Rabbit Hole Recap #178: We got a strike
12/23/2021 · 91 min · transcript via mlx
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Key topics
— SEC delays Bitwise and Grayscale spot Bitcoin ETF proposals, maintaining approval resistance while approving derivatives-based futures ETFs; the delay ironically encourages self-custody and node operation among individual stackers.
— Chinese underground Bitcoin mining persists with an estimated 20% of network hashrate still operating covertly despite the CCP ban, demonstrating Bitcoin's resilience and the futility of mining prohibition.
— HRF, Strike, and OpenSats announce three Lightning-focused bounties worth 1 BTC each targeting activists and everyday users: Bolt 12 reusable invoices, stablecoin-pegged Lightning contracts, and Chaumian eCash federated wallet implementations.
— OpenSats receives 501(c)(3) tax-deductible status approval, enabling tax-deductible Bitcoin donations to open-source projects and general developer fund deployment.
— Cathedral Bitcoin donates $50,000 to Summer of Bitcoin, a university program connecting students to Bitcoin open-source development opportunities.
— Multiple Bitcoin software releases advance node, wallet, and layer-two implementations: BTC Pay Server v1.3.7, Rust Lightning v0.0.104, LNBits v0.4.0, Mercury Wallet v0.5.1, and others; Blockstream sponsors Mempool project expansion to cover Liquid Network.
Market & price signals
— Bitcoin price at episode recording was $50,490 with 1,981 sats per dollar. Market cap reached $954.7 billion. Network at block height 715,430 with 78.27 million UTXOs and 433.5 GB chain size. Difficulty expected to fall 0.6% at next retarget due to 10m 4s average block time. Mempool at 15,007 transactions with 1 sat/byte fees available. Samurai Wallet holdover at 4,341.17 BTC.
Actionable insights
— Self-custody remains the superior long-term strategy as regulatory delays on spot ETFs continue; stack sats and learn to run your own node rather than wait for custodial on-ramps.
— Miners should prioritize distributed, off-grid operations and waste-heat monetization (heating, agriculture, desalination) over large warehouse setups to maximize profitability, resilience, and defensibility against future regulatory or physical attacks.
— Activists and individuals seeking Bitcoin privacy on mobile should monitor progress on the three OpenSats bounties, particularly the Chaumian eCash Lightning wallet, which will enable private donations without server exposure.
Episode sponsorships
Paid placements mentioned in this episode. BTC Pods is not sponsored by or affiliated with these advertisers. Links are included so you can find offers mentioned on the show.
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