was more than just personal; it was a turning point for the entire legacy of the JP name.

"James, how does it feel to be the talk of an entire city?" Charles asked, leaning against the polished oak desk in James’s expansive office.

James stood by the window, his hands clasped behind his back, watching the sun descend beyond the city skyline. The room was silent for a moment, filled only with the distant hum of the city below.

"It feels... inevitable," James replied, his tone calm but layered with meaning. "People always talk when someone they counted out rewrites the rules of the game."

Charles chuckled lightly, walking over to pour himself a glass of water. "Well, you haven’t just rewritten the rules, James. You’ve rewritten the entire playbook."

James turned, a shadow of a smile on his face. "And yet, some still believe they can undermine me. Manipulate the truth. Twist it until the entire narrative collapses."

Just then, Rita entered, holding a folder tightly in her hands. There was tension in her posture, controlled, but evident.

"You need to see this," she said, handing James the folder. "It's an internal memo that was intercepted. Apparently, Mark and Helen aren’t done. They’ve secured a secret meeting with a major competitor Wellington Holdings."

James flipped through the documents, his eyes narrowing. "Wellington? So, they’ve moved from sabotage to outright betrayal.

"They’re desperate," Rita added. "Their reputations are in ruins, and with the public backlash after the failed stunt at the anniversary, they’re looking for anything to reclaim their influence."

James’s jaw tightened. "Let them try. I’ve weathered storms far greater than the games of disgraced traitors."

Rita hesitated before continuing. "There’s more. Tracy’s gone quiet. She’s removed all traces of her involvement. But I have reason to believe she’s still communicating with Helen... through an encrypted channel."

James closed the folder and walked slowly to his desk. His movements were deliberate, filled with the confidence of someone who had faced betrayal before and emerged stronger.

"Then it’s time we end this," he said. "Not with anger. Not with revenge. But with undeniable, irreversible justice."

He looked up at Charles and Rita. "I want full surveillance on Wellington. Legal is to prepare a formal complaint if they attempt to interfere with any JP enterprise contract. And I want every associate of Mark and Helen cross-checked. If there’s even a whisper of conspiracy, I want it recorded."

Charles nodded. "Consider it done. We’ll strike with precision."

As they left the room to carry out their tasks, James sat behind his desk, momentarily still. His mind drifted to the days when he had nothing, no name, no wealth, no influence. How far he had come. And yet, how familiar the shadows still felt.

Later that evening, as the city lights glowed brighter, a new headline took over the news:

“JP Enterprises President Set to Announce Major Expansion, Exclusive Projects to Redefine the City’s Economic Landscape.”

It wasn’t about the slander anymore. It wasn’t about revenge. It was about legacy.

The silence in Mark’s penthouse was nearly deafening. Once a space of elite grandeur and sophisticated indulgence, it now felt hollow like the echo of a reputation lost. Mark sat slouched on his couch, the flickering television casting shadows across his unshaven face. He clenched a glass of scotch, half-empty, its contents trembling ever so slightly with each beat of his agitated heart.

The news was relentless. Story after story painted him in a less-than-flattering light. What had once been a carefully crafted image of charm and corporate poise had been shredded by public disgrace. And now, the city wasn’t just ignoring him, they were laughing at him.

“This can’t be it,” he muttered under his breath, his voice raspy. “It can’t end like this.”

Just then, Helen burst into the room. Her heels clicked loudly on the marble floor, a sharp contrast to the dull haze Mark had wrapped himself in. She threw a tabloid magazine onto the coffee table. The headline screamed at them:

“Ray Empire Architect of Scandal: Helen Ray and Ex-Exec Mark Linked to Fraud, Defamation and Bribery.”

@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

Ed Suman, a 67-year-old retired artist who helped create large sculptures like Jeff Koons’ Balloon Dog, reportedly lost his entire life savings — over $2M in digital assets — in a sophisticated scam.

The incident is believed to be tied to the major data breach at Coinbase, one of the world’s largest digital asset exchanges.

Suman’s story is part of a bigger wave of attacks on digital asset holders using stolen personal info, and has triggered lawsuits, regulatory concerns and questions about digital security in the Bitcoin space.

In March 2025, Suman got a text message about suspicious activity on his Coinbase account. After Suman reported he was unaware of any unauthorized activity regarding his account, he got a call from a man who introduced himself as Brett Miller from Coinbase Security.

The guy sounded legit — he knew Suman’s setup, including that he used a Trezor Model One hardware wallet, a device meant to keep bitcoin and other digital assets offline and safe.

Suman told Bloomberg the guy knew everything, including the exact amount of digital assets he had.

The attacker persuaded Suman that his Trezor One hardware wallet and its funds were at risk and walked him through a “security procedure” that involved entering his seed phrase into a website that looked exactly like Coinbase, in order to “link his wallet to Coinbase”.

Nine days later, another guy called and repeated the process, saying the first one didn’t work.

And then, all of Suman’s digital assets — 17.5 bitcoin and 225 ether — were gone. At the time, bitcoin was around $103,000 and ether around $2,500, so the stolen stash was worth over $2 million.

Suman turned to digital assets after retiring from a decades-long art career. He stored his assets in cold storage to avoid the risks of online exchanges. He thought he did everything right.

Suman’s attackers didn’t pick his name out of a hat.

It looks like his personal info may have been leaked in the major breach at Coinbase. The company confirmed on May 15 that some of its customer service reps in India were bribed to access internal systems and steal customer data.

The stolen data included names, phone numbers, email addresses, balances and partial Social Security numbers.

According to Coinbase’s filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the breach may have started as early as January and affected nearly 1% of the company’s active monthly users — tens of thousands of people.

Hackers demanded $20M from Coinbase to keep the breach quiet but the company refused to pay. Coinbase says it fired the compromised agents and is setting aside $180M to $400M to reimburse affected users.

But so far, Suman hasn’t been told if he’ll be reimbursed.

Since the breach was disclosed, Coinbase has been hit with at least six lawsuits.

The lawsuits claim the company failed to protect user data and handled the aftermath poorly. One lawsuit filed in New York federal court on May 16 says Coinbase’s response was “inadequate, fragmented, and delayed.”

“Users were not promptly or fully informed of the compromise,” the complaint states, “and Coinbase did not immediately take meaningful steps to mitigate further harm.”

Some lawsuits are seeking damages, others are asking Coinbase to purge user data and improve its security. Coinbase has not commented on the lawsuits but pointed reporters to a blog post about its response.

Suman’s case is a cautionary tale across the Bitcoin world. He used a hardware wallet (considered the gold standard of Bitcoin security) and was still tricked through social engineering. Even the strongest security is useless if you don’t understand how Bitcoin works.

It’s never too early for Bitcoiners to start learning more about Bitcoin, especially on how to keep their stash safe. And the first lesson is “never ever share your seed phrase with anyone”.

Related: Bitcoin Hardware Wallet Hacks: What You Need to Know

@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

Tokyo-listed investment firm Metaplanet has officially surpassed El Salvador in bitcoin holdings after its biggest-ever single purchase of the scarce digital asset.

On May 12, 2025, the company announced it had bought 1,241 Bitcoin (BTC) for approximately $123.8 million, or ¥18.4 billion. The average price per coin was about $102,111, marking the firm’s largest purchase to date.

This latest buy brings Metaplanet’s total bitcoin reserves to 6,796 BTC, worth over $700 million.

Metaplanet on X

That puts Metaplanet ahead of El Salvador, the Central American nation that made headlines in 2021 for adopting bitcoin as legal tender. According to its National Bitcoin Office, El Salvador currently holds 6,174 BTC, worth roughly $642 million.

El Salvador bitcoin holdings — bitcoin.gob.sv

“Metaplanet now holds more bitcoin than El Salvador. From humble beginnings to rivaling nation-states, we’re just getting started,” said CEO Simon Gerovich on X after the company’s announcement.

The Japanese investment company started its bitcoin treasury strategy in April 2024 and has become the largest corporate holder of bitcoin in Asia and 11th globally. It aims to hold 10,000 BTC by the end of 2025.

Metaplanet is now the 11th largest corporate holder of bitcoin — BitcoinTreasuries

To fund these purchases, the firm has turned to bond issuances, including zero-percent bonds. In early May, Metaplanet issued $25 million worth of 0% bonds under its EVO FUND program to finance bitcoin buys without diluting shares or taking on traditional debt.

And Metaplanet’s strategy seems to be working. Its BTC Yield — a proprietary metric that measures bitcoin accumulation per share — is 38% for Q2 2025 so far. In previous quarters, the firm reported 95.6% in Q1 and a whopping 309.8% in Q4 2024.

The stock price has also gone up 1,800% since May 2024 and 51% in 2025 alone, currently trading above 550 JPY.

Metaplanet is often called “Japan’s MicroStrategy”, a reference to the U.S.-based company Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy) led by Bitcoin advocate Michael Saylor. Strategy is the world’s largest corporate bitcoin holder with over 568,840 BTC in its coffers, worth more than $58 billion.

Like Strategy, Metaplanet is using creative financing tools such as convertible bonds and non-dilutive bond issuance to build a big bitcoin treasury. These financial instruments give the company the ability to fund further bitcoin purchases without diluting shareholders’ value.

Metaplanet is buying bitcoin very rapidly. This has become a trend in the corporate world, where private companies are challenging nation-states in the digital asset space.

Unlike governments which face regulatory and political hurdles, corporations like Metaplanet can move quickly and decisively. Since 2020 over 80 publicly traded companies have collectively bought more than 632,000 BTC worth over $65 billion.

This is a fundamental shift in how companies manage their treasuries — moving away from cash or bonds and towards the digital scarcity that bitcoin presents.

This creates a new form of financial power where corporations can hold a significant portion of a finite asset, unlike fiat currencies which governments can print to infinity.

@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

American Bitcoin, a bitcoin mining company backed by President Donald Trump’s sons, is going public in a new merger deal with Gryphon Digital Mining. Investors and political observers are taking notice as it presents a mixture of Bitcoin, Wall Street and the Trump brand.

This reverse merger allows for American Bitcoin Corporation to become a publicly traded company. This will happen through a stock-for-stock merger with Gryphon Digital Mining, a small-cap bitcoin miner already listed on the Nasdaq.

Once the deal is done, the new company will be called American Bitcoin and will trade on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol ABTC. The merger is expected to close in the 3rd quarter of 2025.

Eric Trump, who will be the Co-Founder and the Chief Strategy Officer, said:

“Our vision for American Bitcoin is to create the most investable Bitcoin accumulation platform in the market.”

The Trump family’s involvement has gotten a lot of attention. Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. launched American Bitcoin in March this year with digital asset infrastructure company Hut 8, which owns 80% of American Bitcoin.

American Bitcoin leadership team — Hut 8 presentation

After the merger, American Bitcoin shareholders — including the Trump brothers and Hut 8 — will own about 98% of the new company. Gryphon shareholders will own 2% even though Gryphon is the public company facilitating the merger.

Instead of an IPO (Initial Public Offering), American Bitcoin is going public through what’s called a reverse merger. This means it will take over Gryphon’s public listing.

This is often faster and simpler than a traditional IPO. It allows American Bitcoin to access public capital markets while maintaining operational and strategic control.

Hut 8 CEO Asher Genoot said the merger is a big step forward for the company. “By taking American Bitcoin public, we expect to unlock direct access to dedicated growth capital independent of Hut 8’s balance sheet,” Genoot said.

The announcement sent Gryphon’s stock soaring. Shares rose over 280% and Hut 8’s stock went up over 11%. Clearly investors are interested in bitcoin-focused public companies when the asset itself is close to its previous all-time high.

But not everyone is buying. Some investors and analysts are questioning what Gryphon is actually bringing to the table. Gryphon won’t have a seat on the board or any representation in the new management team. Their role seems to be just to provide the public listing.

Many questions remain unanswered because there are no details on mining operations and what Gryphon’s role is beyond the merger.

American Bitcoin’s goal goes far beyond just mining bitcoin. It wants to become a national bitcoin reserve builder and a major player in that space by storing large amounts of bitcoin as a strategic asset.

The company plans to take “capital-light” advantage of Hut 8’s existing infrastructure, so there won’t be any need to build massive new data centers. Hut 8 already manages over 1,000 megawatts of energy capacity, and apparently, they will handle all the mining operations.

This is happening at a tough time for the mining industry in the U.S. and globally.

Profit margins are shrinking, and companies are really feeling the pinch of high operational costs. Hut 8 just reported a 58% drop in revenue and a $134 million net loss for the first quarter of 2025.

@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

Ukraine is reportedly about to make history by becoming the first country in Europe to have a national bitcoin reserve, a move aimed at strengthening its economy during the war with Russia.

The plan is still in its early stages and Binance, the world’s largest digital asset exchange, is involved.

According to Incrypted, a Ukrainian digital asset news outlet, Ukrainian MP Yaroslav Zheleznyak, First Deputy Chairman of the Finance, Tax and Customs Policy Committee, confirmed that the draft law is almost ready and will be submitted to the parliament soon.

“We will soon submit a draft law from the industry allowing the creation of crypto reserves,” Zheleznyak told Incrypted.

Earlier discussions mentioned a broader “crypto reserve” but the current plan is focused on bitcoin as a strategic reserve asset. If approved, the law will allow the National Bank of Ukraine to hold bitcoin as part of the country’s official reserves.

Since the war with Russia started, Ukraine has become one of the most bitcoin-friendly countries in the world.

In 2022 and 2023 Ukraine raised over $100 million in digital asset donations for defense and humanitarian purposes. A report from Chainalysis ranked the country among the top 10 countries for bitcoin adoption globally.

A rather vague and unconfirmed report by BitcoinTreasuries.net states that “holdings of public officials” currently stand at 46,351 BTC.

Ukraine bitcoin holdings as reported by BitcoinTreasuries

Supporters of the bitcoin reserve say it will help Ukraine protect its economy from war-related instability, inflation and currency depreciation.

By going digital, the government is looking for modern tools to strengthen its financial system in uncertain times. This is not just about storing bitcoin, it’s about establishing clear laws for digital assets ownership, management and use.

Binance is playing an advisory role in the project. The company has worked with Ukraine on digital asset education and regulations in the past and is now helping to shape the legal framework for the bitcoin reserve.

Kirill Khomyakov, Binance’s regional head for Central and Eastern Europe, Central Asia and Africa, confirmed the company’s support, but warned it won’t be fast or easy.

“The creation of such a reserve will require significant changes in legislation,” Khomyakov said. “Another positive aspect is that this initiative will likely lead to greater clarity in the regulation of crypto assets in Ukraine.”

Despite the support from some officials, there are legal hurdles. Ukrainian laws don’t allow bitcoin to be in the official reserves. So the government needs to pass new laws for it to happen.

Efforts to legalize bitcoin in general have been going on for years. In 2021, a draft law on virtual assets was approved by Finance Committee but was withdrawn after the President’s Office and financial regulators objected.

Up to now, over 80 amendments have been proposed, showing how complicated the process is.

The Ministry of Digital Transformation is leading a larger reform that could introduce rules for digital asset exchanges, tax laws and anti-money laundering standards in the country.

Ukraine isn’t alone in considering bitcoin as a national reserve asset. In March 2025, the U.S. announced its own Strategic Bitcoin Reserve using BTC seized in criminal cases.

@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

KYC database of Coinbase, the largest U.S. digital asset exchange, has been breached and up to 1% of monthly active users, or around 100,000 customers, have had their personal info stolen.

Hackers reportedly bribed overseas customer support agents and contractors to leak internal company info and user data. They then demanded $20 million and threatened to release the stolen data if Coinbase didn’t pay.

Instead of paying the ransom, Coinbase said no and is setting up a $20 million reward fund for anyone who can help catch the hackers.

“They then tried to extort Coinbase for $20 million to cover this up. We said no,” the company said in a blog post. “Instead of paying the $20 million ransom, we’re establishing a $20 million reward fund.”

So what’s been stolen? The breach, which was first disclosed in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), did not involve any theft of customer funds, login credentials, private keys or wallets.

But the hackers did get:

• Full names
• Addresses
• Phone numbers
• Email addresses
• Last 4 digits of Social Security numbers
• Bank account numbers and some bank identifiers
• Government ID images (driver’s licenses, passports, etc.)
• Account balances and transaction history
• Internal corporate documents and training materials

Coinbase says Prime accounts were not affected and no passwords or 2FA codes were stolen.

According to Coinbase, the attackers targeted outsourced support agents in countries like India. They were offering cash bribes in exchange for access to the company’s internal customer support tools.

“What these attackers were doing was finding Coinbase employees and contractors based in India who were associated with our business process outsourcing or support operations, that kind of thing, and bribing them in order to obtain customer data,” said Philip Martin, Coinbase’s Chief Security Officer.

Coinbase said it first saw suspicious activity in January 2025 but didn’t get a direct email from the threat actors until May 11. The email had evidence of stolen data and the ransom demand.

Coinbase quickly launched an investigation, fired all the involved support agents and notified law enforcement. It also started notifying users via email on May 15.

The Coinbase data breach has hit it hard, financially and publicly. The company estimates it will spend $180-$400 million on security upgrades, reimbursements and other remediation.

Coinbase’s stock also took a hit, dropping 6.4% after the news broke, before rebounding.

Analysts say this couldn’t have come at a worse time, as Coinbase is about to be added to the S&P 500 index – a big deal for any publicly traded company.

It’s definitely an unfortunate timing. “This may push the industry to adopt stricter employee vetting and introduce some reputational risks,” said Bo Pei, analyst at U.S. Tiger Securities.

Coinbase will reimburse any customers who were tricked into sending their digital assets to the attackers as part of social engineering scams. They’ve also introduced new security measures:

• Extra ID verification for high-risk withdrawals
• Scam-awareness prompts
• A new U.S.-based support center
• Stronger insider threat monitoring
• Simulation testing for internal systems

Affected customers have already been notified and the exchange is working with U.S. and international law enforcement to track down the attackers.

This is part of a larger trend in the digital assets world. Earlier this year, Bybit, another exchange, was hit with a $1.5 billion theft, dubbed the biggest digital asset heist in history.

Research from Chainalysis shows over $2.2 billion was stolen from digital asset platforms in 2024 alone.

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

@matt_odell don't you even dare not ask about nostr!

— Kukks (Andrew Camilleri) (@MrKukks) May 18, 2021

Nostr first hit my radar spring 2021: created by fellow bitcoiner and friend, fiatjaf, and released to the world as free open source software. I was fortunate to be able to host a conversation with him on Citadel Dispatch in those early days, capturing that moment in history forever. Since then, the protocol has seen explosive viral organic growth as individuals around the world have contributed their time and energy to build out the protocol and the surrounding ecosystem due to the clear need for better communication tools.

nostr is to twitter as bitcoin is to paypal

As an intro to nostr, let us start with a metaphor:

twitter is paypal - a centralized platform plagued by censorship but has the benefit of established network effects

nostr is bitcoin - an open protocol that is censorship resistant and robust but requires an organic adoption phase

Nostr is an open communication protocol that can be used to send messages across a distributed set of relays in a censorship resistant and robust way.
 - Anyone can run a relay.
 - Anyone can interact with the protocol.
 - Relays can choose which messages they want to relay.
 - Users are identified by a simple public private key pair that they can generate themselves.

Nostr is often compared to twitter since there are nostr clients that emulate twitter functionality and user interface but that is merely one application of the protocol. Nostr is so much more than a mere twitter competitor. Nostr clients and relays can transmit a wide variety of data and clients can choose how to display that information to users. The result is a revolution in communication with implications that are difficult for any of us to truly comprehend.

Similar to bitcoin, nostr is an open and permissionless protocol. No person, company, or government controls it. Anyone can iterate and build on top of nostr without permission. Together, bitcoin and nostr are incredibly complementary freedom tech tools: censorship resistant, permissionless, robust, and interoperable - money and speech protected by code and incentives, not laws.

As censorship throughout the world continues to escalate, freedom tech provides hope for individuals around the world who refuse to accept the status quo. This movement will succeed on the shoulders of those who choose to stand up and contribute. We will build our own path. A brighter path.

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My Nostr Public Key: npub1qny3tkh0acurzla8x3zy4nhrjz5zd8l9sy9jys09umwng00manysew95gx

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

There must be a limit to how much data is transferred across the bitcoin network in order to keep the ability to run and use your own node accessible. A node is required to interact with the global bitcoin network - if you do not use your own node then you must trust someone else's node. If nodes become inaccessible to run then the network will centralize around the remaining entities that operate them - threatening the censorship resistance at the core of bitcoin's value prop. The bitcoin protocol uses three main mechanisms to keep node operation costs low - a fixed limit on the amount of data in each block, an automatic difficulty adjustment that regulates how many blocks are produced based on current mining hash rate, and a robust dynamic transaction fee market.

Bitcoin transaction fees limit network abuse by making usage expensive. There is a cost to every transaction, set by a dynamic free market based on demand for scarce block space. It is an incredibly robust way to prevent spam without relying on centralized entities that can be corrupted or pressured.

After the 2017 bitcoin fee spike we had six years of relative quiet to build tools that would be robust in a sustained high fee market. Fortunately our tools are significantly better now but many still need improvement. Most of the pain points we see today will be mitigated.

The reality is we were never going to be fully prepared - pressure is needed to show the pain points and provide strong incentives to mitigate them.

It will be incredibly interesting to watch how projects adapt under pressure. Optimistic we see great innovation here.

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_If you are willing to wait for your transaction to confirm you can pay significantly lower fees. Learn best practices for reducing your fee burden here.

My guide for running and using your own bitcoin node can be found here._

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

Influencers would have you believe there is an ongoing binance bank run but bitcoin wallet data says otherwise.

- binance wallets are near all time highs
- bitfinex wallets are also trending up
- gemini and coinbase are being hit with massive withdrawals though

You should not trust custodians, they can rug you without warning. It is incredibly important you learn how to hold bitcoin yourself, but also consider not blindly trusting influencers with a ref link to shill you.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ eb0157af:77ab6c55

A group of users has filed a class action lawsuit against Coinbase, claiming that its identity verification checks violate the state’s biometric privacy law.

According to plaintiffs Scott Bernstein, Gina Greeder, and James Lonergan in the lawsuit filed on May 13 in a federal court, Coinbase’s “indiscriminate collection” of facial biometric data for Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements breaches Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA).

The group argued that the exchange failed to notify users in writing about the collection, storage, or sharing of their biometric data, as well as the purpose and retention schedule for such data. “Coinbase does not publicly provide a retention schedule or guidelines for permanently destroying Plaintiffs’ biometric identifiers as specified by BIPA,” they alleged.

The complaint claims that Coinbase requires users to verify their identity by uploading a government-issued ID and a selfie, which is then sent to third-party facial recognition software to scan and extract facial geometry. This process captures biometric identifiers without the users’ informed written consent, thus violating BIPA, according to the lawsuit.

Additionally, the group alleged that Coinbase unlawfully shared biometric data with third-party verification providers such as Jumio, Onfido, Au10tix, and Solaris without users’ consent. “Coinbase ‘obtains’ biometric data in violation of [BIPA] because it explicitly directed the Third Party Verification Providers to use its software to verify and authenticate users, including Plaintiffs, and its software does so by collecting biometric data,” the complaint read.

The group also stated that over 10,000 individuals have filed arbitration demands on these issues with the American Arbitration Association, but Coinbase allegedly refused to pay the required arbitration fees, causing the claims to be dismissed.

Legal demands

The lawsuit brings three counts of biometric privacy law violations and one count of consumer fraud under the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act. The group seeks $5,000 for each intentional or reckless violation, $1,000 for each negligent violation, along with injunctive relief and litigation costs.

Coinbase was also recently hit by at least six lawsuits following the May 15 disclosure that some of its customer support agents were allegedly bribed to leak user data.

The post Lawsuit against Coinbase for biometric privacy violations in Illinois appeared first on Atlas21.

@ eb0157af:77ab6c55

A Chinese printer company inadvertently distributed malware that steals Bitcoin through its official drivers, resulting in the theft of over $950,000.

According to local media outlet Landian News, a Chinese printer manufacturer was found to have unknowingly distributed malware designed to steal Bitcoin through its official device drivers.

Procolored, a Shenzhen-based printer company, distributed malware capable of stealing Bitcoin alongside the official drivers for its devices. The company reportedly used USB devices to spread infected drivers and uploaded the compromised software to globally accessible cloud storage services.

Crypto security and compliance firm SlowMist explained how the malware works in a post on X:

The official driver provided by this printer carries a backdoor program. It will hijack the wallet address in the user's clipboard and replace it with the attacker's address: 1BQZKqdp2CV3QV5nUEsqSg1ygegLmqRygj

According to @MistTrack_io, the attacker has stolen 9.3086… https://t.co/DHCkEpHhuH pic.twitter.com/W1AnUpswLU

— MistTrack (@MistTrack_io) May 19, 2025

The consequences of the breach have been significant, with a total of 9.3 BTC stolen — equivalent to over $950,000.

The issue was first flagged by YouTuber Cameron Coward, whose antivirus software detected malware in the drivers during a test of a Procolored UV printer. The software identified both a worm and a trojan virus named Foxif.

When contacted, Procolored denied the accusations, dismissing the antivirus warning as a false positive. Coward then turned to Reddit, where he shared the issue with cybersecurity professionals, drawing the attention of security firm G Data.

G Data’s investigation revealed that most of Procolored’s drivers were hosted on the MEGA file-sharing platform, with uploads dating back to October 2023. Their analysis confirmed the presence of two separate malware strains: the Win32.Backdoor.XRedRAT.A backdoor and a crypto-stealer designed to replace clipboard wallet addresses with those controlled by the attacker.

G Data reached out to Procolored, which stated that it had removed the infected drivers from its storage as of May 8 and had re-scanned all files. The company attributed the malware to a supply chain compromise, saying the malicious files were introduced via infected USB devices before being uploaded online.

Landian News recommended that users who downloaded Procolored drivers in the past six months “immediately run a full system scan using antivirus software.” However, given that antivirus tools are not always reliable, the Chinese media outlet suggested that a full system reset is the safest option when in doubt.

The post Bitcoin malware discovered: Chinese printer manufacturer involved appeared first on Atlas21.

@ eb0157af:77ab6c55

According to the ECB Executive Board member, the launch of the digital euro depends on the timing of the EU regulation.

The European Central Bank (ECB) is making progress in preparing for the digital euro. According to Piero Cipollone, ECB Executive Board member and coordinator of the project, the technical phase “is proceeding quickly and on schedule,” but moving to operational implementation still requires political approval of the regulation at the European level.

Speaking at the ‘Voices on the Future’ event organized by Ansa and Asvis, Cipollone outlined a possible timeline:

“If the regulation is approved at the start of 2026 — in the best-case scenario for the European legislative process — we could see the first transactions with the digital euro by mid-2028.”

Cipollone also highlighted Europe’s current dependence on electronic payment systems managed by non-European companies:

“Today in Europe, whenever we don’t use cash, any transaction online or at the supermarket has to go through credit cards, with their fees. The payment system relies on companies that aren’t based in Europe. You can see why it would make sense to have a system fully under our control.”

For the ECB board member, the digital euro would act as a direct alternative to cash in the digital world, working like “a banknote you can spend anywhere in Europe for any purpose.”

The digital euro project is part of the ECB’s broader strategy to strengthen the independence of Europe’s financial system. According to Cipollone and the Central Bank, Europe’s digital currency would be a key step toward greater autonomy in electronic payments, reducing reliance on infrastructure and services outside the European Union.

The post ECB: digital euro by mid-2028, says Cipollone appeared first on Atlas21.

@ eb0157af:77ab6c55

A new study reveals: 4 out of 5 Americans would like the US to convert some of its gold into Bitcoin.

A recent survey conducted by the Nakamoto Project revealed that a majority of Americans support converting a portion of the United States’ gold reserves into Bitcoin. The survey, carried out online by Qualtrics between February and March 2025, involved 3,345 participants with demographic characteristics representative of US census standards. Most respondents expressed a desire to convert between 1% and 30% of the gold reserves into BTC.

Troy Cross, co-founder of the Nakamoto Project, stated:

“When given a slider and asked to advise the US government on the right proportion of Bitcoin and gold, subjects were very reluctant to put that slider on 0% Bitcoin and 100% gold. Instead, they settled around 10% Bitcoin.”

One significant finding from the research is the correlation between age and openness to Bitcoin: younger respondents showed a greater inclination toward the cryptocurrency compared to older generations.

A potential US strategy

Bo Hines, a White House advisor, is promoting an initiative for the Treasury Department to acquire Bitcoin by selling off a portion of its gold. Under the proposed plan, the government could acquire up to 1 million BTC over the next five years.

To finance these purchases, the government plans to sell Federal Reserve gold certificates. The proposal aligns with Senator Cynthia Lummis’ 2025 Bitcoin Act, which aims to declare Bitcoin a critical national strategic asset.

Currently, the United States holds 8,133 metric tons of gold, valued at over $830 billion, and about 200,000 BTC, valued at $21 billion.

The post The majority in the US wants to convert part of the gold reserves into Bitcoin appeared first on Atlas21.

@ eb0157af:77ab6c55

Bitcoin adoption will come through businesses: neither governments nor banks will lead the revolution.

In recent years, it’s undeniable that Bitcoin has ceased to be just a radical idea born from the minds of cypherpunks. It is now recognized across the board as a global asset, discussed in the upper echelons of finance, accepted even on Wall Street, purchased by banking groups and included as a “strategic reserve” by some nations.

However, the general perception that hovers today regarding Bitcoin’s diffusion is still that of minimal adoption, almost insignificant. Bitcoin exists, certainly, but in fact it is not being used. It is rarely possible to pay in satoshis in commercial establishments. Demand is still extremely low.

Furthermore, the debate on Bitcoin is still practically absent: excluding some local events, some niche media outlets or some timid discussion, today Bitcoin is in fact excluded from general interest. The level of understanding and knowledge of the phenomenon is certainly still very low.

Yet, Bitcoin represents an unprecedented technological improvement, capable of solving many problems inherent in the fiat system in which we live. What could facilitate its diffusion?

