WhiteboardCrypto Newsletter - Sept 30

Welcome back to this week's edition of our WhiteboardCrypto Newsletter!

Fun fact: Gary Gensler can’t answer if he’s tech neutral or not. He also got grilled pretty well about his behavior.

NASA plans to use blockchain to send data to the moon

Crypto really isn’t just about making money fast (or losing it all in a rug). What’s really going to change the world is the actual use-cases of the tech. NASA sees this, and is working on creating a presumably private blockchain that they will use to send very important data into outer space to avoid something like the fall of the Library of Alexandria, where most of the knowledge of the world was lost when the library was destroyed. By storing data on blockchain technology, the data can’t be destroyed just because one block is destroyed.

Learn more here.

Remember the alt coin drama of the summer? It’s over.

Back in June, the founder of Curve Finance scared the pants off everyone when it was realized that he had such a huge loan out with CRV on Aave, and if the loan was liquidated, the entire protocol could break. He has just paid it down, and his other positions now remain fully collateralized. It was quite the scare for the market, and it’s a good reminder not to keep all your eggs in one basket.

Learn more here.

Pudgy Penguins come to life

Okay, not really. But you can officially buy physical Pudgy Penguins at Walmart. They are called “Pudgy Toys”, of course, and each toy comes with a “birth certificate” that allows the owner to sign up on the blockchain, get a wallet, and trade characteristics on their marketplace, Pudgy World. This could be a new blueprint for future technologies and onboarding to web3.

Learn more here.

China welcomes bitcoin

The Shanghai People’s court on September 25 released a report claiming that bitcoin is non-replicable, scarce, and has inherent value, thus meaning it is protected by law as a virtual property. Importantly, it states that bitcoin is unique from other digital currencies, which is a distinction that courts around the world are grappling with. China still has a blanket ban on cryptocurrencies, but these kinds of rulings might protect the citizens somehow if it comes down to it.

Learn more here.

Buenos Aires launches digital identity

Using the QuarkID protocol on zkSync Era, the country will allow its 15 million Argentinian citizens to claim birth and marriage certificates on the blockchain in October. In November, proof of income and academic achievements will also be available. It’s not quite clear how privacy and security will be maintained, but we’re sure that is definitely the focus for the public and the blockchain techs… the government is still questionable.

Learn more here.

Thanks for reading and I hope you learned something!

- Theodore