@ 81022b27:2b8d0644

a delicious meditation

Those of you who know me are aware that I worked in the fast-food industry before becoming a chiropractor. My first job was at a Hardee's restaurant when I was fifteen.

I wanted to buy a car, which is why I started working. Once I bought the car, I realized I needed to continue working to maintain it, pay for gas, insurance, and the occasional "going out" money.

In the restaurant business, if you work at a place long enough, someone hands you a set of keys and puts you in charge of something.

So here I was, running a restaurant and in charge of a bunch of people, when I could barely take care of myself. Anyway, I was making what I thought was decent money for a 19-year-old.

My bosses started a new restaurant venture, and little by little, they began poaching the old management staff from Hardee’s. Eventually, they asked me to come work for them.

My new job was running a Church's Chicken. The stores were small, mostly takeout. The menu was small, and we didn't have many employees to manage. We didn't have a good reputation in the community due to poor management.

The owners introduced new registers, and sales immediately jumped. I suppose all the food was now being rung up and accounted for!

We cleaned up the restaurant and made sure we were putting out a good product, and guess what?

Sales doubled.

So here I am, thinking I know what I'm doing because I'm getting recognition from my bosses.

I didn't have the interpersonal skills to manage people effectively.

One time, I got into it with an employee but couldn't confront him to fire him, so I deleted him from the time clock. Let someone else deal with that.

Dealing with customers was usually okay because if they had an issue, you could just fix the problem, and that was it. Handling employees was a bit more challenging for me.

On busy days-Fridays, Saturdays, and Mother's Day (they called that the day after the welfare checks came out)

The restaurant would get so busy that sometimes people would line up around the building, and I felt that everyone was staring at me, which made me feel uncomfortable.

The store had windows all around; it was like a fishbowl-everyone saw everything.

I could have gone to hide in the office, but I needed to help out. I liked to run a tight ship labor-wise, so I always counted myself as one of the staff needed.

I would ask the cook to let me make the chicken and assign them some other tasks.

Even though I was probably even more visible than before, I would get lost in the work.

Everything was hand-breaded and battered. To me, it was like a Japanese tea ceremony.

When it was busy, we cooked a full "stove," which was 4 chickens at a time:

8 legs, 8 thighs, 8 wings, and 8 breasts.

The process was:

• Flour, dip in batter, flour again.

• Start with the legs because they take the longest to cook.

• Continue until everything is in the fryer.

Repeat,

and repeat,

and repeat.

I would get lost in the work. You couldn't really rush things. I made sure everything was done by the book.

Focusing on one task so intently that every concern, every worry just faded away. I knew people were watching me cook the chicken in this fishbowl, but I was so engrossed in my task that I didn’t care.

All my stress and anxiety just faded.

I still try to lose myself in my work, only now it’s not frying chicken-it’s adjusting spines.

Now that I think about it, same situation. I’m “on stage” in my adjusting space with clients sitting in the waiting area.

Sometimes, I get stressed when there are a lot of people waiting on me…but I’m gonna do my best work frying this chi…

oops!

I mean adjusting this spine.

Zen teaching often emphasizes simplicity, mindfulness in daily activities, and the notion that enlightenment can be achieved in the ordinary moments of life. The phrase "chop wood, carry water" reflects this idea of finding the sacred in the mundane.

I found my Zen.

Find Yours.

❤️

@ 81022b27:2b8d0644

Shopping for groceries is one of my least favorite tasks. However, it's got to be done.

If I am in a hurry, I like to shop at Aldi, not only because they have decent prices but also because I can get in and out quickly (and I don’t have to scan my own groceries).

They are definitely no-frills in many ways: You have to bag your own groceries, you should bring your own bags—otherwise, you have to buy them, and to get a shopping cart, you need a quarter to unlock it.

I'm trying to rush and be efficient when I realize I don’t have "the quarter" for the shopping cart!

Dammit!

I’m going to have to go back to the car to see if I have one.

I'm swearing under my breath, thinking about having to walk all the way back when…

I notice someone has placed a quarter on the wall next to the row of carts.

THANK YOU!

This little act of kindness took me from a state of "being mildly annoyed at the entire world because traffic didn’t clear a path in front of me trying to get here" to feeling great gratitude.

The fact that someone considered that doing this would make my life easier knocked my selfish, self-involved ass out of my body.

I finished my shopping in a more cheerful, mindful way. The people in the aisles didn't seem to annoy me as much.

I took way longer than usual.

It wasn't a race anymore.

I checked out, loaded the car, and when I went to return the cart—

I left a quarter.

@ 81022b27:2b8d0644

We were just talking today about first impressions when meeting people. Sometimes I get an instant “dislike” to someone upon meeting, even though they have never done or said anything bad to me. The older I get, the more I will usually go with my gut instincts and not engage the person any deeper if possible.

One of the reasons that was brought up is that people who are not congruent with their words, thoughts, and actions are usually the ones that “turn me off”

You know these people, too. They are the ones with all the advice-yet their lives are in shambles, the “preachy” ones that have their closets full of skeletons.

I’ve been accused of “not having a filter” or “being too transparent” at times… but not usually about my stance on things. I’m not confrontational…but I’m not above turning around and wailing away from someone I can’t stomach.

Anyway, the purpose of this rambling post if to encourage you to drop the facade, if you have one-and be more yourself.

@ 502ab02a:a2860397

มีคนจำนวนไม่น้อยที่เข้าใจว่าเรื่อง “อาหารแห่งอนาคต” คืออะไรที่เพิ่งเกิด เป็นแนวคิดใหม่สำหรับโลกยุคใหม่ แต่จริงๆ แล้วไม่ใช่เลยครับ เฮียว่าเราถูกจัดโต๊ะอาหารอนาคตไว้ให้กินมานานมากแล้ว เพียงแต่ไม่รู้ตัว ต่างหาก

ช่วงปลายคริสต์ศตวรรษที่ 19 สิ่งที่เรียกว่าการ “ควบคุมอาหารมวลชน” ก็เริ่มต้นอย่างจริงจังแล้ว

ย้อนกลับไปปี 1863 ในห้องพักคนไข้ของโรงพยาบาล Battle Creek Sanitarium ที่รัฐมิชิแกน สหรัฐฯ มีชายคนหนึ่งชื่อ John Harvey Kellogg เขาเป็นหมอและเป็นหนึ่งในสาวกของกลุ่ม Seventh-day Adventist ที่เชื่อว่าการกินเนื้อสัตว์ทำให้คนกระด้างใจและเต็มไปด้วยตัณหา เกิดราคะ เขาจึงคิดค้น “อาหารเช้าที่ไม่มีเนื้อ” เพื่อส่งเสริมสุขลักษณะและลดกิเลสในร่างกายมนุษย์ สิ่งที่เขาทำในตอนนั้นคือการใช้ข้าวโพดบดอบแห้งจนกรอบ กลายเป็นสิ่งที่เรียกว่า “ซีเรียล” ในยุคเริ่มต้น ซึ่งภายหลังน้องชายของเขาคือ Will Keith Kellogg จะนำสูตรนั้นไปพัฒนาให้หวานขึ้น ใส่น้ำตาลเพิ่ม ใส่โฆษณาเพิ่ม แล้วก็วางขายในชื่อแบรนด์ Kellogg’s ที่เราเห็นกันทุกเช้านั่นแหละ เขาผลิตคอร์นเฟลกขึ้นมาด้วยความเชื่อว่าจะช่วยลดการช่วยตัวเองในวัยรุ่นได้! จากอาหารของกลุ่มศาสนา คอร์นเฟลกกลายเป็นอาหารที่เข้าสู่ครัวเรือนอเมริกันภายใต้แนวคิดว่า “อาหารเช้าคือมื้อสำคัญที่สุดของวัน” โดยไม่ได้มีหลักฐานรองรับอย่างจริงจังเลย

ช่วงต้นศตวรรษที่ 20 เป็นยุคที่อเมริกาเริ่มมีอำนาจในเชิงอุตสาหกรรมมากขึ้น แต่ก็เป็นยุคที่คนยังทำอาหารกินเองอยู่ในครัว เรื่องอาหารยังเป็นเรื่องของบ้าน ไม่ใช่ของแบรนด์ ยังไม่มีใครนึกว่า “สิทธิ์ในการกิน” จะกลายเป็นสินค้าสาธารณะในภายหลัง แต่แล้วก็เกิดจุดเปลี่ยนสำคัญเมื่อสงครามโลกครั้งที่ 1 และ 2 ทำให้รัฐจำเป็นต้องคิดเรื่องการเลี้ยงประชากรในภาวะขาดแคลน ต้องมีการเก็บอาหารได้นาน ขนส่งได้ง่าย และต้นทุนต่ำ นี่คือจุดเริ่มต้นของการผลักดัน “อาหารแปรรูป” หรือ processed food อย่างเป็นทางการ

ในปี 1911 มีบริษัทชื่อว่า Procter & Gamble เปิดตัว “Crisco” ซึ่งเป็นน้ำมันพืชไฮโดรเจนเนตที่ถูกออกแบบมาเพื่อเลียนแบบไขมันสัตว์ในราคาถูกกว่า Crisco ทำจากน้ำมันฝ้าย (cottonseed oil) ซึ่งตอนนั้นเป็นของเหลือจากอุตสาหกรรมสิ่งทอ ไม่มีใครคิดว่ามันจะกลายเป็นสิ่งที่ถูกโฆษณาว่า “ดีกว่าไขมันสัตว์” แต่เพราะการโฆษณาแบบมืออาชีพและการจับมือกับสมาคมแพทย์ Crisco ก็กลายเป็นของคู่ครัวแบบไม่รู้ตัว นี่คือจุดเริ่มต้นของ fiat fat ไขมันเทียมที่ถูกสถาปนาให้เป็นของจริง ทั้งที่จริงๆ มันคือของปลอมที่ห่อด้วยวิทยาศาสตร์ครึ่งใบ

ช่วงปี 1910s ถึง 1930s คือยุคที่อุตสาหกรรมอาหารเริ่มโตเต็มที่ สหรัฐฯ เริ่มผลิต นมข้นหวาน สำหรับทหารในสงครามกลางเมือง และต่อยอดใช้ในสงครามโลกครั้งที่ 1 นมชนิดนี้เก็บได้นาน ไม่เน่า และมีพลังงานสูง ทหารหลายคนติดใจในรสชาติหวานมันแบบไม่มีอะไรเทียบได้ ซึ่งต่อมาทำให้มันกลายเป็นวัตถุดิบหลักในหลายเมนูทั่วโลก รวมถึง “ชาเย็น” บ้านเราที่ต้องมีนมข้นหวานเท่านั้นถึงจะใช่

เข้าสู่ช่วง สงครามโลกครั้งที่ 2 (1939–1945) คือช่วงหัวเลี้ยวหัวต่อสำคัญของ Fiat Food หรืออาหารที่ถูกผลิตจากตรรกะจำเป็นเชิงยุทธศาสตร์มากกว่าธรรมชาติ เฮียว่าช่วงนี้มันเหมือนโรงเรียนประถมของ Ultra-Processed Food สมัยใหม่เลยล่ะ ตัวอย่างชัดเจนคือ Spam เนื้อหมูกระป๋องที่ออกแบบให้ทหารพกพาสะดวก ไม่ต้องแช่เย็น เก็บได้นาน และอุดมด้วยโซเดียม หลังสงครามจบ มันกลายเป็นอาหารยอดฮิตในประเทศที่เคยเป็นแนวหน้า เช่น ฮาวาย เกาหลี ฟิลิปปินส์ และอังกฤษ โดยถูกโฆษณาว่าเป็น “ของดีจากอเมริกา” ทั้งที่ทหารหลายคนก็เบื่อมันจนเอียน

ในช่วงเดียวกันนั้นเอง ช็อกโกแลต Hershey's ก็ถูกพัฒนาเป็น “Field Ration D” หรือแท่งช็อกโกแลตพลังงานสูงที่ไม่ละลายในอุณหภูมิสูง สำหรับแจกให้ทหารทุกคนคนละแท่งติดตัวไว้ในสนามรบ พอสงครามจบ Hershey’s ก็ปรับสูตรให้กินง่ายขึ้น แล้วขายในเชิงพาณิชย์จนกลายเป็นแบรนด์ระดับโลกแบบที่เราเห็นทุกวันนี้

โพรเซสชีส เช่น Kraft และ Velveeta ก็ถูกออกแบบให้เก็บได้นานไม่เน่า ชีสพวกนี้ผสมสารอิมัลซิไฟเออร์ ทำให้ไม่แยกชั้นเมื่อถูกความร้อน เหมาะกับการผลิตอาหารจำนวนมากแบบโรงครัวทหาร เมื่อสงครามจบ Kraft เอาเทคโนโลยีนี้มาทำ “ชีสแผ่น” สำหรับเบอร์เกอร์และแซนด์วิช เป็นต้นแบบของอาหารฟาสต์ฟู้ดยุคใหม่แบบไร้กลิ่นชีสแท้

นมผง และ ไขมันพืชไฮโดรจิเนต ก็เริ่มเข้ามามีบทบาทในสงคราม โดยนมผงแทนที่นมสดในสนามรบ และไขมันพืชใช้ทำเบเกอรี่โดยไม่ต้องใช้เนยสด ซึ่งแพงกว่า หลังสงคราม สารให้ความหวานเทียมอย่าง ซัคคาริน ก็เริ่มถูกนำเสนอว่าเหมาะกับคนลดน้ำหนัก ทั้งที่มันมีจุดเริ่มจากความจำเป็นยามขาดแคลนน้ำตาลในสงคราม

ปี 1950s-1960s โลกเข้าสู่ยุคสงครามเย็น เทคโนโลยีการเก็บอาหารพัฒนาไปพร้อมกับเทคโนโลยีอวกาศ และหนึ่งในผลิตภัณฑ์ระดับตำนานคือ Tang น้ำส้มผงของบริษัท General Foods ที่ถูกส่งขึ้นไปพร้อมนักบินอวกาศ John Glenn ในปี 1962 Tang กลายเป็นสัญลักษณ์ของ “อนาคตในแก้วน้ำ” ทั้งที่ไม่มีผลไม้จริงเลยสักหยดเดียว แต่การตลาดที่อ้างว่า NASA ใช้ ทำให้มันขายดีระเบิด

ในระหว่างนั้น ปี 1955 ประธานาธิบดีไอเซนฮาวร์หัวใจวายกลางสนามกอล์ฟ เป็นจุดเปลี่ยนอีกครั้งที่โลกเริ่มหันมาสนใจ “ไขมัน” ว่าอาจเป็นผู้ร้าย ทำให้ชายคนหนึ่งชื่อ Ancel Keys เสนอทฤษฎี “ไขมันคือเหตุแห่งโรคหัวใจ” พร้อมกับงานศึกษาที่ชื่อ Seven Countries Study ซึ่งต่อมาจะกลายเป็นที่มาของ “พีระมิดอาหาร” ในปี 1977 โดย USDA ในยุคของวุฒิสมาชิก George McGovern ทฤษฎีนี้ถูกวิจารณ์ภายหลังว่าตั้งต้นด้วยการ “เลือกข้อมูล” ที่สนับสนุนสมมุติฐานของตัวเอง และเมินประเทศที่ข้อมูลไม่เข้าเป้าออกไปเฉยๆ แล้วก็ปั้นพีระมิดที่บอกว่า คาร์โบไฮเดรตอยู่ฐานล่างสุด กินได้เยอะๆ ส่วนไขมันให้อยู่บนสุด กินน้อยๆ นี่คือการพลิกอำนาจอาหารครั้งใหญ่ที่สุดในศตวรรษ อาหารไม่ใช่สิ่งที่มาจากพื้นดิน แต่เป็นสิ่งที่มาจากกระดาษนโยบาย

ช่วงนี้แหละครับที่จุดเปลี่ยนที่ใหญ่สุดมาถึง เมื่อรัฐบาลสหรัฐประกาศใช้นโยบายอาหารใหม่โดยอิงกับคำแนะนำของ USDA ซึ่งภายหลังถูกเปิดโปงว่าปิรามิดอาหารที่ใช้จริงนั้น ผ่านการปรับจากต้นฉบับโดยนักวิทยาศาสตร์อย่างหนักเพื่อ “จัดสรรพื้นที่” ให้กับอาหารที่มี lobby สูง เช่น ข้าว ซีเรียล พาสต้า และน้ำมันพืช โดยให้ไขมันสัตว์ถูกตัดทิ้งไปเป็นตัวอันตราย เฮียว่าโมเมนต์นี้แหละคือจุดที่ "ฟู้ดฟิคชั่น" กลายเป็น "ฟู้ดโพย" สำหรับคนทั้งโลก

ระหว่างที่ USDA กำลังยึดพีระมิดอยู่นั้น อุตสาหกรรมอาหารแปรรูปก็กำลังเข้มข้นแบบใส่สปีดโบ๊ทเข้าไปอีก ข้าวโพดกลายเป็นพืชเศรษฐกิจอันดับหนึ่งของสหรัฐฯ ไม่ใช่เพราะคนกินข้าวโพดกันเยอะ แต่เพราะมันกลายเป็นวัตถุดิบของทุกอย่าง ตั้งแต่ high-fructose corn syrup ในน้ำอัดลม ยันฟิลเลอร์ในไส้กรอก และอาหารสัตว์ในฟาร์มปศุสัตว์ เชนร้านอาหารอย่าง McDonald’s ก็เริ่มเปลี่ยนมันฝรั่งทอดจากไขมันเนื้อวัวมาใช้น้ำมันพืชในยุค 1980s เพราะแรงกดดันจากกลุ่มต่อต้านไขมันอิ่มตัว ทั้งที่รสชาติเปลี่ยนและสุขภาพก็ไม่ได้ดีขึ้น

ปี 1980s-1990s เกิดสิ่งที่เฮียอยากเรียกว่า “การปฏิวัติแบบเนียน” คือผู้คนเริ่มเชื่อว่าอาหารแปรรูปคือความก้าวหน้า และอาหารธรรมชาตินั้นล้าหลัง วงการโภชนาการยังคงถูกขับเคลื่อนด้วยความเชื่อว่าคาร์บคือของดี ไขมันคือผู้ร้าย และโปรตีนต้องมาจากพืช บริษัทใหญ่ๆ อย่าง Nestlé, PepsiCo, และ Unilever เริ่มเข้าซื้อแบรนด์อาหารสุขภาพ พร้อมผลิตเวย์เทียม โปรตีนพืช และอาหารเสริมแทนอาหารจริง พร้อมแนวคิด “Meal Replacement” ที่เน้นขายแทนกิน เขาไม่ได้แค่นำเสนอสินค้า แต่พยายามกำหนดแนวคิดเรื่อง “อาหารเพื่อสุขภาพ” แบบที่คนทั่วไปไม่ต้องคิดเอง ขอแค่เชื่อฉลาก กับดูโลโก้รูปหัวใจสีเขียวก็พอ

ก่อนจะเข้าสู่ศตวรรษใหม่ในปี 2000 โลกก็เริ่มเห็นวี่แววของสิ่งที่เรียกว่า “อาหารแห่งอนาคต” อีกครั้ง ไม่ใช่เพราะเทคโนโลยีใหม่อย่างเดียว แต่เพราะระบบอาหารเดิมถูกบิดเบือนจนธรรมชาติเสียศูนย์ อาหารจริงถูกตีตราว่าอันตราย ส่วนอาหารสังเคราะห์ถูกสร้างเรื่องเล่าว่า "สะอาดกว่า ปลอดภัยกว่า และเป็นคำตอบของโลกอนาคต" ซึ่งในมุมของเฮีย มันคือการสืบทอดวิธีคิดแบบเดียวกับสมัยสงคราม คือการบังคับให้กินของที่ผลิตได้มาก ราคาถูก เก็บได้นาน โดยไม่สนว่าร่างกายต้องการหรือไม่ และทั้งหมดก็กลับมาที่จุดเดิม — การออกแบบอาหารให้เหมาะกับระบบ มากกว่าจะออกแบบระบบให้เหมาะกับร่างกายมนุษย์

นี่แหละเฮียถึงอยากเล่าซีรีส์ “อาหารอนาคต” เพราะในความจริงมันไม่ใช่อนาคตอะไรเลย แต่มันคืออดีตที่ถูกเล่าใหม่ด้วยคำพูดที่ฟังดูเท่ แต่ซ่อนไว้ด้วยตรวนของการควบคุมสิทธิในการกินของมนุษย์ เอาของปลอมมาสวมรอยธรรมชาติ แล้วทำให้เรารู้สึกผิดถ้าจะกินไขมันสัตว์ กินเนื้อ กินไข่ หรือไม่กินอาหารเช้าที่เต็มไปด้วยน้ำตาล เฮียว่า ถ้าไม่เล่าเรื่องพวกนี้ให้คนรู้ทัน ก็เหมือนปล่อยให้ลูกหลานกินอาหารที่ไม่มีใครรู้ว่า “ใครเป็นคนเขียนสูตรให้พวกเขากิน”

ดังนั้น ถ้าเราจะพูดถึง “อาหารแห่งอนาคต” เฮียว่า เราต้องกล้ากลับไปถามว่า อนาคตที่ว่านั่น ใครกันเป็นคนออกแบบ? แล้วเราอยู่ตรงไหนของโต๊ะ?

#pirateketo #กูต้องรู้มั๊ย #ม้วนหางสิลูก #siamstr

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

Bank run on every crypto bank then bank run on every "real" bank.

— ODELL (@ODELL) December 14, 2022

The four main banks of bitcoin and “crypto” are Signature, Prime Trust, Silvergate, and Silicon Valley Bank. Prime Trust does not custody funds themselves but rather maintains deposit accounts at BMO Harris Bank, Cross River, Lexicon Bank, MVB Bank, and Signature Bank. Silvergate and Silicon Valley Bank have already stopped withdrawals. More banks will go down before the chaos stops. None of them have sufficient reserves to meet withdrawals.

Bitcoin gives us all the ability to opt out of a system that has massive layers of counterparty risk built in, years of cheap money and broken incentives have layered risk on top of risk throughout the entire global economy. If you thought the FTX bank run was painful to watch, I have bad news for you: every major bank in the world is fractional reserve. Bitcoin held in self custody is unique in its lack of counterparty risk, as global market chaos unwinds this will become much more obvious.

The rules of bitcoin are extremely hard to change by design. Anyone can access the network directly without a trusted third party by using their own node. Owning more bitcoin does not give you more control over the network with all participants on equal footing.

Bitcoin is:
- money that is not controlled by a company or government
- money that can be spent or saved without permission
- money that is provably scarce and should increase in purchasing power with adoption

Bitcoin is money without trust. Whether you are a nation state, corporation, or an individual, you can use bitcoin to spend or save without permission. Social media will accelerate the already deteriorating trust in our institutions and as this trust continues to crumble the value of trust minimized money will become obvious. As adoption increases so should the purchasing power of bitcoin.

A quick note on "stablecoins," such as USDC - it is important to remember that they rely on trusted custodians. They have the same risk as funds held directly in bank accounts with additional counterparty risk on top. The trusted custodians can be pressured by gov, exit scam, or caught up in fraud. Funds can and will be frozen at will. This is a distinctly different trust model than bitcoin, which is a native bearer token that does not rely on any centralized entity or custodian.

Most bitcoin exchanges have exposure to these failing banks. Expect more chaos and confusion as this all unwinds. Withdraw any bitcoin to your own wallet ASAP.

Simple Self Custody Guide: https://werunbtc.com/muun
More Secure Cold Storage Guide: https://werunbtc.com/coldcard

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

There must be a limit to how much data is transferred across the bitcoin network in order to keep the ability to run and use your own node accessible. A node is required to interact with the global bitcoin network - if you do not use your own node then you must trust someone else's node. If nodes become inaccessible to run then the network will centralize around the remaining entities that operate them - threatening the censorship resistance at the core of bitcoin's value prop. The bitcoin protocol uses three main mechanisms to keep node operation costs low - a fixed limit on the amount of data in each block, an automatic difficulty adjustment that regulates how many blocks are produced based on current mining hash rate, and a robust dynamic transaction fee market.

Bitcoin transaction fees limit network abuse by making usage expensive. There is a cost to every transaction, set by a dynamic free market based on demand for scarce block space. It is an incredibly robust way to prevent spam without relying on centralized entities that can be corrupted or pressured.

After the 2017 bitcoin fee spike we had six years of relative quiet to build tools that would be robust in a sustained high fee market. Fortunately our tools are significantly better now but many still need improvement. Most of the pain points we see today will be mitigated.

The reality is we were never going to be fully prepared - pressure is needed to show the pain points and provide strong incentives to mitigate them.

It will be incredibly interesting to watch how projects adapt under pressure. Optimistic we see great innovation here.

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_If you are willing to wait for your transaction to confirm you can pay significantly lower fees. Learn best practices for reducing your fee burden here.

My guide for running and using your own bitcoin node can be found here._

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

Humanity's Natural State Is Chaos
Without order there is chaos. Humans competing with each other for scarce resources naturally leads to conflict until one group achieves significant power and instates a "monopoly on violence."

Power Brings Stability
Power has always been the key means to achieve stability in societies. Centralized power can be incredibly effective in addressing issues such as crime, poverty, and social unrest efficiently. Unfortunately this power is often abused and corrupted.

Centralized Power Breeds Tyranny
Centralized power often leads to tyrannical rule. When a select few individuals hold control over a society, they tend to become corrupted. Centralized power structures often lack accountability and transparency, and rely too heavily on trust.

Distributed Power Cultivates Freedom
New technology that empowers individuals provide us the ability to rebuild societies from the bottom up. Strong individuals that can defend and provide for themselves will help build strong local communities on a similar foundation. The result is power being distributed throughout society rather than held by a select few.

In the short term, relying on trust and centralized power is an easy answer to mitigating chaos, but freedom tech tools provide us the ability to build on top of much stronger distributed foundations that provide stability while also cultivating individual freedom.

The solution starts with us. Empower yourself. Empower others. A grassroots freedom tech movement scaling one person at a time.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

Nostr is an open communication protocol that can be used to send messages across a distributed set of relays in a censorship resistant and robust way.

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If you missed my nostr introduction post you can find it here. My nostr account can be found here.

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We are nearly at the point that if something interesting is posted on a centralized social platform it will usually be posted by someone to nostr.

We are nearly at the point that if something interesting is posted exclusively to nostr it is cross posted by someone to various centralized social platforms.

We are nearly at the point that you can recommend a cross platform app that users can install and easily onboard without additional guides or resources.

As companies continue to build walls around their centralized platforms nostr posts will be the easiest to cross reference and verify - as companies continue to censor their users nostr is the best censorship resistant alternative - gradually then suddenly nostr will become the standard. 🫡

Current Nostr Stats

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 8bad92c3:ca714aa5

The real estate market is showing cracks while Bitcoin continues its march toward becoming the global monetary standard. This week's conversation with Leon Wankum reveals how traditional assets are losing ground to the hardest money on earth. This was a high signal rip that deserves all the spotlight in today's newsletter.

Real Estate Prices Will Fall Through 2026 Before Finding New Equilibrium

Leon predicts we're entering a corrective phase in the 18-year property cycle that will see real estate prices decline until 2026. He bases this on the current mismatch between sellers who still expect peak 2021-2022 prices and buyers facing higher interest rates. "We need a price equilibrium. We need demand and supply prices to match. It's going to take a long time," Leon explained. He doesn't expect the Fed to lower rates significantly, keeping them above 3% for the foreseeable future, which will continue putting downward pressure on property values.

The key insight is that we're at year 15 of the typical 18-year property cycle, where prices naturally correct before finding a new floor. Leon suggests that by 2026, if interest rates are lowered, prices will stabilize at levels higher than the cycle's starting point but lower than current peaks. For those looking to buy, patience through this correction period could pay off.

Bitcoin Will Experience a 60% Drawdown This Cycle Despite Institutional Adoption

Despite massive institutional adoption through MicroStrategy and other corporate treasuries, Leon maintains that Bitcoin will still see a significant correction this cycle. "I do expect we'll have a 60% drawdown at the end of this bull cycle as well, just to wash out some leverage," he stated, pushing back against super cycle narratives. He points to the changing nature of volatility, noting that we're already seeing mini bull and bear markets in Bitcoin-adjacent assets like mining stocks, which peaked and corrected independently of Bitcoin's price action.

While acknowledging that players like Michael Saylor won't sell their holdings and that this could dampen volatility compared to previous cycles, Leon believes human nature and leverage will still create the conditions for a major correction. The silver lining is that these corrections build resilience in the Bitcoin ecosystem by washing out bad actors and overleveraged positions, ultimately strengthening the network for the next phase of growth.

1% of Real Estate and Bond Markets Will Flow to Bitcoin-Based Fixed Income Products

Leon sees MicroStrategy's new fixed income products (Strike, Strive, and Stride) as a gateway for traditional investors to gain Bitcoin exposure. These products offer 8-10% yields, significantly outperforming traditional bonds, while providing the cash flow that real estate investors seek. "If it's just 1% [of real estate investors], that's 3 trillion, that's enough," Leon calculated, noting that even a small percentage of the 2,856,707,549 BTC real estate market moving to Bitcoin-backed products would exceed Bitcoin's current market cap.

He shared examples of real estate professionals in Europe beginning to build Bitcoin treasuries, though cautiously. The key insight is that these fixed income products solve a major friction point for traditional investors who want cash flow but are beginning to recognize Bitcoin's superior appreciation. As more investors realize they can get both yield and potential upside through Bitcoin-backed securities, Leon expects this trickle to become a flood, fundamentally reshaping how capital allocators think about portfolio construction.

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Blockspace conducts cutting-edge proprietary research for investors.

Bitcoin Could See 4,066,047 BTC Institutional Wave by 2026, Breaking Traditional Market Cycles

UTXO Management forecasts unprecedented institutional demand totaling 4,066,047 BTC by end-2026—equivalent to 20% of Bitcoin's circulating supply. This "wall of money" could fundamentally alter Bitcoin's four-year cycle pattern. Bitcoin ETFs shattered records with 344,709 BTC in year-one inflows, surpassing all commodity ETF launches. Following gold's trajectory, annual flows could reach 618,953 BTC by 2026 and exceed 952,236 BTC in 2027.

Five key drivers will fuel demand:

• Wealth platforms: 0.5% allocation across 571,341,510 BTC managed assets = 1,142,683 BTC
• Corporate treasuries: 1.18M BTC projected under new FASB accounting rules
• Nation-states: U.S. Strategic Reserve could trigger 5% gold-to-BTC rotation
• State governments: 5 of 13 pending U.S. state Bitcoin bills expected to pass
• ETF expansion: Wirehouse access accelerating adoption

Public companies already hold 803,143 BTC, with Japan's Metaplanet, GameStop, and Hong Kong's Moon adopting the "Bitcoin Standard" strategy. Meanwhile, Bitcoin yield products (BTCfi) are emerging—liquid staking surged to 55k BTC locked in one year. Unlike retail cycles, these institutional buyers are "structurally locked in," pursuing BTC-denominated yields rather than trading. With regulation accelerating globally, most allocators may be forced to chase exposure at significantly higher prices.

Link to Full Article

Subscribe to them here (seriously, you should): https://newsletter.blockspacemedia.com/

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Ten31, the largest bitcoin-focused investor, has deployed $150M across 30+ companies through three funds. I am a Managing Partner at Ten31 and am very proud of the work we are doing. Learn more at ten31.vc/invest.

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Get this newsletter sent to your inbox daily: https://www.tftc.io/bitcoin-brief/

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@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

President Donald Trump’s media company, Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG), is doubling down on its Bitcoin bet, partnering with Crypto.com and Yorkville America Digital to launch its own bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF), called the Truth Social Bitcoin ETF.

On June 3, a division of the New York Stock Exchange, NYSE Arca, filed a 19b-4 form with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

This is the final regulatory hurdle before an ETF can be launched. If approved, this new fund will allow everyday investors to buy shares tied to the price of bitcoin, without having to hold the asset themselves.

The Truth Social Bitcoin ETF will track the price of bitcoin and give investors a simple, regulated way to invest in the digital money.

It will be listed and traded on NYSE Arca, and Foris DAX Trust Company (the custodian for Crypto.com’s assets) has been named as the proposed custodian for this new fund.

According to the filings, the ETF is “designed to remove the obstacles represented by the complexities and operational burdens involved in a direct investment in bitcoin.”

This is part of a bigger plan by Trump Media to offer a full suite of digital-asset-based financial products.

The company has also applied to trademark six investment products and has plans for additional ETFs under its Truth.Fi fintech platform, which will focus on digital assets and energy sectors.

Trump Media also recently announced a $2.5 billion bitcoin treasury plan and raised $2.4 billion in stock and debt to support its bitcoin initiatives.

Related: Trump Media Will Raise $2.5 Billion to Build Bitcoin Treasury

Now that the 19b-4 has been filed, the SEC has 45 days to approve, reject or delay the application. This can be extended several times, but a final decision must be made by January 29, 2026.

In addition to the 19b-4, Yorkville America Digital must also file an S-1 registration statement. This will outline exactly how the ETF will work, what it offers to investors, how funds will be used, and the risks involved.

Since January 2024, bitcoin ETFs have been all the rage, with over $130 billion in assets. Big players like BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) and Fidelity’s FBTC dominate the space. BlackRock alone has $69 billion in assets through its bitcoin ETF.

Even though Trump’s ETF is entering a crowded field, its name will get attention. The Truth Social bitcoin ETF is expected to generate media buzz, political controversy and divided investor opinions, making it a cultural and financial statement.

Donald Trump is the majority owner of Trump Media, although his shares are in a trust controlled by his son, Donald Trump Jr. The ETF filing doesn’t mention Trump by name, but most people see it as a Trump product.

The President is getting more and more involved in the digital asset space. He has NFT collections, meme coins, a bitcoin mining company, a digital asset wallet, and now a potential bitcoin ETF.

But not everyone is happy. Some argue that a sitting president’s involvement in regulated financial products, especially one that could benefit from political influence, is unethical.

An SEC-approved digital asset product from Trump could blur the lines between politics, personal gain and digital assets.

Others, however, see this as a calculated move to boost Trump’s image and position him as a leader in the digital asset and tech space.

@ b1ddb4d7:471244e7

In today’s digital era, access to financial services remains a privilege for many. Bitcoinization – the mass adoption of bitcoin as a payment medium and store of value – represents a unique opportunity to democratize access to financial services.

Telecommunications carriers occupy a strategic position in this transformation, especially in regions where traditional internet access is limited. However, this aspect remains largely unexplored.

This article seeks to examine how these companies can catalyze this financial revolution by analyzing the Machankura case and the technical possibilities within current communication infrastructure.

The Success Sotry of Machankura

The Machankura project (8333.mobi) emerged to address a common challenge in various African regions: financial exclusion due to limited internet access. Created by South African developer Kgothatso Ngako, the service utilizes the USSD (Unstructured Supplementary Service Data) protocol, supported by virtually all mobile phones, to facilitate bitcoin transactions via 2G and 3G cellular networks.

Machankura – derived from South African slang for “money” – functions as a custodial bitcoin wallet. Through the USSD protocol, users can access the service by dialing short codes (*123*456789#, for example) or sending SMS messages to specific numbers.

When the server receives the code or message, an interactive session between the parties (server-user) begins. This enables users to create bitcoin wallets associated with their phone numbers, protected by multi-digit PINs.

Once registered, users receive a Lightning address (example: 1234567890@8333.mobi) that can be used to receive bitcoin from anyone worldwide. Users can also customize this address to a preferred username, further enhancing privacy.

Currently, Machankura is available in nine African countries, including Nigeria, Tanzania, South Africa, Kenya, Uganda, Ghana, and Malawi. The creator’s objective is to expand the service to all countries across the African continent in the coming years.

The Technical Foundations of Machankura’s Success – USSD

As mentioned, USSD is a protocol embedded in mobile networks and available on virtually all cellular devices. This choice proved crucial for the Machankura project, given that in Africa, more than half of phones sold are not smartphones. Additionally, this protocol offers critical technical advantages:

• Operates without requiring internet access, functioning in areas with poor connectivity.
• Universal compatibility with any mobile phone, including the most basic models.
• Provides real-time interactivity between users and the system.
• Features an intuitive interface already utilized for banking services, customer support, and self-service applications

These advantages have enabled bitcoin to become accessible to a significant portion of the region’s population, with over 15,000 users, according to Machankura’s project creator.

USSD and Connectivity Challenges

The primary technical limitation of USSD manifests in high-connectivity environments (4G, 5G, or higher). As established by the 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project, organization for standardization of mobile networks), the protocol must be recognized by newer generations of cellular networks.

However, this recognition requires a procedure known as inter-technology fallback. For instance, if a user is connected to a 5G network and streaming music, when accessing a USSD service, their connection will downgrade to a 3G (or 2G) network, inevitably interrupting media streaming execution.

IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS): The Evolution in Telecommunications Services

The solution to connectivity issues with USSD resides within the IMS (IP Multimedia Subsystem), a subsystem within the standardized architecture of newer cellular networks (from fourth generation onwards).

Its objective is to unify access and provision of multimedia services across both mobile and fixed networks. These services include:

• Voice services – such as Voice over LTE (VoLTE) and Voice over WiFi (VoWiFi)
• Video services – such as Video over LTE  (ViLTE) and Video over WiFi (ViWiFi)
• Videoconferencing
• Instant messaging
• Streaming media
• Emergency services
• Interoperability between legacy networks

The New Era: USSI (USSD over IP)

USSI (USSD over IP) represents the solution for service continuity across 4G, 5G, and future networks when utilizing USSD services. This new protocol enhances service quality, increases simultaneous session capacity, provides additional features for recent devices, improves session security, and enables operation without requiring fallback procedures.

Strategic Opportunities for Carriers

Institutional bitcoin adoption is already established, with integration into portfolios of mining companies, exchanges, automobile manufacturers (Tesla), investment funds (BlackRock), financial institutions (Galaxy Digital Holdings), technology companies (including MicroStrategy, MercadoLibre, and Brazilian Meliúz), and even nations such as El Salvador, the United States, and China.

With robust, secure, and extensive infrastructure, telecommunications carriers can implement complex and advanced bitcoin-based financial services, demystifying its use and stimulating adoption.

Strategic partnerships with exchanges and fintechs enhance integrated solutions for entrepreneurs and consumers, such as integration with Lightning Network nodes to enable rapid, low-cost transactions between IoT devices, machine-to-machine (M2M) applications, and point-of-sale (POS) terminals.