Bitcoin becomes familiar when businesses adopt it

When talking about Bitcoin adoption, many look to States. They imagine governments that legislate or accumulate Bitcoin as a “strategic reserve,” or banks perceived as forward-thinking that would lead technological change, opening up to innovation. But the reality is different: bureaucracy, political constraints, and fear of losing control inherently prevent States and central banks from being pioneers.

What really drives Bitcoin adoption are not States, but businesses. It is the forward-looking entrepreneurs, innovative startups and – eventually – even large multinational companies that decide to integrate Bitcoin into their operating systems that drive adoption. Indeed, the business world has always played a key role in the adoption of new technologies. This was the case, for example, with the internet, e-commerce, mobile telephony, and the cloud. It will also be the case with Bitcoin.

Unlike a State, when a company adopts Bitcoin, it does so for concrete reasons: efficiency, savings, protection, access to new markets, independence from traditional banking circuits, or bureaucratic streamlining. It is a rational choice, not an ideological one, dictated by the intent to improve one’s competitiveness against the competition to survive in the market.

What is currently missing to facilitate adoption is, in all likelihood, a significant number of businesses that have decided to integrate Bitcoin into their company systems.

Bitcoin becomes “normal” when it is integrated into the operational flow of businesses. Holding and framing bitcoin on the balance sheet, paying an invoice, paying salaries to employees in satoshis, making value transfers globally thanks to the blockchain, allowing customers to pay via Lightning Network… when all this becomes possible with the same simplicity with which we use the euro or the dollar, Bitcoin stops being alternative and becomes the standard.

Businesses are not just users. They are adoption multipliers. When a company chooses Bitcoin, it is automatically proposing it to customers, employees, suppliers, and institutional stakeholders. Each business adoption equals tens, hundreds, or thousands of new eyes on Bitcoin.

People, after all, trust what they see every day: if your trusted restaurant accepts bitcoin, or if your favorite e-commerce platform uses it to receive international payments, or if your colleague receives it as a salary, then Bitcoin no longer appears to be a mysterious object. It finally begins to be perceived as a real, useful, and functioning tool.

The integration of a technology in companies helps make it understandable, accessible, and legitimate in the eyes of the public. This is how distrust is overcome: by making Bitcoin visible in daily life.

Bitcoin and businesses today

A River Financial report estimates that as of May 2025, only 5% of bitcoin is currently owned by private businesses. A still very small number.

According to research by River, in May 2025 businesses hold just over a million btc (about 5% of available monetary units). More than two-thirds of bitcoin (68.2%) are in the hands of private individuals.

To promote Bitcoin adoption, it is necessary today to support businesses in integrating this standard, leveraging all its enormous opportunities. Among others, this technology allows for fast, economical, and global payments. It eliminates intermediaries, increases transparency and security in value transfers. It removes bureaucratic frictions and allows opening up to a new global market.

Every sector can benefit from Bitcoin: e-commerce, tourism, industry, restaurants, professional services, or any other business. Bitcoin revolutionizes the concept of money, and money is a transversal working tool.

We are still at the beginning, but several signals are encouraging. According to a study by Bitwise and reported by Atlas21, in the first quarter of 2025, a growing number of US companies (+16.11% compared to the previous one) are including Bitcoin in their balance sheets, not just as a financial bet, but as a long-term strategy to protect their assets and access a decentralized monetary system to transfer value worldwide without resorting to financial intermediaries.

Who is driving the change?

Echoing the words of Roy Sheinfeld, CEO of Breez, the true potential of Bitcoin will be unleashed first and foremost from the work of developers, the true architects in designing and refining tools that are increasingly simple and intuitive to use for anyone, regardless of level of expertise. It is the developers – Roy rightly argued – who will enable us to “conquer the world.”

But probably that’s not enough: the next step is to make Bitcoin a globally accepted technological standard, changing its perception towards the general public. And this is where businesses come into play.

Guided by the market, technological innovation, and the desire to meet user demands, entrepreneurs today represent the fulcrum to accelerate the monetary transition from the current fiat system towards the Bitcoin standard. It is entrepreneurs who transform innovations from opportunities for a few to a reality shared by many.

The adoption of Bitcoin will therefore not arise from a sudden event, nor from the exclusive fruit of enthusiasts’ enthusiasm or from arbitrary political choices decreed by States or regulators.

The future of Bitcoin is built in the places where value is created every day: in companies, in their systems, and in their strategic decisions.

“If we conquer developers, we conquer the world. If we conquer businesses, we conquer adoption.”

The post The key to Bitcoin adoption is businesses appeared first on Atlas21.

@ dfa02707:41ca50e3

Headlines

• Spiral renews support for Dan Gould and Joschisan. The organization has renewed support for Dan Gould, who is developing the Payjoin Dev Kit (PDK), and Joschisan, a Fedimint developer focused on simplifying federations.
• Metaplanet buys another 145 BTC. The Tokyo-listed company has purchased an additional 145 BTC for $13.6 million. Their total bitcoin holdings now stand at 5,000 coins, worth around $428.1 million.
• Semler Scientific has increased its bitcoin holdings to 3,303 BTC. The company acquired an additional 111 BTC at an average price of $90,124. The purchase was funded through proceeds from an at-the-market offering and cash reserves, as stated in a press release.
• The Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASP) Bill 2025 introduced in Kenya. The new legislation aims to establish a comprehensive legal framework for licensing, regulating, and supervising virtual asset service providers (VASPs), with strict penalties for non-compliant entities.
• Russian government to launch a cryptocurrency exchange. The country's Ministry of Finance and Central Bank announced plans to establish a trading platform for "highly qualified investors" that "will legalize crypto assets and bring crypto operations out of the shadows."
• All virtual asset service providers expect to be fully compliant with the Travel Rule by the end of 2025. A survey by financial surveillance specialist Notabene reveals that 90% of virtual asset service providers (VASPs) expect full Travel Rule compliance by mid-2025, with all aiming for compliance by year-end. The survey also shows a significant rise in VASPs blocking withdrawals until beneficiary information is confirmed, increasing from 2.9% in 2024 to 15.4% now. Additionally, about 20% of VASPs return deposits if originator data is missing.
• UN claims Bitcoin mining is a "powerful tool" for money laundering. The Rage's analysis suggests that the recent United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime report on crime in South-East Asia makes little sense and hints at the potential introduction of Anti-Money Laundering (AML) measures at the mining level.
• Riot Platforms has obtained a $100 million credit facility from Coinbase Credit, using bitcoin as collateral for short-term funding to support its expansion. The firm's CEO, Jason Les, stated that this facility is crucial for diversifying financing sources and driving long-term stockholder value through strategic growth initiatives.
• Bitdeer raises $179M in loans and equity amid Bitcoin chip push. The Miner Mag reports that Bitdeer entered into a loan agreement with its affiliate Matrixport for up to $200 million in April, as disclosed in its annual report filed on Monday.
• Federal Reserve retracts guidance discouraging banks from engaging in 'crypto.' The U.S. Federal Reserve withdrew guidance that discouraged banks from crypto and stablecoin activities, as announced by its Board of Governors on Thursday. This includes rescinding a 2022 supervisory letter requiring prior notification of crypto activities and 2023 stablecoin requirements.

"As a result, the Board will no longer expect banks to provide notification and will instead monitor banks' crypto-asset activities through the normal supervisory process," reads the FED statement.

• UAE-based Islamic bank ruya launches Shari’ah-compliant bitcoin investing. The bank has become the world’s first Islamic bank to provide direct access to virtual asset investments, including Bitcoin, via its mobile app, per Bitcoin Magazine.
• U.S. 'crypto' scam losses amounted to $9.3B in 2024. The US The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has reported $9.3 billion losses in cryptocurrency-related scams in 2024, noting a troubling trend of scams targeting older Americans, which accounted for over $2.8 billion of those losses.

Source: FBI.

• North Korean hackers establish fake companies to target 'crypto' developers. Silent Push researchers reported that hackers linked to the Lazarus Group created three shell companies, two of which are based in the U.S., with the objective of spreading malware through deceptive job interview scams aimed at individuals seeking jobs in cryptocurrency companies.
• Citrea deployed its Clementine Bridge on the Bitcoin testnet. The bridge utilizes the BitVM2 programming language to inherit validity from Bitcoin, allegedly providing "the safest and most trust-minimized way to use BTC in decentralized finance."
• Hesperides University offers a Master’s degree in Bitcoin. Bitcoin Magazine reports the launch of the first-ever Spanish-language Master’s program dedicated exclusively to Bitcoin. Starting April 28, 2025, this fully online program will equip professionals with technical, economic, legal, and philosophical skills to excel in the Bitcoin era.
• BTC in D.C. event is set to take place on September 30 - October 1 in Washington, D.C. Learn more about this initiative here.

Use the tools

• Bitcoin Keeper just got a new look. Version 2.2.0 of the mobile multisig app brought a new branding design, along with a Keeper Private tier, testnet support, ability to import and export BIP-329 labels, and the option to use a Server Key with multiple users.
  • Earlier this month the project also announced Keeper Learn service, offering clear and guided Bitcoin learning sessions for both groups and individuals.
• Keeper Desktop v0.2.2, a companion desktop app for Bitcoin Keeper mobile app, received a renewed branding update, too.

The evolution of Bitcoin Keeper logo. Source: BitHyve blog.

• Blockstream Green Desktop v2.0.25 updates GDK to v0.75.1 and fixes amount parsing issues when switching from fiat denomination to Liquid asset.
• Lightning Loop v0.31.0-beta enhances the loop listswaps command by improving the ability to filter the response.
• Lightning-kmp v1.10.0, an implementation of the Lightning Network in Kotlin, is now available.
• LND v0.19.0-beta.rc3, the latest beta release candidate of LND is now ready for testing.
• ZEUS v0.11.0-alpha2 is now available for testing, too. It's nuts.
• JoinMarket Fidelity Bond Simulator helps potential JoinMarket makers evaluate their competitive position in the market based on fidelity bonds.
• UTXOscope is a text-only Bitcoin blockchain analysis tool that visualizes price dynamics using only on-chain data. The

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

How Zeus is Redefining Bitcoin with Cashu Ecash Integration

The U.S.-based Bitcoin and Lightning mobile wallet Zeus recently announced an alpha-release integration of Cashu. The move marks the first integration of ecash into a popular Bitcoin wallet, breaking new ground for potential user adoption to Bitcoin.
Cashu is a hot new implementation of Chaumian ecash, a form of digital cash invented by David Chaum in the ’90s that has incredible privacy and scalability properties, with the trade-off of being fundamentally centralized, requiring a significant amount of trust in the issuer.

In a counterintuitive move for Zeus, known as the go-to tool for advanced Lightning users seeking to connect to their home nodes, the integration of Cashu acknowledges a “last mile” challenge Lightning wallets face when delivering Bitcoin to the masses.

“We basically started off as the cypherpunk wallet, right? You got to set up your own Lightning node and connect to it with Zeus. The last two years, we put the node in the phone with one click, you can run it all in a standalone app without a remote node,” Evan Kaloudis, founder and CEO of Zeus, told Bitcoin Magazine.

“Cashu addresses uneconomical self-custody for small bitcoin amounts. On-chain, the dust limit is 546 satoshis, and Layer Two systems like Lightning have costs for channel setup or unilateral exits that aren’t widely discussed,” Evan explained, highlighting a major point of friction in noncustodial Lightning wallets: the need for liquidity and channel management. While these esoteric aspects of the Lightning Network have been mostly abstracted away since its invention in 2016, these fundamental trade-offs continue to manifest even in the most sophisticated and user-friendly wallets.

In the case of both Phoenix and Zeus, two of the most popular noncustodial options in the market, users must pay up to 10,000 sats upfront to gain spending capacity. These fees are necessary to cover the on-chain fees spent to open a channel for the user against the wallet’s liquidity service provider, unlocking a noncustodial experience.

The required up-front fee is difficult to explain and represents a painful onboarding experience for new users who are used to fiat apps giving them money to join instead. The result is the proliferation of custodial Lightning wallets like Wallet of Satoshi (WOS), which gained massive adoption early on by leveraging the global, near-instant settlement power of Bitcoin combined with the excellent user experience centralized wallets can create.

Major developments have been made over seven years after the Lightning Network’s inception, however, and Zeus is pushing the boundaries.

“With Ecash, we make it so easy that anyone can set up a wallet and start participating in our ecosystem, which I really think is going to become more and more prevalent,” Evan explained.

Today, at roughly $100,000 per bitcoin, 1,000 satoshis are equivalent to $1. Transactions of these sizes are known as microtransactions — a popular example are Nostr social media tips known as Zaps. But finding the right tool for this use case is not simple. Self custodied wallets like Phoenix charge transaction fees in the hundreds of satoshis, even with open channels, and on-chain fees often cost the same and are slower to settle. As a result, there’s an entire category of spending that is only served by cheaper alternatives such as custodial lightning wallets like WOS or Blink, but result in significant privacy tradeoffs, often requiring phone numbers from users and in some cases more advanced KYC and IP tracking. Cashu hopes to serve this market with lower privacy costs, the same ease of use, speed and competitive fees.

Digging deeper into the Cashu integration, Evan explained that “for users this means being able to pick and switch between custodians in a single app. For developers this means being able to defer custodial responsibilities to third parties and not have to wire up a new integration when your current custodian halts operations.”

Zaps are satoshi-denominated rewards delivered as “likes” or micro-tips for content in the Nostr social media ecosystem. A Zap can be as small as one satoshi, the smallest amount of bitcoin that can be technically transferred, equivalent today to about a tenth of a penny. “But I think if we look at Nostr and you’re seeing how many people are Zapping and how big a part of that ecosystem it is. It’s like, people are willing to do it,” Evan explained.

“Cashu, while custodial, lets users accumulate small amounts — say, via Nostr Zaps — without needing 6,000 satoshis to open a Lightning channel. Zeus prompts users to upgrade to self-custody as their balance grows,” he concluded, explaining that the wallet will effectively annoy users into self custody, one of several design choices made to mitigate the risks introduced by Cashu.

Ecash

The trade-offs introduced by Cashu challenge the common understanding of custody as an either-or in Bitcoin. Historically you were either a centralized — custodial — exchange, or you were a noncustodial Bitcoin wallet. In the former, you entrust the coins to a third party; in the latter you take personal responsibility for those coins and their corresponding private keys. Cashu changes this paradigm by introducing bitcoin-denominated ecash notes or “nuts,” which are bearer instruments that should be backed by a full bitcoin reserve and Lightning interoperability for instant withdraw.

Similar to fiat cash, you must take control and responsibility over these notes, but there’s also counterparty risk. In the case of Cashu, there are certain things the issuing mint can theoretically do to exploit their users — akin to how a bank can run on a fractional reserve. 

The big difference between Cashu or custodial Bitcoin exchanges and fiat currency is that Cashu is open source, is designed around user privacy, and scales very well. It makes the cost of running a mint lower than either alternative, a feature that makes mint competition easier, in theory countering the centralizing network effects of specific mints.

Finally, the user experience of storing Cashu tokens has been attached to known forms of Bitcoin self custody such as the download of 12-words seeds via various mechanisms, though implementations still vary from wallet to wallet and the whole ecosystem is in its early stages. 

To further mitigate the custodial risk of Chaumian-style ecash in Bitcoin, the Cashu community has developed various methods for automatically managing custody risk.

“Users can split risk by using multiple mints, switching between them in the user interface. Soon, ZEUS will guide users to select five or six reputable mints, automatically balancing funds to minimize exposure,” Evan explained, referring to a particular approach called automated bank runs. The idea is that as some Cashu mints may hold more of your funds, Zeus de-ranks them and rotates value out to minimize risk. 

“I think the idea is going to be that we guide users to pick five or six reputable mints… And from there, users will be able to have the wallet automatically switch between those mints and determine which mint should be receiving the balance depending on the balance of all the mints presently. So you’ll be like, OK. MiniBits has way too much money. Let’s switch the default to one of the mints that doesn’t have a lot. So that way you can sort of mitigate or rather distribute the rug risk there,” Evan explained, adding, “Our Discover Mint feature pulls reviews from bitcoinmints.com, showing vouch counts and user feedback, like mint reliability or longevity,” describing the reputation layer stacked on top of the various other risk management mechanisms.

There is no known way to use Chaumian-style ecash in an entirely noncustodial way. So as long as the custody risk can be minimized, the scaling and privacy upside becomes remarkable. 

Microtransactions

One of the opportunities that ecash unlocks is microtransactions, the most popular example of which are Nostr Zaps often in single dollar ranges of value transferred, though it applies to small Lightning transactions as well. This use case triggers an important technical question that predates Bitcoin, do microtransactions actually make economic sense?

There’s a long-standing argu

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

H100 Group Became The First Publicly Listed Bitcoin Treasury Company In Sweden

H100 Group AB has announced it has become Sweden’s first publicly listed health technology company to adopt Bitcoin as a treasury reserve asset, announcing the purchase of 4.39 BTC for 5 million NOK (approximately $475,000) as part of its long-term Bitcoin Treasury Strategy.

The Stockholm-based company, which provides AI-powered automation and digital solutions for healthcare providers, joins a growing roster of public companies adding Bitcoin to their balance sheets in 2025. The purchase was executed at an average price of 1,138,737 NOK per Bitcoin (roughly $108,200).

JUST IN: H100 Group buys 4.39 BTC and becomes Sweden's first publicly listed #Bitcoin treasury company. pic.twitter.com/pNXe9XT2a7

— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) May 22, 2025

“This addition to H100’s Bitcoin Treasury Strategy follows an increasing number of tech-oriented growth companies holding Bitcoin on their balance sheet,” said CEO Sander Andersen. “And I believe the values of individual sovereignty highly present in the Bitcoin community aligns well with, and will appeal to, the customers and communities we are building the H100 platform for.”

The move comes amid a surge in corporate Bitcoin adoption, with many public companies announcing Bitcoin treasury programs in the first five months of 2025. Notable recent entrants include Twenty One Capital, Strive and several others.

H100 Group emphasized that the Bitcoin purchase does not affect its core operations in the health and longevity industry. The company views the investment as a strategic deployment of excess liquidity to strengthen its financial position while aligning with its values of individual sovereignty.

The announcement reflects a broader shift in corporate treasury management, as companies seek to diversify their holdings beyond traditional cash reserves.

At press time, Bitcoin trades at $111,108, up 1.28% over the past 24 hours, as institutional adoption continues to drive market momentum. H100 Group’s shares closed up 1.37% at 0.89 SEK on the NGM Nordic SME exchange following the announcement.

This post H100 Group Became The First Publicly Listed Bitcoin Treasury Company In Sweden first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Vivek Sen.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

The Freedom Issue: Letter From the Editor

Bitcoin is freedom money, a censorship-resistant form of digital cash allowing anyone with an internet connection to send money to anyone else, regardless of nationality, borders, or other arbitrary restrictions.

I personally first heard about Bitcoin in early 2013, through friends who were buying… stuff from Silk Road, the darknet marketplace helmed by the mysterious Dread Pirate Roberts. Although Silk Road was controversial (the “stuff” most people bought and sold was, of course, illegal drugs), it represented a radical example of the form of freedom that Bitcoin provides.

Later in 2013, Silk Road was shut down by the FBI, and Ross Ulbricht was revealed as the market’s founder and the true identity behind the Dread Pirate Roberts pseudonym — although he claims several people operated the account. Ulbricht was sentenced to two life sentences plus forty years in prison without the possibility of parole.

In my view — and that of many Bitcoiners — it was excessive. Even if you believe Ulbricht was guilty of everything he was convicted of (all nonviolent crimes), he was made an example of, and didn’t actually deserve to be locked up for the rest of his days.

Fortunately, Ulbricht was granted a full and unconditional pardon from President Trump in January of this year. The founder of Silk Road, in a very literal sense, has regained his freedom.

This edition of Bitcoin Magazine celebrates and highlights the freedom aspect of Bitcoin with a range of articles and artwork focusing on the people and projects that use bitcoin to advance liberty, and those who make this possible… with a special focus on Ulbricht and Silk Road.

For other stories about bitcoin as freedom money, flip the magazine around!

Welcome to The Freedom Issue.

Aaron van Wirdum

Don’t miss your chance to own The Freedom Issue—featuring never-before-seen letters from Ross Ulbricht and his mother, Lyn. Limited run. Only available while supplies last.

This piece is the Letter from the Editor featured in the latest print edition of Bitcoin Magazine, The Freedom Issue. We’re sharing it here as an early look at the ideas explored throughout the full issue.

This post The Freedom Issue: Letter From the Editor first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Aaron Van Wirdum.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

Bitcoin Pizza Day: 15 Years Since 10,000 BTC Bought Two Pizzas and Changed Everything 

On May 22, 2010, Bitcoin became more than just an idea—it became real money. Laszlo Hanyecz, a developer and early contributor to Bitcoin’s codebase, posted a casual offer: “I’ll pay 10,000 bitcoins for a couple of pizzas.” Five days later, someone took him up on it. Two Papa John’s pizzas were delivered. A screenshot was posted. Bitcoin had entered the real world. 

15 years ago, Laszlo Hanyecz spent 10,000 #bitcoin worth $30 on two Papa John's pizzas.

Today, 10,000 $BTC is worth over $1,100,000,000.

What a legend! pic.twitter.com/EbxQAsixhZ

— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) May 22, 2025

That 10,000 Bitcoin, worth about $41 at the time, is now valued at over $1.1 billion. And with Bitcoin hitting a new all-time high of $111,999 on the 15th anniversary of the transaction, the story of the “Bitcoin Pizza” carries more weight than ever.

@realbitcoinmagazine

15 years ago, someone paid 10,000 #Bitcoin for 2 pizzas. That’s worth over $1,000,000,000 today!

♬ original sound – Bitcoin Magazine

It wasn’t just about the pizza. This was the moment Bitcoin proved itself as a functioning currency. Until then, it had lived mostly in theory and code—talked about by cryptographers and mined by hobbyists. Hanyecz’s post, and the trade that followed, transformed the idea into action. “This transaction made Bitcoin real in my eyes,” he said in a 2019 interview. “It wasn’t worth much at the time. I wouldn’t have spent $100 million on pizza, right? But if I hadn’t done that, maybe Bitcoin wouldn’t have become so popular.” 

Over the summer of 2010, Hanyecz continued using Bitcoin to buy pizzas, eventually spending more than 79,000 BTC—now worth nearly $8.7 billion. While some have joked at his expense, the truth is this: without those early real-world transactions, Bitcoin might never have proven its use case. Hanyecz helped move Bitcoin from the fringe into functionality.

That legacy still shapes us today. Bitcoin Pizza Day has become a cultural milestone in the crypto world, with meetups, pizza parties, and educational events held globally each May 22. The day serves as a reminder of how far the technology has come—and the importance of everyday actions and the impact they have. 

Smiles, joy, and shared moments, this is what today looked like.#Bitcoin Pizza Day at His Grace School was more than a visit. It was connection, care, and community. A heartfelt thank you to everyone who donated and supported #BitcoinGhana #BitcoinPizzaDay #BTC #Bitfiasi pic.twitter.com/xRMv1rpife

— Bitfiasi Initiative (@bitfiasi) May 22, 2025

Just this week, fast food chain Steak ‘n Shake began accepting Bitcoin via the Lightning Network, signaling a growing wave of mainstream adoption. What once felt experimental is now becoming part of everyday commerce. 

Bitcoin Pizza Day is about recognition. One simple transaction proved that Bitcoin could work—and 15 years later, the world is still building on that first bite. 

This post Bitcoin Pizza Day: 15 Years Since 10,000 BTC Bought Two Pizzas and Changed Everything  first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Jenna Montgomery.

@ 58537364:705b4b85

“สุขเวทนา” ที่แท้ก็คือ “มายา”
เป็นเหมือนลูกคลื่นลูกหนึ่ง
ที่เกิดขึ้นเพราะน้ำถูกลมพัด
เดี๋ยวมันก็แตกกระจายไป

---

หากต้องการจะมีชีวิตอย่างเกษมแล้ว
ก็ต้องอาศัยความรู้เรื่อง อนิจจัง ทุกขัง อนัตตา ให้สมบูรณ์
มันจะต่อต้านกันได้กับอารมณ์ คือ รูป เสียง กลิ่น รส สัมผัส ที่มากระทบ
ไม่ให้ไปหลงรัก หรือหลงเกลียด

เรื่องวุ่นวายมีอยู่ ๒ อย่างเท่านั้น

1. ไปหลงรัก อย่างหนึ่ง
2. ไปหลงเกลียด อย่างหนึ่ง

ซึ่งเป็นเหตุให้หัวเราะและต้องร้องไห้
ถ้าใครมองเห็นว่า หัวเราะก็กระหืดกระหอบ มันเหนื่อยเหมือนกัน
ร้องไห้ก็กระหืดกระหอบ เหมือนกัน
สู้อยู่เฉย ๆ ดีกว่า อย่าต้องหัวเราะ อย่าต้องร้องไห้
นี่แหละ! มันเป็นความเกษม

เราอย่าได้ตกไปเป็นทาสของอารมณ์
จนไปหัวเราะหรือร้องไห้ตามที่อารมณ์มายั่ว
เราเป็นอิสระแก่ตัว หยุดอยู่ หรือเกษมอยู่อย่างนี้ดีกว่า

---

ใช้ อนิจจัง ทุกขัง อนัตตา เป็นเครื่องมือกำกับชีวิต

• รูป เสียง กลิ่น รส สัมผัส เป็น มายา เป็น illusion
• "ตัวกู-ของกู" ก็เป็น illusion
• เพราะ "ตัวกู-ของกู" มันเกิดมาจากอารมณ์
• "ตัวกู-ของกู" เป็นมายา อารมณ์ทั้งหลายก็เป็นมายา

เห็นได้ด้วยหลัก อนิจจัง ทุกขัง อนัตตา
...ความทุกข์ก็ไม่เกิด

---

เราจะตัดลัดมองไปดูสิ่งที่เป็น “สุขเวทนา”

สุขเวทนา คือ ความสุขสนุกสนาน เอร็ดอร่อย
ที่เป็นสุขนั้นเรียกว่า “สุขเวทนา”

แต่สุขเวทนา เป็นมายา
เพราะมันเป็นเหมือนลูกคลื่นที่เกิดขึ้นเป็นคราว ๆ
ไม่ใช่ตัวจริงอะไร

ที่พูดดังนี้ก็เพราะว่า
ในบรรดาสิ่งทั้งปวงในโลกทั้งหมดทุกโลก
ไม่ว่าโลกไหน มันมีค่าอยู่ก็ตรงที่ให้เกิดสุขเวทนา

ลองคิดดูให้ดีว่า...
- ท่านศึกษาเล่าเรียนทำไม?
- ท่านประกอบอาชีพ หน้าที่การงานทำไม?
- ท่านสะสมทรัพย์สมบัติ เกียรติยศ ชื่อเสียง พวกพ้องบริวารทำไม?

มันก็เพื่อสุขเวทนาอย่างเดียว
เพราะฉะนั้น แปลว่า อะไร ๆ มันก็มารวมจุดอยู่ที่สุขเวทนาหมด

ฉะนั้น ถ้าเรามีความรู้ในเรื่องนี้
จัดการกับเรื่องนี้ให้ถูกต้องเพียงเรื่องเดียวเท่านั้น
ทุกเรื่องมันถูกหมด

เพราะฉะนั้น จึงต้องดูสุขเวทนาให้ถูกต้องตามที่เป็นจริงว่า
มันก็เป็น “มายา” ชนิดหนึ่ง

เราจะต้องจัดการให้สมกันกับที่มันเป็นมายา
ไม่ใช่ว่า จะต้องไปตั้งข้อรังเกียจ เกลียดชังมัน
อย่างนั้นมันยิ่ง บ้าบอที่สุด

ถ้าเข้าไปหลงรัก หลงเป็นทาสมัน
ก็เป็นเรื่อง บ้าบอที่สุด

แต่ว่าไปจัดการกับมันอย่างไรให้ถูกต้อง
นั้นแหละเป็นธรรมะ
เป็น ลูกศิษย์ของพระพุทธเจ้า
ที่จะเอาชนะความทุกข์ได้ และไม่ต้องเป็น โรคทางวิญญาณ

---

สุขเวทนา ที่แท้ก็คือ มายา

มันก็ต้องทำโดยวิธีที่พิจารณาให้เห็นว่า
“สุขเวทนา” นี้ ที่แท้ก็คือ “มายา”

เป็นเหมือน ลูกคลื่นลูกหนึ่ง
ที่เกิดขึ้นเพราะ น้ำถูกลมพัด

หมายความว่า
เมื่อ รูป เสียง กลิ่น รส ฯ เข้ามา
แล้ว ความโง่ คือ อวิชชา โมหะ ออกรับ
กระทบกันแล้วเป็นคลื่น

กล่าวคือ สุขเวทนาเกิดขึ้นมา
แต่ เดี๋ยวมันก็แตกกระจายไป

---

ถ้ามองเห็นอย่างนี้แล้ว
เราก็ไม่เป็นทาสของสุขเวทนา
เราสามารถ ควบคุม จะจัด จะทำกับมันได้
ในวิธีที่ ไม่เป็นทุกข์

• ตัวเองก็ไม่เป็นทุกข์
• ครอบครัวก็ไม่เป็นทุกข์
• เพื่อนบ้านก็ไม่เป็นทุกข์
• คนทั้งโลกก็ไม่พลอยเป็นทุกข์
  เพราะมีเราเป็นมูลเหตุ

ถ้าทุกคนเป็นอย่างนี้
โลกนี้ก็มีสันติภาพถาวร
เป็นความสุขที่แท้จริงและถาวร

นี่คือ อานิสงส์ของการหายโรคโดยวิธีต่าง ๆ กัน
ไม่เป็นโรค “ตัวกู” ไม่เป็นโรค “ของกู”

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พุทธทาสภิกขุ
ที่มา : คำบรรยายชุด “แก่นพุทธศาสน์”
ปีพุทธศักราช ๒๕๐๔
ครั้งที่ ๑
หัวข้อเรื่อง “ใจความทั้งหมดของพระพุทธศาสนา”
ณ ศิริราชพยาบาล มหาวิทยาลัยมหิดล
เมื่อวันที่ ๑๗ ธันวาคม ๒๕๐๔

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

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"Privacy is necessary for an open society in the electronic age. Privacy is not secrecy.  A private matter is something one doesn't want the whole world to know, but a secret matter is something one doesn't want anybody to know. Privacy is the power to selectively reveal oneself to the world." - Eric Hughes, A Cypherpunk's Manifesto, 1993

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Privacy is essential to freedom. Without privacy, individuals are unable to make choices free from surveillance and control. Lack of privacy leads to loss of autonomy. When individuals are constantly monitored it limits our ability to express ourselves and take risks. Any decisions we make can result in negative repercussions from those who surveil us. Without the freedom to make choices, individuals cannot truly be free.

