THIS WEEK'S QUICK BITS

El Salvador reportedly cucks to the IMF and agrees to make Bitcoin acceptance optional to secure a $1.3B IMF deal and international financial support.

El Salvador uncovers $3 trillion in outdated shiny metal called gold and considers converting wealth into the superior digital asset, Bitcoin.

Amboss introduces Magma AI, a machine learning-powered channel recommender for the Lightning Network aimed at enhancing liquidity and improving individual business operations, respectively.

David Sacks, Trump’s incoming AI and crypto czar, calls for a review of ‘Operation Choke Point 2.0’ after accusations of harm to the Bitcoin and crypto industry.

Fran Finney, wife of Bitcoin pioneer Hal Finney—the first Bitcoin transaction recipient—joins Nostr and earns over one million sats.

Bernstein analysts see quantum threats to Bitcoin as decades away despite Google’s progress with its Willow quantum chip.

The Economist reports Bitcoin is evolving from speculative hype to a more traditional, risk-on asset correlated with broader financial markets rather than relying on innovative use cases.

BlackRock recommends allocating up to 2% of portfolios to Bitcoin, further acknowledging its potential as ETF assets exceed $113B and institutional interest grows.

Byte Federal, a Bitcoin ATM operator, discloses a data breach exposing the personal data of 58,000 users, including names, addresses, and social security numbers.

WabiSabi protocol vulnerability identified by Ginger Wallet developers allows malicious coordinators to deanonymize users by tracking inputs and outputs.

Alabama state auditor calls for Bitcoin reserve to future-proof the state's economy, attract Bitcoin investments, and position the state as a leader in the industry.

A source close to Donald Trump's transition team claims he plans to monitor Bitcoin prices closely, viewing it as a ‘stock market alternative’ and hoping for a $150K price early in his presidency, Axios reports.

Russian State Duma member proposes a Bitcoin national reserve as a strategic move to strengthen Russia's financial stability following recent reforms in Bitcoin mining and taxation.

Amazon shareholders propose the adoption of a Bitcoin treasury, citing inflation risks and growing corporate interest.

US Treasury acknowledges Bitcoin as ‘digital gold’ in a December 2024 report, recognizing its role as a store of value in emerging economies.

Antoine Riard, a Bitcoin developer, exposes critical bugs in the Lightning Network that could allow attackers to steal millions, prompting urgent software patches.

Goldman Sachs CEO announces the firm will consider becoming a Bitcoin spot market maker as US regulations undergo significant changes, describing it as having no inherent reputational risks.

Peter Schiff, Gold bug and long-time Bitcoin denier, warns that government-backed Bitcoin adoption could inflate the US dollar’s money supply and threaten the global dominance of the dollar.

Schiff also advises Biden to sell all US Bitcoin holdings before leaving office to reduce the budget deficit and prevent a strategic reserve.

MicroStrategy joins the Nasdaq-100 Index due to its strong stock performance, highlighting the growing institutional recognition of Bitcoin.

KENFIBA, Kenya's fire brigade union, embraces Bitcoin to boost firefighting capacity, becoming the nation's first labor union to hold BTC.

Russian researchers create a tool to detect Bitcoin and crypto crimes, aiding investigations with blockchain visualization.

Australian regulator compares Bitcoin to prison currency, sparking industry worries over strict regulations and showcasing outdated perspectives.

Japan's Digital Minister Taro Kono shares a photo of himself mining Bitcoin with a Bitaxe, using Jack Dorsey-backed Ocean mining pool software.

Hunter Beast, a Bitcoin developer, says ‘Quantum computers just went from the equivalent of lots of vacuum tubes to a transistor. Just one transistor, though.’

Japanese lawmaker Satoshi Yamada urges the government to establish a strategic Bitcoin reserve amid global interest following Trump's US election.

Ukraine aims to legalize Bitcoin by early 2025, focusing on strict fiscal oversight and regulation without offering any tax incentives.

Bitcoiner claims he crashed 70% of the Dogecoin network with an old laptop.