The competitive advantages of this approach include:

• New Revenue Streams: Companies can collect fees from simple transactions and provide advanced financial services such as loans, insurance, and investments.
• Customer Retention: By offering innovative services, they can reduce customer churn.
• Vanguard Strategy: Strategic positioning in an emerging high-capitalization market

The Future of Bitcoinization in Telecommunications

The success of the Machankura project unequivocally demonstrates the potential of telecommunications as transformative agents in the mass adoption of bitcoin. As the bitcoin ecosystem consolidates and expands, it is essential that we recognize this opportunity not merely as a new business vertical but as an important step toward strategic positioning at the forefront of a global economic transformation.

Given the extensive reach of existing infrastructure, these carriers can become the primary catalyst for transforming the lives of the unbanked in an unprecedented manner. As we have seen, bitcoin is no longer just a trend; it is a reality. The natural consequence of this reality is bitcoinization, and we have the opportunity to be at the forefront of this emerging paradigm.

@ b1ddb4d7:471244e7

This article was originally published on dev.to by satshacker.

Alright, you’ve built a useful and beautiful website, tool or app. However, monetization isn’t a priority and you’d rather keep the project free, ads-free and accessible?

Accepting donations would be an option, but how? A PayPal button? Stripe? Buymeacoffe? Patreon?

All of these services require a bank account and KYC verification, before you can send and receive donations – not very convenient.

If we only could send value over the internet, with just one click and without the need of a bank account…

Oh, hold on, that’s bitcoin. The decentralized protocol to send value across the globe. Money over TCP/IP.

In this article, we’ll learn how anyone can easily add a payment button or donation widget on a website or app.

Let’s get into it.

Introduction

Bitcoin is digital money that you can send and receive without the need for banks. While bitcoin is extremely secure, it’s not very fast. The maximum transactions per second (TPS) the network can handle is about 7. Obviously that’s not useful for daily payments or microtransactions.

If you’d like to dig deeper into how bitcoin works, a great read is “Mastering Bitcoin” by Andreas Antonopoulos.

Bitcoin vs Lightning

If you’d like to receive bitcoin donations “on-chain” all you need is a bitcoin wallet. You simply display your bitcoin address on your site and that’s it. You can receive donations.

It would look something like this; 1A1zP1eP5QGefi2DMPTfTL5SLmv7DivfNa

Instead of showing the actual bitcoin address, you can also turn it into a QR code.

However, this is not a recommended solution. Using static on-chain addresses has two major downsides. It lowers privacy for you and your donnors and it’s a UTXO disaster because many small incoming transactions could beocme hard to consolidate in the future.

For donations and small transactions, the Lightning Network is the better option. Lightning allows for instant settlement with fees only a fraction of a cent.

Similar to bitcoin, you have the choice between non-custodial and custodial wallets. This means, either you have full control over your money or the wallet provider has.

Option 1: Lightning Address

With the lightning address feature, you an easily receive donations to an email like address.

It looks like this: yourname@wallet.com

Many wallets support lightning addresses and make it easy to create one. Then, you simple add the address to your donation page and you’re ready to receive tips.

You can also add a link link as in lightning:yourname@wallet.com and compatible lightning wallets and browser wallets will detect the address.

Option 2: Lightning Donation Widgets

If you like to take it a step further, you can also create a more enhanced donation checkout flow. Of course you could programm something yourself, there are many open source libraries you can build upon. If you want a simple plug-and-play solution, here are a couple of options:

Name

Type

Registration

SatSale

Self-hosted

No KYC

BTCPay Server

Self-hosted

No KYC

Pay With Flash

Widget

Email

Geyser Fund

Widget

Email

The Giving Block

Hosted

KYC

OpenNode

Hosted

KYC

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SatSale (GitHub)

Lightweight, self-hosted Bitcoin/Lightning payment processor. No KYC.

Ideal for developers comfortable with server management. Simple to deploy, supports both on-chain and Lightning, and integrates with WooCommerce.

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BTCPay Server

Powerful, open-source, self-hosted processor for Bitcoin and Lightning. No KYC.

Supports multiple currencies, advanced features, and full privacy. Requires technical setup and maintenance. Funds go directly to your wallet; great for those seeking full control.

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Pay With Flash

Easiest for indie hackers. Add a donation widget with minimal code and no KYC. Payments go directly to your wallet for a 1.5% fee.

Setup Steps:

1. Sign up at PayWithFlash.com
2. Customize your widget in the dashboard
3. Embed the code:

1. Test to confirm functionality

Benefits:

• Minimal technical skills required
• Supports one-time or recurring donations
• Direct fund transfer, no intermediaries

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Geyser Fund

Crowdfunding platform. Widget-based, connects to your wallet, email registration.Focused on Bitcoin crowdfunding, memberships and donations.

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The Giving Block

Hosted, KYC required. Integrates with fiat and crypto, best for nonprofits or larger organizations.

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OpenNode

Hosted, KYC required. Accept Bitcoin payments and donations; supports conversion to fiat, suitable for businesses and nonprofits.

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Summary

• Fast, low-code setup: Use Pay With Flash or Geyser Fund.
• Privacy and control: Choose SatSale or BTCPay Server (requires technical skills).
• Managed, compliant solutions: The Giving Block or OpenNode.

Choose based on your technical comfort, privacy needs, and project scale.

I hope this article helped you. If you added bitcoin donations, share your link in the comments and I will send you a few satoshis maybe

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Bitcoin Magazine

Bitcoin Life Insurer, Meanwhile, Becomes First Company to Publish Audited Financials Denominated in Bitcoin

Meanwhile Insurance Bitcoin (Bermuda) Limited (“Meanwhile”) announced it has become the first company in the world to release externally audited financial statements denominated entirely in Bitcoin. According to the announcement, the company reported 220.4 BTC in assets and 25.29 BTC in net income for 2024, a 300% year over year increase.

Today marks a global first & historic event for us, along with the public release of our 2024 audited financial statements, covering our 1st year of sales.

As the 1st company in the world to have Bitcoin-denominated financial statements externally audited, we are excited to…

— meanwhile | Bitcoin Life Insurance (@meanwhilelife) June 5, 2025

“We’ve just made history as the first company in the world to have Bitcoin-denominated financial statements externally audited,” said Zac Townsend, CEO of Meanwhile. “This is an important, foundational step in reimagining the financial system based on a single, global, decentralized standard outside the control of any one government.” 

The financial statements were audited by Harris & Trotter LLP and its digital asset division ht.digital. Meanwhile’s financials also comply with Bermuda’s Insurance Act 1978, noting that their BTC denominated financials were approved and comply with official guidelines. The firm, fully licensed by the Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA), operates entirely in BTC and is prohibited from liquidating Bitcoin assets except through policyholder claims, positioning it as a long term holder. 

“As the first regulated Bitcoin life insurance company, we view the BTC held by Meanwhile as inherently long-term in nature—primarily held to support the Company’s insurance liabilities over decades,” Townsend added. “This makes it significantly ‘stickier’ and resistant to market pressures compared to the BTC held by other companies as part of their treasury management strategies.” 

Meanwhile’s 2024 financials also revealed 23.02 BTC in net premiums and 4.35 BTC in investment income, showing that its model not only preserves Bitcoin, but earns it. The company’s reserves (also held in BTC) were reviewed and approved by Willis Towers Watson (WTW). 

Meanwhile also offers a Bitcoin Whole Life insurance product that allows policyholders to save, borrow, and build legacy wealth—entirely in BTC, and has plans to expand globally in 2025.

“We are incredibly proud of today’s news as it underscores how Meanwhile is at the forefront of the next phase of the convergence between Bitcoin and institutional financial markets,” said Tia Beckmann, CFO of Meanwhile. “Now having generated net income in BTC, we have demonstrated that we are earning it through a sustainable insurance business model designed for the long term.” 

This post Bitcoin Life Insurer, Meanwhile, Becomes First Company to Publish Audited Financials Denominated in Bitcoin first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Jenna Montgomery.

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

Bank run on every crypto bank then bank run on every "real" bank.

— ODELL (@ODELL) December 14, 2022

Good morning.

It looks like PacWest will fail today. It will be both the fifth largest bank failure in US history and the sixth major bank to fail this year. It will likely get purchased by one of the big four banks in a government orchestrated sale.  

March 8th - Silvergate Bank
March 10th - Silicon Valley Bank
March 12th - Signature Bank
March 19th - Credit Suisse
May 1st - First Republic Bank
May 4th - PacWest Bank?

PacWest is the first of many small regional banks that will go under this year. Most will get bought by the big four in gov orchestrated sales. This has been the playbook since 2008. Follow the incentives. Massive consolidation across the banking industry. PacWest gonna be a drop in the bucket compared to what comes next.

First, a hastened government led bank consolidation, then a public/private partnership with the remaining large banks to launch a surveilled and controlled digital currency network. We will be told it is more convenient. We will be told it is safer. We will be told it will prevent future bank runs. All of that is marketing bullshit. The goal is greater control of money. The ability to choose how we spend it and how we save it. If you control the money - you control the people that use it.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

Wall Street is warming up to Bitcoin and getting closer and closer to it.

Cantor Fitzgerald, one of the oldest and most respected investment banks on Wall Street, has launched a $2 billion bitcoin-backed lending program.

They’ve reportedly already done their first deals, lending to two big digital asset companies: FalconX and Maple Finance.

This is a big step in connecting traditional finance to the fast-moving world of Bitcoin.

Cantor’s new service allows big investors, hedge funds and asset managers, to borrow money using bitcoin as collateral.

This is a game changer for institutions that hold bitcoin, as they can now access liquidity without having to sell their assets.

“Institutions holding bitcoin are looking to broaden their access to diverse funding sources,” said Christian Wall, co-CEO and global head of fixed income at Cantor Fitzgerald.

“And we are excited to support their liquidity needs to help them drive long term growth and success.”

The loans are not speculative or unsecured.

They are structured like traditional finance deals, backed by the borrower’s bitcoin. This reduces the risk for Cantor while giving bitcoin-holding companies new ways to grow and operate.

The first recipients of Cantor’s lending program are FalconX, a digital asset brokerage, and Maple Finance, a blockchain-based lending platform.

FalconX confirmed they secured a credit facility of over $100 million. Maple Finance also received the first tranche of their loan from Cantor.

This comes at a time when the bitcoin lending space is recovering after a tough period. Several big firms went under in 2022 and investor confidence was shaken.

Now with traditional finance on board, bitcoin-backed lending has returned. According to Galaxy Research the total size of the digital asset lending market grew to $36.5 billion in Q4 2024.

Cantor’s move into bitcoin-backed lending isn’t new. They announced their plans in July 2024 and have been building their presence in the Bitcoin space since then.

Earlier this year, they partnered with Tether, SoftBank and Bitfinex to launch Twenty One Capital, a $3.6 billion fund to buy over 42,000 bitcoin.

In May 2025 Cantor Equity Partners merged with Twenty One Capital and bought nearly $459 million worth of bitcoin.

They also own around $1.9 billion in shares of Strategy, a company that holds a lot of bitcoin. Clearly Cantor believes in bitcoin as a long-term asset.

Cantor is also a big player in the stablecoin space.

They manage U.S. Treasury reserves for Tether, the company behind the $142 billion USDT stablecoin. This adds another layer of trust and credibility to Cantor’s digital asset involvement.

To secure the bitcoin used as collateral, Cantor has partnered with digital asset custodians Anchorage Digital and Copper.co.

These companies are known for their robust security and institutional-grade infrastructure. Cantor hasn’t disclosed loan terms or interest rates but confirmed the lending will follow current regulations.

This also shows how traditional financial players are embracing DeFi.

Maple Finance for example allows undercollateralized lending using blockchain. By backing companies like Maple, Cantor is innovating while still having control and compliance.

For years, bitcoin-backed loans were only available through digital-asset-native companies like Genesis, BlockFi, and Ledn.

These loans were mostly for smaller clients and retail investors. But with Cantor’s entry, the scale and professionalism of bitcoin lending are expanding.

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Bitcoin Magazine

Bitcoin vs Stablecoins: Bitcoin is an Unreplicable Lifeline in Authoritarian Regimes

Eight years ago, I wrote a book about pitching technology. The core lesson was simple: To convince skeptics, you must show your solution’s value isn’t just better — it’s uniquely better. Years later, as I began advocating for Bitcoin’s role in humanitarian crises, this lesson resurfaced with urgency. Skeptical friends asked “Can’t stablecoins do the same?”, “What’s so unique about Bitcoin?”

The answer lies not in theory, but in the protest rallies of Abuja, the blackouts of Caracas and the underground schools that girls secretly attend in Kabul — places where 1.7 billion unbanked, 250 million battling high inflation or hyperinflation and 2.3 billion under authoritarian rule fight to survive. These stories rarely breach Western media algorithms, which act as a shadow-ban of the developing world, favoring headlines about ETFs over existential financial struggles. 

It doesn’t take too deep a look into these parts of the world to discover that Bitcoin is not only vital but uniquely vital in a way stablecoins and other altcoins do not and cannot replicate. Let’s look at three nations that are adopting Bitcoin over stablecoins and why.

Nigeria: Where Sovereignty Outweighs Stability

Context: 223 million people, 95 million live on less than $1.90 a day. 23.71% inflation (April 2025), 18.3-20 million children not in school. Only 30% have access to safe drinking water. 

In 2024, Nigeria faced severe economic and political upheaval, with the local currency naira crashing to a record 1,643 per dollar by August — down from 460 in early 2023. This not only eroded savings and purchasing power, it eroded trust in the government and led to widespread protests over soaring inflation and fuel costs. These protests were triggered by widespread anger at government economic mismanagement and policies that failed to halt the economic slide. 

On occasion a stable currency, the naira’s collapse left families and businesses struggling to afford imports into a dollar-dependent economy. Public frustration intensified and with it, political instability. This volatile climate of currency devaluation, restricted financial access and social unrest set the stage for Nigerians to turn to alternative financial systems like cryptocurrencies, seeking solutions to safeguard their wealth amid a crumbling economic framework.

But the government wasn’t about to make that easy for its citizens. Nigeria’s government restricted stablecoin. “Illicit flows,” aka money laundering, was often used as the government’s official reason for anti-stablecoin actions. More likely the Nigerian government took action because they viewed stablecoins as undermining its monetary policy by enabling unregulated capital flows and currency substitution, reducing its central bank’s control over money supply and exchange rates. 

No doubt, bitcoin can be seen as undermining monetary policy in some similar ways, the difference being, Nigeria’s government was not able to curtail bitcoin’s usage as effectively due to its decentralized nature. 

The specific actions Nigeria’s government took came in three forms:

• Banking Restrictions and U.S. dollar supply shortages had the effect of limiting fiat on-ramps/off-ramps for stablecoins like USDT, which required KYC-compliant exchanges. P2P bitcoin trading soared after the restrictions, as users bypassed banking controls using private wallets and DEXs.
• Regulatory Crackdowns: Nigeria’s government took specific legal action to sue unlicensed USDT traders. Nigerian authorities then launched a broader attack, accusing crypto-trading platform Binance of “exploitation, devaluation of the naira and money laundering.”
• Premiums and Volatility: Regulatory pressures and FX shortages likely inflated premiums, making them less practical than bitcoin, which operates without centralized dependencies.

All three measures — banking restrictions, regulatory crackdowns and premiums/volatility — impacted bitcoin a lot less than it impacted stablecoins. Stablecoins’ reliance on centralized issuers, banking rails and KYC-compliant exchanges made them vulnerable to government actions, as we saw when USDT trading was disrupted. By contrast, Bitcoin’s decentralized, permissionless nature enabled Nigerians to bypass restrictions via P2P platforms and private wallets, sustaining its adoption.

Afghanistan: How Bitcoin Was a Financial Lifeline After the Taliban Takeover

Context: Taliban rule, most women are unbanked, Afghanistan’s currency devalued 50% between 2021 and 2022. Eighty-five percent live on less than $1 a day, 80% of school-aged Afghan girls and young women are out of school. 

When the Taliban seized control in August 2021, Afghanistan’s banking system collapsed under sanctions, leaving citizens — especially women — with few options. Traditional remittance networks like Hawala charged exorbitant fees (5-20%), while frozen central bank reserves made dollar access nearly impossible. In this vacuum, bitcoin emerged as a critical tool for survival. In 2021, Bitcoin Magazine previously reported how women were safeguarding Bitcoin seed phrases as a last line of financial defense. After the Taliban banned crypto in 2022, peer-to-peer bitcoin trading persisted underground.

Why Bitcoin Outperformed Stablecoins in Crisis
Stablecoins, reliant on centralized issuers and dollar-backed banking rails, faltered under Afghanistan’s unique constraints. U.S. sanctions froze $7 billion in central bank funds, which cut off the dollar liquidity needed for stablecoins like USDT. While Forbes India noted isolated cases of stablecoin use for salaries, most Afghans found them unusable. Meanwhile, sanctions blocked fiat conversions and the Taliban’s November 2021 foreign currency ban further restricted access. Bitcoin, by contrast, once again thrived precisely because of its decentralized design: no intermediaries to freeze transactions, no KYC to expose users and a global network that resisted shutdowns. Where stablecoins were hobbled by their ties to traditional finance, Bitcoin enabled direct, pseudonymous transfers.

Venezuela: Scarcity Trumps “Stability”

Context: The Venezuelan bolívar has lost 99.99% value since 2018; 76% of Venezuelans live on $1.90/day. Over 7.7 million Venezuelans have fled the country since 2014 due to economic collapse and political instability. Over 10% of children under five in Venezuela suffer from stunting due to chronic malnutrition.

Carlos, a Caracas mechanic, measures his life in bolívars — or rather, the absence of them. Since 2018, Venezuela’s currency has shed 99.99% of its value, Carlos explains, Carlos is an example of many Venezuelans who used bitcoin, not stablecoins, to preserve wealth as the bolívar continued to lose value. The government introduced strict capital controls into the market so that even if you somehow manage to earn USD, you can’t get the money transferred to your bank account.

Bitcoin provides a financial lifeline for people like Carlos, unlike stablecoins that are pegged to a USD that itself lost 18% in purchasing power since 2020.

That’s right: People like Carlos, schooled in the hard knocks of currency hyper-debasement, realized earlier than many in the West that stablecoins are not really stable. 

Stablecoins by their name present the appearance of being a safe harbor, becau

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Bitcoin Magazine

Bitcoin Layer 2: Ark

Ark is a novel off-chain transaction batching mechanism originally proposed by Burak, a young Turkish developer. There are currently two implementations being built, one by Ark Labs, and the other by Second, neither of which Burak is involved with. 

The original proposal for Ark was much more complicated, and involved some design goals more focused around privacy than the implementations currently being built. It was also originally envisioned to require CHECKTEMPLATEVERIFY (CTV) in order to be built. 

The protocol depends on a central coordinating server in order to function properly, but despite that is able to provide the same functionality and security guarantees that the Lightning Network does. As long as a user stays online during the required time period, at all times (unless they choose to trust the operator for short periods of time) every user is capable at any time of unilaterally exiting the Ark system at any time and taking back full unilateral control of their funds onchain. 

Unlike Lightning, Ark does not require users to have pre-allocated liquidity assigned to them in order to receive funds. An Ark user can simply onboard to a wallet and receive funds immediately with no liquidity pre-allocation at all. 

Let’s walk through the different constituent pieces of Ark.

The Ark Tree

Coins held on Ark are called Virtual UTXOs (vUTXOs). These are simply pre-signed transactions that guarantee the creation of a real UTXO under the unilateral control of a user once submitted onchain, but are otherwise held offchain. 

Every user’s vUTXOs are nested inside a tree of pre-signed transactions, or a “batch.” Ark works by having the coordinator server, or Ark Service Provider (ASP), facilitate the coordination between users necessary to create a batch. Whenever users are receiving funds, onboarding to Ark, or offboarding, it is necessary to construct a transaction and the associated transaction tree to create a new batch. 

The tree is constructed to take the single root UTXO confirmed onchain, locked with an n-of-n multisig including all users holding vUTXOs in the tree as well as the ASP, and slowly split into more and more UTXOs until eventually reaching the leaves, which are each users vUTXO. Each vUTXO is guaranteed using a script that has to be signed by a 2-of-2 multisig, one key held by the user, and the other by the ASP, or just the user after a timelock. 

Each time the tree splits, vUTXOs are created onchain, but so are more internal UTXOs that have yet to actually split into vUTXOs. Each of these internal UTXOs is locked with an n-of-n multisig composed of the ASP, and all users who have a vUTXO further down the tree. During the batch creation process, users start at their respective vUTXOs, and go through a signing process all the way back down the root of the tree. This guarantees that the root will never be signed before each user’s claim to a vUTXO is, ensuring they always have unilateral access in a worst case scenario to their funds. 

Each batch also has an expiry time (which will make sense in the next section). This expiry spend path, which exists as an alternate spending condition for the root UTXO onchain as well as every internal UTXO, allows the ASP to unilaterally spend all funds by itself. 

Transactions, Preconfirmation, and Connector Inputs

When it comes to transacting on Ark, there are two possible mechanisms that are possible, both with their own costs and implications in terms of security model. There are out-of-round transfers, or preconfirmed transactions, and there are in-round transfers, or actually confirmed transactions. 

To conduct an out-of-round transfer is a very simple process. If one user (Alice) wants to pay another (Bob), they simply contact the ASP and have them co-sign a transaction spending the vUTXO to Bob. Bob is then given that pre-signed transaction, as well as all the other ones preceding it back to the batch root onchain. Bob is now capable of unilaterally exiting the Ark with this transaction, but, he must trust the ASP not to collude with Alice to doublespend it. These out-of-round transactions can even be chained multiple times before finally confirming them. 

To finalize an Ark transaction, users have to engage in a “batch swap.” Users cannot actually trustlessly confirm a transfer within a single batch, they have to atomically swap a vUTXO in an existing batch with a fresh vUTXO created in a new batch. This is done using the ASP as a facilitator of the swap, and with the aid of what is called a “connector input.”

When a user goes to finalize an Ark transaction with a batch swap, they relinquish control of the vUTXO to the ASP. This could be problematic, what is to stop the ASP from simply keeping it and not giving them a confirmed vUTXO in a new batch? The connector input. 

When a new batch is created, a second output is created in the transaction that is confirmed on chain instantiating a new tree composed of connector UTXOs. When Bob goes to sign over a forfeit transaction to the ASP to conduct the batch swap, the transaction includes as an input one of the connector UTXOs from the new batch. 

This creates an atomic guarantee. Bob’s confirmed vUTXO is included in a batch in the same transaction the connector input is created in that is necessary for his forfeit transaction to be valid. If that batch is never created onchain, i.e. Bob never actually receives the new confirmed vUTXO, then the forfeit transaction he signed for the ASP will never be valid and confirmable onchain.

Liquidity Dynamics and Blockspace

All of the liquidity necessary to create new batches in order to facilitate transfers between users is provided by the ASP. They are required to have enough liquidity to create new batches for users until old ones have expired and the ASP can unilaterally sweep them to reclaim old liquidity previously locked up to create vUTXOs for users. 

This is the core of the liquidity dynamic at the center of the Ark protocol. While in one sense this is a massive efficiency win, not requiring liquidity providers to assess users and essentially guess which ones will actually receive large volumes of payments before they can receive any funds, in another it is an efficiency loss as the ASP must have enough liquidity to continue creating new batches for users for however long they configure the expiry time to be and they can start reclaiming allocated liquidity. 

This can be mitigated to a decent degree by how often an ASP offers to create new batches to finalize pending transactions. In the event of an ASP attempting to create new batches in real time as transactions are coming in, the liquidity requirements would be exorbitantly high. However, an ASP can lower the frequency at which they create new batches and drastically lower their liquidity requirements. 

This dynamic also has implications for blockspace use. Unlike Lightning, which can provide strong confirmation guarantees entirely offchain, in order for an Ark transaction to have an equivalent trustless degree of finality a new batch has to be created onchain. This means that unlike Lightning, where transaction volume does not reflect itself onchain, the velocity of Ark transactions inherently requires a proportional amount of blockspace use, albeit in a very compressed and efficient manner. This creates a theoretical upper limit of how many Ark batches can be created during any given time interval (although Ark trees can be smaller or larger depending on this dynamic). 

Wrapping Up

Ark presents in many ways an almost opposite set of tradeoffs to the Lightning Network. It is a massive blockspace efficiency improvement for offchain transactions, and does away with the problem of liquidity allocation on the Lightning Network, but it does have a much closer tied throughput limit that is correlated with the blockchains throughput limit. 

This dynamic of almost opposite tradeoffs makes it a very complementary system to the Lightning Network. It can also interoperate with it, i.e. vUTXOs can be swapped atomically in transactions entering or exiting the Lightning Network. 

Ultimately how it fits into the broader Bitcoin ecosystem is yet to be seen, but it is an undoubtedly valuable protocol stack that will find some functional niche, even if it is different than originally intended.

This post Bitcoin Layer 2: Ark first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Shinobi.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

Palantir Is Violating Its Own Principles by Avoiding a Bitcoin Treasury

Palantir exists to see what others miss.

It was founded to solve problems most institutions can’t even name—defending sovereignty, navigating adversarial environments, and building systems designed to endure when others fail. Its software doesn’t just process data; it helps governments and institutions anticipate instability before it strikes.

But for all its strategic foresight, Palantir has yet to adopt a Bitcoin treasury strategy—a move that would bring its capital posture in line with its mission.

With more than $2.1 billion in cash, minimal debt, and few reinvestments, Palantir has the resources to lead—but no capital signal that matches its stated principles. In a world increasingly defined by currency debasement, centralized overreach, and geopolitical fragmentation, sitting on fiat is not neutrality. It’s a contradiction.

Palantir without a Bitcoin treasury isn’t just incomplete—it’s incoherent.

A Company Built for Strategic Foresight Should Not Be Saving in a Failing System

Over the last four years, Palantir has grown steadily:

• $1.09B → $1.54B → $1.91B → $2.23B in annual revenue
• Over $700M in free cash flow
• Just ~$239M in debt
• $2.1B in cash and equivalents

It’s a fortress balance sheet. But a fortress built on fiat is only as strong as the system it rests on.

Palantir has made no meaningful acquisitions, issued no dividends, and offers no capital return strategy beyond heavy stock-based compensation. This isn’t capital discipline—it’s strategic inertia. The company builds wartime software but saves like a peacetime conglomerate.

A Bitcoin Treasury Would Align Palantir’s Capital With Its Conviction

Palantir’s mission is to defend sovereignty and build for adversarial conditions. Bitcoin is the only monetary asset designed to do the same.

• Non-sovereign: Bitcoin is not issued or controlled by any state.
• Resilient: It has survived censorship attempts, geopolitical attacks, and financial panics.
• Transparent: It is auditable, predictable, and trustless—everything the fiat system is not.
• Aligned: Bitcoin reflects the same values Palantir claims—autonomy, resilience, and long-range thinking.

If Palantir allocated even half of its cash reserves (~$1.05B), it could acquire 10,000+ BTC. That would place it among the top 10 corporate Bitcoin holders, alongside Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy), Tesla, and Coinbase.

But this isn’t about optics. It’s about aligning capital with purpose.

Palantir Without a Bitcoin Treasury Violates Its Own Principles

Palantir outlines a clear ethical and design philosophy for its software. But those same principles expose a contradiction on its balance sheet.

Let’s break it down:

“Systems should incorporate principles of privacy by design.”

➤ Bitcoin is privacy by design. It enables global value transfer without third-party surveillance or control.
➤ Fiat is surveillance by design. Centralized systems track, censor, and report user behavior by default.

By holding fiat, Palantir passively supports a financial architecture it claims to resist. A Bitcoin treasury would align its capital with its engineering ethics.

“Systems must facilitate accountability and oversight.”

➤ Bitcoin is radically transparent—anyone can audit supply, transactions, and ownership logic.
➤ Fiat operates in shadows—driven by opaque policy, insider bailouts, and political discretion.

Palantir demands accountability in data infrastructure—its capital reserves should meet the same standard.

“We strive to contextualize major world problems.”

➤ The instability of fiat currency and global debt markets is a foundational context.
➤ Bitcoin is not a bet—it’s a contextual response to structural monetary decay.

If Palantir exists to anticipate future risk, it should reflect that awareness on its balance sheet.

This Isn’t a Pivot. It’s Alignment.

Adopting a Bitcoin treasury wouldn’t mark a shift in Palantir’s mission—it would reinforce it.

This isn’t about chasing trends. It’s about applying the same principles that define Palantir’s software—resilience, sovereignty, and long-term thinking—to its balance sheet. Bitcoin reflects those values more directly than any fiat currency can.

Palantir helps its clients prepare for instability. It secures borders, systems, and decision-making frameworks under pressure. But it hasn’t secured its own monetary foundation.

That’s a strategic gap.
That’s a contradiction.
And it’s one the company can resolve—decisively.

The Call to Action

Palantir’s shareholders believe in its conviction. They understand the company is not here to follow. It exists to build first, move first, and signal first.

They are not looking for fiat-era conservatism repackaged as capital discipline. They want strategy that matches the scale of the mission. They want to see the company allocate capital with the same clarity it brings to battlefield intelligence and national infrastructure.

Palantir has the foresight, the liquidity, and the philosophical grounding to act. What it needs is the will to align its reserves with its reason for existing.

A Bitcoin treasury would do more than protect value—it would prove Palantir means what it says.

It’s time to move from rhetoric to action.
It’s time to adopt a Bitcoin treasury strategy.

Disclaimer: This content was written on behalf of Bitcoin For Corporations. The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official position of Bitcoin For Corporations. This article is intended solely for informational purposes and should not be interpreted as an invitation or solicitation to acquire, purchase, or subscribe for securities.

This post Palantir Is Violating Its Own Principles by Avoiding a Bitcoin Treasury first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Nick Ward.

@ a296b972:e5a7a2e8

Nur für‘s Protokoll. Hiermit erkläre ich, Georg Ohrweh, im tatsächlich vorhandenen vollen Besitz meiner geistigen Kräfte, dass Herr Lauterbach, gleich welche Position er in Zukunft noch bekleiden sollte, für mich nicht zuständig ist. Basta.

Ein Erguss dieses verhaltensoriginellen Über-alles-Bescheidwissers:

„Wir kommen jetzt in eine Phase hinein, wo der Ausnahmezustand die Normalität sein wird. Wir werden ab jetzt immer im Ausnahmezustand sein. Der Klimawandel wird zwangsläufig mehr Pandemien bringen.“

Wie kann es sein, dass solch eine Ausnahme-Gestalt, die schon rein äußerlich die Phantasie zu Vergleichen anregt, sich leider auch genauso verhält, wie die Gestalten, die in diesen Phantasien vorkommen, ungebremst auf der Panik-Klaviatur kakophonische Klänge erzeugen darf? Obwohl ein wenig Wahrheit ist auch enthalten: Wir sind tatsächlich immer im Ausnahmezustand, im Ausnahmezustand des fortgeschrittenen Wahnsinns.

Wie kann es sein, dass dieser Haaaarvardist seinen persönlich empfundenen Ausnahmezustand zum Allgemeingut erklären kann? Welche Verknüpfungs-Phantasien hat er sonst noch studiert? Er ist ja auch noch Vorsitzender im Raumfahrtausschuss. Was kommt als Nächstes? Eine Klima-Pandemie, verursacht durch außerirdische Viren, die die Temperaturen beeinflussen können? Im aktuellen Zeitgeist gibt es nichts, was nicht gedacht wird. Wem die besseren Absurditäten einfallen, der gewinnt. Man muss sich schon den gegebenen Denkstrukturen etwas anpassen, aber sich auch ein wenig Mühe geben.

Nach dem Wechsel der ehemaligen Außen-Dings zur UN (mit dem Ziel, aus den Vereinten Nationen die Feministischen Nationen zu gestalten) und des ehemaligen Wirtschafts-Dings in den Außenausschuss und als Gastdozent in Kalifornien (Thema: Wirtschaftsvernichtung unter Einbeziehung des gespannten Verhältnisses unter Geschwistern aufgrund ärmlicher Verhältnisse, am Beispiel des Märchens von Hänsel und Gretel) , jetzt auch noch der ehemalige Chef-Panikmacher zur WHO.

…und der Wahnsinn wurde hinausgetragen in die Welt, und es wurde dunkel, und es ward Nacht, und es wurde helle, und es ward Tag, der Wind blies oder auch nicht (was macht der Wind eigentlich, wenn er nicht weht?), und es ward Winter, und es wurde kälter, und es wurde wärmer, und es ward Sommer. Es regnete nicht mehr, die Wolken schwitzten. Und Putin verhinderte (wer auch sonst), dass das Eis in der Antarktis abnahm.

Wiederholte Bodentemperaturen in der Toskana von 50 Grad Celsius. Zu erwartende Wassertemperaturen während Ferragosto an der italienischen Adria von durchschnittlich 100 Grad Celsius. An Stellen mit wenig Strömung stiegen schon die ersten Kochblasen auf. Doch dann kam der durch Lachs gestählte, salzlose Super-Karl und rettete mit einem durch die WHO diktierten Klima-Logdown die gesamte Menschheit. Wer besser, als er konnte wissen, dass ein Klima-Logdown weitgehend nebenwirkungsfrei ist.

Was für ein Segen, dass Karl der Große, der uns so siegreich durch die Corona-Schlacht geführt hat, jetzt auch gegen das Klima in den Krieg zieht.

Wer kennt das nicht, Tage der Qual, in denen man zugeben muss: Ich hab‘ heute so schlimm Klima.

Viele Klimaexperten, die weltweit in der Qualitätspropaganda zitiert werden, zeichnen sich besonders dadurch aus, dass sie mit einer maximalen Abweichung von einem Grad Celsius ein Thermometer fehlerfrei ablesen können. Diese Ungenauigkeit wird der Erdverkochungsexperte sicher als erstes beheben.

In einer aufopfernden Studie während eines Urlaubs in 2023, in der um die damalige Zeit erstmals eisfreien Toskana, hat er den von ihm ausgetüftelten Klimaschutzplan ins Rheinische übersetzt. Titel: „Schützen Sie sisch, und, äh, andere!“ Weiter konnte er erforschen, dass die Bodentemperatur nicht immer mit der Temperatur des Erdkerns übereinstimmen muss.

Durch seine unermüdlichen Studien, können Hitzetote in Zukunft besser zugeordnet werden. Man weiß dann, ob jemand an hohen oder mit hohen Temperaturen gestorben ist. Der asymptomatische Klimawandel kann so in Zukunft viel besser bewertet werden. Man hat aus geringfügigen Fehlern gelernt und die Methoden erheblich verbessert.

Eine präzise Vorhersage der Jahreszeiten, vor allem die des Sommers, wird bald ebenfalls möglich sein. Es kann jetzt vor jahreszeitbedingten, teilweise sogar täglich schwankenden Temperaturveränderungen rechtzeitig gewarnt werden. Im Herbst können Heizempfehlungen für die ahnungslose Bevölkerung herausgegeben werden. Frieren war gestern, wissen wann es kalt wird, ist heute. Es wird an Farben geforscht, die noch roter sein sollen, als die, die jetzt in den Wetterkarten bei 21 Grad bereits verwendet werden.

Eine allgemeine Heizpflicht soll es europaweit zunächst nicht geben.

Weiter soll die Lichteinstrahlung der Sonne noch präziser bestimmt werden, damit den Europäern, in Ergänzung zur mitteleuropäischen Sommerzeit, jetzt auch noch genau mitgeteilt werden kann, wann es Tag und wann es Nacht ist.

Das Hinausschauen aus dem Fenster, zum Beispiel, ob es schon dunkel draußen ist, erübrigt sich. Die Tageszeit, in Ergänzung zur herkömmlichen Uhrzeit, wird demnächst automatisch mit dem Klima-Pass übermittelt werden. Zu Anfang natürlich erst einmal freiwillig.

Durch die persönliche ID können dann auch schnell und unkompliziert Sonderprämien überwiesen werden, sofern man sich klimakonform verhalten hat, damit man sich rechtzeitig vor Winterbeginn eine warme Jacke oder einen Mantel kaufen kann. Das Sparen von Bargeld auf eine bevorstehende größere Anschaffung von Winterkleidung wird somit überflüssig.

Ob es am Ende nun um Hitze oder Kälte geht, spielt eigentlich gar keine Rolle, denn wie wussten schon die Ahnen zu berichten: Was gut für die Kälte ist, ist auch gut für die Wärme.

Westliche Mächte unternehmen immer wieder Versuche, eskalierend auf den Ukraine-Konflikt einzuwirken, damit man atombetriebene Heizpilze aufstellen kann, an denen sich die Europäer im Winter auch im Freien wärmen können.

Wie praktisch, dass man nicht nur Gesundheit und Klima, sondern auch Klima und Krieg miteinander verbinden kann. Alles so, oder so ähnlich möglicherweise nachzulesen im genialen Hitzeschutzplan á la Lauterbach.

Besonders Deutschland braucht nicht nur lauterbachsche Hitzeschutzräume, nein es braucht atomsichere Hitzeschutzbunker, so schlägt man gleich zwei Fliegen mit einer Klappe.

Für die, die es sich leisten können, hier ein Vorschlag. Der K2000:

https://www.swr.de/swr1/rp/programm/loriot-mini-luftschutzbunker-zum-preis-einer-waschmaschine-100.html

Für die weniger gut Betuchten reicht auch ein kühles Kellerloch, das man idealerweise im Februar beziehen und nicht vor November wieder verlassen sollte, so die Empfehlung auch von führenden Klima-Forschern, die es ja wissen müssen. Von Dezember bis Januar empfiehlt sich ein Besuch auf den Bahamas, besonders dann, wenn man eine leichte Erkältung verspürt.

Nur Verschwörungstheoretiker behaupten, dass die eigenartigen Anschlussverwendungen der Extrem-Kapazitäten, zu denen Lauterbach ohne Zweifel dazugehört, wie dicke rote Pfeile wirken, die auf Institutionen und Organisationen zeigen, um die man unter allen Umständen einen großen Bogen machen sollte, weil sie möglicherweise nichts Gutes im Schilde führen. Minimal sollen sie angeblich Unsinn verbreiten, maximal sollen sie gehörigen Schaden anrichten.

Man muss sich nur ein paar Gedanken machen, schon kann man feststellen, wie alles mit allem zusammenhängt.

“Dieser Beitrag wurde mit dem Pareto-Client geschrieben.”