Freedom is essential to acquiring and preserving wealth. When individuals are not free to make choices, restrictions and limitations prevent us from economic opportunities. If we are somehow able to acquire wealth in such an environment, lack of freedom can result in direct asset seizure by governments or other malicious entities. At scale, when freedom is compromised, it leads to widespread economic stagnation and poverty. Protecting freedom is essential to economic prosperity.

The connection between privacy, freedom, and wealth is critical. Without privacy, individuals lose the freedom to make choices free from surveillance and control. While lack of freedom prevents individuals from pursuing economic opportunities and makes wealth preservation nearly impossible. No Privacy? No Freedom. No Freedom? No Wealth.

Rights are not granted. They are taken and defended. Rights are often misunderstood as permission to do something by those holding power. However, if someone can give you something, they can inherently take it from you at will. People throughout history have necessarily fought for basic rights, including privacy and freedom. These rights were not given by those in power, but rather demanded and won through struggle. Even after these rights are won, they must be continually defended to ensure that they are not taken away. Rights are not granted - they are earned through struggle and defended through sacrifice.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

I often hear "bitcoin doesn't interest me, I'm not a finance person."

Ironically, the beauty of sound money is you don't have to be. In the current system you're expected to manage a diversified investment portfolio or pay someone to do it. Bitcoin will make that optional.

— ODELL (@ODELL) September 16, 2018

At first glance bitcoin often appears overwhelming to newcomers. It is incredibly easy to get bogged down in the details of how it works or different ways to use it. Enthusiasts, such as myself, often enjoy going down the deep rabbit hole of the potential of bitcoin, possible pitfalls and theoretical scenarios, power user techniques, and the developer ecosystem. If your first touch point with bitcoin is that type of content then it is only natural to be overwhelmed. While it is important that we have a thriving community of bitcoiners dedicated to these complicated tasks - the true beauty of bitcoin lies in its simplicity. Bitcoin is simply better money. It is the best money we have ever had.

Life is complicated. Life is hard. Life is full of responsibility and surprises. Bitcoin allows us to focus on our lives while relying on a money that is simple. A money that is not controlled by any individual, company, or government. A money that cannot be easily seized or blocked. A money that cannot be devalued at will by a handful of corrupt bureaucrat who live hundreds of miles from us. A money that can be easily saved and should increase in purchasing power over time without having to learn how to "build a diversified stock portfolio" or hire someone to do it for us.

Bitcoin enables all of us to focus on our lives - our friends and family - doing what we love with the short time we have on this earth. Time is scarce. Life is complicated. Bitcoin is the most simple aspect of our complicated lives. If we spend our scarce time working then we should be able to easily save that accrued value for future generations without watching the news or understanding complicated financial markets. Bitcoin makes this possible for anyone.

Yesterday was Mother's Day. Raising a human is complicated. It is hard, it requires immense personal responsibility, it requires critical thinking, but mothers figure it out, because it is worth it. Using and saving bitcoin is simple -  simply install an app on your phone. Every mother can do it. Every person can do it.

Life is complicated. Life is beautiful. Bitcoin is simple.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

JPMorgan Chase, the biggest bank in the U.S., is now allowing its clients to buy bitcoin — a big change of heart for an institution whose CEO, Jamie Dimon, has been a long-time critic of the scarce digital asset.

Dimon made the announcement on the bank’s investor day, which came as a shift in JPMorgan’s approach to digital assets. “We are going to allow you to buy it,” he said. “We’re not going to custody it. We’re going to put it in statements for clients.”

That means clients can buy BTC through JPMorgan but the bank won’t hold or store the digital asset. Instead it will provide access and include the BTC purchases in client statements.

According to multiple reports and posts, JPMorgan has been blocking transactions from digital asset exchanges, with several people complaining about their experience on social media.

Source

Source

There is even an official notice on the company’s UK website that explicitly says customers cannot use their funds to purchase digital assets.

JPMorgan Chase UK website — Source

It’s a big change because Dimon has been one of Bitcoin’s biggest critics. Over the years he’s called it “worthless”, a “fraud” and even compared it to a “pet rock”.

He’s repeatedly expressed concern over digital assets’ use in illegal activities such as money laundering, terrorism, sex trafficking and tax evasion. A role that his critics say the U.S. dollar is playing on a much larger scale.

Related: Jamie Dimon Would “Close Down” Bitcoin If He Had Government Role

“The only true use case for it is criminals, drug traffickers … money laundering, tax avoidance,” he told lawmakers during a Senate hearing in 2023. At the 2024 World Economic Forum in Davos, he doubled down, “Bitcoin does nothing. I call it the pet rock.”

Despite his personal views, Dimon says the bank is responding to client demand. “I don’t think you should smoke, but I defend your right to smoke,” he said. “I defend your right to buy bitcoin.”

It’s worth noting JPMorgan isn’t fully embracing digital assets. The bank won’t be offering direct custody services or launching its own exchange.

Instead, it’s offering access to digital asset exchanges. There are even reports that the bank also plans to facilitate access to bitcoin ETFs and possibly other investment vehicles. Until recently, JPMorgan had limited its bitcoin exposure to futures-based products.

Other big financial firms have already taken similar steps.

Morgan Stanley, for example, has been offering some clients access to bitcoin ETFs since August 2024. Its CEO, Ted Pick, said earlier this year that the firm is working closely with regulators to explore ways to get into the digital assets space.

Dimon does like blockchain, though — the technology that underpins it. JPMorgan has its own blockchain projects including JPM Coin and recently ran a test transaction on a public blockchain of tokenized U.S. Treasuries.

Many criticize this view, saying that the most powerful aspect of Bitcoin is its decentralization. So, a centralized blockchain is just useless. This might be the reason Dimon has grown weary of all JPMorgan’s blockchain initiatives, because they offered nothing of value.

He said he might have given blockchain too much credit during his investor day comments: “We have been talking about blockchain for 12 to 15 years,” he said. “We spend too much on it. It doesn’t matter as much as you all think.”

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

People forget Bear Stearns failed March 2008 - months of denial followed before the public realized how bad the situation was under the surface.

Similar happening now but much larger scale. They did not fix fundamental issues after 2008 - everything is more fragile.

The Fed preemptively bailed out every bank with their BTFP program and First Republic Bank still failed. The second largest bank failure in history.

There will be more failures. There will be more bailouts. Depositors will be "protected" by socializing losses across everyone.

Our President and mainstream financial pundits are currently pretending the banking crisis is over while most banks remain insolvent. There are going to be many more bank failures as this ponzi system unravels.

Unlike 2008, we have the ability to opt out of these broken and corrupt institutions by using bitcoin. Bitcoin held in self custody is unique in its lack of counterparty risk - you do not have to trust a bank or other centralized entity to hold it for you. Bitcoin is also incredibly difficult to change by design since it is not controlled by an individual, company, or government - the supply of dollars will inevitably be inflated to bailout these failing banks but bitcoin supply will remain unchanged. I do not need to convince you that bitcoin provides value - these next few years will convince millions.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

Blackstone, the world’s largest alternative asset manager, has entered the Bitcoin space with a $1.08 million investment in BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF. This is a big deal for both Wall Street and the Bitcoin world.

Blackstone has made its first direct investment in bitcoin through regulated financial products. A May 20, 2025, SEC filing revealed that the firm purchased 23,094 shares of the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF).

BlackStone has bought 23,094 shares of BlackRock’s IBIT — SEC

While $1.08 million is a small drop in the bucket compared to Blackstone’s $1.2 trillion in assets under management, this is a big deal for the private equity giant which has been skeptical of bitcoin in the past.

In 2019, the company’s CEO, Steve Schwarzman, said he didn’t understand Bitcoin. “I was raised in a world where someone needs to control currencies,” he said, admitting he struggled to understand the technology.

Fast forward to 2025, and it is now one of the many institutional investors taking bitcoin seriously — but doing so through cautious, regulated channels.

The investment was made through Blackstone’s $2.63 billion Alternative Multi-Strategy Fund (BTMIX), which invests in a wide range of financial instruments.

Instead of buying bitcoin directly, Blackstone chose to get exposure through a bitcoin ETF — which is how many large institutions are approaching the digital asset. Spot Bitcoin ETFs like IBIT allow investors to track the price of bitcoin without having to hold the digital asset itself.

There are several advantages to this approach. ETFs trade like stocks, are regulated by the SEC and take care of complex issues like custody and compliance. This makes them more attractive for firms that are new to Bitcoin or still wary of the risks.

Related: Bitcoin ETFs Provide Convenient Price Exposure, But At What Cost?

Blackstone’s choice of a bitcoin ETF shows how effective these products are at connecting traditional finance to the digital age.

In addition to IBIT, Blackstone also disclosed smaller investments in two other digital-asset-related companies:

• 9,889 shares of the ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO), valued at about $181,166.
• 4,300 shares of Bitcoin Depot Inc. (BTM), a bitcoin ATM operator, worth approximately $6,300.

Together, these are a tiny fraction of Blackstone’s portfolio but show growing interest and exploration into the space.

Since its launch in January 2024, BlackRock’s IBIT ETF has become the top-performing Bitcoin ETF in the U.S. As of mid-May 2025, the fund has seen over $46.1 billion in net inflows with no outflows since early April.

IBIT is ahead of other major ETFs like Fidelity’s FBTC and ARK’s 21Shares Bitcoin ETF.

But the trend is clear: big firms are getting comfortable with regulated bitcoin products. Industry insiders see Blackstone’s move as part of a broader shift in institutional sentiment towards bitcoin.

This is a small investment but it matters because of who is making it. Blackstone is known for being conservative and risk-averse.

Its decision to put even a tiny amount of capital into Bitcoin ETFs means tradfi companies are getting more confident in bitcoin as an asset class. Blackstone is dipping its toe in the water, and even a small step is significant given its size and influence.

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

Will not live in a pod.
Will not eat the bugs.
Will not get the chip.
Will not get a blue check.
Will not use CBDCs.

Live Free or Die.

Why did Elon buy twitter for $44 Billion? What value does he see in it besides the greater influence that undoubtedly comes with controlling one of the largest social platforms in the world? We do not need to speculate - he made his intentions incredibly clear in his first meeting with twitter employees after his takeover - WeChat of the West.

To those that do not appreciate freedom, the value prop is clear - WeChat is incredibly powerful and successful in China.

To those that do appreciate freedom, the concern is clear - WeChat has essentially become required to live in China, has surveillance and censorship integrated at its core, and if you are banned from the app your entire livelihood is at risk. Employment, housing, payments, travel, communication, and more become extremely difficult if WeChat censors determine you have acted out of line.

The blue check is the first step in Elon's plan to bring the chinese social credit score system to the west. Users who verify their identity are rewarded with more reach and better tools than those that do not. Verified users are the main product of Elon's twitter - an extensive database of individuals and complete control of the tools he will slowly get them to rely on - it is easier to monetize cattle than free men.

If you cannot resist the temptation of the blue check in its current form you have already lost - what comes next will be much darker. If you realize the need to resist - freedom tech provides us options.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

Bank run on every crypto bank then bank run on every "real" bank.

— ODELL (@ODELL) December 14, 2022

Good morning.

It looks like PacWest will fail today. It will be both the fifth largest bank failure in US history and the sixth major bank to fail this year. It will likely get purchased by one of the big four banks in a government orchestrated sale.  

March 8th - Silvergate Bank
March 10th - Silicon Valley Bank
March 12th - Signature Bank
March 19th - Credit Suisse
May 1st - First Republic Bank
May 4th - PacWest Bank?

PacWest is the first of many small regional banks that will go under this year. Most will get bought by the big four in gov orchestrated sales. This has been the playbook since 2008. Follow the incentives. Massive consolidation across the banking industry. PacWest gonna be a drop in the bucket compared to what comes next.

First, a hastened government led bank consolidation, then a public/private partnership with the remaining large banks to launch a surveilled and controlled digital currency network. We will be told it is more convenient. We will be told it is safer. We will be told it will prevent future bank runs. All of that is marketing bullshit. The goal is greater control of money. The ability to choose how we spend it and how we save it. If you control the money - you control the people that use it.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

Humanity's Natural State Is Chaos
Without order there is chaos. Humans competing with each other for scarce resources naturally leads to conflict until one group achieves significant power and instates a "monopoly on violence."

Power Brings Stability
Power has always been the key means to achieve stability in societies. Centralized power can be incredibly effective in addressing issues such as crime, poverty, and social unrest efficiently. Unfortunately this power is often abused and corrupted.

Centralized Power Breeds Tyranny
Centralized power often leads to tyrannical rule. When a select few individuals hold control over a society, they tend to become corrupted. Centralized power structures often lack accountability and transparency, and rely too heavily on trust.

Distributed Power Cultivates Freedom
New technology that empowers individuals provide us the ability to rebuild societies from the bottom up. Strong individuals that can defend and provide for themselves will help build strong local communities on a similar foundation. The result is power being distributed throughout society rather than held by a select few.

In the short term, relying on trust and centralized power is an easy answer to mitigating chaos, but freedom tech tools provide us the ability to build on top of much stronger distributed foundations that provide stability while also cultivating individual freedom.

The solution starts with us. Empower yourself. Empower others. A grassroots freedom tech movement scaling one person at a time.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

Austin, Texas – May 22, 2025 — Jippi, a pioneering mobile augmented reality (AR) game developer, is set to transform Bitcoin education with the launch of its flagship game at the Bitcoin Conference 2025, held at The Venetian Resort in Las Vegas from May 27-29.

In collaboration with six leading Bitcoin companies—Bitcoin Well, Beyond The Checkout, Bitcoin Trading Cards, Geyser, SHAmory, and 21M Communications—Jippi introduces an innovative blend of outdoor adventure, Bitcoin rewards, and gamified financial education designed to captivate.

At the Bitcoin Conference, Jippi’s six partners have sponsored custom “Bitcoin Beasts” tied to specific locations around The Venetian. Each sponsored Beast offers players exclusive rewards and trivia, transforming brand interactions into immersive, non-intrusive experiences.

With an expected attendance of over 30,000 at the conference, sponsors gain unparalleled exposure to a tech-savvy, Bitcoin-centric audience.  Players will be rewarded 1k sats for each catch, making the total reward for catching them all 6k sats.

Jippi is redefining how young adults engage with Bitcoin by combining the thrill of location-based AR gameplay, reminiscent of Pokémon GO, with real-world bitcoin rewards (sats) and bite-sized lessons on sound money principles.

Players explore real-world locations to hunt digital creatures called Bitcoin Beasts, answering Bitcoin-related trivia to capture them and earn sats, the smallest unit of bitcoin.

The game’s seamless integration of education and entertainment makes learning about Bitcoin fun, accessible, and rewarding.

“We’re meeting Gen Z where they are—90% play mobile games, and 70% expect rewards for their time,” said Oliver Porter, Founder and CEO of Jippi.

“Jippi backdoors Bitcoin education through an immersive, reward-driven experience while offering our partners a unique branding opportunity. It’s a win-win for players, sponsors, and the Bitcoin ecosystem.”

“Jippi’s mission to gamify Bitcoin education is a game-changer for onboarding the next generation,” said Adam O’Brien, CEO of Bitcoin Well, a leading automatic self-custody Bitcoin platform and “Beast” sponsor.

“Their AR game makes learning about Bitcoin intuitive and engaging, aligning perfectly with our vision of financial empowerment. From a branding perspective, partnering with Jippi to engage and acquire new customers is a no brainer.”

In March 2025, Jippi clinched the top prize in PlebLab’s prestigious Top Builder competition, a three-month hackathon designed to spotlight innovative Bitcoin startups.

Backed by over a year of development, on-site surveys, and university testing, Jippi is a leading innovator in the Bitcoin industry looking to onboard the next generation.

Jippi invites brands, investors, and media to explore sponsorship and investment opportunities. Visit Jippi’s Partnerships Page for sponsorship details or Jippi’s Timestamp Page for investment inquiries. 

For media inquiries, please contact Phil@21mcommunications.com

About Jippi

Jippi is a mobile AR gaming company dedicated to making Bitcoin education accessible and engaging. By combining location-based gameplay with bitcoin rewards and financial literacy, Jippi empowers the next generation to embrace sound money principles. Learn more at https://jippi.app. 

Bitcoin Beast Sponsors

About Bitcoin Well

Beast #1 – Bitcoin Well – All bitcoin bought at Bitcoin Well are delivered directly to your personal bitcoin wallet. Your Bitcoin Well account gives you the convenience of modern banking, with the benefits of bitcoin. Join the platform that enables independence at bitcoinwell.com.

About Bitcoin Trading Cards

Beast #2 – Bitcoin Trading Cards – Bitcoin Trading Cards is bringing Bitcoin to the masses one pack at a time, making your Bitcoin journey fun and exciting for everyone.

About Beyond The Checkout

Beast #3 – Beyond The Checkout – Beyond The Checkout transforms everyday products into Bitcoin-powered experiences — rewarding customers, collecting real-time insights, and redefining post-purchase engagement.

About Geyser 

Beast #4 – Geyser – Geyser is a Bitcoin-native crowdfunding platform enabling grassroots projects to raise funds via Lightning, globally and permissionlessly.

About SHAmory

Beast #5 – SHAmory – We make Bitcoin fun for all ages! Explore our bitcoin games, books, and more today at shamory.com.

About 21M Communications

Beast #6 – 21 Communications – 21 Communications helps Bitcoin companies get the media attention they deserve. As a Bitcoin-only PR Agency, 21M Comms believes Bitcoin is imperative and is committed to supporting the companies that are advancing the mission.

About Bitcoin Conference 2025

The Bitcoin Conference is the world’s largest gathering of Bitcoin enthusiasts, industry leaders, and innovators. Held annually, it showcases cutting-edge developments in the Bitcoin ecosystem. For more information, visit www.bitcoinconference.com.

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

For years American bitcoin miners have argued for more efficient and free energy markets. It benefits everyone if our energy infrastructure is as efficient and robust as possible. Unfortunately, broken incentives have led to increased regulation throughout the sector, incentivizing less efficient energy sources such as solar and wind at the detriment of more efficient alternatives.

The result has been less reliable energy infrastructure for all Americans and increased energy costs across the board. This naturally has a direct impact on bitcoin miners: increased energy costs make them less competitive globally.

Bitcoin mining represents a global energy market that does not require permission to participate. Anyone can plug a mining computer into power and internet to get paid the current dynamic market price for their work in bitcoin. Using cellphone or satellite internet, these mines can be located anywhere in the world, sourcing the cheapest power available.

Absent of regulation, bitcoin mining naturally incentivizes the build out of highly efficient and robust energy infrastructure. Unfortunately that world does not exist and burdensome regulations remain the biggest threat for US based mining businesses. Jurisdictional arbitrage gives miners the option of moving to a friendlier country but that naturally comes with its own costs.

Enter AI. With the rapid development and release of AI tools comes the requirement of running massive datacenters for their models. Major tech companies are scrambling to secure machines, rack space, and cheap energy to run full suites of AI enabled tools and services. The most valuable and powerful tech companies in America have stumbled into an accidental alliance with bitcoin miners: THE NEED FOR CHEAP AND RELIABLE ENERGY.

Our government is corrupt. Money talks. These companies will push for energy freedom and it will greatly benefit us all.

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Microsoft Cloud hiring to "implement global small modular reactor and microreactor" strategy to power data centers: https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/microsoft-cloud-hiring-to-implement-global-small-modular-reactor-and-microreactor-strategy-to-power-data-centers/

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@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

Nostr is an open communication protocol that can be used to send messages across a distributed set of relays in a censorship resistant and robust way.

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If you missed my nostr introduction post you can find it here. My nostr account can be found here.

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We are nearly at the point that if something interesting is posted on a centralized social platform it will usually be posted by someone to nostr.

We are nearly at the point that if something interesting is posted exclusively to nostr it is cross posted by someone to various centralized social platforms.

We are nearly at the point that you can recommend a cross platform app that users can install and easily onboard without additional guides or resources.

As companies continue to build walls around their centralized platforms nostr posts will be the easiest to cross reference and verify - as companies continue to censor their users nostr is the best censorship resistant alternative - gradually then suddenly nostr will become the standard. 🫡

Current Nostr Stats

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ dfa02707:41ca50e3

Contribute to keep No Bullshit Bitcoin news going.

News

• Spiral welcomes Ben Carman. The developer will work on the LDK server and a new SDK designed to simplify the onboarding process for new self-custodial Bitcoin users.
• Spiral renews support for Dan Gould and Joschisan. The organization has renewed support for Dan Gould, who is developing the Payjoin Dev Kit (PDK), and Joschisan, a Fedimint developer focused on simplifying federations.
• The Bitcoin Dev Kit Foundation announced new corporate members for 2025, including AnchorWatch, CleanSpark, and Proton Foundation. The annual dues from these corporate members fund the small team of open-source developers responsible for maintaining the core BDK libraries and related free and open-source software (FOSS) projects.
• The European Central Bank is pushing for amendments to the European Union's Markets in Crypto Assets legislation (MiCA), just months after its implementation. According to Politico's report on Tuesday, the ECB is concerned that U.S. support for cryptocurrency, particularly stablecoins, could cause economic harm to the 27-nation bloc.
• Slovenia is considering a 25% capital gains tax on Bitcoin profits for individuals. The Ministry of Finance has proposed legislation to impose this tax on gains from cryptocurrency transactions, though exchanging one cryptocurrency for another would remain exempt. At present, individual 'crypto' traders in Slovenia are not taxed.
• The Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASP) Bill 2025 introduced in Kenya. The new legislation aims to establish a comprehensive legal framework for licensing, regulating, and supervising virtual asset service providers (VASPs), with strict penalties for non-compliant entities.
• Circle, BitGo, Coinbase, and Paxos plan to apply for U.S. bank charters or licenses. According to a report in The Wall Street Journal, major crypto companies are planning to apply for U.S. bank charters or licenses. These firms are pursuing limited licenses that would permit them to issue stablecoins, as the U.S. Congress deliberates on legislation mandating licensing for stablecoin issuers.

"Established banks, like Bank of America, are hoping to amend the current drafts of [stablecoin] legislation in such a way that nonbanks are more heavily restricted from issuing stablecoins," people familiar with the matter told The Block.

• Paul Atkins has officially assumed the role of the 34th Chairman of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). This is a return to the agency for Atkins, who previously served as an SEC Commissioner from 2002 to 2008 under the George W. Bush administration. He has committed to advancing the SEC’s mission of fostering capital formation, safeguarding investors, and ensuring fair and efficient markets.
• Federal Reserve retracts guidance discouraging banks from engaging in 'crypto.' The U.S. Federal Reserve withdrew guidance that discouraged banks from crypto and stablecoin activities, as announced by its Board of Governors on Thursday. This includes rescinding a 2022 supervisory letter requiring prior notification of crypto activities and 2023 stablecoin requirements.

"As a result, the Board will no longer expect banks to provide notification and will instead monitor banks' crypto-asset activities through the normal supervisory process," reads the FED statement.

• Russian government to launch a cryptocurrency exchange. The country's Ministry of Finance and Central Bank announced plans to establish a trading platform for "highly qualified investors" that "will legalize crypto assets and bring crypto operations out of the shadows."
• Twenty One Capital is set to launch with over 42,000 BTC in its treasury. This new Bitcoin-native firm, backed by Tether and SoftBank, is planned to go public via a SPAC merger with Cantor Equity Partners and will be led by Jack Mallers, co-founder and CEO of Strike. According to a report by the Financial Times, the company aims to replicate the model of Michael Saylor with his company, MicroStrategy.
• Strategy increases Bitcoin holdings to 538,200 BTC. In the latest purchase, the company has spent more than $555M to buy 6,556 coins through proceeds of two at-the-market stock offering programs.
• Metaplanet buys another 145 BTC. The Tokyo-listed company has purchased an additional 145 BTC for $13.6 million. Their total bitcoin holdings now stand at 5,000 coins, worth around $428.1 million.
• Semler Scientific has increased its bitcoin holdings to 3,303 BTC. The company acquired an additional 111 BTC at an average price of $90,124. The purchase was funded through proceeds from an at-the-market offering and cash reserves, as stated in a press release.
• Tesla still holds nearly $1 billion in bitcoin. According to the automaker's latest earnings report, the firm reported digital asset holdings worth $951 million as of March 31.
• Spar supermarket experiments with Bitcoin payments in Zug, Switzerland. The store has introduced a new payment method powered by the Lightning Network. The implementation was facilitated by DFX Swiss, a service that supports seamless conversions between bitcoin and legacy currencies.

• Charles Schwab to launch spot Bitcoin trading by 2026. The financial investment firm, managing over $10 trillion in assets, has revealed plans to introduce spot Bitcoin trading for its clients within the next year.
• Arch Labs has secured $13 million to develop "ArchVM" and integrate smart-contract functionality with Bitcoin. The funding round, valuing the company at $200 million, was led by Pantera Capital, as announced on Tuesday.
• Citrea deployed its Clementine Bridge on the Bitcoin testnet. The bridge utilizes the BitVM2 programming language to inherit validity from Bitcoin, allegedly providing "the safest and most trust-minimized way to use BTC in decentralized finance."
• UAE-based Islamic bank ruya launches Shari’ah-compliant bitcoin investing. The bank has become the world’s first Islamic bank to provide direct access to virtual asset investments, including Bitcoin, via its mobile app, per Bitcoin Magazine.
• Solosatoshi.com has sold over 10,000 open-source miners, adding more than 10 PH of hashpower to the Bitcoin network.

"Thank you, Bitaxe community. OSMU developers, your brilliance built this. Supporters, your belief drives us. Customers, your trust powers 10,000+ miners and 10PH globally. Together, we’re decentralizing Bitcoin’s future. Last but certainly not least, thank you@skot9000 for not only creating a freedom tool, but instilling the idea into thousands of people, that Bitcoin mining can be for everyone again," said the firm on X.

• OCEAN's DATUM has found 100 blocks. "Over 65% of OCEAN’s miners are using DATUM, and that number is growing every day. This means block template construction is making its way back into the hands of the miners, which is not only the most profitable

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

@matt_odell don't you even dare not ask about nostr!

— Kukks (Andrew Camilleri) (@MrKukks) May 18, 2021

Nostr first hit my radar spring 2021: created by fellow bitcoiner and friend, fiatjaf, and released to the world as free open source software. I was fortunate to be able to host a conversation with him on Citadel Dispatch in those early days, capturing that moment in history forever. Since then, the protocol has seen explosive viral organic growth as individuals around the world have contributed their time and energy to build out the protocol and the surrounding ecosystem due to the clear need for better communication tools.

nostr is to twitter as bitcoin is to paypal

As an intro to nostr, let us start with a metaphor:

twitter is paypal - a centralized platform plagued by censorship but has the benefit of established network effects

nostr is bitcoin - an open protocol that is censorship resistant and robust but requires an organic adoption phase

Nostr is an open communication protocol that can be used to send messages across a distributed set of relays in a censorship resistant and robust way.
 - Anyone can run a relay.
 - Anyone can interact with the protocol.
 - Relays can choose which messages they want to relay.
 - Users are identified by a simple public private key pair that they can generate themselves.

Nostr is often compared to twitter since there are nostr clients that emulate twitter functionality and user interface but that is merely one application of the protocol. Nostr is so much more than a mere twitter competitor. Nostr clients and relays can transmit a wide variety of data and clients can choose how to display that information to users. The result is a revolution in communication with implications that are difficult for any of us to truly comprehend.

Similar to bitcoin, nostr is an open and permissionless protocol. No person, company, or government controls it. Anyone can iterate and build on top of nostr without permission. Together, bitcoin and nostr are incredibly complementary freedom tech tools: censorship resistant, permissionless, robust, and interoperable - money and speech protected by code and incentives, not laws.

As censorship throughout the world continues to escalate, freedom tech provides hope for individuals around the world who refuse to accept the status quo. This movement will succeed on the shoulders of those who choose to stand up and contribute. We will build our own path. A brighter path.

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My Nostr Public Key: npub1qny3tkh0acurzla8x3zy4nhrjz5zd8l9sy9jys09umwng00manysew95gx

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@ dfa02707:41ca50e3

Good morning (good night?)! The No Bullshit Bitcoin news feed is now available on Moody's Dashboard! A huge shoutout to sir Clark Moody for integrating our feed.

Headlines

• Spiral welcomes Ben Carman. The developer will work on the LDK server and a new SDK designed to simplify the onboarding process for new self-custodial Bitcoin users.

• The Bitcoin Dev Kit Foundation announced new corporate members for 2025, including AnchorWatch, CleanSpark, and Proton Foundation. The annual dues from these corporate members fund the small team of open-source developers responsible for maintaining the core BDK libraries and related free and open-source software (FOSS) projects.
• Strategy increases Bitcoin holdings to 538,200 BTC. In the latest purchase, the company has spent more than $555M to buy 6,556 coins through proceeds of two at-the-market stock offering programs.
• Spar supermarket experiments with Bitcoin payments in Zug, Switzerland. The store has introduced a new payment method powered by the Lightning Network. The implementation was facilitated by DFX Swiss, a service that supports seamless conversions between bitcoin and legacy currencies.

