Daily Crypto #85

Bitcoin creator believes developers should care to users, CFTC chief promises landmark crypto enforcement, Ethereum Core devs to roll out Shanghai and Capella Forks, Russia makes moves into DeFi

Self-styled Bitcoin creator believes developers have a duty of care to users

Source: Craig Wright, pictured in April 2019

Dr. Craig Wright, who styles himself as the inventor of Bitcoin, is taking 16 of its developers to trial. The case could have wide-reaching implications.

The Australian computer scientist and his holding company, Tulip Trading Ltd., claim that Bitcoin developers owe “fiduciary duties” and “duties of care” over their control of the Bitcoin network.

Due to a hack, Tulip Trading cannot access crypto held at two addresses. Tulip sued to force developers to write a fix to reunite the company with its assets. It is asking for the recovery of over £3 billion worth of Bitcoin.

The court said in a unanimous decision that it had not decided whether developers owe a duty to users. But the case “raises a serious issue to be tried.” The UK Court of Appeals ruled that Dr. Wright’s case should be heard in a full trial, which is likely to go ahead early next year.

CFTC chief promises landmark crypto enforcement in 2023

Source: Commodity futures trading commission chairman Rostin Behnam (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Commodities and Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chair Rostin Behnam promised to bring down the enforcement hammer on non-compliant crypto projects in 2023.

Speaking at the American Bar Association, Behnam lauded his agency’s 69 digital enforcement actions to date as proof of its determination to bring down bad actors this year.

CFTC chair advocates enforcement and regulation

Concerning crypto, the CFTC currently has jurisdiction over derivatives markets in the U.S., including Bitcoin futures.

Its sister agency, the Securities and Exchange Commission, has repeatedly rejected applications for a spot Bitcoin Exchange-Traded Fund, maintaining that the underlying market is open to manipulation.

The chair emphasized the need for “comprehensive” regulation. Regulation is needed, Behnam argues, to insulate customers and prevent failures whose impact could transcend national borders.

Ethereum Core devs to roll out Shanghai and Capella Forks at Epoch 1350

Source: gfinityesports.com

Ethereum’s core development team announced that the Shanghai and Capella forks would be launched on the Zheijang testnet on Feb. 7, 2023.

According to lead developer Time Beiko, the new forks, collectively called Shapella, will launch on Tuesday at epoch 1350, with Sepolia and Goerli testnets soon to follow.

Lead Ethereum developer expects Sepolia testnet to launch next week

The Shanghai fork will upgrade the Ethereum execution layer, while the Capella fork will upgrade the network’s Beacon Chain consensus layer.

After the meeting, Beiko encouraged validators testing Shapella to acquire 33 ETH from Zheijang’s faucet before the fork goes live. Developers launched the Zheijang public testnet on Feb 1, 2023, with three faucets, an explorer for the Beacon chain consensus layer, and a transaction explorer.

Testnets allow developers to discover transaction problems without risking real funds before a blockchain’s mainnet upgrade.

Russia makes moves into DeFi with new platform launch

Source: customercarecontacts.com

Sberbank, Russia’s largest lender, is reportedly developing a decentralized finance platform with an anticipated launch in May this year.

The announcement was made by Konstantin Klimenko, Product Director of Sberbank’s blockchain laboratory, Russian media outlet Interfax reported. Following ongoing beta testing, the open testing stage of the system will begin in March, Klimenko said.

MetaMask integration

Klimenko said that the blockchain platform would be compatible with Ethereum. According to him, the system would be particularly conducive to users of crypto wallet MetaMask. Klimenko added that users will also be able to transfer their crypto assets from other platforms. Sberbank had announced plans to integrate its DeFi blockchain platform with Ethereum in Nov.

Calendar

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Blockchain launch and upgrades (estimated)

2023:

• Cosmos Hub (ATOM) lambda (Q1), Epsilon (Q2), and Gamma (Q3) upgrades

Q1 2023:

• Ethereum (ETH) Shanghai upgrade

Feb 2023:

• Filecoin (FIL) FVM (Filecoin Virtual Machine) launch

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Crypto related conferences

24 Feb - 5 Mar 2023:

• ETHDenver, Denver, U.S.

26-28 Apr 2023:

• Consensus 2023 (by Coindesk), Austin, Texas, U.S.

17-20 Jul 2023:

• Eth CC 6, Paris, France

11-13 Sep 2023:

• Permissionless 2023 (by Blockworks), Austin, Texas, U.S.

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U.S Fed target interest rate decisions:

• Current 4.25% - 4.50%

• 1 Feb 2023 4.50% - 5.00%

• 22 Mar 2023 4.50% - 5.25%

• 3 May 2023 4.50% - 5.50%