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Lightning Speed: Accelerators And Incubators Focus Their Sights On Bitcoin

You know what incubators and accelerators mean: interest. They say that bear markets are for builders, and the bitcoin ecosystem seems to be getting ready to work. One of the main catalysts is the success of the Lightning Network. The little engine that could went from being constantly mocked to being a key element in the El Salvador story. Nowadays, the Lightning Network is the bitcoin ecosystem’s absolute star and one of the reasons money is pouring in.

The three accelerators and incubators that this article will consider couldn’t be more different from each other, but they share the bitcoin-only ethos. And an unhealthy interest in the Lightning Network. From a Jack Dorsey-funded initiative, to a corporate ultra-deluxe opportunity, to a bunch of technically minded individuals that opened their doors in the name of bitcoin. Pick your poison, there’s probably an accelerator for you here. 

The TBD Open-Source Incubation Program

The Jack Dorsey-funded organization that’s working in the decentralized bitcoin exchange TBDex can probably help your bitcoin project. They recently announced the TBD Open Source Incubation Program, but there’s not much practical info on it yet. “TBD Incubation projects are managed by community contributors. They advance the decentralized web and accelerate development and adoption of the Web5 platform,” the company wrote.

They did specify that the program was focused on Open-Source projects and said that TBD will “soon be announcing our first Incubation project!” The announcement also promised that “when projects reach maturity, they may apply to be promoted out of Incubation into a central project,” so the TBD program might turn into an accelerator over time.

BTCUSD price chart for 11/03/2022 - TradingView

BTC price chart for 11/03/2022 on Bitstamp | Source: BTC/USD on TradingView.com

The Wolf Startup Accelerators Focused Exclusively On Lightning

This is the corporate one. This is the deluxe one. It’s run by “Stone Ridge, owner of an alternatives asset manager that has raised more than $40B since inception and parent of bitcoin company NYDIG.” Among other things, they offer, “transportation to NYC and lodging for the duration of the 8-week program are included from anywhere in the world.” The program is exclusively focused on the Lightning Network.“Wolf accepts applications from individual founders and small teams at the pre-seed idea stage up through those ready for a Series A financing round.”

The investments are also deluxe, selected developers get a $250K guaranteed seed funding, so they can focus all of their attention on the project. Also, “at the end of each program, one team will be chosen by a panel of judges to receive an additional $500K in funding.” That, plus all the knowledge you and your team can collect in those eight weeks.

The Pleb Lab Co-Working/ Accelerators

In contrast, Pleb Lab is “a co-working / accelerator in Austin, Texas at the heart of the financial district. We support outstanding projects and teams in several ways.” They are bitcoin-only, with a focus on “the Lightning Network – an essential step towards decentralized finance.” Their other focus is free and open-source development, “the FOSS ethos is at the center of what we do here at Pleb Lab.”

What does the Pleb Lab accelerator do, exactly?

  • “Working directly with Bitcoin & Lightning startups”

  • “Granting workspace among other brilliant Bitcoin developers at Pleb Lab”

  • “Providing startup advisory and mentoring”

  • “Providing business development, marketing and strategy”

The Austin bitcoin scene is growing by the minute, and Pleb Lab is right there in the middle of it. Apparently, one of its best characteristics is to be in the same room with other bitcoin developers trying to solve similar problems to yours. As you might imagine, they all help each other. This one is not a competition and there are no obvious prizes.

Featured Image: Pleb Lab logo from their website | Charts by TradingView

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ARK: Now Decoupled From Terra, “Bitcoin’s Selling Pressure Should Subside”

The Terra / Luna / UST collapse keeps on generating headlines. This time, we’ll use the data in ARK’s “The Bitcoin Monthly” report to establish its impact on the bitcoin ecosystem. Remember that the non-profit organization LFG, AKA as the Luna Foundation Guard, was accumulating BTC to defend UST’s peg to the dollar. In a then-delated May interview, Terra’s Do Kwon said that they were trying to get to $1B in BTC so that “besides Satoshi, we will be the largest single holder of Bitcoin in the world.” He also proclaimed, “within the crypto industry, the failure of UST is equivalent to the failure of crypto itself.”

