Digital Bytes August 23rd Edition with Jonny Fry / James Tylee featuring Iain Monk Digital Asset Strategy Lead at Clear.Bank

Blockchain explorers: why do they matter? - blockchain explorers are tools similar to search engines (e.g. Google) for blockchain data, offering insights into transactions and more. Whilst they provide transparency, privacy risks still exist but, alongside transparency, smart contract insights and real-time alerts are other benefits. Notable explorers include Etherscan and Blockchain.com, allowing for data, verification of details and utilisation of analytics to be searched whereby enhancing transparency in the blockchain ecosystem. Full Article Here Does Coinbase’s new base blockchain make it an infrastructure provider? - Coinbase's Layer-2 network - Base - is an Ethereum blockchain for innovation. Developed with Optimism, it tackles issues experienced by Ethereum by speeding up transactions, lowering fees and maintaining security. Aave, Uniswap and OpenSea are all integrating with Base and even Coca-Cola is using Base for NFTs. This trend shows Base's broad potential beyond finance and positions Coinbase as an infrastructure provider. Base's impact is just starting, promising innovation and adoption in the blockchain realm. Full Article Here Crypto theft in the first half of 2023 - in the first six months of 2023, around $700 million in assets were stolen through scams and hacks, with DeFi protocols being a major target. Whilst this amount is lower compared to previous years, challenges such as ransomware attacks persist. However, in spite of this stolen funds were returned more frequently this year and the revenue from digital asset scams declined, being attributed to improved security practices, stricter regulations and law enforcement actions. Nevertheless, progress, caution and improved awareness are all still crucial in safeguarding crypto assets as the industry continues to evolve. Full Article Here The characteristics of the ideal stablecoin - the ideal stablecoin should be pegged to a clear value, audited for asset verification, should utilise smart contracts for real-time transparency, share income with holders, ensure transparency and traceability, offer privacy controls, provide insurance and be user-friendly. Achieving these attributes could lead to widespread adoption of stablecoins as secure alternatives to cash and traditional banking systems, potentially serving as a steppingstone towards the eventual issuance of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). Full Article Here