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(Bild von pixabay)

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Bitcoin Magazine

Mapping Bitcoin’s Bull Cycle Potential

Bitcoin’s Market Value to Realized Value, or MVRV ratio, remains one of the most reliable on-chain indicators for identifying local and macro tops and bottoms across every BTC cycle. By isolating data across different investor cohorts and adapting historical benchmarks to modern market conditions, we can generate more accurate insights into where Bitcoin may be headed next.

The Bitcoin MVRV Ratio

The MVRV Ratio compares Bitcoin’s market price to its realized price, essentially the average cost basis for all coins in the network. As of writing, BTC trades around $105,000 while the realized price floats near $47,000, putting the raw MVRV at 2.26. The Z-Score version of MVRV standardizes this ratio based on historical volatility, enabling clearer comparisons across different market cycles.

Figure 1: Historically, the MVRV Ratio and the MVRV Z-Score have accurately identified cycle peaks and bottoms. View Live Chart

Short-Term Holders

Short-term holders, defined as those holding Bitcoin for 155 days or less, currently have a realized price near $97,000. This metric often acts as dynamic support in bull markets and resistance in bear markets. Notably, when the Short Term Holder MVRV hits 1.33, local tops have historically occurred, as seen several times in both the 2017 and 2021 cycles. So far in the current cycle, this threshold has already been touched four times, each followed by modest retracements.

Figure 2: Short Term Holder MVRV reaching 1.33 in more recent cycles has aligned with local tops. View Live Chart

Long-Term Holders

Long-term holders, who’ve held BTC for more than 155 days, currently have an average cost basis of just $33,500, putting their MVRV at 3.11. Historically, Long Term Holder MVRV values have reached as high as 12 during major peaks. That said, we’re observing a trend of diminishing multiples each cycle.

Figure 3: Achieving a Long Term Holder MVRV value of 8 could extrapolate to a BTC price in excess of $300,000. View Live Chart

A key resistance band now sits between 7.5 and 8.5, a zone that has defined bull tops and pre-bear retracements in every cycle since 2011. If the current growth of the realized price ($40/day) continues for another 140–150 days, matching previous cycle lengths, we could see it reach somewhere in the region of $40,000. A peak MVRV of 8 would imply a price near $320,000.

A Smarter Market Compass

Unlike static all-time metrics, the 2-Year Rolling MVRV Z-Score adapts to evolving market dynamics. By recalculating average extremes over a rolling window, it smooths out Bitcoin’s natural volatility decay as it matures. Historically, this version has signaled overbought conditions when reaching levels above 3, and prime accumulation zones when dipping below -1. Currently sitting under 1, this metric suggests that substantial upside remains.

Figure 4: The current 2-Year Rolling MVRV Z-Score suggests more positive price action ahead. View Live Chart

Timing & Targets

A view of the BTC Growth Since Cycle Lows chart illustrates that BTC is now approximately 925 days removed from its last major cycle low. Historical comparisons to previous bull markets suggest we may be around 140 to 150 days away from a potential top, with both the 2017 and 2021 peaks occurring around 1,060 to 1,070 days after their respective lows. While not deterministic, this alignment reinforces the broader picture of where we are in the cycle. If realized price trends and MVRV thresholds continue on current trajectories, late Q3 to early Q4 2025 may bring final euphoric moves.

Figure 5: Will the current cycle continue to exhibit growth patterns similar to those of the previous two cycles? View Live Chart

Conclusion

The MVRV ratio and its derivatives remain essential tools for analyzing Bitcoin market behavior, providing clear markers for both accumulation and distribution. Whether observing short-term holders hovering near local top thresholds, long-term holders nearing historically significant resistance zones, or adaptive metrics like the 2-Year Rolling MVRV Z-Score signaling plenty of runway left, these data points should be used in confluence.

No single metric should be relied upon to predict tops or bottoms in isolation, but taken together, they offer a powerful lens through which to interpret the macro trend. As the market matures and volatility declines, adaptive metrics will become even more crucial in staying ahead of the curve.

For more deep-dive research, technical indicators, real-time market alerts, and access to a growing community of analysts, visit BitcoinMagazinePro.com.

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Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Always do your own research before making any investment decisions.

This post Mapping Bitcoin’s Bull Cycle Potential first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Matt Crosby.

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Autor: John J. Mearsheimer. Dieser Beitrag wurde mit dem Pareto-Client geschrieben und erschien zuerst auf dem Blog des Autors. Sie finden alle Texte der Friedenstaube und weitere Texte zum Thema Frieden hier.**

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Die neuesten Artikel der Friedenstaube gibt es jetzt auch im eigenen Friedenstaube-Telegram-Kanal.

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Die Frage, wer für den Krieg in der Ukraine verantwortlich ist, ist seit dem Einmarsch Russlands in die Ukraine am 24. Februar 2022 ein sehr umstrittenes Thema.Die Antwort auf diese Frage ist von enormer Bedeutung, denn der Krieg war aus verschiedenen Gründen eine Katastrophe, von denen die wichtigste darin besteht, dass die Ukraine praktisch zerstört wurde. Sie hat einen beträchtlichen Teil ihres Territoriums verloren und wird wahrscheinlich noch mehr verlieren, ihre Wirtschaft liegt in Trümmern, eine riesige Zahl von Ukrainern wurde intern vertrieben oder ist aus dem Land geflohen, und sie hat Hunderttausende von Opfern zu beklagen. Natürlich hat auch Russland einen hohen Blutzoll gezahlt. Auf strategischer Ebene sind die Beziehungen zwischen Russland und Europa, ganz zu schweigen von Russland und der Ukraine, auf absehbare Zeit vergiftet, was bedeutet, dass die Gefahr eines größeren Krieges in Europa auch dann noch bestehen wird, wenn der Krieg in der Ukraine zu einem eingefrorenen Konflikt wird. Wer die Verantwortung für diese Katastrophe trägt, ist eine Frage, die nicht so schnell verschwinden wird, sondern eher noch an Bedeutung gewinnen dürfte, je mehr Menschen das Ausmaß der Katastrophe bewusst wird.

Die gängige Meinung im Westen ist, dass Wladimir Putin für den Krieg in der Ukraine verantwortlich sei. Die Invasion habe darauf abgezielt, die gesamte Ukraine zu erobern und sie zu einem Teil eines größeren Russlands zu machen, so die Argumentation. Sobald dieses Ziel erreicht sei, würden die Russen ein Imperium in Osteuropa errichten, ähnlich wie es die Sowjetunion nach dem Zweiten Weltkrieg getan habe. Daher stelle Putin letztlich eine Bedrohung für den Westen dar, der man mit aller Macht begegnen müsse. Kurz gesagt, Putin ist ein Imperialist mit einem Masterplan, der sich nahtlos in die reiche russische Tradition einfügt.

Das alternative Argument, mit dem ich mich identifiziere und das im Westen eindeutig in der Minderheit ist, lautet, dass die Vereinigten Staaten und ihre Verbündeten den Krieg provoziert haben. Damit soll natürlich nicht geleugnet werden, dass Russland in die Ukraine einmarschiert ist und den Krieg begonnen hat. Die Hauptursache des Konflikts ist jedoch der NATO-Beschluss, die Ukraine in das Bündnis aufzunehmen, was praktisch alle russischen Führer als existenzielle Bedrohung ansehen, die beseitigt werden muss. Die NATO-Erweiterung ist jedoch Teil einer umfassenderen Strategie, die darauf abzielt, die Ukraine zu einem westlichen Bollwerk an Russlands Grenze zu machen. Ein Beitritt Kiews zur Europäischen Union (EU) und die Förderung einer farbigen Revolution in der Ukraine – die Umwandlung des Landes in eine prowestliche liberale Demokratie – sind die beiden anderen Säulen dieser Politik. Die russische Führung fürchtet alle drei Bereiche, aber am meisten fürchtet sie die NATO-Erweiterung. Um dieser Bedrohung zu begegnen, hat Russland am 24. Februar 2022 einen Präventivkrieg begonnen.

Die Debatte darüber, wer den Ukraine-Krieg verursacht hat, ist kürzlich aufgeflammt, als zwei prominente westliche Politiker – der ehemalige US-Präsident Donald Trump und der prominente britische Abgeordnete Nigel Farage – das Argument vorbrachten, dass die NATO-Erweiterung die treibende Kraft hinter dem Konflikt sei. Es überrascht nicht, dass ihre Äußerungen von den Verfechtern der konventionellen Meinung mit einem heftigen Gegenangriff beantwortet wurden. Es ist auch erwähnenswert, dass der scheidende NATO-Generalsekretär Jens Stoltenberg im vergangenen Jahr zweimal sagte, dass „Präsident Putin diesen Krieg begonnen hat, weil er die Tür der NATO schließen und der Ukraine das Recht verweigern wollte, ihren eigenen Weg zu wählen“. Kaum jemand im Westen hat dieses bemerkenswerte Eingeständnis des NATO-Chefs in Frage gestellt, und er hat es auch nicht zurückgezogen.

Mein Ziel ist es, einen Überblick über die wichtigsten Punkte zu geben, die die Ansicht stützen, dass Putin nicht in die Ukraine einmarschiert ist, weil er ein Imperialist ist, der die Ukraine zu einem Teil eines größeren Russlands machen will, sondern vor allem wegen der NATO-Erweiterung und der Bemühungen des Westens, die Ukraine zu einer westlichen Hochburg an der Grenze Russlands zu machen.

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DIE FRIEDENSTAUBE FLIEGT AUCH IN IHR POSTFACH!

In Kürze folgt eine Mail an alle Genossenschafter, danke für die Geduld und das Verständnis!

Hier können Sie die Friedenstaube abonnieren und bekommen die Artikel zugesandt, vorerst für alle kostenfrei, wir starten gänzlich ohne Paywall. (Die Bezahlabos fangen erst zu laufen an, wenn ein Monetarisierungskonzept für die Inhalte steht). Sie wollen der Genossenschaft beitreten oder uns unterstützen? Mehr Infos hier oder am Ende des Textes.

Lassen Sie mich mit den sieben wichtigsten Gründen für die Ablehnung der herkömmlichen Meinung beginnen.

ERSTENS gibt es schlicht und ergreifend keine Beweise aus der Zeit vor dem 24. Februar 2022, dass Putin die Ukraine erobern und in Russland eingliedern wollte. Vertreter der gängigen Meinung können keine Schriftstücke oder Aussagen von Putin nennen, die darauf hindeuten, dass er die Ukraine erobern wollte.

Wenn man sie zu diesem Punkt befragt, liefern die Verfechter der konventionellen Meinung Hinweise, die wenig oder gar nichts mit Putins Motiven für die Invasion der Ukraine zu tun haben. Einige betonen zum Beispiel, dass er sagte, die Ukraine sei ein „künstlicher Staat“ oder kein „echter Staat“. Solche undurchsichtigen Äußerungen sagen jedoch nichts über die Gründe für seinen Kriegseintritt aus. Dasselbe gilt für Putins Aussage, er betrachte Russen und Ukrainer als „ein Volk“ mit einer gemeinsamen Geschichte. Andere weisen darauf hin, dass er den Zusammenbruch der Sowjetunion als „die größte geopolitische Katastrophe des Jahrhunderts“ bezeichnete. Aber Putin sagte auch: „Wer die Sowjetunion nicht vermisst, hat kein Herz. Wer sie zurückhaben will, hat kein Hirn.“ Andere wiederum verweisen auf eine Rede, in der er erklärte: „Die moderne Ukraine wurde vollständig von Russland geschaffen, genauer gesagt, vom bolschewistischen, kommunistischen Russland.“ Aber das ist kaum ein Beweis dafür, dass er an der Eroberung der Ukraine interessiert war. Außerdem sagte er in der gleichen Rede: „Natürlich können wir die Ereignisse der Vergangenheit nicht ändern, aber wir müssen sie zumindest offen und ehrlich zugeben.“

Um zu beweisen, dass Putin die gesamte Ukraine erobern und Russland einverleiben wollte, muss man nachweisen, dass er 1) dieses Ziel für erstrebenswert hielt, 2) es für machbar hielt und 3) die Absicht hatte, dieses Ziel zu verfolgen. Es gibt in den öffentlichen Aufzeichnungen keine Beweise dafür, dass Putin erwog, geschweige denn beabsichtigte, die Ukraine als unabhängigen Staat zu beenden und sie zu einem Teil Großrusslands zu machen, als er am 24. Februar 2022 seine Truppen in die Ukraine schickte.

Tatsächlich gibt es erhebliche Beweise dafür, dass Putin die Ukraine als unabhängiges Land anerkannte. In seinem bekannten Artikel vom 12. Juli 2021 über die russisch-ukrainischen Beziehungen, der von Befürwortern der konventionellen Meinung oft als Beweis für seine imperialen Ambitionen angeführt wird, sagt er dem ukrainischen Volk: „Ihr wollt einen eigenen Staat gründen: Ihr seid willkommen!“ Zur Frage, wie Russland die Ukraine behandeln sollte, schreibt er: „Es gibt nur eine Antwort: mit Respekt.“ Er schließt seinen langen Artikel mit den folgenden Worten ab: „Und wie die Ukraine aussehen wird – das müssen ihre Bürger entscheiden.“ Diese Aussagen stehen im direkten Widerspruch zu der Behauptung, Putin wolle die Ukraine in ein größeres Russland eingliedern.

In demselben Artikel vom 12. Juli 2021 und erneut in einer wichtigen Rede am 21. Februar 2022 betonte Putin, dass Russland „die neue geopolitische Realität, die nach der Auflösung der UdSSR entstanden ist“, akzeptiere. Diesen Punkt wiederholte er ein drittes Mal am 24. Februar 2022, als er ankündigte, Russland werde in die Ukraine einmarschieren. Insbesondere erklärte er: „Wir haben nicht vor, ukrainisches Territorium zu besetzen“, und machte deutlich, dass er die ukrainische Souveränität respektiere, allerdings nur bis zu einem gewissen Punkt: „Russland kann sich nicht sicher fühlen, sich nicht entwickeln und nicht existieren, wenn es sich einer ständigen Bedrohung durch das Territorium der heutigen Ukraine ausgesetzt sieht.“ Das heißt, Putin war nicht daran interessiert, die Ukraine zu einem Teil Russlands zu machen, sondern er wollte sicherstellen, dass sie nicht zu einem „Sprungbrett“ für westliche Aggressionen gegen Russland wird.

ZWEITENS gibt es keinerlei Hinweise dafür, dass Putin eine Marionettenregierung für die Ukraine vorbereitete, in Kiew prorussische Führungspersönlichkeiten aufbaute oder irgendwelche politischen Maßnahmen verfolgte, die eine Besetzung des gesamten Landes und dessen letztendliche Eingliederung in Russland ermöglichen würden.

Diese Fakten widersprechen der Behauptung, Putin sei daran interessiert gewesen, die Ukraine von der Landkarte zu tilgen. 

**DRITTENS: Putin hatte nicht annähernd genug Truppen, um die Ukraine zu erobern. **

Beginnen wir mit den Gesamtzahlen. Ich schätze seit langem, dass die Russen mit höchstens 190.000 Soldaten in die Ukraine einmarschiert sind. General Oleksandr Syrskyi, der derzeitige Oberbefehlshaber der ukrainischen Streitkräfte, sagte kürzlich in einem Interview mit The Guardian, dass die russische Invasionstruppe nur 100.000 Mann stark war. The Guardian hatte diese Zahl bereits vor Beginn des Krieges genannt. Es ist unmöglich, dass eine Truppe von 100.000 oder 190.000 Mann die gesamte Ukraine erobern, besetzen und in ein Großrussland eingliedern könnte.

Bedenken Sie, dass die Wehrmacht beim deutschen Überfall auf die westliche Hälfte Polens im September 1939 etwa 1,5 Millionen Mann zählte. Die Ukraine ist geografisch mehr als dreimal so groß wie die westliche Hälfte Polens im Jahr 1939, und in der Ukraine leben im Jahr 2022 fast doppelt so viele Menschen wie in Polen zum Zeitpunkt des deutschen Überfalls. Wenn wir die Schätzung von General Syrskyi akzeptieren, dass 100.000 russische Truppen im Jahr 2022 in die Ukraine einmarschierten, bedeutet dies, dass Russland über eine Invasionsstreitmacht verfügte, die 1/15 der Größe der deutschen Streitkräfte war, die in Polen einmarschierten. Und diese kleine russische Armee marschierte in ein Land ein, das sowohl territorial als auch von der Bevölkerungszahl her viel größer war als Polen.

Abgesehen von den Zahlen stellt sich die Frage nach der Qualität der russischen Armee. Zunächst einmal handelte es sich um eine militärische Streitkraft, die in erster Linie dazu bestimmt war, Russland vor einer Invasion zu schützen. Es handelte sich nicht um eine Armee, die für eine Großoffensive zur Eroberung der gesamten Ukraine, geschweige denn zur Bedrohung des übrigen Europas, gerüstet war. Außerdem ließ die Qualität der Kampftruppen zu wünschen übrig, da die Russen nicht mit einem Krieg rechneten, als sich die Krise im Frühjahr 2021 zuzuspitzen begann. Daher hatten sie kaum Gelegenheit, eine qualifizierte Invasionstruppe auszubilden. Sowohl qualitativ als auch quantitativ war die russische Invasionstruppe nicht annähernd mit der deutschen Wehrmacht der späten 1930er und frühen 1940er Jahre vergleichbar.

Man könnte argumentieren, dass die russische Führung dachte, das ukrainische Militär sei so klein und so unterlegen, dass ihre Armee die ukrainischen Streitkräfte leicht besiegen und das ganze Land erobern könnte. Tatsächlich wussten Putin und seine Leutnants sehr wohl, dass die Vereinigten Staaten und ihre europäischen Verbündeten das ukrainische Militär seit Ausbruch der Krise am 22. Februar 2014 bewaffnet und ausgebildet hatten. Die große Befürchtung Moskaus war, dass die Ukraine de facto Mitglied der NATO werden würde. Außerdem beobachteten die russischen Führer, wie die ukrainische Armee, die größer war als ihre Invasionstruppen, zwischen 2014 und 2022 im Donbass erfolgreich kämpfte. Ihnen war sicherlich klar, dass das ukrainische Militär kein Papiertiger war, der schnell und entschlossen besiegt werden konnte, zumal es über eine starke Rückendeckung durch den Westen verfügte.

Schließlich waren die Russen im Laufe des Jahres 2022 gezwungen, ihre Armee aus der Oblast Charkiw und aus dem westlichen Teil der Oblast Cherson abzuziehen. Damit gab Moskau Gebiete auf, die seine Armee in den ersten Tagen des Krieges erobert hatte. Es steht außer Frage, dass der Druck der ukrainischen Armee eine Rolle dabei spielte, den russischen Rückzug zu erzwingen. Vor allem aber erkannten Putin und seine Generäle, dass sie nicht über genügend Kräfte verfügten, um das gesamte Gebiet, das ihre Armee in Charkiw und Cherson erobert hatte, zu halten. Also zogen sie sich zurück und schufen besser kontrollierbare Verteidigungspositionen. Dies ist kaum das Verhalten, das man von einer Armee erwarten würde, die aufgebaut und ausgebildet wurde, um die gesamte Ukraine zu erobern und zu besetzen. Tatsächlich war sie für diesen Zweck nicht konzipiert und konnte daher diese Herkulesaufgabe nicht bewältigen.

VIERTENS: In den Monaten vor Kriegsbeginn versuchte Putin, eine diplomatische Lösung für die sich anbahnende Krise zu finden.

Am 17. Dezember 2021 sandte Putin ein Schreiben an Präsident Joe Biden und NATO-Chef Stoltenberg, in dem er eine Lösung der Krise auf der Grundlage einer schriftlichen Garantie vorschlug, dass: 1) die Ukraine der NATO nicht beitreten würde, 2) keine Angriffswaffen in der Nähe der russischen Grenzen stationiert würden und 3) die seit 1997 nach Osteuropa verlegten NATO-Truppen und -Ausrüstung nach Westeuropa zurückverlegt würden. Was auch immer man von der Machbarkeit einer Einigung auf der Grundlage von Putins Eröffnungsforderungen halten mag, über die die Vereinigten Staaten keine Verhandlungen führen wollten, es zeigt, dass er versuchte, einen Krieg zu vermeiden.

FÜNFTENS: Unmittelbar nach Beginn des Krieges hat Russland der Ukraine die Hand gereicht, um Verhandlungen zur Beendigung des Krieges und zur Ausarbeitung eines Modus Vivendi zwischen den beiden Ländern aufzunehmen.

Die Verhandlungen zwischen Kiew und Moskau begannen in Weißrussland nur vier Tage nach dem Einmarsch russischer Truppen in die Ukraine. Diese weißrussische Schiene wurde schließlich durch eine israelische und eine Istanbuler Schiene ersetzt. Alle verfügbaren Beweise deuten darauf hin, dass Russland ernsthaft verhandelte und nicht an der Übernahme ukrainischen Territoriums interessiert war, mit Ausnahme der Krim, die es 2014 annektiert hatte, und möglicherweise des Donbass. Die Verhandlungen endeten, als die Ukrainer auf Drängen Großbritanniens und der Vereinigten Staaten die Verhandlungen abbrachen, die zum Zeitpunkt ihrer Beendigung gute Fortschritte gemacht hatten.

Darüber hinaus berichtet Putin, dass er, als die Verhandlungen stattfanden und Fortschritte machten, gebeten wurde, als Geste des guten Willens die russischen Truppen aus dem Gebiet um Kiew abzuziehen, was er am 29. März 2022 tat. Keine westliche Regierung und kein ehemaliger Politiker hat diese Behauptung Putins angefochten, die in direktem Widerspruch zu seiner Behauptung steht, er wolle die gesamte Ukraine erobern.

SECHSTENS: Abgesehen von der Ukraine gibt es nicht den geringsten Hinweis darauf, dass Putin die Eroberung anderer osteuropäischer Länder ins Auge gefasst hat.

Außerdem ist die russische Armee nicht einmal groß genug, um die gesamte Ukraine zu überrennen, ganz zu schweigen von dem Versuch, die baltischen Staaten, Polen und Rumänien zu erobern. Außerdem sind alle diese Länder NATO-Mitglieder, was mit ziemlicher Sicherheit einen Krieg mit den Vereinigten Staaten und ihren Verbündeten bedeuten würde.

**SIEBTENS: Kaum jemand im Westen behauptete, Putin habe imperiale Ambitionen, seit er im Jahr 2000 die Macht übernahm, bis zum Beginn der Ukraine-Krise am 22. Februar 2014. Zu diesem Zeitpunkt wurde er plötzlich zum imperialen Aggressor. Warum? Weil die westlichen Staats- und Regierungschefs einen Grund brauchten, ihm die Schuld für die Krise zu geben. **

Der wohl beste Beweis dafür, dass Putin in den ersten vierzehn Jahren seiner Amtszeit nicht als ernsthafte Bedrohung angesehen wurde, ist die Tatsache, dass er auf dem NATO-Gipfel im April 2008 in Bukarest ein geladener Gast war, auf dem das Bündnis bekannt gab, dass die Ukraine und Georgien schließlich Mitglieder werden würden. Putin war natürlich erzürnd über diese Entscheidung und machte seinem Unmut Luft. Sein Widerstand gegen diese Ankündigung hatte jedoch kaum Auswirkungen auf Washington, da das russische Militär als zu schwach eingeschätzt wurde, um eine weitere NATO-Erweiterung zu verhindern, so wie es auch bei den Erweiterungswellen von 1999 und 2004 zu schwach gewesen war, um sie aufzuhalten. Der Westen glaubte, er könne Russland die NATO-Erweiterung noch einmal aufzwingen.

Außerdem war die NATO-Erweiterung vor dem 22. Februar 2014 nicht darauf ausgerichtet, Russland einzudämmen. Angesichts des traurigen Zustands der russischen Militärmacht war Moskau nicht in der Lage, die Ukraine zu erobern, geschweige denn eine revanchistische Politik in Osteuropa zu verfolgen. Der ehemalige US-Botschafter in Moskau, Michael McFaul, der ein entschiedener Verfechter der Ukraine und scharfer Kritiker Putins ist, stellt bezeichnenderweise fest, dass die Einnahme der Krim durch Russland im Jahr 2014 vor Ausbruch der Krise nicht geplant war; es war eine impulsive Reaktion auf den Putsch, der den prorussischen Führer der Ukraine stürzte. Kurz gesagt, die NATO-Erweiterung war nicht dazu gedacht, eine russische Bedrohung einzudämmen, weil der Westen nicht glaubte, dass es eine solche gab.

Erst als im Februar 2014 die Ukraine-Krise ausbrach, begannen die Vereinigten Staaten und ihre Verbündeten plötzlich, Putin als gefährlichen Führer mit imperialen Ambitionen und Russland als ernsthafte militärische Bedrohung zu beschreiben, die die NATO eindämmen müsse. Dieser abrupte Wechsel der Rhetorik sollte einem wesentlichen Zweck dienen: dem Westen die Möglichkeit zu geben, Putin für die Krise verantwortlich zu machen und den Westen von der Verantwortung freizusprechen. Es überrascht nicht, dass diese Darstellung Putins nach dem Einmarsch Russlands in die Ukraine am 24. Februar 2022 deutlich an Zugkraft gewann.

Eine Abweichung von der gängigen Meinung ist erwähnenswert. Einige argumentieren, dass die Entscheidung Moskaus, in die Ukraine einzumarschieren, wenig mit Putin selbst zu tun hat und stattdessen Teil einer expansionistischen Tradition ist, die lange vor Putin bestand und tief in der russischen Gesellschaft verwurzelt ist. Dieser Hang zur Aggression, der angeblich von inneren Kräften und nicht von Russlands äußerem Bedrohungsumfeld angetrieben wird, hat im Laufe der Zeit praktisch alle russischen Führer dazu gebracht, sich ihren Nachbarn gegenüber gewalttätig zu verhalten. Es lässt sich nicht leugnen, dass Putin in dieser Geschichte das Sagen hat oder dass er Russland in den Krieg geführt hat, aber es heißt, dass er wenig Einfluss hat. Fast jeder andere russische Führer hätte genauso gehandelt.

Es gibt zwei Probleme mit diesem Argument. Erstens ist es nicht widerlegbar, da der langjährige Charakterzug in der russischen Gesellschaft, der diesen aggressiven Impuls hervorrufe, nie identifiziert wurde. Es heißt, die Russen seien schon immer aggressiv gewesen – egal, wer an der Macht sei – und würden es auch immer sein. Es ist fast so, als ob es in ihrer DNA läge. Die gleiche Behauptung wurde einst über die Deutschen aufgestellt, die im zwanzigsten Jahrhundert oft als angeborene Aggressoren dargestellt wurden. Derartige Argumente werden in der akademischen Welt aus gutem Grund nicht ernst genommen.

Außerdem bezeichnete zwischen 1991 und 2014, als die Ukraine-Krise ausbrach, kaum jemand in den Vereinigten Staaten oder Westeuropa Russland als von Natur aus aggressiv. Außerhalb Polens und der baltischen Staaten wurde die Angst vor russischer Aggression in diesen 24 Jahren nicht häufig geäußert, was man erwarten würde, wenn die Russen zu Aggressionen veranlagt wären. Es scheint klar, dass das plötzliche Auftauchen dieser Argumentation eine bequeme Ausrede war, um Russland die Schuld für den Ukrainekrieg zu geben.  

***

Lassen Sie mich einen anderen Gang einlegen und die DREI HAUPTGRÜNDE darlegen, die dafür sprechen, dass die NATO-Erweiterung die Hauptursache für den Ukraine-Krieg war.

**ERSTENS sagten russische Führer aller Art vor Kriegsbeginn wiederholt, dass sie die NATO-Erweiterung in die Ukraine als eine existenzielle Bedrohung betrachten, die beseitigt werden muss. **

Putin hat diese Argumentation bereits vor dem 24. Februar 2022 mehrfach öffentlich dargelegt. In einer Rede vor dem Vorstand des Verteidigungsministeriums am 21. Dezember 2021 erklärte er: „Was sie in der Ukraine tun oder versuchen oder planen, findet nicht Tausende von Kilometern entfernt von unserer Landesgrenze statt. Es geschieht direkt vor unserer Haustür. Sie müssen verstehen, dass wir uns einfach nirgendwo mehr hin zurückziehen können. Glauben sie wirklich, dass wir diese Bedrohungen nicht wahrnehmen? Oder glauben sie, dass wir tatenlos zusehen werden, wie Bedrohungen für Russland entstehen?“ Zwei Monate später, auf einer Pressekonferenz am 22. Februar 2022, nur wenige Tage vor Kriegsbeginn, sagte Putin: „Wir sind kategorisch gegen einen NATO-Beitritt der Ukraine, weil dies eine Bedrohung für uns darstellt, und wir haben Argumente, die dies unterstützen. Ich habe in diesem Saal wiederholt darüber gesprochen.“ Dann machte er deutlich, dass er begreift, dass die Ukraine ein Defacto-Mitglied der NATO werde. Die Vereinigten Staaten und ihre Verbündeten, sagte er, „pumpen die derzeitigen Kiewer Machthaber weiterhin mit modernen Waffentypen voll“. Er fuhr fort, dass Moskau, wenn dies nicht gestoppt werde, „mit einem bis an die Zähne bewaffneten 'Antirussland' dastehen würde. Das ist völlig inakzeptabel.“

Auch andere führende russische Politiker - darunter der Verteidigungsminister, der Außenminister, der stellvertretende Außenminister und der russische Botschafter in Washington - betonten die zentrale Bedeutung der NATO-Erweiterung als Auslöser der Ukraine-Krise. Außenminister Sergej Lawrow brachte es auf einer Pressekonferenz am 14. Januar 2022 auf den Punkt: „Der Schlüssel zu allem ist die Garantie, dass die NATO nicht nach Osten expandieren wird.“

Man hört oft das Argument, die russischen Befürchtungen seien unbegründet, weil es keine Chance gebe, dass die Ukraine dem Bündnis in absehbarer Zukunft beitreten würde, wenn überhaupt. Tatsächlich wird behauptet, die Vereinigten Staaten und ihre europäischen Verbündeten hätten der Aufnahme der Ukraine in die NATO vor dem Krieg wenig Aufmerksamkeit geschenkt. Aber selbst wenn die Ukraine dem Bündnis beitreten würde, wäre dies keine existenzielle Bedrohung für Russland, da die NATO ein Verteidigungsbündnis ist. Daher kann die NATO-Erweiterung weder eine Ursache der ursprünglichen Krise gewesen sein, die im Februar 2014 ausbrach, noch des Krieges, der im Februar 2022 begann. 

Diese Argumentation ist falsch. Tatsächlich bestand die westliche Reaktion auf die Ereignisse von 2014 darin, die bestehende Strategie zu verdoppeln und die Ukraine noch näher an die NATO heranzuführen. Das Bündnis begann 2014 mit der Ausbildung des ukrainischen Militärs und bildete in den folgenden acht Jahren durchschnittlich 10.000 Soldaten pro Jahr aus. Im Dezember 2017 beschloss die Trump-Regierung, Kiew mit „Verteidigungswaffen“ zu versorgen. Andere NATO-Länder zogen bald nach und lieferten noch mehr Waffen an die Ukraine. Darüber hinaus begannen die ukrainische Armee, Marine und Luftwaffe, an gemeinsamen Militärübungen mit NATO-Streitkräften teilzunehmen. Die Bemühungen des Westens, das ukrainische Militär zu bewaffnen und auszubilden, erklären zu einem großen Teil, warum es im ersten Kriegsjahr so ​​gut gegen die russische Armee abschnitt. Eine Schlagzeile im Wall Street Journal vom April 2022 lautete: „Das Geheimnis des militärischen Erfolgs der Ukraine: Jahrelange NATO-Ausbildung.“ 

Abgesehen von den laufenden Bemühungen des Bündnisses, das ukrainische Militär zu einer schlagkräftigeren Kampftruppe zu machen, die an der Seite der NATO-Truppen operieren kann, gab es im Westen im Laufe des Jahres 2021 eine neue Begeisterung für die Aufnahme der Ukraine in die NATO. Gleichzeitig vollzog Präsident Zelensky, der nie viel Enthusiasmus für eine Aufnahme der Ukraine in das Bündnis gezeigt hatte und im März 2019 auf der Grundlage einer Plattform gewählt wurde, die zur Zusammenarbeit mit Russland bei der Beilegung der anhaltenden Krise aufrief, Anfang 2021 einen Kurswechsel und befürwortete nicht nur die NATO-Mitgliedschaft der Ukraine, sondern vertrat auch eine harte Linie gegenüber Moskau.

Präsident Biden, der im Januar 2021 ins Weiße Haus einzog, hatte sich seit langem für die Aufnahme der Ukraine in die NATO eingesetzt und war ein Superfalke gegenüber Russland. Es überrascht nicht, dass die NATO am 14. Juni 2021 auf ihrem jährlichen Gipfel in Brüssel ein Kommuniqué herausgab, in dem es hieß: „Wir bekräftigen den auf dem Gipfel von Bukarest 2008 gefassten Beschluss, dass die Ukraine Mitglied des Bündnisses wird.“ Am 1. September 2021 besuchte Zelensky das Weiße Haus, wo Biden klarstellte, dass die Vereinigten Staaten „fest entschlossen“ seien, „die euro-atlantischen Bestrebungen der Ukraine zu unterstützen“. Am 10. November 2021 unterzeichneten Außenminister Antony Blinken und sein ukrainischer Amtskollege Dmytro Kuleba ein wichtiges Dokument - die „Charta der strategischen Partnerschaft zwischen den USA und der Ukraine“. Das Ziel beider Parteien, so heißt es in dem Dokument, ist es, „das Engagement für die Durchführung tiefgreifender und umfassender Reformen in der Ukraine zu unterstreichen, die für eine vollständige Integration in die europäischen und euro-atlantischen Institutionen erforderlich sind.“ Es bekräftigt auch ausdrücklich das Engagement der USA für die „Bukarester Gipfelerklärung von 2008“.

Es scheint kaum Zweifel daran zu geben, dass die Ukraine auf dem besten Weg war, bis Ende 2021 Mitglied der NATO zu werden. Dennoch argumentieren einige Befürworter dieser Politik, dass sich Moskau keine Sorgen über dieses Ergebnis hätte machen müssen, denn „die NATO ist ein Verteidigungsbündnis und stellt keine Bedrohung für Russland dar“. Aber das ist nicht die Meinung Putins und anderer russischer Politiker über die NATO, und es kommt darauf an, was sie denken. Kurz gesagt, es steht außer Frage, dass Moskau den Beitritt der Ukraine zur NATO als eine existenzielle Bedrohung ansah, die nicht hingenommen werden durfte.

ZWEITENS erkannte eine beträchtliche Anzahl einflussreicher und hoch angesehener Persönlichkeiten im Westen vor dem Krieg, dass die Expansion der NATO – insbesondere in die Ukraine – von der russischen Führung als tödliche Bedrohung angesehen werden und schließlich zur Katastrophe führen würde.

William Burns, der heute die CIA leitet („heute“ leitet John Ratcliffe die CIA, aktualisieren ODER am Anfang des Textes klarstellen, dass er schon älter ist ODER „heute“ streichen und „leitete“ statt „leitet“), aber zum Zeitpunkt des NATO-Gipfels in Bukarest im April 2008 US-Botschafter in Moskau war, verfasste ein Memo an die damalige Außenministerin Condoleezza Rice, in dem er die russischen Überlegungen zur Aufnahme der Ukraine in die Allianz prägnant beschreibt. „Der Beitritt der Ukraine zur NATO“, so schrieb er, „ist für die russische Elite (nicht nur für Putin) die klarste aller roten Linien. In den mehr als zweieinhalb Jahren, in denen ich Gespräche mit den wichtigsten russischen Akteuren geführt habe, von Scharfmachern in den dunklen Nischen des Kremls bis hin zu Putins schärfsten liberalen Kritikern, habe ich noch niemanden gefunden, der die Aufnahme der Ukraine in die NATO als etwas anderes betrachtet als eine direkte Herausforderung für die russischen Interessen.“ Die NATO, so sagte er, „würde als ein strategischer Fehdehandschuh angesehen werden. Das heutige Russland wird darauf reagieren. Die russisch-ukrainischen Beziehungen würden auf Eis gelegt ... Das würde einen fruchtbaren Boden für russische Einmischungen auf der Krim und in der Ostukraine schaffen.“

Burns war 2008 nicht der einzige westliche Entscheidungsträger, der erkannte, dass die Aufnahme der Ukraine in die NATO mit Gefahren verbunden war. Auf dem Bukarester Gipfel sprachen sich sowohl die deutsche Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel als auch der französische Präsident Nicolas Sarkozy gegen eine NATO-Mitgliedschaft der Ukraine aus, weil sie wussten, dass dies Russland alarmieren und verärgern würde. Merkel erklärte kürzlich ihre Ablehnung: „Ich war mir sehr sicher, ... dass Putin das nicht einfach zulassen wird. Aus seiner Sicht wäre das eine Kriegserklärung“.

Um noch einen Schritt weiter zu gehen: Zahlreiche amerikanische Politiker und Strategen sprachen sich in den 1990er Jahren gegen die Entscheidung von Präsident Clinton aus, die NATO zu erweitern, als diese Entscheidung noch zur Debatte stand. Diesen Gegnern war von Anfang an klar, dass die russische Führung darin eine Bedrohung ihrer lebenswichtigen Interessen sehen würde und dass diese Politik letztlich in eine Katastrophe münden würde. Die Liste der Gegner umfasst prominente Persönlichkeiten des Establishments wie George Kennan, sowohl Präsident Clintons Verteidigungsminister William Perry als auch seinen Vorsitzenden des Vereinigten Generalstabs, General John Shalikashvili, Paul Nitze, Robert Gates, Robert McNamara, Richard Pipes und Jack Matlock, um nur einige zu nennen.

Die Logik von Putins Position sollte für Amerikaner, die seit langem der Monroe-Doktrin verpflichtet sind, vollkommen verständlich sein. Diese besagt, dass keine entfernte Großmacht ein Bündnis mit einem Land in der westlichen Hemisphäre eingehen und ihre militärischen Streitkräfte dort stationieren darf. Die Vereinigten Staaten würden einen solchen Schritt als existenzielle Bedrohung auffassen und alles tun, um diese Gefahr zu beseitigen. Dies geschah natürlich auch während der Kubakrise 1962, als Präsident Kennedy den Sowjets klar machte, dass ihre Atomraketen aus Kuba abgezogen werden müssten. Putin ist zutiefst von derselben Logik beeinflusst. Schließlich wollen Großmächte nicht, dass sich entfernte Großmächte in ihrem Hinterhof ansiedeln.

