GM, frens! ☕️ 

The crypto winds have shifted, and we’re finally catching a bounce!

But hey, in this ever-changing landscape, ups are expected just like the downs. The key? Staying sharp through it all 🧠 

Today, we’re discussing:

• 🤡 The BIGGEST and most INCOMPETENT rug of the year in crypto: how it all went down

• 🛠️ What’s known about the next ETH upgrade?

• 🇭🇰 Hong Kong leads crypto growth in Asia

• 🤖 TG crypto bots: convenience or risky business?

Our Degen Portfolio is up 15% compared to last week, with JOE and $WALLET holding strong.

This market’s a rollercoaster, but that’s the thrill, isn’t it? We ride the waves, knowing every rise and fall brings a new opportunity 📊

Remember, you can win a chunk of it - so join the conversation about the portfolio in the #web3-on-fire chat on our Discord!

Let’s get down to business:

The BIGGEST and most INCOMPETENT rug of the year in crypto: how it all went down

The crypto world gets rocked by scams all the time, but this one takes the cake for sheer stupidity and scale 🙄 

What happens when you mix high-profile social media hacks with a splash of a crypto rug?

Well, you get the biggest and yet, surprisingly, the most embarrassing hack of the year 👇️ 

Grand Theft Twitter/X

So, on September 18th, 2024, a bunch of Twitter (will we ever get used to calling it X?) accounts got hijacked, including some big brands and names - among those Lenovo India, film director Oliver Stone, and even Brazilian soccer star Neymar Jr, to name a few.

The hackers used freshly stolen accounts to spam their audience with a painfully obvious crypto scam promoting a coin called $HACKED on Solana.

Using this tactic, the hackers were hoping to drive some FOMO and pump the price.

They were promising to "publish the token address so we pump it and make profits together" 🤷

• Despite the splashy hack, it didn’t quite take off.

• According to crypto sleuth ZachXBT, the token barely moved the needle. The market cap peaked at $67K, and the scammers made just about $8,000.

Not exactly the WAGMI moment they were looking for 🫠 

The rug gets pulled

Just as soon as $HACKED made it to the big leagues (okay, a few thousand bucks), the price dumped 96% in just an hour 🤯 

Some traders managed to make a couple grand at best, while the hackers? Well, they probably spent more on the attack than they earned.

ZachXBT summed it up perfectly, calling this a “strong contender for most incompetent hack of the year” and honestly, who could argue?

And indeed with just 278 token holders and ~$70k in MC during its peak it’s safe to say this hack will go down as one of the top major crypto blunders.

Is the сrypto сommunity getting smarter?

Now, here’s the silver lining: maybe, just maybe, we’re catching on? 🤔 

This fiasco shows that even a widespread hack on a bunch of high-profile accounts can fail to convince people to throw their money into a shady token.

If this flop is any indication, the days of easily duping the crypto community could be fading - fingers crossed! 🤞 

What’s known about the next ETH upgrade?

In crypto, staying ahead of the curve is key, and Ethereum is no exception.

The next big step for Ethereum is the Pectra upgrade, and there’s a lot to unpack.

Let’s break it down 🤓 

A fork in the road: Pectra might be split in two

Ethereum’s Pectra upgrade was initially planned as one massive update, but the devs are rethinking that.

The upgrade is so feature-packed that they’re now considering splitting it into two phases. This would let them roll out changes more smoothly without overloading the network.

Why split it up? Simple - big upgrades bring big risks.

Rolling it out in two parts minimizes potential bugs or issues, giving them time to fix anything before moving on to the next phase.

Think of it as pacing themselves to avoid tripping over their own feet 🏃‍♂️ 

What changes are coming?

The first part of the upgrade is aimed at improving wallets. One of the main features, EIP-7702, is designed to make wallets faster and more efficient, streamlining the way users interact with Ethereum 👛 

The second part of Pectra will focus on deeper technical upgrades to the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM), which is the backbone of Ethereum’s smart contract system.

Upgrading the EVM means Ethereum will be better prepared for the growing demand, making the network more efficient 🤔 

• PeerDAS is a major part of the Pectra upgrade and is designed to scale Ethereum’s ability to handle larger data “blobs,” which could go up to 32MB.

• This would allow for much more efficient data handling, especially benefiting Layer-2 solutions like Optimism and Arbitrum, which rely on Ethereum to settle their transactions.

However, some experts are raising concerns that PeerDAS might come with a trade-off that hits home stakers hard. The issue is bandwidth. In order for PeerDAS to work, all that extra data has to be sent across the network in just 4 seconds.

That requires significant upload speeds - much higher than what most home stakers can provide.

It’s possible, that If PeerDAS is fully implemented as planned, it could make it difficult for smaller validators with less resources to continue participating in staking 👇️ 

This shift could lead to greater centralization, with only larger, more powerful players able to handle the demands of staking and securing the network.

Timeline: when can we expect It?