• The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) wants to contain 'crypto' risks. A report titled "Cryptocurrencies and Decentralised Finance: Functions and Financial Stability Implications" calls for expanding research into "how new forms of central bank money, capital controls, and taxation policies can counter the risks of widespread crypto adoption while still fostering technological innovation."
• "Global Implications of Scam Centres, Underground Banking, and Illicit Online Marketplaces in Southeast Asia." According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) report, criminal organizations from East and Southeast Asia are swiftly extending their global reach. These groups are moving beyond traditional scams and trafficking, creating sophisticated online networks that include unlicensed cryptocurrency exchanges, encrypted communication platforms, and stablecoins, fueling a massive fraud economy on an industrial scale.
• Slovenia is considering a 25% capital gains tax on Bitcoin profits for individuals. The Ministry of Finance has proposed legislation to impose this tax on gains from cryptocurrency transactions, though exchanging one cryptocurrency for another would remain exempt. At present, individual 'crypto' traders in Slovenia are not taxed.
• Circle, BitGo, Coinbase, and Paxos plan to apply for U.S. bank charters or licenses. According to a report in The Wall Street Journal, major crypto companies are planning to apply for U.S. bank charters or licenses. These firms are pursuing limited licenses that would permit them to issue stablecoins, as the U.S. Congress deliberates on legislation mandating licensing for stablecoin issuers.

"Established banks, like Bank of America, are hoping to amend the current drafts of [stablecoin] legislation in such a way that nonbanks are more heavily restricted from issuing stablecoins," people familiar with the matter told The Block.

• Charles Schwab to launch spot Bitcoin trading by 2026. The financial investment firm, managing over $10 trillion in assets, has revealed plans to introduce spot Bitcoin trading for its clients within the next year.

Use the tools

• Bitcoin Safe v1.2.3 expands QR SignMessage compatibility for all QR-UR-compatible hardware signers (SpecterDIY, KeyStone, Passport, Jade; already supported COLDCARD Q). It also adds the ability to import wallets via QR, ensuring compatibility with Keystone's latest firmware (2.0.6), alongside other improvements.
• Minibits v0.2.2-beta, an ecash wallet for Android devices, packages many changes to align the project with the planned iOS app release. New features and improvements include the ability to lock ecash to a receiver's pubkey, faster confirmations of ecash minting and payments thanks to WebSockets, UI-related fixes, and more.
• Zeus v0.11.0-alpha1 introduces Cashu wallets tied to embedded LND wallets. Navigate to Settings > Ecash to enable it. Other wallet types can still sweep funds from Cashu tokens. Zeus Pay now supports Cashu address types in Zaplocker, Cashu, and NWC modes.
• LNDg v1.10.0, an advanced web interface designed for analyzing Lightning Network Daemon (LND) data and automating node management tasks, introduces performance improvements, adds a new metrics page for unprofitable and stuck channels, and displays warnings for batch openings. The Profit and Loss Chart has been updated to include on-chain costs. Advanced settings have been added for users who would like their channel database size to be read remotely (the default remains local). Additionally, the AutoFees tool now uses aggregated pubkey metrics for multiple channels with the same peer.
• Nunchuk Desktop v1.9.45 release brings the latest bug fixes and improvements.
• Blockstream Green iOS v4.1.8 has renamed L-BTC to LBTC, and improves translations of notifications, login time, and background payments.
• Blockstream Green Android v4.1.8 has added language preference in App Settings and enables an Android data backup option for disaster recovery. Additionally, it fixes issues with Jade entry point PIN timeout and Trezor passphrase input.
• Torq v2.2.2, an advanced Lightning node management software designed to handle large nodes with over 1000 channels, fixes bugs that caused channel balance to not be updated in some cases and channel "peer total local balance" not getting updated.
• Stack Wallet v2.1.12, a multicoin wallet by Cypher Stack, fixes an issue with Xelis introduced in the latest release for Windows.
• ESP-Miner-NerdQAxePlus v1.0.29.1, a forked version from the NerdAxe miner that was modified for use on the NerdQAxe+, is now available.
• Zark enables sending sats to an npub using Bark.

• Erk is a novel variation of the Ark protocol that completely removes the need for user interactivity in rounds, addressing one of Ark's key limitations: the requirement for users to come online before their VTXOs expire.
• Aegis v0.1.1 is now available. It is a Nostr event signer app for iOS devices.
• Nostash is a NIP-07 Nostr signing extension for Safari. It is a fork of Nostore and is maintained by Terry Yiu. Available on iOS TestFlight.
• Amber v3.2.8, a Nostr event signer for Android, delivers the latest fixes and improvements.
• Nostur v1.20.0, a Nostr client for iOS, adds

@ b1ddb4d7:471244e7

Global fintech leader Revolut has announced a landmark partnership with Lightspark, a pioneer in blockchain infrastructure solutions, to integrate bitcoin’s Lightning Network into its platform.

This collaboration, now live for Revolut users in the UK and select European Economic Area (EEA) countries, marks a transformative leap toward frictionless, real-time transactions—eliminating delays and exorbitant fees traditionally associated with digital asset transfers.

Major update: @RevolutApp is now partnering with @lightspark pic.twitter.com/OUblgrj6Xr

— Lightspark (@lightspark) May 7, 2025

Breaking Barriers in Digital Currency Usability

By adopting Lightspark’s cutting-edge technology, Revolut empowers its 40+ million customers to execute bitcoin transactions instantly at a fraction of current costs.

This integration addresses longstanding pain points in digital currency adoption, positioning bitcoin as a practical tool for everyday payments. Users can now seamlessly send, receive, and store bitcoin with the same ease as traditional fiat currencies, backed by Revolut’s secure platform.

The partnership also advances Revolut’s integration into the open Money Grid, a decentralized network enabling universal interoperability between financial platforms.

This move aligns Revolut with forward-thinking fintechs adopting next-gen solutions like Lightning transactions and Universal Money Addresses (UMA), which simplify cross-border payments by replacing complex wallet codes with human-readable addresses (e.g., $john.smith).

Why This Matters

The collaboration challenges conventional payment rails, which often incur delays of days and high fees for cross-border transfers. By contrast, Lightning Network transactions settle in seconds for minimal cost, revolutionizing peer-to-peer payments, remittances, and merchant settlements. For Revolut users, this means:

• Instant transactions: Send bitcoin globally in under three seconds.
• Near-zero fees: Dramatically reduce costs compared to traditional crypto transfers.
• Enhanced utility: Use bitcoin for daily spending, not just as a speculative asset.

The Road Ahead

Revolut plans to expand Lightning Network access to additional markets in 2025, with ambitions to integrate UMA support for seamless fiat and digital currency interactions. Lightspark will continue optimizing its infrastructure to support Revolut’s scaling efforts, further bridging the gap between blockchain innovation and mainstream finance.

About Revolut
Revolut is a global financial app serving over 40 million customers worldwide. Offering services ranging from currency exchange and stock trading to digital assets and insurance, Revolut is committed to building a borderless financial ecosystem.

About Lightspark
Founded by former PayPal and Meta executives, Lightspark develops enterprise-grade solutions for the Lightning Network. Its technology stack empowers institutions to harness bitcoin’s speed and efficiency while maintaining regulatory compliance.

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

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"Privacy is necessary for an open society in the electronic age. Privacy is not secrecy.  A private matter is something one doesn't want the whole world to know, but a secret matter is something one doesn't want anybody to know. Privacy is the power to selectively reveal oneself to the world." - Eric Hughes, A Cypherpunk's Manifesto, 1993

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Privacy is essential to freedom. Without privacy, individuals are unable to make choices free from surveillance and control. Lack of privacy leads to loss of autonomy. When individuals are constantly monitored it limits our ability to express ourselves and take risks. Any decisions we make can result in negative repercussions from those who surveil us. Without the freedom to make choices, individuals cannot truly be free.

Freedom is essential to acquiring and preserving wealth. When individuals are not free to make choices, restrictions and limitations prevent us from economic opportunities. If we are somehow able to acquire wealth in such an environment, lack of freedom can result in direct asset seizure by governments or other malicious entities. At scale, when freedom is compromised, it leads to widespread economic stagnation and poverty. Protecting freedom is essential to economic prosperity.

The connection between privacy, freedom, and wealth is critical. Without privacy, individuals lose the freedom to make choices free from surveillance and control. While lack of freedom prevents individuals from pursuing economic opportunities and makes wealth preservation nearly impossible. No Privacy? No Freedom. No Freedom? No Wealth.

Rights are not granted. They are taken and defended. Rights are often misunderstood as permission to do something by those holding power. However, if someone can give you something, they can inherently take it from you at will. People throughout history have necessarily fought for basic rights, including privacy and freedom. These rights were not given by those in power, but rather demanded and won through struggle. Even after these rights are won, they must be continually defended to ensure that they are not taken away. Rights are not granted - they are earned through struggle and defended through sacrifice.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 9973da5b:809c853f

First article Skynet begins to learn rapidly and eventually becomes self-aware at 2:14 a.m., EDT, on August 29, 1997 https://layer3press.layer3.press/articles/45d916c0-f7b2-4b95-bc0f-8faa65950483

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

People forget Bear Stearns failed March 2008 - months of denial followed before the public realized how bad the situation was under the surface.

Similar happening now but much larger scale. They did not fix fundamental issues after 2008 - everything is more fragile.

The Fed preemptively bailed out every bank with their BTFP program and First Republic Bank still failed. The second largest bank failure in history.

There will be more failures. There will be more bailouts. Depositors will be "protected" by socializing losses across everyone.

Our President and mainstream financial pundits are currently pretending the banking crisis is over while most banks remain insolvent. There are going to be many more bank failures as this ponzi system unravels.

Unlike 2008, we have the ability to opt out of these broken and corrupt institutions by using bitcoin. Bitcoin held in self custody is unique in its lack of counterparty risk - you do not have to trust a bank or other centralized entity to hold it for you. Bitcoin is also incredibly difficult to change by design since it is not controlled by an individual, company, or government - the supply of dollars will inevitably be inflated to bailout these failing banks but bitcoin supply will remain unchanged. I do not need to convince you that bitcoin provides value - these next few years will convince millions.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 90152b7f:04e57401

U.S. troops would enforce peace under Army study

The Washington Times - September 10, 2001

by Rowan Scarborough

https://www.ord.io/70787305 (image) https://www.ord.io/74522515 (text)

An elite U.S. Army study center has devised a plan for enforcing a major Israeli-Palestinian peace accord that would require about 20,000 well-armed troops stationed throughout Israel and a newly created Palestinian state.
 There are no plans by the Bush administration to put American soldiers into the Middle East to police an agreement forged by the longtime warring parties. In fact, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld is searching for ways to reduce U.S. peacekeeping efforts abroad, rather than increasing such missions.
But a 68-page paper by the Army School of Advanced Military Studies (SAMS) does provide a look at the daunting task any international peacekeeping force would face if the United Nations authorized it, and Israel and the Palestinians ever reached a peace agreement.


Located at Fort Leavenworth, Kan., the School for Advanced Military Studies is both a training ground and a think tank for some of the Army’s brightest officers. Officials say the Army chief of staff, and sometimes the Joint Chiefs of Staff, ask SAMS to develop contingency plans for future military operations. During the 1991 Persian Gulf war, SAMS personnel helped plan the coalition ground attack that avoided a strike up the middle of Iraqi positions and instead executed a “left hook” that routed the enemy in 100 hours.


The cover page for the recent SAMS project said it was done for the Joint Chiefs of Staff. But Maj. Chris Garver, a Fort Leavenworth spokesman, said the study was not requested by Washington.
“This was just an academic exercise,” said Maj. Garver. “They were trying to take a current situation and get some training out of it.”
 The exercise was done by 60 officers dubbed “Jedi Knights,” as all second-year SAMS students are nicknamed.


The SAMS paper attempts to predict events in the first year of a peace-enforcement operation, and sees possible dangers for U.S. troops from both sides.
 It calls Israel’s armed forces a “500-pound gorilla in Israel. Well armed and trained. Operates in both Gaza . Known to disregard international law to accomplish mission. Very unlikely to fire on American forces. Fratricide a concern especially in air space management.”


Of the Mossad, the Israeli intelligence service, the SAMS officers say: “Wildcard. Ruthless and cunning. Has capability to target U.S. forces and make it look like a Palestinian/Arab act.”


On the Palestinian side, the paper describes their youth as “loose cannons; under no control, sometimes violent.” The study lists five Arab terrorist groups that could target American troops for assassination and hostage-taking.
 The study recommends “neutrality in word and deed” as one way to protect U.S. soldiers from any attack. It also says Syria, Egypt and Jordan must be warned “we will act decisively in response to external attack.”


It is unlikely either of the three would mount an attack. Of Syria’s military, the report says: “Syrian army quantitatively larger than Israeli Defense Forces, but largely seen as qualitatively inferior. More likely, however, Syrians would provide financial and political support to the Palestinians, as well as increase covert support to terrorism acts through Lebanon.”
Of Egypt’s military, the paper says, “Egyptians also maintain a large army but have little to gain by attacking Israel.”


The plan does not specify a full order of battle. An Army source who reviewed the SAMS work said each of a possible three brigades would require about 100 Bradley fighting vehicles, 25 tanks, 12 self-propelled howitzers, Apache attack helicopters, Kiowa Warrior reconnaissance helicopters and Predator spy drones.
 The report predicts that nonlethal weapons would be used to quell unrest.
U.S. European Command, which is headed by NATO’s supreme allied commander, would oversee the peacekeeping operation. Commanders would maintain areas of operation, or AOs, around Nablus, Jerusalem, Hebron and the Gaza strip.
 The study sets out a list of goals for U.S. troops to accomplish in the first 30 days. They include: “create conditions for development of Palestinian State and security of “; ensure “equal distribution of contract value or equivalent aid” that would help legitimize the peacekeeping force and stimulate economic growth; “promote U.S. investment in Palestine”; “encourage reconciliation between entities based on acceptance of new national identities”; and “build lasting relationship based on new legal borders and not religious-territorial claims.”


Maj. Garver said the officers who completed the exercise will hold major planning jobs once they graduate. “There is an application process” for students, he said. “They screen their records, and there are several tests they go through before they are accepted by the program. The bright planners of the future come out of this program.”


James Phillips, a Middle East analyst at the Heritage Foundation, said it would be a mistake to put peacekeepers in Israel, given the “poor record of previous monitors.”
 “In general, the Bush administration policy is to discourage a large American presence,” he said. “But it has been rumored that one of the possibilities might be an expanded CIA role.”
“It would be a very different environment than Bosnia,” said Mr. Phillips, referring to America’s six-year peacekeeping role in Bosnia-Herzegovina. “The Palestinian Authority is pushing for this as part of its strategy to internationalize the conflict. Bring in the Europeans and Russia and China. But such monitors or peacekeeping forces are not going to be able to bring peace. Only a decision by the Palestinians to stop the violence and restart talks could possibly do that.”

<https://www.ord.io/70787305>

<<https://www.ord.io/74522515>>

@ b1ddb4d7:471244e7

In the heart of East Africa, where M-Pesa reigns supreme and innovation pulses through bustling markets, a quiet revolution is brewing—one that could redefine how millions interact with money.

Enter Bitika, the Kenyan startup turning bitcoin’s complexity into a three-step dance, merging the lightning speed of sats with the trusted rhythm of mobile money.

At the helm is a founder whose “aha” moment came not in a boardroom, but at his kitchen table, watching his father grapple with the gap between understanding bitcoin and actually using it.

Bitika was born from that friction—a bridge between M-Pesa’s ubiquity and bitcoin’s borderless promise, wrapped in a name as playful as the Swahili slang that inspired it.

But this isn’t just a story about simplifying transactions. It’s about liquidity battles, regulatory tightropes, and a vision to turn Bitika into the invisible rails powering Africa’s Bitcoin future.

Building on Bitcoin

• Tell us a bit about yourself and how you got into bitcoin/fintech, and what keeps you passionate about this space?

I first came across bitcoin in 2020, but like many at that time, I didn’t fully grasp what it really was. It sounded too complicated, probably with the heavy terminologies. Over time, I kept digging deeper and became more curious.

I started digging into finance and how money works and realised this was what I needed to understand bitcoin’s objectives. I realized that bitcoin wasn’t just a new type of money—it was a breakthrough in how we think about freedom, ownership, and global finance.

What keeps me passionate is how bitcoin can empower people—especially in Africa—to take control of their wealth, without relying on unstable systems or middlemen.

• What pivotal moment or experience inspired you to create Bitika? Was there a specific gap in Kenya’s financial ecosystem that sparked the idea?

Yes, this idea was actually born right in my own home. I’ve always been an advocate for bitcoin, sharing it with friends, family, and even strangers. My dad and I had countless conversations about it. Eventually, he understood the concept. But when he asked, “How do I even buy bitcoin?” or “Can you just buy it for me?” and after taking him through binance—that hit me.

If someone I’d educated still found the buying process difficult, how many others were feeling the same way? That was the lightbulb moment. I saw a clear gap: the process of buying bitcoin was too technical for the average Kenyan. That’s the problem Bitika set out to solve.

• How did you identify the synergy between bitcoin and M-Pesa as a solution for accessibility?

M-Pesa is at the center of daily life in Kenya. Everyone uses it—from buying groceries to paying rent. Instead of forcing people to learn new tools, I decided to meet them where they already are. That synergy between M-Pesa and bitcoin felt natural. It’s about bridging what people already trust with something powerful and new.

• Share the story behind the name “Bitika” – does it hold a cultural or symbolic meaning?

Funny enough, Bitika isn’t a deeply planned name. It came while I was thinking about bitcoin and the type of transformation it brings to individuals. In Swahili, we often add “-ka” to words for flair—like “bambika” from “bamba.”

So, I just coined Bitika as a playful and catchy way to reflect something bitcoin-related, but also uniquely local. I stuck with it because thinking of an ideal brand name is the toughest challenge for me.

• Walk us through the user journey – how does buying bitcoin via M-Pesa in “3 simple steps” work under the hood?

It’s beautifully simple.

1. The user enters the amount they want to spend in KES—starting from as little as 50 KES (about $0.30).

2. They input their Lightning wallet address.

3. They enter their M-Pesa number, which triggers an STK push (payment prompt) on their phone. Once confirmed—pap!—they receive bitcoin almost instantly.

Under the hood, we fetch the live BTC price, validate wallet addresses, check available liquidity, process the mobile payment, and send sats via the Lightning Network—all streamlined into a smooth experience for the user.

• Who’s Bitika’s primary audience? Are you focusing on unbanked populations, tech enthusiasts, or both?

Both. Bitika is designed for everyday people—especially the unbanked and underbanked who are excluded from traditional finance. But we also attract bitcoiners who just want a faster, easier way to buy sats. What unites them is the desire for a seamless and low-barrier bitcoin experience.

Community and Overcoming Challenges

• What challenges has Bitika faced navigating Kenya’s bitcoin regulations, and how do you build trust with regulators?

Regulation is still evolving here. Parliament has drafted bills, but none have been passed into law yet. We’re currently in a revision phase where policymakers are trying to strike a balance between encouraging innovation and protecting the public.

We focus on transparency and open dialogue—we believe that building trust with regulators starts with showing how bitcoin can serve the public good.

• What was the toughest obstacle in building Bitika, and how did you overcome it?

Liquidity. Since we don’t have deep capital reserves, we often run into situations where we have to pause operations often to manually restock our bitcoin supply. It’s frustrating—for us and for users. We’re working on automating this process and securing funding to maintain consistent liquidity so users can access bitcoin at any time, without disruption.

This remains our most critical issue—and the primary reason we’re seeking support.

• Are you eyeing new African markets? What’s next for Bitika’s product?

Absolutely. The long-term vision is to expand Bitika into other African countries facing similar financial challenges. But first, we want to turn Bitika into a developer-first tool—infrastructure that others can build on. Imagine local apps, savings products, or financial tools built using Bitika’s simple bitcoin rails. That’s where we’re heading. 

• What would you tell other African entrepreneurs aiming to disrupt traditional finance?

Disrupting finance sounds exciting—but the reality is messy. People fear what they don’t understand. That’s why simplicity is everything. Build tools that hide the complexity, and focus on making the user’s life easier. Most importantly, stay rooted in local context—solve problems people actually face.

What’s Next?

• What’s your message to Kenyans hesitant to try bitcoin, and to enthusiasts watching Bitika?

To my fellow Kenyans: bitcoin isn’t just an investment—it’s a sovereign tool. It’s money you truly own. Start small, learn, and ask questions.

To the bitcoin community: Bitika is proof that bitcoin is working in Africa. Let’s keep pushing. Let’s build tools that matter.

• How can the bitcoin community, both locally and globally, support Bitika’s mission?

We’re currently fundraising on Geyser. Support—whether it’s financial, technical, or simply sharing our story—goes a long way. Every sat you contribute helps us stay live, grow our liquidity, and continue building a tool that brings bitcoin closer to the everyday person in Africa.

Support here: https://geyser.fund/project/bitika

@ 8bad92c3:ca714aa5

Marty's Bent

Last week we covered the bombshell developments in the Samourai Wallet case. For those who didn't read that, last Monday the world was made aware of the fact that the SDNY was explicitly told by FinCEN that the federal regulator did not believe that Samourai Wallet was a money services business six months before arresting the co-founders of Samourai Wallet for conspiracy to launder money and illegally operating a money services business. This was an obvious overstep by the SDNY that many believed would be quickly alleviated, especially considering the fact that the Trump administration via the Department of Justice has made it clear that they do not intend to rule via prosecution.

It seems that this is not the case as the SDNY responded to a letter sent from the defense to dismiss the case by stating that they fully plan to move forward. Stating that they only sought the recommendations of FinCEN employees and did not believe that those employees' comments were indicative of FinCEN's overall views on this particular case. It's a pretty egregious abuse of power by the SDNY. I'm not sure if the particular lawyers and judges within the Southern District of New York are very passionate about preventing the use of self-custody bitcoin and products that enable bitcoiners to transact privately, or if they're simply participating in a broader meta war with the Trump administration - who has made it clear to federal judges across the country that last Fall's election will have consequences, mainly that the Executive Branch will try to effectuate the policies that President Trump campaigned on by any legal means necessary - and Samouari Wallet is simply in the middle of that meta war.

However, one thing is pretty clear to me, this is an egregious overstep of power. The interpretation of that law, as has been laid out and confirmed by FinCEN over the last decade, is pretty clear; you cannot be a money services business if you do not control the funds that people are sending to each other, which is definitely the case with Samourai Wallet. People downloaded Samourai Wallet, spun up their own private-public key pairs and initiated transactions themselves. Samourai never custodied funds or initiated transactions on behalf of their users. This is very cut and dry. Straight to the point. It should be something that anyone with more than two brain cells is able to discern pretty quickly.

It is imperative that anybody in the industry who cares about being able to hold bitcoin in self-custody, to mine bitcoin, and to send bitcoin in a peer-to-peer fashion makes some noise around this case. None of the current administration's attempts to foster innovation around bitcoin in the United States will matter if the wrong precedent is set in this case. If the SDNY is successful in prosecuting Samourai Wallet, it will mean that anybody holding Bitcoin in self-custody, running a bitcoin fold node or mining bitcoin will have to KYC all of their users and counterparts lest they be labeled a money services business that is breaking laws stemming from the Bank Secrecy Act. This will effectively make building a self-custody bitcoin wallet, running a node, or mining bitcoin in tillegal in the United States. The ability to comply with the rules that would be unleashed if this Samourai case goes the wrong way, are such that it will effectively destroy the industry overnight.

It is yet to be seen whether or not the Department of Justice will step in to publicly flog the SDNY and force them to stop pursuing this case. This is the only likely way that the case will go away at this point, so it is very important that bitcoiners who care about being able to self-custody bitcoin, mine bitcoin, or send bitcoin in a peer-to-peer fashion in the United States make it clear to the current administration and any local politicians that this is an issue that you care deeply about. If we are too complacent, there is a chance that the SDNY could completely annihilate the bitcoin industry in America despite of all of the positive momentum we're seeing from all angles at the moment.

Make some noise!

Bitcoin Adoption by Power Companies: The Next Frontier

In my recent conversation with Andrew Myers from Satoshi Energy, he shared their ambitious mission to "enable every electric power company to use bitcoin by block 1,050,000" – roughly three years from now. This strategic imperative isn't just about creating new Bitcoin users; it's about sovereignty. Andrew emphasized that getting Bitcoin into the hands of energy companies who value self-sovereignty creates a more balanced future economic landscape. The excitement was palpable as he described how several energy companies are already moving beyond simply selling power to Bitcoin miners and are beginning to invest in mining operations themselves.

"You have global commodity companies being like, 'Oh, this is another commodity – we want to invest in this, we want to own this,'" - Andrew Myers

Perhaps most fascinating was Andrew's revelation about major energy companies in Texas developing Bitcoin collateral products for power contracts – a practical application that could revolutionize how energy transactions are settled. As energy companies continue embracing Bitcoin for both operations and collateral, we're witnessing the early stages of a profound shift in how critical infrastructure interfaces with sound money. The implications for both sectors could be transformative.

Check out the full podcast here for more on remote viewing, Nikola Tesla's predictions, and the convergence of Bitcoin and AI technology. We cover everything from humanoid robots to the energy demands of next-generation computing.

Headlines of the Day

Steak n Shake to Accept Bitcoin at All Locations May 16 - via X

Facebook Plans Crypto Wallets for 3B Users, Bitcoin Impact Looms - via X

Trump Urges Americans to Buy Stocks for Economic Boom - via X

UK Drops Tariffs, U.S. Farmers Set to Reap Major Benefits - via X

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Final thought...

Happy belated Mother's Day to all the moms out there.

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@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

Bank run on every crypto bank then bank run on every "real" bank.

— ODELL (@ODELL) December 14, 2022

Good morning.

It looks like PacWest will fail today. It will be both the fifth largest bank failure in US history and the sixth major bank to fail this year. It will likely get purchased by one of the big four banks in a government orchestrated sale.  

March 8th - Silvergate Bank
March 10th - Silicon Valley Bank
March 12th - Signature Bank
March 19th - Credit Suisse
May 1st - First Republic Bank
May 4th - PacWest Bank?

PacWest is the first of many small regional banks that will go under this year. Most will get bought by the big four in gov orchestrated sales. This has been the playbook since 2008. Follow the incentives. Massive consolidation across the banking industry. PacWest gonna be a drop in the bucket compared to what comes next.

First, a hastened government led bank consolidation, then a public/private partnership with the remaining large banks to launch a surveilled and controlled digital currency network. We will be told it is more convenient. We will be told it is safer. We will be told it will prevent future bank runs. All of that is marketing bullshit. The goal is greater control of money. The ability to choose how we spend it and how we save it. If you control the money - you control the people that use it.

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@ dfa02707:41ca50e3

Contribute to keep No Bullshit Bitcoin news going.

• The latest firmware updates for COLDCARD devices introduce two major features: COLDCARD Co-sign (CCC) and Key Teleport between two COLDCARD Q devices using QR codes and/or NFC with a website.

What's new

• COLDCARD Co-Sign: When CCC is enabled, a second seed called the Spending Policy Key (Key C) is added to the device. This seed works with the device's Main Seed and one or more additional XPUBs (Backup Keys) to form 2-of-N multisig wallets.
  • The spending policy functions like a hardware security module (HSM), enforcing rules such as magnitude and velocity limits, address whitelisting, and 2FA authentication to protect funds while maintaining flexibility and control, and is enforced each time the Spending Policy Key is used for signing.
  • When spending conditions are met, the COLDCARD signs the partially signed bitcoin transaction (PSBT) with the Main Seed and Spending Policy Key for fund access. Once configured, the Spending Policy Key is required to view or change the policy, and violations are denied without explanation.

"You can override the spending policy at any time by signing with either a Backup Key and the Main Seed or two Backup Keys, depending on the number of keys (N) in the multisig."

• A step-by-step guide for setting up CCC is available here.

• Key Teleport for Q devices allows users to securely transfer sensitive data such as seed phrases (words, xprv), secure notes and passwords, and PSBTs for multisig. It uses QR codes or NFC, along with a helper website, to ensure reliable transmission, keeping your sensitive data protected throughout the process.

  • For more technical details, see the protocol spec.

"After you sign a multisig PSBT, you have option to “Key Teleport” the PSBT file to any one of the other signers in the wallet. We already have a shared pubkey with them, so the process is simple and does not require any action on their part in advance. Plus, starting in this firmware release, COLDCARD can finalize multisig transactions, so the last signer can publish the signed transaction via PushTX (NFC tap) to get it on the blockchain directly."

• Multisig transactions are finalized when sufficiently signed. It streamlines the use of PushTX with multisig wallets.
• Signing artifacts re-export to various media. Users are now provided with the capability to export signing products, like transactions or PSBTs, to alternative media rather than the original source. For example, if a PSBT is received through a QR code, it can be signed and saved onto an SD card if needed.
• Multisig export files are signed now. Public keys are encoded as P2PKH address for all multisg signature exports. Learn more about it here.
• NFC export usability upgrade: NFC keeps exporting until CANCEL/X is pressed.
• Added Bitcoin Safe option to Export Wallet.
• 10% performance improvement in USB upload speed for large files.
• Q: Always choose the biggest possible display size for QR.

Fixes

• Do not allow change Main PIN to same value already used as Trick PIN, even if Trick PIN is hidden.
• Fix stuck progress bar under Receiving... after a USB communications failure.
• Showing derivation path in Address Explorer for root key (m) showed double slash (//).
• Can restore developer backup with custom password other than 12 words format.
• Virtual Disk auto mode ignores already signed PSBTs (with “-signed” in file name).
• Virtual Disk auto mode stuck on “Reading…” screen sometimes.
• Finalization of foreign inputs from partial signatures. Thanks Christian Uebber!
• Temporary seed from COLDCARD backup failed to load stored multisig wallets.
• Destroy Seed also removes all Trick PINs from SE2.
• Lock Down Seed requires pressing confirm key (4) to execute.
• Q only: Only BBQr is allowed to export Coldcard, Core, and pretty descriptor.

Blog Post / Archive
GitHub Repo
CCC Guide
Key Teleport site

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

There must be a limit to how much data is transferred across the bitcoin network in order to keep the ability to run and use your own node accessible. A node is required to interact with the global bitcoin network - if you do not use your own node then you must trust someone else's node. If nodes become inaccessible to run then the network will centralize around the remaining entities that operate them - threatening the censorship resistance at the core of bitcoin's value prop. The bitcoin protocol uses three main mechanisms to keep node operation costs low - a fixed limit on the amount of data in each block, an automatic difficulty adjustment that regulates how many blocks are produced based on current mining hash rate, and a robust dynamic transaction fee market.