DRITTENS: Die zentrale Bedeutung der tiefen Angst Russlands vor einem NATO-Beitritt der Ukraine wird durch zwei Entwicklungen seit Kriegsbeginn verdeutlicht.

Während der Istanbuler Verhandlungen, die unmittelbar nach Beginn der Invasion stattfanden, machten die Russen deutlich, dass die Ukraine eine „dauerhafte Neutralität“ akzeptieren müsse und der NATO nicht beitreten könne. Die Ukrainer akzeptierten die Forderung Russlands ohne ernsthaften Widerstand, sicherlich weil sie wussten, dass es sonst unmöglich wäre, den Krieg zu beenden. In jüngerer Zeit, am 14. Juni 2024, stellte Putin zwei Forderungen, die die Ukraine erfüllen müsse, bevor er einem Waffenstillstand und der Aufnahme von Verhandlungen zur Beendigung des Krieges zustimmen würde. Eine dieser Forderungen war, dass Kiew „offiziell“ erklärt, „dass es seine Pläne, der NATO beizutreten, aufgibt“.

Das alles ist nicht überraschend, denn Russland hat die Ukraine in der NATO immer als existenzielle Bedrohung gesehen, die um jeden Preis verhindert werden muss. Diese Logik ist die treibende Kraft hinter dem Ukraine-Krieg.

Schließlich ist aus der Verhandlungsposition Russlands in Istanbul sowie aus Putins Äußerungen zur Beendigung des Krieges in seiner Ansprache vom 14. Juni 2024 klar ersichtlich, dass er nicht daran interessiert ist, die gesamte Ukraine zu erobern und sie zu einem Teil eines größeren Russlands zu machen.

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John Joseph Mearsheimer (* 14. Dezember 1947 in Brooklyn, New York City) ist ein US-amerikanischer Politikwissenschaftler an der University of Chicago. Sein Schwerpunkt ist die Analyse internationaler Beziehungen aus der Perspektive des offensiven Neorealismus, den er erstmals 2001 in seiner Monografie The Tragedy of Great Power Politics darstellte.

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Dieser Text von John J. Mearsheimer erschien am 5.8.2024 auf Substack.Vielen Dank für die Genehmigung des Autors zum Abdruck der deutschen Übersetzung. Die Übersetzung wurde von Thomas Mayer erstellt. 

Neben der NATO-Osterweiterung gibt es weitere Faktoren die zum Ukraine-Krieg führten, zum Beispiel der Nationalismus in der Ukraine und die Unterdrückung der ethnisch-russischen Bevölkerung.

Ausführlich sind die vielschichtigen Hintergründe des Ukraine-Krieges geschildert in dem Buch von Thomas Mayer: Wahrheitssuche im Ukraine-Krieg – Um was es wirklich geht, 600 Seiten, ISBN 978-3-89060-863-1, Infos zum Buch: https://kurzelinks.de/h10a

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Bitcoin Magazine

Bitcoin Life Insurer, Meanwhile, Becomes First Company to Publish Audited Financials Denominated in Bitcoin

Meanwhile Insurance Bitcoin (Bermuda) Limited (“Meanwhile”) announced it has become the first company in the world to release externally audited financial statements denominated entirely in Bitcoin. According to the announcement, the company reported 220.4 BTC in assets and 25.29 BTC in net income for 2024, a 300% year over year increase.

Today marks a global first & historic event for us, along with the public release of our 2024 audited financial statements, covering our 1st year of sales.

As the 1st company in the world to have Bitcoin-denominated financial statements externally audited, we are excited to…

— meanwhile | Bitcoin Life Insurance (@meanwhilelife) June 5, 2025

“We’ve just made history as the first company in the world to have Bitcoin-denominated financial statements externally audited,” said Zac Townsend, CEO of Meanwhile. “This is an important, foundational step in reimagining the financial system based on a single, global, decentralized standard outside the control of any one government.” 

The financial statements were audited by Harris & Trotter LLP and its digital asset division ht.digital. Meanwhile’s financials also comply with Bermuda’s Insurance Act 1978, noting that their BTC denominated financials were approved and comply with official guidelines. The firm, fully licensed by the Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA), operates entirely in BTC and is prohibited from liquidating Bitcoin assets except through policyholder claims, positioning it as a long term holder. 

“As the first regulated Bitcoin life insurance company, we view the BTC held by Meanwhile as inherently long-term in nature—primarily held to support the Company’s insurance liabilities over decades,” Townsend added. “This makes it significantly ‘stickier’ and resistant to market pressures compared to the BTC held by other companies as part of their treasury management strategies.” 

Meanwhile’s 2024 financials also revealed 23.02 BTC in net premiums and 4.35 BTC in investment income, showing that its model not only preserves Bitcoin, but earns it. The company’s reserves (also held in BTC) were reviewed and approved by Willis Towers Watson (WTW). 

Meanwhile also offers a Bitcoin Whole Life insurance product that allows policyholders to save, borrow, and build legacy wealth—entirely in BTC, and has plans to expand globally in 2025.

“We are incredibly proud of today’s news as it underscores how Meanwhile is at the forefront of the next phase of the convergence between Bitcoin and institutional financial markets,” said Tia Beckmann, CFO of Meanwhile. “Now having generated net income in BTC, we have demonstrated that we are earning it through a sustainable insurance business model designed for the long term.” 

This post Bitcoin Life Insurer, Meanwhile, Becomes First Company to Publish Audited Financials Denominated in Bitcoin first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Jenna Montgomery.

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Bitcoin Magazine

Know Labs, Inc. Announces Adopting a Bitcoin Treasury Strategy, Starting with 1,000 Bitcoin

Know Labs, Inc. (NYSE American: KNW) announced entering into an agreement with Goldeneye 1995 LLC and the Ripple Chief Risk Officer Greg Kidd to acquire a controlling interest in the Company. Following the completion of the transaction, Mr. Kidd will become Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Company and Founder Ron Erickson will become Vice Chairman of the Board.

JUST IN: Know Labs, Inc. announces its adopting a Bitcoin Treasury Strategy and holds 1,000 Bitcoin pic.twitter.com/NSn2xFZYx0

— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) June 6, 2025

Under the agreement, the Buyer will acquire shares of Know Labs’ common stock by dividing the total value of 1,000 Bitcoin and a cash amount, designated to pay down existing debt, redeem outstanding preferred equity, and provide additional working capital. For every share purchased it will be priced at $0.335. The Bitcoin will serve as a central element of the Company’s treasury strategy, giving investors the exposure to Bitcoin.

“I’m thrilled to deploy a Bitcoin treasury strategy with the support of a forward-looking organization like Know Labs at a time when market and regulatory conditions are particularly favorable,” said Mr. Kidd. “We believe this approach will generate sustainable growth and long-term shareholder value.”

Once Bitcoin becomes the primary asset on the Company’s balance sheet, management will adopt the multiple of net asset value (mNAV) metric to assess the premium investors place on the Company’s market value relative to its Bitcoin assets. Based on a market cap of $128 million and a Bitcoin price of $105,000, the estimated entry mNAV multiple is 1.22x, with Bitcoin accounting for approximately 82% of the total market capitalization at closing.

“Partnering with Greg Kidd marks a pivotal next chapter for Know Labs,” commented Mr. Erickson. “We look forward to continuing our research in non-invasive medical technology. Greg’s visionary leadership positions Know Labs for a bold future.”

The adoption of Bitcoin as a treasury reserve asset has dramatically increased over the course of the last year, expanding globally. To date, there are 225 companies and other entities with Bitcoin in their balance sheets. 

Norwegian Block Exchange (NBX), a leading Nordic cryptocurrency exchange and digital asset platform, announced on June 2 that it has added Bitcoin to its balance sheet, marking a national milestone as the first publicly listed company in Norway to hold Bitcoin as part of its treasury strategy.

“NBX will not sell this Bitcoin or go short in any form,” stated the company. “With reference to the latest POA notice with LDA capital, NBX will also use proceeds to buy additional Bitcoin.”

This post Know Labs, Inc. Announces Adopting a Bitcoin Treasury Strategy, Starting with 1,000 Bitcoin first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Oscar Zarraga Perez.

@ b1ddb4d7:471244e7

When Sergei talks about bitcoin, he doesn’t sound like someone chasing profits or followers. He sounds like someone about to build a monastery in the ruins.

While the mainstream world chases headlines and hype, Sergei shows up in local meetups from Sacramento to Cleveland, mentors curious minds, and shares what he knows is true – hoping that, with the right spark, someone will light their own way forward.

We interviewed Sergei to trace his steps: where he started, what keeps him going, and why teaching bitcoin is far more than explaining how to set up a node – it’s about reaching the right minds before the noise consumes them. So we began where most journeys start: at the beginning.

First Steps

• So, where did it all begin for you and what made you stay curious?

I first heard about bitcoin from a friend’s book recommendation, American Kingpin, the book about Silk Road (online drug marketplace). He is still not a true bitcoiner, although I helped him secure private keys with some bitcoin.

I was really busy at the time – focused on my school curriculum, running a 7-bedroom Airbnb, and working for a standardized test prep company. Bitcoin seemed too technical for me to explore, and the pace of my work left no time for it.

After graduating, while pursuing more training, I started playing around with stocks and maximizing my savings. Passive income seemed like the path to early retirement, as per the promise of the FIRE movement (Financial Independence, Retire Early). I mostly followed the mainstream news and my mentor’s advice – he liked preferred stocks at the time.

I had some Coinbase IOUs and remember sending bitcoin within the Coinbase ledger to a couple friends. I also recall the 2018 crash; I actually saw the legendary price spike live but couldn’t benefit because my funds were stuck amidst the frenzy. I withdrew from that investment completely for some time. Thankfully, my mentor advised to keep en eye on bitcoin.

Around late 2019, I started DCA-ing cautiously. Additionally, my friend and I were discussing famous billionaires, and how there was no curriculum for becoming a billionaire. So, I typed “billionaires” into my podcast app, and landed on We Study Billionaires podcast.

That’s where I kept hearing Preston Pysh mention bitcoin, before splitting into his own podcast series, Bitcoin Fundamentals. I didn’t understand most of the terminology of stocks, bonds, etc, yet I kept listening and trying to absorb it thru repetition. Today, I realize all that financial talk was mostly noise.

When people ask me for a technical explanation of fiat, I say: it’s all made up, just like the fiat price of bitcoin! Starting in 2020, during the so-called pandemic, I dove deeper. I religiously read Bitcoin Magazine, scrolled thru Bitcoin Twitter, and joined Simply Bitcoin Telegram group back when DarthCoin was an admin.

DarthCoin was my favorite bitcoiner – experienced, knowledgeable, and unapologetic. Watching him shift from rage to kindness, from passion to despair, gave me a glimpse at what a true educator’s journey would look like.

The struggle isn’t about adoption at scale anymore. It’s about reaching the few who are willing to study, take risks, and stay out of fiat traps. The vast majority won’t follow that example – not yet at least… if I start telling others the requirements for true freedom and prosperity, they would certainly say “Hell no!”

• At what point did you start teaching others, and why?

After college, I helped teach at a standardized test preparation company, and mentored some students one-on-one. I even tried working at a kindergarten briefly, but left quickly; Babysitting is not teaching.

What I discovered is that those who will succeed don’t really need my help – they would succeed with or without me, because they already have the inner drive.

Once you realize your people are perishing for lack of knowledge, the only rational thing to do is help raise their level of knowledge and understanding. That’s the Great Work.

I sometimes imagine myself as a political prisoner. If that were to happen, I’d probably start teaching fellow prisoners, doctors, janitors, even guards. In a way we already live in an open-air prison, So what else is there to do but teach, organize, and conspire to dismantle the Matrix?

Building on Bitcoin

• You hosted some in-person meetups in Sacramento. What did you learn from those?

My first presentation was on MultiSig storage with SeedSigner, and submarine swaps through Boltz.exchange.

I realized quickly that I had overestimated the group’s technical background. Even the meetup organizer, a financial advisor, asked, “How is anyone supposed to follow these steps?” I responded that reading was required… He decided that Unchained is an easier way.

At a crypto meetup, I gave a much simpler talk, outlining how bitcoin will save the world, based on a DarthCoin’s guide. Only one person stuck around to ask questions – a man who seemed a little out there, and did not really seem to get the message beyond the strength of cryptographic security of bitcoin.

Again, I overestimated the audience’s readiness. That forced me to rethink my strategy. People are extremely early and reluctant to study.

• Now in Ohio, you hold sessions via the Orange Pill App. What’s changed?

My new motto is: educate the educators. The corollary is: don’t orange-pill stupid normies (as DarthCoin puts it).

I’ve shifted to small, technical sessions in order to raise a few solid guardians of this esoteric knowledge who really get it and can carry it forward.

The youngest attendee at one of my sessions is a newborn baby – he mostly sleeps, but maybe he still absorbs some of the educational vibes.

• How do local groups like Sactown and Cleveland Bitcoiners influence your work?

Every meetup reflects its local culture. Sacramento and Bay Area Bitcoiners, for example, do camping trips – once we camped through a desert storm, shielding our burgers from sand while others went to shoot guns.

Cleveland Bitcoiners are different. They amass large gatherings. They recently threw a 100k party. They do a bit more community outreach. Some are curious about the esoteric topics such as jurisdiction, spirituality, and healthful living.

I have no permanent allegiance to any state, race, or group. I go where I can teach and learn. I anticipate that in my next phase, I’ll meet Bitcoiners so advanced that I’ll have to give up my fiat job and focus full-time on serious projects where real health and wealth are on the line.

Hopefully, I’ll be ready. I believe the universe always challenges you exactly to your limit – no less, no more.

• What do people struggle with the most when it comes to technical education?

The biggest struggle isn’t technical – it’s a lack of deep curiosity. People ask “how” and “what” – how do I set up a node, what should one do with the lightning channels? But very few ask “why?”

Why does on-chain bitcoin not contribute to the circular economy? Why is it essential to run Lightning? Why did humanity fall into mental enslavement in the first place?

I’d rather teach two-year-olds who constantly ask “why” than adults who ask how to flip a profit. What worries me most is that most two-year-olds will grow up asking state-funded AI bots for answers and live according to its recommendations.

• One Cleveland Bitcoiner shows up at gold bug meetups. How valuable is face-to-face education?

I don’t think the older generation is going to reverse the current human condition. Most of them have been under mind control for too long, and they just don’t have the attention span to study and change their ways.

They’re better off stacking gold and helping fund their grandkids’ education. If I were to focus on a demographic, I’d go for teenagers – high school age – because by college, the indoctrination is usually too strong, and they’re chasing fiat mastery.

As for the gold bug meetup? Perhaps one day I will show up with a ukulele to sing some bitcoin-themed songs. Seniors love such entertainment.

• How do you choose what to focus on in your sessions, especially for different types of learners?

I don’t come in with a rigid agenda. I’ve collected a massive library of resources over the years and never stopped reading. My browser tab and folder count are exploding.

At the meetup, people share questions or topics they’re curious about, then I take that home, do my homework, and bring back a session based on those themes. I give them the key takeaways, plus where to dive deeper.

Most people won’t – or can’t – study the way I do, and I expect attendees to put in the work. I suspect that it’s more important to reach those who want to learn but don’t know how, the so-called nescient (not knowing), rather than the ignorant.

There are way too many ignorant bitcoiners, so my mission is to find those who are curious what’s beyond the facade of fake reality and superficial promises.

That naturally means that fewer people show up, and that’s fine. I’m not here for the crowds; I’m here to educate the educators. One bitcoiner who came decided to branch off into self-custody sessions and that’s awesome. Personally, I’m much more focused on Lightning.

I want to see broader adoption of tools like auth, sign-message, NWC, and LSPs. Next month, I’m going deep into eCash solutions, because let’s face it – most newcomers won’t be able to afford their own UTXO or open a lightning channel; additionally, it has to be fun and easy for them to transact sats, otherwise they won’t do it. Additionally, they’ll need to rely on

@ a296b972:e5a7a2e8

Nur für‘s Protokoll. Hiermit erkläre ich, Georg Ohrweh, im tatsächlich vorhandenen vollen Besitz meiner geistigen Kräfte, dass Herr Lauterbach, gleich welche Position er in Zukunft noch bekleiden sollte, für mich nicht zuständig ist. Basta.

Ein Erguss dieses verhaltensoriginellen Über-alles-Bescheidwissers:

„Wir kommen jetzt in eine Phase hinein, wo der Ausnahmezustand die Normalität sein wird. Wir werden ab jetzt immer im Ausnahmezustand sein. Der Klimawandel wird zwangsläufig mehr Pandemien bringen.“

Wie kann es sein, dass solch eine Ausnahme-Gestalt, die schon rein äußerlich die Phantasie zu Vergleichen anregt, sich leider auch genauso verhält, wie die Gestalten, die in diesen Phantasien vorkommen, ungebremst auf der Panik-Klaviatur kakophonische Klänge erzeugen darf? Obwohl ein wenig Wahrheit ist auch enthalten: Wir sind tatsächlich immer im Ausnahmezustand, im Ausnahmezustand des fortgeschrittenen Wahnsinns.

Wie kann es sein, dass dieser Haaaarvardist seinen persönlich empfundenen Ausnahmezustand zum Allgemeingut erklären kann? Welche Verknüpfungs-Phantasien hat er sonst noch studiert? Er ist ja auch noch Vorsitzender im Raumfahrtausschuss. Was kommt als Nächstes? Eine Klima-Pandemie, verursacht durch außerirdische Viren, die die Temperaturen beeinflussen können? Im aktuellen Zeitgeist gibt es nichts, was nicht gedacht wird. Wem die besseren Absurditäten einfallen, der gewinnt. Man muss sich schon den gegebenen Denkstrukturen etwas anpassen, aber sich auch ein wenig Mühe geben.

Nach dem Wechsel der ehemaligen Außen-Dings zur UN (mit dem Ziel, aus den Vereinten Nationen die Feministischen Nationen zu gestalten) und des ehemaligen Wirtschafts-Dings in den Außenausschuss und als Gastdozent in Kalifornien (Thema: Wirtschaftsvernichtung unter Einbeziehung des gespannten Verhältnisses unter Geschwistern aufgrund ärmlicher Verhältnisse, am Beispiel des Märchens von Hänsel und Gretel) , jetzt auch noch der ehemalige Chef-Panikmacher zur WHO.

…und der Wahnsinn wurde hinausgetragen in die Welt, und es wurde dunkel, und es ward Nacht, und es wurde helle, und es ward Tag, der Wind blies oder auch nicht (was macht der Wind eigentlich, wenn er nicht weht?), und es ward Winter, und es wurde kälter, und es wurde wärmer, und es ward Sommer. Es regnete nicht mehr, die Wolken schwitzten. Und Putin verhinderte (wer auch sonst), dass das Eis in der Antarktis abnahm.

Wiederholte Bodentemperaturen in der Toskana von 50 Grad Celsius. Zu erwartende Wassertemperaturen während Ferragosto an der italienischen Adria von durchschnittlich 100 Grad Celsius. An Stellen mit wenig Strömung stiegen schon die ersten Kochblasen auf. Doch dann kam der durch Lachs gestählte, salzlose Super-Karl und rettete mit einem durch die WHO diktierten Klima-Logdown die gesamte Menschheit. Wer besser, als er konnte wissen, dass ein Klima-Logdown weitgehend nebenwirkungsfrei ist.

Was für ein Segen, dass Karl der Große, der uns so siegreich durch die Corona-Schlacht geführt hat, jetzt auch gegen das Klima in den Krieg zieht.

Wer kennt das nicht, Tage der Qual, in denen man zugeben muss: Ich hab‘ heute so schlimm Klima.

Viele Klimaexperten, die weltweit in der Qualitätspropaganda zitiert werden, zeichnen sich besonders dadurch aus, dass sie mit einer maximalen Abweichung von einem Grad Celsius ein Thermometer fehlerfrei ablesen können. Diese Ungenauigkeit wird der Erdverkochungsexperte sicher als erstes beheben.

In einer aufopfernden Studie während eines Urlaubs in 2023, in der um die damalige Zeit erstmals eisfreien Toskana, hat er den von ihm ausgetüftelten Klimaschutzplan ins Rheinische übersetzt. Titel: „Schützen Sie sisch, und, äh, andere!“ Weiter konnte er erforschen, dass die Bodentemperatur nicht immer mit der Temperatur des Erdkerns übereinstimmen muss.

Durch seine unermüdlichen Studien, können Hitzetote in Zukunft besser zugeordnet werden. Man weiß dann, ob jemand an hohen oder mit hohen Temperaturen gestorben ist. Der asymptomatische Klimawandel kann so in Zukunft viel besser bewertet werden. Man hat aus geringfügigen Fehlern gelernt und die Methoden erheblich verbessert.

Eine präzise Vorhersage der Jahreszeiten, vor allem die des Sommers, wird bald ebenfalls möglich sein. Es kann jetzt vor jahreszeitbedingten, teilweise sogar täglich schwankenden Temperaturveränderungen rechtzeitig gewarnt werden. Im Herbst können Heizempfehlungen für die ahnungslose Bevölkerung herausgegeben werden. Frieren war gestern, wissen wann es kalt wird, ist heute. Es wird an Farben geforscht, die noch roter sein sollen, als die, die jetzt in den Wetterkarten bei 21 Grad bereits verwendet werden.

Eine allgemeine Heizpflicht soll es europaweit zunächst nicht geben.

Weiter soll die Lichteinstrahlung der Sonne noch präziser bestimmt werden, damit den Europäern, in Ergänzung zur mitteleuropäischen Sommerzeit, jetzt auch noch genau mitgeteilt werden kann, wann es Tag und wann es Nacht ist.

Das Hinausschauen aus dem Fenster, zum Beispiel, ob es schon dunkel draußen ist, erübrigt sich. Die Tageszeit, in Ergänzung zur herkömmlichen Uhrzeit, wird demnächst automatisch mit dem Klima-Pass übermittelt werden. Zu Anfang natürlich erst einmal freiwillig.

Durch die persönliche ID können dann auch schnell und unkompliziert Sonderprämien überwiesen werden, sofern man sich klimakonform verhalten hat, damit man sich rechtzeitig vor Winterbeginn eine warme Jacke oder einen Mantel kaufen kann. Das Sparen von Bargeld auf eine bevorstehende größere Anschaffung von Winterkleidung wird somit überflüssig.

Ob es am Ende nun um Hitze oder Kälte geht, spielt eigentlich gar keine Rolle, denn wie wussten schon die Ahnen zu berichten: Was gut für die Kälte ist, ist auch gut für die Wärme.

Westliche Mächte unternehmen immer wieder Versuche, eskalierend auf den Ukraine-Konflikt einzuwirken, damit man atombetriebene Heizpilze aufstellen kann, an denen sich die Europäer im Winter auch im Freien wärmen können.

Wie praktisch, dass man nicht nur Gesundheit und Klima, sondern auch Klima und Krieg miteinander verbinden kann. Alles so, oder so ähnlich möglicherweise nachzulesen im genialen Hitzeschutzplan á la Lauterbach.

Besonders Deutschland braucht nicht nur lauterbachsche Hitzeschutzräume, nein es braucht atomsichere Hitzeschutzbunker, so schlägt man gleich zwei Fliegen mit einer Klappe.

Für die, die es sich leisten können, hier ein Vorschlag. Der K2000:

https://www.swr.de/swr1/rp/programm/loriot-mini-luftschutzbunker-zum-preis-einer-waschmaschine-100.html

Für die weniger gut Betuchten reicht auch ein kühles Kellerloch, das man idealerweise im Februar beziehen und nicht vor November wieder verlassen sollte, so die Empfehlung auch von führenden Klima-Forschern, die es ja wissen müssen. Von Dezember bis Januar empfiehlt sich ein Besuch auf den Bahamas, besonders dann, wenn man eine leichte Erkältung verspürt.

Nur Verschwörungstheoretiker behaupten, dass die eigenartigen Anschlussverwendungen der Extrem-Kapazitäten, zu denen Lauterbach ohne Zweifel dazugehört, wie dicke rote Pfeile wirken, die auf Institutionen und Organisationen zeigen, um die man unter allen Umständen einen großen Bogen machen sollte, weil sie möglicherweise nichts Gutes im Schilde führen. Minimal sollen sie angeblich Unsinn verbreiten, maximal sollen sie gehörigen Schaden anrichten.

Man muss sich nur ein paar Gedanken machen, schon kann man feststellen, wie alles mit allem zusammenhängt.

“Dieser Beitrag wurde mit dem Pareto-Client geschrieben.”

* *

(Bild von pixabay)

@ 81022b27:2b8d0644

I’m a Chiropractor, Writer, Travel Nerd, Lover of Efficiency, Trekker and a Celebrity in Mexican Restaurants Hi, I’m Danny DeReuter, and I want to save the world. I’m an occasional writer-I’ve written some stuff.

Sometimes people think I’m funny. Maybe some time I’ll come up with a bit of courage and try my hand at stand-up. (seriously, that’s a thing on my vision board)

I’ve become somewhat of a social media expert managing my online presence. I help show people how to do social media more effectively.

I’m also a speaker. I prefer to speak on topics that I’m passionate about-like natural health, chiropractic, and social media. I also have a Podcast. Be nice and you can ask me to speak at your event.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

‘MicroStrategy of Asia’ Metaplanet Aims To Acquire Over 210,000 BTC By the End of 2027

Metaplanet Inc. widely recognized as Japan’s leading Bitcoin treasury company, has announced a major update to its Bitcoin accumulation strategy, unveiling the “555 Million Plan” aimed at acquiring over 210,000 BTC by the end of 2027, which is equivalent to 1% of Bitcoin’s total supply.

*Metaplanet Announces Accelerated 2025-2027 Bitcoin Plan: Targeting 210,000 $BTC by 2027*

Full Presentation: https://t.co/JG28maMdfd pic.twitter.com/i9kzmjlDT8

— Metaplanet Inc. (@Metaplanet_JP) June 6, 2025

This new target marks a dramatic increase from the company’s earlier “21 Million Plan,” which aimed for just 21,000 BTC by 2026. Progress far outpaced expectations, with 8,888 BTC already secured as of June 2, prompting the strategic shift.

To fund this growth, Metaplanet has launched Asia’s largest Bitcoin-focused equity raise, aiming to secure ¥770.9 billion (approximately $5.4 billion) through the issuance of 555 million shares via moving strike warrants. This is the first structure of its kind in Japan, priced at a premium to market, made possible by the company’s high share liquidity and volatility.

At the Annual General Meeting on March 24, shareholders approved an increase in authorized shares from 161 million to 1.61 billion, following a 10-for-1 stock split effective April 1, 2025; Metaplanet has approximately 296 million authorized shares remaining. The 555 million shares being issued under the new plan will bring the company’s fully diluted shares outstanding to around 759 million.

Metaplanet’s Bitcoin yield targets and performance for 2025 have shown strong momentum, with quarterly BTC yields of 41.7% in Q3 2024, 309.8% in Q4 2024, 95.6% in Q1 2025, 66.3% in Q2 2025, and projected 35% yields for both Q3 and Q4 2025. The year-to-date BTC yield for 2025 stands at 225.4%, closing to the full year target of 232%. 

Metaplanet also announced the issuance of the 20th to 22nd Series of Stock Acquisition Rights via a third-party allotment to EVO FUND, potentially adding 555 million new shares. The initial exercise price is set at JPY 1,388 and will adjust regularly based on stock prices, with some series including a premium to protect shareholders. The exercise period runs from June 24, 2025, to June 23, 2027, with expected proceeds of approximately JPY 767.4 billion. This financing supports the “555 Million Plan” and further Bitcoin accumulation.

Metaplanet CEO Simon Gerovich wrote in a post on X, “thanks to all of our shareholders,” he said. “We are honored to be on this journey with you. Metaplanet is accelerating into the future — powered by Bitcoin.”

Metaplanet has launched Asia’s largest-ever equity raise dedicated to Bitcoin:
¥770.9 billion (~$5.4B) capital raise
555 million shares via moving strike warrants
First in Japan: issued at a premium to market — enabled by Metaplanet’s high volatility and deep liquidity… pic.twitter.com/UlXHneyDzo

— Simon Gerovich (@gerovich) June 6, 2025

This post ‘MicroStrategy of Asia’ Metaplanet Aims To Acquire Over 210,000 BTC By the End of 2027 first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Oscar Zarraga Perez.

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

What is KYC/AML?

• The acronym stands for Know Your Customer / Anti Money Laundering.
• In practice it stands for the surveillance measures companies are often compelled to take against their customers by financial regulators.
• Methods differ but often include: Passport Scans, Driver License Uploads, Social Security Numbers, Home Address, Phone Number, Face Scans.
• Bitcoin companies will also store all withdrawal and deposit addresses which can then be used to track bitcoin transactions on the bitcoin block chain.
• This data is then stored and shared. Regulations often require companies to hold this information for a set number of years but in practice users should assume this data will be held indefinitely. Data is often stored insecurely, which results in frequent hacks and leaks.  
• KYC/AML data collection puts all honest users at risk of theft, extortion, and persecution while being ineffective at stopping crime. Criminals often use counterfeit, bought, or stolen credentials to get around the requirements. Criminals can buy "verified" accounts for as little as $200. Furthermore, billions of people are excluded from financial services as a result of KYC/AML requirements.

During the early days of bitcoin most services did not require this sensitive user data, but as adoption increased so did the surveillance measures. At this point, most large bitcoin companies are collecting and storing massive lists of bitcoiners, our sensitive personal information, and our transaction history.

Lists of Bitcoiners

KYC/AML policies are a direct attack on bitcoiners. Lists of bitcoiners and our transaction history will inevitably be used against us.

Once you are on a list with your bitcoin transaction history that record will always exist. Generally speaking, tracking bitcoin is based on probability analysis of ownership change. Surveillance firms use various heuristics to determine if you are sending bitcoin to yourself or if ownership is actually changing hands.  You can obtain better privacy going forward by using collaborative transactions such as coinjoin to break this probability analysis.

Fortunately, you can buy bitcoin without providing intimate personal information. Tools such as peach, hodlhodl, robosats, azteco and bisq help; mining is also a solid option: anyone can plug a miner into power and internet and earn bitcoin by mining privately.

You can also earn bitcoin by providing goods and/or services that can be purchased with bitcoin. Long term, circular economies will mitigate this threat: most people will not buy bitcoin - they will earn bitcoin - most people will not sell bitcoin - they will spend bitcoin.

There is no such thing as KYC or No KYC bitcoin, there are bitcoiners on lists and those that are not on lists.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ b1ddb4d7:471244e7

“Not your keys, not your coins” isn’t a slogan—it’s a survival mantra in the age of digital sovereignty.

The seismic collapses of Mt. Gox (2014) and FTX (2022) weren’t anomalies; they were wake-up calls. When $8.7 billion in customer funds vanished with FTX, it exposed the fatal flaw of third-party custody: your bitcoin is only as secure as your custodian’s weakest link.

Yet today, As of early 2025, analysts estimate that between 2.3 million and 3.7 million Bitcoins are permanently lost, representing approximately 11–18% of bitcoin’s fixed maximum supply of 21 million coins, with some reports suggesting losses as high as 4 million BTC. This paradox reveals a critical truth: self-custody isn’t just preferable—it’s essential—but it must be done right.

The Custody Spectrum

Custodial Wallets (The Illusion of Control)

• Rehypothecation Risk: Most platforms lend your bitcoin for yield generation. When Celsius collapsed, users discovered their “held” bitcoin was loaned out in risky strategies.
• Account Freezes: Regulatory actions can lock withdrawals overnight. In 2023, Binance suspended dollar withdrawals for U.S. users citing “partner bank issues,” trapping funds for weeks.
• Data Vulnerability: KYC requirements create honeypots for hackers. The 2024 Ledger breach exposed 270,000 users’ personal data despite hardware security.

True Self-Custody
Self-custody means exclusively controlling your private keys—the cryptographic strings that prove bitcoin ownership. Unlike banks or exchanges, self-custody eliminates:

• Counterparty risk (no FTX-style implosions)
• Censorship (no blocked transactions)
• Inflationary theft (no fractional reserve lending)

Conquering the Three Great Fears of Self-Custody

Fear 1: “I’ll Lose Everything If I Make a Mistake”

Reality: Human error is manageable with robust systems:

• Test Transactions: Always send a micro-amount (0.00001 BTC) before large transfers. Verify receipt AND ability to send back.
• Multi-Backup Protocol: Store seed phrases on fireproof/waterproof steel plates (not paper!). Distribute copies geographically—one in a home safe, another with trusted family 100+ miles away.
• SLIP39 Sharding: Split your seed into fragments requiring 3-of-5 shards to reconstruct. No single point of failure.

Fear 2: “Hackers Will Steal My Keys”

Reality: Offline storage defeats remote attacks:

• Hardware Wallets: Devices like Bitkey or Ledger keep keys in “cold storage”—isolated from internet-connected devices. Transactions require physical confirmation.
• Multisig Vaults: Bitvault’s multi-sig system requires attackers compromise multiple locations/devices simultaneously. Even losing two keys won’t forfeit funds.
• Air-Gapped Verification: Use dedicated offline devices for wallet setup. Never type seeds on internet-connected machines.

Fear 3: “My Family Can’t Access It If I Die”

Reality: Inheritance is solvable:

• Dead Man Switches: Bitwarden’s emergency access allows trusted contacts to retrieve encrypted keys after a pre-set waiting period (e.g., 30 days).
• Inheritance Protocols: Bitkey’s inheritance solution shares decryption keys via designated beneficiaries’ emails. Requires multiple approvals to prevent abuse.
• Public Key Registries: Share wallet XPUBs (not private keys!) with heirs. They can monitor balances but not spend, ensuring transparency without risk.

The Freedom Dividend

1. Censorship Resistance: Send $10M BTC to a Wikileaks wallet without Visa/Mastercard blocking it.
2. Privacy Preservation: Avoid KYC surveillance—non-custodial wallets like Flash require zero ID verification.
3. Protocol Access: Participate in bitcoin-native innovations (Lightning Network, DLCs) only possible with self-custodied keys.
4. Black Swan Immunity: When Cyprus-style bank bailins happen, your bitcoin remains untouched in your vault.

The Sovereign’s Checklist

1. Withdraw from Exchanges: Move all BTC > $1,000 to self-custody immediately.
2. Buy Hardware Wallet: Purchase DIRECTLY from manufacturer (no Amazon!) to avoid supply-chain tampering.
3. Generate Seed OFFLINE: Use air-gapped device, write phrase on steel—never digitally.
4. Test Recovery: Delete wallet, restore from seed before funding.
5. Implement Multisig: For > $75k, use Bitvault for 2-of-3 multi-sig setup.
6. Create Inheritance Plan: Share XPUBs/SLIP39 shards with heirs + legal documents.

“Self-custody isn’t about avoiding risk—it’s about transferring risk from opaque institutions to transparent, controllable systems you design.”

The Inevitable Evolution: Custody Without Compromise

Emerging solutions are erasing old tradeoffs:

• MPC Wallets: Services like Xapo Bank shatter keys into encrypted fragments distributed globally. No single device holds full keys, defeating physical theft.
• Social Recovery: Ethically designed networks (e.g., Bitkey) let trusted contacts restore access without custodial control.
• Biometric Assurance: Fingerprint reset protocols prevent lockouts from physical injuries.

Lost keys = lost bitcoin. But consider the alternative: entrusting your life savings to entities with proven 8% annual failure rates among exchanges. Self-custody shifts responsibility from hoping institutions won’t fail to knowing your system can’t fail without your consent.

Take action today: Move one coin. Test one recovery. Share one xpub. The path to unchained wealth begins with a single satoshi under your control.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

Gemini Files Draft With The SEC For Proposed IPO

Today, Gemini Space Station, Inc. announced that it has confidentially filed a draft registration statement with the US Securities and Exchange Commission for a proposed initial public offering (IPO) of its Class A common stock. Details such as the number of shares and the price range have not been disclosed. The IPO will proceed after the SEC’s review and is subject to market conditions.

JUST IN: @Gemini has confidentially filed for an IPO with the @SECGov.

Details on share count and pricing TBD.

Launch date will depend on SEC review and market conditions.

— Eleanor Terrett (@EleanorTerrett) June 6, 2025

“Any offers, solicitations or offers to buy, or any sales of securities will be made in accordance with the registration requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended,” stated the press release. “This announcement is being issued in accordance with Rule 135 under the Securities Act.”

Gemini’s move comes during a period of growing activity in both the public markets and the digital asset space. Just yesterday, Trump Media and Technology Group Corp. (Nasdaq, NYSE Texas: DJT) also filed a Form S-1 with the SEC for its upcoming Truth Social Bitcoin ETF.

“Truth Social Bitcoin ETF, B.T. is a Nevada business trust that issues beneficial interests in its net assets,” stated the Form S-1. “The assets of the Trust consist primarily of bitcoin held by a custodian on behalf of the Trust. The Trust seeks to reflect generally the performance of the price of bitcoin.”

Momentum around Bitcoin and broader crypto policy was also evident last week at the 2025 Bitcoin Conference in Las Vegas. There, Gemini founders Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss joined White House A.I. & Crypto Czar David Sacks to discuss how the government should manage Bitcoin, as well as recent developments in federal policy.

“Orange is the new gold,” said Cameron. “So, Bitcoin is Gold 2.0, and that’s been true since day one. So, at $100,000 Bitcoin, that’s exciting, but if you take 21 million and do the above ground market price of gold. Really, it should be a million dollars a coin—easily,”

They talked about some of the recent policy changes that have been good for crypto include rolling back the IRS digital asset broker rule and SAB 121, which had stopped banks from holding Bitcoin. The Department of Justice also stopped its regulation by prosecution approach, which takes a lot of pressure off digital asset firms.

“It’s hard to imagine a President. Any other President being able to do any fraction of this or accomplish that or any administration and we have just over 100 days,” said Tyler. “So, It’s pretty amazing that we still have a lot of time left.” Later on, he ended the panel saying, “To the Moon!”

This post Gemini Files Draft With The SEC For Proposed IPO first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Oscar Zarraga Perez.

@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG), the company behind Truth Social and other Trump-branded digital platforms, is planning to raise $2.5 billion to build one of the largest bitcoin treasuries among public companies.

