Cardano-Native MuesliSwap To Refund Users After “Slippage” Misunderstanding

MuesliSwap, a decentralized exchange (DEX) on the Cardano network, has announced its decision to reimburse its users that have been affected by high slippage over the past year. This is in response to the recent questions faced by the protocol on its slippage feature.

Slippage refers to the price difference between when a transaction order is submitted and when the transaction is executed by the market maker and confirmed on the blockchain.

MuesliSwap Acknowledges Lack Of “Adequate Clarity” 

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), the team behind MuesliSwap admitted that it failed to provide “adequate clarity” on the slippage feature within its decentralized exchange. Users have had to pay high slippage due to the manner in which the protocol’s matchmaker was designed. 

Related Reading: Is Curve DAO (CRV) Price On Track To Reach Or Exceed $1 This Month?

The MuesliSwap team explained in the post:

Our decentralized matchmaker setup allowed each matchmaker to fill the limit order and choose whether to return the additional slippage amount or retain the difference at their discretion.

MuesliSwap claims this difference has served as an incentive for the matchmakers since the beginning. To further clarify, the protocol’s team said this “supplementary matchmaker incentive” pushes the decentralized matchmaker to prioritize users’ orders during periods of high market volatility. However, it acknowledged that pushing this under the unclear term “slippage” may have confused new users.

In a bid to rectify the situation, the MuesliSwap team disclosed that it would be refunding users who were affected by the high slippage on the protocol’s pools in the last 12 months. The team claims that the funds for users’ reimbursement will come from the “project funds”.

Additionally, MuesliSwap said that a comprehensive analysis of all trades will be carried out to ensure fair refunds. “This process may take approximately 3 to 4 weeks as we gather and validate the necessary data, and implement the distribution code,” the team noted.

MuesliSwap To Remedy The Situation?

At the end of the post, MuesliSwap stated that swift action has been taken to fix the high slippage issue in the DEX order book. 

Related Reading: Cardano (ADA) Price Prediction: 28% Upswing Or 23% Drop Coming Next?

The team also said:

Going forward, our DEX protocol will provide clear and accurate information on slippage when interacting with our pools.

MuesliSwap is the fifth-largest protocol on the Cardano network, with a total value locked (TVL) of $10.41 million, according to data from DefiLlama.

MuesliSwap

Billionaire Investor Wishes He Bought Bitcoin Early On, Here’s Why

As Bitcoin continues to enjoy more mass adoption, many have regretted their decision not to get in earlier on the flagship cryptocurrency. Co-founder of private investment firm The Carlyle Group David Rubenstein joins this long list of individuals as he wishes he had bought BTC early on. 

Bitcoin Is Here To Stay

Speaking on Bloomberg Television on August 8, Rubenstein said he wished he had bought Bitcoin when one BTC was worth $100. The statement stems from the fact that the billionaire believes BTC is here to stay, following “enormous interest” in the cryptocurrency.  

He explained that Bitcoin’s decentralization is key to this interest as people want a form of money that governments can’t control.

According to him:

There’s enormous interest around the world, and to be able to have something you can transfer without having the government knowing about it, and keep it private. You can say people shouldn’t do that, but that’s not going to stop people from doing it.

Bitcoin (BTC) price chart from Tradingview.com

BlackRock Is Key To All Of It

Rubenstein also noted that people who once mocked BTC and other cryptocurrencies might begin to have second thoughts following BlackRock’s application for a Spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF).

“What’s happened is people made fun of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, but now the establishment, Larry Fink at BlackRock, is now saying they’re going to have an ETF if approved by the government in bitcoin,” Rubenstein told Bloomberg. “So you’re saying wait a second, the mighty BlackRock is willing to have an ETF in bitcoin, maybe bitcoin is going to be around for a while.”

The billionaire investor’s sentiments echo that of Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz, who mentioned, during an interview on Bloomberg TV with David Rubenstein, that BlackRock’s CEO Larry Fink’s change of heart was the “most important thing that happened this year in Bitcoin.”

“He [Larry Fink] got ‘orange-pilled. Larry was a nonbeliever. Now he says, ‘Hey, this is going to be a global currency.’ People around the world all trust it,” he said.

Larry, who had once referred to BTC as “an index of money laundering,” said in a July 5 interview with Fox Business that Bitcoin could revolutionize the financial industry as it could be used as a hedge against inflation instead of traditional gold

There is no denying the influence that BlackRock and its CEO Larry Fink could have on BTC adoption, especially among institutional investors. BlackRock is currently the largest asset manager with over $9.1 trillion in assets under management (AuM). 