Bitcoin transaction fees limit network abuse by making usage expensive. There is a cost to every transaction, set by a dynamic free market based on demand for scarce block space. It is an incredibly robust way to prevent spam without relying on centralized entities that can be corrupted or pressured.

After the 2017 bitcoin fee spike we had six years of relative quiet to build tools that would be robust in a sustained high fee market. Fortunately our tools are significantly better now but many still need improvement. Most of the pain points we see today will be mitigated.

The reality is we were never going to be fully prepared - pressure is needed to show the pain points and provide strong incentives to mitigate them.

It will be incredibly interesting to watch how projects adapt under pressure. Optimistic we see great innovation here.

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_If you are willing to wait for your transaction to confirm you can pay significantly lower fees. Learn best practices for reducing your fee burden here.

My guide for running and using your own bitcoin node can be found here._

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ dfa02707:41ca50e3

Contribute to keep No Bullshit Bitcoin news going.

• "Today we're launching the beta version of our multiplatform Nostr browser! Think Google Chrome but for Nostr apps. The beta is our big first step toward this vision," announced Damus.
• This version comes with the Dave Nostr AI assistant, support for zaps and the Nostr Wallet Connect (NWC) wallet interface, full-text note search, GIFs and fullscreen images, multiple media uploads, user tagging, relay list and mute list support, along with a number of other improvements."

"Included in the beta is the Dave, the Nostr AI assistant (its Grok for Nostr). Dave is a new Notedeck browser app that can search and summarize notes from the network. For a full breakdown of everything new, check out our beta launch video."

What's new

• Dave Nostr AI assistant app.
• GIFs.
• Fulltext note search.
• Add full screen images, add zoom, and pan.
• Zaps! NWC/ Wallet UI.
• Introduce last note per pubkey feed (experimental).
• Allow multiple media uploads per selection.
• Major Android improvements (still WIP).
• Added notedeck app sidebar.
• User Tagging.
• Note truncation.
• Local network note broadcast, broadcast notes to other notedeck notes while you're offline.
• Mute list support (reading).
• Relay list support.
• Ctrl-enter to send notes.
• Added relay indexing (relay columns soon).
• Click hashtags to open hashtag timeline.
• Fixed timelines sometimes not updating (stale feeds).
• Fixed UI bounciness when loading profile pictures
• Fixed unselectable post replies.

Announcement / Archive
GitHub Repo
Website

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

I often hear "bitcoin doesn't interest me, I'm not a finance person."

Ironically, the beauty of sound money is you don't have to be. In the current system you're expected to manage a diversified investment portfolio or pay someone to do it. Bitcoin will make that optional.

— ODELL (@ODELL) September 16, 2018

At first glance bitcoin often appears overwhelming to newcomers. It is incredibly easy to get bogged down in the details of how it works or different ways to use it. Enthusiasts, such as myself, often enjoy going down the deep rabbit hole of the potential of bitcoin, possible pitfalls and theoretical scenarios, power user techniques, and the developer ecosystem. If your first touch point with bitcoin is that type of content then it is only natural to be overwhelmed. While it is important that we have a thriving community of bitcoiners dedicated to these complicated tasks - the true beauty of bitcoin lies in its simplicity. Bitcoin is simply better money. It is the best money we have ever had.

Life is complicated. Life is hard. Life is full of responsibility and surprises. Bitcoin allows us to focus on our lives while relying on a money that is simple. A money that is not controlled by any individual, company, or government. A money that cannot be easily seized or blocked. A money that cannot be devalued at will by a handful of corrupt bureaucrat who live hundreds of miles from us. A money that can be easily saved and should increase in purchasing power over time without having to learn how to "build a diversified stock portfolio" or hire someone to do it for us.

Bitcoin enables all of us to focus on our lives - our friends and family - doing what we love with the short time we have on this earth. Time is scarce. Life is complicated. Bitcoin is the most simple aspect of our complicated lives. If we spend our scarce time working then we should be able to easily save that accrued value for future generations without watching the news or understanding complicated financial markets. Bitcoin makes this possible for anyone.

Yesterday was Mother's Day. Raising a human is complicated. It is hard, it requires immense personal responsibility, it requires critical thinking, but mothers figure it out, because it is worth it. Using and saving bitcoin is simple -  simply install an app on your phone. Every mother can do it. Every person can do it.

Life is complicated. Life is beautiful. Bitcoin is simple.

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@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

Will not live in a pod.
Will not eat the bugs.
Will not get the chip.
Will not get a blue check.
Will not use CBDCs.

Live Free or Die.

Why did Elon buy twitter for $44 Billion? What value does he see in it besides the greater influence that undoubtedly comes with controlling one of the largest social platforms in the world? We do not need to speculate - he made his intentions incredibly clear in his first meeting with twitter employees after his takeover - WeChat of the West.

To those that do not appreciate freedom, the value prop is clear - WeChat is incredibly powerful and successful in China.

To those that do appreciate freedom, the concern is clear - WeChat has essentially become required to live in China, has surveillance and censorship integrated at its core, and if you are banned from the app your entire livelihood is at risk. Employment, housing, payments, travel, communication, and more become extremely difficult if WeChat censors determine you have acted out of line.

The blue check is the first step in Elon's plan to bring the chinese social credit score system to the west. Users who verify their identity are rewarded with more reach and better tools than those that do not. Verified users are the main product of Elon's twitter - an extensive database of individuals and complete control of the tools he will slowly get them to rely on - it is easier to monetize cattle than free men.

If you cannot resist the temptation of the blue check in its current form you have already lost - what comes next will be much darker. If you realize the need to resist - freedom tech provides us options.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

Nostr is an open communication protocol that can be used to send messages across a distributed set of relays in a censorship resistant and robust way.

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If you missed my nostr introduction post you can find it here. My nostr account can be found here.

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We are nearly at the point that if something interesting is posted on a centralized social platform it will usually be posted by someone to nostr.

We are nearly at the point that if something interesting is posted exclusively to nostr it is cross posted by someone to various centralized social platforms.

We are nearly at the point that you can recommend a cross platform app that users can install and easily onboard without additional guides or resources.

As companies continue to build walls around their centralized platforms nostr posts will be the easiest to cross reference and verify - as companies continue to censor their users nostr is the best censorship resistant alternative - gradually then suddenly nostr will become the standard. 🫡

Current Nostr Stats

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

Influencers would have you believe there is an ongoing binance bank run but bitcoin wallet data says otherwise.

- binance wallets are near all time highs
- bitfinex wallets are also trending up
- gemini and coinbase are being hit with massive withdrawals though

You should not trust custodians, they can rug you without warning. It is incredibly important you learn how to hold bitcoin yourself, but also consider not blindly trusting influencers with a ref link to shill you.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

For years American bitcoin miners have argued for more efficient and free energy markets. It benefits everyone if our energy infrastructure is as efficient and robust as possible. Unfortunately, broken incentives have led to increased regulation throughout the sector, incentivizing less efficient energy sources such as solar and wind at the detriment of more efficient alternatives.

The result has been less reliable energy infrastructure for all Americans and increased energy costs across the board. This naturally has a direct impact on bitcoin miners: increased energy costs make them less competitive globally.

Bitcoin mining represents a global energy market that does not require permission to participate. Anyone can plug a mining computer into power and internet to get paid the current dynamic market price for their work in bitcoin. Using cellphone or satellite internet, these mines can be located anywhere in the world, sourcing the cheapest power available.

Absent of regulation, bitcoin mining naturally incentivizes the build out of highly efficient and robust energy infrastructure. Unfortunately that world does not exist and burdensome regulations remain the biggest threat for US based mining businesses. Jurisdictional arbitrage gives miners the option of moving to a friendlier country but that naturally comes with its own costs.

Enter AI. With the rapid development and release of AI tools comes the requirement of running massive datacenters for their models. Major tech companies are scrambling to secure machines, rack space, and cheap energy to run full suites of AI enabled tools and services. The most valuable and powerful tech companies in America have stumbled into an accidental alliance with bitcoin miners: THE NEED FOR CHEAP AND RELIABLE ENERGY.

Our government is corrupt. Money talks. These companies will push for energy freedom and it will greatly benefit us all.

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Microsoft Cloud hiring to "implement global small modular reactor and microreactor" strategy to power data centers: https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/microsoft-cloud-hiring-to-implement-global-small-modular-reactor-and-microreactor-strategy-to-power-data-centers/

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@ 0e9491aa:ef2adadf

Humanity's Natural State Is Chaos
Without order there is chaos. Humans competing with each other for scarce resources naturally leads to conflict until one group achieves significant power and instates a "monopoly on violence."

Power Brings Stability
Power has always been the key means to achieve stability in societies. Centralized power can be incredibly effective in addressing issues such as crime, poverty, and social unrest efficiently. Unfortunately this power is often abused and corrupted.

Centralized Power Breeds Tyranny
Centralized power often leads to tyrannical rule. When a select few individuals hold control over a society, they tend to become corrupted. Centralized power structures often lack accountability and transparency, and rely too heavily on trust.

Distributed Power Cultivates Freedom
New technology that empowers individuals provide us the ability to rebuild societies from the bottom up. Strong individuals that can defend and provide for themselves will help build strong local communities on a similar foundation. The result is power being distributed throughout society rather than held by a select few.

In the short term, relying on trust and centralized power is an easy answer to mitigating chaos, but freedom tech tools provide us the ability to build on top of much stronger distributed foundations that provide stability while also cultivating individual freedom.

The solution starts with us. Empower yourself. Empower others. A grassroots freedom tech movement scaling one person at a time.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ eb0157af:77ab6c55

A group of users has filed a class action lawsuit against Coinbase, claiming that its identity verification checks violate the state’s biometric privacy law.

According to plaintiffs Scott Bernstein, Gina Greeder, and James Lonergan in the lawsuit filed on May 13 in a federal court, Coinbase’s “indiscriminate collection” of facial biometric data for Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements breaches Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA).

The group argued that the exchange failed to notify users in writing about the collection, storage, or sharing of their biometric data, as well as the purpose and retention schedule for such data. “Coinbase does not publicly provide a retention schedule or guidelines for permanently destroying Plaintiffs’ biometric identifiers as specified by BIPA,” they alleged.

The complaint claims that Coinbase requires users to verify their identity by uploading a government-issued ID and a selfie, which is then sent to third-party facial recognition software to scan and extract facial geometry. This process captures biometric identifiers without the users’ informed written consent, thus violating BIPA, according to the lawsuit.

Additionally, the group alleged that Coinbase unlawfully shared biometric data with third-party verification providers such as Jumio, Onfido, Au10tix, and Solaris without users’ consent. “Coinbase ‘obtains’ biometric data in violation of [BIPA] because it explicitly directed the Third Party Verification Providers to use its software to verify and authenticate users, including Plaintiffs, and its software does so by collecting biometric data,” the complaint read.

The group also stated that over 10,000 individuals have filed arbitration demands on these issues with the American Arbitration Association, but Coinbase allegedly refused to pay the required arbitration fees, causing the claims to be dismissed.

Legal demands

The lawsuit brings three counts of biometric privacy law violations and one count of consumer fraud under the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act. The group seeks $5,000 for each intentional or reckless violation, $1,000 for each negligent violation, along with injunctive relief and litigation costs.

Coinbase was also recently hit by at least six lawsuits following the May 15 disclosure that some of its customer support agents were allegedly bribed to leak user data.

The post Lawsuit against Coinbase for biometric privacy violations in Illinois appeared first on Atlas21.

@ eb0157af:77ab6c55

A Chinese printer company inadvertently distributed malware that steals Bitcoin through its official drivers, resulting in the theft of over $950,000.

According to local media outlet Landian News, a Chinese printer manufacturer was found to have unknowingly distributed malware designed to steal Bitcoin through its official device drivers.

Procolored, a Shenzhen-based printer company, distributed malware capable of stealing Bitcoin alongside the official drivers for its devices. The company reportedly used USB devices to spread infected drivers and uploaded the compromised software to globally accessible cloud storage services.

Crypto security and compliance firm SlowMist explained how the malware works in a post on X:

The official driver provided by this printer carries a backdoor program. It will hijack the wallet address in the user's clipboard and replace it with the attacker's address: 1BQZKqdp2CV3QV5nUEsqSg1ygegLmqRygj

According to @MistTrack_io, the attacker has stolen 9.3086… https://t.co/DHCkEpHhuH pic.twitter.com/W1AnUpswLU

— MistTrack (@MistTrack_io) May 19, 2025

The consequences of the breach have been significant, with a total of 9.3 BTC stolen — equivalent to over $950,000.

The issue was first flagged by YouTuber Cameron Coward, whose antivirus software detected malware in the drivers during a test of a Procolored UV printer. The software identified both a worm and a trojan virus named Foxif.

When contacted, Procolored denied the accusations, dismissing the antivirus warning as a false positive. Coward then turned to Reddit, where he shared the issue with cybersecurity professionals, drawing the attention of security firm G Data.

G Data’s investigation revealed that most of Procolored’s drivers were hosted on the MEGA file-sharing platform, with uploads dating back to October 2023. Their analysis confirmed the presence of two separate malware strains: the Win32.Backdoor.XRedRAT.A backdoor and a crypto-stealer designed to replace clipboard wallet addresses with those controlled by the attacker.

G Data reached out to Procolored, which stated that it had removed the infected drivers from its storage as of May 8 and had re-scanned all files. The company attributed the malware to a supply chain compromise, saying the malicious files were introduced via infected USB devices before being uploaded online.

Landian News recommended that users who downloaded Procolored drivers in the past six months “immediately run a full system scan using antivirus software.” However, given that antivirus tools are not always reliable, the Chinese media outlet suggested that a full system reset is the safest option when in doubt.

The post Bitcoin malware discovered: Chinese printer manufacturer involved appeared first on Atlas21.

@ 502ab02a:a2860397

น้ำนมมนุษย์ที่ไม่ง้อมนุษย์ หรือนี่กำลังจะกลายเป็นเรื่องจริงเร็วกว่าที่เราคิดนะครับ

ในยุคที่อุตสาหกรรมอาหารหันหลังให้กับปศุสัตว์ ไม่ว่าจะด้วยเหตุผลด้านสิ่งแวดล้อม จริยธรรม หรือความยั่งยืน “น้ำนมจากห้องแล็บ” กำลังกลายเป็นแนวหน้าของการปฏิวัติอาหาร โดยเฉพาะเมื่อบริษัทหนึ่งจากสิงคโปร์นามว่า TurtleTree ประกาศอย่างชัดเจนว่า พวกเขากำลังจะสร้างโปรตีนสำคัญในน้ำนมมนุษย์ โดยไม่ต้องมีมนุษย์แม่เลยแม้แต่น้อย

TurtleTree ก่อตั้งในปี 2019 โดยมีเป้าหมายอันทะเยอทะยานคือการผลิตโปรตีนในนมแม่ให้ได้ผ่านเทคโนโลยีที่เรียกว่า precision fermentation โดยใช้จุลินทรีย์ที่ถูกดัดแปลงพันธุกรรมให้ผลิตโปรตีนเฉพาะ เช่น lactoferrin และ human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) ซึ่งเป็นองค์ประกอบล้ำค่าที่พบในน้ำนมมนุษย์แต่แทบไม่มีในนมวัว หรือผลิตภัณฑ์นมทั่วไป

โปรตีนตัวแรกที่ TurtleTree ประสบความสำเร็จในการผลิตคือ LF+ หรือ lactoferrin ที่เลียนแบบโปรตีนในนมแม่ ซึ่งมีหน้าที่ช่วยระบบภูมิคุ้มกันของทารก ต่อต้านแบคทีเรีย และช่วยให้ร่างกายดูดซึมธาตุเหล็กได้ดีขึ้น โปรตีนนี้เป็นหนึ่งในหัวใจของนมแม่ ที่บริษัทต้องการนำมาใช้ในอุตสาหกรรมนมผงเด็กและอาหารเสริมสำหรับผู้ใหญ่ ล่าสุดในปี 2024 LF+ ได้รับการรับรองสถานะ GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) จากองค์การอาหารและยาสหรัฐฯ (FDA) อย่างเป็นทางการ เป็นหมุดหมายสำคัญที่บอกว่า นี่ไม่ใช่แค่ไอเดียในแล็บอีกต่อไป แต่กำลังกลายเป็นผลิตภัณฑ์เชิงพาณิชย์จริง

เบื้องหลังของโปรเจกต์นี้คือการลงทุนกว่า 30 ล้านดอลลาร์สหรัฐจากกลุ่มทุนทั่วโลก รวมถึงบริษัท Solar Biotech ที่จับมือกับ TurtleTree ในการขยายกำลังการผลิตเชิงอุตสาหกรรมในสหรัฐอเมริกา โดยตั้งเป้าว่าจะสามารถผลิตโปรตีนเหล่านี้ได้ในระดับราคาที่แข่งขันได้ภายในไม่กี่ปีข้างหน้า

สิ่งที่น่าสนใจคือ TurtleTree ไม่ได้หยุดแค่ lactoferrin พวกเขายังวางแผนพัฒนา HMO ซึ่งเป็นน้ำตาลเชิงซ้อนชนิดพิเศษที่มีอยู่เฉพาะในน้ำนมแม่ เป็นอาหารเลี้ยงแบคทีเรียดีในลำไส้ทารก ช่วยพัฒนาระบบภูมิคุ้มกันและสมอง ปัจจุบัน HMOs เริ่มเป็นที่นิยมในวงการ infant formula แต่การผลิตยังจำกัดและมีต้นทุนสูง การที่ TurtleTree จะนำเทคโนโลยี precision fermentation มาใช้ผลิต HMO จึงถือเป็นความพยายามในการลดช่องว่างระหว่าง "นมแม่จริง" กับ "นมผงสังเคราะห์"

ทั้งหมดนี้เกิดขึ้นภายใต้แนวคิดใหม่ของอุตสาหกรรมอาหารที่เรียกว่า "functional nutrition" หรือโภชนาการที่ออกแบบเพื่อทำงานเฉพาะทาง ไม่ใช่แค่ให้พลังงานหรือโปรตีน แต่เล็งเป้าหมายเฉพาะ เช่น เสริมภูมิคุ้มกัน ซ่อมแซมสมอง หรือฟื้นฟูร่างกาย โดยมีรากฐานจากธรรมชาติ แต่ใช้เทคโนโลยีสมัยใหม่ในการผลิต

แม้จะฟังดูเป็นความก้าวหน้าทางวิทยาศาสตร์ที่น่าตื่นเต้น แต่น้ำเสียงที่ดังก้องในอีกมุมหนึ่งก็คือคำถามเชิงจริยธรรม TurtleTree กำลังสร้างโปรตีนที่มีอยู่เฉพาะในมนุษย์ โดยอาศัยข้อมูลพันธุกรรมของมนุษย์เอง แล้วนำเข้าสู่ระบบอุตสาหกรรมเพื่อการค้า คำถามคือ เมื่อใดที่การจำลองธรรมชาติจะกลายเป็นการผูกขาดธรรมชาติ? ใครควรเป็นเจ้าของข้อมูลพันธุกรรมของมนุษย์? และถ้าวันหนึ่งบริษัทใดบริษัทหนึ่งสามารถควบคุมการผลิต “นมแม่จำลอง” ได้แต่เพียงผู้เดียว นั่นจะส่งผลต่อเสรีภาพของสังคมในมุมไหนบ้าง?

นักชีวจริยธรรมหลายคน เช่น ดร.ซิลเวีย แคมโปเรซี จาก King's College London ตั้งข้อสังเกตไว้ว่า เทคโนโลยีแบบนี้อาจแก้ปัญหาการเข้าถึงนมแม่ในพื้นที่ห่างไกลหรือในกลุ่มแม่ที่ให้นมไม่ได้ แต่ขณะเดียวกันก็อาจกลายเป็นการสร้าง "ระบบอาหารทางเลือก" ที่ควบคุมโดยบริษัทไม่กี่ราย ที่มีอำนาจเกินกว่าผู้บริโภคจะตรวจสอบได้

เมื่อเทคโนโลยีสามารถจำลองสิ่งที่เคยสงวนไว้เฉพาะธรรมชาติ และมนุษย์ได้ใกล้เคียงจนแทบแยกไม่ออก บางทีคำถามที่ควรถามอาจไม่ใช่แค่ว่า “มันปลอดภัยหรือไม่?” แต่อาจต้องถามว่า “เราไว้ใจใครให้สร้างสิ่งนี้แทนธรรมชาติ?” เพราะน้ำนมแม่เคยเป็นสิ่งที่มาจากรักและชีวิต แต่วันนี้มันอาจกลายเป็นเพียงสิ่งที่มาจากห้องแล็บและโมเลกุล... และนั่นคือสิ่งที่เราต้องคิดให้เป็น ก่อนจะกินให้ดี เต่านี้มีบุญคุณอันใหญ่หลวงงงงงงง

เสริมจุดน่าสนใจให้ครับ KBW Ventures ถือเป็นผู้ลงทุนรายใหญ่ที่สุดใน TurtleTree Labs โดยมีบทบาทสำคัญในหลายรอบการระดมทุนของบริษัท KBW Ventures เป็นบริษัทลงทุนจากสหรัฐอาหรับเอมิเรตส์ ก่อตั้งโดย สมเด็จพระราชโอรสเจ้าชายคาเล็ด บิน อัลวาลีด บิน ตาลาล อัล ซาอุด (HRH Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal Al Saud) ในรอบการระดมทุน Pre-A มูลค่า 6.2 ล้านดอลลาร์สหรัฐฯ ซึ่งปิดในเดือนธันวาคม 2020 KBW Ventures ได้ร่วมลงทุนพร้อมกับ Green Monday Ventures, Eat Beyond Global และ Verso Capital . นอกจากนี้ เจ้าชาย Khaled ยังได้เข้าร่วมเป็นที่ปรึกษาให้กับ TurtleTree Labs เพื่อสนับสนุนการขยายตลาดและกลยุทธ์การเติบโตของบริษัท

ซึ่งในตัว KBW Ventures นั้น เป็นบริษัทลงทุนที่มุ่งเน้นการสนับสนุนเทคโนโลยีที่ยั่งยืนและนวัตกรรมในหลากหลายอุตสาหกรรม เช่น เทคโนโลยีชีวภาพ (biotech), เทคโนโลยีพลังงานสะอาด, เทคโนโลยีการเงิน (fintech), เทคโนโลยีการขนส่ง, และเทคโนโลยีอาหาร (food tech) โดยเฉพาะ และในส่วนของเจ้าชาย Khaled มีความสนใจอย่างลึกซึ้งในด้านเทคโนโลยีอาหาร โดยเฉพาะในกลุ่มโปรตีนทางเลือก เช่น Beyond Meat ซึ่งเป็นการลงทุนที่สะท้อนถึงความมุ่งมั่นชัดเจนในการส่งเสริมอาหารที่ยั่งยืนและมีจริยธรรมครับ และแน่นอนเลยว่า โดยมีส่วนร่วมในรอบระดมทุนหลายครั้งของ Beyond Meat รวมถึงตอนที่ Beyond Meat เข้าตลาดหุ้น Nasdaq ครั้งแรกในปี 2019

เจ้าชาย Khaled เชื่อมั่นว่าอาหารทางเลือกแบบพืชจะถูกลงและแพร่หลายมากขึ้น จนอาจถูกกว่าราคาเนื้อสัตว์จากสัตว์จริงภายในปี 2025 ตามข้อมูลที่ได้มาแสดงว่า ปีนี้นี่หว่าาาาาาาาาา

#pirateketo #กูต้องรู้มั๊ย #ม้วนหางสิลูก #siamstr

@ 2b998b04:86727e47

\> “Huge swathes of people…spend their entire working lives performing tasks they secretly believe do not really need to be performed.”\ \> — David Graeber, Bullshit Jobs

\> “We are in a system that must grow — forever — or it collapses. But technology, by its very nature, is deflationary.”\ \> — Jeff Booth, The Price of Tomorrow

We live in a strange paradox: Technological progress is supposed to make life easier, yet many people feel more overworked and less fulfilled than ever. While artificial intelligence and automation promise unprecedented productivity, it’s not yet clear whether that will mean fewer bullshit jobs — or simply new kinds of them.

What Is a Bullshit Job?

In his landmark book Bullshit Jobs, the late anthropologist David Graeber exposed a haunting truth: millions of jobs exist not because they are needed, but because of economic, political, or psychological inertia. These are roles that even the workers themselves suspect are meaningless — created to serve appearances, maintain hierarchies, or justify budgets.

Think:

• Middle managers approving other middle managers' reports

• Employees running meetings to prepare for other meetings

• Corporate roles invented to interface with poorly implemented AI tools

Bullshit work isn’t the absence of technology. It’s often the outcome of resisting what technology could actually do — in order to preserve jobs, status, or growth targets.

Booth’s Warning: The System is Rigged Against Deflation

In The Price of Tomorrow, entrepreneur Jeff Booth argues that the natural state of a tech-driven economy is deflation — things getting better, cheaper, and faster.

But our global financial system is built on perpetual inflation and debt expansion. Booth writes:

\> “We are using inflationary monetary policy to fight deflationary technological forces.”

Even as AI and automation could eliminate unnecessary jobs and increase abundance, our system requires jobs — or the illusion of them — to keep the economy expanding. So bullshit jobs persist, and even evolve.

AI as a Deflationary Force

AI is rapidly accelerating the deflation Booth described:

• Tasks that used to take hours now take seconds

• Whole creative and administrative processes are being streamlined

• Labor can scale digitally — one tool used globally at near-zero marginal cost

Embraced honestly, this could mean fewer hours, lower costs, and more prosperity. But again, we are not optimized for truth — we are optimized for GDP growth.

So we invent new layers of AI-enhanced bullshit:

• Prompt engineers writing prompts for other prompt engineers

• "Human-in-the-loop" validators reviewing AI output they don’t understand

• Consultants building dashboards that nobody reads

Toward a Post-Bullshit Future

Here’s the real opportunity: If we embrace deflation as a blessing — not a threat — and redesign our systems around truth, efficiency, and abundance, we could:

• Eliminate meaningless labor

• Reduce the cost of living dramatically

• Liberate people to create, heal, build, and rest

This means more than economic reform — it’s a philosophical shift. We must stop equating “employment” with value. That’s where Bitcoin and open-source tools point: toward a world where permissionless value creation is possible without the bloat of gatekeeping institutions.

Final Thought: Tech Won’t Save Us, But Truth Might

Technology, left to its own logic, tends toward freedom, efficiency, and abundance. But our current systems suppress that logic in favor of growth at all costs — even if it means assigning millions of people to do work that doesn’t need doing.

So will AI eliminate bullshit jobs?

It can. But only if we stop pretending we need them.

And for those of us who step outside the wage-work loop, something remarkable happens. We begin using these tools to create actual value — not to impress a boss, but to solve real problems and serve real people.

Recently, I built a tool using AI and automation that helps me cross-post content from Nostr to LinkedIn, Facebook, and X. It wasn’t for a paycheck. It was about leverage — freeing time, expanding reach, and creating a public record of ideas.\ You can check it out here:\ 👉 <https://tinyurl.com/ywxuowl5>

Will it help others? I don’t know yet.\ But it helped me — and that’s the point.

Real value creation doesn’t always begin with a business plan. Sometimes it starts with curiosity, conviction, and the courage to build without permission.

Maybe the future of work isn’t about scaling jobs at all.\ Maybe it’s about reclaiming time — and using these tools to build lives of meaning.

---

If this resonates — or if you’ve found your own way to reclaim time and create value outside the wage loop — zap me and share your story. Let’s build the post-bullshit economy together. ⚡

@ 94215f42:7681f622

The promise of AI is intoxicating: slash operational costs by 50-80%, achieve software-style margins on service businesses and and watch enterprise value multiply overnight.

But this initial value creation contains a hidden trap that could leave businesses worth less than when they started. Understanding the "Value Trap" is key to navigating a transition to an AI economy.

What is the Value Trap?

Whilst the value trap is forward looking and somewhat theoretical at this point, there are strong financial incentives to drive investments (many $bns of are looking at the transformation opportunity) that mean this should be taken very seriously.

The Value Trap unfolds in distinct phases:

Phase 1: Status Quo A typical service business operates with 100 units of revenue and 90 units of cost, generating 10 units of profit, representing a standard 10% margin. A bog standard business we can all relate to, long term customers locked in, market fit a distant memory, but growth is hard at this point.

Phase 2: Cost Reduction Early AI adopters slash operational expenses from 90 to 20 units while maintaining 100 units of revenue. This is the very real promise when moving to a "Human at the Edge" model that we'll unpack in a future article. Suddenly, they're generating 80 units of profit at an 8x increase that can easily add multiple to the enterprise value! A venture style return on a business previously struggling for growth.

Phase 3: Growth Phase With massive profit margins comes pricing power. These businesses can undercut competitors while maintaining healthy margins, driving rapid revenue growth. Having removed the human constraint on scaling and the additional overheads and complexity this introduces we see seemingly unlimited expansion. The brakes are truly off at this point for early adopters to expand total market share.

Phase 4: Competition Emerges The extraordinary returns attract competitors. It's important to note there is no technical moat here, other businesses implement similar AI strategies, often from your own staff who may have been let go, new entrants launch AI-native operations, and pricing power erodes.

Phase 5: Mean Reversion After 3-7 years (our best guess given current investment interest in transformation led PE), competitive pressure drives revenue down from 100 to 25 units while costs remain at 20. The business ends up with similar margins to where it started but at much lower absolute revenue, potentially destroying enterprise value.

What you've done is just massively reduced costs in this industry by displacing jobs and those individuals can turn around and compete. You incentivise the competition which erodes your pricing power

Why This Pattern is Inevitable

The Value Trap isn't pure speculation, but based on market dynamics playing out given a set of financial incentives. We believe there are several key forces that make this cycle almost guaranteed:

The Arbitrage is Too Attractive When businesses can achieve "venture returns with no product-market fit risk," capital will flood in. Private equity and Venture Capital firms are already raising funds specifically to acquire traditional service businesses and apply AI transformation strategies .

Low Technical Barriers Unlike previous technological advantages, AI implementation doesn't require significant technical moats. Much of the technology is open source, and the real barrier is process redesign thinking rather than proprietary technology.