Texas legislators propose accepting taxes and fees in Bitcoin, holding it as a strategic reserve.

Andreessen crypto policy lead Quintenz emerges as a top contender to lead the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, steering the regulator toward favorable Bitcoin and crypto policies under Trump.

Sygnum predicts that ‘demand shocks’ from institutional investors in 2025 will drive bitcoin's fiat exchange rate higher.

Hut 8 shares soar 12% amid rumors of a data center deal with Meta, yet neither company confirms such a partnership.

Satoshi-era Bitcoin buyer sentenced to two years for lying about $3.7M in Bitcoin gains, marking first-ever US Bitcoin tax evasion prosecution.

UK businesses urged to disclose their current and projected Bitcoin and crypto exposures by March 2025.

Regulated exchanges dominate Bitcoin trading volumes despite maximalists’ skepticism, highlighting a shift toward KYC compliance and institutional stability.

Bitwise predicts bitcoin will eclipse gold by 2029, aiming for over $200,000 amid rising institutional adoption and supportive regulatory tailwinds.

Iran's rogue Bitcoin miners are allegedly causing blackouts by exploiting ultra-low electricity rates.

Thailand explores bitcoin as legal tender through the Phuket pilot program proposed by former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra to test everyday transactions.

Argentina plans to allow Bitcoin for transactions in 2025 policy, finally embracing economic flexibility and digital integration.

John Carvalho, a Bitcoin developer, proposes redefining one bitcoin as one satoshi to simplify the currency, facing criticism from change-averse skeptics.

MicroBT unveils the new WhatsMiner M6XS++ series at Bitcoin MENA 2024, showcasing advancements in solar and hydro-cooling technology for green mining.

NFL star Odell Beckham Jr, who took his $750,000 salary in bitcoin back in 2021, pokes fun at naysayers.

Coincheck, a Japanese exchange, becomes the second major exchange to go public on Nasdaq after Coinbase, with an initial market cap of $1.3B.

Microsoft shareholders overwhelmingly reject the proposal to invest 1% of its treasury in Bitcoin, with only 0.55% of the vote coming out in favor of it.

Bhutan transfers 402 BTC worth $49M to Binance and QCP Capital, leveraging market fluctuations to maximize earnings from its strategic sell-off.

BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF surpasses over 50 European funds combined, leading the market with nearly half of all Bitcoin ETF assets.

Eric Trump champions Bitcoin as the ultimate hedge for real estate investors during an interview at the Bitcoin MENA 2024 Conference.

Ray Dalio, known for his long-standing expertise in economic trends, advises investing in Bitcoin and gold while avoiding debt assets, citing rising global indebtedness.

Riot Platforms, a mining company, announces $500M through convertible notes to fund Bitcoin purchases after mining 1,104 BTC in Q3, boosting holdings to 10,427 BTC.

Jetking Infotrain becomes India's first publicly listed company to adopt a Bitcoin Treasury Strategy, acquiring 12 BTC valued at $1.2M.

Marathon Digital, a mining company, invests $1.1B in Bitcoin, bringing total holdings to 40,435 BTC, following industry trends set by firms like Riot Platforms.

MicroStrategy acquires 21,550 BTC for $2.1B, increasing its total holdings to 423,650 BTC, valued at $25.6B.

Bitmain expands its production line into the US to improve supply chain efficiency despite ongoing trade tensions and delays in ASIC deliveries.

Bitcoin market experiences the largest liquidation event since 2021, as $1.6B is wiped out amid aggressive selling and unusual market conditions last week.

Florida pension fund announces it will invest $1.85B in Bitcoin, marking a significant step toward creating a strategic Bitcoin reserve.

Marathon Holdings purchases 114MW wind farm in North Texas to power Bitcoin mining operations with 100% renewable energy.

Michael Saylor urges the US government to dump gold and acquire Bitcoin, echoing Grayscale’s 2020 Drop Gold campaign to position BTC as the world’s reserve asset.

BitOasis receives a full VASP license from Dubai’s regulator, allowing the service to offer enhanced Bitcoin and crypto trading services.

