PayPal’s Stablecoin in trouble?

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Ireland drafts urgent crypto laws ahead of EU crackdown

Key points:

  • Ireland fast-tracking crypto regulations ahead of EU’s money laundering rules.

  • The draft law aims to tighten oversight over digital assets and exchanges.

News – With the EU’s updated money laundering regulations set to take effect soon, Ireland is moving quickly to draft its own crypto laws. These new regulations will establish stricter controls on digital asset providers, including mandatory licensing and operational transparency for exchanges.

Ireland's Finance Minister emphasized the need for urgent action to protect against money laundering, fraud, and terrorist financing in the crypto sector. The proposed framework would also align Irish laws with upcoming EU guidelines, ensuring no regulatory gaps.

Key motivations – Ireland’s government is pushing to stay ahead of the EU rules while positioning itself as a leader in crypto regulation within the bloc. Officials argue that early action will help the country become a hub for compliant crypto firms as EU-wide laws tighten.

Other developments – Ireland’s draft legislation reflects a growing trend of nations preparing for tighter regulations ahead of the EU’s Anti-Money Laundering Directive (AMLD6), which targets crypto-based financial crimes across Europe.

Vitalik Buterin’s ‘The Surge’ roadmap sets Ethereum’s path to 100k TPS

Key points:

  • Vitalik Buterin unveils an ambitious Layer-2 scaling roadmap called “The Surge.”

  • The plan aims to boost Ethereum’s scalability without compromising decentralization.

NewsVitalik Buterin has shared his bold vision for Ethereum’s Layer-2 future with the unveiling of “The Surge” roadmap. This plan outlines a series of upgrades that will massively increase Ethereum’s scalability by focusing on Layer-2 rollups - solutions that handle transactions off-chain while ensuring security through Ethereum’s base layer.

Vitalik emphasized that the future of Ethereum lies in efficiency and decentralization, with a goal to process 100,000 transactions per second. The Surge includes technical improvements that will minimize transaction fees and boost the speed of decentralized applications (dApps).

Key milestones – The roadmap includes key milestones such as data availability sampling, which will improve the rollup experience by making it cheaper and faster to access off-chain data. This will ensure Layer-2 scaling remains cost-effective while handling massive transaction volumes.

Other voices – Developers and analysts see this as a major step forward for Ethereum as it competes with faster blockchains like Solana and Polygon. With The Surge, Ethereum is set to maintain its position as the leading decentralized platform by continuing to prioritize scalability and security.

Radiant Capital suffers $50 Million exploit on BNB Chain and Arbitrum

Key points:

  • Radiant Capital suffered a $50 million exploit.

  • Attackers exploited a vulnerability in Radiant’s lending protocol.

News - In a significant breach, Radiant Capital, a leading cross-chain lending platform, was exploited for $50 million. The attackers took advantage of a vulnerability in Radiant's lending mechanism, draining assets from both the BNB Chain and Arbitrum.

Radiant Capital has temporarily paused operations to prevent further damage and is working with security experts to assess the situation. The platform’s team has stated that user funds are being investigated and recovery efforts are underway, although a full resolution is yet to be reached.

Important details – The vulnerability in the protocol was likely related to collateral liquidation mechanisms, allowing attackers to manipulate asset prices and withdraw far more than deposited. This marks one of the largest exploits in recent months for the DeFi sector.

Other responses – The exploit has sent shockwaves through the DeFi community, with many platforms strengthening security protocols to avoid similar incidents. Radiant’s future operations may be dependent on how effectively they can recover the stolen assets and rebuild user confidence.

PayPal’s PYUSD market cap plunges 40%: What’s behind it?

Key points:

  • PayPal’s PYUSD market cap plunges 40% from its peak.

  • Speculation arises around potential adoption issues and market factors.

News - PayPal’s PYUSD, the company’s highly anticipated stablecoin, has seen its market cap drop by 40%, falling from its peak just months after launch. While some analysts point to lower-than-expected adoption and competition in the stablecoin space, there is also speculation about possible market manipulation contributing to the rapid decline.

The sharp drop in PYUSD’s market cap has led to increased scrutiny, with investors questioning the stablecoin’s stability and the market forces at play. Although PayPal has not yet addressed the situation, market analysts are closely monitoring the token’s future performance.

Key developments – The decline in PYUSD's market cap comes amid growing concerns about stablecoin regulation and rising competition in the market. Some investors are starting to question whether PayPal’s stablecoin launch has been overhyped, given the currency’s rocky start.

While speculation about market manipulation exists, many believe adoption issues and regulatory concerns are more likely contributors to the steep decline.

Did you know?

  • Ethereum’s EIP-7781 proposal advanced on 5 October, aiming to reduce block times by 50%. This improvement is set to enhance transaction speeds and reduce fees, benefiting decentralized exchanges like Uniswap. Analysts are optimistic that this upgrade will help Ethereum maintain its dominance amid growing competition from faster blockchains.

  • South Korea’s Upbit exchange faced heightened scrutiny on 9 October, as regulators deepened investigations into financial misconduct. The case may lead to broader regulatory changes in South Korea’s crypto market.

  • On 11 October, Crypto.com sued the SEC, accusing the regulator of overstepping its authority by classifying numerous crypto assets as securities, which could have wide-reaching implications for exchanges.

Top 3 coins of the day

Bittensor (TAO)

Key points:

  • TAO saw a 0.85% increase in the last 24 hours.

  • Over the past seven days, the token has experienced a slight pullback after a strong rally.

What you should know – Trading at $584, TAO reflected sustained interest in AI-driven crypto projects despite the recent cooling off after its sharp price surge. The technical indicators on the daily timeframe showed that the token was near its upper Bollinger Band, indicating heightened volatility. A key bullish signal was the Golden Cross, where the 50-day moving average was well above the 200-day moving average, confirming long-term bullish momentum. However, with the RSI at 63.10, TAO was nearing overbought territory, suggesting the possibility of short-term corrections. Close attention should be paid to potential pullbacks or further consolidation in the coming days before making any decisive trades.

Helium (HNT)

Key points:

  • A 0.34% increase was noted in the last 24 hours for HNT.

  • HNT has been in a downtrend over the past seven days.

What you should know – HNT’s daily chart showed a continued downward trend after reaching a peak near $8.0 in September. The price has fallen below the 50-day SMA ($7.2), signaling short-term bearish momentum, although it remained above the 200-day SMA ($5.3), suggesting that the long-term trend was still intact but weakening. The MACD crossed below the signal line, indicating increasing bearish momentum. Additionally, the OBV has been decreasing, showing selling pressure outweighed buying interest. With the price approaching key support at the 200-day SMA, traders need to closely monitor the $5.3 level for a potential rebound or further downside if this support is broken. Helium’s recent performance suggests caution in the short term.

Pepe (PEPE)

Key points:

  • PEPE has seen a 4.02% fall in the last 24 hours.

  • This memecoin experienced moderate volatility during the past seven days.

What you should know – At press time, PEPE was trading at $ 0.0000010, showing a 4.02% decline in the past 24 hours. After a sharp rally earlier in October, the token has faced resistance around the $0.0000011 level, resulting in the pullback. The RSI was at 55.55, indicating that momentum was neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The CMF was slightly negative at -0.15, reflecting some capital outflow, which points to weakening buying pressure in the short term. The volume has been declining in recent sessions, suggesting that the correction might have lacked strong conviction. The price is still relatively close to its recent highs, so monitoring for potential support around $0.0000010 is crucial.

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