Ous

News Reporter @TheBlockCo

Views are my own and do not reflect The Block.
Retweets are not endorsements.

[The Block @TheBlockCo]

Introducing The Latent, The Block's sister publication covering AI.

Launching today: AI news, a data portal, The Latent Score, and a daily newsletter.

We're bringing our reporting and data expertise to AI.

See what we're building and subscribe below.

[The Block @TheBlockCo]

The Avalanche Summit is only 2 weeks out.

We're happy to announce that we are the official media partners this year. September 16-17 in New York City!

[Avalanche🔺 @avax]

The Block joins Avalanche Summit as an official media partner.

Two days of interviews with the founders and executives building onchain finance, published from the floor as they happen.

On the record, @TheBlockCo live from NYC.

[The Block @TheBlockCo]

NEW: Strategy $MSTR CEO Phong Le says selling about 7,000 BTC at $60,000-$65,000 was the "right trade" to fund preferred dividends.

Strategy later bought 4,603 bitcoin:native for $369.7 million at an average price of $80,318.

[The Block @TheBlockCo]

THE BLOCK: Rain CEO Farooq Malik said more than 100,000 merchants are accepting stablecoin payments without knowing it.

He said those transactions currently settle through Visa and outlined plans to let merchants opt for stablecoin settlement instead of waiting three days.

[The Block @TheBlockCo]

EXCLUSIVE: Inside Tether’s KPMG Audit: Gold Bars, Bitcoin, and $6B in Excess Equity

Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino joins The Starting Block to unpack details of their KPMG US audit.

Ardoino explains how Tether finally cleared the biggest hurdle in the room with a Big Four audit from KPMG US, why the timing mattered, and what the new yearly audit plus quarterly attestations mean for the company and the industry.

Timestamps
00:00 - Paolo Ardoino joins to discuss Tether’s Big Four audit announcement
01:16 - Why the audit took years and what made it possible now
03:31 - Why Tether chose KPMG US after earlier controversy around attestations
04:58 - Yearly audits and quarterly attestations as a transparency standard
05:15 - Responding to critics who still question Tether’s transparency
06:36 - The 7 billion redemption stress test in 2022
07:57 - Why auditors counted gold bars in Tether’s reserves
08:40 - Tether’s gold and Bitcoin reserve holdings
09:23 - The private fundraising narrative and why Tether says it does not need capital
12:31 - Tether’s AI effort, Qvac, and the mission to serve the unbanked
14:59 - Supporting Bitcoin security work after the Coldcard exploit
16:52 - Confirming annual audits and quarterly attestations going forward

[Ous @DangaWrites]

@timon_ngatia @onjolo_kenya @grok 😂

[The Block @TheBlockCo]

THE STARTING BLOCK EXCLUSIVE:

"Being wise, wisdom, is achieved through proof of work. Through experience, through trial & error, through failure. If being wise was a simple as reading a few books, we'd all be wise."

Catch @jackmallers LIVE | 31 July | 11AM ET/5PM CET

[The Block @TheBlockCo]

THE STARTING BLOCK EXCLUSIVE:

Catch Charles Hoskinson live to wrap up the first month of the show!

@gazza_jenks wants to know:

🚁 Did he sell the Black Hawk?
🐜 How bad were the bullet ants?
❌ The real reason he left @X
⌛️ The future of @Cardano

24 July - 11AM ET/5PM CET

[SecurityTradersAssn. @STA_National]

Bernstein says firms are increasingly bringing prediction market infrastructure in-house, a shift that could accelerate consolidation as trading, betting and crypto platforms continue to converge. @TheBlockCo's @DangaWrites with the full story: https://t.co/F19qFeVbmN

[The Block @TheBlockCo]

Prediction markets are reshaping how we understand news, politics and finance in real time. But how do they work under the hood?

We just launched a complete Prediction Markets Course to take you from beginner to expert!

Don’t forget to leave your wallet address during sign up.

[The Block @TheBlockCo]

THE BLOCK: Benchmark reiterates Buy rating on Strategy with $570 price target, implying roughly 515% upside from the stock's Monday close of $92.68

[CZ 🔶 BNB @cz_binance]

Live now.

[The Block @TheBlockCo]

[THE BLOCK EXCLUSIVE]

We’re sitting down with CZ.

Binance founder and former CEO Changpeng Zhao goes live and unfiltered on The Starting Block.

June 29. 8AM ET / 2PM CET.

[Ous @DangaWrites]

https://t.co/0hvW0PAk9v

[Ous @DangaWrites]

Bitmine acquired 76,881 ETH last week, bringing holdings to 5.62M ETH (4.66% of supply), valued near $9.66B at $1,718 per ETH.

It ranks as the largest corporate ether holder, and 2nd largest crypto treasury behind Strategy’s $54B bitcoin position.

More ⤵️

[Ous @DangaWrites]

https://t.co/LAmFCV5ZzR

[Ous @DangaWrites]

Bitwise's André Dragosch sees up to 20% further downside for bitcoin, with the long-term holder cost basis near $48,000 marking his "max pain" scenario.

He also pointed to roughly $2B in weekly ETP outflows, or about 50,000 BTC, behind the recent sell-off.

Read ⤵️

[Ous @DangaWrites]

@TD_bbboys258 Yes!