Related Reading | Terra Beats Tesla As Second-Largest Corporate Bitcoin Holder After $1.5B Purchase

At one point, it appeared that BTC and UST destinies were inextricably linked, but the bitcoin network absorbed the collapse nearly unscathed. Let’s look at ARK’s numbers and try to figure out how it did it. 

Terra, The Largest L-1 Blockchain Failure Ever

At this point, everybody knows what happened with Terra. Nobody knows how it happened, though. Was it a coordinated attack or did the natural market’s forces trigger the death spiral event? We wouldn’t know, but the fact of the matter is that the UST de-pegged from the dollar causing a bank run in the Anchor protocol, and the eventual demise of the algorithmic stablecoin and its twin, LUNA.

How big was the collapse? According to ARK’s report:

“In addition to causing the crash in UST and Luna, we believe Terra is the largest layer-1 blockchain failure in crypto history, wiping out a combined $60 billion of market capitalization between UST and Luna.”

Huge in size by any metric, but, how does it compare to previous crypto collapses? The only comparable collapse was “the Mt. Gox hack that stole 5.7% of total crypto market cap in 2014, Terra’s collapse destroyed roughly 2.7% of crypto’s total market capitalization.” The Mt. Gox hack almost destroyed the bitcoin network at a time when it was more vulnerable. The Terra collapse felt like a breeze in comparison, but, as the numbers show, it wasn’t. 

BTC price chart for 06/07/2022 on Eightcap | Source: BTC/USD on TradingView.com
How Did The Terra Collapse Affect BTC?

Besides the LFG foundation reportedly selling its 80K BTC, the collapse created extreme selling pressure on bitcoin. According to the report, “exchanges recorded net inflows of 52,000 bitcoin, the largest daily inflow in BTC terms since November 2017 and the largest inflow ever in USD terms.” These are notable numbers. 

Bitcoin Net Flows To and From Exchanges | Source: ARK’s “The Bitcoin Monthly”

According to the bitcoin blockchain, the account associated with “LFG currently holds 313 BTC, down from 80,934 BTC held prior to Terra’s unraveling”. Did they sell the rest, though? Nobody knows for sure. Back to the report: 

“To backstop UST’s peg, The Luna Foundation Guard (LFG) reportedly sold most of its ~80,000-bitcoin reserves, contributing to this record inflow.”

Surprising even hardcore bitcoiners, the network resisted this massive sell-off without breaking a sweat. Sure, bitcoin’s price suffered, but the blow wasn’t even close to being fatal. And ARK’s prediction reflects that fact, “now decoupled from the Terra blockchain, bitcoin’s selling pressure should subside, yet contagion in the crypto markets is still inconclusive.” Why? Because “bitcoin’s more secure and conservative blockchain should gain market share.”

Are Algorithmic Stablecoins Even Possible?

To answer this we’ll quote NYDIG’s report “On Impossible Things Before Breakfast,” which comes with the subtitle, “a post-mortem on Terra, a pre-mortem on DeFi, and a glimpse of the madness to come.” As the titles gave away, NYDIG believes that not algorithmic stablecoins nor DeFi as it currently stands are possible. Why? Well…

“No matter how well intentioned, all algorithmic stablecoins will fail and the vast majority – possibly all – of DeFi’s current versions will fail, where “fail” here means not gaining sufficient critical mass to matter, being hacked, blowing up, or being altered by regulation to the point of non-viability. In the end, the Terra project could control the supply of its money, but it couldn’t make its people value it. A printing press was the only (non)answer. Sound familiar? Lacking a lender of last resort, DeFi (re)creates the problems solved by central banks. Bitcoin solves the problems created by central banks.”

Related Reading | TerraLabs Sold Over 80,000 BTC To Rescue Its Stablecoin

As it usually happens, we could summarize this whole article with the old adage: “Bitcoin fixes this.”

