Top Stories

ETH : the Shapella upgrade in Ethereum has sparked a surge in staking interest, with over 4.4 million ETH coins deposited since April 12. Large ETH holders are opting for staking to generate passive income, driven by the expectation of price growth due to deflationary forces. Despite a waiting period of over one month, the demand for staking remains strong (link)

MICA : the EU unanimously approved MiCA, which sets up Crypto Regulation and Taxation Rules. The regulation is set to become law this summer, with an implementation period for companies and regulators to adjust to the new rules. (link)

Avalanche blockchain : has introduced the new "Avalanche X-Chain Explorer," a major upgrade that enables users to analyze all X-Chain activities, including transactions, assets, UTXOs, blocks, and more. (link)

Algorand, Solana, and Polygon : have partnered to establish a $50 million cross-chain investment fund managed by Borderless Capital. The fund will support startups utilizing the Wormhole cross-chain messaging protocol, aiming to enhance cross-chain interoperability and collaboration among various blockchain networks. (link)

The World Bank : considers blockchain technology for tokenizing infrastructure projects, aiming to digitize debt financing processes. While offering benefits like democratized funding and increased transparency, challenges such as regulatory frameworks and cybersecurity concerns remain for widespread adoption, particularly in emerging markets.  (link)

Web3 Gaming

Axie Infinity : Sky Mavis, the creator of Axie Infinity, is launching its Axie Infinity: Origins card game on the Apple App Store in key markets. The card-based strategy game will initially be available in Latin America and Asia, offering free non-NFT "starter" characters. (link)

Stepn : a mobile "move-to-earn" game, has introduced an in-app marketplace for NFT sales within its iOS app, allowing users to buy NFTs and use Apple Pay. However, due to Apple's 30% fee on in-app purchases, the prices of NFTs on Stepn's iOS app are considerably higher compared to purchasing them through the web marketplace using the app's native crypto token (link)

Illuvium : the much-anticipated Illuvium Overworld Private Beta 2, went live May 18. Get ready to explore the expanded universe of Illuvium, featuring new regions, captivating Illuvials, and enhanced gameplay mechanics. (link)

Gala Games : burned around 21 billion GALA tokens, worth over $600 million, after completing its V2 token airdrop. This was done to alleviate concerns of a "dump and exit" scenario, instill confidence in token holders, and prevent potential negative impacts on token prices. (link)

Philippines : CoinGecko's crypto data aggregator reports reveal that the Philippines has maintained its position as the frontrunner in Web3 gaming interest for three consecutive years. This places the Philippines ahead of countries such as China, Singapore, UAE, and Vietnam (link)

NFTs

Bitcoin NFTs : Bitcoin has surged to the second position in NFT sales per blockchain, generating around $167 million in the past month, according to CryptoSlam. While Ethereum remains in the top spot with nearly $397 million in NFT sales, Bitcoin's rapid growth is noteworthy, considering its recent introduction of NFT functionality. NFT sales on Bitcoin also outpace those on the Solana network by nearly three times, reaching approximately $57 million (link)

Meme Tokens and NFTs : took Over Bitcoin, now It's Happening on Dogecoin and Litecoin.    Ordinals hype has spread from Bitcoin to both Dogecoin and Litecoin, driving network activity on all three chains to recent all-time peaks (link)

Sotheby's : successfully concluded the auction of rare non-fungible tokens (NFTs) from the bankrupt crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital (3AC), generating $2,482,850 in sales. The NFTs were part of the Grails collection and were sold as a means to recoup some of the lost funds from 3AC's bankruptcy (link)

Kim Asendorf : known for co-directing Metallica's "Chasing Light" music video, has unveiled a new NFT drop titled "Colors of Noise." The series of 50 unique artworks combines visual and audio art, with each piece representing an ode to sound design (link)

The Nelson Mandela Foundation (NMF) : is embracing NFTs as a fundraising initiative. They are selling 1,918 NFTs representing founding memberships, featuring a digital artwork of Nelson Mandela, with the aim of raising $1.9 million to support various initiatives (link)

Defi

Uniswap : decentralized exchange Uniswap announced its deployment on Polkadot. Through Moonbeam, a parachain on the Polkadot network, Uniswap V3 will be available to Polkadot users, offering improved features such as enhanced capital efficiency, flexible fee structures, and an improved user experience (link)

Tornado Cash : a malicious proposal passed by the Tornado Cash DAO gave an attacker complete control over its governance system. The attacker has already drained locked votes from the system and sold many of them (link)

Lido : Lido Finance is considering adding a staking feature to its LDO token, allowing holders to earn rewards from the protocol's revenue. However, stakers would also bear the risk of losing funds in the event of a mass-slashing event. Reception to the proposal has been mixed among token holders (link)

SEC : the SEC has designated 37 cryptocurrencies as securities, which carries legal consequences for investors and exchanges. Selling unregistered securities may result in penalties, potentially impacting the crypto market. (link)

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