The "One Player" Principle In any market, it only takes one competitor to implement AI-native processes to force everyone else to adapt. You either "play the game or you get left behind".

Capital Abundance With global money supply expanding and traditional investment opportunities yielding lower returns, the combination of proven product-market fit and dramatic cost reduction potential represents an irresistible opportunity for investors.

Strategic Response for SMEs: The Netflix Model

Small and medium enterprises actually have a significant advantage in navigating the Value Trap, but they need to act strategically and start moving now.

Embrace the Incubation Approach Rather than gutting your existing business, adopt Netflix's strategy: build an AI-native version of your business alongside your current operations. This approach manages risk while positioning for the future.

The answer here is why not both. you don't necessarily have to gut your current business, but you should be thinking about what does my business look like in five years and how do I transition into that.

Leverage Your Natural Advantages Small businesses can adapt faster than large enterprises. While a 20,000-person company faces "political shockwaves" when reducing workforce, a 10-person business can double revenue without anyone noticing. You can focus on growth rather than painful cost-cutting.

Remove Growth Constraints Early AI removes the traditional constraint where "adding the next person" represents a significant capital investment. Small businesses can scale efficiently once they've redesigned their processes around AI-native workflows, avoid further capital outlay and scaling without increasing complexity in operations.

Focus on Local Networks For various reasons associated with the commoditisation of intelligence, we believe the future favours "hyper-localised" businesses serving customers who "know, like, and trust" them. As intelligence becomes commoditised, human relationships become more valuable, not less.

Strategic Response for Capital Allocators

For private equity and venture capital firms, the Value Trap presents both enormous opportunity and significant risk.

Target the Right Businesses Look for businesses with strong persistent moats that will slow mean reversion:

• Strong brand and customer relationships

• High customer acquisition costs in the industry

• Regulatory barriers to entry

• Capital-intensive startup requirements

• Long-term contracts and switching costs

Master the Timing The key is capturing value during the expansion phase and exiting before mean reversion accelerates, or finding an appropriate time arbitrage solution to retain value (see below). The optimal point if you're a capital allocator is almost when you've extracted the most cost out of the business.

Consider Hybrid Strategies Rather than just gutting existing businesses, consider acquiring for distribution and customer base while building AI-native operations alongside traditional ones. This provides multiple exit strategies and reduces execution risk.

Bitcoin: The Time Arbitrage Solution

Whenever I've talked to anybody about AI, my first point of advice is just buy bitcoin.

This isn't just evangelism, so much as a recognition of where you would want to hold value as the Value Trap plays out. In essence the value trap generates an arbitrage opportunity, hige profits are pulled forwards short-term balooning the balance sheet, but the second order consequences of this change risk destroying the value you just created!

We believe alongside rapid competition leading to price for services collapsing, the mass job displacement leads to political pressure for intervention.

This could take several forms, but UBI, mortgage bailouts, unemployment extensions, seizure of existing property.

"All roads lead to money printing," as Pete notes in Good Stuff 02 .

During Weimar Republic hyperinflation, "the cost of a newspaper in year five was the same nominal figure as all of the money that existed in year four." While extreme, this illustrates how quickly monetary systems can shift as inflation and money supply inflation begins to run.

To resolve these issues, Bitcoin allows you to conduct arbitrage across time in an asset that is inflation resistant (fixed supply), hard to seize, has no counter party risk (if someone holds your gold, stocks, cash they can take it without asking) and transportable. Capturing value today and preserving it through monetary system changes protecting against the second and third-order effects of massive economic disruption, that AI represents.

Opportunity, Not Fear: The Renaissance Ahead

The Value Trap isn't a reason to avoid AI, it's a roadmap for navigating inevitable change strategically.

The Entrepreneurial Renaissance This could be a Renaissance for entrepreneurs, if you're entrepreneurial minded, this is an amazing time to be alive because there's opportunity that exists in all fields and the barriers to entry have never been lower.

Liberation from Busy Work The displacement of administrative and routine cognitive work frees humans for higher-value creation.

Democratisation of Intelligence When you can "purchase intelligence in buckets of $0.02 API calls," the barriers to starting and scaling businesses collapse. Individual entrepreneurs can build businesses that previously required large teams, with much lower complexity and risk.

Cost Reduction Benefits Everyone The ultimate outcome of the Value Trap cycle benefits consumers through dramatically lower prices for goods and services.

"Who doesn't want cheaper stuff? Why don't we just reduce the cost of everything massively?"

Conclusion: Embrace the High Agency Era

The Value Trap represents a fundamental shift from employment-based to entrepreneurship-based wealth creation. Rather than fearing job displacement, we should prepare for "the age of the entrepreneur" a high agency era.

The businesses and individuals who thrive will be those who:

• Understand the cycle and position accordingly

• Focus on unique value creation rather than routine processing or middleman models

• Build local networks and relationships

• Preserve wealth through the monetary transition

• Embrace building and creating unique value

If you are high agency, you can make anything happen.

The Value Trap isn't just about AI transforming business, it won't do this on its own, its a description of how humans will use this technology to generate and capture value.

The future belongs to builders, creators, and entrepreneurs who can navigate transition periods and emerge stronger. The Value Trap is the map, use it wisely.

This article draws heavily on discussion between myself and business partner Andy in Episode 02 of The Good Stuff, if you prefer listening try that :)

@ eb0157af:77ab6c55

Vivek Ramaswamy’s company bets on distressed bitcoin claims as its Bitcoin treasury strategy moves forward.

Strive Enterprises, an asset management firm co-founded by Vivek Ramaswamy, is exploring the acquisition of distressed bitcoin claims, with particular interest in around 75,000 BTC tied to the Mt. Gox bankruptcy estate. This move is part of the company’s broader strategy to build a Bitcoin treasury ahead of its planned merger with Asset Entities.

According to a document filed on May 20 with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Strive has partnered with 117 Castell Advisory Group to “identify and evaluate” distressed Bitcoin claims with confirmed legal judgments. Among these are approximately 75,000 BTC connected to Mt. Gox, with an estimated market value of $8 billion at current prices.

Essentially, Strive aims to acquire rights to bitcoins currently tied up in legal disputes, which can be purchased at a discount by those willing to take on the risk and wait for eventual recovery.

In a post on X, Strive’s CFO, Ben Pham, stated:

“Strive intends to use all available mechanisms, including novel financial strategies not used by other Bitcoin treasury companies, to maximize its exposure to the asset.”

The company also plans to buy cash at a discount by merging with publicly traded companies holding more cash than their stock value, using the excess funds to purchase additional Bitcoin.

Mt. Gox, the exchange that collapsed in 2014, is currently in the process of repaying creditors, with a deadline set for October 31, 2025.

In its SEC filing, Strive declared:

“This strategy is intended to allow Strive the opportunity to purchase Bitcoin exposure at a discount to market price, enhancing Bitcoin per share and supporting its goal of outperforming Bitcoin over the long run.”

At the beginning of May, Strive announced its merger plan with Asset Entities, a deal that would create the first publicly listed asset management firm focused on Bitcoin. The resulting company aims to join the growing number of firms adopting a Bitcoin treasury strategy.

The corporate treasury trend

Strive’s initiative to accumulate bitcoin mirrors that of other companies like Strategy and Japan’s Metaplanet. On May 19, Strategy, led by Michael Saylor, announced the purchase of an additional 7,390 BTC for $764.9 million, raising its total holdings to 576,230 BTC. On the same day, Metaplanet revealed it had acquired another 1,004 BTC, increasing its total to 7,800 BTC.

The post Bitcoin in Strive’s sights: 75,000 BTC from Mt. Gox among its targets appeared first on Atlas21.

@ 90152b7f:04e57401

<https://www.ord.io/72990614>

[Analytical & Intelligence Comments]\ \ “On Monday February 27th, 2012, WikiLeaks began publishing The Global Intelligence Files, over five million e-mails from the Texas headquartered "global intelligence" company Stratfor. The e-mails date between July 2004 and late December 2011. They reveal the inner workings of a company that fronts as an intelligence publisher, but provides confidential intelligence services to large corporations, such as Bhopal's Dow Chemical Co., Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon and government agencies, including the US Department of Homeland Security, the US Marines and the US Defence Intelligence Agency. The emails show Stratfor's web of informers, pay-off structure, payment laundering techniques and psychological methods.”\ \ Released on 2013-02-13 00:00 GMT Email-ID 13332210 Date 2011-05-04 16:26:59\ From <jetdrive@earthlink.net> To <responses@stratfor.com> CROYDON KEMP sent a\ message using the contact form at <https://www.stratfor.com/contact\>\\ Mossad ran 9/11 Arab "hijacker" terrorist operation\ \ By Wayne Madsen\ \ British intelligence reported in February 2002 that the Israeli Mossad ran the Arab hijacker cells that were later blamed by the U.S. government's 9/11 Commission for carrying out the aerial attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon. WMR has received details of the British intelligence report which was suppressed by the government of then-Prime Minister Tony Blair.\ \ A Mossad unit consisting of six Egyptian- and Yemeni-born Jews infiltrated "Al Qaeda" cells in Hamburg (the Atta-Mamoun Darkanzali cell), south Florida, and Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates in the months before 9/11. The Mossad not only infiltrated cells but began to run them and give them specific orders that would eventually culminate in their being on board four regularly-scheduled flights originating in Boston, Washington Dulles, and Newark, New Jersey on 9/11.\ \ The Mossad infiltration team comprised six Israelis, comprising two cells of three agents, who all received special training at a Mossad base in the Negev Desert in their future control and handling of the "Al Qaeda" cells. One Mossad cell traveled to Amsterdam where they submitted to the operational control of the Mossad's Europe Station, which operates from the El Al complex at Schiphol International Airport. The three-man Mossad unit then traveled to Hamburg where it made contact with Mohammed Atta, who believed they were sent by Osama Bin Laden. In fact, they were sent by Ephraim Halevy, the chief of Mossad.\ \ The second three-man Mossad team flew to New York and then to southern Florida where they began to direct the "Al Qaeda" cells operating from Hollywood, Miami, Vero Beach, Delray Beach, and West Palm Beach. Israeli "art students," already under investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration for casing the offices and homes of federal law enforcement officers, had been living among and conducting surveillance of the activities, including flight school training, of the future Arab "hijacker" cells, particularly in Hollywood and Vero Beach.\ \ In August 2001, the first Mossad team flew with Atta and other Hamburg "Al Qaeda" members to Boston. Logan International Airport's security was contracted to Huntleigh USA, a firm owned by an Israeli airport security firm closely connected to Mossad — International Consultants on Targeted Security – ICTS. ICTS's owners were politically connected to the Likud Party, particularly the Netanyahu faction and then-Jerusalem mayor and future Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. It was Olmert who personally interceded with New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani to have released from prison five Urban Moving Systems employees, identified by the CIA and FBI agents as Mossad agents. The Israelis were the only suspects arrested anywhere in the United States on 9/11 who were thought to have been involved in the 9/11 attacks.\ \ The two Mossad teams sent regular coded reports on the progress of the 9/11 operation to Tel Aviv via the Israeli embassy in Washington, DC. WMR has learned from a Pentagon source that leading Americans tied to the media effort to pin 9/11 on Arab hijackers, Osama Bin Laden, and the Taliban were present in the Israeli embassy on September 10, 2001, to coordinate their media blitz for the subsequent days and weeks following the attacks. It is more than likely that FBI counter-intelligence agents who conduct surveillance of the Israeli embassy have proof on the presence of the Americans present at the embassy on September 10. Some of the Americans are well-known to U.S. cable news television audiences.\ \ In mid-August, the Mossad team running the Hamburg cell in Boston reported to Tel Aviv that the final plans for 9/11 were set. The Florida-based Mossad cell reported that the documented "presence" of the Arab cell members at Florida flight schools had been established.\ \ The two Mossad cells studiously avoided any mention of the World Trade Center or targets in Washington, DC in their coded messages to Tel Aviv. Halevy covered his tracks by reporting to the CIA of a "general threat" by an attack by Arab terrorists on a nuclear plant somewhere on the East Coast of the United States. CIA director George Tenet dismissed the Halevy warning as "too non-specific." The FBI, under soon-to-be-departed director Louis Freeh, received the "non-specific" warning about an attack on a nuclear power plant and sent out the information in its routine bulletins to field agents but no high alert was ordered.\ \ The lack of a paper trail pointing to "Al Qaeda" as the masterminds on 9/11, which could then be linked to Al Qaeda's Mossad handlers, threw off the FBI. On April 19, 2002, FBI director Robert Mueller, in a speech to San Francisco's Commonwealth Club, stated: "In our investigation, we have not uncovered a single piece of paper — either here in the United States, or in the treasure trove of information that has turned up in Afghanistan and elsewhere — that mentioned any aspect of the September 11 plot."\ \ The two Mossad "Al Qaeda" infiltration and control teams had also helped set up safe houses for the quick exfiltration of Mossad agents from the United States. Last March, WMR reported: "WMR has learned from two El Al sources who worked for the Israeli airline at New York’s John F. Kennedy airport that on 9/11, hours after the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) grounded all civilian domestic and international incoming and outgoing flights to and from the United States, a full El Al Boeing 747 took off from JFK bound for Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion International Airport. The two El Al employee sources are not Israeli nationals but legal immigrants from Ecuador who were working in the United States for the airline. The flight departed JFK at 4:11 pm and its departure was, according to the El Al sources, authorized by the direct intervention of the U.S. Department of Defense. U.S. military officials were on the scene at JFK and were personally involved with the airport and air traffic control authorities to clear the flight for take-off. According to the 9/11 Commission report, Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta ordered all civilian flights to be grounded at 9:45 am on September 11." WMR has learned from British intelligence sources that the six-man Mossad team was listed on the El Al flight manifest as El Al employees.\ \ WMR previously reported that the Mossad cell operating in the Jersey City-Weehawken area of New Jersey through Urban Moving Systems was suspected by some in the FBI and CIA of being involved in moving explosives into the World Trade Center as well as staging "false flag" demonstrations at least two locations in north Jersey: Liberty State Park and an apartment complex in Jersey City as the first plane hit the World Trade Center's North Tower. One team of Urban Moving Systems Mossad agents was arrested later on September 11 and jailed for five months at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn. Some of their names turned up in a joint CIA-FBI database as known Mossad agents, along with the owner of Urban Moving Systems, Dominik Suter, whose name also appeared on a "Law Enforcement Sensitive" FBI 9/11 suspects list, along with the names of key "hijackers," including Mohammed Atta and Hani Hanjour, as well as the so-called "20th hijacker," Zacarias Moussaoui.\ \ Suter was allowed to escape the United States after the FBI made initial contact with him at the Urban Moving Systems warehouse in Weehawken, New Jersey, following the 9/11 attacks. Suter was later permitted to return to the United States where he was involved in the aircraft parts supply business in southern Florida, according to an informe3d source who contacted WMR. Suter later filed for bankruptcy in Florida for Urban Moving Systems and other businesses he operated: Suburban Moving & Storage Inc.; Max Movers, Inc.; Invsupport; Woodflooring Warehouse Corp.; One Stop Cleaning LLC; and City Carpet Upholstery, Inc. At the time of the bankruptcy filing in Florida, Suter listed his address as 1867 Fox Court, Wellington, FL 33414, with a phone number of 561 204-2359.\ \ From the list of creditors it can be determined that Suter had been operating in the United States since 1993, the year of the first attack on the World Trade Center. In 1993, Suter began racking up American Express credit card charges totaling $21,913.97. Suter also maintained credit card accounts with HSBC Bank and Orchard Bank c/o HSBC Card Services of Salinas, California, among other banks. Suter also did business with the Jewish Community Center of Greater Palm Beach in Florida and Ryder Trucks in Miami. Miami and southern Florida were major operating areas for cells of Israeli Mossad agents masquerading as "art students," who were living and working near some of the identified future Arab "hijackers" in the months preceding 9/11.\ \ ABC's 20/20 correspondent John Miller ensured that the Israeli connection to "Al Qaeda's" Arab hijackers was buried in an "investigation" of the movers' activities on 9/11. Anchor Barbara Walters helped Miller in putting a lid on the story about the movers and Suter aired on June 21, 2002. Miller then went on to become the FBI public affairs spokesman to ensure that Mueller and other FBI officials kept to the "Al Qaeda" script as determined by the Bush administration and the future 9/11 Commission. But former CIA chief of counter-terrorism Vince Cannistraro let slip to ABC an important clue to the operations of the Mossad movers in New Jersey when he stated that the Mossad agents "set up or exploited for the purpose of launching an intelligence operation against radical Islamists in the area, particularly in the New Jersey-New York area." The "intelligence operation" turned out to have been the actual 9/11 attacks. And it was no coincidence that it was ABC's John Miller who conducted a May 1998 rare interview of Osama Bin Laden at his camp in Afghanistan. Bin Laden played his part well for future scenes in the fictional "made-for-TV" drama known as 9/11.\ \ WMR has also learned from Italian intelligence sources that Mossad's running of "Al Qaeda" operatives did not end with running the "hijacking" teams in the United States and Hamburg. Other Arab "Al Qaeda" operatives, run by Mossad, were infiltrated into Syria but arrested by Syrian intelligence. Syria was unsuccessful in turning them to participate in intelligence operations in Lebanon. Detailed information on Bin Laden's support team was offered to the Bush administration, up to days prior to 9/11, by Gutbi al-Mahdi, the head of the Sudanese Mukhabarat intelligence service. The intelligence was rejected by the Biush White House. It was later reported that Sudanese members of "Al Qaeda's" support network were double agents for Mossad who had also established close contacts with Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh and operated in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Eritrea, as well as Sudan. The Mossad connection to Al Qaeda in Sudan was likely known by the Sudanese Mukhabarat, a reason for the rejection of its intelligence on "Al Qaeda" by the thoroughly-Mossad penetrated Bush White House. Yemen had also identified "Al Qaeda" members who were also Mossad agents. A former chief of Mossad revealed to this editor in 2002 that Yemeni-born Mossad "deep insertion" commandos spotted Bin Laden in the Hadhramaut region of eastern Yemen after his escape from Tora Bora in Afghanistan, following the U.S. invasion.\ \ French intelligence determined that other Egyptian- and Yemeni-born Jewish Mossad agents were infiltrated into Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates as radical members of the Muslim Brotherhood. However, the "Muslim Brotherhood" agents actually were involved in providing covert Israeli funding for "Al Qaeda" activities. On February 21, 2006, WMR reported on the U.S. Treasury Secretary's firing by President Bush over information discovered on the shady "Al Qaeda" accounts in the United Arab Emirates: "Banking insiders in Dubai report that in March 2002, U.S. Secretary of Treasury Paul O’Neill visited Dubai and asked for documents on a $109,500 money transfer from Dubai to a joint account held by hijackers Mohammed Atta and Marwan al Shehhi at Sun Trust Bank in Florida. O'Neill also asked UAE authorities to close down accounts used by Al Qaeda . . . . The UAE complained about O’Neill’s demands to the Bush administration. O’Neill’s pressure on the UAE and Saudis contributed to Bush firing him as Treasury Secretary in December 2002 " O'Neill may have also stumbled on the "Muslim Brotherhood" Mossad operatives operating in the emirates who were directing funds to "Al Qaeda."\ \ After the collapse of the Soviet Union and the rise to power of the Taliban in Afghanistan, Sharjah's ruler, Sultan bin Mohammed al-Qasimi, who survived a palace coup attempt in 1987, opened his potentate to Russian businessmen like Viktor Bout, as well as to financiers of radical Muslim groups, including the Taliban and "Al Qaeda."\ \ Moreover, this Israeli support for "Al Qaeda" was fully known to Saudi intelligence, which approved of it in order to avoid compromising Riyadh. The joint Israeli-Saudi support for "Al Qaeda" was well-known to the Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah-based aviation network of the now-imprisoned Russian, Viktor Bout, jailed in New York on terrorism charges. The presence of Bout in New York, a hotbed of Israeli intelligence control of U.S. federal prosecutors, judges, as well as the news media, is no accident: Bout knows enough about the Mossad activities in Sharjah in support of the Taliban and Al Qaeda in Afghanistan, where Bout also had aviation and logistics contracts, to expose Mossad as the actual mastermind behind 9/11. Bout's aviation empire also extended to Miami and Dallas, two areas that were nexuses for the Mossad control operations for the "Al Qaeda" flight training operations of the Arab cell members in the months prior to 9/11.\ \ Bout's path also crossed with "Al Qaeda's" support network at the same bank in Sharjah, HSBC. Mossad's phony Muslim Brotherhood members from Egypt and Yemen controlled financing for "Al Qaeda" through the HSBC accounts in Sharjah. Mossad's Dominik Suter also dealt with HSBC in the United States. The FBI's chief counter-terrorism agent investigating Al Qaeda, John O'Neill, became aware of the "unique" funding mechanisms for Al Qaeda. It was no mistake that O'Neill was given the job as director of security for the World Trade Center on the eve of the attack. O'Neill perished in the collapse of the complex.Mossad uses a number of Jews born in Arab countries to masquerade as Arabs. They often carry forged or stolen passports from Arab countries or nations in Europe that have large Arab immigrant populations, particularly Germany, France, Britain, Denmark, Sweden, and the Netherlands.\ \ For Mossad, the successful 9/11 terrorist "false flag" operation was a success beyond expectations. The Bush administration, backed by the Blair government, attacked and occupied Iraq, deposing Saddam Hussein, and turned up pressure on Israel's other adversaries, including Iran, Syria, Pakistan, Hamas, and Lebanese Hezbollah. The Israelis also saw the U.S., Britain, and the UN begin to crack down on the Lebanese Shi'a diamond business in Democratic Republic of Congo and West Africa, and with it, the logistics support provided by Bout's aviation companies, which resulted in a free hand for Tel Aviv to move in on Lebanese diamond deals in central and west Africa.\ \ Then-Israeli Finance Minister Binyamin Netanyahu commented on the 9/11 attacks on U.S. television shortly after they occurred. Netanyahu said: "It is very good!" It now appears that Netanyahu, in his zeal, blew Mossad's cover as the masterminds of 9/11.\ \ Wayne Madsen is a Washington, DC-based investigative journalist, author and syndicated columnist. He has written for several renowned papers and blogs.\ \ Madsen is a regular contributor on Russia Today. He has been a frequent political and national security commentator on Fox News and has also appeared on ABC, NBC, CBS, PBS, CNN, BBC, Al Jazeera, and MS-NBC. Madsen has taken on Bill O’Reilly and Sean Hannity on their television shows. He has been invited to testifty as a witness before the US House of Representatives, the UN Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, and an terrorism investigation panel of the French government.\ \ As a U.S. Naval Officer, he managed one of the first computer security programs for the U.S. Navy. He subsequently worked for the National Security Agency, the Naval Data Automation Command, Department of State, RCA Corporation, and Computer Sciences Corporation.\ \ Madsen is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), Association for Intelligence Officers (AFIO), and the National Press Club. He is a regular contributor to Opinion Maker

<https://www.ord.io/72990614>

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According to the ECB Executive Board member, the launch of the digital euro depends on the timing of the EU regulation.

The European Central Bank (ECB) is making progress in preparing for the digital euro. According to Piero Cipollone, ECB Executive Board member and coordinator of the project, the technical phase “is proceeding quickly and on schedule,” but moving to operational implementation still requires political approval of the regulation at the European level.

Speaking at the ‘Voices on the Future’ event organized by Ansa and Asvis, Cipollone outlined a possible timeline:

“If the regulation is approved at the start of 2026 — in the best-case scenario for the European legislative process — we could see the first transactions with the digital euro by mid-2028.”

Cipollone also highlighted Europe’s current dependence on electronic payment systems managed by non-European companies:

“Today in Europe, whenever we don’t use cash, any transaction online or at the supermarket has to go through credit cards, with their fees. The payment system relies on companies that aren’t based in Europe. You can see why it would make sense to have a system fully under our control.”

For the ECB board member, the digital euro would act as a direct alternative to cash in the digital world, working like “a banknote you can spend anywhere in Europe for any purpose.”

The digital euro project is part of the ECB’s broader strategy to strengthen the independence of Europe’s financial system. According to Cipollone and the Central Bank, Europe’s digital currency would be a key step toward greater autonomy in electronic payments, reducing reliance on infrastructure and services outside the European Union.

The post ECB: digital euro by mid-2028, says Cipollone appeared first on Atlas21.

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Crypto Insights

Introducing Generalized Program Composition and Coin Delegation into Bitcoin

Joshua Doman proposed a proof-of-concept called Graftleaf, aiming to achieve generalized program composition and delegation in Taproot in a simple and secure way. Graftleaf is a new Taproot leaf version (0xc2) that uses the annex to perform delegation. It adds two key features:

• Composition: The ability to sequentially execute zero, one, or multiple witness programs, including a locking script.

• Delegation: The ability to add additional spending conditions at signing time, which can include arbitrary combinations of programs and scripts.

This design overcomes the limitations of previous proposals by supporting complex script composition and delegation, promising backward compatibility, improved privacy and fungibility with the existing P2TR addresses.

Why OP_CHECKCONTRACTVERIFY (CCV) Will Replace OP_VAULT

A post mainly discusses the current status of Bitcoin script opcode OP_VAULT (BIP-345) and the possibility of it being replaced by OP_CHECKCONTRACTVERIFY (CCV, BIP-443). Key factors include:

• CCV is a more general version of OP_VAULT, inheriting some features such as amount modes and deferred (cross-input) checks.

• CCV supports replacing multiple script tapleaf nodes, has a simpler interface, and a lighter script interpreter implementation.

The author also points out CCV’s shortcomings and possible future extensions:

• Currently, there is a lack of supporting documentation and tools, and the BIP is not yet fully completed.

• A VAULT-decorator opcode may be needed to implement certain advanced features, such as requiring collateral lockup when unvaulting, or adding some rate-limiting behavior. These features are currently difficult to achieve.

Despite this, CCV remains a better foundation for building vault functionality.

Enabling Recursive Covenants via Self-Replication

Bram Cohen proposed adding a few simple opcodes to Bitcoin Script to enable recursive covenants in a natural and straightforward way. He illustrated with examples that a practical and useful script can be achieved through Quine, without other more complex tricks; developers writing recursive covenants must be aware of the importance of this approach.

UTXO Set Report from Mempool Research: Nearly Half of Bitcoin UTXOs Are Less Than 1,000 Sats

During the OP_RETURN debate in April-May 2025, the impact of inserting arbitrary data into transactions on the UTXO set sparked much discussion. In this report, Mempool studied the UTXO set, highlighting the fragmentation and bloat issues, especially due to small transactions and data embedding, which increase the storage and validation burden for node operators.

Key findings include:

• Severe Bloat: Currently, about 49% of UTXOs are less than 1,000 satoshis (about $1). Most of these use Taproot address format and may be related to data embedding schemes (like Ordinals) or related transfer mechanisms. Although these UTXOs can usually be spent, before they are, they increase the storage and validation burden for all node operators.

• Significant Proportion of Inscription-Related UTXOs: About 30% of UTXOs are related to inscription.

• Large Number of Long-Unspent UTXOs: There are over 100,000 old Counterparty UTXOs using Pay to Multisig (p2ms) scripts, which have existed for over 10 years. Although they make up a small proportion of the total (about 173 million UTXOs), they are a typical example of UTXO bloat.

• Taproot Becomes the Most Common UTXO Type: Among all UTXO types, Taproot (p2tr) has the highest proportion at 34.2%, followed by traditional p2pkh (28.8%) and p2wpkh (26.5%). However, in terms of total value stored, Taproot’s share is relatively low, indicating it is mainly used for small transactions or data embedding.

The report concludes by mentioning that as the UTXO sets continue to grow, Utreexo and SwiftSync are two scaling methods for maintaining Bitcoin’s accessibility to a wide range of node operators.

Visualization of Bitcoin Mainnet Data

mainnet-observer, built and maintained by developer @0xB10C, visualizes multiple data points from the Bitcoin mainnet, including:

• Mining a single block currently requires over ~500,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 (500 zeta or 5×10²³) hash attempts.

• Over 42 BTC are now permanently lost in provably unspendable OP_RETURN outputs.

• Daily updated “Mining Centralization Index” (with proxy pools)

• Bitcoin mining is currently highly centralized, with 6 pools producing and mining over 95% of block templates.

Path Queries: Addressing Payment Reliability and Routing Limitations

brh28 initiated a discussion on Lightning Network payment routing, focusing on issues like liquidity uncertainty and inefficient path discovery. He proposed a new path query mechanism—allowing nodes to dynamically share information through path queries, fostering a more decentralized routing ecosystem. This can improve the success rate of large payments and reduce reliance on a completely synced channel graph. Although there are still some privacy concerns, this method provides nodes with a controllable information disclosure mechanism and is expected to revolutionize current payment routing approaches.

Bitlayer and Sui Achieve Trust-Minimized BitVM Bridge

Bitlayer and Sui integrated the BitVM Bridge, launching Peg-BTC (YBTC)—bridging native Bitcoin to the Sui ecosystem via BitVM Bridge. BitVM Bridge is a trust-minimized bridge powered by Bitlayer and supported by the advanced BitVM smart contract framework.

Ark Protocol Litepaper

Ark recently released its litepaper: Ark: A UTXO-based Transaction Batching Protocol, outlining its technical foundation. As an innovative Bitcoin scaling protocol, Ark enables off-chain transaction execution while allowing users full control over their funds. This is achieved by introducing “virtual UTXOs” (VTXOs), allowing users to transact off-chain while retaining the ability to unilaterally exit to the Bitcoin main chain. Coordinated by an operator who batches user activities into on-chain commitments, Ark achieves high transaction throughput with minimal on-chain footprint. This provides Bitcoin with a simple and user-friendly scaling solution that offers a practical path for Layer 2 solutions that are inefficient or costly to execute on the main chain.

Top Reads on Blockchain and Beyond

List of Known Real-World Bitcoin Attack Incidents

Here is a list of real-world attacks against Bitcoin/crypto asset holders over the years.

The Internet Capital Market: Free Avenue for Developers, or Another Wave of FOMO?

