1️⃣ SWIFT Embraces Digital Assets
On Thursday, SWIFT, the largest global payments network governed by financial institutions and G10 central banks, announced it would trial using its platform to settle digital assets, potentially advancing the integration of public and private blockchains with the global financial system.
This follows successful experiments with Chainlink and Ethereum's Sepolia network, where SWIFT explored how traditional financial institutions can utilize blockchains. The trials will test transfers of tokenized assets like FX and securities, and if successful, could mark a turning point for the use of public blockchains in major financial networks.
2️⃣ Bitcoin's Middle East Shock
Bitcoin dropped from $66K to $59K this week to kick off “Uptober.” The move was driven by nerves around economic data and escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East between Iran and Israel. However, by Friday, BTC had stabilized and risen to ~$62K after the U.S. reported a blowout 254K jobs added in September. This surge in employment eased market fears of a recession, though with the election looming and Israel’s response to Iran still undetermined, uncertainty still swirls in the market.
3️⃣ EIGEN Token Hits Market
EigenLayer’s long-awaited token, EIGEN, went live Monday night, marking a new era for restaking. As of Saturday morning, its price sits at $3.30, down from its peak this week of $4.47.
With people wary of its $5.5B FDV, EigenLayer made clear the next steps for its development, stating it hopes to bring programmatic incentives and Intersubjective Slashing live soon. Wasting no time, Renzo and Etherfi launched their liquid staking version of EIGEN, ezEIGEN, and eEIGEN, which allow you to earn EIGEN staking rewards while remaining liquid.
4️⃣ Starknet Op-Ed Continues L2 Debate
In an op-ed this week, StarkWare’s CEO, Eli Ben-Sasson, responded to Ethereum researcher Max Resnick's earlier podcast criticisms of L2s, where Resnick called them "parasitic" for drawing value away from mainnet and delaying decentralization. While acknowledging he could only speak for Starknet, Ben-Sasson pushed back, defending Starknet’s progress toward decentralization, highlighting recent protocol staking as a key milestone and reinforcing that decentralization, despite what Resnick says, is in fact, “really, really hard.” However, he acknowledged Resnick's point that L2s could do more to decentralize and that decentralization is the long-term goal, critical for making L2s truly valuable.
5️⃣ XRP ETF Battle Heats Up as SEC Files Appeal
It was off to the races for the spot CRP ETF earlier this week, with Bitwise’s filing this week and Canary Capital’s filing rumored to soon follow. However, the SEC derailed matters by filing an appeal in the Ripple case, challenging the July ruling that XRP isn’t inherently a security. The appeal sets the stage for a high-stakes legal battle that could, at best, greatly slow down the approval process or, at worst, halt it in its tracks or liquidate it even after it gets approved (if it does).