With such a large clientele base, the market could see more individual investors, companies, governments, and foundations invest in Bitcoin through BlackRock (when their spot Bitcoin ETF gets approved by the SEC). 

Meanwhile, Larry Fink is a prominent figure on Wall Street and one who boasts tremendous influence in the financial world, and he will likely carry this influence into crypto.

Cardano (ADA) Next In Line For A Rally Following Shark And Whale Buying Spree

Cardano (ADA) has not exactly been the best performer in the last month. Instead, the altcoin’s price has continued to stall even during periods of market recovery.

However, this trend could change pretty soon given the current accumulation trend among sharks and whales, something that could take a significant chunk of available supply off the open market and trigger another rally.

Cardano Sharks And Whales Go To Market

In a Tuesday post, the on-chain data aggregator platform Santiment revealed an interesting development concerning the ADA sharks and whales. The sharks and whales in this instance refer to wallets holding at least 100,000 ADA and at most 10 million ADA.

What Santiment has found is that this 100,000-10 million cohort has been consistently adding to their balances. The accumulation first began a little over two months ago on May 21, and since then, they have collectively bought over $116.1 million worth of ADA.

Cardano (ADA)

This buying spree also saw their trading volume rise significantly during this time as well. As the on-chain tracker revealed, the sharks and whales saw their cumulative volume cross 67 billion ADA toward the end of July.

As a result of their consistent buying, sharks and whales now account for 34.4% of the total circulating ADA supply. The last time that their holdings were this high was back in 2022, before the FTX collapse. Additionally, their cumulative trading volume is now sitting at its highest level since September 2021.

Will ADA Respond Positively?

In the last two months in which the Cardano sharks and whales have been active, ADA has seen some encouraging price action. In July, its price jumped from below $0.3 to a local high of $0.37. But ultimately, the altcoin corrected back downward, losing a little over 20% of its value.

Since then, the digital asset has continuously struggled to maintain $0.29, with bears having more good days compared to bulls. However, there could be a change in the horizon given that investor sentiment seems to have skewed in favor of buying instead of selling.

What this means is that the mounting buying pressure could quickly see the price of ADA recover as demand grows. So it may not be long before ADA is retesting the $0.35 resistance again. And if this rally happens to coincide with a recovery in the price of Bitcoin (BTC), then it could beat its recent local peak of $0.37 and rally above $0.4.

For this to happen, though, the bulls would have to maintain control and the 6% jump in the altcoin’s daily trading volume in the last day could be evidence of this.

At the time of writing, ADA is trailing at $0.2991, up 2.93% on the daily chart. However, the asset is seeing 2.33% losses on the weekly chart.

Cardano (ADA) price chart from Tradingview.com

Barbie Is a Metaverse

Virtual worlds, like Barbie’s, are a source of meaning and fulfillment for people seeking more in life. And these worlds gain from interactions: the more interoperability, the better.

Aptos Labs’ Collaboration With Microsoft Sends APT Soaring By 17%

Aptos Labs and Microsoft have announced a strategic partnership to showcase the convergence of artificial intelligence (A.I.) and blockchain technologies. 

Aptos Labs, a leading blockchain developer, and Microsoft, a key backer of A.I. advancements through OpenAI, are joining forces to create the innovative Aptos Assistant, a ChatGPT-powered chatbot designed to provide users and developers with comprehensive information and analysis of the Aptos ecosystem.

Aptos Labs And Microsoft Forge Alliances For Blockchain Development

According to a report by Yahoo Finance, unlike previous endeavors in the crypto-related A.I. space, which primarily revolved around licensing OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Aptos Labs’ collaboration with Microsoft ventures beyond boundaries. 

The partnership encompasses various facets, with Aptos Labs hosting validator nodes on Microsoft’s Azure cloud computing platform, integrating its programming language, Move, into Microsoft’s popular coding platform, GitHub Copilot, and exploring opportunities to connect with major financial institutions seeking to build blockchain-powered applications on Azure.

Rashmi Misra, General Manager of A.I. and Emerging Technologies at Microsoft, expressed excitement about the fusion of A.I. and blockchain, stating: 

The intersection of A.I. and blockchain is among the most interesting combinations of emerging technologies. By fusing Aptos Labs’ technology with the Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service capabilities, we aim to democratize the use of blockchain.

Aptos Labs has already secured substantial funding of $400 million from investors, according to Crunchbase, highlighting the confidence in their technological prowess. The collaboration with Microsoft further solidifies its position as a formidable player in the blockchain space.

While A.I. startups have dominated funding in 2023, raising nearly $25 billion, compared to around $3.6 billion for crypto ventures, Mo Shaikh, Co-founder and CEO of Aptos Labs, believes that A.I. and blockchain are not mutually exclusive. 

