The Ethereum Network upgrade will have better gas management and greater prevention of DDoS attacks. The hard fork includes a foundation for future implementations as part of the transition to ETH. 2.0.

Ethereum’s Berlin hard fork has four improvements that seek to ensure more speed, more security, and cheaper transactions. The developers hope that it will happen on the blockchain after the transition to Ethereum 2.0 is complete.

The Berlin update will be online at the height of block 12,244,000 of the Ethereum Mainnet. The specific time may be advanced or delayed depending on fluctuations in block time.

Changes that Berlin Will Introduce on the Ethereum Network

Berlin should optimize the performance of the Ethereum Mainnet and contracts, as well as the management of transaction fees. Also, it should change the way the Ethereum virtual machine (EVM) reads the code and prevents distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks.

The Ethereum EIP-2565 upgrade proposal seeks to lower the cost of ModExp (modular exponentiation) pre-compiled contracts. That protocol calculates the cost of modular precompilation allowing more cost-effective verification of RSA signatures. Those verifiable delay functions (VDF) or SNARK are useful to improve the performance of the blockchain.

Through the EIP-2565 algorithm, it will be possible to reduce the cost of fees for ModExp pre-compiled contracts. The latter were so expensive (between USD 30 and USD 40) that they had become inefficient. The reduction of the cost of precompilation makes advanced arithmetic operations more practical. This can improve the network’s security, according to developer Kelly Olson.

Another proposal that Berlin will activate is the EIP-2929 protocol, which is responsible for increasing gas consumption. This allows the activation of the codes of storage access operations such as Sload, Call, Balance, Ext, and Selfdestruct.

More Security and Foundations for the Future of Ethereum

Regarding the need to implement EIP 2929, Vitalik Buterin, the co-creator of Ethereum, referred to the Shanghai attacks. That series of events occurred in 2016, when a DDoS attack generated a lot of spam transactions on the network. A host of malicious transactions led to the proliferation of “uncle blocks” that confused miners.

To end the Shanghai attacks, it was necessary to delete more than 20 million empty transactions that malicious actors had submitted. However, storage accesses were still a problem as more space was necessary.

“To reduce this problem, we must eliminate the possibility of creating blocks that take a long time. EIP-2929 will reduce the time to process a block to between 7 and 27 seconds, instead of between 20 and 80 seconds. Likewise, there is less possibility of an attack given that the storage call code is more expensive,” Vitalik Buterin explained.

In addition to that, Berlin will introduce a network improvement proposal that will alleviate the increase in gas consumption that EIP-2929 generates. The EIP-2930 protocol allows specifying an access list to send a scheduled transaction. This includes a list of addresses and storage keys that the user plans to access. With this, it is possible to use the lowest rate that EIP-2929 enables.

The new types of transactions on the Ethereum network have made it necessary to follow certain complex rules. However, the implementation of this new proposal makes it possible to effectively prevent the introduction of more complexity with the different types of transactions.

By Alexander Salazar

The price of XRP cryptocurrency reached 31% on the last day. The case is still pending, but Ripple had a successful performance during the previous two hearings.

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) found new difficulties in its lawsuit against Ripple Labs Inc., the cryptocurrency Ripple creator (XRP).

In a new episode of the case, Judge Sarah Netburn rejected the SEC’s request to make the founders of Ripple Labs Inc., Brad Garlinghouse and Chris Larsen, show their financial data for the last eight years.

This request is happening under the presumption that the executives violated section 5 of the Securities Act, legislation on which the SEC sets its functions, after not having correctly registered the public offering of an asset on time.

A court document shows how the SEC argues that the money resulting from the sale of XRP after its investment round would affect the bank deposits of Garlinghouse, Larsen, and their relatives.

Bank Deposits Must not Show their Origins

However, the Court dissolved this argument stating that a bank deposit should not show its origin. It is unclear whether it comes from an XRP, BTC, or any other cryptocurrency operation.

Even after reviewing executives’ transactions at an exchange such as Coinbase, it would not be easy to compare a bank deposit with a transaction in a cryptocurrency wallet.

The Court also stated that there is no need to disclose the defendants’ personal information when the SEC argues that they amassed a fortune of $ 500 million due to the sale of their positions in XRP. For the Court, this figure is too huge to ignore.

This setback for the SEC is the second it receives during April in this case. Ripple managed to get the Court to order the SEC to reveal internal documents about Bitcoin and Ethereum back on April 6 to know the treatment that this entity brings to these cryptocurrencies’ unilateral criterion.