Featured Image by Louis Maniquet on Unsplash | Charts by TradingView

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How To Add Bitcoin To The Balance Sheet For Corporations, With Saylor & Dorsey

Is your company ready to buy the Bitcoin dip? Saylor and Dorsey will give you the 411 for free.99. The MicroStrategy World annual conference goes live on February 1st. Learn directly from these two titans of the industry, who have definitely been among Bitcoin’s main proponents and promoters over the last few years. 

Michael Saylor has led by example, buying every dip, and is a constant presence in mainstream media. His interviews are more like classes and the attention they get is outstanding. Jack Dorsey, for his part, left Twitter to focus on Bitcoin. Since then, his Block company announced several projects that’ll definitely strengthen the Bitcoin network.

About the MicroStrategy World conference, the press release promises it’ll be “focused on Enterprise Analytics and Bitcoin for Corporations. World 2022 is 100% virtual, and—for the first time ever—access to all sections of the conference is free of charge.” That’s an unbeatable price.

What Will Saylor And Dorsey Talk About?

The conference has two sides, two different events that showcase MicroStrategy’s duality:

“The Enterprise Analytics event will introduce bold new ways to think about analytics and business intelligence, and showcase organizations who’ve used data as a strategic differentiator. The Bitcoin for Corporations event will explore the various benefits of incorporating Bitcoin into corporate initiatives.”

Join me and Keynote Presenter @jack at the 2nd Annual Bitcoin for Corporations Feb 1 & 2. This free, virtual conference is a must for any corporation considering integrating #Bitcoin with their products & services, or adding #BTC to their balance sheet.https://t.co/V9fIkv633q

— Michael Saylor⚡ (@saylor) January 20, 2022

As you might expect, NewsBTC will focus on the second event. It’s important to say that both Dorsey and Saylor’s companies have Bitcoin on their balance sheet. These two put their money where their mouth is, and then some. In any case, what does MicroStrategy World promise?

“An in-depth discussion on Bitcoin between two visionary voices: Jack Dorsey, CEO of Block, Inc., and Michael Saylor, CEO of MicroStrategy Inc. This session will be followed by a discussion on Bitcoin Treasury with Phong Le (President and CFO, MicroStrategy). Bitcoin for Corporations will also feature live interviews with industry experts from Coinbase, Deloitte, Fidelity Digital Assets, Genesis, Jefferies, NYDIG, Paxos, and Silvergate Bank.”

It’s noteworthy that Fidelity Digital Assets recently shocked the world by predicting more countries and probably a Central Bank or two would add Bitcoin to their balance sheet in the next few years. Christine Sandler, Fidelity’s Head of Sales & Marketing, will represent the company at the conference. 

Saylor ’s Recent Bitcoin History

Since MicroStrategy first added Bitcoin to its balance sheet in August 2020, the company has increased the bet every few months. They issued common stock. They sold stocks. They bought, and bought, and bought, and bought. In a recent interview, Saylor explained the strategy and NewsBTC reported:

“Look, our long term strategy is kind of like Harvard University. We’re running a university but we have an endowment. MicroStrategy is selling enterprise software. We generate $100 million in cash flow a year – in a good year – and we are reinvesting that cash in our endowment. Our endowment is 100% bitcoin.”

Saylor adds that MicroStrategy plans to acquire and hold bitcoin as a balance sheet. As for the operations, the company will continue to sell its enterprise software everywhere in the world.”

Related to this, about MicroStrategy’s free conference, Saylor said:

“We have gained a wealth of experience and expertise innovating our treasury strategy and evolving our corporate bitcoin acquisition strategy. And we’re pleased to be in a position to share our knowledge—via this curated event—for corporations looking to pursue similar strategies and bold initiatives.”

Dorsey’s Recent Bitcoin History

For his part, Dorsey’s strategy is much different than Saylor’s. He’s working in infrastructure. Dorsey’s fortifying the network’s weak parts. Among other things, Block announced they’re building a decentralized Bitcoin exchange called tbDEX. Released the Lightning Development Kit. And announced they’re working in an open-source ASIC miner. 

On a personal level, Dorsey and rapper Jay-Z put 500 BTC in a blind trust to promote Bitcoin development in Africa and India. And created the Bitcoin Defense Legal Fund to protect developers from all kinds of lawsuits.