Shaikh emphasizes the importance of blockchain’s ability to provide verified and accurate information, minimizing the risk of A.I. models generating false statements or hallucinations.

The practical implications of this collaboration are still unfolding. Still, Shaikh underscores elements such as the A.I. assistant and integration into Github Copilot to represent a larger vision of deep integration and co-development between Aptos Labs and Microsoft. 

APT Rebounds As Collaboration With Microsoft Reignites Investor Interest

APT, the native token of the Aptos blockchain, experienced a significant surge of over 17% following the announcement of its partnership with Microsoft. 

This surge marked a crucial turning point after a prolonged downtrend that persisted since the beginning of February. Notably, APT had reached an all-time high of $20 before succumbing to the downward trend.

The decline in APT’s price can be attributed to an unlock event on February 12th, where Aptos released 4.5 million APT tokens. 

The unlock event, involving the release of a significant number of tokens, resulted in increased selling pressure, leading to a continuous decline in APT’s price. 

However, the recent partnership announcement with Microsoft has injected new life into the token’s value, reigniting investor interest and resulting in a remarkable price surge. 

Despite experiencing some retracement, APT still holds a 10% profit since the disclosure of the partnership with Microsoft. It is currently trading at $7.3340, representing a 63% decrease from its all-time high reached in January 2023.

Aptos

Overall, investors have responded positively to this news, recognizing the potential of the Aptos-Microsoft partnership to drive innovation and expand the reach of the Aptos blockchain. The substantial surge in APT’s price reflects growing confidence in the project’s prospects and underscores the significance of this collaboration.

Featured image from iStock, chart from TradingView.com 

Elon Musk’s Lawyer Files Second Motion To Dismiss Dogecoin Class Action Lawsuit

In a continued legal battle over a class action lawsuit alleging Dogecoin insider trading, attorney Alex Shapiro, representing Tesla CEO Elon Musk, has once again requested the dismissal of the case.

This motion marks the second attempt by Musk’s legal team to put an end to the ongoing litigation, and as the legal battle escalates, drawing attention to the intricate interplay between cryptocurrency, high-profile figures, and legal accountability.

Strategic Move Amid Escalating Battle

The decision to file a second motion for dismissal underscores the determination of Elon Musk’s legal team to swiftly put an end to the protracted litigation. The lawsuit was initiated by a group of Dogecoin investors who claim Musk orchestrated market manipulation and insider trading to inflate the value of the popular meme cryptocurrency.

Attorney Alex Shapiro’s response to the investors’ complaint was sharp and pointed. He framed the latest filing as an example of lawyers overstepping their boundaries and utilizing aggressive litigation tactics. So in the filing, he moved a motion to disqualify sanctions. 

In one of his statements, Shapiro stated ” Enough is enough” as the case has been a long-standing one. Musk’s legal team also emphasized the legality of his crypto-related statements, while the case has delved into the nebulous realm of social media influence in financial markets.

Evan Spencer, the lead attorney for the class action lawsuit, has relentlessly pursued Musk and the allegations against him. Spencer has now made a total of three amendments to the lawsuit since its initial filing in June of the previous year, seeking a staggering $258 billion in damages for investors claiming to have been defrauded by the Tesla CEO with his Dogecoin Pyramid Schemes. 

Dogecoin (DOGE) price chart from Tradingview.com (Elon Musk)

Musk’s Relationship With Dogecoin

Dogecoin was designed originally in 2013 as a joke to tease Bitcoin but went from a “meme” to a substantial valuable asset in the cryptocurrency space during 2020 and 2021 especially. 

Most of the meme coin’s growth was driven by billionaire Elon Musk, who actively promoted the altcoin to his over 100 million Twitter (Now X) followers at the time.

His initial tweet in April 2019, playfully endorsing Dogecoin as a potential favorite cryptocurrency, ignited a chain reaction that saw subsequent tweets by Musk triggering substantial price fluctuations.

“Dogecoin might be my fav cryptocurrency. It’s pretty cool” Musk tweeted at the time. Musk’s many tweets following this would continuously push DOGE’s price high, reaching as high as $0.7 before the bear market hit.

Since then, DOGE’s price has fallen over 90%, and the class action lawsuit emerged as a result of investors who believed they had fallen victim to a pyramid scheme after buying for high prices.

The elongated legal struggle holds significant implications for the cryptocurrency community and the broader financial world. With Musk’s legal team emphasizing the dismissal of the lawsuit, the outcome could set a precedent for legal battles involving influential figures in the cryptocurrency domain. 

Musk appears to be unmoved as he promotes his newly acquired innovation, Twitter, now rebranded as X.