ToE's Weekly Highlights #39

Digging up the grinds for the week.

Sep 03, 2023

Gm ToE readers! Week has been rather dull but packed with lots of updates still

Macro: US economy remains durable even as risks linger around labor market resilience. China's real estate turmoil persists but has potential for greater impact. Markets balancing cautious optimism on inflation outlook with close monitoring of key data for guidance on growth and policy direction.
Trend: The crypto market seems to be in a wait-and-see mode pending further regulatory clarity and macroeconomic developments. Patience and prudence are warranted.
DeFi: Many defi projects are dull with the spotlight for the week being Aerodrome launch. Gamefied stuff also doing particularly interesting
Tools: Farms for the month, Free tools other than midjourney, accounts with alpha to follow
Spicy news: BAYC lawsuit, BTC laundering, OTC scams modus operandi

If you have not read the previous week’s highlight, here it is:

Hope you enjoy the content, and feel free to:

Connect with me on Twitter
Join my Telegram Channel

Segmenting the megathread of content into 5 parts:

Macro news
Trending narratives
Defi happenings
Educational resources and tools
Spicy crypto drama

1. Macro News

Data indicates US economy is moderating as expected following Fed tightening, but remains durable even as risks linger around labor market resilience. China's real estate turmoil persists but has potential for greater impact. Markets balancing cautious optimism on inflation outlook with close monitoring of key data for guidance on growth and policy direction.

🟡US Q2 GDP growth revised down slightly but still indicates economic resilience and momentum despite inflation and rate hikes. However, risks remain focused on potential impact to labor market.
🔴Country Garden's massive $6.7B H1 2023 loss highlights liquidity crisis and challenges in China's real estate sector. Defaults and debt repayments for developers in coming months will be important to monitor for broader spillover effects.
🟢 US equities extended gains on moderating economy and inflation data, suggesting potential Fed pausing of rate hikes. Investors now eyeing upcoming Chinese and US data for further clues on global growth and policy implications. Markets seem cautious but optimistic on potential turning point while remaining vigilant on economic shifts.

@KobeissiLetter Chinese stocks are now underperforming US stocks by the most since 2001.

@0xwill_eth on ETF deadlines

@KobeissiLetter inflation on 40 year high

@DisruptorStocks Disruptor’s Week Ahead for Aug 28

@gurgavin Job opening in US are at 2 year low

@M6Labs daily reset

@DeFiMinty Thoughts on the Market

@coinbureau SEC delayed ETFs till Oct

@WClementeIII returns broken down by months

@defi_naly on 4 bullish catalyst for growth

2. Trending Narratives

The crypto market seems to be in a wait-and-see mode pending further regulatory clarity and macroeconomic developments. Patience and prudence are warranted.

The Grayscale lawsuit win against the SEC is definitely a positive development for crypto, though the market's initial excitement seems to have cooled off quickly. Regulatory clarity is still needed.
Bitcoin bouncing between $20k and $25k shows indecision, though holding the $20k support is bullish. Alts like BCH and STX pumping on Grayscale news makes sense as higher beta plays.
Small cap alts like CYBER pumping on short squeezes is risky speculation. Caution is warranted in this area.
The PEPE drama highlights risks of relying on anonymous teams and multisigs. Transparency and accountability are still lacking in much of crypto.
Friendtech controversy shows challenges decentralized social media faces. Censorship resistance must be balanced with preventing abuse.
On-chain casinos remain highly speculative. The upcoming "gamblify Telegram" trend seems doubly risky. As you said, most will likely go to zero.
Regulatory risk hangs over many of these concepts. Moving large sums into casinos or pseudonymous social networks may raise red flags.

@layerggofficial Sep calendar

@0xMughal on farms of the month

@TheDeFinvestor watchlist

@Cryptovoxam derivatives catch up

@0xEdge_Runners VC weekly funding

@exliquidity derivatives

@Dynamo_Patrick Events and unlocks driving the crypto market this week

@cburniske transactions more than Mastercard and paypal

@asxn_r weekly notes

@Beacon_Early on gambling narrative

@milesdeutscher on narratives

@DOLAK1NG on RWA narrative

@mdudas Brian Armstrong's Crypto Wish List

@FomoCatchers on web3 games update

@jerallaire unified USDC gas tank

@CryptoNikyous 10 low cap gems

@BinanceResearch weekly highlights

3. Defi Happenings

Updates from Vaultka:

2nd new product - GLP Leverage strategy is expected to release it 28 Aug
New features on VLP leverage to deal with the High UR problem, leverage users will have to pay extra cost if UR exceeds 95%. We hope this feature can incentivize lenders and make the pool become more balance. We are expecting to implement it next week.
The dashboard scoring system is in progress, the team is currently testing the scoring mechanism and the leaderboard is expected to be available in mid Sept. The rewards points will be able to get VKA airdrop~
GM Leverage (GMX v2) vault will be our next product (ETH-USDC and ARB-USDC markets) and we are also developing altcoin lending pool as well. The vault is expected to be released in late sept.
For the tokenomics, dev team is preparing test cases to ensure it goes smoothly in the actual one. Furthermore, they are working closely with our security partner - Hacken to complete our token smart contract audit.
Marketing direction for the week: will be GLP leverage + VLP Leverage.