Quick Take
RetroPGF rounds for 2024.
Tornado Cash trail begins in the Netherlands.
Angle Protocol introduces USDA.
CFTC classifies ETH as a commodity.
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Optimism Announces 2024 RetroPGF Rounds
Optimism unveiled a new phase for Retroactive Public Goods Funding (RetroPGF), introducing category-specific rounds in 2024. A total of 850 million OP tokens, which represent 20% of the total supply, have been allocated to funding public goods. 40 million OP tokens have already been awarded during the second and third RetroPGF rounds, which supported Optimism Collective Intents. Projects across any OP Chain, including Base, Mode, and Zora, are now eligible for retro funding. RetroPGF 4, set to commence in May, will target Onchain Builders. RetroPGF 5, scheduled for August, will focus on contributions to the OP Stack. In the same month, RetroPGF 6 will reward improvements in governance. RetroPGF 7 will take place in October, marking the final round for 2024, which will focus on rewarding development tooling projects.
Tornado Cash Dev Begins Trial
Alexey Pertsev, a developer who helped write open-source code for Tornado Cash, has started a trial in the Netherlands. Pertsev is accused of facilitating money laundering through Tornado Cash, with Dutch officials alleging that he failed to prevent international hacking groups from laundering money on the platform. Pertsev was arrested on August 10th and was held in custody for nine months before being released on bail in April 2023. Crypto educator Eléonore Blanc, who has been closely monitoring the trial, reported that Pertsev spent the morning responding to questions from the judges regarding PepperSec’s liability, governance, and the Tornado Cash compliance tool. If convicted, the case sets a dangerous precedent for open-source developers.
Angle Protocol Introduces USDA
Angle Protocol introduced USDA, a stablecoin pegged to the U.S. dollar and backed by Real-World Assets (RWA) and DeFi assets. USDA holders who stake their tokens in Angle’s stUSD savings solution will earn a variable yield. According to Angle, users will be able to seamlessly convert between USDC and USDA. The new stablecoin shares the same framework as EURA, Angle's Euro-pegged stablecoin. USDA will be integrated into the Morpho Blue lending protocol, allowing users to lend and borrow the stablecoin. The yield will stem from the stablecoin's yield-bearing backing and the interest paid from USDA borrowers. USDA is not yet live but is expected to launch in April, subject to a governance vote.
CFTC Classifies ETH As A Commodity
In a legal action targeting KuCoin, the CFTC has reiterated its classification of ETH as a commodity, a perspective that diverges from the SEC's undefined stance on ETH. The CFTC's complaint alleges that KuCoin engaged in the facilitation of commodity futures transactions without the required registrations and did not enforce proper KYC procedures.
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BasePaint integrates Relay
Polygon ZK-EVM weekend outage
EIP-3074 explained
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