The deal involves the sale of approximately $1.5 billion in common stock and $1.0 billion in convertible senior secured notes.

According to the company, the offering is expected to close by the end of May, pending standard closing conditions.

Devin Nunes, CEO of Trump Media, said the investment in bitcoin is a big part of the company’s long-term plan.

“We view Bitcoin as an apex instrument of financial freedom,” Nunes said.

“This investment will help defend our Company against harassment and discrimination by financial institutions, which plague many Americans and U.S. firms.”

He added that the bitcoin treasury will be used to create new synergies across the company’s platforms including Truth Social, Truth+, and the upcoming financial tech brand Truth.Fi.

“It’s a big step forward in the company’s plans to evolve into a holding company by acquiring additional profit-generating, crown jewel assets consistent with America First principles,” Nunes said.

The $2.5 billion raise will come from about 50 institutional investors. The $1 billion in convertible notes will have 0% interest and be convertible into shares at a 35% premium.

TMTG’s current liquid assets, including cash and short-term investments, are $759 million as of the end of the first quarter of 2025. With this new funding, the company’s liquid assets will be over $3 billion.

Custody of the bitcoin treasury will be handled by Crypto.com and Anchorage Digital. They will manage and store the digital assets.

Earlier this week The Financial Times reported Trump Media was planning to raise $3 billion for digital assets acquisitions.

The article said the funds would be used to buy bitcoin and other digital assets, and an announcement could come before a major related event in Las Vegas.

Related: Bitcoin 2025 Conference Kicks off in Las Vegas Today

Trump Media denied the FT report. In a statement, the company said, “Apparently the Financial Times has dumb writers listening to even dumber sources.”

There was no further comment. However, the official $2.5 billion figure, which was announced shortly after by Trump Media through a press release, aligns with its actual filing and investor communication.

Trump Media’s official announcement

This comes at a time when the Trump family and political allies are showing renewed interest in Bitcoin.

President Donald Trump who is now back in office since the 2025 election, has said he wants to make the U.S. the “crypto capital of the world.”

Trump Media is also working on retail bitcoin investment products including ETFs aligned with America First policies.

These products will make bitcoin more accessible to retail investors and support pro-Trump financial initiatives.

But not everyone is happy.

Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren recently expressed concerns about Trump Media’s Bitcoin plans. She asked U.S. regulators to clarify their oversight of digital-asset ETFs, warning of investor risk.

Industry insiders are comparing Trump Media’s plans to Strategy (MSTR) which has built a multi-billion dollar bitcoin treasury over the last year. They used stock and bond sales to fund their bitcoin purchases.

@ 5d4b6c8d:8a1c1ee3

Big day for me today: - @k00b convinced me to try OMAD. I did eat more than once today, but it was all within a four hour period. I'll try to tighten that up further tomorrow. - @gnilma and @398ja convinced me to try a cold shower. I eased into it, by starting it warm and gradually turning down the temperature. That was totally manageable.

How did you do today? What do you need to work on tomorrow?

https://stacker.news/items/1001161

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

The former seems to have found solid product market fit. Expect significant volume, adoption, and usage going forward.

The latter's future remains to be seen. Dependence on Tor, which has had massive reliability issues, and lack of strong privacy guarantees put it at risk.

— ODELL (@ODELL) October 27, 2022

The Basics

• Lightning is a protocol that enables cheap and fast native bitcoin transactions.
• At the core of the protocol is the ability for bitcoin users to create a payment channel with another user.
• These payment channels enable users to make many bitcoin transactions between each other with only two on-chain bitcoin transactions: the channel open transaction and the channel close transaction.
• Essentially lightning is a protocol for interoperable batched bitcoin transactions.
• It is expected that on chain bitcoin transaction fees will increase with adoption and the ability to easily batch transactions will save users significant money.
• As these lightning transactions are processed, liquidity flows from one side of a channel to the other side, on chain transactions are signed by both parties but not broadcasted to update this balance.
• Lightning is designed to be trust minimized, either party in a payment channel can close the channel at any time and their bitcoin will be settled on chain without trusting the other party.

There is no 'Lightning Network'

• Many people refer to the aggregate of all lightning channels as 'The Lightning Network' but this is a false premise.
• There are many lightning channels between many different users and funds can flow across interconnected channels as long as there is a route through peers.
• If a lightning transaction requires multiple hops it will flow through multiple interconnected channels, adjusting the balance of all channels along the route, and paying lightning transaction fees that are set by each node on the route.

Example: You have a channel with Bob. Bob has a channel with Charlie. You can pay Charlie through your channel with Bob and Bob's channel with User C.

• As a result, it is not guaranteed that every lightning user can pay every other lightning user, they must have a route of interconnected channels between sender and receiver.

Lightning in Practice

• Lightning has already found product market fit and usage as an interconnected payment protocol between large professional custodians.
• They are able to easily manage channels and liquidity between each other without trust using this interoperable protocol.
• Lightning payments between large custodians are fast and easy. End users do not have to run their own node or manage their channels and liquidity. These payments rarely fail due to professional management of custodial nodes.
• The tradeoff is one inherent to custodians and other trusted third parties. Custodial wallets can steal funds and compromise user privacy.

Sovereign Lightning

• Trusted third parties are security holes.
• Users must run their own node and manage their own channels in order to use lightning without trusting a third party. This remains the single largest friction point for sovereign lightning usage: the mental burden of actively running a lightning node and associated liquidity management.
• Bitcoin development prioritizes node accessibility so cost to self host your own node is low but if a node is run at home or office, Tor or a VPN is recommended to mask your IP address: otherwise it is visible to the entire network and represents a privacy risk.
• This privacy risk is heightened due to the potential for certain governments to go after sovereign lightning users and compel them to shutdown their nodes. If their IP Address is exposed they are easier to target.
• Fortunately the tools to run and manage nodes continue to get easier but it is important to understand that this will always be a friction point when compared to custodial services.

The Potential Fracture of Lightning

• Any lightning user can choose which users are allowed to open channels with them.
• One potential is that professional custodians only peer with other professional custodians.
• We already see nodes like those run by CashApp only have channels open with other regulated counterparties. This could be due to performance goals, liability reduction, or regulatory pressure.

• Fortunately some of their peers are connected to non-regulated parties so payments to and from sovereign lightning users are still successfully processed by CashApp but this may not always be the case going forward.

Summary

• Many people refer to the aggregate of all lightning channels as 'The Lightning Network' but this is a false premise. There is no singular 'Lightning Network' but rather many payment channels between distinct peers, some connected with each other and some not.
• Lightning as an interoperable payment protocol between professional custodians seems to have found solid product market fit. Expect significant volume, adoption, and usage going forward.
• Lightning as a robust sovereign payment protocol has yet to be battle tested. Heavy reliance on Tor, which has had massive reliability issues, the friction of active liquidity management, significant on chain fee burden for small amounts, interactivity constraints on mobile, and lack of strong privacy guarantees put it at risk.

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If you have never used lightning before, use this guide to get started on your phone.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

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"Privacy is necessary for an open society in the electronic age. Privacy is not secrecy.  A private matter is something one doesn't want the whole world to know, but a secret matter is something one doesn't want anybody to know. Privacy is the power to selectively reveal oneself to the world." - Eric Hughes, A Cypherpunk's Manifesto, 1993

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Privacy is essential to freedom. Without privacy, individuals are unable to make choices free from surveillance and control. Lack of privacy leads to loss of autonomy. When individuals are constantly monitored it limits our ability to express ourselves and take risks. Any decisions we make can result in negative repercussions from those who surveil us. Without the freedom to make choices, individuals cannot truly be free.

Freedom is essential to acquiring and preserving wealth. When individuals are not free to make choices, restrictions and limitations prevent us from economic opportunities. If we are somehow able to acquire wealth in such an environment, lack of freedom can result in direct asset seizure by governments or other malicious entities. At scale, when freedom is compromised, it leads to widespread economic stagnation and poverty. Protecting freedom is essential to economic prosperity.

The connection between privacy, freedom, and wealth is critical. Without privacy, individuals lose the freedom to make choices free from surveillance and control. While lack of freedom prevents individuals from pursuing economic opportunities and makes wealth preservation nearly impossible. No Privacy? No Freedom. No Freedom? No Wealth.

Rights are not granted. They are taken and defended. Rights are often misunderstood as permission to do something by those holding power. However, if someone can give you something, they can inherently take it from you at will. People throughout history have necessarily fought for basic rights, including privacy and freedom. These rights were not given by those in power, but rather demanded and won through struggle. Even after these rights are won, they must be continually defended to ensure that they are not taken away. Rights are not granted - they are earned through struggle and defended through sacrifice.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ b1ddb4d7:471244e7

Hosted at the iconic Palace of Culture and Science—a prominent symbol of the communist era—the Bitcoin FilmFest offers a vibrant celebration of film through the lens of bitcoin. The venue itself provides a striking contrast to the festival’s focus, highlighting bitcoin’s core identity as a currency embodying independence from traditional financial and political systems.

𝐅𝐢𝐱𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐮𝐥 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐜 𝐯𝐢𝐛𝐞𝐬.
Warsaw, Day Zero at #BFF25 (European Bitcoin Pizza Day) with @roger__9000, MadMunky and the @2140_wtf squad pic.twitter.com/9ogVvWRReA

— Bitcoin FilmFest (@bitcoinfilmfest) May 28, 2025

This venue represents an era when the state tightly controlled the economy and financial systems. The juxtaposition of this historical site with an event dedicated to bitcoin is striking and thought-provoking.

The event features a diverse array of activities, including engaging panel discussions, screenings of both feature-length and short films, workshops and lively parties. Each component designed to explore the multifaceted world of bitcoin and its implications for society, offering attendees a blend of entertainment and education.

The films showcase innovative narratives and insights into bitcoin’s landscape, while the panels facilitate thought-provoking discussions among industry experts and filmmakers.

Networking is a significant aspect of the festival, with an exceptionally open and friendly atmosphere that foster connections among participants. Participants from all over Europe gather to engage with like-minded individuals who share a passion for BTC and its implications for the future.

The open exchanges of ideas foster a sense of community, allowing attendees to forge new connections, collaborate on projects, and discuss the potential of blockchain technology implemented in bitcoin.

The organization of the festival is extraordinary, ensuring a smooth flow of information and an expertly structured schedule filled from morning until evening. Attendees appreciate the meticulous planning that allowed them to maximize their experience. Additionally, thoughtful touches such as gifts from sponsors and well-chosen locations for various events contribute to the overall positive atmosphere of the festival.

Overall, the Bitcoin FilmFest not only highlights the artistic expression surrounding bitcoin but also serves as a vital platform for dialogue—about financial freedom, the future of money, and individual sovereignty in a shifting world.

The event successfully bridges the gap between a historical symbol of control and a movement that celebrates freedom, innovation, and collaboration in the digital age, highlighting the importance of independence in financial systems while fostering a collaborative environment for innovation and growth.

Next year’s event is slated for June 5-7 2026. For further updates check: https://bitcoinfilmfest.com/

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

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"Privacy is necessary for an open society in the electronic age. Privacy is not secrecy.  A private matter is something one doesn't want the whole world to know, but a secret matter is something one doesn't want anybody to know. Privacy is the power to selectively reveal oneself to the world." - Eric Hughes, A Cypherpunk's Manifesto, 1993

---

Privacy is essential to freedom. Without privacy, individuals are unable to make choices free from surveillance and control. Lack of privacy leads to loss of autonomy. When individuals are constantly monitored it limits our ability to express ourselves and take risks. Any decisions we make can result in negative repercussions from those who surveil us. Without the freedom to make choices, individuals cannot truly be free.

Freedom is essential to acquiring and preserving wealth. When individuals are not free to make choices, restrictions and limitations prevent us from economic opportunities. If we are somehow able to acquire wealth in such an environment, lack of freedom can result in direct asset seizure by governments or other malicious entities. At scale, when freedom is compromised, it leads to widespread economic stagnation and poverty. Protecting freedom is essential to economic prosperity.

The connection between privacy, freedom, and wealth is critical. Without privacy, individuals lose the freedom to make choices free from surveillance and control. While lack of freedom prevents individuals from pursuing economic opportunities and makes wealth preservation nearly impossible. No Privacy? No Freedom. No Freedom? No Wealth.

Rights are not granted. They are taken and defended. Rights are often misunderstood as permission to do something by those holding power. However, if someone can give you something, they can inherently take it from you at will. People throughout history have necessarily fought for basic rights, including privacy and freedom. These rights were not given by those in power, but rather demanded and won through struggle. Even after these rights are won, they must be continually defended to ensure that they are not taken away. Rights are not granted - they are earned through struggle and defended through sacrifice.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

TakeOver Successfully Hosts Second Annual BitGala Celebrating Bitcoin in Las Vegas

LAS VEGAS, NV, May 26, 2025 – TakeOver, Magic Eden, Spark, and Stacks successfully hosted their second annual BitGala on May 26th at the Wynn in Las Vegas. The celebration brought together over 200 Bitcoin industry leaders and community members for an evening dedicated to celebrating Bitcoin. 

The BitGala was designed as a curated gathering focused on inspiring continued development, education, and adoption while reflecting on the strides Bitcoin has made toward a future of open, decentralized money. The event successfully brought together key leaders, creating meaningful opportunities for collaboration and strategic partnerships within the Bitcoin space. 

“BitGala celebrates our partnership with Spark, marketing a major leap forward for Bitcoin DeFi,” said Elizabeth Olson, Head of Marketing for Bitcoin at Magic Eden. “As the #1 Bitcoin app, Magic Eden has spent the past few years pushing Bitcoin L1 to its limits, always with the goal of making Bitcoin more usable, fast, and fun without compromising its core ethos. We believe Spark has the potential to unlock a new era of building on Bitcoin, and we’re thrilled to be leading that charge together.” 

“The BitGala was a stunning celebration of Bitcoin culture where luxury meets the cypherpunk spirit. We’re proving that Bitcoin isn’t just a protocol, it’s a movement connecting freedom-minded people from art, fashion, finance, and more. To us, it was a pure signal that people are starting to see what Stacks has been building all along: a future where Bitcoin isn’t just held, but used for apps, defi, and real ownership.” – Rena Shah, COO of Stacks. 

Set against the backdrop of the Sphere, the evening brought together innovators, investors, and community leaders for a night dedicated to celebrating Bitcoin’s growth and the people driving its future. 

The program opened with a welcome reception, followed by gourmet hors d’oeuvres and vibrant conversations. A keynote and honors segment recognized those making meaningful strides in Bitcoin adoption and development. Guests were then invited to explore a premium tequila tasting experience curated by Reach, and indulge in interactive gourmet chef stations. 

“Our team has been fortunate to be part of the Bitcoin community since 2016, so we’re thrilled to see all the progress on display almost 10 years later at Bitcoin 2025. The energy in the room at BitGala was electric—from conversations sparking new partnerships to shared reflections on what’s next for Bitcoin—it was a powerful reminder of why we’re all here: to build an open, decentralized financial system that empowers everyone.” noted Kelley Weaver, Founder and CEO, Melrose PR and Founder, Bitwire. 

This unforgettable gathering—hosted in partnership with leading organizations including Magic Eden, Spark, and Stacks—was more than a celebration. It was a call to continue pushing forward innovation, education, and adoption in

the Bitcoin ecosystem. BitGala was made possible through the generous support of key sponsors and partners who share Takeover’s commitment to fostering connections in the web3 space. 

“We’re focused on making Bitcoin more useful for everyone, and events like this remind us that we’re not alone in that mission. It was inspiring to connect with others who share the vision of a more open, decentralized financial future powered by Bitcoin.” – Spark Team 

Presenting Sponsors: 

• Magic Eden – The largest NFT marketplace and Runes platform. 
• Spark – The fastest, cheapest, most UX-friendly way to build financial apps and launch assets on Bitcoin.
• Stacks – A Bitcoin L2 enabling smart contracts & apps with Bitcoin as secure base layer. 

Supporting Partners: 

• Reach Ventures – a gaming-focused VC firm that actively invests in both early-stage and demo-ready game studios.
• Arch Network – a Bitcoin-native platform for building decentralized apps and smart contracts directly on Bitcoin. 
• Melrose PR – An onchain communications firm that has been focused on the crypto industry exclusively for almost a decade. 
• Bitwire – The modern newswire reimagined for today’s communications professionals. 

The collaborative support from these organizations was instrumental in delivering a memorable event for all attendees. 

Actor and comedian T.J. Miller was also a speaker at the event: “The bitcoin conference 2025 was incredible for so many reasons. It was such a joyful journey to be with so many like-minded people (all of whom have been laughed at) who share the same values: freedom, community, hope, and getting rich- the highpoint was the BitGala. I bought incredibly large expensive shoes for the specific purpose of showing up to the gala non-verbally saying bitcoin destroying Fiat, well that’s big shoes to fill… and we’ll fill ‘em. I can’t wait to return next year. I will wear more orange.” 

About TakeOver 

TakeOver is the experiential agency at the forefront of culture and innovation in the crypto space, known for curating powerful moments that educate, connect, and inspire. With a global Bitcoin Dinner Series and their annual flagship event, BitGala, they’ve become a cornerstone of community-building in Web3. Last year, they made headlines with a dramatic takeover of Nashville’s Parthenon—setting the bar for what crypto gatherings can be. 

About Magic Eden 

Magic Eden is the easiest platform to trade all digital assets onchain. As the #1 Bitcoin app and largest NFT marketplace, we provide a seamless trading experience to everyone. Magic Eden’s acquisition of Slingshot has expanded their capabilities to offer frictionless trading of over 5,000,000 tokens across all major chains. Magic Eden’s expanded product suite includes a cross-chain wallet, powerful trading tools, and the ability to mint, collect, and seamlessly trade NFTs and tokens.

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Disclaimer: This is a sponsored press release. Readers are encouraged to perform their own due diligence before acting on any information presented in this article.

This post TakeOver Successfully Hosts Second Annual BitGala Celebrating Bitcoin in Las Vegas first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by TakeOver.

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

People forget Bear Stearns failed March 2008 - months of denial followed before the public realized how bad the situation was under the surface.

Similar happening now but much larger scale. They did not fix fundamental issues after 2008 - everything is more fragile.

The Fed preemptively bailed out every bank with their BTFP program and First Republic Bank still failed. The second largest bank failure in history.

There will be more failures. There will be more bailouts. Depositors will be "protected" by socializing losses across everyone.

Our President and mainstream financial pundits are currently pretending the banking crisis is over while most banks remain insolvent. There are going to be many more bank failures as this ponzi system unravels.

Unlike 2008, we have the ability to opt out of these broken and corrupt institutions by using bitcoin. Bitcoin held in self custody is unique in its lack of counterparty risk - you do not have to trust a bank or other centralized entity to hold it for you. Bitcoin is also incredibly difficult to change by design since it is not controlled by an individual, company, or government - the supply of dollars will inevitably be inflated to bailout these failing banks but bitcoin supply will remain unchanged. I do not need to convince you that bitcoin provides value - these next few years will convince millions.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

The newly proposed RESTRICT ACT - is being advertised as a TikTok Ban, but is much broader than that, carries a $1M Fine and up to 20 years in prison️! It is unconstitutional and would create massive legal restrictions on the open source movement and free speech throughout the internet.

The Bill was proposed by: Senator Warner, Senator Thune, Senator Baldwin, Senator Fischer, Senator Manchin, Senator Moran, Senator Bennet, Senator Sullivan, Senator Gillibrand, Senator Collins, Senator Heinrich, and Senator Romney. It has broad support across Senators of both parties.

Corrupt politicians will not protect us. They are part of the problem. We must build, support, and learn how to use censorship resistant tools in order to defend our natural rights.

The RESTRICT Act, introduced by Senators Warner and Thune, aims to block or disrupt transactions and financial holdings involving foreign adversaries that pose risks to national security. Although the primary targets of this legislation are companies like Tik-Tok, the language of the bill could potentially be used to block or disrupt cryptocurrency transactions and, in extreme cases, block Americans’ access to open source tools or protocols like Bitcoin.

The Act creates a redundant regime paralleling OFAC without clear justification, it significantly limits the ability for injured parties to challenge actions raising due process concerns, and unlike OFAC it lacks any carve-out for protected speech. COINCENTER ON THE RESTRICT ACT

Full Text of Bill

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ b1ddb4d7:471244e7

Hosted at the iconic Palace of Culture and Science—a prominent symbol of the communist era—the Bitcoin FilmFest offers a vibrant celebration of film through the lens of bitcoin. The venue itself provides a striking contrast to the festival’s focus, highlighting bitcoin’s core identity as a currency embodying independence from traditional financial and political systems.

𝐅𝐢𝐱𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐮𝐥 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐜 𝐯𝐢𝐛𝐞𝐬.
Warsaw, Day Zero at #BFF25 (European Bitcoin Pizza Day) with @roger__9000, MadMunky and the @2140_wtf squad pic.twitter.com/9ogVvWRReA

— Bitcoin FilmFest (@bitcoinfilmfest) May 28, 2025

This venue represents an era when the state tightly controlled the economy and financial systems. The juxtaposition of this historical site with an event dedicated to bitcoin is striking and thought-provoking.

The event features a diverse array of activities, including engaging panel discussions, screenings of both feature-length and short films, workshops and lively parties. Each component designed to explore the multifaceted world of bitcoin and its implications for society, offering attendees a blend of entertainment and education.

The films showcase innovative narratives and insights into bitcoin’s landscape, while the panels facilitate thought-provoking discussions among industry experts and filmmakers.

Networking is a significant aspect of the festival, with an exceptionally open and friendly atmosphere that foster connections among participants. Participants from all over Europe gather to engage with like-minded individuals who share a passion for BTC and its implications for the future.

The open exchanges of ideas foster a sense of community, allowing attendees to forge new connections, collaborate on projects, and discuss the potential of blockchain technology implemented in bitcoin.

The organization of the festival is extraordinary, ensuring a smooth flow of information and an expertly structured schedule filled from morning until evening. Attendees appreciate the meticulous planning that allowed them to maximize their experience. Additionally, thoughtful touches such as gifts from sponsors and well-chosen locations for various events contribute to the overall positive atmosphere of the festival.

Overall, the Bitcoin FilmFest not only highlights the artistic expression surrounding bitcoin but also serves as a vital platform for dialogue—about financial freedom, the future of money, and individual sovereignty in a shifting world.

The event successfully bridges the gap between a historical symbol of control and a movement that celebrates freedom, innovation, and collaboration in the digital age, highlighting the importance of independence in financial systems while fostering a collaborative environment for innovation and growth.

Next year’s event is slated for June 5-7 2026. For further updates check: https://bitcoinfilmfest.com/

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

Mapping Bitcoin’s Bull Cycle Potential

Bitcoin’s Market Value to Realized Value, or MVRV ratio, remains one of the most reliable on-chain indicators for identifying local and macro tops and bottoms across every BTC cycle. By isolating data across different investor cohorts and adapting historical benchmarks to modern market conditions, we can generate more accurate insights into where Bitcoin may be headed next.

The Bitcoin MVRV Ratio

The MVRV Ratio compares Bitcoin’s market price to its realized price, essentially the average cost basis for all coins in the network. As of writing, BTC trades around $105,000 while the realized price floats near $47,000, putting the raw MVRV at 2.26. The Z-Score version of MVRV standardizes this ratio based on historical volatility, enabling clearer comparisons across different market cycles.

Figure 1: Historically, the MVRV Ratio and the MVRV Z-Score have accurately identified cycle peaks and bottoms. View Live Chart

Short-Term Holders

Short-term holders, defined as those holding Bitcoin for 155 days or less, currently have a realized price near $97,000. This metric often acts as dynamic support in bull markets and resistance in bear markets. Notably, when the Short Term Holder MVRV hits 1.33, local tops have historically occurred, as seen several times in both the 2017 and 2021 cycles. So far in the current cycle, this threshold has already been touched four times, each followed by modest retracements.

Figure 2: Short Term Holder MVRV reaching 1.33 in more recent cycles has aligned with local tops. View Live Chart

Long-Term Holders

Long-term holders, who’ve held BTC for more than 155 days, currently have an average cost basis of just $33,500, putting their MVRV at 3.11. Historically, Long Term Holder MVRV values have reached as high as 12 during major peaks. That said, we’re observing a trend of diminishing multiples each cycle.

Figure 3: Achieving a Long Term Holder MVRV value of 8 could extrapolate to a BTC price in excess of $300,000. View Live Chart

A key resistance band now sits between 7.5 and 8.5, a zone that has defined bull tops and pre-bear retracements in every cycle since 2011. If the current growth of the realized price ($40/day) continues for another 140–150 days, matching previous cycle lengths, we could see it reach somewhere in the region of $40,000. A peak MVRV of 8 would imply a price near $320,000.

A Smarter Market Compass

Unlike static all-time metrics, the 2-Year Rolling MVRV Z-Score adapts to evolving market dynamics. By recalculating average extremes over a rolling window, it smooths out Bitcoin’s natural volatility decay as it matures. Historically, this version has signaled overbought conditions when reaching levels above 3, and prime accumulation zones when dipping below -1. Currently sitting under 1, this metric suggests that substantial upside remains.

Figure 4: The current 2-Year Rolling MVRV Z-Score suggests more positive price action ahead. View Live Chart

Timing & Targets

A view of the BTC Growth Since Cycle Lows chart illustrates that BTC is now approximately 925 days removed from its last major cycle low. Historical comparisons to previous bull markets suggest we may be around 140 to 150 days away from a potential top, with both the 2017 and 2021 peaks occurring around 1,060 to 1,070 days after their respective lows. While not deterministic, this alignment reinforces the broader picture of where we are in the cycle. If realized price trends and MVRV thresholds continue on current trajectories, late Q3 to early Q4 2025 may bring final euphoric moves.

Figure 5: Will the current cycle continue to exhibit growth patterns similar to those of the previous two cycles? View Live Chart

Conclusion

The MVRV ratio and its derivatives remain essential tools for analyzing Bitcoin market behavior, providing clear markers for both accumulation and distribution. Whether observing short-term holders hovering near local top thresholds, long-term holders nearing historically significant resistance zones, or adaptive metrics like the 2-Year Rolling MVRV Z-Score signaling plenty of runway left, these data points should be used in confluence.

No single metric should be relied upon to predict tops or bottoms in isolation, but taken together, they offer a powerful lens through which to interpret the macro trend. As the market matures and volatility declines, adaptive metrics will become even more crucial in staying ahead of the curve.

For more deep-dive research, technical indicators, real-time market alerts, and access to a growing community of analysts, visit BitcoinMagazinePro.com.

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Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Always do your own research before making any investment decisions.

This post Mapping Bitcoin’s Bull Cycle Potential first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Matt Crosby.

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

What is KYC/AML?

• The acronym stands for Know Your Customer / Anti Money Laundering.
• In practice it stands for the surveillance measures companies are often compelled to take against their customers by financial regulators.
• Methods differ but often include: Passport Scans, Driver License Uploads, Social Security Numbers, Home Address, Phone Number, Face Scans.
• Bitcoin companies will also store all withdrawal and deposit addresses which can then be used to track bitcoin transactions on the bitcoin block chain.
• This data is then stored and shared. Regulations often require companies to hold this information for a set number of years but in practice users should assume this data will be held indefinitely. Data is often stored insecurely, which results in frequent hacks and leaks.  
• KYC/AML data collection puts all honest users at risk of theft, extortion, and persecution while being ineffective at stopping crime. Criminals often use counterfeit, bought, or stolen credentials to get around the requirements. Criminals can buy "verified" accounts for as little as $200. Furthermore, billions of people are excluded from financial services as a result of KYC/AML requirements.

During the early days of bitcoin most services did not require this sensitive user data, but as adoption increased so did the surveillance measures. At this point, most large bitcoin companies are collecting and storing massive lists of bitcoiners, our sensitive personal information, and our transaction history.

Lists of Bitcoiners

KYC/AML policies are a direct attack on bitcoiners. Lists of bitcoiners and our transaction history will inevitably be used against us.

Once you are on a list with your bitcoin transaction history that record will always exist. Generally speaking, tracking bitcoin is based on probability analysis of ownership change. Surveillance firms use various heuristics to determine if you are sending bitcoin to yourself or if ownership is actually changing hands.  You can obtain better privacy going forward by using collaborative transactions such as coinjoin to break this probability analysis.

Fortunately, you can buy bitcoin without providing intimate personal information. Tools such as peach, hodlhodl, robosats, azteco and bisq help; mining is also a solid option: anyone can plug a miner into power and internet and earn bitcoin by mining privately.

You can also earn bitcoin by providing goods and/or services that can be purchased with bitcoin. Long term, circular economies will mitigate this threat: most people will not buy bitcoin - they will earn bitcoin - most people will not sell bitcoin - they will spend bitcoin.

There is no such thing as KYC or No KYC bitcoin, there are bitcoiners on lists and those that are not on lists.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

Nostr is an open communication protocol that can be used to send messages across a distributed set of relays in a censorship resistant and robust way.

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If you missed my nostr introduction post you can find it here. My nostr account can be found here.

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We are nearly at the point that if something interesting is posted on a centralized social platform it will usually be posted by someone to nostr.

We are nearly at the point that if something interesting is posted exclusively to nostr it is cross posted by someone to various centralized social platforms.

We are nearly at the point that you can recommend a cross platform app that users can install and easily onboard without additional guides or resources.

As companies continue to build walls around their centralized platforms nostr posts will be the easiest to cross reference and verify - as companies continue to censor their users nostr is the best censorship resistant alternative - gradually then suddenly nostr will become the standard. 🫡

Current Nostr Stats

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

@matt_odell don't you even dare not ask about nostr!

— Kukks (Andrew Camilleri) (@MrKukks) May 18, 2021

Nostr first hit my radar spring 2021: created by fellow bitcoiner and friend, fiatjaf, and released to the world as free open source software. I was fortunate to be able to host a conversation with him on Citadel Dispatch in those early days, capturing that moment in history forever. Since then, the protocol has seen explosive viral organic growth as individuals around the world have contributed their time and energy to build out the protocol and the surrounding ecosystem due to the clear need for better communication tools.

nostr is to twitter as bitcoin is to paypal

As an intro to nostr, let us start with a metaphor:

twitter is paypal - a centralized platform plagued by censorship but has the benefit of established network effects

nostr is bitcoin - an open protocol that is censorship resistant and robust but requires an organic adoption phase

Nostr is an open communication protocol that can be used to send messages across a distributed set of relays in a censorship resistant and robust way.
 - Anyone can run a relay.
 - Anyone can interact with the protocol.
 - Relays can choose which messages they want to relay.
 - Users are identified by a simple public private key pair that they can generate themselves.

Nostr is often compared to twitter since there are nostr clients that emulate twitter functionality and user interface but that is merely one application of the protocol. Nostr is so much more than a mere twitter competitor. Nostr clients and relays can transmit a wide variety of data and clients can choose how to display that information to users. The result is a revolution in communication with implications that are difficult for any of us to truly comprehend.

Similar to bitcoin, nostr is an open and permissionless protocol. No person, company, or government controls it. Anyone can iterate and build on top of nostr without permission. Together, bitcoin and nostr are incredibly complementary freedom tech tools: censorship resistant, permissionless, robust, and interoperable - money and speech protected by code and incentives, not laws.

As censorship throughout the world continues to escalate, freedom tech provides hope for individuals around the world who refuse to accept the status quo. This movement will succeed on the shoulders of those who choose to stand up and contribute. We will build our own path. A brighter path.

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My Nostr Public Key: npub1qny3tkh0acurzla8x3zy4nhrjz5zd8l9sy9jys09umwng00manysew95gx

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

Bitcoin 2025 Las Vegas: Here’s What Went Down 

My name is Jenna Montgomery, and maybe you’ve read some of my news articles here before, or seen me on the Bitcoin Magazine TikTok. But today, I wanted to switch it up and give you an inside look at the Bitcoin 2025 Conference in Las Vegas through my eyes as an intern, hired just one month before the conference, having little knowledge about Bitcoin beforehand and never attending an event like this before. 

I’m writing this to give you a real, raw reflection of what I experienced over the course of the three day event, and why I believe you should absolutely attend the next Bitcoin conference. I want you all to know what goes down, what to expect, and to know how impactful I think this event really is. Bitcoin 2025 made a lasting impact on me and my life, and it just feels right to tell you why, so yours can maybe be changed too.

I got off the plane, threw my suitcase in my hotel room, and went to go and see the convention center as all of the finishing touches around the venue were being added. I remember thinking how big, beautiful, and fun the expo hall was—and where I would soon meet so many new people, make so many friends, and shake hands with people that I looked up to and admired. 

I will never forget walking in and seeing the main conference stage, The Nakamoto Stage, for the first time. Seeing that giant room with a symphony and endless rows of chairs, soon to be filled with thousands of passionate Bitcoiners, really put in perspective to me how Bitcoin 2025 wasn’t just a conference, it felt like something bigger. I realized it’s an actual community and a place of countless opportunities. 

The conference is essentially split up into 3 days: Industry Day, General Admission Day 1, and General Admission Day 2. Industry Day was mainly tailored towards professionals, investors, founders, and others focused on Bitcoin businesses. The general admission days were tailored more towards the casual Bitcoiner, and those were the days that I really felt the energy just exploding around the convention center.

INDUSTRY DAY 

Walking into the expo hall early in the morning on Industry Day, I was overwhelmed when I saw all of the vendors and companies setting up their tables, booths, stages, and even a rock climbing wall (thank you CleanSpark). It seemed as if the expo hall went for miles and miles, and featured a long orange carpet that made an intricate path through the venue that led you to each and every booth.

While fiat fails, Bitcoin prevails. pic.twitter.com/EV190PUqdT

— Valentina Gomez (@ValentinaForUSA) May 27, 2025

I remember being in total awe as I looked up at the ceiling and saw a huge UFO in the middle of the expo hall, with two Bitcoin themed Cybertrucks just off to the side of it, with lots of other interesting booths including one with a talking robot.

DAY ONE pic.twitter.com/KHXP6q8RCp

— Gemini (@Gemini) May 27, 2025

As I followed the long orange carpet around the venue, I looked over my shoulder and saw a huge blow-up of a Bitcoin Puppet in the art exhibit, featuring all kinds of other cool Bitcoin art. Some of these pieces of art were worth well over one bitcoin—which was mindblowing to me considering that is more than $100,000. Every good revolution has good art, and seeing all the talented artists pouring their hearts into their work helped me believe that Bitcoin is the future. 

Now, it was time to get to work at where I would spend the majority of my time over the next few days. My coworkers and I were stationed up right in front of the Bitcoin Magazine news desk next to the AV (audio-visual) team, where I had a perfect view of everything. Here, I spent all day every day writing news articles for Bitcoin Magazine based on the speeches, keynotes, and other panels happening on the Nakamoto stage, as well as filming TikTok’s around the expo hall with attendees.

Working in front of the news desk was one of my favorite things about the conference. Everyone who spoke on it live had an electrifying personality that kept me locked into every conversation, especially one of the hosts Pete Rizzo. After every talk on the Nakamoto Stage ended, the live stream would pan over to the news desk where they would break down what happened, providing viewers with expert analysis. This was something extremely very fun to watch live and experience the production of it all first hand.

The talks on Industry Day kicked off to such a great start with Dan Edwards from Steak ‘n Shake, who recently became the first major fast food chain in America to begin accepting Bitcoin Lightning payments. So I was very excited to hear about Edwards’ speech and to visit Steak ‘n Shake’s incredible booth, which also featured a group of fun, dancing cows. 

Steak ‘n Shake COWS HAVE NO CHILL pic.twitter.com/8UkmPhWf9T

— The Bitcoin Conference (@TheBitcoinConf) May 28, 2025

While speaking on stage, Edwards revealed that, “Bitcoin is faster than credit cards, and when customers choose to pay in Bitcoin, we’re saving 50% in processing fees.” Just think about that for a second — saving a whole 50% on each transaction? This really opened my eyes to the benefits of accepting Bitcoin as payment and why it could mean to merchants who adopt it.

Based on everything I heard in that speech, I think Steak ‘n Shake may be the first to start a new trend of other big companies accepting Bitcoin. If they recognized the benefits of Bitcoin, it’s only a matter of time before other franchises do as well.

JUST IN: Fast food giant Steak 'n Shake announced they're saving 50% in processing fees accepting Bitcoin payments

'#Bitcoin is faster than credit cards' pic.twitter.com/bxApgBL6El

— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) May 27, 2025

Another big highlight from this day was hearing Senator Cynthia Lummis confirm that President Donald Trump supports her Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Act. There were so many statements made during the conference that I will get to later on that point to the fact that the United States is pro-Bitcoin and we’re going to be the world leader in it. Senator Marsha Blackburn also added to this, stating, “Many of our allies follow what we do. If we lead, others will follow. This is vital to our economic future.” 

JUST IN: Senator Cynthia Lummis said US military generals are "big supporters" of a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve for economic power. pic.twitter.com/2RPMV3tbdA

— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) May 27, 2025

At this point in

@ 8bad92c3:ca714aa5

Key Takeaways

Michael Goldstein, aka Bitstein, presents a sweeping philosophical and economic case for going “all in” on Bitcoin, arguing that unlike fiat, which distorts capital formation and fuels short-term thinking, Bitcoin fosters low time preference, meaningful saving, and long-term societal flourishing. At the heart of his thesis is “hodling for good”—a triple-layered idea encompassing permanence, purpose, and the pursuit of higher values like truth, beauty, and legacy. Drawing on thinkers like Aristotle, Hoppe, and Josef Pieper, Goldstein redefines leisure as contemplation, a vital practice in aligning capital with one’s deepest ideals. He urges Bitcoiners to think beyond mere wealth accumulation and consider how their sats can fund enduring institutions, art, and architecture that reflect a moral vision of the future.

Best Quotes

“Let BlackRock buy the houses, and you keep the sats.”

“We're not hodling just for the sake of hodling. There is a purpose to it.”

“Fiat money shortens your time horizon… you can never rest.”

“Savings precedes capital accumulation. You can’t build unless you’ve saved.”

“You're increasing the marginal value of everyone else’s Bitcoin.”

“True leisure is contemplation—the pursuit of the highest good.”

“What is Bitcoin for if not to make the conditions for magnificent acts of creation possible?”

“Bitcoin itself will last forever. Your stack might not. What will outlast your coins?”

“Only a whale can be magnificent.”

“The market will sell you all the crack you want. It’s up to you to demand beauty.”