 XRP Reached a Price Never Seen Before

At the moment these resolutions in favor of Ripple came out, XRP exceeded the psychological barrier of 1 USD during the past week, a value that it had not reached for three years. According to analysts, if the case continues to shape in Ripple’sRipple’s favor, the cryptocurrency XRP could reach all-time highs in a short time.

The coin is currently trading at $ 1.81, according to CoinMarketCap, after approaching more than 100% in value over the past week. In previous months and due to the demand, XRP had lost 4th place in market capitalization. Polkadot and Cardano (ADA) led the path but has now regained fourth place, being only behind Binance Coin (BNB), Ethereum (ETH), and Bitcoin (BTC).

Also, there has been no news about a class-action lawsuit filed by minority investors against Ripple, which came to admission by a federal judge in mid-March. Due to the legal problem, Ripple, Brad Garlinghouse, stated that this entity could keep carrying out its operations without this cryptocurrency, offering services with roots on blockchain other companies and financial entities.

By: Jenson Nuñez

The price of fixed-date futures contracts does not have a funding rate, so it differs from that on regular spot exchanges. Bitcoin futures contracts at USD 73,500 in December will not necessarily reveal investors’ views.

In the last month, Bitcoin (BTC) has struggled to break above the USD 60,000 resistance. However, the Bitcoin futures markets have never been so bullish.

Although regular spot exchanges display a price close to USD 59,600, Bitcoin contracts expiring in June show one above USD 65,000.

Futures contracts usually trade at a premium, especially in bullish neutral markets, which happen with all assets. However, an annualized (base) premium of 50% for contracts expiring in three months is uncommon.

A futures contract allows buying the underlying crypto asset at a previously agreed price at a specific time in the future. However, the investor is forced to make the purchase, which is only possible on certain exchanges.

Differences between Bitcoin Contracts and Perpetual Contracts

These fixed-date futures contracts do not have a funding rate, unlike perpetual contracts or reverse swaps. For that reason, their price will differ from what regular spot exchanges display.

From a buyer’s perspective, fixed-date futures suppress feasible peaks in financing rates,  which can achieve up to 43% per month.

Besides, the seller takes advantage of a predictable premium, commonly used in longer-term arbitrage strategies. The simultaneous purchase of Bitcoin for cash and the sale of futures contracts produce a zero-risk sample with a predetermined profit.

For that reason, the seller of futures contracts demands higher profits (premium) each time the markets have a bullish trend.

Traders typically trade three-month futures at a 10% to 20% premium in contrast to regular spot exchanges. They do this to credit the blocking of funds rather than cashing them immediately.

The situation reappeared last February 2021, when Bitcoin rose by 135% after 60 days. That occurred before the 3-month futures premium exceeded the annualized level of 25% on February 8^th.

Traders’ Position on Fixed-Month Futures and Perpetual Contracts

Professional traders usually choose fixed-month futures, while retail traders dominate perpetual contracts, avoiding the hassle of expirations.

In addition to that, retail traders find it costly to pay 10% or more in premiums. However, perpetual contracts are more expensive when determining the finance rate.

Although the recent funding rate of 0.20% every 8 hours is extraordinary, it has become common in the BTC markets. This fee is equivalent to 19.7% per month, but it seldom lasts more than a couple of days.

A high financing rate makes arbitration boards take part in the matter, buying fixed-date contracts and selling perpetual futures. Therefore, excessive leverage by retail longs (buyers) typically increases the basis of futures, rather than the other way around.

Given that crypto derivatives markets are still largely unregulated, differences will continue to prevail. While a 50% base premium seems uncommon, retail traders have no other means of leveraging their positions. In turn, this creates temporary distortions, not necessarily worrying from a commercial perspective.

However, as financing rates are still excessive, leveraged longs will be forced to close their positions. Therefore, a Bitcoin futures contract at USD 73,500 in December will not necessarily reveal investors’ views, and such a premium could reduce.

By Alexander Salazar

The entity proposes the establishment of common standards for countries with similar economies. The Bank of Japan, the Federal Reserve, and the ECB would be eager to work together to issue the CBDCs.

Seven major financial institutions in the world share their intentions to establish rules and use platforms for issuing digital currencies that could lay the foundation for more effective cross-border payments.

 Kazushige Kamiyama, director-general of the Department of Payment and System (BoJ), shared these ideas in a recent statement.

When the Reuters news agency consulted back on April 9, Kamiyama explained that the central bank of digital currencies (CBDC) differs in different countries due to their economy.

Advanced nations have not the same features, they could have a robust banking system, but CBDCs would highly improve efficiency in their structures as it is for emerging economies. For this reason, he believes that “it is better to establish common rules between countries with similar economic structures.”

