Good morning, frens!

Once again, we find ourselves at the end of a week, which means it's time for our weekly newsletter.

This week, we're discussing:

• ⛓️ What's EIP-7702? Details about Vitalik's new proposal

• 💸 FTX announced refunds for all affected holders

• 🖼️ Solana NFT sales beat Polygon

• 📜 US House of Represenatives overturns SEC guidance on crypto asset custody

LFG!

What's EIP-7702? Details about Vitalik's new proposal

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, along with collaborators Sam Wilson, Ansgar Dietrichs, and Matt Garnett, has proposed a new Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) numbered 7702 🛠️ 

This proposal targets to enhance the functionalities of Ethereum’s externally owned accounts (EOAs), which are limited in terms of capabilities and security features 👇️ 

EIPs

• Ethereum funnels account types into two categories: externally owned accounts, controlled by private keys, and contract accounts 📃 

• The limits of EOAs have been a cause for concern among the devs that require more complex transactions typically reserved for smart contracts 🧠 

• EIP-4337 and 3074 addressed these limitations with proposals for User Operations (UserOps), which act as smart contracts but are limited in their capabilities.

• Another proposal, EIP-5003, allowed EOAs to permanently transform into smart contract accounts.

And now there's EIP-7702

This proposal takes a different approach by allowing EOAs to temporarily integrate smart contract code during transactions, bridging the gap between traditional EOAs and more dynamic smart contract accounts.

I.e one transaction could potentially create a temporary smart contract at the backend, completing its tasks and terminating the contract after it's completed 🫰 

Apparently, the process is seamless and does not require new opcodes or hard forks. Instead, callable functions are used, integrating seamlessly with existing Ethereum infrastructure.

👉️ This could potentially affect how users interact with Ethereum dApps and manage digital assets.

The community has had a positive reaction, with one of the Polygon devs Jarrod Watts calling it one of the most impactful changes Ethereum will have.

But of course, we heard this before, and it didn’t always end well, so thorough testing, community consensus, and security considerations are necessary before adoption.

FTX announced refunds for all affected holders

FTX drama did not end with SBF being sentenced for an extreme term for his crime, instead it took an interesting and hopefully a fair turn for the customers.

FTX is now in plans to provide monetary compensation of losses that have been suffered by its customers and creditors.

So, are regular everyday holders going to get their money back?

The good news

• According to the recently filed Plan of Reorganization in a U.S. bankruptcy court, FTX estimates an amount between $14.5 billion to $16.3 billion to be distributed among its customers and other creditors worldwide 💰️ 

• This will include full payment for claims and supplementary interest payments at an average rate of 9%.

The (sort of) bad news

BTC was trading at $16,080 when FTX filed for bankruptcy in November 2022, so there’s a major 5X gain that the old holders will never see 😑 

But hey, something is better than nothing right?

But some got even less lucky than that.

According to various sources, the biggest beneficiaries of this repayment plan are not going to be regular customers but instead hedge funds and bankruptcy traders 🤔 

👉️ This amazing turn of events has been very beneficial for these traders since they have acquired claims at a fraction of its original value. So, people who sold their claims for peanuts lost more than 90% in the end.

The top beneficiaries appear to be Attestor, Baupost, and Farallon:

But eh, if the original holders at least get what their original investment back, it's still a win for crypto and a huge historic precedent. So, though the outcome may not be ideal for all parties involved, it is at least a step towards resolution and closure for the FTX tragedy.

Solana NFT sales beat Polygon

Solana has seen insane success during this cycle, especially in DeFi segment and with its popular memecoins. But interestingly enough, after last year's failure and exodus of biggest collections, Solana's NFT ecosystem is finally going through a revival.

The ecosystem’s previous failure had led to doubts over the network’s ability to support an NFT market. However, the recent success has long since put these doubts to rest.

• In fact, Solana seems to have surpassed Polygon when it comes to NFT sales and adoption 🪙 

• While Polygon was one of the first blockchains to offer low-cost transactions and scalability, Solana’s recent growth in its NFT ecosystem has outperformed Polygon's.

This could be a sign that Solana is maturing as a blockchain network and gaining more traction among developers, artists, and collectors 👨‍🎨 

Ethereum is still the top dog in NFT space

Despite the amazing recovery, Ethereum still remains the king of NFTs with a significantly higher sales volume and adoption rate. However, Solana's recent success shows that it is becoming a strong contender in the market that can’t be ignored.

SOL turned bullish

Solana’s native token’s price action also turned bullish. According to CMC, SOL’s price increased by more than 15% in the last seven days.

US House of Represenatives overturns SEC guidance on crypto asset custody

• The United States House of Representatives has passed a bill that overturns Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) guidance preventing banks from owning and custodying crypto assets 🔒️ 

• The bill, dubbed H.J. Res 109, was introduced by Republican Congressman Mike Flood and received support from both Democrats and Republicans in the House 🫡 

Joe Biden said he would veto the bill if it were to reach his desk, citing concerns about disrupting the SEC's efforts to “protect investors and the broader financial system” 🤡 

However, proponents of the bill argue that overturning SEC guidance will actually improve consumer protection by removing barriers for regulated banks to act as custodians of digital assets.

The controversial guidance, known as SAB 121, was introduced by the SEC in March 2022 and has been met with pushback from lawmakers and crypto advocates.

Pro-crypto groups argue that SAB 121 treats crypto assets unfairly and differently than traditional assets and jeopardizes the willingness of regulated banks to custody them 💵

The House Financial Services Committee (HSFC) stated in a press release that overturning SAB 121 would remove regulatory overreach and allow for greater participation from highly regulated financial institutions in the crypto market.

• The passing of this bill by the House of Representatives suggests a shift in sentiment towards crypto assets within US politics 🤔 

• With a growing number of lawmakers and regulators recognizing the potential of this emerging asset class, it may only be a matter of time before we see more supportive legislation for the crypto industry 📜 🪶 

(Maybe not from the current US President, though).

Talking about other potential Presidents, Donald Trump has recently popped up in crypto headlines again.

This time, ex president was recorded saying “Gensler is very much against it [crypto]” … “the Democrats are very much against it"

"And I'm fine with it," he said. "I want to make sure it's good and solid and everything else, but I'm good with it … if you're in favor of crypto, you'd better vote for Trump" 📢 

It's understandable, given that Trump has earned millions from his own NFTs, yet the crypto sector lacks significant support overall, and with no other good allies crypto supporters might actually turn to Trump. Even though his stance on the matter is not yet 100% clear, even despite the recent statements. 🤔 

Other worthy reads

Some of the stuff that happened on Tuesday by cprinze:

More info on the pumpfun fad:

VanEck is launching a meme index:

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 Web3 is here to stay. Thanks for joining us, and we look forward to seeing you back next week. Cheers!

Yours, The 🔥 Team

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