GM, frens! ☕️ 

They say fortune favors the bold, but sometimes it favors the patient too.

The dumpgust is now over, and we’re preparing ourselves for Uptember and Uptober months now 🤑 

Well, you know, hopefully 🙏 

Today we’re talking about:

1. 🎈 Ethereum's troubles with BLOBS: why is the community upset?

2. 🌬 VAPE 2 earn: not the most ridiculous business model in crypto

3. 🗳 Ambire has an active governance vote on extension incentives: make sure to vote if you hold xWALLET!

4. ✉️ Telegram-integrated DEX announces airdrop date: worth the hype?

5. 🤔 Trump family's DeFi project: what is known about it?

Our Degen Portfolio looks like it may need a shake-up… 👇️ 

And, we’re not ones to just sit and watch. We’ve opened up the floor with a poll so you can help steer the ship, and here are the results:

As always, you can help by joining the discussion in #web3-on-fire chat on our Discord!

LFG:

Ethereum's troubles with BLOBS: why Is the community upset?

Ethereum, the poster child of decentralized tech, is now facing some blob trouble, and no, we’re not talking about any sci-fi monster here.

The Ethereum community is buzzing - and not in a good way - over BLOBS 🎈 

So, what are these blobs, and why is everyone in the Ethereum ecosystem so divided? Let’s break it down.

What the hell are Blobs?

• Blobs (not the slimey ones) are essentially a data type designed for Ethereum's rollups and Layer 2 solutions.

• They’re temporary storage units on the Ethereum blockchain that help facilitate the growing demand for scaling without blowing up gas fees ⛽️ 

• Blobs make it possible to pack a lot of data into a tiny space, making Layer 2 transactions faster and cheaper. Pretty cool, right? 🤔 

Here’s the catch, though: blobs are temporary - they disappear after a set time period (currently proposed at 30 days) 🫥 

The data they hold is not forever written into the Ethereum blockchain, but instead, offloaded after it serves its purpose in scaling.

Layer 2 scaling troubles: blob space is running out!?

Ethereum Layer 2 solutions like Optimism and Arbitrum have been riding high, and part of their success is owed to blob space, which helps them store and process data off-chain.

But there's a growing concern that Ethereum's Layer 2 networks could soon run out of blob space.

Apparently, it’s a ticking time bomb waiting to mess up transaction speeds and inflate gas fees, undoing all the progress made.

• In simple terms, if blob space runs out, Layer 2s too might start behaving more like a congested L1s - slower, more expensive, and very, very frustrating.

• So, while blobs were originally meant to ease congestion and improve scalability, they might now lead to the exact issues they were designed to prevent.

Inflation

But blobs aren’t just causing storage issues; they’ve sparked a much bigger debate about Ethereum’s economic model. According to some experts, Ethereum's inflation problem is becoming increasingly tied to blobs 🟡 

This is because blobs need to be constantly refreshed and that requires Ethereum to issue new coins, which in turn increases the total supply 🤔 

Some Ethereum maxis are worried that this constant issuance could erode Ethereum’s deflationary narrative - after all, Ethereum recently shifted to Proof of Stake with the promise that it would become more deflationary over time 🤷 

Why is the community divided?

The blob debate is getting heated because it touches on two fundamental tensions in the Ethereum community 👇️ 

1. 🗿 Scalability vs. Permanence: Some think blobs are a genius way to scale Ethereum, while others think they undermine the permanent, immutable nature of blockchain data.

   

2. 💡 Deflation vs. Inflation: Blobs might also challenge the ultrasound money narrative that Ethereum was pushing after the Merge. Constant issuance for blob maintenance could inflate the ETH supply, turning the deflationary dream into a pipe dream.

While some in the community believe that blobs are necessary for scaling and keeping Ethereum competitive, others feel the technology is a short-term fix with long-term costs 💰️ 

Blob or flop?

As Ethereum continues to evolve, we should all keep a close eye on how these blob-related issues unfold, particularly how they impact both Layer 2 scalability and Ethereum’s broader deflationary goals.

The pressure on Ethereum’s economic system is there, and it now looks like the way blobs play into that story will be key in the network's future.

VAPE 2 earn: not the most ridiculous business model in crypto

Smoking addiction is no joke - millions struggle to kick the habit every day. But leave it to crypto degens to see a whole new angle: leveraging addiction for profit 🤯 

Meet PuffPaw, a Vape2Earn crypto project that’s turning the process of cutting back on nicotine into a token earning opportunity 🪙 

So, what’s the deal here?

• They’re selling blockchain-enabled vapes that track your smoking habits, and in return, you earn tokens for cutting down on your nicotine use 🚬 

• The model is designed to incentivize people to reduce their nicotine intake gradually while earning some crypto on the side 💰️ 

• It’s a curious blend of health-conscious behavior and crypto tokenomics, and it seems like they want to leverage addiction replacement in a big way.

• Addiction replacement is a process where someone swaps one addictive behavior for another, often seen as a coping mechanism to avoid falling back into old habits.