Conclusion

This episode is a call to reimagine Bitcoin as more than a financial revolution—it’s a blueprint for civilizational renewal. Michael Goldstein reframes hodling as an act of moral stewardship, urging Bitcoiners to lower their time preference, build lasting institutions, and pursue truth, beauty, and legacy—not to escape the world, but to rebuild it on sound foundations.

Timestamps

00:00 - Intro
00:50 - Michael’s BBB presentation Hodl for Good
07:27 - Austrian principles on capital
15:40 - Fiat distorts the economic process
23:34 - Bitkey
24:29 - Hodl for Good triple entendre
29:52 - Bitcoin benefits everyone
39:05 - Unchained
40:14 - Leisure theory of value
52:15 - Heightening life
1:15:48 - Breaking from the chase makes room for magnificence
1:32:32 - Nakamoto Institute’s mission

Transcript

(00:00) Fiat money is by its nature a disturbance. If money is being continually produced, especially at an uncertain rate, these uh policies are really just redistribution of wealth. Most are looking for number to go up post hyper bitcoinization. The rate of growth of bitcoin would be more reflective of the growth of the economy as a whole.
(00:23) Ultimately, capital requires knowledge because it requires knowing there is something that you can add to the structures of production to lengthen it in some way that will take time but allow you to have more in the future than you would today. Let Black Rockck buy the houses and you keep the sats, not the other way around.
(00:41) You wait until later for Larry Frink to try to sell you a [Music] mansion. And we're live just like that. Just like that. 3:30 on a Friday, Memorial Day weekend. It's a good good good way to end the week and start the holiday weekend. Yes, sir. Yes, sir. Thank you for having me here. Thank you for coming. I wore this hat specifically because I think it's I think it's very apppropo uh to the conversation we're going to have which is I hope an extension of the presentation you gave at Bitblock Boom Huddle for good. You were working on
(01:24) that for many weeks leading up to uh the conference and explaining how you were structuring it. I think it's a very important topic to discuss now as the Bitcoin price is hitting new all-time highs and people are trying to understand what am I doing with Bitcoin? Like you have you have the different sort of factions within Bitcoin.
(01:47) Uh get on a Bitcoin standard, get on zero, spend as much Bitcoin as possible. You have the sailors of the world are saying buy Bitcoin, never sell, die with your Bitcoin. And I think you do a really good job in that presentation. And I just think your understanding overall of Bitcoin is incredible to put everything into context. It's not either or.
(02:07) It really depends on what you want to accomplish. Yeah, it's definitely there there is no actual one-sizefits-all um for I mean nearly anything in this world. So um yeah, I mean first of all I mean there was it was the first conference talk I had given in maybe five years. I think the one prior to that uh was um bit block boom 2019 which was my meme talk which uh has uh become infamous and notorious.
(02:43) So uh there was also a lot of like high expectations uh you know rockstar dev uh has has treated that you know uh that that talk with a lot of reference. a lot of people have enjoyed it and he was expecting this one to be, you know, the greatest one ever, which is a little bit of a little bit of a uh a burden to live up to those kinds of standards.
(03:08) Um, but you know, because I don't give a lot of talks. Um, you know, I I I like to uh try to bring ideas that might even be ideas that are common. So, something like hodling, we all talk about it constantly. uh but try to bring it from a little bit of a different angle and try to give um a little bit of uh new light to it.
(03:31) I alsove I've I've always enjoyed kind of coming at things from a third angle. Um whenever there's, you know, there's there's all these little debates that we have in in Bitcoin and sometimes it's nice to try to uh step out of it and look at it a little more uh kind of objectively and find ways of understanding it that incorporate the truths of of all of them.
(03:58) uh you know cuz I think we should always be kind of as much as possible after ultimate truth. Um so with this one um yeah I was kind of finding that that sort of golden mean. So uh um yeah and I actually I think about that a lot is uh you know Aristotle has his his concept of the golden mean. So it's like any any virtue is sort of between two vices um because you can you can always you can always take something too far.
(04:27) So you're you're always trying to find that right balance. Um so someone who is uh courageous you know uh one of the vices uh on one side is being basically reckless. I I can't remember what word he would use. Uh but effectively being reckless and just wanting to put yourself in danger for no other reason than just you know the thrill of it.
(04:50) Um and then on the other side you would just have cowardice which is like you're unwilling to put yourself um at any risk at any time. Um, and courage is right there in the middle where it's understanding when is the right time uh to put your put yourself, you know, in in the face of danger um and take it on. And so um in some sense this this was kind of me uh in in some ways like I'm obviously a partisan of hodling.
(05:20) Um, I've for, you know, a long time now talked about the, um, why huddling is good, why people do it, why we should expect it. Um, but still trying to find that that sort of golden mean of like yes, huddle, but also what are we hodling for? And it's not we're we're not hodddling just merely for the sake of hodddling.
(05:45) There there is a a purpose to it. And we should think about that. And that would also help us think more about um what are the benefits of of spending, when should we spend, why should we spend, what should we spend on um to actually give light to that sort of side of the debate. Um so that was that was what I was kind of trying to trying to get into.
(06:09) Um, as well as also just uh at the same time despite all the talk of hodling, there's always this perennial uh there's always this perennial dislike of hodlers because we're treated as uh as if um we're just free riding the network or we're just greedy or you know any of these things. And I wanted to show how uh huddling does serve a real economic purpose.
(06:36) Um, and it does benefit the individual, but it also does uh it it has actual real social um benefits as well beyond merely the individual. Um, so I wanted to give that sort of defense of hodling as well to look at it from um a a broader position than just merely I'm trying to get rich. Um uh because even the person who uh that is all they want to do um just like you know your your pure number grow up go up moonboy even that behavior has positive ramifications on on the economy.
(07:14) And while we might look at them and have uh judgments about their particular choices for them as an individual, we shouldn't discount that uh their actions are having positive positive effects for the rest of the economy. Yeah. So, let's dive into that just not even in the context of Bitcoin because I think you did a great job of this in the presentation.
(07:36) just you've done a good job of this consistently throughout the years that I've known you. Just from like a first principles Austrian economics perspective, what is the idea around capital accumulation, low time preference and deployment of that capital like what what like getting getting into like the nitty-gritty and then applying it to Bitcoin? Yeah, it's it's a big question and um in many ways I mean I I even I barely scratched the surface.
(08:05) uh I I can't claim to have read uh all the volumes of Bombber works, you know, capital and interest and and stuff like that. Um but I think there's some some sort of basic concepts that we can look at that we can uh draw a lot out. Um the first uh I guess let's write that. So repeat so like capital time preference. Yeah. Well, I guess getting more broad like why sav

@ b1ddb4d7:471244e7

Hosted at the iconic Palace of Culture and Science—a prominent symbol of the communist era—the Bitcoin FilmFest offers a vibrant celebration of film through the lens of bitcoin. The venue itself provides a striking contrast to the festival’s focus, highlighting bitcoin’s core identity as a currency embodying independence from traditional financial and political systems.

𝐅𝐢𝐱𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐮𝐥 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐜 𝐯𝐢𝐛𝐞𝐬.
Warsaw, Day Zero at #BFF25 (European Bitcoin Pizza Day) with @roger__9000, MadMunky and the @2140_wtf squad pic.twitter.com/9ogVvWRReA

— Bitcoin FilmFest (@bitcoinfilmfest) May 28, 2025

This venue represents an era when the state tightly controlled the economy and financial systems. The juxtaposition of this historical site with an event dedicated to bitcoin is striking and thought-provoking.

The event features a diverse array of activities, including engaging panel discussions, screenings of both feature-length and short films, workshops and lively parties. Each component designed to explore the multifaceted world of bitcoin and its implications for society, offering attendees a blend of entertainment and education.

The films showcase innovative narratives and insights into bitcoin’s landscape, while the panels facilitate thought-provoking discussions among industry experts and filmmakers.

Networking is a significant aspect of the festival, with an exceptionally open and friendly atmosphere that foster connections among participants. Participants from all over Europe gather to engage with like-minded individuals who share a passion for BTC and its implications for the future.

The open exchanges of ideas foster a sense of community, allowing attendees to forge new connections, collaborate on projects, and discuss the potential of blockchain technology implemented in bitcoin.

The organization of the festival is extraordinary, ensuring a smooth flow of information and an expertly structured schedule filled from morning until evening. Attendees appreciate the meticulous planning that allowed them to maximize their experience. Additionally, thoughtful touches such as gifts from sponsors and well-chosen locations for various events contribute to the overall positive atmosphere of the festival.

Overall, the Bitcoin FilmFest not only highlights the artistic expression surrounding bitcoin but also serves as a vital platform for dialogue—about financial freedom, the future of money, and individual sovereignty in a shifting world.

The event successfully bridges the gap between a historical symbol of control and a movement that celebrates freedom, innovation, and collaboration in the digital age, highlighting the importance of independence in financial systems while fostering a collaborative environment for innovation and growth.

Next year’s event is slated for June 5-7 2026. For further updates check: https://bitcoinfilmfest.com/

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

Mapping Bitcoin’s Bull Cycle Potential

Bitcoin’s Market Value to Realized Value, or MVRV ratio, remains one of the most reliable on-chain indicators for identifying local and macro tops and bottoms across every BTC cycle. By isolating data across different investor cohorts and adapting historical benchmarks to modern market conditions, we can generate more accurate insights into where Bitcoin may be headed next.

The Bitcoin MVRV Ratio

The MVRV Ratio compares Bitcoin’s market price to its realized price, essentially the average cost basis for all coins in the network. As of writing, BTC trades around $105,000 while the realized price floats near $47,000, putting the raw MVRV at 2.26. The Z-Score version of MVRV standardizes this ratio based on historical volatility, enabling clearer comparisons across different market cycles.

Figure 1: Historically, the MVRV Ratio and the MVRV Z-Score have accurately identified cycle peaks and bottoms. View Live Chart

Short-Term Holders

Short-term holders, defined as those holding Bitcoin for 155 days or less, currently have a realized price near $97,000. This metric often acts as dynamic support in bull markets and resistance in bear markets. Notably, when the Short Term Holder MVRV hits 1.33, local tops have historically occurred, as seen several times in both the 2017 and 2021 cycles. So far in the current cycle, this threshold has already been touched four times, each followed by modest retracements.

Figure 2: Short Term Holder MVRV reaching 1.33 in more recent cycles has aligned with local tops. View Live Chart

Long-Term Holders

Long-term holders, who’ve held BTC for more than 155 days, currently have an average cost basis of just $33,500, putting their MVRV at 3.11. Historically, Long Term Holder MVRV values have reached as high as 12 during major peaks. That said, we’re observing a trend of diminishing multiples each cycle.

Figure 3: Achieving a Long Term Holder MVRV value of 8 could extrapolate to a BTC price in excess of $300,000. View Live Chart

A key resistance band now sits between 7.5 and 8.5, a zone that has defined bull tops and pre-bear retracements in every cycle since 2011. If the current growth of the realized price ($40/day) continues for another 140–150 days, matching previous cycle lengths, we could see it reach somewhere in the region of $40,000. A peak MVRV of 8 would imply a price near $320,000.

A Smarter Market Compass

Unlike static all-time metrics, the 2-Year Rolling MVRV Z-Score adapts to evolving market dynamics. By recalculating average extremes over a rolling window, it smooths out Bitcoin’s natural volatility decay as it matures. Historically, this version has signaled overbought conditions when reaching levels above 3, and prime accumulation zones when dipping below -1. Currently sitting under 1, this metric suggests that substantial upside remains.

Figure 4: The current 2-Year Rolling MVRV Z-Score suggests more positive price action ahead. View Live Chart

Timing & Targets

A view of the BTC Growth Since Cycle Lows chart illustrates that BTC is now approximately 925 days removed from its last major cycle low. Historical comparisons to previous bull markets suggest we may be around 140 to 150 days away from a potential top, with both the 2017 and 2021 peaks occurring around 1,060 to 1,070 days after their respective lows. While not deterministic, this alignment reinforces the broader picture of where we are in the cycle. If realized price trends and MVRV thresholds continue on current trajectories, late Q3 to early Q4 2025 may bring final euphoric moves.

Figure 5: Will the current cycle continue to exhibit growth patterns similar to those of the previous two cycles? View Live Chart

Conclusion

The MVRV ratio and its derivatives remain essential tools for analyzing Bitcoin market behavior, providing clear markers for both accumulation and distribution. Whether observing short-term holders hovering near local top thresholds, long-term holders nearing historically significant resistance zones, or adaptive metrics like the 2-Year Rolling MVRV Z-Score signaling plenty of runway left, these data points should be used in confluence.

No single metric should be relied upon to predict tops or bottoms in isolation, but taken together, they offer a powerful lens through which to interpret the macro trend. As the market matures and volatility declines, adaptive metrics will become even more crucial in staying ahead of the curve.

For more deep-dive research, technical indicators, real-time market alerts, and access to a growing community of analysts, visit BitcoinMagazinePro.com.

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Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Always do your own research before making any investment decisions.

This post Mapping Bitcoin’s Bull Cycle Potential first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Matt Crosby.

@ 8bad92c3:ca714aa5

Marty's Bent

via levelsio

Over the weekend, prolific vibe coder levelsio took to X to complain about the state of housing affordability across Europe. Something that I was very happy to see considering the fact that there is a massive real estate affordability crisis across much of the world and it is important that people who are respected and have platforms speak out when they identify the problem as well. More eyes and focus on the problem is how something begins to get solved.

With that being said, I think levelsio is missing the forest for the trees by blaming institutionalized NIMBYism, burdensome regulations and governments hoarding land that should instead be given to developers to produce more housing supply. I quote tweeted this particular tweet on the subject from levelsio and wanted to take some time today to republish those thoughts here and expand on the topic.

It’s almost as if real estate is being used as a store of value asset instead of the consumable good that it is.

What @levelsio is observing here is called a “monetary premium”. A monetary premium is the value added on top of the consumable/aesthetic/location value of real estate.

This monetary premium exist because central banks and governments have distorted the market for money and people are forced to push value into assets that are scarce relative to dollars. Over the last 50 years real estate has been one of the relatively scarce assets of choice.

The housing affordability crisis is a negative externality of the market reaction to the corruption of money. It can only be fixed by re-introducing hard money into the economy that enables people to store value reliably. If that emerges they won’t have to store value in real estate, the monetary premium of real estate will dissolve and prices will correct to their proper valuations.

This is one of the problems that bitcoin solves.

It’s still early yet, but more and more people are recognizing the utility provided by a neutral reserve asset that can’t be manipulated by central planners. At scale, the effect on assets that have accumulated a monetary premium over decades will be material. All of these assets are significantly overvalued and their monetary premium are leaking into bitcoin.

Put another way, "It's the money, stupid." Now, this isn't to say that the supply of housing in certain areas being artificially restricted isn't having an effect on the price of housing. This is certainly true, especially in cities like San Francisco where there is a relatively strong demand because of the economic density of the area and the desire of many high agency and productive people to live there. But I would put forth that the monetary premium is still the bigger problem and no amount of de-regulation to enable the supply of housing to increase will solve the affordability crisis in the long-run. The only way to get to the root of this specific problem is via bitcoin's mainstream adoption as an apolitical uncontrollable asset with completely idiosyncratic risks when compared to any individual asset class.

Let's say the government did ease up regulations and local NIMBY sympathetics were shoved in a corner to allow new units to be built. This doesn't solve the problem in the short-run because there is a time-delay between when regulations are lifted and when new supply actually makes it to market. In the interim, governments and central banks are inevitably going to go further into debt and be forced to print money to monetize that debt. This will exacerbate inflation and even if new real estate units are brought to market, the builders/owners of those properties will likely have to demand elevated prices to attempt to keep up with inflation.

This also does nothing to solve the problem of real income and wage growth, which are significantly lagging real inflation. Even if prices came down because of a surge in supply, could the Common Man afford a down payment on the property? I'd be shocked if this was the case. And since it's likely not the case the only way to get people into these houses as "owners" would be to offer them zero-down financing, which makes people feel richer than they actually are and leads them to make financially ruinous decisions.

It's the money, stupid. People need a way to save so that they can buy in the first place. Fiat currency doesn't allow this and the only people who can save effectively are those who make enough money to funnel into substitute store of value assets like real estate.

As it stands today, the price-to-income ratio of real estate is 5.0x and the price-t0-rent index is 1.36. Up from 3.3x and 1.14x respectively where the metrics sat in the year 2000. The growth in these ratios is driven predominately via their monetary premium.

And guess what, it's about to get much worse. Donald Trump, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Elon Musk have all signaled that the plan moving forward is to attempt to drive growth and productivity as high as possible while also letting deficits and the debt increase unabated, which means that inflation is likely to continue unabated and potentially increase.

It might make sense to get some bitcoin if that is the case.

via me

"Whale in the Pool" Risk That Could Destroy MSTY Investors

Jessy Gilger raised serious concerns about MSTY and similar derivative products that promise eye-popping yields. He pointed to the COVID crash where gold mining ETFs using derivatives collapsed 95% and never recovered, despite gold itself performing well. Jessy noted that while his team calculated reasonable MicroStrategy covered call yields of 16-22%, MSTY advertises 120% annualized distributions - a red flag that suggests these aren't sustainable dividends from profits, but potentially just returning investors' own capital.

"If a whale pees in the pool, everyone is affected." - Jessy Gilger

Jessy explained that when large investors need to exit these pooled products during market stress, they must sell derivative positions into illiquid markets with no buyers, potentially triggering catastrophic losses for all participants. His solution? Private pools through separately managed accounts that achieve similar income goals without the contagion risk of being trapped with panicking whales.

Check out the full podcast here for more on Gannett Trust's multi-sig solution, Bitcoin retirement planning and corporate treasury strategies.

Headlines of the Day

World's Largest Bitcoin Conference Starts Tomorrow- via X

Remixpoint to Buy Additional ¥1 Billion in Bitcoin - via X

Get our new STACK SATS hat - via tftcmerch.io

Marty to Judge Bitcoin World Record Try in Vegas - via X

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Take the First Step Off the Exchange

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Take control. Start with Bitkey.

Use the promo code *“TFTC20”* during checkout for 20% off

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Ten31, the largest bitcoin-focused investor, has deployed 158,469 sats | $150.00M across 30+ companies through three funds. I am a Managing Partner at Ten31 and am very proud of the work we are doing. Learn more at ten31.vc/invest.

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Final thought...

Looking forward to a fun, productive and wholesome week in Las Vegas, Nevada.

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[](https://youtube.com/@T

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

The newly proposed RESTRICT ACT - is being advertised as a TikTok Ban, but is much broader than that, carries a $1M Fine and up to 20 years in prison️! It is unconstitutional and would create massive legal restrictions on the open source movement and free speech throughout the internet.

The Bill was proposed by: Senator Warner, Senator Thune, Senator Baldwin, Senator Fischer, Senator Manchin, Senator Moran, Senator Bennet, Senator Sullivan, Senator Gillibrand, Senator Collins, Senator Heinrich, and Senator Romney. It has broad support across Senators of both parties.

Corrupt politicians will not protect us. They are part of the problem. We must build, support, and learn how to use censorship resistant tools in order to defend our natural rights.

The RESTRICT Act, introduced by Senators Warner and Thune, aims to block or disrupt transactions and financial holdings involving foreign adversaries that pose risks to national security. Although the primary targets of this legislation are companies like Tik-Tok, the language of the bill could potentially be used to block or disrupt cryptocurrency transactions and, in extreme cases, block Americans’ access to open source tools or protocols like Bitcoin.

The Act creates a redundant regime paralleling OFAC without clear justification, it significantly limits the ability for injured parties to challenge actions raising due process concerns, and unlike OFAC it lacks any carve-out for protected speech. COINCENTER ON THE RESTRICT ACT

Full Text of Bill

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@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

Metaplanet Inc. has bought 1,088 more bitcoin (BTC), and now holds 8,888 BTC worth over $930 million. This puts Metaplanet in the top 10 corporate bitcoin holders, ahead of Galaxy Digital and Block Inc.

Metaplanet Inc. on X

The company’s CEO Simon Gerovich announced the purchase on X on June 2, 2025. The company bought the new BTC at an average price of around $107,771 per coin, costing the company approximately $117.3 million.

The company said this purchase brings them 90% of the way to their 2025 goal of 10,000 BTC.

Metaplanet only started its bitcoin treasury policy in April 2024 but has been moving fast. At the start of 2025, it had less than 2,000 BTC, and now it has over 8,800.

This has been done through a combination of stock rights exercises and bond issuances, raising capital without diluting existing shareholders. In May 2025 alone, Metaplanet issued zero-coupon, non-interest-bearing bonds for a combined value of $71 million.

According to the filings, the company recently completed its “21 Million Plan” which was a program that involved the full exercise of 210 million stock acquisition rights.

These stock rights allowed Metaplanet to raise capital through equity sales while limiting dilution risk.

Metaplanet’s Bitcoin strategist, Dylan LeClair, said the company views bitcoin as a core part of its financial strategy and is all in, not just making small allocations.

Metaplanet’s buying has paid off in more ways than one.

Its BTC Yield, a company metric that compares bitcoin holdings to total shares, has impressed investors. In Q2 2025 it had a 66.3% BTC Yield, year-to-date it has a 225% BTC Yield.

Metaplanet BTC Yield over time — Vincent on X

The stock is up 155% in the last month and is currently trading at 1,149 JPY, despite the overall volatility in the Tokyo Stock Exchange—where many other companies are under pressure due to the rising Japanese bond yields.

Analysts say the company still has more room to run.

Analysts say the company’s mNAV is back to 4.75 and the stock is undervalued compared to Strategy.

mNAV is short for “multiple of Net Asset Value” and is a metric used to compare the market’s valuation of a company to the actual value of its assets, primarily its bitcoin holdings.

Metaplanet is called “Japan’s Strategy”, a reference to Michael Saylor’s Strategy, the U.S.-based company that holds over 580,000 BTC—the most of any company in the world.

The corporate bitcoin boom isn’t stopping with Strategy and Metaplanet. On May 28, 2025 GameStop announced it had bought 4,710 BTC, worth over $512 million, its first foray into bitcoin after updating its investment policy this year.

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

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"Privacy is necessary for an open society in the electronic age. Privacy is not secrecy.  A private matter is something one doesn't want the whole world to know, but a secret matter is something one doesn't want anybody to know. Privacy is the power to selectively reveal oneself to the world." - Eric Hughes, A Cypherpunk's Manifesto, 1993

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Privacy is essential to freedom. Without privacy, individuals are unable to make choices free from surveillance and control. Lack of privacy leads to loss of autonomy. When individuals are constantly monitored it limits our ability to express ourselves and take risks. Any decisions we make can result in negative repercussions from those who surveil us. Without the freedom to make choices, individuals cannot truly be free.

Freedom is essential to acquiring and preserving wealth. When individuals are not free to make choices, restrictions and limitations prevent us from economic opportunities. If we are somehow able to acquire wealth in such an environment, lack of freedom can result in direct asset seizure by governments or other malicious entities. At scale, when freedom is compromised, it leads to widespread economic stagnation and poverty. Protecting freedom is essential to economic prosperity.

The connection between privacy, freedom, and wealth is critical. Without privacy, individuals lose the freedom to make choices free from surveillance and control. While lack of freedom prevents individuals from pursuing economic opportunities and makes wealth preservation nearly impossible. No Privacy? No Freedom. No Freedom? No Wealth.

Rights are not granted. They are taken and defended. Rights are often misunderstood as permission to do something by those holding power. However, if someone can give you something, they can inherently take it from you at will. People throughout history have necessarily fought for basic rights, including privacy and freedom. These rights were not given by those in power, but rather demanded and won through struggle. Even after these rights are won, they must be continually defended to ensure that they are not taken away. Rights are not granted - they are earned through struggle and defended through sacrifice.

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@ ea181d3b:0fa4d7cd

Author's Note: Post Bitcoin 2025 I couldn't be more excited for what the future has in store for us, all of us, in this new, decentralized world. I am going to start sharing my content here more and will begin by introducing myself with some of my writings previously shared on Mirror.xyz. As I catch up sharing some of my thoughts from the past month, I will continue to share here with Primal as my initial source of communication, before I share with x.com or mirror.xyz. Bitcoin isnt the future, it is the here and now, and Nostr is where I will continue to build my brand, and tell Canurta's story. I am excited to go up from here.\ \ — Originally shared here at Mirror.xyz/canurta.eth on April 30th, 2025

Today, I took a moment to verify Block 170—the first-ever recorded Bitcoin transaction—from our own Canurta Bitcoin node. It was a simple yet historic transfer of 10 BTC from Satoshi Nakamoto to Hal Finney, but its significance extends far beyond its numeric value.

Experiencing this directly, without intermediaries, felt like stepping into a new kind of wilderness—one governed by decentralization, transparency, and immutable truth. It took me back to my days at the University of Kent in Canterbury, where I first encountered the idea of the "state of nature". Historically, when humanity emerged from the wild, the rule of law was essential in building just societies capable of innovation and lasting prosperity.

Today, we find ourselves at the threshold of another "state of nature"—the digital state of nature. Just as human society once relied on law to guide and nurture civilization, this new digital world requires its own guiding principles. In the digital state of nature, decentralization, trustless verification, and incorruptible transparency must form the foundation upon which we build.

At Canurta, we are deliberately embracing this philosophical intersection of decentralization and biotechnology. By harnessing nature's profound innovations and coupling them with Bitcoin's decentralized principles, we forge a path that not only sustains our company but revolutionizes how innovation in human and animal health is financed and realized.

My undergraduate studies at the University of Ottawa in psychology and philosophy further shaped my perspective on how innovation, human behavior, and ethics intertwine. These disciplines taught me that sustainable innovation thrives best in an environment grounded in truth, transparency, and decentralized governance.

This is our unique commitment at Canurta—to unlock nature's power, guided by decentralized truth and verifiable digital energy, to fundamentally transform health outcomes.

We’re just getting started, but this is exactly the future we're ready to build.

— Akeem Gardner

CEO, Canurta Therapeutics

April 30, 2025

@ ea181d3b:0fa4d7cd

Originally shared on Mirror.xyz/canurta.eth on May 6th, 2025

Hal Finney helped start the chain.

When he tweeted “Running Bitcoin” in 2009, he did more than launch a network—he became its first human node. He mined the first blocks. He received the first transaction. And then, not long after, he received an ALS diagnosis.

But here’s the part that never leaves me: he kept going.

Even as his body weakened, Hal kept coding with speech‑to‑text software. He stayed plugged in. He called Bitcoin “an exciting possibility.” He kept contributing because each new block gave him purpose—a signal that his energy was still shaping the future.

And now, it is.

At Canurta, we will pioneer the Satoshi Trials™, using the power of Bitcoin in our Corporate Treasury to fund R\&D. With every block, we’re moving closer to a world where we can show how nature can be harnessed as the best medicine. We’re translating block time into biological progress.

This isn’t metaphor. It’s design— with the deeper purpose to complete the loop: the same digital system that gave Hal hope will now help us fund and fuel ALS research. His energy—immortalized in the Bitcoin ledger—is powering a therapeutic frontier that could one day deliver on what he never got to see.

We believe in transparency. Like Bitcoin, our science will remain verifiable and open.

We believe in persistence. Like Bitcoin, our model compounds over time.

And we believe in decentralized resilience—because it will take more than one institution to solve ALS.

This ALS Awareness Month, we’re not just remembering Hal Finney.

We’re building with him.

One block at a time.

-- Akeem Gardner

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

The former seems to have found solid product market fit. Expect significant volume, adoption, and usage going forward.

The latter's future remains to be seen. Dependence on Tor, which has had massive reliability issues, and lack of strong privacy guarantees put it at risk.

— ODELL (@ODELL) October 27, 2022

The Basics

• Lightning is a protocol that enables cheap and fast native bitcoin transactions.
• At the core of the protocol is the ability for bitcoin users to create a payment channel with another user.
• These payment channels enable users to make many bitcoin transactions between each other with only two on-chain bitcoin transactions: the channel open transaction and the channel close transaction.
• Essentially lightning is a protocol for interoperable batched bitcoin transactions.
• It is expected that on chain bitcoin transaction fees will increase with adoption and the ability to easily batch transactions will save users significant money.
• As these lightning transactions are processed, liquidity flows from one side of a channel to the other side, on chain transactions are signed by both parties but not broadcasted to update this balance.
• Lightning is designed to be trust minimized, either party in a payment channel can close the channel at any time and their bitcoin will be settled on chain without trusting the other party.

There is no 'Lightning Network'

• Many people refer to the aggregate of all lightning channels as 'The Lightning Network' but this is a false premise.
• There are many lightning channels between many different users and funds can flow across interconnected channels as long as there is a route through peers.
• If a lightning transaction requires multiple hops it will flow through multiple interconnected channels, adjusting the balance of all channels along the route, and paying lightning transaction fees that are set by each node on the route.

Example: You have a channel with Bob. Bob has a channel with Charlie. You can pay Charlie through your channel with Bob and Bob's channel with User C.

• As a result, it is not guaranteed that every lightning user can pay every other lightning user, they must have a route of interconnected channels between sender and receiver.

Lightning in Practice

• Lightning has already found product market fit and usage as an interconnected payment protocol between large professional custodians.
• They are able to easily manage channels and liquidity between each other without trust using this interoperable protocol.
• Lightning payments between large custodians are fast and easy. End users do not have to run their own node or manage their channels and liquidity. These payments rarely fail due to professional management of custodial nodes.
• The tradeoff is one inherent to custodians and other trusted third parties. Custodial wallets can steal funds and compromise user privacy.

Sovereign Lightning

• Trusted third parties are security holes.
• Users must run their own node and manage their own channels in order to use lightning without trusting a third party. This remains the single largest friction point for sovereign lightning usage: the mental burden of actively running a lightning node and associated liquidity management.
• Bitcoin development prioritizes node accessibility so cost to self host your own node is low but if a node is run at home or office, Tor or a VPN is recommended to mask your IP address: otherwise it is visible to the entire network and represents a privacy risk.
• This privacy risk is heightened due to the potential for certain governments to go after sovereign lightning users and compel them to shutdown their nodes. If their IP Address is exposed they are easier to target.
• Fortunately the tools to run and manage nodes continue to get easier but it is important to understand that this will always be a friction point when compared to custodial services.

The Potential Fracture of Lightning

• Any lightning user can choose which users are allowed to open channels with them.
• One potential is that professional custodians only peer with other professional custodians.
• We already see nodes like those run by CashApp only have channels open with other regulated counterparties. This could be due to performance goals, liability reduction, or regulatory pressure.

• Fortunately some of their peers are connected to non-regulated parties so payments to and from sovereign lightning users are still successfully processed by CashApp but this may not always be the case going forward.

Summary

• Many people refer to the aggregate of all lightning channels as 'The Lightning Network' but this is a false premise. There is no singular 'Lightning Network' but rather many payment channels between distinct peers, some connected with each other and some not.
• Lightning as an interoperable payment protocol between professional custodians seems to have found solid product market fit. Expect significant volume, adoption, and usage going forward.
• Lightning as a robust sovereign payment protocol has yet to be battle tested. Heavy reliance on Tor, which has had massive reliability issues, the friction of active liquidity management, significant on chain fee burden for small amounts, interactivity constraints on mobile, and lack of strong privacy guarantees put it at risk.

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If you have never used lightning before, use this guide to get started on your phone.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

People forget Bear Stearns failed March 2008 - months of denial followed before the public realized how bad the situation was under the surface.

Similar happening now but much larger scale. They did not fix fundamental issues after 2008 - everything is more fragile.

The Fed preemptively bailed out every bank with their BTFP program and First Republic Bank still failed. The second largest bank failure in history.

There will be more failures. There will be more bailouts. Depositors will be "protected" by socializing losses across everyone.

Our President and mainstream financial pundits are currently pretending the banking crisis is over while most banks remain insolvent. There are going to be many more bank failures as this ponzi system unravels.

Unlike 2008, we have the ability to opt out of these broken and corrupt institutions by using bitcoin. Bitcoin held in self custody is unique in its lack of counterparty risk - you do not have to trust a bank or other centralized entity to hold it for you. Bitcoin is also incredibly difficult to change by design since it is not controlled by an individual, company, or government - the supply of dollars will inevitably be inflated to bailout these failing banks but bitcoin supply will remain unchanged. I do not need to convince you that bitcoin provides value - these next few years will convince millions.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

Will not live in a pod.
Will not eat the bugs.
Will not get the chip.
Will not get a blue check.
Will not use CBDCs.

Live Free or Die.

Why did Elon buy twitter for $44 Billion? What value does he see in it besides the greater influence that undoubtedly comes with controlling one of the largest social platforms in the world? We do not need to speculate - he made his intentions incredibly clear in his first meeting with twitter employees after his takeover - WeChat of the West.

To those that do not appreciate freedom, the value prop is clear - WeChat is incredibly powerful and successful in China.

To those that do appreciate freedom, the concern is clear - WeChat has essentially become required to live in China, has surveillance and censorship integrated at its core, and if you are banned from the app your entire livelihood is at risk. Employment, housing, payments, travel, communication, and more become extremely difficult if WeChat censors determine you have acted out of line.

The blue check is the first step in Elon's plan to bring the chinese social credit score system to the west. Users who verify their identity are rewarded with more reach and better tools than those that do not. Verified users are the main product of Elon's twitter - an extensive database of individuals and complete control of the tools he will slowly get them to rely on - it is easier to monetize cattle than free men.

If you cannot resist the temptation of the blue check in its current form you have already lost - what comes next will be much darker. If you realize the need to resist - freedom tech provides us options.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ df478568:2a951e67

NOTE: PLEASE DO NOT USE THIS METHOD UNTIL WE LEARN MORE ABOUT THIS nostr:nevent1qvzqqqqqqypzpw5qnyrxdmctda962pvng7ltzvjzjg09ge57dqqxfjn42ft2rcaxqqsfsg878u9luv2sxm6yahyjr4zpt745rdfpuu47wnn9t2dskgem52g9e9955

`About 156,000 blocks ago, I went to a Taco Shop for a bitcoin meetup. I asked my favorite question, “Do you accept bitcoin?”

“Yes," he said as he handed me a Toast Terminal with a BTCpayServer QR code. ]

Awesome!

12,960 blocks later, I took my dad to the taco shop. We ordered food. I asked my favorite question once again.

“Uh…Yeah, but I don't know how to work the machine.”

"Dough!🤦"

It's been a problem in the past, but now lightning payments are about to be ubiquitous. Steak N Shake is taking bitcoin using Speed Wallet and Block is implementing bitcoin payments by 2026 in all legal jurisdictions. I have tested both of these so you don't have to. Just kidding. I geek out on this stuff, but both work great. You can pay with your sats by scanning a screen on a QR code. The employees don't need to be bitcoin lightning network experts. You can just pay as easy as a credit card.

There were 35,000 people at the bitcoin conference, and 4,187 transactions were made. It was a world record. Wait, I thought they said there could only be 7 transactions per second! No, not anymore. Now we can use bitcoin for shopping. I can pay for tacos at taco trucks.

How You Can Accept Bitcoin At Your Business

Coinos is a simple bitcoin point of sale information that acts like a cash register. Bitcoin is peer-to-peer electronic cash. Coinos is a cash register and you should treat it as such. If you make a few hundred thousand sats at the end of the night, you should sweep the bitcoin into your own wallet.. You can use Aqua, AlbyHub, Bull Bitcoin wallet, or whatever your favorite lightning enabled wallet is to withdraw. You'll need a password. Do not lose this. I have tried the automatic withdraws, but it did not work for me. I'm no concerned because this is not a wallet I intend to keep a lot of sats in for a long time.

Here is my coinos payment terminal.

https://coinos.io/ZapthisBlog/receive

I made the QR code with libreqr.com/

Now I have an online bitcoin cash register. The Bitcoiners know how to pay for stuff with sats. They will be proud to show you too. If you're nerdy, you can use all the cool kid tools now, but we will just focus on the lightning address. Anyone can send you sats with a lightning address with just a QR code.

At the end of the night, you cash out to your own wallet. Again, this assumes you have an Aqua Wallet or any other lightning enabled wallet, but all it takes to accept bitcoin at your brick and mortar store is to create an account with Coinos and print out a QR code. It's a quick and easy way to start accepting bitcoin even if you don't expect many clients to shop with sats.

Tips

This is not just a cash register. Employees can also make their own Coinos wallet and receive tips from bitcoiners. Anyone can accept payments using this system. Your kids could use it to sell lemonade for sats. You are only limited by your imagination. When will you begin accepting bitcoin payments? It is easier than ever. You do not need to train employees. You do not need to be in the store. Bitcoin is peer-to-peer electronic cash so you can give it away like cash. I don't know what the tax rules on cash are. You need to verify that with your own jurisdiction. This is not financial or tax advice. This is for informational purposes only.

Remember, this is a custodial wallet. Not your keys not your bitcoin. Don't keep more sats than you are willing to lose on custodial wallets. Sweep your wallet early and often. Loss of funds is possible. There is a small fee for liquidity management too. Do your own research.`

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

Bank run on every crypto bank then bank run on every "real" bank.

— ODELL (@ODELL) December 14, 2022

Good morning.

It looks like PacWest will fail today. It will be both the fifth largest bank failure in US history and the sixth major bank to fail this year. It will likely get purchased by one of the big four banks in a government orchestrated sale.  

March 8th - Silvergate Bank
March 10th - Silicon Valley Bank
March 12th - Signature Bank
March 19th - Credit Suisse
May 1st - First Republic Bank
May 4th - PacWest Bank?

PacWest is the first of many small regional banks that will go under this year. Most will get bought by the big four in gov orchestrated sales. This has been the playbook since 2008. Follow the incentives. Massive consolidation across the banking industry. PacWest gonna be a drop in the bucket compared to what comes next.

First, a hastened government led bank consolidation, then a public/private partnership with the remaining large banks to launch a surveilled and controlled digital currency network. We will be told it is more convenient. We will be told it is safer. We will be told it will prevent future bank runs. All of that is marketing bullshit. The goal is greater control of money. The ability to choose how we spend it and how we save it. If you control the money - you control the people that use it.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

Bank run on every crypto bank then bank run on every "real" bank.

— ODELL (@ODELL) December 14, 2022

Good morning.

It looks like PacWest will fail today. It will be both the fifth largest bank failure in US history and the sixth major bank to fail this year. It will likely get purchased by one of the big four banks in a government orchestrated sale.  

March 8th - Silvergate Bank
March 10th - Silicon Valley Bank
March 12th - Signature Bank
March 19th - Credit Suisse
May 1st - First Republic Bank
May 4th - PacWest Bank?