Paybis, a Bitcoin and crypto onramp in Europe, integrates PayPal to simplify its services.

Yellow Card, an Africa-based fiat-to-Bitcoin platform, partners with Lightspark to enhance cross-border payments across 20 African countries, integrating their Universal Money Address functionality.

GrapheneOS, an open source, privacy, and security-focused Android operating system project, condemns Revolut's ban on its users due to the anti-competitive Play Integrity API, calling out their false claims about compatibility.

Former Binance CEO predicts that China will inevitably build a strategic Bitcoin reserve, following trends in other countries, despite the government’s lack of transparency.

Security firm warns that scammers are using fake X accounts and malicious Telegram bots to inject malware into smartphones and steal Bitcoin.

Coinbase lawsuit reveals Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation’s ‘pause letters’ instructing financial institutions to halt Bitcoin and crypto-related activities, fueling concerns over regulatory interference.

Bitwise, a $5B asset manager, predicts the Bitcoin price will hit $200,000 in 2025.

Bitcoin Policy UK appoints financial analyst and journalist Susie Violet Ward as CEO to drive UK leadership in Bitcoin policy.

Relai, a Swiss Bitcoin-only exchange, secures $12M Series A funding led by Ego Death Capital to enhance its Bitcoin self-custodial app.

Hong Kong's Treasury Secretary signals potential state fund investments in Bitcoin and crypto as part of a strategy to diversify portfolios.

El Salvador partners with Argentina to collaborate on Bitcoin policy, and has talks underway with over 25 nations for similar partnerships.

Nexbridge introduces tokenized US Treasuries on the Liquid Network, increasing accessibility and liquidity and reducing intermediaries in traditional finance while leveraging Bitcoin’s security.

THIS WEEK'S QUICK BITS

Jack Mallers, CEO and founder of Strike, in a podcast interview with YouTuber Tim Pool, says Donald Trump will likely issue an executive order on his first day in office to designate Bitcoin as a reserve asset, leading to a significant price increase.

Eric Trump says Trump will be the most pro-Bitcoin and crypto president in the history of America in an extraordinary bullish Bitcoin keynote speech at the Bitcoin MENA 2024 conference.

Michael Saylor explains to an insufferable Dave Portnoy of Barstool Sports how and why he is wrong about Bitcoin.

Chris Giancarlo, former CFTC Chairman, calls Bitcoin ‘digital gold’ in a Fox News interview and asserts its time has come during a Fox News interview.

Senator Cynthia Lummis suggests on CNBC funding a US Strategic Bitcoin Reserve by marking the Fed’s gold certificates to market value and selling them.

Danny Knowles, the new host of the ‘What Bitcoin Did’ podcast, discusses the Samourai Wallet case with defense attorney Roger Burlingame and Zack Shapiro of the Bitcoin Policy Institute.

Matthew Pines of the Bitcoin Policy Institute gives a presentation at Bitcoin MENA 2024 on how Bitcoin is transforming from a speculative asset into a key player in global geopolitics as the global economic balance shifts.

Matthew Kratter of Bitcoin University discusses the recent Tucker Carlson’s recent interview with Roger Ver, cheerleader for the failed B-Cash fork, revealing Ver's misleading narrative surrounding the Bitcoin blocksize wars and spotlighting his past controversial actions.

Marty Bent, Ten31 Partner and host of the TFTC podcast, and Justin Sun, founder of the Tron network, face off in a Bitcoin vs. Crypto debate at Bitcoin MENA 2024.

Ricardo Salinas, the third richest man in Mexico, emphasizes that holding Bitcoin is no longer an investment but a transformative way of life for financial freedom at Bitcoin MENA 2024.

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Decrypt covers the fresh debate surrounding the risk of quantum computing to Bitcoin's encryption sparked by the recent claim by Google to solve problems in minutes that would take supercomputers 10 septillion years—more than the age of the universe.

