Weekly Project Updates: Ordinals Reach New Heights in Popularity, etc

1. Bitcoin Ordinals Achieves Historic Highs in Market Trading Volume and Independent Transaction Addresses link

According to @domodata data panel, on December 14th, the trading volume on the Bitcoin Ordinals market exceeded $46 million, with 18,300 independent trading addresses, both setting new historical highs. Currently, OKX holds over 80% of the on-chain market share in terms of trading volume, transaction count, and independent address count on Ordinals.

2. Arbitrum One Sequencer Temporarily Interrupted Due to Surge in Engraving Activities link

Due to the surge in network traffic caused by the Minting activity, the Arbitrum One sequencer experienced an interruption between 10:29–11:57 (Eastern Time) on the 15th. Currently, Arbitrum One Gas prices have stabilized, and network operations have returned to normal. According to Arbiscan data, on December 15th, the number of on-chain transactions on Arbitrum surged to 4.39 million, setting a new all-time high. Simultaneously, according to ultrasound money data, the Arbitrum L2 Sequencer Inbox contract burned the most ETH in the past 24 hours, totaling 795.7 ETH.

3. DEX Trading Volume on Solana Surpasses Ethereum on the 16th link

DefiLlama data shows that on December 16th, the DEX trading volume on Solana was approximately $1.475 billion. This figure is about four times the TVL (Total Value Locked) on Solana’s DEX and surpasses the trading volume of approximately $1.164 billion on Ethereum’s DEX on the same day.

4. Cronos Labs Announces the Launch of New L2 Network, Cronos zkEVM link

Cronos Labs, the development team behind the Cronos chain, has announced the launch of a new Layer 2 network called Cronos zkEVM. Initially introduced as a testnet, this test network is supported by the ZK Stack software suite, primarily developed by Matter Labs for zkSync. It marks the first public testnet utilizing the ZK Stack. The mainnet for Cronos zkEVM is expected to follow, with a target launch in the second quarter of 2024.

5. Worldcoin Introduces Protocol Upgrade World ID 2.0 link

Worldcoin has released a protocol upgrade called World ID 2.0, which introduces several enhancements, including the introduction of applications and the ability to return Orb when a World ID is lost for self-reset. Users can explore available applications on the new Worldcoin App Store, featuring new applications built for Reddit, Discord, Shopify, Minecraft, and Telegram.

6. Ethereum Staking Network SSV Launches Permissionless Mainnet link

The Ethereum staking network SSV has launched its permissionless mainnet. SSV utilizes Distributed Validator Technology (DVT) and claims to be the first permissionless DVT network, with the potential to enhance the security of the Ethereum network. Additionally, Lido has been in negotiations with the SSV Network to strengthen its decentralized operations, and it is expected that Lido will go live on the mainnet in the first quarter of next year.

7. Binance Announces Launch of the 40th Launchpool Project Fusionist (ACE) link

Binance has announced the launch of its 40th Launchpool project, Fusionist (ACE). Users can start staking BNB and FDUSD from December 13, 00:00 UTC, with the ACE spot trading set to go live on December 18, 6:00 UTC. Trading pairs ACE/BTC, ACE/USDT, ACE/BNB, ACE/FDUSD, and ACE/TRY will be available. Endurance is a decentralized gaming/social blockchain that hosts the Web3 game Fusionist, with ACE being the native token of Endurance. Fusionist was previously announced by OKX as a new IEO project, and its core team is from the Chinese gaming company Tencent.

8. Donald Trump Unveils His Third NFT Series ‘Mugshot NFT’ link

On December 13, Donald Trump launched his third NFT series, “Mugshot NFT,” with each NFT priced at $99, alluding to the legal troubles he faced after being arrested in August. Those who own all 47 Mugshot NFT cards will receive a reward of dining with Trump at Mar-a-Lago and will be gifted a suit worn by Trump in the photo taken during his arrest in August.

9. Ubisoft Set to Release First Original Blockchain Game ‘Champions Tactics’ NFT link

Ubisoft has announced that the NFT minting date for its first original blockchain game, “Champions Tactics: Grimoria Chronicles,” is set for December 18. The game will be deployed on the Ethereum-compatible Oasys chain, with a total of 9,999 Warlords NFTs to be minted, of which 8,000 will be available through free minting.

10. SafeMoon Officially Files for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy link

According to Watcher Guru, the DeFi protocol SafeMoon, on the BNB Chain, has formally filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. In November, the SEC accused SafeMoon LLC, its founder Kyle Nagy, SafeMoon US LLC, and company founders John Karony and Chief Technology Officer Thomas Smith of conducting a large-scale fraudulent scheme by selling unregistered cryptocurrency securities.