Celo L2 Goes Live
Celo successfully migrated from an EVM-compatible Layer 1 to an OP Stack Layer 2.
Celo migrates to an L2.
Custodia Bank issues a USD stablecoin.
World Liberty Financial announces USD1.
Shape L2 pledges 1% to Protocol Guild.
Abracadabra suffers $13m exploit.
Celo L2 is now live on mainnet! The network has successfully migrated from an EVM-compatible Layer 1 to an OP Stack Layer 2 at block 31,056,500. The upgrade reduces block times from 5 seconds to just 1 second, enabling faster transactions while preserving all historical transactions from its Layer 1 network. With the transition, Celo brings its DeFi infrastructure, stablecoins, and over $70 million in TVL to the Superchain. Entering a new growth era, Celo aims to build an inclusive and efficient onchain economy, further scaling Ethereum for real-world use cases. Celo was originally launched on Earth Day 2020 as a Proof-of-Stake Layer 1.
Custodia Bank, in collaboration with Vantage Bank, has issued the Avit stablecoin on Ethereum, making it the first U.S. bank-issued, dollar-pegged stablecoin. Custodia successfully issued, transfered, and redeemed Avit stablecoins on Ethereum mainnet for a bank customer. Avit is issued as an ERC-20 token on Ethereum. Custodia Bank manages issuance, custody, and monitoring, while Vantage Bank manages fiat reserves and payments. The initiative underscores the growing interest of traditional financial institutions in leveraging permissionless blockchains for tokenization while maintaining regulatory compliance.
World Liberty Financial, a DeFi platform on Ethereum backed by Donald Trump, announced plans to launch USD1, a stablecoin pegged 1:1 to the US dollar that will be backed by short-term US treasuries, cash deposits, and equivalents. USD1 will initially be available on Ethereum mainnet and Binance Smart Chain (BSC). BitGo will serve as the custodian for USD1. World Liberty Financial says USD1 avoids complex yield-generating mechanisms, prioritizing transparency and security for institutional adoption.
Shape L2 is now the latest project to make the Protocol Guild pledge, allocating 1% of its total token supply to the guild. Shape is also hosting the "Infinite Garden" NFT mint, with 50% of the proceeds allocated to the Protocol Guild. The Protocol Guild is a collective of 191 members that contribute to Ethereum protocol development. The registry of members is fully onchain and donations are paid out based on contributions and time contributing. The pledge aims to address the opportunity cost of working on Ethereum L1 by providing core devs the potential upside of a token allocation from early Ethereum projects.
Abracadabra, a DeFi lending protocol behind the MIM stablecoin, suffered an exploit, resulting in a loss of approximately $13 million worth of ETH. The protocol allows users to deposit interest-bearing tokens, like magicGLP, as collateral to borrow MIM. The attack targeted Abracadabra’s “gmCauldrons,” an isolated lending market that enables users to borrow MIM. GMX confirmed that its GMX contracts were unaffected, as the vulnerability was confined to Abracadabra’s integration with GMX pools.
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Fusaka Scope Freeze Timeline
Fusaka Meta EIP-7607 currently features PeerDAS EIP-7594 and EOF Meta EIP-7692 scheduled for inclusion.
Fusaka scope freeze timeline.
Optimism schedules Upgrade 13.
Circle expands USDC in Japan.
Paradigm releases a report on DeFi.
Ethereum core developer Tim Beiko shared an updated Fusaka upgrade timeline, targeting a scope freeze by April 10, 2025. Fusaka is the next upgrade after Pectra. Client teams are currently advised to provide feedback on which EIPs to include or remove. The Fusaka Meta EIP-7607 currently lists PeerDAS EIP-7594 and EOF Meta EIP-7692 scheduled for inclusion. EOF, a collection of approximately 11 EIPs designed to enhance code validation, has sparked debate, with some client teams advocating for its removal due to concerns over complexity. A Meta EIP acts as a central proposal, coordinating changes across both the execution and consensus layers for synchronized upgrades.
Optimism scheduled Upgrade 13 for OP Mainnet on April 1, 2025. The upgrade improves the Superchain’s fault proofs incident response, contract upgrade processes, and security mechanisms. The upgrade introduces a new system for upgrading L1 contracts across the Superchain, making contract upgrades more scalable and reliable. Improvements to the Fault Proofs Incident Response mechanism will enhance withdrawals and dispute handling. The upgrade also introduces the DeputyPauseModule, a Safe Module designed to enable quick, coordinated security responses via the Superchain-wide pause mechanism. Users are advised to complete any pending withdrawals to L1 before April 1 to avoid needing to submit a second proof. Alongside OP Mainnet, Ink Mainnet and Soneium Mainnet will also undergo the upgrade on April 1, 2025. OP Labs is also hosting a $250,000 audit competition on the latest Superchain interop upgrades to the OP Stack.