Jimmy Song, OG Bitcoin developer, shares his thoughts on a recent interview between Tucker Carlson and Roger Ver (aka ‘Bitcoin Jesus’), questioning Ver's credibility, the legitimacy of his claims regarding government persecution, and the broader impact of his actions on the Bitcoin space.

Matthew Mezinskis of Porkopolis Economics publishes a Base Money Update for Q3, evaluating the growth trajectories of key assets—global base money, Bitcoin, gold, and silver—against economic indicators like GDP and population growth, concluding that Bitcoin's growth drastically surpasses most other assets, despite its relatively recent emergence.

1440000bytes of Joinstr.xyz provides feedback on their Bitcoin wiki page created to collect developer opinions on various soft fork proposals, showing mixed levels of support and objections for various opcodes and underscoring the need for further discussion to achieve consensus.

Protos profiles Paul Atkins, Donald Trump’s SEC chair pick, as a libertarian-minded, pro-Bitcoin and crypto advocate with extensive regulatory and legal experience, signaling potential shifts in US Bitcoin and crypto policy under the new administration.

Olga Kharif and Isabelle Lee, reporters at Bloomberg, highlight the growing risks of Bitcoin’s establishment takeover as ETFs, corporate giants, and potential government stockpiles concentrate ownership, driving prices higher but raising concerns over market volatility and control.

Joe Nakamoto, a Bitcoin educator, responds to a sarcastic apology by the Financial Times to Bitcoiners, defending Bitcoin’s efficiency, its role as a store of value, and its unmatched utility and resilience against alternative cryptocurrencies.

Brady Noah, writing for What Is Bitcoin, analyses the four stages of Bitcoin's evolution, from being ignored to facing ridicule and opposition, before ultimately becoming a powerful force in global finance, demonstrating its decentralizing impact.

Jess Houlgrave, CEO of Reown, explores the threat to self-custody posed by impending European regulations like the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) and the Transfer of Funds Regulation (TFR) on Bitcoin self-custody, emphasizing the need for privacy-preserving solutions to uphold Bitcoin’s decentralized principles.

Philip Walton, co-founder and CTO of Gridless, writes about the ‘Joule Paradox,’ explaining how energy determines the value of bitcoin, while bitcoin, through its global marketplace, also sets the value of energy in a decentralized and real-time economy.

Shinobi, a Bitcoin educator, argues that while Bitcoin's $100,000 milestone is a significant achievement, it does not solve critical issues like money seizure, surveillance, and the need for Bitcoin to scale to prevent centralization.

The Basel AML Index 2024 published by the Basel Institute finds a decrease in the effectiveness of anti-money laundering frameworks despite increased compliance efforts.

The US House Judiciary Committee, in a similar vein, releases a report surveying the ways that the federal government has weaponized the Bank Secrecy Act, revealing disturbing details about federal law enforcement’s warrantless surveillance of Americans’ financial data.

Mark Mason of BTC Inc. argues that eliminating capital gains taxes on Bitcoin would drive US economic innovation, enhance financial sovereignty, and position the US as a global Bitcoin leader, benefiting both citizens and national prosperity.

Joakim Book, editor of Lyn Alden's Broken Money and other Bitcoin books, explores the pivotal role of money as a value-coordinating tool that enables economic activity beyond subsistence in a new addition to his ‘Money Class of the Day’ series.

Joakim Book also explores the concepts of intrinsic value versus subjective value in economics, using music as an example of a non-economic good due to technological advancements that make it infinitely replicable and non-rivalrous, in another addition to his ‘Money Class of the Day’ series.

Bill Addis of Daily Kos argues that Trump's proposed tariffs could accelerate the creation of a new global currency by BRICS nations, challenging the dominance of the US dollar and potentially reshaping global trade dynamics.

Marty Bent, host of the TFTC podcast, discusses the significance of Bitcoin surpassing $100,000, marking the end of its first era and the beginning of its rapid adoption as a global reserve currency, despite long-standing skepticism.

Marty Bent also examines Bitcoin as the ultimate treasury asset, emphasizing its unmatched monetary properties, Microstrategy’s innovative convertible note strategy, and the urgent need for widespread Bitcoin adoption amid ongoing currency debasement.