• In this case, rather than the immediate satisfaction of nicotine, users would get their dopamine hit from accumulating tokens, possibly even checking their wallets more often than they would reach for a vape 🤔 

The concept mirrors what we’ve seen in other sectors of the crypto space, like move-to-earn projects, where people jog for tokens 👟 

The idea of turning behavior modification into a game is interesting, especially when it rewards users with something valuable. But it's hard not to think of the graveyard of x-to-earn projects that crashed and burned.

That’s the problem with these projects - without a solid plan to manage token flow, they basically become Ponzi schemes, needing a constant torrent of new players to keep the whole thing afloat ⛵️ 

When fresh meat stops coming in, the value of the tokens crashes, leaving everyone holding bags of worthless coins 📉 

Whether or not this leads to long-term success or simply fails remains to be seen, but it certainly showcases how marketing taps into the psychology of reward-driven behavior.

Ambire’s community is deciding the future of extension incentives: join in!

The Ambire community is voting on allocating $WALLET tokens for the extension launch 🎁

Be part of the decision whether to allocate 145M or 195M tokens for incentives or don't allocate any $WALLET tokens if you hold xWALLET:

Telegram-integrated DEX announces airdrop date: worth the hype?

Blum, a Telegram-integrated decentralized exchange, is trying to make some noise with their upcoming airdrop 🪂 

They’ve got over 50 million potential users in the pipeline, thanks to their seamless integration with the messaging giant, and now they’re aiming to grab even more attention by launching their token 🪙 

The lowdown

• Blum is hyped as the bridge between centralized and decentralized platforms, promising to simplify crypto trading.

• By embedding itself within Telegram, it’s making moves to attract both seasoned traders and newbies.

• With their upcoming airdrop scheduled for release before September 30th, they're betting big on an airdrop marketing method to spread the word.

The Binance connection

Now, while Blum is positioning itself as a decentralized exchange, some crypto purists might feel a bit skeptical.

• Despite the DEX label, Blum’s strong backing from Binance, Binance Labs and BNB Chain doesn’t quite align with the decentralized ethos 👇️ 

The airdrop

The strategy here is clear - airdrops are often a way to incentivize participation, generate buzz, and kickstart liquidity for a token, but the model has been hit or miss in the past.

Remember Notcoin? The recent launch had all the hype and anticipation you’d expect from a major airdrop, but things didn’t exactly go smoothly 🙃 

• The Notcoin airdrop distributed over 80 billion tokens to millions of users, but as soon as the tokens hit exchanges, the price tanked as holders rushed to sell, leaving long-term value in question.

• Blum could face the same challenges if its tokenomics and project fundamentals don’t support lasting interest 🧠 

• Airdrops can be great for sparking short-term hype, but as most of these projects proved, without a solid foundation and strategic vision, an airdrop can lead to immediate selling pressure and price crashes.

In addition to the airdrop, Blum is going to be listed on big-name exchanges like Binance, Bitget, and a few others.

They’re pushing for a smooth listing process, expecting liquidity to come in and increase demand for the token. But listing on major platforms doesn’t always guarantee success either 🤷‍♂️ 

We’ve seen plenty of projects land on big exchanges, ride the hype, and then watch their price tank once the buzz fades away.

tldr: Blum’s dual focus on decentralization and Binance support is certainly intriguing, but we’ll have to keep a close eye on how their token fares post-airdrop.

Trump family's DeFi project: what is known about it?

We’ve been keeping an eye on the Trump family and their DeFi ambitions, and now it's clear what they’ve been up to 🍊 

• Previously, we mentioned how the family was hinting at a move into decentralized finance, and it turns out they’re rolling out World Liberty Financial - a project centered on US-pegged stablecoins.

• The goal? To ensure the good ol' fiat dollar remains top dog on the global stage, even as crypto reshuffles the financial deck.

Trumps have enlisted security firms like Tokyo, Fuzzland, Peckshield, and BlockSecTeam to review the project’s code ⚙️ 

Alongside this, they’ve stated their intention to use Aave’s non-custodial lending platform to handle some of their decentralized financial activities.

Familiar territory?

• There are whispers that World Liberty Financial might be modeled after Dough Finance, a platform designed to make DeFi more accessible to beginners 🍩 

• While Dough Finance faced some challenges, the Trumps might be hoping that their high-profile backing and resources will help this project avoid the same pitfalls.

But, of course, it wouldn’t be a proper crypto project without some drama. In typical degen fashion, some overly eager Trump supporters got duped into a fake airdrop scam - more than 70,000 people fell for it, hoping for a free crypto payday.

A fake Telegram channel posing as WLF’s official group promised up to $15,000 worth of crypto for linking wallets. Not surprisingly, everyone who connected got their wallet dusted right away 💨 

While details on the project are still somewhat sparse for now, the hype around World Liberty Financial is only getting louder.

Other worthy reads

Some other headlines, curated by The Defi Investor:

Interesting points by Redphone:

Current metas in DeFi by Ken Deeter:

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

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