This post discusses Internet Capital Markets (ICM)—decentralized platforms where funds flow directly to app builders and creators. ICM combines crowdfunding, token issuance, and equity speculation, eliminating the need for VCs, banks, or app stores. In 2025, more independent developers are issuing app tokens directly via X and tools like Believe and Launchcoin, attracting mass investment.

ICM Proponents argue this model breaks traditional funding barriers, making innovation more democratic and accessible; while critics warn that ICM is becoming a hotbed for hype and short-term speculation, with many projects lacking real products or long-term value. The author believes whether ICM can become the next milestone for Web3 hinges on whether it can break free from the cycle of “speculation becomes product traction” and deliver real user value and sustained innovation.

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A new study reveals: 4 out of 5 Americans would like the US to convert some of its gold into Bitcoin.

A recent survey conducted by the Nakamoto Project revealed that a majority of Americans support converting a portion of the United States’ gold reserves into Bitcoin. The survey, carried out online by Qualtrics between February and March 2025, involved 3,345 participants with demographic characteristics representative of US census standards. Most respondents expressed a desire to convert between 1% and 30% of the gold reserves into BTC.

Troy Cross, co-founder of the Nakamoto Project, stated:

“When given a slider and asked to advise the US government on the right proportion of Bitcoin and gold, subjects were very reluctant to put that slider on 0% Bitcoin and 100% gold. Instead, they settled around 10% Bitcoin.”

One significant finding from the research is the correlation between age and openness to Bitcoin: younger respondents showed a greater inclination toward the cryptocurrency compared to older generations.

A potential US strategy

Bo Hines, a White House advisor, is promoting an initiative for the Treasury Department to acquire Bitcoin by selling off a portion of its gold. Under the proposed plan, the government could acquire up to 1 million BTC over the next five years.

To finance these purchases, the government plans to sell Federal Reserve gold certificates. The proposal aligns with Senator Cynthia Lummis’ 2025 Bitcoin Act, which aims to declare Bitcoin a critical national strategic asset.

Currently, the United States holds 8,133 metric tons of gold, valued at over $830 billion, and about 200,000 BTC, valued at $21 billion.

The post The majority in the US wants to convert part of the gold reserves into Bitcoin appeared first on Atlas21.

@ 3eba5ef4:751f23ae

加密洞见

在比特币中引入通用程序组合与币委托机制

Joshua Doman 提出了一个 Graftleaf 的概念验证，旨在用一种简单而安全的方法在 Taproot 中实现通用程序组合和代笔委托。Graftleaf 是一个新的 Taproot 叶子版本（0xc2），使用附件来执行委托。Graftleaf 增加了两个关键功能：

• 组合：按顺序执行零个、一个或多个见证程序的能力，包括一个锁定脚本。

• 委派：在签名时添加其他支出条件的能力，可以包括程序和脚本的任意组合。

它们旨在通过支持复杂的脚本组合和委托来克服以前提案的局限性，承诺提高隐私性、可替代性以及与现有 P2TR 地址的向后兼容性。

为什么说 OP_CHECKCONTRACTVERIFY (CCV) 将会取代 OP_VAULT

帖子主要讨论了比特币脚本操作码 OP_VAULT（BIP-345）的现状，及其被OP_CHECKCONTRACTVERIFY（CCV，BIP-443）取代的可能。重要因素有：

• CCV 是 OP_VAULT 的更通用版本，继承了部分功能，如金额模式（amount modes）、延迟跨输入检查（deferred cross-input checks）。

• CCV支持替换多个脚本叶子节点（tapleaf），接口更简洁，脚本解释器实现更轻量。

同时作者也指出 CCV 的不足与未来可能的扩展：

• 当前缺少部分配套文档和工具，BIP 尚未完全完成。

• 可能需要 VAULT-decorator 操作码来实现某些高级功能，如解锁金库时必须抵押锁定、速率限制等。

尽管如此，CCV仍然是构建金库功能的更优基础。

通过自复制方式启用递归契约

Bram Cohen 提出通过向比特币脚本添加一些简单的操作码，以一种自然而直接的方式实现递归契约（recursive covenants）。他通过例子说明，一个实用且有用的脚本通过 Quine 自复制就可以实现，无需其他更复杂的技巧；编写递归契约的开发者必须意识到该方式的重要性。

Mempool Research 发布 UTXO 集的报告：比特币中近一半 UTXO 金额小于 1000 聪

在 2025 年 4 至 5 月期间的 OP_RETURN 大辩论中，将任意数据插入交易对 UTXO 集的影响的问题引发了大量讨论。Mempool 在这份报告中，对 UTXO 集进行了研究，强调了比特币 UTXO 集合碎片化和膨胀的问题，特别是由于小额交易和数据嵌入导致的 UTXO 增长，增加了节点运营者的存储和验证负担。关键结论有：

• UTXO 集合的碎片化严重：目前约有 49% 的 UTXO 金额低于 1000 聪（约合 1 美元），这些小额 UTXO 大多采用 Taproot 地址格式，可能与数据嵌入方案（如 Ordinals 铭文）或相关的转移机制有关。尽管这些 UTXO 通常可被花费，但在被使用之前，它们会增加所有节点运营者的存储和验证负担。

• 铭文相关的 UTXO 占比显著：约 30% 的 UTXO 与铭文相关。

• 存在大量长期未动用的 UTXO：有超过 10 万个使用 Pay to Multisig (p2ms) 脚本的旧 Counterparty UTXO，且存在超过 10 年。尽管在总数（约 1.73 亿个 UTXO）中所占比例较小，但依然是 UTXO 膨胀的典型问题。

• Taproot 成为最常见的 UTXO 类型：在所有 UTXO 类型中，Taproot（p2tr）占比最高，为 34.2%，其次是传统的 p2pkh（28.8%）和 p2wpkh（26.5%）。但是从 UTXO 所存储的总价值来看，Taproot 的占比相对较低，表明其主要用于小额交易或数据嵌入。

报告最后也提到，对于继续增长的 UTXO 集，Utreexo 和 SwiftSync 是两种对保持比特币对广泛节点运营者可访问性的扩容方法。

比特币网络各项数据的可视化呈现

mainnet-observer 由开发者 @0xB10C 搭建并维护，将比特币链的多项数据呈现出来，可以看到：

• 目前挖掘一个区块所需要的平均哈希尝试：超过 ~500000000000000000000000000（500 zeta 或 5×10²³）次

• 超过 42 个 BTC 现在永远丢失在可证明无法花费的 OP_RETURN 输出中

• 每日更新的「挖矿中心化指数」（带有代理池）

• 比特币挖矿高度集中，6 个矿池生产并挖掘了超过 95%的区块模板（截止 2025 年 4 月）

闪电网络路径查询：解决支付可靠性和路由限制

brh28 发起了关于闪电网络路由支付的讨论，聚焦「流动性的不确定性」（liquidity uncertainty）和路径发现效率低的问题，提出了一种新的路径查询机制——允许节点以路径查询的形式，实现动态信息共享，推动了一个更加分布式的路由生态。这可以提高了大额支付的成功率，并减少对完整通道图的依赖。尽管在隐私方面仍存在一定担忧，但该方法为节点提供了一种可控的信息披露机制，有望革新现有的支付路由方式。

Bitlayer 和 Sui 实现了信任最小化的 BitVM 桥

Bitlayer 和 Sui 整合了 BitVM Bridge，推出 Peg-BTC（YBTC）——通过 BitVM Bridge 将原生比特币桥接到 Sui 生态中。BitVM Bridge 是一个由 Bitlayer 提供支持并由先进的 BitVM 智能合约框架支持的信任最小化桥。

Ark 协议的正式规范

Ark 近日发布 Litepaper: Ark: A UTXO-based Transaction Batching Protocol，阐述其技术基础。作为一种新颖的比特币扩容协议，Ark 实现了链下交易执行，同时让用户能完全掌控自己的资金。这一点通过引入「虚拟UTXO」（VTXO）得以实现，用户在链下交易，同时保留单方面退出至比特币主链的能力。Ark 同一个 operator 协作，将用户操作打包成链上承诺，在保持极小链上负担的前提下实现高交易吞吐量。这为比特币提供了一种简单易用的扩容方案，也为那些在主链上执行效率低下或成本过高的二层方案提供了落地空间。

精彩无限，不止于链

已知真实发生过的比特币攻击事件列表

这里列出了历年来在真实世界中发生过的、针对比特币/加密资产拥有者的攻击事件。

互联网资本市场：是开发者的自由通道，还是另一波 FOMO?

帖子讨论了互联网资本市场（ ICM, Internet Capital Markets ），即去中心化平台——资金直接流向应用程序构建者和创建者。ICM 集众筹、代币发行和股权投机于一体，无需VC、银行或应用商店。2025年，越来越多独立开发者通过 X 和 Believe、Launchcoin 等工具直接发行应用代币，吸引大众投资。ICM 的支持者认为，这种模式打破了传统融资壁垒，让创新更民主、门槛更低；但批评者警告，ICM 正沦为炒作和短期投机的温床，许多项目缺乏实际产品和长期价值。作者认为，ICM 模式能否成为 Web3 的下一个里程碑，关键在于其能否走出「投机成了产品增长动力」（speculation becomes product traction）的怪圈，实现真正的用户价值和持续创新。

@ eb0157af:77ab6c55

The exchange reveals the extent of the breach that occurred last December as federal authorities investigate the recent data leak.

Coinbase has disclosed that the personal data of 69,461 users was compromised during the breach in December 2024, according to documentation filed with the Maine Attorney General’s Office.

The disclosure comes after Coinbase announced last week that a group of hackers had demanded a $20 million ransom, threatening to publish the stolen data on the dark web. The attackers allegedly bribed overseas customer service agents to extract information from the company’s systems.

Coinbase had previously stated that the breach affected less than 1% of its user base, compromising KYC (Know Your Customer) data such as names, addresses, and email addresses. In a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the company clarified that passwords, private keys, and user funds were not affected.

Following the reports, the SEC has reportedly opened an official investigation to verify whether Coinbase may have inflated user metrics ahead of its 2021 IPO. Separately, the Department of Justice is investigating the breach at Coinbase’s request, according to CEO Brian Armstrong.

Meanwhile, Coinbase has faced criticism for its delayed response to the data breach. Michael Arrington, founder of TechCrunch, stated that the stolen data could cause irreparable harm. In a post on X, Arrington wrote:

“The human cost, denominated in misery, is much larger than the $400m or so they think it will actually cost the company to reimburse people. The consequences to companies who do not adequately protect their customer information should include, without limitation, prison time for executives.”

Coinbase estimates the incident could cost between $180 million and $400 million in remediation expenses and customer reimbursements.

Arrington also condemned KYC laws as ineffective and dangerous, calling on both regulators and companies to better protect user data:

“Combining these KYC laws with corporate profit maximization and lax laws on penalties for hacks like these means these issues will continue to happen. Both governments and corporations need to step up to stop this. As I said, the cost can only be measured in human suffering.”

The post Coinbase: 69,461 users affected by December 2024 data breach appeared first on Atlas21.

@ eb0157af:77ab6c55

Bitcoin adoption will come through businesses: neither governments nor banks will lead the revolution.

In recent years, it’s undeniable that Bitcoin has ceased to be just a radical idea born from the minds of cypherpunks. It is now recognized across the board as a global asset, discussed in the upper echelons of finance, accepted even on Wall Street, purchased by banking groups and included as a “strategic reserve” by some nations.

However, the general perception that hovers today regarding Bitcoin’s diffusion is still that of minimal adoption, almost insignificant. Bitcoin exists, certainly, but in fact it is not being used. It is rarely possible to pay in satoshis in commercial establishments. Demand is still extremely low.

Furthermore, the debate on Bitcoin is still practically absent: excluding some local events, some niche media outlets or some timid discussion, today Bitcoin is in fact excluded from general interest. The level of understanding and knowledge of the phenomenon is certainly still very low.

Yet, Bitcoin represents an unprecedented technological improvement, capable of solving many problems inherent in the fiat system in which we live. What could facilitate its diffusion?

Bitcoin becomes familiar when businesses adopt it

When talking about Bitcoin adoption, many look to States. They imagine governments that legislate or accumulate Bitcoin as a “strategic reserve,” or banks perceived as forward-thinking that would lead technological change, opening up to innovation. But the reality is different: bureaucracy, political constraints, and fear of losing control inherently prevent States and central banks from being pioneers.

What really drives Bitcoin adoption are not States, but businesses. It is the forward-looking entrepreneurs, innovative startups and – eventually – even large multinational companies that decide to integrate Bitcoin into their operating systems that drive adoption. Indeed, the business world has always played a key role in the adoption of new technologies. This was the case, for example, with the internet, e-commerce, mobile telephony, and the cloud. It will also be the case with Bitcoin.

Unlike a State, when a company adopts Bitcoin, it does so for concrete reasons: efficiency, savings, protection, access to new markets, independence from traditional banking circuits, or bureaucratic streamlining. It is a rational choice, not an ideological one, dictated by the intent to improve one’s competitiveness against the competition to survive in the market.

What is currently missing to facilitate adoption is, in all likelihood, a significant number of businesses that have decided to integrate Bitcoin into their company systems.

Bitcoin becomes “normal” when it is integrated into the operational flow of businesses. Holding and framing bitcoin on the balance sheet, paying an invoice, paying salaries to employees in satoshis, making value transfers globally thanks to the blockchain, allowing customers to pay via Lightning Network… when all this becomes possible with the same simplicity with which we use the euro or the dollar, Bitcoin stops being alternative and becomes the standard.

Businesses are not just users. They are adoption multipliers. When a company chooses Bitcoin, it is automatically proposing it to customers, employees, suppliers, and institutional stakeholders. Each business adoption equals tens, hundreds, or thousands of new eyes on Bitcoin.

People, after all, trust what they see every day: if your trusted restaurant accepts bitcoin, or if your favorite e-commerce platform uses it to receive international payments, or if your colleague receives it as a salary, then Bitcoin no longer appears to be a mysterious object. It finally begins to be perceived as a real, useful, and functioning tool.

The integration of a technology in companies helps make it understandable, accessible, and legitimate in the eyes of the public. This is how distrust is overcome: by making Bitcoin visible in daily life.

Bitcoin and businesses today

A River Financial report estimates that as of May 2025, only 5% of bitcoin is currently owned by private businesses. A still very small number.

According to research by River, in May 2025 businesses hold just over a million btc (about 5% of available monetary units). More than two-thirds of bitcoin (68.2%) are in the hands of private individuals.

To promote Bitcoin adoption, it is necessary today to support businesses in integrating this standard, leveraging all its enormous opportunities. Among others, this technology allows for fast, economical, and global payments. It eliminates intermediaries, increases transparency and security in value transfers. It removes bureaucratic frictions and allows opening up to a new global market.

Every sector can benefit from Bitcoin: e-commerce, tourism, industry, restaurants, professional services, or any other business. Bitcoin revolutionizes the concept of money, and money is a transversal working tool.

We are still at the beginning, but several signals are encouraging. According to a study by Bitwise and reported by Atlas21, in the first quarter of 2025, a growing number of US companies (+16.11% compared to the previous one) are including Bitcoin in their balance sheets, not just as a financial bet, but as a long-term strategy to protect their assets and access a decentralized monetary system to transfer value worldwide without resorting to financial intermediaries.

Who is driving the change?

Echoing the words of Roy Sheinfeld, CEO of Breez, the true potential of Bitcoin will be unleashed first and foremost from the work of developers, the true architects in designing and refining tools that are increasingly simple and intuitive to use for anyone, regardless of level of expertise. It is the developers – Roy rightly argued – who will enable us to “conquer the world.”

But probably that’s not enough: the next step is to make Bitcoin a globally accepted technological standard, changing its perception towards the general public. And this is where businesses come into play.

Guided by the market, technological innovation, and the desire to meet user demands, entrepreneurs today represent the fulcrum to accelerate the monetary transition from the current fiat system towards the Bitcoin standard. It is entrepreneurs who transform innovations from opportunities for a few to a reality shared by many.

The adoption of Bitcoin will therefore not arise from a sudden event, nor from the exclusive fruit of enthusiasts’ enthusiasm or from arbitrary political choices decreed by States or regulators.

The future of Bitcoin is built in the places where value is created every day: in companies, in their systems, and in their strategic decisions.

“If we conquer developers, we conquer the world. If we conquer businesses, we conquer adoption.”

The post The key to Bitcoin adoption is businesses appeared first on Atlas21.

@ eb0157af:77ab6c55

Governor Abbott will have to decide whether to sign the bill establishing a bitcoin reserve for the state.

Texas could become the third U.S. state to set up a strategic bitcoin reserve, following the approval of Senate Bill 21 by the state House, with 101 votes in favor and 42 against.

Lee Bratcher, founder and president of the Texas Blockchain Council, expressed confidence that Governor Greg Abbott will sign the legislative measure. In an interview with The Block, Bratcher said:

“I’ve talked to the governor about this personally, and I think he wants to see Texas lead in this way.”

The bill is expected to reach the governor’s desk within a week or two, according to Bratcher’s projections. If signed, Texas would follow in the footsteps of New Hampshire and Arizona in creating a state-held bitcoin reserve.

Despite Texas ranking as the world’s eighth-largest economy — ahead of many nations — the initial approach to the reserve will be cautious. Bratcher estimates the starting investment will be in the “tens of millions of dollars,” an amount he describes as “modest” for an economy the size of Texas. The responsibility for operational decisions would fall to the state comptroller, who acts as an executive accountant in charge of managing and investing public funds.

“My sense is that it will be in the tens of millions of dollars, which, while it sounds significant, is a very modest amount, for a state the size of Texas.” explained the president of the Texas Blockchain Council.

The road to approval

According to Bratcher, the idea of creating a state bitcoin reserve dates back to 2022 and represents the culmination of years of work by the Texas Blockchain Council. The organization has worked closely with lawmakers who shared the vision of seeing the state accumulate the world’s leading cryptocurrency. Additionally, Texas has long been home to numerous bitcoin mining companies.

The post Texas one step away from a bitcoin reserve: only the governor’s signature is missing appeared first on Atlas21.

@ f85b9c2c:d190bcff

I’ve always believed that truth doesn’t bend to the will of the crowd. Growing up, I watched people nod along to ideas they didn’t even agree with, just because everyone else seemed to. It baffled me then, and it still does now. There’s something powerful about standing firm when you know you’re right—even if it means standing alone.

It’s not easy, though. The pressure to conform can feel like a tidal wave, crashing down with judgment, whispers, and rolled eyes. I’ve been there, heart pounding, wondering if I’m the crazy one. But here’s what I’ve learned: the majority isn’t always right. History backs me up—think of Galileo, shunned for saying the Earth wasn’t the center of the universe, or the countless voices drowned out before they were proven true. Numbers don’t guarantee wisdom.

For me, it’s about integrity. If I’ve wrestled with the facts, questioned myself, and still landed on solid ground, I’m not backing down just to keep the peace. It’s not arrogance—it’s conviction. I’d rather be the lone voice in a sea of noise than a silent echo of a lie. Because in the end, truth doesn’t care about headcounts. It cares about courage.

@ eb0157af:77ab6c55

Bitcoin surpasses gold in the United States: 50 million holders and a dominant role in the global market.

According to a new report by River, for the first time in history, the number of Americans owning bitcoin has surpassed that of gold holders. The analysis reveals that approximately 50 million U.S. citizens currently own the cryptocurrency, while gold owners number 37 million. In fact, 14.3% of Americans own bitcoin, the highest percentage of holders worldwide.

Source: River

The report highlights that 40% of all Bitcoin-focused companies are based in the United States, consolidating America’s dominant position in the sector. Additionally, 40.5% of Bitcoin holders are men aged 31 to 35, followed by 35.9% of men aged 41 to 45. In contrast, only 13.4% of holders are women.

Source: River

Notably, U.S. companies hold 94.8% of all bitcoins owned by publicly traded companies worldwide. According to the report, recent regulatory changes in the U.S. have made the asset more accessible through financial products such as spot ETFs.

The document also shows that American investors increasingly view the cryptocurrency as protection against fiscal instability and inflation, appreciating its limited supply and decentralized governance model.

For River, Bitcoin offers significant practical advantages over gold in the modern digital era. Its ease of custody, cross-border transfer, and liquidity make the cryptocurrency an attractive option for both individual and institutional investors, the report suggests.

The post USA: 50 million Americans own bitcoin appeared first on Atlas21.

@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

Singapore, May 14, 2025 — NEUTRON, the leading Lightning Network infrastructure provider in Asia, is announcing a new partnership with Cobo, a globally trusted digital asset custody platform.

Through this collaboration, Cobo will integrate Neutron’s Lightning Network API, enabling real-time, cost-effective Bitcoin transactions across its services.

Neutron’s mission is to make the Lightning Network the financial backbone for modern Bitcoin use, bridging traditional finance with Bitcoin’s borderless, decentralized economy.

“We’re thrilled to partner with Cobo, a trusted leader in custodial services, to further accelerate Bitcoin infrastructure across Asia,” said Albert Buu, CEO of Neutron. 

“At Neutron, we are committed to providing enterprise businesses with easy and efficient integration into the Lightning Network, enabling next-generation global real-time settlement solutions.

“This partnership will not only drive innovation but also empower businesses across Asia with the fast, secure, and cost-effective benefits of Bitcoin payments.”

Neutron: The Lightning Engine for Bitcoin Adoption

Neutron provides a comprehensive API suite that allows businesses to instantly access the power of the Lightning Network, Bitcoin’s second-layer protocol designed for high-speed, scalable, and low-fee payments.

The integration is part of Neutron’s broader vision to equip forward-thinking institutions with the tools needed to participate in the next generation of Bitcoin utility.

Lightning-Powered Custody for the Next Era of Finance

Cobo’s integration of Neutron’s API gives institutional clients an additional option for BTC settlement, making Lightning Network access more programmable and easier to integrate within their existing systems.

“At Cobo, we’ve built our custody platform to combine uncompromising security with the scalability institutions need to grow,” said Dr. Changhao Jiang, CTO and Co-Founder of Cobo.

“Integrating Neutron’s Lightning Network API allows us to offer real-time, low-cost Bitcoin settlement at scale without compromising on trust or performance. Together, we’re laying the groundwork for faster, more efficient Bitcoin infrastructure across Asia.”

About Neutron

Neutron is Asia’s leading Bitcoin infrastructure company, helping businesses and individuals unlock the power of the Lightning Network, specializing in Lightning-as-a-Service.

nThrough its scalable API platform, mobile app, and lending product, Neutron empowers businesses and individuals to send, receive, save, and build with Bitcoin.
Want to bring Lightning into your product or platform? Reach out to our team at sales@neutron.me or visit us at www.neutron.me

About Cobo

Cobo is a trusted leader in digital asset custody and wallet infrastructure, providing an all-in-one platform for organizations and developers to easily build, automate, and scale their digital asset businesses securely.

Founded in 2017 by blockchain pioneers and headquartered in Singapore, Cobo is trusted by more than 500 leading digital asset businesses globally, safeguarding billions of dollars in assets.

Today, Cobo offers the industry’s only unified wallet platform that integrates all four digital asset wallet technologies – Custodial Wallets, MPC Wallets, Smart Contract Wallets, and Exchange Wallets.

Committed to the highest security standards and regulatory compliance, Cobo has a zero-incident track record and holds ISO 27001, SOC2 (Type 1 and Type 2) certifications, as well as licenses in multiple jurisdictions.

Recognized for its industry-leading innovations, Cobo has received accolades from prestigious entities such as Hedgeweek and Global Custodian. For more information, please visit www.cobo.com

@ f85b9c2c:d190bcff

Hey, it’s me again, and let me tell you about the wildest thing that happened to me recently. I swear, my life could be a comedy show sometimes😂. Picture this: me and my buddies were out messing around in the woods near campus, just kicking it like we always do. The sun was out, the vibes were good, and we were probably being louder than we needed to be. Then, out of nowhere, I spotted something slithering near my friend benji leg.

A snake. A legit, no-joke snake!

I yelled, “SNAKE!” at the top of my lungs—probably sounded like a total lunatic —and before I could even blink, those dudes were GONE. I mean, faster than their shadows, Olympic-sprinter-level gone. I’m standing there, heart pounding, looking at this snake like, “Bruh, did I just get ditched?” Turns out, I did. My so-called friends bolted back to the dorms without a second thought, leaving me to face the scaly intruder solo. Luckily, the snake wasn’t in the mood for drama. It just gave me this lazy side-eye and slithered off, like it was too cool to deal with me. I hightailed it back to the dorms too, and when I got there, benji and the crew were already laughing their heads off. “Bro, you screamed like a horror movie victim!” they said. Yeah, real funny, guys.

Honestly, though? I’m just glad that snake didn’t get too cozy with my backside. A near miss like that deserves a medal—or at least a good story. We’ve been cracking up about it ever since, and now every time we’re out, I’m the designated “snake spotter. Lesson learned: friends are great until nature throws a curveball. Phew, that was close! Never be afraid to stand against everyone if you know you’re right.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

Not ECDSA. Not Schnorr. Meet DahLIAS.

Aggregate signatures aren’t new. They’ve been around since the early 2000s. But building one that actually works in Bitcoin’s security model, with Bitcoin’s elliptic curve, has never been proven. Developers speculated it might be possible. They shared hand-wavy sketches and said, “maybe it’d work like MuSig2, but across transaction inputs.” The idea lingered for years as developer folklore, close, never provably confirmed.

That changed recently, when Jonas Nick and Tim Ruffing of Blockstream Research, together with Yannick Seurin of Ledger, published a paper that turned this cryptographic ghost story into a concrete, provable result. DahLIAS is the first formal, secure construction of a full constant-size aggregate signature (CISA) scheme that works on Bitcoin’s native curve! 

But that’s a lot of words, so let’s break that down:

• Full aggregation: Multiple signatures across different inputs are combined into one — and the result is a 64 byte signature whose size stays constant, no matter how many signers or inputs. 
• Cross-input: Each signer can authorize different inputs, and all combine into one signature.

It adds no significant new assumptions beyond those already relied on by Bitcoin. DahLIAS builds a new cryptographic primitive using the same math Bitcoin already relies on, unlocking an entirely new kind of signature.

Let’s Talk About Curves and Signatures

Digital signatures are how Bitcoin proves that a user has authorized a transaction. When you go to spend bitcoin, your wallet uses a private key to sign a message, and the network verifies that signature using the matching public key.

Bitcoin uses the secp256k1 curve. It is fast, efficient, and has been battle-tested over time. It supports signature schemes like ECDSA (Bitcoin’s original signature algorithm) and Schnorr (added through Taproot in 2021), which are currently the only signature schemes permitted by Bitcoin consensus.

Traditionally, full signature aggregation relied on mathematical operations not supported by Bitcoin’s curve, secp256k1, which made it seem out of reach. These features have typically relied on other types of elliptic curves. For example, BLS (Boneh–Lynn–Shacham) signatures use a special kind of curve called a pairing-friendly curve, which enables advanced operations like combining many signatures, even on different messages, into one.

The problem is that BLS signatures do not work on secp256k1. While Schnorr was a natural upgrade from ECDSA, since both rely on the same kind of elliptic curve, adding BLS would be a much bigger leap and a departure from Bitcoin’s existing security model. Though technically possible, it would introduce new cryptographic assumptions and add significant complexity to the protocol. Supporting a curve that is pairing-friendly, like BLS12-381, would be a major change for Bitcoin.

This is part of why full signature aggregation has never been done on secp256k1.

Until now.

What Aggregate Signatures Actually Do

Most Bitcoin users are familiar with multisignatures. In a multisig wallet, multiple people jointly authorize the spending of a single UTXO or some specific “coin”. Everyone signs the same input data. This setup is useful for things like shared custody wallets.

Aggregate signatures work differently. Instead of multiple people signing the same input or coin, each signer authorizes a different UTXO in a transaction. These separate signatures are then compressed into one compact proof. With DahLIAS, that means a single 64-byte signature on Bitcoin’s secp256k1 curve that verifies all inputs at once.

That means if you have five inputs from five different people, the transaction needs five different signatures. With an aggregate signature, all of those can be bundled into one. Even if each signer is spending a different input and signing a different part of the transaction, the result is one signature that proves the entire transaction was properly authorized.

It’s like zipping a whole list of approvals into one file. The signature is compact, but still verifiably proves that each signer authorized their specific UTXO.

Instead of verifying 10 separate signatures, you verify one.

This helps realign incentives for privacy. By reducing the signature overhead to a single 64-byte proof, DahLIAS lowers the cost of combining inputs in CoinJoins, making it financially smarter to choose privacy than to go without it.

Why Half-Aggregation Got Close

Shortly after Schnorr signatures were introduced on Bitcoin, developers explored half-aggregation, as a way to compress multiple signatures but they were not fixed size. Each input contributes to the size of the signature, so the transaction still grows with every participant. DahLIAS fixes this by enabling full-aggregation across inputs and signers. No matter how many people are involved or what they’re signing, all their signatures compress into one constant-size, 64-byte proof.

What DahLIAS Actually Unlocks

The main benefit here is that DahLIAS are reducing the size of complex transactions.

DahLIAS uses a two-round interactive signing process. It’s similar to MuSig2 in that regard, but it isn’t a multisignature protocol because it doesn’t require all participants to co-sign the same message. Instead, it aggregates different signatures on different messages across the transaction.

DahLIAS is also faster to verify than checking each signature individually, up to twice as fast in some cases. Lower verification costs make it easier for more people to run full nodes, which helps preserve Bitcoin’s decentralization over time.

Importantly, DahLIAS comes with strong cryptographic guarantees. The scheme includes formal security proofs. Earlier ‘folklore’ approaches to full signature aggregation lacked this, and some were even later shown to be insecure. Fortunately they weren’t adopted prematurely.

It’s worth repeating: DahLIAS is not a multisig protocol. It isn’t comparable to MuSig2 or FROST from a functional standpoint, even if it shares similar cryptographic building blocks. It serves a different purpose. It offers a new way to encode many independent approvals into one clean, verifiable package.

Future Directions

You might think: if DahLIAS is so powerful, why isn’t it a BIP? Why not propose it for Bitcoin consensus?

DahLIAS signatures don’t look like Schnorr or ECDSA signatures. The verification algorithm is different. Instead of taking a single public key, message, and signature, a DahLIAS verifier takes lists of public keys and messages, and a single 64-byte proof.

