• Phala launches its OP Succinct L2.

• Derive unveils an AI-powered terminal.

• Revolut becomes a Pyth data publisher.

• Aave celebrates five years.

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Phala Network launched its OP Succinct L2 network on Ethereum using Conduit’s Rollup-as-a-Service platform. Coined Phala 2.0, the network combines optimistic and ZK rollup properties, with Ethereum serving as its settlement and data availability layer. OP Succinct enables sub-cent transaction fees, fast finality, and reduced proving times. It also minimizes the seven-day withdrawal delay to just minutes. Phala Network provides cryptographic computing and Trusted Execution Environment (TEE) services tailored for smart contract developers. By handling all hardware-related complexities, Phala allows developers to focus on deploying AI-ready infrastructure and AI agents.

Derive, formerly known as Lyra Finance, unveiled Derive Pro, an AI-powered trading terminal designed to enhance the crypto trading experience. Developed in collaboration with Messari, the platform integrates an AI copilot to simplify trading for users. Derive Pro leverages Messari's inference API to provide real-time news updates. The terminal features custom AI models capable of translating market views into executable trades, offering tailored strategies for spot, perpetuals, and options trading. It also supports single-click, gasless transactions through smart accounts, and added support for L2 networks. Derive Pro is set to launch in Q1 2025.

Revolut, a global digital banking provider, partnered with Pyth Network as a data publisher. Leveraging Pyth's oracle technology, Revolut will share its proprietary price data, expanding its presence into the decentralized finance ecosystem. Pyth Network, which powers DeFi applications with reliable off-chain price feeds, receives data from participants like exchanges and market makers.

The Aave lending protocol celebrated its fifth anniversary today. First launched on January 8, 2020, Aave played a pivotal role in kickstarting DeFi Summer and has since become the largest DeFi protocol with over $34 billion in TVL across 11 networks, 13 markets, and a user base of 2.3 million. Aave is working toward Aave V4, expected to go live later this year.

• ACDC #148 agenda

• Vitalik on eth core dev prioritization

• Consensus to focus on EOF/PeerDAS

• Arbitrum Nitro v3.3.2 release

• Unichain testnet activates fault proofs

• TLX to SNX migration is live

• $655m liquidated 24 hours

• XMPT network-level consent

• Uniswap FND impact report

• Moby private key incident

• iden3's Poseidon hash fn is broken

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• Judge pauses SEC vs Coinbase lawsuit.

• LaChain joins the Elastic Chain Network.

• Coinbase Wallet bank-to-USDC transfers.

• DEX volume hits 20% marketshare over CEXs.

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U.S. District Court Judge Katherine Polk Failla granted Coinbase's request for certification of an interlocutory appeal in its lawsuit with the SEC. The decision allows Coinbase to appeal a critical legal ruling while temporarily pausing further proceedings in the case. Judge Failla acknowledged the conflicting rulings regarding the SEC's application of securities laws to crypto-assets. The Second Circuit Court of Appeals will now review whether the crypto-assets at the center of the case meet the definition of "investment contracts" under securities law. The SEC filed the lawsuit in June 2023, alleging that Coinbase operated as an unregistered securities exchange, broker, and clearing agency.

LaChain, a blockchain designed to meet the needs of Latin American users, has joined ZKsync’s Elastic Chain Network. The upgrade to ZK Stack was driven by the network’s speed, low transaction costs, and developer tools. LaChain is developed by Ripio, a crypto payments platform in LATAM with over 19 million users. By joining the Elastic Chain Network, LaChain becomes part of a growing ecosystem alongside 12 other chains, including Zero Network, Lens Network, and Abstract. The integration enables LaChain projects to seamlessly connect and interact with other blockchains within the Elastic Network, fostering interoperability.

Coinbase Wallet, Coinbase's non-custodial wallet, introduced support for receiving bank deposits directly into USDC on Base. In November 2024, Coinbase Wallet rolled out support for USDC rewards for USDC held on its non-custodial wallet across Base, Ethereum, Arbitrum, Avalanche, Polygon, and Optimism. Coinbase Wallet also offers zero-fee USDC transfers on Base. USDC is the second-largest stablecoin by market cap and the largest natively minted asset on Base.

For the first time, the total spot trading volume on decentralized exchanges has reached an all-time high in market share of 20% of spot trading volume compared to centralized exchanges. Uniswap leads the DEX market, capturing 12.2% of the total trading volume in the last 24hrs.

• Ethereum.org dapps page

• Balancer v3 Priority Fee Router 

• Starknet Developer Hub

• Illuvium partners with Virtuals

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• ZKsync Ignite liquidity incentives go live.

• Superstate launches USCC on Morpho.

• Optimism releases its 2024 recap.

• EigenLayer x Eliza AI Agent Hacker House.

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ZKsync Ignite, a 9-month initiative designed to boost DeFi liquidity and grow total value locked (TVL) on ZKsync Era, is now live. Season 1, running from January 6, 2025, to March 31, 2025, offers up to 100 million ZK tokens in incentives across 15 participating protocols, spanning categories like DEXs, lending, and perpetual. About 7 million ZK tokens will be distributed over the next two weeks. A DeFi Steering Committee (DSC) manages the program, adjusting token allocations biweekly to adapt to market demand and encourage participation in new liquidity pools. Users can monitor and claim their rewards through a dedicated rewards hub managed by Merkl.

Superstate, a tokenized fund specializing in Real World Assets (RWA), launched its USCC crypto carry fund on the Morpho lending protocol. The integration is supported through the Steakhouse USDC RWA Vault, enabling users to borrow USDC against RWA collateral, such as USCC. The USCC fund is a tokenized crypto cash-and-carry fund designed to capitalize on price disparities between spot and futures markets for Bitcoin and Ether while enhancing yield through staking spot Ethereum holdings. Currently, USCC holds over $87 million in AUM, while USTB, Superstate’s first treasury product, holds over $192 million in AUM.

Optimism released its 2024 year in review, celebrating major milestones, including the Superchain’s expansion to over 30 OP Chains, with new additions from Kraken, Sony, and Uniswap. DeFi TVL within the ecosystem grew from $1.4 billion to $4.8 billion over the year. The Optimism Collective distributed over 20 million OP tokens through user airdrops, allocated another 20 million OP to ecosystem projects via retro funding, and awarded 23 million OP to builders through the Grants Council. In 2024, the OP Stack activated permissionless fault proofs, paving the way for multiple OP Stack chains to achieve Stage 1 decentralization in 2025. Looking forward, Optimism Governance will focus on enhancing Superchain interoperability to unite the ecosystem and Ethereum.

EigenLayer, in partnership with Eliza Labs, has announced the AI Agent Hacker House, a 10-day AI hackathon taking place during ETH Denver 2025. The event offers participants opportunities for learning, mentorship, and a chance to win a share of a prize pool. Applications are now open for projects looking to participate.

• Mist II: Revenge of the Nerds 

• Future of Ethereum: Beam Chain

• Pectra: The blob increase 

• TX inclusion stats under FOCIL

• Paul Grewal: The FDIC lied

• Relay Protocol API tools

• d/acc: one year later

• Sophisticated Execution Proposers

• Swell Chain surpasses $330m TVL

• Sky achieves 1b USDS

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