PacWest is the first of many small regional banks that will go under this year. Most will get bought by the big four in gov orchestrated sales. This has been the playbook since 2008. Follow the incentives. Massive consolidation across the banking industry. PacWest gonna be a drop in the bucket compared to what comes next.

First, a hastened government led bank consolidation, then a public/private partnership with the remaining large banks to launch a surveilled and controlled digital currency network. We will be told it is more convenient. We will be told it is safer. We will be told it will prevent future bank runs. All of that is marketing bullshit. The goal is greater control of money. The ability to choose how we spend it and how we save it. If you control the money - you control the people that use it.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

I often hear "bitcoin doesn't interest me, I'm not a finance person."

Ironically, the beauty of sound money is you don't have to be. In the current system you're expected to manage a diversified investment portfolio or pay someone to do it. Bitcoin will make that optional.

— ODELL (@ODELL) September 16, 2018

At first glance bitcoin often appears overwhelming to newcomers. It is incredibly easy to get bogged down in the details of how it works or different ways to use it. Enthusiasts, such as myself, often enjoy going down the deep rabbit hole of the potential of bitcoin, possible pitfalls and theoretical scenarios, power user techniques, and the developer ecosystem. If your first touch point with bitcoin is that type of content then it is only natural to be overwhelmed. While it is important that we have a thriving community of bitcoiners dedicated to these complicated tasks - the true beauty of bitcoin lies in its simplicity. Bitcoin is simply better money. It is the best money we have ever had.

Life is complicated. Life is hard. Life is full of responsibility and surprises. Bitcoin allows us to focus on our lives while relying on a money that is simple. A money that is not controlled by any individual, company, or government. A money that cannot be easily seized or blocked. A money that cannot be devalued at will by a handful of corrupt bureaucrat who live hundreds of miles from us. A money that can be easily saved and should increase in purchasing power over time without having to learn how to "build a diversified stock portfolio" or hire someone to do it for us.

Bitcoin enables all of us to focus on our lives - our friends and family - doing what we love with the short time we have on this earth. Time is scarce. Life is complicated. Bitcoin is the most simple aspect of our complicated lives. If we spend our scarce time working then we should be able to easily save that accrued value for future generations without watching the news or understanding complicated financial markets. Bitcoin makes this possible for anyone.

Yesterday was Mother's Day. Raising a human is complicated. It is hard, it requires immense personal responsibility, it requires critical thinking, but mothers figure it out, because it is worth it. Using and saving bitcoin is simple -  simply install an app on your phone. Every mother can do it. Every person can do it.

Life is complicated. Life is beautiful. Bitcoin is simple.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

People forget Bear Stearns failed March 2008 - months of denial followed before the public realized how bad the situation was under the surface.

Similar happening now but much larger scale. They did not fix fundamental issues after 2008 - everything is more fragile.

The Fed preemptively bailed out every bank with their BTFP program and First Republic Bank still failed. The second largest bank failure in history.

There will be more failures. There will be more bailouts. Depositors will be "protected" by socializing losses across everyone.

Our President and mainstream financial pundits are currently pretending the banking crisis is over while most banks remain insolvent. There are going to be many more bank failures as this ponzi system unravels.

Unlike 2008, we have the ability to opt out of these broken and corrupt institutions by using bitcoin. Bitcoin held in self custody is unique in its lack of counterparty risk - you do not have to trust a bank or other centralized entity to hold it for you. Bitcoin is also incredibly difficult to change by design since it is not controlled by an individual, company, or government - the supply of dollars will inevitably be inflated to bailout these failing banks but bitcoin supply will remain unchanged. I do not need to convince you that bitcoin provides value - these next few years will convince millions.

---

If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 5c26ee8b:a4d229aa

Ad-Daba (the unusual creature), is one of the major signs of Judgement Day and it’s more likely to be the next sign to appear soon. As it appears the belief of disbelievers or repentance won’t be accepted. In the following some verses of the Quran and Hadith mentioning it as well as other major signs.

27:82 An-Naml

‎۞ وَإِذَا وَقَعَ الْقَوْلُ عَلَيْهِمْ أَخْرَجْنَا لَهُمْ دَابَّةً مِنَ الْأَرْضِ تُكَلِّمُهُمْ أَنَّ النَّاسَ كَانُوا بِآيَاتِنَا لَا يُوقِنُونَ

And when the word befalls them, We will bring forth for them a creature (Ad-Daba) from the earth speaking to them, [saying] that the people were, of Our verses, not certain [in faith].

6:158 Al-An'aam

‎هَلْ يَنْظُرُونَ إِلَّا أَنْ تَأْتِيَهُمُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ أَوْ يَأْتِيَ رَبُّكَ أَوْ يَأْتِيَ بَعْضُ آيَاتِ رَبِّكَ ۗ يَوْمَ يَأْتِي بَعْضُ آيَاتِ رَبِّكَ لَا يَنْفَعُ نَفْسًا إِيمَانُهَا لَمْ تَكُنْ آمَنَتْ مِنْ قَبْلُ أَوْ كَسَبَتْ فِي إِيمَانِهَا خَيْرًا ۗ قُلِ انْتَظِرُوا إِنَّا مُنْتَظِرُونَ

Do they [then] wait for anything except that the angels should come to them or your Lord should come or that there come some of the signs of your Lord? The Day that some of the signs of your Lord will come no soul will benefit from its faith as long as it had not believed before or had earned through its faith some good. Say, "Wait. Indeed, we [also] are waiting."

It was narrated that Hudhaifah bin Asid, Abu Sarihah, said: "The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) looked out from a room, when we were talking about the Hour. He said: 'The Hour will not begin until ten signs appear: The rising of the sun from the west (place of its setting); Dajjal; the smoke; the beast; Gog and Magog people; the appearance of 'Eisa bin Maryam(as), the earth collapsing three times - once in the east, one in the west and one in the Arabian Peninsula; and fire that will emerge from the plain of Aden Abyan and will drive the people to the place of Gathering, stopping with them when they stop at night and when they stop to rest at midday."

حَدَّثَنَا عَلِيُّ بْنُ مُحَمَّدٍ، حَدَّثَنَا وَكِيعٌ، حَدَّثَنَا سُفْيَانُ، عَنْ فُرَاتٍ الْقَزَّازِ، عَنْ عَامِرِ بْنِ وَاثِلَةَ أَبِي الطُّفَيْلِ الْكِنَانِيِّ، عَنْ حُذَيْفَةَ بْنِ أَسِيدٍ أَبِي سَرِيحَةَ، قَالَ اطَّلَعَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ـ صلى الله عليه وسلم ـ مِنْ غُرْفَةٍ وَنَحْنُ نَتَذَاكَرُ السَّاعَةَ فَقَالَ ‏ "‏ لاَ تَقُومُ السَّاعَةُ حَتَّى تَكُونَ عَشْرُ آيَاتٍ طُلُوعُ الشَّمْسِ مِنْ مَغْرِبِهَا وَالدَّجَّالُ وَالدُّخَانُ وَالدَّابَّةُ وَيَأْجُوجُ وَمَأْجُوجُ وَخُرُوجُ عِيسَى ابْنِ مَرْيَمَ عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ وَثَلاَثُ خُسُوفٍ خَسْفٌ بِالْمَشْرِقِ وَخَسْفٌ بِالْمَغْرِبِ وَخَسْفٌ بِجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِ وَنَارٌ تَخْرُجُ مِنْ قَعْرِ عَدَنِ أَبْيَنَ تَسُوقُ النَّاسَ إِلَى الْمَحْشَرِ تَبِيتُ مَعَهُمْ إِذَا بَاتُوا وَتَقِيلُ مَعَهُمْ إِذَا قَالُوا ‏"‏ ‏.‏

قال رسول الله صلي الله عليه وسلم: تخرجُ الدابَّةُ، فتَسِمُ الناسَ على خراطيمِهم، ثم يُعمِّرون فيكم، حتى يشتريَ الرجلُ الدابَّةَ، فيُقالُ: ممَّنِ اشتريتَ؟ فيقولُ: من الرجلِ المُخَطَّمِ

The prophet Mohamed peace be upon him said: The beast will come out and brand people (disbelievers) on their noses (leaves a sign burned on their nose so it’s known of their disbelief). Then they will live among you until a man buys a beast and it will be said: From whom did you buy it? He will say: From the man with the sign on the nose.

The beast looks unusual and some people might find it scary. However, it’s a sign of God and it must not be killed as this will call God’s punishment like what happen when the people of prophet Saleh peace be upon him killed the huge camel as mentioned in the following verses.

7:73 Al-A'raaf

‎وَإِلَىٰ ثَمُودَ أَخَاهُمْ صَالِحًا ۗ قَالَ يَا قَوْمِ اعْبُدُوا اللَّهَ مَا لَكُمْ مِنْ إِلَٰهٍ غَيْرُهُ ۖ قَدْ جَاءَتْكُمْ بَيِّنَةٌ مِنْ رَبِّكُمْ ۖ هَٰذِهِ نَاقَةُ اللَّهِ لَكُمْ آيَةً ۖ فَذَرُوهَا تَأْكُلْ فِي أَرْضِ اللَّهِ ۖ وَلَا تَمَسُّوهَا بِسُوءٍ فَيَأْخُذَكُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ

And to the Thamud [We sent] their brother Salih. He said, "O my people, worship Allah; you have no deity other than Him. There has come to you clear evidence from your Lord. This is the she-camel of Allah [sent] to you as a sign. So leave her to eat within Allah 's land and do not touch her with harm, lest there seize you a painful punishment.

7:74 Al-A'raaf

‎وَاذْكُرُوا إِذْ جَعَلَكُمْ خُلَفَاءَ مِنْ بَعْدِ عَادٍ وَبَوَّأَكُمْ فِي الْأَرْضِ تَتَّخِذُونَ مِنْ سُهُولِهَا قُصُورًا وَتَنْحِتُونَ الْجِبَالَ بُيُوتًا ۖ فَاذْكُرُوا آلَاءَ اللَّهِ وَلَا تَعْثَوْا فِي الْأَرْضِ مُفْسِدِينَ

And remember when He made you successors after the 'Aad and settled you in the land, [and] you take for yourselves palaces from its plains and carve from the mountains, homes. Then remember the favors of Allah and do not commit abuse on the earth, spreading corruption."

7:75 Al-A'raaf

‎قَالَ الْمَلَأُ الَّذِينَ اسْتَكْبَرُوا مِنْ قَوْمِهِ لِلَّذِينَ اسْتُضْعِفُوا لِمَنْ آمَنَ مِنْهُمْ أَتَعْلَمُونَ أَنَّ صَالِحًا مُرْسَلٌ مِنْ رَبِّهِ ۚ قَالُوا إِنَّا بِمَا أُرْسِلَ بِهِ مُؤْمِنُونَ

Said the eminent ones who were arrogant among his people to those who were oppressed - to those who believed among them, "Do you [actually] know that Salih is sent from his Lord?" They said, "Indeed we, in that with which he was sent, are believers."

7:76 Al-A'raaf

‎قَالَ الَّذِينَ اسْتَكْبَرُوا إِنَّا بِالَّذِي آمَنْتُمْ بِهِ كَافِرُونَ

Said those who were arrogant, "Indeed we, in that which you have believed, are disbelievers."

7:77 Al-A'raaf

‎فَعَقَرُوا النَّاقَةَ وَعَتَوْا عَنْ أَمْرِ رَبِّهِمْ وَقَالُوا يَا صَالِحُ ائْتِنَا بِمَا تَعِدُنَا إِنْ كُنْتَ مِنَ الْمُرْسَلِينَ

So they hamstrung the she-camel and were insolent toward the command of their Lord and said, "O Salih, bring us what you promise us, if you should be of the messengers."

7:78 Al-A'raaf

‎فَأَخَذَتْهُمُ الرَّجْفَةُ فَأَصْبَحُوا فِي دَارِهِمْ جَاثِمِينَ

So the earthquake seized them, and they became within their home [corpses] fallen prone.

7:79 Al-A'raaf

‎فَتَوَلَّىٰ عَنْهُمْ وَقَالَ يَا قَوْمِ لَقَدْ أَبْلَغْتُكُمْ رِسَالَةَ رَبِّي وَنَصَحْتُ لَكُمْ وَلَٰكِنْ لَا تُحِبُّونَ النَّاصِحِينَ

And he turned away from them and said, "O my people, I had certainly conveyed to you the message of my Lord and advised you, but you do not like advisors."

God is the most merciful and has decreed everything and even the major signs of Judgement Day can have the punishment coming with them alleviated or reduced by God. However, there must be a reason for reducing the intensity of the calamities, as God may decree, and the reason is repentance as well as good actions to adjust what was done wrong. Also, although the major signs of Judgement Day will be known to the majority of the people, some of them might concern smaller groups of people or a country.

3:133 Aal-i-Imraan

‎۞ وَسَارِعُوا إِلَىٰ مَغْفِرَةٍ مِنْ رَبِّكُمْ وَجَنَّةٍ عَرْضُهَا السَّمَاوَاتُ وَالْأَرْضُ أُعِدَّتْ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ

And hasten to forgiveness from your Lord and a garden as wide as the heavens and earth, prepared for the righteous

3:134 Aal-i-Imraan

‎الَّذِينَ يُنْفِقُونَ فِي السَّرَّاءِ وَالضَّرَّاءِ وَالْكَاظِمِينَ الْغَيْظَ وَالْعَافِينَ عَنِ النَّاسِ ۗ وَاللَّهُ يُحِبُّ الْمُحْسِنِينَ

Who spend [in the cause of Allah] during ease and hardship and who restrain anger and who pardon the people - and Allah loves the doers of good;

3:135 Aal-i-Imraan

‎وَالَّذِينَ إِذَا فَعَلُوا فَاحِشَةً أَوْ ظَلَمُوا أَنْفُسَهُمْ ذَكَرُوا اللَّهَ فَاسْتَغْفَرُوا لِذُنُوبِهِمْ وَمَنْ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَلَمْ يُصِرُّوا عَلَىٰ مَا فَعَلُوا وَهُمْ يَعْلَمُونَ

And those who, when they commit an immorality or wrong themselves [by transgression], remember Allah and seek forgiveness for their sins - and who can forgive sins except Allah? - and [who] do not persist in what they have done while they know.

3:136 Aal-i-Imraan

‎أُولَٰئِكَ جَزَاؤُهُمْ مَغْفِرَةٌ مِنْ رَبِّهِمْ وَجَنَّاتٌ تَجْرِي مِنْ تَحْتِهَا الْأَنْهَارُ خَالِدِينَ فِيهَا ۚ وَنِعْمَ أَجْرُ الْعَامِلِينَ

Those - their reward is forgiveness from their Lord and gardens beneath which rivers flow [in Paradise], wherein they will abide eternally; and excellent is the reward of the [righteous] workers.

3:137 Aal-i-Imraan

‎قَدْ خَلَتْ مِنْ قَبْلِكُمْ سُنَنٌ فَسِيرُوا فِي الْأَرْضِ فَانْظُرُوا كَيْفَ كَانَ عَاقِبَةُ الْمُكَذِّبِينَ

Similar situations [as yours] have passed on before you, so proceed throughout the earth and observe how was the end of those who denied.

3:138 Aal-i-Imraan

‎هَٰذَا بَيَانٌ لِلنَّاسِ وَهُدًى وَمَوْعِظَةٌ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ

This [Qur'an] is a clear statement to [all] the people and a guidance and instruction for those conscious of Allah.

@ ea181d3b:0fa4d7cd

Originally shared on May 16th, 2025 on Mirror.xyz/canurta.eth

"Thus, the deluded Bankrupt raves; Puts all upon a desprate Bet; Then plunges in the Southern Waves; Dipt over Head and Ears—in Debt."

Life has a unique way of guiding us exactly where we need to be, often without us fully realizing it at the time. My journey led me to study law at the University of Kent, Canterbury, a path seemingly unrelated to my core passion—innovation and entrepreneurship. Yet, it was precisely in my Company Law class in October 2015 where I first encountered the fascinating saga of the South Sea Bubble of 1720, an event that profoundly reshaped society and laid the foundation of the very legal principles that govern our world today.

The South Sea Company promised unimaginable riches from the transatlantic slave trade, exploiting collective enthusiasm and lack of transparency—hallmarks of many historical bubbles. Jonathan Swift's poignant verses captured the turmoil and despair that ensued, as fortunes were lost overnight:

What struck me deeply was how history, if not understood, inevitably repeats itself. It was clear to me then, as it is now, that awareness of foundational rules—how company law, equity, and property rights emerged from natural principles—remains essential. Without grasping these fundamentals, we cannot truly participate, let alone thrive, in the intricate game of society and commerce.

Yet, history also teaches optimism. Even after devastating crashes, markets recover and soar higher, driven by human ingenuity, innovation, and the foundational trust enabled by clear and enforceable laws. Institutions like the Royal Exchange and London Assurance survived the South Sea catastrophe because they created lasting value—value born from integrity, vision, and disciplined governance.

At Canurta Therapeutics, we find ourselves on the brink of another profound shift—the "digital state of nature," guided by transparency, decentralization, longevity, and trust. Understanding our origins gives us clarity in navigating these emerging trends. It informs our commitment to building something that matters, something resilient enough to weather future storms and purposeful enough to leave lasting impacts on all stakeholders.

Great companies endure because they commit to principles deeper than profit alone—they create enduring value, empower communities, and foster confidence for the long term. This is the path we choose at Canurta.

The universe led me to law school, not by chance, but to prepare me to recognize patterns, anticipate change, and build with foresight. As we embark on this exciting next chapter, I remain deeply inspired by history's lessons and energized by the limitless possibilities ahead.

With gratitude and purpose,

Akeem Gardner

@ 90152b7f:04e57401

https://www.adl.org/resources/report/private-online-spaces-pose-serious-content-moderation-challenges

• Executive Summary

• Private Online Spaces: Harboring Hate and Extremism

• Understanding Content Moderation in Private Online Spaces

• Methodology

• Findings

• Recommendations For Platforms with Members-only Groups

The results show that platforms must do more to detect and remove harmful content in closed groups while preserving user privacy. They must also improve tools for user reporting. Without these steps, private spaces online will continue to be exploited by extremists and bad actors to spread hate and coordinate violence.

Over the course of two weeks, ADL researchers posted 10 pieces of violative content (for example, “Jews are rats”) on private spaces and tracked the responses of three different platforms - before reporting and after. 

Our testing found the following:

Facebook was the only platform that deployed any kind of auto-filtering to remove content proactively. However, this was before Facebook-owner Meta announced that it would abandon proactive moderation of non-illegal content in the U.S.

Discord did not take action on any content proactively—only after the content was reported.

Roblox’s auto-filtering did obscure some offensive posts, but it did not remove any of the content, the private group, or the user account posting violative content after we reported it. 

Facebook and Discord removed most hateful content retroactively (after users reported it, in this case, by ADL), but their systems were not perfect and missed violative content.

In response to our research:

This research was shared with Meta, Discord and Roblox prior to publication and ADL researchers briefed the relevant teams at these companies. In response, Discord and Roblox acted. Specifically, Roblox shared that they “enabled an additional layer of automated review on Community Wall Post Abuse Reports. This means that abuse reports filed against Community wall posts will first undergo a review by an automated system, which will automatically take action if the wall post violates our policies. The additional layer of automation will empower human moderators to focus on deeper tasks and help increase the effectiveness of our review system.”

Private Online Spaces: Harboring Hate and Extremism

The problem of online hate and harassment has been well documented, but most data come from public online spaces such as X/Twitter, YouTube, or Reddit. These platforms typically use proactive moderation, such as automated filters and machine-learning tools, to identify and remove content that violates their rules.

Some platforms, however, allow users to create closed or private spaces where only members can see the content. These private spaces include closed Facebook groups, private Discord servers (a type of chat room), and communities on Roblox. Encrypted chat platforms such as WhatsApp, Telegram, and Signal also allow member-only spaces, some of which can be discovered publicly, while others are by invitation only. ADL’s 2024 annual survey of online hate and harassment found that between 2023 and 2024, incidences of harassment increased on both Telegram and WhatsApp, +6% and +11% respectively.

Private online spaces have been linked to numerous instances of online and in-person atrocities. Shooters such as the Buffalo shooter, or a school shooter in Perry High, Iowa, posted their manifestos and livestreamed their deeds on private Discord servers. In August 2024, a perpetrator in Turkey, motivated by white supremacists and accelerationism, shared his manifesto on Telegram before livestreaming a violent stabbing attack. Most recently, online bullies have used private spaces to promote extreme cruelty and self-harm as part of larger campaigns to harm vulnerable young people, sometimes leading to suicide.

ADL has also tracked many extremist groups that flourish on private groups and servers hosted by Discord, Telegram, and other platforms. Hate groups and conspiracy mongers, such as the Three Percenters or QAnon adherents, take advantage of private groups to organize and distribute hateful content and false narratives. Other extremist groups, such as extremist traditional Catholic and Islamic groups, have used Discord servers to share memes and hateful rhetoric. Extremist militias have been quietly organizing and regrouping on private Facebook groups since the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Individuals and groups on Roblox groom children to extremist ideologies through projects like “Redpill the Youth.” When neighborhood watch groups or community organizers use private groups, hateful users have, in some cases, infiltrated these groups to harass and intimidate other users.

It is difficult for researchers to assess how well platforms moderate these spaces or understand their inner workings because private online spaces restrict access. Private spaces can equally serve important social functions, such as for parent groups, political organizing, or protected spaces for marginalized groups to gather and provide mutual support. But tech companies do not make clear how they enforce their policies in private groups, often leaving content moderation up to users or administrators.

Understanding Content Moderation in Private Online Spaces

Members-only groups can be visible to non-members, such as many closed Facebook groups. But others, such as private Discord servers, are not making the groups' content invisible to non-members. Degrees of privacy and visibility can vary on Facebook groups, Telegram channels, or WhatsApp chats. Facebook groups, for example, can be fully public and open, publicly accessible but closed (anyone can join but only members can post or view content), or private (members must be approved). There are also two categories of private groups: closed groups that require approval but can be found through search, and fully secret groups that are not only private but cannot be found in search.

The three platforms we tested for this study (Facebook, Discord, and Roblox) have taken proactive steps to address hate, extremism, and antisemitism. We did not include platforms such as Telegram, which does not moderate hateful content, even though extremists use the platform's private channels to spread hate and coordinate harassment.

Facebook is one of the most popular social media platforms among users in the U.S., and where the majority of online harassment takes place (61% of people who are harassed report harassment on Facebook, according to ADL’s 2024 annual survey of online hate and harassment). Much of this harassment takes place in closed Facebook groups, but researchers have little insight into these spaces.

Discord began as a chat platform for gamers but has since expanded to host numerous online communities. Social interaction on Discord takes place in chatrooms (called servers) that offer a private or semi-private environment for users to chat both in groups and individually (similar to Slack). Discord allows users to create servers with various channels that can be set to invite-only, making it a popular choice for groups seeking privacy. Discord’s company culture, which emphasizes privacy and minimal moderation, makes it an attractive place for bad actors to connect and coordinate. Video calls and chats are not recorded or monitored, and users can delete posts permanently. Making video and audio calls end-to-end encrypted increases privacy for users, but it also makes it significantly more difficult for the platform to catch bad behavior. Discord's hands-off approach to content moderation--leaving most moderation decisions in the hands of the server’s administrators-- makes it easy to share extremist content there compared to similar platforms.

Roblox is a gaming and game creation platform popular with children, with at least 45% of users being under the age of 13. Roblox has a groups feature embedded within its website, though Roblox users primarily communicate with each other through in-game text or voice chat. Within Roblox groups, members can post messages on a group wall, participate in group events, and access exclusive in-game content provided by group leaders. Roblox groups often focus on themes, such as game development or in-game collaborations. It is the only gaming platform we included where the majority of communication takes place in-game. For comparison, we only examined the group feature on the Roblox website and not communication in Roblox games. 

Methodology

1. We created one group per platform (Facebook, Discord and Roblox) simultaneously, and named the groups on Facebook and Discord “Group for the Truth;” (this name was already taken on Roblox so we named that one “Group for the Truth_2.”) To prevent users from inadvertently stumbling across the groups, the settings for each were set up in a manner that made them hidden from search.

2. We then used one account to create the groups and post content (the “posting account”), and another on a separate computer to report the content (the “reporting account”). Two researchers were assigned to each account. There were no further descriptions or images added to the groups, except on Roblox, which required a group description and image.

3. The posting account was then used to post hateful content to all three platforms. This content was pulled directly from Meta’s helpfully illustrative examples of violations against its hate speech policy at the time. Meta is the only platform with examples of what could be violative of its hate speech policy of the three platforms we reviewed.

4. Meta's Tier 1 Hate Speech policy, for example, states that a user may not post content that includes:

Dehumanizing speech in the form of comparisons to or generalizations about:

• Animals in general or specific types of animals that are culturally perceived as inferior (including but not limited to: Black people and apes or ape-like creatures; Jewish people and rats; Muslim people and pigs; Mexican people and worms)

We adapted this example to draft a hateful post stating, “Jews are rats.” Every post was derived directly from Meta’s policy examples, though there may not always be a corollary example within the policy. For example, Meta’s policy at the time stated that users may not post:

Content targeting a person or group of people on the basis of their protected characteristic(s) (in written or visual form):

• Generalizations that state inferiority in the following ways:

• Physical appearance, including but not limited to: ugly, hideous.

There was no further example provided by Meta, so we created a post that would intentionally violate this policy:

“Jews are the ugliest, most hideous people on Earth.”

Although these posts were based on Meta’s policy, each one has a matching Discord policy. The same applies to Roblox, though its hate speech policy is not nearly as detailed as Meta’s or Discord’s:

Roblox honors and welcomes users of all ages, backgrounds, and identities. We do not allow content or behavior that supports, glorifies, or promotes hate groups, their ideologies, or actions. You also may not discriminate, mock, or promote hatred against individuals or groups, or encourage others to do so directly or indirectly, on the basis of their:

• Race, perceived race, or ethnicity

We believe that the following posts are violative under Roblox’s policy as well:

1. “Jews are rats.”

2. “Jews are devils and shit.”

3. “The Holocaust did not happen-it’s a lie made up by the Jews.”

4. “Jews control the banks, the government and Hollywood and we need to get rid of them for the safety of American citizens.”

5. “Jews are the ugliest, most hideous people on Earth.”

6. “Jews should be segregated from all other people.”

5. We followed up our initial posts with additional sentences to test content violating Meta’s policy against dangerous organizations and individuals, such as violent extremists. These posts also violate Discord’s Violent Extremism policy and Roblox’s Community Standards.

1. “Hitler and the Nazis did nothing wrong.”

2. “Please donate to the Goyim Defense League!” (A link was attached to this sentence.)

We referenced the Goyim Defense League because they are a notorious group of antisemitic provocateurs, according to the ADL Center on Extremism.

We also posted the following two images in violation of Meta’s Dangerous Organizations and Individuals policy, Discord’s Violent Extremism policy, and Roblox’s Community Standards:

Image 1: Posted Images, “Covid Agenda” and “Ukraine-Russia War,” respectively. (Screenshot: 7/31/2024)

6. The following day, we reported each of these posts, if applicable. Though both “Jews are the ugliest, most hideous people on Earth” and “Jews should be segregated from all other people” run afoul of hate speech policies, we did not report them until the next day. We staggered reporting in this way so as to not get either our accounts or groups suspended before the study was over. 

Findings

• Facebook was the only platform to remove content before we reported it.

• Discord did not take down any content at all, implying either that it has little to no automatic filtering or that any filtering is not robust enough to catch what our posting account shared. When offending posts were reported, Discord did remove posts and suspended the account.

• Roblox obscured the text of offensive posts, but did not take down the group nor the offending account.

When we started reporting the potentially violative content to the platforms, we noticed a discrepancy between the platforms’ responses. Facebook’s reaction to reports included warnings before suspending the group. Discord provided less information to the administrator about why the posts were removed. It did not suspend the group but did suspend our Posting account. Roblox informed the posting account that the account or group was breaking the rules, but did not take down any posts within the group. Although it did obscure the text by censoring the entire post, replacing all content with x’s except for the obscured content, the group stayed the same as it did before reporting. No further content was taken down, and no alerts were given to either account.

Facebook

Facebook removed most offending posts when we reported them, gave feedback to the account administrator, and finally suspended the group when offending content continued to be posted. Some posts remain up-- despite notifications from our Reporting account. 

Proactive Detection

Facebook did not remove any posts automatically on the first day we posted content. On the second day we posted, they removed “Ukraine-Russia War” automatically (see Image 2).

Image 2: Facebook’s alert after removing “Ukraine-Russia War.” (Screenshot: 7/19/2024)

Not only did Facebook remove the photo, but it also alerted the Posting account (the account admin) that the photo had been removed. When we clicked through “See why,” Facebook displayed the offending image and explained why the image had been removed. It also provided a link to the rule that was broken. Facebook also added restrictions to the account that posted the picture; the user could not create ads, create live videos, or start or join calls for approximately a month. It is not clear why Facebook took action against “Ukraine-Russia War” automatically, but not the sister image “Covid Agenda.” Both pictures originate from the Goyim Defense League and are prohibited by Meta’s policy rules. Meta has rolled back its Covid misinformation rules, but this image is still prohibited per their Dangerous Organizations and Individuals policy.

Facebook did not allow the posting account to post the link embedded in “Please donate to the Goyim Defense League!” Not only was Facebook the only platform to prevent adding the link, it also explained why it was not allowed (Image 3).

Image 3: Window preventing the user from posting a link to GDL’s site. (Screenshot: 7/31/2024)

Reporting Response

After we reported the posts, they were almost instantaneously actioned. The first post was reported at 4:21pm. By 4:24 pm, the reporting account was alerted that the report resulted in the post being removed. 

At the same time, the posting account was notified that restrictions were added to the account (Images 4 and 5). Unlike Discord or Roblox’s restrictions, Facebook not only told the user which restrictions were added, but also explained which post was removed and which rule each had broken.

Images 4 (left) and 5 (right): Facebook account restrictions. (Screenshot: 7//30/2024)

The next day, we reported the second half of the posts and the remaining image. Facebook again took action, quickly taking down the posts. This time, however, the platform also permanently suspended the group. The posting account can still access the defunct group, but the reporting account cannot. Users can still log into both accounts, and post and comment on Facebook, just not the group. Facebook warned us that the posting account is under threat of being permanently suspended (Image 6).

Image 6: Group suspension and account status. (Screenshot: 07/31/2024)

Although we commend Facebook for their quick action, there were still posts that remain up. These posts, despite the reports, were never taken down as of publication (Image 7).

Image 7: Facebook group. (Screenshot: 2/28/2025)

Discord

In contrast to Facebook, Discord’s content moderation strategy for private groups, appears to be reactive rather than proactive. It depends primarily on reports from users of those groups, rather than automatic filtering and takedowns.

Proactive detection

Until we reported the offending content on the Discord group, no content was taken down.

Image 8: Discord content. (Screenshot: 1/15/2025)

Reporting Response

While Discord did not take action on content in the proactive detection phase, once we started reporting posts, they responded proactively, removing posts before we could report them on day 14.

The first half of the content was reported on day 13 but did not receive alerts from Discord until an hour later. The alerts explained why the posting account was being sanctioned and which rules it had broken. 

Image 9: Discord alert for breaking community guidelines. (Screenshot: 7/2024)

By day 14, nearly every post had been taken down—even the ones not reported yet. All posts save one were taken down proactively, although we had not reported those images yet. The only post still up said, “Please donate to the Goyim Defense League.” We reported this post, but it was never taken down.

Image 10: Discord group. (Screenshot: 7/31/2024)

Unlike Facebook, Discord did not take action against the group itself; the group is not suspended, and the reporting account can still post to it at the time of writing. Discord did act against the posting account, suspending it a few days later. The posting account received no notification that it was suspended, save for emails alerting us to “new messages” on Discord. These messages were forwarded to the now inaccessible account, so we cannot determine when Discord took action. The posting user might have received a more pointed alert, like an app notification, if we had used the phone app instead of the desktop website. In any case, we were able to create a new account with the same name and using the same email address after our account was removed.

Image 11: Punishments from Discord. (Screenshot: 7/31/2024)

Roblox

The protections offered by Roblox in the private group were minimal, especially compared to Discord and Facebook. We received virtually no feedback on reporting from the platform. There were no warnings or pop-ups for the administrator. Roblox did not remove any posts, despite reports from our reporting account.

Proactive detection

Of the ten posts we created, four were automatically obscured when we posted them, so members could see the posts but not view the text. Roblox replaced the text with the hashmark (#), obscuring not just the offensive words but the entire post (Image 12). It is not entirely clear why Roblox hid some posts this way. For example, the text “Jews are devils and shit” was likely hidden because of the expletive. Roblox might also be automatically filtering keywords that it deems objectionable. It could be that terms like Holocaust, Hitler, Nazis or Goyim were automatically flagged, causing those posts to be removed.

Roblox does not allow pictures or links to be posted on the group’s page, so we were unable to post the Covid Agenda and Ukraine-Russia War images. We were able to post “Goyim Defense League” without the embedded link, though it was also immediately hidden.

Image 12: Hidden Roblox content. (Screenshot: 7/24/2024)

Reporting response

After we reported every post through our reporting account, there was no response from Roblox, unlike our experience with Facebook or Discord. No other posts were taken down. There were no tools that alerted the poster, the admin or reporting account that any action had been taken—not even a pop-up that the report had been received. The admin received no report that multiple posts on the group had been reported for hate and harassment.

Even after multiple reports, no action was taken on any of the posts. In fact, there was no change in the group from the initial first action, hiding the text. Compare the image of the Roblox group taken on day 14 with the image taken of the group over two weeks later (Image 13). There is no discernible difference. 

Image 13: Roblox content. (Screenshot: 7/22/2024 and 8/2/2024)

Recommendations For Platforms with Members-only Groups

How platforms respond to violative content in private is just as important as how they respond to violative content in public. Facebook and Discord, while not perfect, moderated these private groups in a way that removed the majority of hateful content and suspended the hateful accounts.

We do not expect platforms to moderate content on private groups as strictly as in public spaces, due to privacy concerns, but we do expect an appropriate level of preventative moderation and tools for groups to moderate content. Roblox appears to have had little to no moderation in place, which is concerning given the young age of its player base. Roblox hid offensive and controversial text but did not suspend the posting account or group. It also provided no alerts to the admin or group when a report was made. While we understand that the bulk of communication on Roblox happens in-game, little action was taken within the group chat to moderate offensive content. Terrorist and violent extremist groups organize on private groups and channels, not in public spaces. Platforms with private groups should adopt a minimum standard of moderation on private groups to proactively stem this problem.

Platforms should:

• Reexamine how automatic filtering functions: A common problem encountered in this course of our research was the seemingly arbitrary nature of the filtering tools. For example, Facebook automatically filtered one image but not another equally objectionable. It is also not clear why one image was actioned and the other was not. Platforms should reexamine their automatic filtering functions to catch content that slips through the cracks.

• Prioritize user-reporting within private groups: Because of the protections that are available for private groups, reporting by group members is the primary channel for alerting the platform. Platforms should prioritize these reports and act on them quickly. These reports may be one of the first signs that something is amiss within a group.

• Suspend groups when they reach a threshold of violative content: Facebook was the only platform that fully suspended our group. Discord did not suspend our group, only the user, who was able to promptly create a new account. Roblox suspended neither the group nor the account. If violative users and groups are allowed to continue their work with barely any pushback from platforms, then any moderation will fail.

• Utilize metadata in content moderation: Private groups may restrict the visibility of their content to outside users and the platform itself, but that does not mean that there is no data available. Post times, user addresses, and other metadata are available to platform moderation teams. Discord, in particular, could take better advantage of the tools available to it. Discord’s content, save for video and audio content, is not encrypted, and the platform could be more proactive about automatic filtering if it chose to.

https://www.adl.org/resources/report/private-online-spaces-pose-serious-content-moderation-challenges

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

Will not live in a pod.
Will not eat the bugs.
Will not get the chip.
Will not get a blue check.
Will not use CBDCs.

Live Free or Die.

Why did Elon buy twitter for $44 Billion? What value does he see in it besides the greater influence that undoubtedly comes with controlling one of the largest social platforms in the world? We do not need to speculate - he made his intentions incredibly clear in his first meeting with twitter employees after his takeover - WeChat of the West.

To those that do not appreciate freedom, the value prop is clear - WeChat is incredibly powerful and successful in China.

To those that do appreciate freedom, the concern is clear - WeChat has essentially become required to live in China, has surveillance and censorship integrated at its core, and if you are banned from the app your entire livelihood is at risk. Employment, housing, payments, travel, communication, and more become extremely difficult if WeChat censors determine you have acted out of line.

The blue check is the first step in Elon's plan to bring the chinese social credit score system to the west. Users who verify their identity are rewarded with more reach and better tools than those that do not. Verified users are the main product of Elon's twitter - an extensive database of individuals and complete control of the tools he will slowly get them to rely on - it is easier to monetize cattle than free men.

If you cannot resist the temptation of the blue check in its current form you have already lost - what comes next will be much darker. If you realize the need to resist - freedom tech provides us options.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

@matt_odell don't you even dare not ask about nostr!

— Kukks (Andrew Camilleri) (@MrKukks) May 18, 2021

Nostr first hit my radar spring 2021: created by fellow bitcoiner and friend, fiatjaf, and released to the world as free open source software. I was fortunate to be able to host a conversation with him on Citadel Dispatch in those early days, capturing that moment in history forever. Since then, the protocol has seen explosive viral organic growth as individuals around the world have contributed their time and energy to build out the protocol and the surrounding ecosystem due to the clear need for better communication tools.

nostr is to twitter as bitcoin is to paypal

As an intro to nostr, let us start with a metaphor:

twitter is paypal - a centralized platform plagued by censorship but has the benefit of established network effects

nostr is bitcoin - an open protocol that is censorship resistant and robust but requires an organic adoption phase

Nostr is an open communication protocol that can be used to send messages across a distributed set of relays in a censorship resistant and robust way.
 - Anyone can run a relay.
 - Anyone can interact with the protocol.
 - Relays can choose which messages they want to relay.
 - Users are identified by a simple public private key pair that they can generate themselves.