The executive refers, in this case, to the Group of Seven or the G7. “It is desirable that the BoJ discuss common rules with the other six major central banks that make up the G7.” In this sense, the BoJ is part of a group that intends to create effective regulations regarding operations with stable coins and supporting the issuance of CBDC.

The group also includes the Federal Reserve of the United States and a European Union’s political representation.

It is also essential to consider that these ideas from the BoJ have already been at the Bank for International Settlements’s (BIS) control due to its investigations. The same goal of streamlining cross-border payments has proposed developing mechanisms for interoperability between central bank digital currencies (CBDC), a payment system already under test, which it calls mCBDC.

The Most Popular Cryptocurrency will not take fiat Money Down in the Short Term

The Bank of Japan began the first phase of experimentation with CBDCs on April 5, after starting the necessary preparations in the first quarter of 2021. In this first phase, the entity that issued the Japanese currency researched and studied the basics and functionality of your CBDC. After those preparations got their completion, the first phase of testing started its development.

Hiromi Yamaoka, director of the Bank of Japan’s transactions and payments department, has also set a position about the clash of cash vs. bitcoin. The issuing entity ended up stating that bitcoin won’t replace fiat money in the short term.

Another Bank of Japan official, Haruhiko Kuroda, governor of the financial institution, declared before the Tokyo Parliament that cryptocurrencies do not represent a threat to the yen so far.

Bank of Japan’s Advice: The World Should be Prudent about Cryptocurrencies

Likewise, the highest Japanese financial institution has promoted caution against cryptocurrencies due to the alleged fraud and theft cases committed three years ago.

Bank of Japan Deputy Governor Masayoshi Amamiya indicated on digital currencies and cryptocurrencies before the launch of his CBDC that operators must comply with money laundering and risk management regulations.

By: Jenson Nuñez

The pioneering cryptocurrency achieved double-digit appreciation in the last six months. The market value of cryptocurrencies exceeded USD 2 trillion in the last week.

Although Bitcoin managed to stay above USD 60,000 Bitcoin (BTC), it closes the last seven days with a modest 1.14% appreciation. According to historical data, the second quarter has been excellent, on average, in terms of the appreciation of Bitcoin.

A new approach to the all-time high of USD 61,200 on March 13^th suggests the establishment of new ceilings. This is due to the interest that institutional investors have maintained in the first cryptocurrency.

Kraken Intelligence conducted a study on the evolution of the cryptocurrency market in March. It states that the double-digit growth that Bitcoin achieved during the last six months could remain in the current quarter.

As a support for the price curve of Bitcoin, the study presents two moving average curves: the 20-week exponential moving average (20W EMA) and the 21-week simple moving average (21W SMA).

In addition to that, the Director of Business Development for Kraken, Dan Held, said that the price of Bitcoin will not grow forever. However, he believes that it will settle between 100 and 200 times its current capitalization.

Metrics that Support the Bullish Cycle

A Coin Metrics report on Bitcoin on-chain indicators includes the relationship of Market Value by Realized Value (MVRV) and the Spent Output Profit Ratio (SOPR) indicator, among others. The analytical firm considers that the behavior of these parameters would show that Bitcoin’s bullish cycle has not yet concluded.

The aforementioned study concludes that the supply of Bitcoin in the hands of short-term holders exceeded 50% in previous bullish cycles. Currently, the supply of Bitcoin acquired in the last six months has grown to reach 36%.

Altcoins Continue to Gain Momentum Against Bitcoin

Although Bitcoin’s bullish momentum has led it to triple the 2017 all-time high, 44 of the top 50 altcoins by market capitalization outperformed it in the first quarter. The pioneering cryptocurrency lagged behind altcoins on February 11^th, when people talked about the occurrence of a month of altcoins. Then, on March 31^st, the parameters that favored an altcoin season remained.

In this context, the price of XRP recently reached USD 1 for the first time since 2018. The notable rally could have been a consequence of an improvement in the legal perspective on the SEC’s lawsuit against Ripple. Besides, Grayscale, which has suffered a steady decline in share premiums in its Bitcoin fund GBTC, wants to transform it into an ETF.

Expectations on Bitcoin ETFs Grow in the United States

The oldest bank of the United States, BNY Mellon, announced a new initiative that increases pressure on regulators to approve a Bitcoin ETF. They said they work for a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund proposed by former White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci.

Other firms that have proposed Bitcoin ETFs to the SEC include VanEck, which did so in January. NYDIG and Morgan Stanley, and Goldman Sachs, and Fidelity, among others, have also filed applications with the SEC.

By Alexander Salazar