Atlas21, a Bitcoin publication, provides a comprehensive overview of Payjoin transactions, detailing their privacy benefits, fee savings, Lightning Network integration, and step-by-step instructions for executing them using compatible Bitcoin wallets.

Atlas21 also debunks some notorious catastrophic predictions from critics like Jamie Dimon, Larry Fink, and Warren Buffett over the years.

Alpen Labs introduces Strata bridge, a programmable platform ensuring bitcoin parity with minimal trust assumptions, utilizing cutting-edge research for efficiency and enhancing the ecosystem's robustness.

Che Kohler of The Bitcoin Manual explores Strata further by highlighting it as a layered scaling solution for Bitcoin that enhances scalability and privacy through its modular design, validity rollups, and EVM compatibility.

Che Kohler also explains Bitcoin ossification as a process where the protocol becomes increasingly resistant to changes, ensuring stability and security but also presenting challenges for future adaptability and innovation.

Daniel Feather, a Cambridge-trained physicist and chartered accountant, writes for Bitcoin Policy UK that Bitcoin could redeem the field of economics by promoting decentralization, transparency, and resilience.

Niftynei, a Bitcoin educator, analyses a new whitepaper released by Lava Global Inc. on the Lava Loans Protocol v2, a protocol that utilizes Bitcoin atomic swaps and Discreet Log Contracts to offer collateral-backed loans with management and liquidation processes through cross-chain interactions with Solana.

Gandlaf, a Bitcoin developer contributing to Cashu, delves into the benefits and limitations of ecash systems like Cashu built on Bitcoin, emphasizing their privacy, utility, and compatibility with custodial solutions while advocating for self-custody whenever feasible.

An anonymous Cashu developer explains how Cashu uses blind signatures and limited coin denominations, like powers of two, to enhance privacy in Chaumian ecash systems, balancing anonymity and efficiency in digital transactions.

ICYMI: Speed Wallet publishes a comprehensive guide showing merchants how to capitalize on the Bitcoin surge by accepting payments, promoting them, and improving payment technology.

ICYMI: Raphael Schoen of Relai highlights the fact that if you bought $100 worth of Bitcoin every time the media called it ‘dead,’ you would now have $99,952,524.62.

ICYMI: Kepford, author of The Weekly Drop newsletter, critiques Steve Patterson's views in his talk about the blockchain war and Roger Ver’s Book, arguing that Bitcoin can serve both as a store of value and a medium of exchange, despite challenges with Lightning and on-chain fees.

THIS WEEK'S TOOLS & PROJECTS

Strike introduces Bill Pay, enabling you to get paid and pay bills with BTC, living cheaper over time without fear of inflation.

The Bitcoin Maximalists is a fun board game and an ideal Christmas gift that combines competition and education to help players understand Bitcoin's complexities in a playful and engaging way.

Bitshala, a Bitcoin education initiative, offers a free rigorous three-month online program for those eager to start a career in Bitcoin open-source software, scheduled to start on January 13th.

Bitkey offers, for a limited time, a Bitkey hardware wallet at 20% off and you then also get a free Itty Bitty plushie.

Digital Defense offers a detailed personal security checklist, helping you safeguard your digital life and privacy.

Machankura, which allows users to send and receive sats to a phone or phone number via USSD, Whatsapp, web, or mobile, launches a mobile app for Android.

The Voltz Tip Bot enables the tipping of sats on Telegram through the Lightning network.

ZEUS Pay announces zero fees and a lowered minimum limit for Lightning address payments.

Bitkit, a Bitcoin and Lightning wallet, introduces QuickPay, enabling instant Lightning Network payments for small transactions with customizable limits.

IVPN acquires Safing, the company behind the consumer firewall application Portmaster and the SPN network.

Plebmall Directory serves as a guide to Bitcoin commerce, connecting users with verified merchants who accept Bitcoin.

VPNSTR lets you instantly buy a VPN with Bitcoin over the Lightning Network.

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