GM, frens! ☕️ 

The market’s been kind this week, breaking through barriers and leaving a trail of green in its wake.

It’s the kind of momentum that reminds us why we’re all here - crypto’s energy is unstoppable when it finds its rhythm 🌟

Today we’re discussing:

• 🤯 Degens are SPIRALLING out of control

• 🔥 Unlocking the next level with Ambire

• 💣️ The quiet boom of Ethereum L2s

• 🐢 Slow but steady: Celsius investors receive 60% of their claims

• 🌪️ Tornado Cash sanctions declared ILLEGAL by US Court

W3oF Portfolio Update: We’ve made a smooth $100 since last week—slow and steady seems like the name of the game right now.

And hey, if you’ve got thoughts or strategies to share, join us in the #Web3-On-Fire chat on Ambire Discord. Let’s keep the conversation going and aim higher together!

Let’s get down to business:

Degens are SPIRALING out of control

The chaotic descent of meme coin culture

Meme coins have always had a reputation for being the wild, chaotic underbelly of crypto. But these days, what used to be harmless degenerate behavior has gone completely off the rails 🤯 

Platforms like Pump.fun, initially built to be a fun space for launching tokens, are now ground zero for some of the most absurd and dangerous stunts, culminating in some of the most bizarre weeks the crypto space has ever witnessed.

The death of "fun" 💀 

Over the past few weeks, Pump.fun has found itself in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. Again. A series of livestreams hosted on the platform showcased increasingly desperate creators pulling stunts that many would consider unimaginable in any other context.

• One infamous incident involved a creator pretending to hang themselves live, threatening harm unless their token’s market cap was pumped by viewers.

• Another ““creator”” upped the ante by threatening to harm their pet if their coin didn’t hit an $11 million valuation. It has also been the stage for staged kidnappings, fake amputations, insane amount of sexual and disturbingly exploitative content 🫠 

• The issue isn’t just about one or two rogue actors - Pump.fun was deliberately breeding a culture that rewards spectacle over substance, with degeneracy as its primary currency.

• This trend isn’t a one off occurrence, it’s become a core strategy for gaining traction in a community addicted to hype.

• Creators are no longer just pitching coins - they’re performing live theater to an audience that rewards the extreme.

The platform has seen its user base balloon despite (or perhaps because of) its reputation for enabling this behavior. The platform’s decision to disable its livestream feature came only after public outcry from incidents like the fake hanging, yet critics argue this is a band-aid solution at best 🙅 

Binance founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao recently commented on the state of meme coins, describing the space as “getting weird” and urging the community to focus on meaningful blockchain applications.

This isn’t a saga that began with one creator’s antics or Pump.fun’s livestreams - it’s a broader reflection of meme coin culture, where the lines between humor, hype, and harm are increasingly blurred.

The meme coin space thrives on its edge, but that edge has become a slippery slope into full-blown degeneracy 🤔 

What’s troubling isn’t just the stunts themselves but what they say about the community. For every creator willing to exploit shock value for gains, there’s an audience willing to reward them.

This feedback loop of degeneracy has normalized behaviors that, in any other industry, would be grounds for immediate shutdowns ❌ 

Unlocking the next level with Ambire

…whispers are floating around Ambire 🤫 

Word on the street is, a gamified extension campaign is on the horizon, and it’s exclusive to extension users who may or may not already be getting ahead of the game 👀 

Want in? Download the extension here: https://www.ambire.com/get-extension, use the exclusive W3OF code: 11web3onfire and get your new smart account.

Your move. Time to get equipped before the campaign rolls out.

The quiet boom of Ethereum L2s

Ethereum's Layer-2 networks are having a moment. With total value locked crossing $51.5 billion, these scaling solutions became the unsung heroes of Ethereum's ecosystem.

The silent workhorses

• Imagine Ethereum as the packed main highway, with Layer-2 solutions acting as bypass lanes, offloading congestion and cutting down wait times ⌚️ 

• Networks like Arbitrum and Base are leading the charge, handling $18.3 billion and $11.4 billion in TVL respectively.

• Together, they’re carrying the bulk of Ethereum's off-chain traffic, ensuring users don’t get caught in the dreaded traffic jam of high gas fees 🚗 

But this isn’t just about moving transactions faster. It's about enabling Ethereum to scale without sacrificing security or decentralization. And yes, it’s making Ethereum cheaper to use, something we have been begging for since forever ⛽️ 

• Part of this growth comes from the Dencun upgrade back in March. This upgrade stabilized Ethereum and made Layer-2 solutions like Optimism and Zora even more efficient.

• Fees are down by 99% in some cases, and the volume speaks for itself - Base recently clocked over a billion transactions in record time.