This makes DahLIAS incompatible with Bitcoin’s current consensus rules. Supporting it at the base layer would require a consensus change. This paper doesn’t propose that change, but it does something equally important.

This paper shows that a full signature aggregation scheme for Bitcoin’s native curve is possible.

That alone is a major step forward.

To make DahLIAS part of Bitcoin, someone would need to write a Bitcoin Improvement Proposal (BIP), maybe even using secp256k1lab. That means specifying the scheme in detail, considering its implications for consensus and implementation, and building community support. This paper lays the cryptographic foundation for that conversation.

The real value of the DahLIAS paper is what it proves. Full signature aggregation on secp256k1 is not just a thought experiment. It’s concrete. It’s efficient. It’s secure. For years, the idea lived in developer folklore. Now, it’s written down, analyzed, and proven. All that’s left is to bring it to Bitcoin—if we want it.

This is a guest post by Kiara Bickers. Opinions expressed are entirely their own and do not necessarily reflect those of BTC Inc or Bitcoin Magazine.

This post Not ECDSA. Not Schnorr. Meet DahLIAS. first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Kiara Bickers.

@ f85b9c2c:d190bcff

P2P trading is also referred to as peer-to-peer trading or, more recently, people-to-people trading. Individuals can trade currencies and other marketable goods with other traders in this decentralized financial trading system. P2P trading is a method of trading cryptocurrencies between people without the need of middlemen like exchanges, banks, or other financial institutions. Networks that connect buyers and sellers, streamline transactions, and frequently provide conflict resolution services are where P2P transactions take place.

What is P2P Trading P2P trading is one of the quickest, cheapest, and most adaptable trading platforms, according to numerous research. Even more people could benefit from it if they lack access to conventional financial services or find some procedures to be too complicated.

P2P Trading in Nigeria P2P trading has grown somewhat in popularity in recent years as a result of the expansion of online marketplaces that bring together buyers and sellers. These platforms frequently offer wonderful alternatives to traditional financial services and perform similarly to or even better than what is provided by regional banks. Markets today provide unique advantages like quick transactions, reduced fees, and improved flexibility.

The ongoing development of regulations prohibiting the usage of cryptocurrencies is another factor that has increased the need for P2P trade in Nigeria. The majority of crypto traders in Nigeria now trade their cryptocurrencies with one another using the P2P trading system rather than the conventional trader-to-exchange service as a result of the ban on cryptocurrencies since 2021 till recently.P2P trading is thus one of the most popular and widely used forms of trading in Nigeria.

Peer-to-peer cryptocurrency trading is available on a number of well-known trading platforms, including Binance, Bitget, Bybit etc. A system has been built by these platforms (exchange websites and mobile applications) that enables traders to connect and trade their preferred crypto assets. P2P trading platforms have the power to transform Nigeria’s financial system and open up new doors for economic growth and development by bringing buyers and sellers together directly.

How does P2P trading work? One of the most effective ways to exchange cryptocurrency is through P2P trading, so everyone should be aware of how to get around it. It uses the exchange as a middleman to arrange, oversee, and finish trades between two independent dealers. The exchange service is used by buyers who search for sellers who are willing to sell to them at the price they are willing to pay, make a payment, and receive coins in return.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

KindlyMD, Nakamoto, and Anchorage Digital Form Strategic Bitcoin Treasury Alliance

Nakamoto Holdings Inc., KindlyMD, Inc., and Anchorage Digital today announced a strategic partnership that will see Anchorage become a trading partner for KindlyMD’s Bitcoin treasury. The partnership will officially take effect upon the close of KindlyMD’s merger with Nakamoto, expected in Q3 2025.

NEW! Anchorage Digital @Nakamoto @KindlyMD

Today we’re thrilled to announce a strategic partnership with Nakamoto Holdings and $KDLY to accelerate the future of corporate Bitcoin adoption. pic.twitter.com/nQueTyutQH

— Anchorage Digital (@Anchorage) May 21, 2025

Anchorage Digital, a U.S. federally chartered digital asset bank, will provide institutional-grade custody, 24/7 trading, and deep liquidity to support the Bitcoin strategy of the combined entity.

“In the not-so-distant-future, the omission of Bitcoin on a balance sheet will be more glaring than its inclusion,” said Nathan McCauley, CEO and Co-Founder of Anchorage Digital. “Until then, companies like Nakamoto-KindlyMD are pioneering a new path forward—one in which Bitcoin is at the heart of corporate strategy.” 

The future of corporate treasury strategy is Bitcoin-native. We're here to make it happen. Pumped to be partnering with @Nakamoto and @KindlyMD.@DavidFBailey’s vision continues to open new doors.

LFG https://t.co/BtUDdwwLQF

— Nathan McCauley (@nathanmccauley) May 21, 2025

The merger between KindlyMD and Nakamoto is backed by approximately $710 million in financing, including $510 million in PIPE funding—the largest ever PIPE for a public crypto-related deal. The goal is to establish a Bitcoin-native corporate treasury strategy that redefines how capital markets engage with digital assets.

“Our goal is to bring Bitcoin to the center of global capital markets within a compliant, transparent structure,” said David Bailey, Founder and CEO of Nakamoto Holdings Inc. “We are excited to partner with Anchorage Digital to implement our vision with the highest levels of security and battle-tested infrastructure and enable us to deliver sustained value to shareholders.”

This announcement follows a key milestone on May 18, when KindlyMD shareholders approved the proposed merger with Nakamoto. The transaction is now expected to close in Q3 2025, pending SEC review and information statement distribution.

“This milestone brings us one step closer to unlocking Bitcoin’s potential for KindlyMD shareholders,” Bailey said yesterday. “We are grateful that KindlyMD shares our vision for a future in which Bitcoin is a core part of the corporate balance sheet.”

With its Bitcoin-first strategy and strategic alliances, the Nakamoto-KindlyMD partnership is set to accelerate institutional Bitcoin adoption—and with Anchorage Digital’s infrastructure behind it, the foundation is now firmly in place.

“By collaborating with Anchorage Digital, we are implementing our Bitcoin treasury strategy with the utmost standards in safety and security for our shareholders,” stated Tim Pickett, CEO of KindlyMD. “Their institutional-grade platform allows us to confidently hold Bitcoin as a treasury asset as we look to unlock access to Bitcoin and drive value for the long term.”

Disclosure: Nakamoto is in partnership with Bitcoin Magazine’s parent company BTC Inc to build the first global network of Bitcoin treasury companies, where BTC Inc provides certain marketing services to Nakamoto. More information on this can be found here. 

This post KindlyMD, Nakamoto, and Anchorage Digital Form Strategic Bitcoin Treasury Alliance first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Jenna Montgomery.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

How Zeus is Redefining Bitcoin with Cashu Ecash Integration

The U.S.-based Bitcoin and Lightning mobile wallet Zeus recently announced an alpha-release integration of Cashu. The move marks the first integration of ecash into a popular Bitcoin wallet, breaking new ground for potential user adoption to Bitcoin.
Cashu is a hot new implementation of Chaumian ecash, a form of digital cash invented by David Chaum in the ’90s that has incredible privacy and scalability properties, with the trade-off of being fundamentally centralized, requiring a significant amount of trust in the issuer.

In a counterintuitive move for Zeus, known as the go-to tool for advanced Lightning users seeking to connect to their home nodes, the integration of Cashu acknowledges a “last mile” challenge Lightning wallets face when delivering Bitcoin to the masses.

“We basically started off as the cypherpunk wallet, right? You got to set up your own Lightning node and connect to it with Zeus. The last two years, we put the node in the phone with one click, you can run it all in a standalone app without a remote node,” Evan Kaloudis, founder and CEO of Zeus, told Bitcoin Magazine.

“Cashu addresses uneconomical self-custody for small bitcoin amounts. On-chain, the dust limit is 546 satoshis, and Layer Two systems like Lightning have costs for channel setup or unilateral exits that aren’t widely discussed,” Evan explained, highlighting a major point of friction in noncustodial Lightning wallets: the need for liquidity and channel management. While these esoteric aspects of the Lightning Network have been mostly abstracted away since its invention in 2016, these fundamental trade-offs continue to manifest even in the most sophisticated and user-friendly wallets.

In the case of both Phoenix and Zeus, two of the most popular noncustodial options in the market, users must pay up to 10,000 sats upfront to gain spending capacity. These fees are necessary to cover the on-chain fees spent to open a channel for the user against the wallet’s liquidity service provider, unlocking a noncustodial experience.

The required up-front fee is difficult to explain and represents a painful onboarding experience for new users who are used to fiat apps giving them money to join instead. The result is the proliferation of custodial Lightning wallets like Wallet of Satoshi (WOS), which gained massive adoption early on by leveraging the global, near-instant settlement power of Bitcoin combined with the excellent user experience centralized wallets can create.

Major developments have been made over seven years after the Lightning Network’s inception, however, and Zeus is pushing the boundaries.

“With Ecash, we make it so easy that anyone can set up a wallet and start participating in our ecosystem, which I really think is going to become more and more prevalent,” Evan explained.

Today, at roughly $100,000 per bitcoin, 1,000 satoshis are equivalent to $1. Transactions of these sizes are known as microtransactions — a popular example are Nostr social media tips known as Zaps. But finding the right tool for this use case is not simple. Self custodied wallets like Phoenix charge transaction fees in the hundreds of satoshis, even with open channels, and on-chain fees often cost the same and are slower to settle. As a result, there’s an entire category of spending that is only served by cheaper alternatives such as custodial lightning wallets like WOS or Blink, but result in significant privacy tradeoffs, often requiring phone numbers from users and in some cases more advanced KYC and IP tracking. Cashu hopes to serve this market with lower privacy costs, the same ease of use, speed and competitive fees.

Digging deeper into the Cashu integration, Evan explained that “for users this means being able to pick and switch between custodians in a single app. For developers this means being able to defer custodial responsibilities to third parties and not have to wire up a new integration when your current custodian halts operations.”

Zaps are satoshi-denominated rewards delivered as “likes” or micro-tips for content in the Nostr social media ecosystem. A Zap can be as small as one satoshi, the smallest amount of bitcoin that can be technically transferred, equivalent today to about a tenth of a penny. “But I think if we look at Nostr and you’re seeing how many people are Zapping and how big a part of that ecosystem it is. It’s like, people are willing to do it,” Evan explained.

“Cashu, while custodial, lets users accumulate small amounts — say, via Nostr Zaps — without needing 6,000 satoshis to open a Lightning channel. Zeus prompts users to upgrade to self-custody as their balance grows,” he concluded, explaining that the wallet will effectively annoy users into self custody, one of several design choices made to mitigate the risks introduced by Cashu.

Ecash

The trade-offs introduced by Cashu challenge the common understanding of custody as an either-or in Bitcoin. Historically you were either a centralized — custodial — exchange, or you were a noncustodial Bitcoin wallet. In the former, you entrust the coins to a third party; in the latter you take personal responsibility for those coins and their corresponding private keys. Cashu changes this paradigm by introducing bitcoin-denominated ecash notes or “nuts,” which are bearer instruments that should be backed by a full bitcoin reserve and Lightning interoperability for instant withdraw.

Similar to fiat cash, you must take control and responsibility over these notes, but there’s also counterparty risk. In the case of Cashu, there are certain things the issuing mint can theoretically do to exploit their users — akin to how a bank can run on a fractional reserve. 

The big difference between Cashu or custodial Bitcoin exchanges and fiat currency is that Cashu is open source, is designed around user privacy, and scales very well. It makes the cost of running a mint lower than either alternative, a feature that makes mint competition easier, in theory countering the centralizing network effects of specific mints.

Finally, the user experience of storing Cashu tokens has been attached to known forms of Bitcoin self custody such as the download of 12-words seeds via various mechanisms, though implementations still vary from wallet to wallet and the whole ecosystem is in its early stages. 

To further mitigate the custodial risk of Chaumian-style ecash in Bitcoin, the Cashu community has developed various methods for automatically managing custody risk.

“Users can split risk by using multiple mints, switching between them in the user interface. Soon, ZEUS will guide users to select five or six reputable mints, automatically balancing funds to minimize exposure,” Evan explained, referring to a particular approach called automated bank runs. The idea is that as some Cashu mints may hold more of your funds, Zeus de-ranks them and rotates value out to minimize risk. 

“I think the idea is going to be that we guide users to pick five or six reputable mints… And from there, users will be able to have the wallet automatically switch between those mints and determine which mint should be receiving the balance depending on the balance of all the mints presently. So you’ll be like, OK. MiniBits has way too much money. Let’s switch the default to one of the mints that doesn’t have a lot. So that way you can sort of mitigate or rather distribute the rug risk there,” Evan explained, adding, “Our Discover Mint feature pulls reviews from bitcoinmints.com, showing vouch counts and user feedback, like mint reliability or longevity,” describing the reputation layer stacked on top of the various other risk management mechanisms.

There is no known way to use Chaumian-style ecash in an entirely noncustodial way. So as long as the custody risk can be minimized, the scaling and privacy upside becomes remarkable. 

Microtransactions

One of the opportunities that ecash unlocks is microtransactions, the most popular example of which are Nostr Zaps often in single dollar ranges of value transferred, though it applies to small Lightning transactions as well. This use case triggers an important technical question that predates Bitcoin, do microtransactions actually make economic sense?

There’s a long-standing argu

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

Bitcoin Liquid Network Surpasses $3.27 Billion in Total Value Locked

Today, the Liquid Federation has announced that the Liquid Network has surpassed $3.27 billion in total value locked (TVL), according to a press release shared with Bitcoin Magazine. 

“Surpassing the $3 billion threshold marks a pivotal moment for both Liquid and Bitcoin, signaling the evolution of Bitcoinʼs ecosystem into a full-fledged platform for global financial markets,” said the CEO and Co-Founder of Blockstream Dr. Adam Back. “As Bitcoin gains mainstream acceptance, and demand for regulated asset tokenization accelerates, Liquid is better positioned than ever to bridge Bitcoin with traditional finance and drive the next wave of capital markets innovation.”

The announcement follows growing interest in tokenizing real-world assets (RWAs), with major moves such as BlackRock’s decision to tokenize a $150 billion Treasury fund. According to a 2025 report by Security Token Market, the tokenized asset market is projected to grow to $30 trillion by 2030.

Liquid supports over $1.8 billion in tokenized private credit and offers products like U.S. Treasury notes and digital currencies through Blockstream’s AMP platform. The network also features fast, low-cost, and confidential transactions, with support for atomic swaps and robust smart contracts.

Governed by over 80 global institutions, Liquid was launched in 2018 as Bitcoin’s first sidechain. It is now preparing for a major upgrade with the mainnet release of Simplicity, aimed at expanding its smart contract capabilities.

To keep up with increasing demand, the Liquid Federation is boosting developer resources and technical onboardings, along with integrations with exchanges, custodians and service providers. Recent bootcamps and important meetings with policy makers in Asia, Europe and Latin America reflect the network’s growing global presence.

This post Bitcoin Liquid Network Surpasses $3.27 Billion in Total Value Locked first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Oscar Zarraga Perez.

@ dfa02707:41ca50e3

News

• Bitcoin mining centralization in 2025. According to a blog post by b10c, Bitcoin mining was at its most decentralized in May 2017, with another favorable period from 2019 to 2022. However, starting in 2023, mining has become increasingly centralized, particularly due to the influence of large pools like Foundry and the use of proxy pooling by entities such as AntPool.

Source: b10c's blog.

• OpenSats announces the eleventh wave of Nostr grants. The five projects in this wave are the mobile live-streaming app Swae, the Nostr-over-ham-radio project HAMSTR, Vertex—a Web-of-Trust (WOT) service for Nostr developers, Nostr Double Ratchet for end-to-end encrypted messaging, and the Nostr Game Engine for building games and applications integrated with the Nostr ecosystem.
• New Spiral grantee: l0rinc. In February 2024, l0rinc transitioned to full-time work on Bitcoin Core. His efforts focus on performance benchmarking and optimizations, enhancing code quality, conducting code reviews, reducing block download times, optimizing memory usage, and refactoring code.
• Project Eleven offers 1 BTC to break Bitcoin's cryptography with a quantum computer. The quantum computing research organization has introduced the Q-Day Prize, a global challenge that offers 1 BTC to the first team capable of breaking an elliptic curve cryptographic (ECC) key using Shor’s algorithm on a quantum computer. The prize will be awarded to the first team to successfully accomplish this breakthrough by April 5, 2026.
• Unchained has launched the Bitcoin Legacy Project. The initiative seeks to advance the Bitcoin ecosystem through a bitcoin-native donor-advised fund platform (DAF), investments in community hubs, support for education and open-source development, and a commitment to long-term sustainability with transparent annual reporting.
  • In its first year, the program will provide support to Bitcoin hubs in Nashville, Austin, and Denver.
  • Support also includes $50,000 to the Bitcoin Policy Institute, a $150,000 commitment at the University of Austin, and up to $250,000 in research grants through the Bitcoin Scholars program.

"Unchained will match grants 1:1 made to partner organizations who support Bitcoin Core development when made through the Unchained-powered bitcoin DAF, up to 1 BTC," was stated in a blog post.

• Block launched open-source tools for Bitcoin treasury management. These include a dashboard for managing corporate bitcoin holdings and provides a real-time BTC-to-USD price quote API, released as part of the Block Open Source initiative. The company’s own instance of the bitcoin holdings dashboard is available here.

Source: block.xyz

• Bull Bitcoin expands to Mexico, enabling anyone in the country to receive pesos from anywhere in the world straight from a Bitcoin wallet. Additionally, users can now buy Bitcoin with a Mexican bank account.

"Bull Bitcoin strongly believes in Bitcoin’s economic potential in Mexico, not only for international remittances and tourism, but also for Mexican individuals and companies to reclaim their financial sovereignty and protect their wealth from inflation and the fragility of traditional financial markets," said Francis Pouliot, Founder and CEO of Bull Bitcoin.

• Corporate bitcoin holdings hit a record high in Q1 2025. According to Bitwise, public companies' adoption of Bitcoin has hit an all-time high. In Q1 2025, these firms collectively hold over 688,000 BTC, marking a 16.11% increase from the previous quarter. This amount represents 3.28% of Bitcoin's fixed 21 million supply.

Source: Bitwise.

• The Bitcoin Bond Company for institutions has launched with the aim of acquiring $1 trillion in Bitcoin over 21 years. It utilizes secure, transparent, and compliant bond-like products backed by Bitcoin.
• The U.S. Senate confirmed Paul Atkins as Chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). At his confirmation hearing, Atkins emphasized the need for a clear framework for digital assets. He aims to collaborate with the CFTC and Congress to address jurisdiction and rulemaking gaps, aligning with the Trump administration's goal to position the U.S. as a leader in Bitcoin and blockchain finance.
• Ethereum developer Virgil Griffith has been released from custody. Griffith, whose sentence was reduced to 56 months, is now seeking a pardon. He was initially sentenced to 63 months for allegedly violating international sanctions laws by providing technical advice on using cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology to evade sanctions during a presentation titled 'Blockchains for Peace' in North Korea.
• No-KYC exchange eXch to close down under money laundering scrutiny. The privacy-focused cryptocurrency trading platform said it will cease operations on May 1. This decision follows allegations that the platform was used by North Korea's Lazarus Group for money laundering. eXch revealed it is the subject of an active "transatlantic operation" aimed at shutting down the platform and prosecuting its team for "money laundering and terrorism."
• Blockstream combats ESP32 FUD concerning Jade signers. The company stated that after reviewing the vulnerability disclosed in early March, Jade was found to be secure. Espressif Systems, the designer of the ESP32, has since clarified that the "undocumented commands" do not constitute a "backdoor."

• Bank of America is lobbying for regulations that favor banks over tech firms in stablecoin issuance. The bank's CEO Brian Moynihan is working with groups such as the American Bankers Association to advance the issuance of a fully reserved, 1:1 backed "Bank of America coin." If successful, this could limit stablecoin efforts by non-banks like Tether, Circle, and others, reports The Block.
• Tether to back OCEAN Pool with its hashrate. "As a company committed to financial freedom and open access, we see supporting decentralization in Bitcoin mining as essential to the network’s long-term integrity," said Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino.
• Bitdeer to expand its self-mining operations to navigate tariffs. The Singapore-based mining company is advancing plans to produce machines in the U.S. while reducing its mining hardware sales. This response is in light of increasing uncertainties related to U.S. trade policy, as reported by Bloomberg.
• Tether acquires $32M in Bitdeer shares. The firm has boosted its investment in Bitdeer during a wider market sell-off, with purchases in early to mid-April amounting to about $32 million, regulatory filings reveal.
• US Bitcoin miner manufacturer Auradine has raised $153 million in a Series C funding round as it expands into AI infrastructure. The round was led by StepStone Group and included participation from Maverick Silicon, Premji Invest, Samsung Catalyst Fund, Qualcomm Ventures, Mayfield, MARA Holdings, GSBackers, and other existing investors. The firm raised to over $300 million since its inception in 2022.
• Voltage has partnered with BitGo to [enable](https://www.voltage.cloud/blog/bitgo-and-voltage-team-up-to-deliver-instant-bitcoin-and-stabl

@ 1817b617:715fb372

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@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

Bitcoin-focused investment firm Twenty One Capital has made headlines after buying 4,812 BTC worth $458.7 million, making it the third-largest corporate holder of the scarce digital asset.

The move is a big and public one towards becoming the “ultimate Bitcoin investment vehicle” according to its leadership, and is turning heads in both bitcoin and tradfi world.

Tether, the issuer of the world’s largest stablecoin, bought the bitcoin on behalf of Twenty One Capital.

According to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on May 13, Tether acquired the bitcoin on May 9 at an average price of $95,319 per coin.

Twenty One Capital was launched in April 2025 through a SPAC merger with Cantor Equity Partners, a Cayman Islands-based firm affiliated with Wall Street giant Cantor Fitzgerald. The company is backed by Tether, Bitfinex exchange and Japanese investment giant SoftBank.

Related: Cantor Fitzgerald, Tether and SoftBank Launch $3B Bitcoin Venture

The firm is led by Jack Mallers, founder of the bitcoin payments app Strike, who has been vocal about bitcoin business models.

“We want to be the ultimate vehicle for the capital markets to participate in Bitcoin… building on top of Bitcoin,” said Mallers in an interview. “So we are a Bitcoin business at our core.”

At launch, Twenty One Capital had 31,500 bitcoin on the balance sheet with plans to get to at least 42,000 BTC.

The breakdown of that initial allocation was 23,950 BTC from Tether, 10,500 BTC from SoftBank and about 7,000 BTC from Bitfinex—all to be converted into equity at $10 per share.

The company is openly modeling its strategy after what Bitcoiners call “Saylorization”—a term coined after Michael Saylor, executive chairman of Strategy, who started large-scale bitcoin accumulation by corporations in 2020.

“Twenty One Capital isn’t just stacking sats,” said Bitcoin advocate Max Keiser, “It’s leading a generational shift in corporate capital allocation … Jack Mallers is taking the Saylor playbook and turning it into an arms race.”

The strategy is simple: use bitcoin per share as a metric instead of earnings per share, prioritize bitcoin accumulation over short-term profits, and use the capital markets to fund purchases. Mallers said:

“We do intend to raise as much capital as we possibly can to acquire bitcoin. We will never have bitcoin per share negative… Our intent is to make sure when you are a shareholder of Twenty One that you are getting wealthier in Bitcoin terms.”

The bitcoin purchase was made at a time of growing market momentum.

On May 14, bitcoin hit $105,000 briefly before settling at around $104,000—a 7.5% gain in the past week. Retail buying has also picked up, with purchases under $10,000 up 3.4% over two weeks, suggesting continued bullishness.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

Spark Partners with Breez to Launch Bitcoin-Native SDK for Lightning Payments

Today, Breez and Spark have announced a new implementation of the Breez SDK, built on Spark’s Bitcoin-native Layer 2 infrastructure. According to a press release sent to Bitcoin Magazine, the update is intended to make it easier for developers to integrate self-custodial Bitcoin Lightning payments into everyday apps and services.

Few companies are as good as @Breez_Tech at putting Bitcoin in people’s hands. We’re incredibly humbled to have them building on Spark.

Learn more → https://t.co/KRPpWJa3os pic.twitter.com/QiCfHbWu9d

— Spark (@buildonspark) May 22, 2025

“This is what the future of Bitcoin looks like — fast, open, and embedded in the apps people use every day. By teaming up with Breez, we’re expanding the ecosystem and giving developers powerful, Bitcoin-native tools to build next-generation payment experiences. Together, we’re building the standard for global, peer-to-peer transactions,” said the creator of Spark Kevin Hurley.

The SDK supports LNURL, Lightning addresses, real-time mobile notifications, and includes bindings for all major programming languages and frameworks. It is designed to allow developers to build directly on Bitcoin without relying on bridges or external consensus. This collaboration gives developers tools to add Bitcoin payment features to apps used for monetization social apps, cross-border remittances, and in-game currencies.

“We need developers to bring Bitcoin into apps people use every day,” said the CEO of Breez Roy Sheinfeld. “That’s why we built the Breez SDK. We’re excited to build on Spark’s revolutionary architecture — giving developers a powerful new Bitcoin-native option and continuing to strengthen Lightning as the common language of Bitcoin.”

Breez will also operate as a Spark Service Provider (SSP), alongside Lightspark, to help support payment facilitation and the growth of Spark’s ecosystem. The new implementation is expected to be released later this year.

“We’re excited to see what developers build with Spark; it’s very exciting to see this come to the world,” said the co-founder and CEO of Lightspark David Marcus.

The Breez SDK is expanding

We’re joining forces with @buildonspark to release a new nodeless implementation of the Breez SDK — giving developers the tools they need to bring Bitcoin payments to everyday apps.

→ https://t.co/iWjZhWRwsx

Bitcoin-Native
Powered by Spark’s…

— Breez (@Breez_Tech) May 22, 2025

Yesterday, Magic Eden also partnered with Spark to improve Bitcoin trading by addressing issues like slow transaction times, high fees, and poor user experience. The integration will introduce a native settlement system aimed at making transactions faster and more cost-effective, without using bridges or synthetic assets.

“We’re proud to be betting on BTC DeFi,” said the CEO of Magic Eden Jack Lu. “We’re going to lead the forefront of all Bitcoin DeFi to make BTC fast, fun, and for everyone with Magic Eden as the #1 BTC native app on-chain.”

This post Spark Partners with Breez to Launch Bitcoin-Native SDK for Lightning Payments first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Oscar Zarraga Perez.

@ 25f5c1c7:e956c514

I've been exploring ways to retain the strong security guarantees of Proof-of-Work (PoW) while significantly reducing its environmental footprint. Traditional PoW systems are undeniably robust, but their energy demands are a major concern. Delayed Proof-of-Work (DPoW) is my first proposal toward solving this - a concept designed to preserve the integrity and fairness of PoW while operating with a fraction of the hash power.

How it Works

1. A new block is added to the chain.

2. All miners start computing a VDF (Verifiable Delay Function) with the latest block's hash as the input.

3. The VDF is designed to take 4 minutes to complete, enforcing a mandatory idle period.

4. The \~1 minute mining period begins when miners complete the VDF.

5. - Miners compete to find a valid PoW for a new block, which includes the VDF output in the header.

6. The first miner to find a valid hash broadcasts the new block to the network.

7. The block is verified by nodes by checking the VDF's output is correct for the previous block hash, and that the PoW is valid.

8. This cycle of a 4 minute idle period and a brief mining period continues.

Key Advantages

• The idle-mine cycle allows the network to operate with \~1/5 of the hash power of a standard PoW blockchain while still taking advantage of the security properties of PoW.

• During the 4 minute idle period, the blockchain is guaranteed to be static. The predictable delay means blocks are propagated and confirmed in a more synchronised fashion, which could reduce synchronisation issues and orphaned blocks.

Potential Issues

• VDFs can be computed slightly faster on hardware with higher clock speeds or specialised circuits, resulting in some miners having a longer mining period.

• The short mining-window means that miners on faster connections will have a significant advantage over slower connections, as they will be able to propagate a mined block faster.

• The VDF also uses energy, although negligible compared to the amount that algorithms use.

• Miners might redirect their hash power to other cryptocurrencies during the delay period, which would undermine the goal of reducing energy consumption.

• A malicious miner who obtains or predicts the next block could start pre-computing the VDF early, gaining an unfair advantage.

@ eb0157af:77ab6c55

The exchange reveals the extent of the breach that occurred last December as federal authorities investigate the recent data leak.

Coinbase has disclosed that the personal data of 69,461 users was compromised during the breach in December 2024, according to documentation filed with the Maine Attorney General’s Office.

The disclosure comes after Coinbase announced last week that a group of hackers had demanded a $20 million ransom, threatening to publish the stolen data on the dark web. The attackers allegedly bribed overseas customer service agents to extract information from the company’s systems.

Coinbase had previously stated that the breach affected less than 1% of its user base, compromising KYC (Know Your Customer) data such as names, addresses, and email addresses. In a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the company clarified that passwords, private keys, and user funds were not affected.

Following the reports, the SEC has reportedly opened an official investigation to verify whether Coinbase may have inflated user metrics ahead of its 2021 IPO. Separately, the Department of Justice is investigating the breach at Coinbase’s request, according to CEO Brian Armstrong.

Meanwhile, Coinbase has faced criticism for its delayed response to the data breach. Michael Arrington, founder of TechCrunch, stated that the stolen data could cause irreparable harm. In a post on X, Arrington wrote:

“The human cost, denominated in misery, is much larger than the $400m or so they think it will actually cost the company to reimburse people. The consequences to companies who do not adequately protect their customer information should include, without limitation, prison time for executives.”

Coinbase estimates the incident could cost between $180 million and $400 million in remediation expenses and customer reimbursements.

Arrington also condemned KYC laws as ineffective and dangerous, calling on both regulators and companies to better protect user data:

“Combining these KYC laws with corporate profit maximization and lax laws on penalties for hacks like these means these issues will continue to happen. Both governments and corporations need to step up to stop this. As I said, the cost can only be measured in human suffering.”

The post Coinbase: 69,461 users affected by December 2024 data breach appeared first on Atlas21.