Circle, in partnership with Japanese fintech firm SBI Group, will launch USDC in Japan on March 26, 2025, through SBI’s cryptocurrency exchange, SBI VC Trade. Local exchanges, including Binance Japan, bitbank, and bitFlyer, also plan to list USDC. The launch is part of Circle’s expansion into Japan through Circle Japan. Circle and SBI Group aim to integrate USDC into Japan's digital finance landscape. The expansion will boost USDC’s market liquidity and foster institutional adoption. USDC is the second-largest stablecoin by market cap, with a total supply of $59 billion.
Crypto investment firm Paradigm published a report outlining the growth of DeFi in traditional finance. Based on a survey of 300 traditional finance professionals, the report highlights a growing trend toward blockchain adoption for tokenization aimed at improving efficiency, reducing costs, and enhancing financial services. The report reveals that over two-thirds of traditional finance firms are actively exploring DeFi, with a strong preference for public, permissionless blockchains over private, permissioned ones. Firms see DeFi as a future cornerstone of their core businesses, but a lack of clear regulations remains the biggest barrier to DeFi adoption.
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See disclosures
OFAC Removes Tornado Cash Sanctions
Tornado Cash smart contract addresses have been deleted from OFAC's Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list.
OFAC deletes Tornado Cash from the SDN list.
Rainbow wallet releases a token launcher.
MegaETH releases its public testnet.
Aragon introduces modular governance tools.
The U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has officially removed Tornado Cash smart contract addresses from its Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list, lifting sanctions on the privacy tool. OFAC has also taken Tornado Cash developer Roman Semenov and the protocol’s TORN token off the SDN list. The action follows a recent ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, which overturned the Treasury’s sanctions on Tornado Cash smart contracts. OFAC initially sanctioned Tornado Cash on August 8, 2022, citing its use by North Korea’s Lazarus Group to launder stolen funds from the Ronin Hack. Despite the victory, prosecutors have not dismissed their case against Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm.
Rainbow, a browser and mobile-based Ethereum wallet, introduced a token launcher, allowing users to create and deploy their own tokens across 12 EVM-compatible chains supported by Rainbow. Users can upload a logo, choose a ticker, and name their token to launch instantly. The tool also includes an airdrop feature, enabling users to distribute tokens to their Farcaster followers. The Rainbow token launcher is built on Optimism’s SuperchainERC20 token standard, which ensures tokens remain portable across multiple chains within the Superchain, eliminating the need for multiple bridged asset versions. Rainbow also unveiled its Phase 2 launch, following the introduction of Phase 1 in December 2023.
MegaETH, an EVM-compatible Layer 2, launched its public testnet for all users. The testnet features 20,000 TPS throughput, 1.7 gigagas/s performance, 1-second block times, and 10ms mini-blocks, which are lightweight, high-frequency blocks that enhance transaction processing while maintaining the same security. Unlike Base’s Flashblocks, MegaETH’s mini-blocks do not rely on TEEs. The network also introduces elastic block production, where blocks are only created when transactions exist, optimizing efficiency. As part of its testnet launch, MegaETH airdropped testnet ETH to over 190,000 wallets, allowing users to explore the network.
Aragon, a leading DAO infrastructure provider, launched its modular governance tooling platform, empowering organizations to create and distribute value. With the Aragon app, organizations can now deploy custom governance models tailored to their specific needs, balancing autonomy, accountability, and streamlined decision-making while minimizing bureaucracy. Built on the Aragon OSx framework, the platform features a no-code design, optimistic governance proposals, security councils, emergency upgrade mechanisms, and legal integrations. In a future release, Aragon plans to introduce universal token voting, crosschain governance, gasless transactions, and council elections.
Bitwise is seeking approval to enable staking in its Bitwise Ethereum (ETHW) ETF. On Thursday, the New York Stock Exchange Arca (NYSE) submitted filings to the SEC, requesting staking permission for the Spot Ethereum ETF. It marks the fourth ETF seeking ETH staking approval, following 21Shares, Grayscale, and Fidelity, which all filed similar requests in recent months. Bitwise Ethereum ETF currently holds nearly $200 million in AUM.
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