If the developers move forward with splitting Pectra, we’re looking at February 2025 for the first phase to roll out, with the second part coming later in the year.

By breaking it into smaller, more manageable pieces, the goal is to ensure a stable and smooth transition without any major disruptions. Let’s see how it goes 🫡 

Hong Kong leads crypto growth in Asia

Hong Kong is emerging as the frontrunner in the crypto race in Eastern Asia, showing a strong year-over-year growth of 86% in crypto transactions.

With flexible regulatory frameworks and a growing investor base, Hong Kong is carving out its place as a key hub for digital currency adoption 🧠 

Why Hong Kong is blowing up

There are a few reasons why Hong Kong’s crypto scene is booming. A major factor is its flexible regulatory vibe.

• Unlike mainland China, which has taken a hard stance on crypto, Hong Kong is keeping things open and investor-friendly 🤝 

• This approach has pulled in both retail and institutional investors who are looking to expand their portfolios without too many regulatory headaches 📈 

Another key factor is CEXes.

• These platforms dominate Hong Kong’s crypto landscape, accounting for about 64% of the total value flowing through the region.

• CEXes are trusted for ease of use, making them (sadly, but it is what it is) the go-to solutions for most traders.

• Thanks to this, Hong Kong has shot up the global crypto adoption rankings, now sitting pretty at 30th, according to Chainalysis.

From July 2023 to June 2024, Eastern Asia pulled in about 9% of all global crypto transactions, moving over $400 billion in value. While South Korea is still a major player with $130 billion in that period, Hong Kong’s growth is making waves in the region.

Challenges and the road ahead

Despite Hong Kong’s killer growth, it’s got some hurdles to clear.

Global financial hubs are heating up their crypto games, and regulatory pressure is coming from all directions. To keep its spot at the top, Hong Kong will need to stay flexible with its rules while keeping things investor-friendly 👨‍💼 

On top of that, Hong Kong needs to keep attracting the big players by offering both stability and scalability.

If they can keep the regulations chill but clear, and make it a place where both retail and institutional investors feel at home, Hong Kong is in a prime position to hold onto its lead as a top crypto hub.

TG crypto bots: convenience or risky business?

• Telegram trading bots have taken the crypto world by storm, offering traders a fast and easy way to automate transactions and tap into lucrative opportunities.

• Constant security issues, including the recent Banana Gun hack, where users lost nearly $2 million in funds, raises an important question: is the convenience of these bots worth the risk? 🫢 

What are TG trading bots?

At their core, Telegram trading bots like Banana Gun and Maestro are tools designed to automate crypto trades directly within the Telegram app

• They allow users to place limit orders, snipe tokens at launch, and even scrape Telegram channels for trade signals - all without the need to interact with decentralized exchanges manually.

• Their appeal is that these bots are supposed to make crypto trading accessible, especially for users who aren’t professional traders​ 📈 

Convenience vs. Security: where’s the tradeoff?

Here’s where things get tricky 🙃 

While these bots make trading faster and more accessible, they also introduce significant security risks.

Telegram bots typically require users to connect their wallets, or create new wallets within the UI, giving the bot access / ownership of the private keys 🔑 

If the bot's code has vulnerabilities or if it’s hacked, as seen with Banana Gun 👇️ users can lose their funds​

In Banana Gun’s case, over 500 ETH was stolen, affecting at least 36 users. Although the breach wasn’t massive in terms of the number of victims, it highlights how much money can be siphoned away in a short period, especially when users are trusting bots with direct wallet access​ 🔐 

The appeal: why use them?

For many, the appeal of these bots comes down to speed and convenience.

They’re great for token sniping (getting in on token launches quickly) and making split-second trades 🎯 

However, that convenience often comes at a cost. Bots like Banana Gun and Maestro charge transaction fees (typically around 1-2%) and, more importantly, they put user security at risk​

Closing thoughts: are telegram bots the future?

While Telegram trading bots are likely here to stay and will continue to evolve, we should think about the risks 🔓️ 

As bots become more sophisticated, so do the hackers targeting them 🤔 

It’s all too easy to fall into the trap of prioritizing accessibility over protection, but in a space as volatile as crypto, we’ve seen that taking shortcuts can cost users big.

It’s a reminder to always ask: are you trading convenience for security? Just because something is easy to use doesn’t mean it’s safe - users need tools that balance both, and that’s something the crypto community should continue to push for 🫡 

In the end, the tools we choose to manage our assets should provide both an easy experience and the security we need to protect what’s ours.

Other worthy reads:

Evolution of prediction markets, by Castle Capital:

The sentiment behind ETH? Big post by ElonMoney:

Token2049 alpha, from Andy:

MEMES

That's all for now, frens.

We'll meet in a week! And remember, the market conditions are temporary, but our commitment to building a better DeFi is here to stay. Thanks for joining us, and we look forward to seeing you back next week. Cheers!

Yours, The 🔥 Team

Brought to you by Ambire: The Only Web3 Wallet That You’ll Need!