BTC price chart for 01/21/2022 on Gemini | Source: BTC/USD on TradingView.com
The Price Of Bitcoin

Despite Saylor’s and Dorsey’s efforts, Bitcoin is bleeding. On one hand, Proof-Of-Stake proponents straight up lied before U.S. Congress in a hearing about Proof-Of-Work’s environmental risks. On the other, there’s a rumor that Russia is considering banning Bitcoin in some capacity. Both of those situations caused panic in the market, and Bitcoin’s price is currently 40% lower than the ATH of $69K. 

Will Michael Saylor buy the dip? 

Featured Image: screenshot from the conference’s website | Charts by TradingView

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Allied Payment Partners NYDIG, Adds Bitcoin To Corporate Treasury 

One latest news making rounds in the crypto space is the new partnership between the digital payment platform-Allied Payment Network, and the Bitcoin subsidiary of Stone Ridge, a $10 billion alternative asset manager called NYDIG.

Related Reading | GBTC Unlocks Spells Doom For Bitcoin? Top Expert Breaks It Down

The latest developments come with the addition of Bitcoin to the former Corporate Treasury.

Allied Payment Network is the industry’s most progressive online and mobile bill payment service provider to banks and credit unions. The Allied Payment Network is seeking to increase its business scope, and market comprehensibility has gone crypto.

Following many others, the digital financial platform openly declared its intention to cooperate with NYDIG and at the same time moved to utilize the crypto-power by including Bitcoin on its balance sheet.

What Allied Payment Network Stands To Gain Through Bitcoin Adoption?

An increasing number of companies worldwide are using Bitcoin and other digital assets for a host of investments.

Allied Payment Partners NYDIG, Adds Bitcoin To Corporate Treasury 

The BTC price is trading sideways on the daily chart | Source: BTCUSD on TradingView.com

This could be for operational and transactional purposes. Of course, just like every business horizon, there are unknown dangers, but there are far strong incentives to gain.

The benefits allied stands to gain include:

● Better security in operations,

● Low fees,

● Swift and easy payment,

● Decentralized advantage, and

● Universal recognition

Explaining these, the adoption of cryptocurrencies that are digital and encrypted will ensure that Allied is repaid from the generation of bogus copies, as against the traditional payment methods where this is possible.

Again, no cryptocurrency transactions carry personal data about the user; thus, privacy is now sacrosanct.

Related Reading | Philippine Stock Exchange Plans To Become A Cryptocurrency Trading Platform

Talking about the economy of BTC adoption, users of the platform can eliminate middlemen like brokers and lawyers from the arena, who usually charge service fees on transactions.

Now again, the speed and accuracy of transactions will be improved upon, as users of the platform can just as of the other person’s address to transfer funds.

By this, the processing time is almost negligible, and the whole transaction is completed in a matter of seconds.

Decentralization is one notable feature of Bitcoin. Thus, users If the payment platform can now always control their currency units, as there is no central authority in the network.

Lastly, digital currency is gaining worldwide momentum each day, as many are already joining the party; this includes government bodies – El Salvador’s story is well and alive.

NYDIG And The Benefit Of Partnering

A newly disseminated press release says that the provider of digital payments Allied Payment Network has inked a partnership deal with NYDIG.

NYDIG is a leading technology and financial services firm dedicated to Bitcoin. The financial platform is aligned with the mission of safely unlocking the power of BTC through technologies and financial services that enable forward-thinking companies and investors to access this asset class.

Related Reading | TA: Bitcoin Consolidates Below $35K, What Could Trigger Fresh Rally

Partnering with it will facilitate the BTC adoption drive, as clients of financial institutions are enabled to purchase, sell and hold Bitcoin. This is made possible with Allied Payment Network having its Bitcoin in an NYDIG-enabled corporate treasury.

Thus, the company will become the first-ever payment provider that will introduce Bitcoin in its platform and enable financial institutions to offer it to their clients.

Featured image from Pixabay, chart from TradingView.com