While Layer 2s are soaking up the hype and handling an increasing share of Ethereum's traffic, they raise an interesting dynamic: how will this impact Ethereum's base layer?

With more transactions moving to L2s, the mainnet could see a dip in direct transaction fees. Though, the overall activity in the Ethereum ecosystem is skyrocketing, which could balance the equation by attracting more users and developers to the network 🛠️ 

Instead of being overshadowed, Ethereum’s mainnet might pivot into more of a settlement layer - a backbone for securing L2 activity. It’s not a question of competition but collaboration, as the Ethereum ecosystem evolves into a true multi-layered powerhouse 🫡 

Slow but steady: Celsius investors receive 60% of their claims

Bankrupt crypto lender Celsius is making headlines again, but this time, it’s not all doom and gloom.

• In a second payout to creditors, the company has distributed $127 million, pushing the total creditor recovery rate to a modest yet notable 60.4%.

• For many creditors, this marks a bittersweet moment - while far from complete restitution, it’s a tangible step forward after years of uncertainty 🙄 

According to a November 27 court filing, the latest payout disburses funds to cover 2.75% of creditors' total claims, adding to the initial $2.53 billion distribution completed in August.

Creditors receiving this round of payouts can expect funds in Bitcoin or USD, depending on their preference and eligibility.

• To streamline operations, Celsius has required all Bitcoin recipients to have a verified Coinbase account linked to their claims.

• Those without an active Coinbase account as of November 9, 2024, will automatically have their claims rerouted into USD 👛 

• This stipulation has drawn mixed reactions from creditors, with some expressing frustration over forced account setups, while others see it as a necessary step for smooth disbursement 🪙 

Recovery rates tied to Bitcoin prices

One significant variable in these payouts is Bitcoin’s market value. Currently hovering near $96k, fluctuations in price directly impact the real-world value of the payouts 💵 

A lower BTC price could mean less recovery for creditors, while a rally could slightly improve their returns. It’s a gamble that creditors didn’t sign up for but now find themselves navigating.

While the financial recovery slowly unfolds, legal troubles continue to circle Celsius's former CEO, Alex Mashinsky 👇️ 

The executive is scheduled to face trial starting January 28, 2025, for fraud allegations tied to Celsius's collapse. A federal court recently denied his request to dismiss these charges, keeping him firmly in the spotlight as creditors watch for further developments.

With additional disbursements potentially on the horizon, Celsius creditors are cautiously optimistic. In the volatile world of crypto, even partial recovery can really feel like a victory 🤷 

Tornado Cash sanctions declared ILLEGAL by US Court

A rare win for crypto privacy

The US Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals just handed the crypto community a big win, ruling that the sanctions slapped on Tornado Cash are illegal.

This decision isn’t just about a mixer - it’s a statement that decentralized code isn’t something you can just ban because it exists.

For anyone who’s ever cared about financial privacy, this is a major W 👇️ 

• Back in 2022, OFAC sanctioned Tornado Cash, saying it was basically a laundromat for dirty money, including funds linked to the infamous Lazarus Group.

• Their argument was that Tornado Cash’s smart contracts were being used for shady stuff 🤔 

But here’s the catch: Tornado Cash smart contract isn’t a company. It’s not even a person. It’s just code - autonomous and decentralized. It’s like blaming a hammer for a broken window - it doesn’t add up.

For the crypto space, this is a line in the sand: decentralization isn’t up for negotiation.

Crypto privacy isn’t a crime

Sure, Tornado Cash can be used for shady stuff, but so can cash or any other asset. The mixer is designed to let people transact without being tracked - something that’s become increasingly rare in today’s surveillance heavy world 📷️ 

For many in the space, this ruling reaffirms what we’ve always known: privacy isn’t a luxury, it’s a right.

Lawyers like ConsenSys’ Bill Hughes and Coinbase’s Paul Grewal are calling this a “huge moment” for crypto.

And they’re right - this ruling doesn’t just protect Tornado Cash, it sets a precedent for the whole decentralized movement. You can’t just outlaw innovation because some people misuse it.

Devs still under fire

Even though this is a win, Tornado Cash’s developers, like Alexey Pertsev, are still in hot water. Some of them are facing charges in Europe and the US for “facilitating crime” just because they wrote code. Let’s not sugarcoat it - this sucks 😧 

The ruling might protect the tech, but the people behind it are still stuck in legal limbo. For now, this decision doesn’t mean the fight is over, but it does give some hope.

Other worthy reads

AI narrative update from Daryl Lau:

Current metas, by Jiraiya:

On Andre Cronje (FTM / Sonic) talk:

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!