Rabbit Hole Recap: Week of 2020.11.02
11/5/2020 · 88 min · transcript via mlx
Tags
Key topics
— Bitcoin difficulty adjusted down 16% on Tuesday, the second-largest downward adjustment in the ASIC era, as roughly 35–40% of hash rate left the network after the rainy season ended in China.
— Lightning Pool launched, enabling node operators to sell channel liquidity and users to purchase inbound liquidity with rate discovery across time durations—described as a foundational development for Bitcoin yield curves and risk-free rate calculation.
— The U.S. Department of Justice seized approximately 69,370 bitcoin (roughly $1 billion) connected to the Silk Road hack, transferring it to a SegWit address, likely after locating the original thief via a 2015 BTC-e sale.
— Gazprombank (Swiss subsidiary of Russian energy giant Gazprom) launched institutional Bitcoin trading services, signaling institutional adoption in unexpected jurisdictions.
— Software releases including Zeus v0.4.0, Specter v0.9.1, Lightning Terminal v0.3.0-alpha, Nunchuk multisig wallet, and Raspberry Pi 400 ($70 computer built into a keyboard) expand tooling for self-custody and node operation.
— Bitcoin surpassed PayPal in market capitalization at $276.4 billion, while price climbed to $15,000+ during the episode, coinciding with U.S. election uncertainty and macro shift away from reserve-currency confidence.
Market & price signals
— Bitcoin climbed from $14,906 to over $15,160 during the episode recording, marking a strong rally attributed to election uncertainty weakening confidence in U.S. dollar stability and institutional capital rotation. One BTC was trading at approximately 6,711 sats per dollar early in the episode. The mempool remained elevated with 62,780 transactions despite the 16% difficulty downward adjustment, indicating sustained fee pressure; fees ranged from 273 to 310 sats/byte across priority levels. Blocks were coming in at 9 minutes 37 seconds post-adjustment (versus 11 minutes 45 seconds pre-adjustment), with the next upward difficulty adjustment of ~4% estimated for November 19th. Bitcoin's market cap of $276.4 billion exceeded PayPal's valuation, and the seized Silk Road bitcoin was valued at ~$1 billion at time of seizure announcement.
Actionable insights
— Lightning Pool enables non-custodial yield generation: node operators can lease liquidity at market-discovered rates (currently ~13% APR depending on reputation score) without surrendering custody, making it superior to custodial lending platforms like BlockFi for Bitcoin holders seeking returns.
— Set up a routing node or purchase channel liquidity via Lightning Pool if you lack inbound capacity; the permissionless marketplace removes friction and incentivizes geographic hash-rate and node distribution outside centralized hubs.
— Use Bitcoin Core with Specter Desktop or the newly released Nunchuk multisig interface for self-custody; both leverage PSBT standards and hardware wallet integration (HWI) to provide institutional-grade UX without relinquishing control, addressing the ease-of-use gap between custodial and self-hosted setups.
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.
— Cash App lets you buy, sell, send, and receive Bitcoin with integrated Lightning Network payments for fast, cheap transactions and automatic DCA stacking with zero fees on buys over $2,000; withdraw on-chain or to Lightning 24/7 to your own node or hardware wallet. For a limited time, new Cash App customers can get $21 added to their balance by using code TFTC10 when you sign up, and send at least $5 to a friend in the first two weeks; terms apply. Bitcoin services by Block, Inc. See Bitcoin disclosures at https://cash.app/legal/podcast.
— Unchained Capital's white-glove vault concierge service for $1,500 includes one-hour Zoom setup, two Trezor Model T hardware wallets, wallet configuration session, and $1,000 in Bitcoin deposited to your vault once multisig is established. Visit unchained-capital.com/the-vault-concierge-onboarding-package and use code TFTC to receive $50 off this package; they also offer collateralized loans, IRAs, inheritance solutions, and support open-source projects including Caravan.
— Bitcoin Black Friday, launched by BTC Media (Bitcoin Magazine team), celebrates the growing Bitcoin economy with active discounts up to 50% off Bitcoin gear and merchants accepting Bitcoin. The platform also lists over 65 charities supporting Bitcoin and educational resources for earning sats. Bitcoin accepting merchants can list products at BitcoinBlackFriday.com. In partnership with Fold, sign up for early access to the Fold Sat Back card on Bitcoin Black Friday and enter a raffle to win one whole Bitcoin (100 million sats); you will eventually receive the rewards card as well.