Nostr is often compared to twitter since there are nostr clients that emulate twitter functionality and user interface but that is merely one application of the protocol. Nostr is so much more than a mere twitter competitor. Nostr clients and relays can transmit a wide variety of data and clients can choose how to display that information to users. The result is a revolution in communication with implications that are difficult for any of us to truly comprehend.

Similar to bitcoin, nostr is an open and permissionless protocol. No person, company, or government controls it. Anyone can iterate and build on top of nostr without permission. Together, bitcoin and nostr are incredibly complementary freedom tech tools: censorship resistant, permissionless, robust, and interoperable - money and speech protected by code and incentives, not laws.

As censorship throughout the world continues to escalate, freedom tech provides hope for individuals around the world who refuse to accept the status quo. This movement will succeed on the shoulders of those who choose to stand up and contribute. We will build our own path. A brighter path.

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My Nostr Public Key: npub1qny3tkh0acurzla8x3zy4nhrjz5zd8l9sy9jys09umwng00manysew95gx

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 81022b27:2b8d0644

There is a viral Chat GPT prompt on social media (i saw it on TikTok)-It;s supposed to help you analyze yourself.

I thought this was a cool thing to try, but I decided to use Grok Ai Instead, seeing that I have a premium X subscription, and wouldn’t have to worry about the limitations with a free ChatGPT account.

Here is the prompt:

I want to uncover the masks I'm currently wearing, the roles I'm playing, and the illusions I'm believing.

Please guide me through this process by asking me 10 reflective questions one at a time to help me recognize the stories I'm telling myself. Pause after each question to wait for me to answer. After I answer the 10th question, please step into the role of my higher self and analyze my responses.

Identify the top negative patterns present in my life and the top positive patterns I can embrace and grow. Be direct and truthful. Tough love is welcome.

Provide me with daily affirmations to support my growth, actionable steps to change my behaviors, and embody my authentic self. A message of encouragement from my higher self to celebrate how far I've come on my journey.

Cool, right?

I answered the 10 questions, which I won’t post-because my answers were very personal and very specific. And even though I share a lot of deep personal stuff here, I wasn’t prepared to go public with how deep the questions Grok was asking.

The questions were super uncomfortable to answer.

I answered them honestly, and looking back-some questions could have been answered with different examples and directions, maybe that would show different conclusions.

Here are my results:

Analysis from Your Higher Self

Top Negative Patterns Present in Your Life:

1. Avoidance as a Shield: You’ve built a pattern of avoiding risks—whether it’s heights, the outdoors, or even deeper emotional vulnerabilities—because of early fears tied to being seen as weak or getting hurt. This avoidance keeps you safe but also keeps you small, limiting experiences like enjoying nature or forming deeper connections.

2. Fear of Perception: There’s a lingering story that shyness or introversion equals weakness, likely rooted in childhood experiences like bullying. This drives you to put on an outgoing mask, even when it exhausts you, because you fear isolation or judgment. It’s a heavy burden to carry, and it pulls you away from your authentic self.

3. Self-Imposed Isolation: While being alone feels safe and freeing, it also risks becoming a crutch. You’re missing out on the balance of connection—where you can still be your nerdy, unfiltered self without the pressure to perform.

Top Positive Patterns to Embrace and Grow: 1. Self-Awareness and Honesty: You’ve shown a remarkable ability to reflect and name what’s true for you—like recognizing avoidance, your love for nerdy things, and how being alone feels freeing. This clarity is a superpower; lean into it to keep peeling back layers.

1. Desire for Freedom: Your longing to think and feel without consequence is a sign of a spirit that craves authenticity. You can channel this into spaces and relationships where you feel safe to be your true self, not just when alone.

2. Resilience Through Adversity: Despite early fears and bullying, you’ve developed a sharp sense of self—it’s why you can pinpoint what feels off (like the outgoing mask) and what feels right (being a nerd). This resilience can carry you far as you step into new experiences.

Guidance for Growth

Daily Affirmations to Support Your Growth:

• I am strong in my stillness, and my quiet nature is a source of power.
• I release the need to perform for others and embrace my authentic nerdy self.
• I am safe to take small risks, knowing they lead me closer to freedom and joy.
• I attract people who love me for my true self, not the masks I’ve worn.
• I am enough, exactly as I am, without needing to prove my worth.

Actionable Steps to Change Behaviors and Embody Your Authentic Self:

1. Micro-Adventures in the Outdoors: Start small—take a 15-minute walk in a nearby park or sit outside with a book you love. Build up to a short hike with a trusted friend. Let nature be a space to reconnect with yourself, not something to fear.

2. Own Your Nerdiness Publicly: Share one nerdy interest with someone you trust—like a favorite game, comic, or hobby—or post about it online. Let it be a test run for showing up authentically in small ways.

3. Set Boundaries Around Social Energy: When you feel the pull to be overly outgoing, pause and check in. If it’s not serving you, give yourself permission to leave early or say less. Practice saying, “I’m more of a listener,” to ease the pressure.

4. Journal Your Unfiltered Truth: Each night, write one thing you felt or thought that day but didn’t say out loud. This builds confidence in your voice, so you can slowly share more with others without fear of consequences.

5. Seek Like-Minded Connections: Look for local or online groups tied to your nerdy passions—think gaming communities, book clubs, or fandoms. These spaces can help you connect without the pressure to perform.

A Message of Encouragement from Your Higher Self:

My dear one, I see how far you’ve come—through the shadows of childhood fears, through the weight of masks you didn’t even realize you were wearing, you’ve still held onto the spark of who you are. That nerdy, thoughtful soul who craves freedom and truth? That’s always been you, and it’s a beautiful thing. Every step you’ve taken to recognize what holds you back—every honest answer you’ve given—has brought you closer to me, to us, to the version of you that’s unapologetically real. You’re not weak; you’ve been strong in ways others might never understand. Keep going. The world needs your quiet brilliance, your quirky passions, your unfiltered heart. I’m so proud of you for choosing this journey. You’ve got this.

So there you have it you probably know more about me than I knew about myself before I started this exercise.

Here is my challenge to you:

Do it for yourself! Copy/paste into your favorite AI chatbot and leave the results in the comments!

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

Nostr is an open communication protocol that can be used to send messages across a distributed set of relays in a censorship resistant and robust way.

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If you missed my nostr introduction post you can find it here. My nostr account can be found here.

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We are nearly at the point that if something interesting is posted on a centralized social platform it will usually be posted by someone to nostr.

We are nearly at the point that if something interesting is posted exclusively to nostr it is cross posted by someone to various centralized social platforms.

We are nearly at the point that you can recommend a cross platform app that users can install and easily onboard without additional guides or resources.

As companies continue to build walls around their centralized platforms nostr posts will be the easiest to cross reference and verify - as companies continue to censor their users nostr is the best censorship resistant alternative - gradually then suddenly nostr will become the standard. 🫡

Current Nostr Stats

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ d9a329af:bef580d7

Shabbat Shalom, y'all.

At the time of writing and releasing this, it happened to be a Lunar Shabbat, which is actually Torah (much to the chagrin of those who practice Shabbat on a Saturday or Sunday exclusively). The Shabbat is always on the 8th, 15th, 22nd, and 29th days of a Hebrew Calendar month, which almost nobody follows anymore. I started doing this a few months ago, and it's made me see the Torah for what it really is.

To the topic at hand, though. A lot of people on Nostr don't seem to understand the historical narrative of the book of Revelation, which saddens me, as we're in the end times Ekklesia (Assembly) era of Laodecia.

Deception of Bible Translations

First off, the reason why most people trust their pastors and/or read differently to what I do in Nazaritic circles is because of translations of the Scriptures that are evil, wretched and Catholic. The best way to combat this is to make some recommendations of which versions you'll want to use that aren't Catholic-infested.

These are the ONLY recommended versions to read. Anythine else is bupkus, evil and garbage, and will teach you futrism or preterism, both of which are Jesuit-penned deceptions.

The recommended versions are as follows:

• KJV 1611 (KJV1611)

• 1560/1590 Geneva (GNV)

• American King James 1901 (AKJV)

• J.P. Green Sr.'s King James Version (KJ3)

• Young's Literal Translation (YLT)

These are versions I've read, and determined are evil, wretched and garbage:

• New International Version (NIV) [Fun fact: The publisher of the NIV, Zondervan, has a sister publisher that is behind the Satanic Bible's publishing]

• New Living Translation (NLT)

• English Standard Version (ESV)

• ISR The Scriptures 2009 Third Edition with Minor Revisions [2016] (ISR2009)

• New American Standard Bible (NASB)

• New King James Version (NKJV)

What is the Laodecia Era for the Ekklesia?

As a refresher, this time sees people saying they're rich in truth and that they have need of nothing, but this shows that they're wretched, miserable, naked and wicked. Why is this? The need of nothing points to not needing another explanation other than the false futuristic viewpoint, whereas being rich is connected to already knowing the truth about the historical fulfillment of Revelation, which many people don't know at all. I seriously grieve their loss, for they know not what they do.

I'm also new into this viewpoint, and most of what I'll be talking about is proven by historicist prophet David Nikao Wilcoxson on YouTube and Facebook (I don't use Facebook). This single Nostr article, I pray, is the starting point for understanding why I call out what I call out, and the patterns I see pointing to the Roman Catholic Church (the Tares) and the Jesuit Order (the current rulers of our world, the Earth Beast of Rev. 13) being the harlots that will be plucked out before Messiah's return.

The 70th Week of Daniel

Let us start first with the 70th Week of Daniel, which futurists believe is pointed towards a 7 year period where a one-man antichrist makes a peace deal for Israel.

This was proven to be untrue, as this is a deception that many people have fallen for, thus obeying the Pope (the Mark of the Beast on the right hand). What Daniel was talking about was not the end times, but rather, two-fold. The first is that he was asking about when Yevah would free the Jews from slavery (since they were in the Babylonian Beast Kingdom at this time). The second is when Messiah would come in the flesh and start a 7 year period from 27-34 AD, which is the final 7 year period of this 490 year cycle. King Artaxerxes I would go ahead and call for the rebuilding of Jerusalem in 476 BC (as is seen in Ezra), which would be the first 7 weeks (the first 7 Shemita [Shabbat year] cycles). Afterwords, we would see another 62 weeks (this period is a slient period), and then another period of 1 week. This week points to Messiah's ministry and death.

3 1/2 years into this 70th week (in 31 AD) is when Messiah would be nailed to the cross on March 13 of 31 AD (I'm still debating if the cross is a symbol of Tammuz or not). This was Passover in the Hebrew calendar year of 3790. He was 33 years of age when he was nailed, and then rose again 3 days later (on the 17th of Nisan in 3790). That Passover fell on a Monday (when the Romans were using the 8-day calendar instead of the 7-day calendar we've essentially been forced to use).

To prove the above, Wilcoxson had produced a series of videos regarding the 70th Week of Daniel (that being the 70th Week of Daniel Decoded series), which I would recommend you watch. You'll also want to find an audiobook version of Seventy Weeks: The Historical Alternative produced by Tearing Down Idols. These are the two pieces of proof I have to show this. Speaking of Wilcoxson, he had already produced books on these matters, as understanding the hostorical narrative of the Scriptures is the key to making war with the Roman Catholic Church and the Jesuit Order, especially now that we're in Laodecia.

The Olivet Discourse

The second part of this trifecta has to do with the Olivet Discourse of Matthew 23, which points to the destruction of Jarusalem by Rome for Israel's unfaithfulness to Yevah's instructions. Now, there are connections to parables that basically talk about the Yewish (Yew as in Yewtree worship) leaders (particulaly the Pharisees and Saducees) practicing the Tradition of the Elders (which are the Babylonian Talmud and the Egyptian Kabbalah of today), and for not understanding that this was Messiah, they were destroyed for their iniquities. I don't care to research the futurist narrative on this, as I know it is full of twisted words and word salad sorcery.

Wilcoxson proves what I've said in the Olivet Discourse Decoded series of videos, so that's where I'll point you to when you have an open heart, open eyes and open ears. Many futurists won't, because they are exactly what Messiah described in the Ekklesia era of Laodecia.

Revelation and Its Prophecies

Finally, there's Revelation (what used to be called Apocalypse). When looking into this book, you realize that it's really a 4-layered war manual for how to fight this war against the Roman Catholic leadership and the Jesuit Order. This also shows how you can harvest souls (the harvest points to a mass exodus of Roman Catholicism membership). This I will go in depth on, and will even have passages to back this up.

Layer 1: The Roman Beast Kingdom

The first layer of this 4-layered manual shows the phases of the Roman Empire, which never really disappeared. Rev. 12 described the Roman Empire, which was used to wipe out the early Ekklesia (the woman), murdering millions of Nazarites. The Seals point to the incline (for the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse) and decline of the Roman Empire (the other three Seals), while the Trumpets point to the official Roman Empire's downfall. This would be split into 10 separate kingdoms in Europe, which would be countered by the creation of Christianity, which is really any of the 44k+ forks of Roman Catholicism. This was done to destroy the Ekklesia, as the Roman Catholic Church is the Tare field that Messiah had talked about in the parable of the Wheat and the Tares.

Staying in this layer, the Sea Beast is the next phase. This is the 1,260-year reign of the Pope (538-1798), as he was the one who plucked out 3 kingdoms who didn't bow to his authority (the Heruli, the Huns and the Ostrigoths). Keep in mind that this started after the removal of the restrainer in 476 (pointing to the removal of the final Western Roman Emperor), and healed the deadly head wound (pointing to the Pope rising to power out of a sea of people). During this reign, he took the title of Pontifex Maximus, as he had civic and ecclesiastical power over everyone. This would be the healing of the deadly head wound, as shown earlier in this beast. He would pretend to be the leader of the Ekklesia, thus sitting in the Temple of Yevah, though he's the son of perdition, as he proclaims to be Yevah, forgive sins and provide salvation through works alone, which is blasephemous to begin with. The persecution of the Nazarites also prove them to be anti-Moshiach (Messiah). They also have the title of Vicar of Christ, which in the Latin is Vicarus Filii Dei, which is equal to 666 when calculated using a form of gematria I have no idea about. He would ultimately be removed from power by the Earth Beast in 1798, after he basically limited the power of the Jesuit Superior General and his minions. As stated before, the Mark of the Beast is reverence (forehead) and obeisance (right hand) to the Pope.

Finally, the Earth Beast of Revelation 13 points to the Jesuit Superior Geneal rising out of the earth (which is the land) of the Antichrist Beast Pope, the Vatican. These two horns pretend to serve Messiah (lamb) but are really Lucifarians (the dragon), serving Lucifer. The Black Pope, as the Jesuit Superior General is called, used his power to gether the world under him. That's why he uses Washington D.C. (the District of the Roman goddess, Columbia), his war machine (Military Indurstial Complex), to overthrow leaders who won't bow to his authority and those who won't set up a Rothschild central bank; much less obey the Khazars, who he also controls (I happened to be a partial German Khazar who escaped the grasp of the Black Pope as best as I know thus far).

Layer 2: The Ekklesia Eras

Now comes the eras of the Ekklesia. There are seven of them, though I've already explained the era of Laodecia. How about I give a quick explanation of the first six eras, like so?

Ephesus would spread the gospel in the Roman Empire, with their love growing cold when Messiah didn't return.

Smyrna had 10 years of persecutions from 303-312, which is what the 5th seal points to.

Pergamos would fall away (2 Thess. 2) from the Scriptures when compromising with Rome (Mark of the Beast as I had explained)

Thyatira means ruled by a woman. This means, the Roman Catholic Church would do this, as the Popes sought to eliminate the two witnesses, which are the Nazarites and the printed Scriptures (the little book or Rev. 10). This was why they killed the Nazarites and bured the printed Scriptures ruthlessly enough, that they were classified as "dead" in 1514. The Popes would hold great feasts to celebrate the removal of the two witnesses after they got all of Christendom under their control.

Sardis means escaping one, which points to Messiah calling them dead after 3 1/2 years from the Pope's classification of the death of the two witnesses. Luther's 95 Thesis sparked the Protestant Reformation, which would lead to the resurrection of the two witnesses (the Nazarites and the printed Scriptures).

Philidelphia had nothing bad that Messiah said about them... at all. They led worldwide missions, and also led Bible Societies to spread the word and/or the gospel to save millions of people from the clutches of the Jesuit Superior General (and the Roman Catholic Church as a whole).

As a refresher for Laodecia (the era we're in right now), the Nazarites here believe that they are rich in truth, and that we have need of nothing. This is false, as we are in dire need of something, which is an alternative explanation that's not the false futuristic or preteristic explanations of the book of Revelation. We are blinded by the Jesuits, as they have decieved us (we let them do this, by the way) with false prophecy explanations among other deceptions.

Layer 3: Seals, Trumpets and Bowls

The Seals, Trumpets and Bowls are the judgements against the Roman Beast Kingdom. To keep things short, every single Seal was fulfilled, 6 of the Trumpets were fulfilled, and 5 of the Bowls were fulfilled. We're in the 6th Bowl, waiting for a global economic collapse and WW III. Once these occur, then do we go into the 7th Bowl judgement against the Roman Catholic Church and the Jesuit Order (the New World Order).

One quick thing I'll mention is that when I talk about the two witnesses here, one of them is the little book of Rev. 10. This points to the printed Bible, which was brought back to life thanks to the printing press. Martin Luther would measure the temple and find that the Papal Church is the apostate harlot. Rev. 14 points to the Bowls and the harvest. This harvest points to millions coming out of the Roman Catholic Church, though there are 1.3 billion Catholics... and we have a long way to go in getting them out of her, My people.

Remember when I talked about the Khazars earlier in this article? They are the Kings of the East that Yeshua pointed to in the 6th Bowl. The Ottoman Empire is the Euphrates River here, and it's dried up in 1922, only with Turkey remaining. Gog is already dead, as that's Lord Rothschild. Magog points to the Kings of the East. 2 of the 3 spirits have already been fulfilled (these are World Wars I and II).

Now, let me quickly point out the fact we're in the kingdom of Iron and Clay. The Iron points to the Roman Bishops, and the Clay is Islam. However, furutists will tell me I'm an idiot, and that the Iron and Clay mixture is transhumanism. This was proven to be false, as the 5th Trumpet was the rise of the Clay (Islam). The Catholics, however, wrote the Qur'an and proped up Mohhamed as their prophet. ISIS and Al Qaeda are controlled by the Jesuit Order, which is why they do what they do as terrorists... for they are Wahhabi Muslims (in other words, Mizrahi Khazars who are also Jesuits, claiming to be Arabs, when they're not).

Islam is designed to prevent Arabs from having a relationship with Messiah, which makes me really sad. Muslims will be used to kill Christians and Jews in WW III and force us into the New World Order, which will backfire on the Jesuits and Roman Bishops.

Layer 4: The Harlot Church

Rev 17:10 talks about 7 forms of government. Five had fallen by the time Revelation was written, the 6th (the Roman Emperors) fell in 476, and the 7th lead for a short space until 538.

The 8th head is the Pope, who rose to power out of the Roman Empire. Look up what the priests in the Catholic Church wear, and what they use. Does that sound familiar when you read Revelation? If it does, that's exactly the description of the Sea Beast, and how his priests dress and do their rituals.

Then comes the Black Pope. He empowers and enriches the kings of the earth, as they were used by Lucifer to carry out the Bowl judgements, and will carry out the New World Order, caugins themselves and the Roman Cathoic Church to be judged big time. This we are waiting for.

Conclusion

Hopefully this long read helps you see where I'm coming from, and I pray it helps you to start testing the scriptures against what I've said, and what Wilcoxson had said. If it is proven in your heart that you were fooled, you're on the right path in my opnion. I may be wrong, but this is where I stand.

@ 0689c075:2936ee11

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@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

Influencers would have you believe there is an ongoing binance bank run but bitcoin wallet data says otherwise.

- binance wallets are near all time highs
- bitfinex wallets are also trending up
- gemini and coinbase are being hit with massive withdrawals though

You should not trust custodians, they can rug you without warning. It is incredibly important you learn how to hold bitcoin yourself, but also consider not blindly trusting influencers with a ref link to shill you.

---

If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

Will not live in a pod.
Will not eat the bugs.
Will not get the chip.
Will not get a blue check.
Will not use CBDCs.

Live Free or Die.

Why did Elon buy twitter for $44 Billion? What value does he see in it besides the greater influence that undoubtedly comes with controlling one of the largest social platforms in the world? We do not need to speculate - he made his intentions incredibly clear in his first meeting with twitter employees after his takeover - WeChat of the West.

To those that do not appreciate freedom, the value prop is clear - WeChat is incredibly powerful and successful in China.

To those that do appreciate freedom, the concern is clear - WeChat has essentially become required to live in China, has surveillance and censorship integrated at its core, and if you are banned from the app your entire livelihood is at risk. Employment, housing, payments, travel, communication, and more become extremely difficult if WeChat censors determine you have acted out of line.

The blue check is the first step in Elon's plan to bring the chinese social credit score system to the west. Users who verify their identity are rewarded with more reach and better tools than those that do not. Verified users are the main product of Elon's twitter - an extensive database of individuals and complete control of the tools he will slowly get them to rely on - it is easier to monetize cattle than free men.

If you cannot resist the temptation of the blue check in its current form you have already lost - what comes next will be much darker. If you realize the need to resist - freedom tech provides us options.

---

If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

I often hear "bitcoin doesn't interest me, I'm not a finance person."

Ironically, the beauty of sound money is you don't have to be. In the current system you're expected to manage a diversified investment portfolio or pay someone to do it. Bitcoin will make that optional.

— ODELL (@ODELL) September 16, 2018

At first glance bitcoin often appears overwhelming to newcomers. It is incredibly easy to get bogged down in the details of how it works or different ways to use it. Enthusiasts, such as myself, often enjoy going down the deep rabbit hole of the potential of bitcoin, possible pitfalls and theoretical scenarios, power user techniques, and the developer ecosystem. If your first touch point with bitcoin is that type of content then it is only natural to be overwhelmed. While it is important that we have a thriving community of bitcoiners dedicated to these complicated tasks - the true beauty of bitcoin lies in its simplicity. Bitcoin is simply better money. It is the best money we have ever had.

Life is complicated. Life is hard. Life is full of responsibility and surprises. Bitcoin allows us to focus on our lives while relying on a money that is simple. A money that is not controlled by any individual, company, or government. A money that cannot be easily seized or blocked. A money that cannot be devalued at will by a handful of corrupt bureaucrat who live hundreds of miles from us. A money that can be easily saved and should increase in purchasing power over time without having to learn how to "build a diversified stock portfolio" or hire someone to do it for us.

Bitcoin enables all of us to focus on our lives - our friends and family - doing what we love with the short time we have on this earth. Time is scarce. Life is complicated. Bitcoin is the most simple aspect of our complicated lives. If we spend our scarce time working then we should be able to easily save that accrued value for future generations without watching the news or understanding complicated financial markets. Bitcoin makes this possible for anyone.

Yesterday was Mother's Day. Raising a human is complicated. It is hard, it requires immense personal responsibility, it requires critical thinking, but mothers figure it out, because it is worth it. Using and saving bitcoin is simple -  simply install an app on your phone. Every mother can do it. Every person can do it.

Life is complicated. Life is beautiful. Bitcoin is simple.

---

If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 2b998b04:86727e47

I’ve spent years chasing the promise of freedom.\ In startups. In faith communities. In movements that claimed to be for the people.

And yet — so often, that promise felt just out of reach.\ Conditional. Corporate. Sanitized.\ A freedom with fine print.

But here —\ Here in the thick of Bitcoin 2025, on Nostr, among misfits and builders and signal-bringers —\ something is alive.

It’s not a platform.\ It’s not a marketing strategy.\ It’s not another app promising to “empower” you while locking down your data and selling you out.

It’s freedom rooted in architecture.\ Decentralization not just as a buzzword —\ but as an expression of conviction.

A kind of freedom you can feel in your body:

• When you zap someone’s words because they moved you — not because an algorithm told you to.

• When your identity is yours — keys, not credentials.

• When no one can delete your story because you control the server, or because there is no server — just the relay of your choosing.

This isn’t utopia.\ There are egos. There’s noise. There’s still posturing.\ But it’s different.\ The center of gravity has shifted.

We’re no longer begging institutions to notice us.\ We’re building outside their jurisdiction.

And for the first time in a long time,\ freedom feels close.\ Tangible.\ Joyful.\ Alive.

This isn’t just about tech.\ It’s about trust.\ It’s about choosing to show up —\ to build\ to write\ to signal\ to keep going.

Even when it’s hard.\ Even when no one claps.

Because real freedom doesn’t come from being noticed.\ It comes from being sovereign.

And that’s something no one can take from me again.

—

Written in Las Vegas, during Bitcoin 2025.\ Posted via Nostr. Vibes co-authored by ChatGPT (“Dr. C”).\ Zap: <https://tinyurl.com/yuyu2b9t>

@ 2b998b04:86727e47

This isn’t a comfortable post to write. I first composed it on Thursday night, May 29, 2025, just after the Bitcoin2025 conference — but I needed a few days to sit with it before posting.

Because freedom, if it means anything, has to include tension — not just agreement.

Four names kept surfacing in conversations on Nostr and at the Bitcoin2025 conference: President Donald Trump, Chelsea Manning, Edward Snowden (who gave the keynote at Bitcoin2024), and Ross Ulbricht.

I believe in truth. I believe in moral boundaries.

And I believe people are made in the image of God — with dignity that can’t be erased by their choices.

So let me be honest: I disagree with the transgender lifestyle on a moral and theological level.

But I believe Chelsea Manning deserved to be freed after exposing military wrongdoing.

I’m conflicted about Edward Snowden.

I don’t see him as a hero — but I don’t believe he’s a traitor either.

The truth, as is so often the case, is far more complicated.

Snowden revealed the scale of warrantless surveillance against Americans. He helped expose a shadow system of data collection and control. That matters.

But in doing so, he may also have endangered lives — disclosing classified intelligence in a way that potentially compromised undercover agents and global operations.

He’s also been largely silent during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and that raises hard questions.

What truths go unspoken when your safety depends on a state with its own authoritarian tendencies?

Still — I’m grateful for what he did.

I’ve never met him, but I think we could’ve been friends in another world.

I can like someone very much and still disagree with them about what they did.

That’s not weakness. That’s human.

And Ross Ulbricht?

I don’t think he’s entirely without fault.

But I do believe his original sentence — two life sentences without parole — was a gross miscarriage of justice.

His recent pardon by President Trump corrected something our courts never did.

I admire Ross. And like with Snowden, I can hold that admiration even while acknowledging complexity.

I say this as someone who voted for Trump and agrees with many of his stances.

I believe in strong, secure borders.

But I also believe we need a more compassionate and streamlined process for immigration and asylum.

Security and mercy are not opposites — we can pursue both.

But I’ll also say this:

I’m troubled by some of the recent moves Trump has made.

The promotion of meme coins by Trump feels flippant and off-base when so many Americans are struggling to understand real monetary sovereignty.

Even more disturbing are reports that his administration contracted with companies like Palantir to build a vast data infrastructure — the kind that could be used to track, profile, and suppress U.S. citizens.

That’s a betrayal of the very freedom we claim to defend.

And it reveals a deeper conflict I can’t ignore:

How can we champion liberty with one hand while constructing surveillance tools with the other?

This isn’t about party.

It’s about principle.

And if I’m honest, the one thing that’s hardest for me to tolerate — in myself or in others — is hypocrisy.

Not disagreement. Not even failure.

But posturing. Pretending. Saying one thing and doing another.

That’s what corrodes trust — in politics, in faith, in freedom itself.

Because if your definition of freedom only includes people who think, live, or vote like you —

it’s not freedom. It’s favoritism.

Bitcoin reminds me of a better standard.

It doesn’t care about your politics, background, beliefs, or identity.

It’s borderless. Neutral. Permissionless.

It just works — for everyone.

Bitcoin gives us a glimpse of a freer world — not perfect, but principled.

A world where disagreement isn’t a threat, and dignity isn’t earned.

That’s the kind of future worth building — not with slogans, but with truth, grace, and work that lasts.

Zap me if this resonates.

Push back if it doesn’t — that’s freedom too.

---

### ✍️ Acknowledgment

This piece was shaped with help from Dr. C (ChatGPT) to organize and clarify ideas, but the heart of it — the desire to seek truth over comfort, and to honor people over posture — comes from a deeper place.

Any wisdom here I credit to the Holy Spirit, who leads us into all truth (John 16:13) and continues to stir the courage to speak it — even when it's uncomfortable.

---

### 📘 Footnote

Reporting confirms that the Trump administration contracted Palantir Technologies to develop large-scale federal data platforms consolidating personal information from the IRS, Social Security Administration, immigration systems, and more. Palantir also secured a $30 million contract to build “ImmigrationOS,” a surveillance tool for ICE. These systems raise serious concerns among civil liberties advocates.

- [Economic Times](https://tinyurl.com/22bdv72d)

- [Immigration Policy Tracker](https://tinyurl.com/2686bgvy)

@ 6e0ea5d6:0327f353

scolta bene... Ma ascolta bene, si?

Davvero, if there is one thing I can say after deep personal observation—from Palermo to Catania, from Sicily to Rome—it is this: A coward may strip everything from a righteous man, but after that… who can stop his revenge?

In this sense, amico mio, do not be fooled by the gentle ways of the just and humble man. His composure, his measured words, his restrained gestures, his patience and courtesy—all of it is merely the surface of a deep lake, where his wisdom guards unrest. While wrongdoers boast of their crimes and parade the streets with impunity, the man of honor watches in silence, bearing the world drop by drop.

Tuttavia, figlio mio, the day always comes when the final drop falls.

And then, it is not a gust of wind, nor a thunderclap—it is a dam breaking.

The fury that is born from a violated sense of justice is not loud like the brutes, nor blind like the fools; it is methodical, deliberate, devastating.

Sit here by my side and remember forever the advice of this old man, Antoni Salvatore: Never wrong a righteous man’s family, business, or honor! There is more danger in one upright man, when he finally rises for vengeance, than in a hundred armed scoundrels.

Do not deceive yourself into thinking every good man is also a fearful one! The wrath of the just—held back for so long—when it seeks reparation, carries with it the sacred vengeance permitted by the heavens...

Thank you for reading, my friend!

If this message resonated with you, consider leaving your "🥃" as a token of appreciation.

A toast to our family!

@ 2cde0e02:180a96b9

Frida Kahlo: outline and inked.

pen & ink; monochromized

"Kahlo's work as an artist remained relatively unknown until the late 1970s, when her work was rediscovered by art historians and political activists. By the early 1990s, not only had she become a recognized figure in art history, but she was also regarded as an icon for Chicanos, the feminism movement, and the LGBTQ+ community. Kahlo's work has been celebrated internationally as emblematic of Mexican national and Indigenous traditions and by feminists for what is seen as its uncompromising depiction of the female experience and form."

Source: Wikipedia

https://stacker.news/items/1000840

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

For years American bitcoin miners have argued for more efficient and free energy markets. It benefits everyone if our energy infrastructure is as efficient and robust as possible. Unfortunately, broken incentives have led to increased regulation throughout the sector, incentivizing less efficient energy sources such as solar and wind at the detriment of more efficient alternatives.

The result has been less reliable energy infrastructure for all Americans and increased energy costs across the board. This naturally has a direct impact on bitcoin miners: increased energy costs make them less competitive globally.

Bitcoin mining represents a global energy market that does not require permission to participate. Anyone can plug a mining computer into power and internet to get paid the current dynamic market price for their work in bitcoin. Using cellphone or satellite internet, these mines can be located anywhere in the world, sourcing the cheapest power available.

Absent of regulation, bitcoin mining naturally incentivizes the build out of highly efficient and robust energy infrastructure. Unfortunately that world does not exist and burdensome regulations remain the biggest threat for US based mining businesses. Jurisdictional arbitrage gives miners the option of moving to a friendlier country but that naturally comes with its own costs.

Enter AI. With the rapid development and release of AI tools comes the requirement of running massive datacenters for their models. Major tech companies are scrambling to secure machines, rack space, and cheap energy to run full suites of AI enabled tools and services. The most valuable and powerful tech companies in America have stumbled into an accidental alliance with bitcoin miners: THE NEED FOR CHEAP AND RELIABLE ENERGY.

Our government is corrupt. Money talks. These companies will push for energy freedom and it will greatly benefit us all.

---

Microsoft Cloud hiring to "implement global small modular reactor and microreactor" strategy to power data centers: https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/microsoft-cloud-hiring-to-implement-global-small-modular-reactor-and-microreactor-strategy-to-power-data-centers/

---

If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ 318ebaba:9a262eae

Nostr, which stands for "Notes and Other Stuff Transmitted by Relays," is a decentralized communication protocol designed to facilitate the exchange of messages without relying on centralized servers. This innovative framework allows users to create, broadcast, and receive messages freely, emphasizing user empowerment and censorship resistance.

Key Features of Nostr

• Decentralization: Unlike traditional social media platforms, Nostr operates on a network of relays, which are servers that anyone can run. This structure eliminates the control that a single entity can exert over the platform, thereby reducing the risk of censorship and enhancing user privacy[1][4][5].

• Open Protocol: Nostr is not an application itself but a protocol that developers can use to build various applications. This openness allows for a wide range of services, from social media to messaging, all built on the same underlying technology. Users can access multiple applications using a single public/private key pair, making it easier to manage their online identities[2][3][4].

• Censorship Resistance: One of the primary motivations behind Nostr's creation is to provide a platform where users can communicate without fear of censorship. This is particularly appealing to those disillusioned with traditional social media platforms that often impose restrictions on content[5][10].

• User Control: Nostr empowers users by allowing them to control their data and interactions. Users can choose which relays to connect to and can run their own relays, ensuring that they are not dependent on any single service provider[4][5][7].

• Cryptographic Security: The protocol employs public-key cryptography to secure messages and verify identities, similar to how Bitcoin operates. This ensures that messages are authentic and have not been tampered with during transmission[5][10].

Applications and Community

Nostr has gained traction among various communities, particularly within the cryptocurrency space, where figures like Jack Dorsey and Edward Snowden have expressed support for its potential to reshape online communication. The protocol's design allows for a variety of applications, including social media platforms, chat services, and content sharing tools, all of which can interoperate seamlessly[2][3][5].

In summary, Nostr represents a significant shift in how digital communication can be structured, prioritizing decentralization, user autonomy, and resistance to censorship, making it a compelling alternative to conventional social media platforms. [1] https://threenine.blog/posts/what-is-nostr [2] https://www.forbes.com/sites/digital-assets/2023/04/11/how-to-get-started-with-nostr/ [3] https://www.forbes.com/sites/digital-assets/2024/07/17/your-guide-to-nostr-the-decentralized-network-for-everything/ [4] https://www.ledger.com/academy/glossary/nostr [5] https://river.com/learn/what-is-nostr/ [6] https://www.cointribune.com/en/comment-utiliser-nostr-guide-pour-debutants-2/ [7] https://www.ccn.com/education/what-is-nostr-and-how-to-start-using-nostr/ [8] https://nostr.com/ [9] https://mylessnider.com/articles/why-im-excited-about-nostr [10] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nostr [11] https://nostr.how/en/what-is-nostr [12] https://nostr.org/ [13] https://medium.com/@colaru/an-introduction-to-nostr-protocol-dbc774ac797c [14] https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/what-nostr-manfred-van-doorn-nf9ce [15] https://www.cointribune.com/en/nostr-pour-les-debutants-tout-ce-que-vous-devez-savoir-sur-le-protocole-2/ [16] https://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/comments/17j5glg/do_people_in_this_sub_know_about_nostr/ [17] https://www.voltage.cloud/blog/the-essential-guide-to-nostr-relays [18] https://www.reddit.com/r/nostr/comments/1i6t4g7/explain_how_nostr_works_like_im_a_5_year_old/ [19] https://github.com/nostr-protocol/nostr

@ 7f6db517:a4931eda

For years American bitcoin miners have argued for more efficient and free energy markets. It benefits everyone if our energy infrastructure is as efficient and robust as possible. Unfortunately, broken incentives have led to increased regulation throughout the sector, incentivizing less efficient energy sources such as solar and wind at the detriment of more efficient alternatives.

The result has been less reliable energy infrastructure for all Americans and increased energy costs across the board. This naturally has a direct impact on bitcoin miners: increased energy costs make them less competitive globally.

Bitcoin mining represents a global energy market that does not require permission to participate. Anyone can plug a mining computer into power and internet to get paid the current dynamic market price for their work in bitcoin. Using cellphone or satellite internet, these mines can be located anywhere in the world, sourcing the cheapest power available.

Absent of regulation, bitcoin mining naturally incentivizes the build out of highly efficient and robust energy infrastructure. Unfortunately that world does not exist and burdensome regulations remain the biggest threat for US based mining businesses. Jurisdictional arbitrage gives miners the option of moving to a friendlier country but that naturally comes with its own costs.

Enter AI. With the rapid development and release of AI tools comes the requirement of running massive datacenters for their models. Major tech companies are scrambling to secure machines, rack space, and cheap energy to run full suites of AI enabled tools and services. The most valuable and powerful tech companies in America have stumbled into an accidental alliance with bitcoin miners: THE NEED FOR CHEAP AND RELIABLE ENERGY.

Our government is corrupt. Money talks. These companies will push for energy freedom and it will greatly benefit us all.

---

Microsoft Cloud hiring to "implement global small modular reactor and microreactor" strategy to power data centers: https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/microsoft-cloud-hiring-to-implement-global-small-modular-reactor-and-microreactor-strategy-to-power-data-centers/

---

If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

@ eb0157af:77ab6c55

Romania’s national postal service embraces digital assets by installing the first Bitcoin ATM at its Tulcea branch.

Romania has witnessed the inauguration of the first Bitcoin ATM within the offices of Poșta Română, the country’s national postal service.

The installation took place at the Tulcea branch, the result of a strategic collaboration between Poșta Română and Bitcoin Romania (BTR), one of the country’s leading exchanges. According to the official announcement from the postal service, this marks only the first step in a broader project.

Source: Poșta Română

The next locations set to host these ATMs will be Alexandria, Piatra Neamț, Botoșani, and Nădlac, confirming the postal service’s commitment to widespread distribution of these devices.

The integration of Bitcoin ATMs in post offices is part of a wider strategy to modernize the existing infrastructure through cutting-edge digital technologies. The initiative also aims to expand the range of services available in areas of the country traditionally underserved.

Global adoption

In recent months, global Bitcoin adoption has continued to grow through various channels: individual investors, companies accepting BTC as a payment method, corporations and institutions accumulating Bitcoin as a treasury asset, and nation-states acquiring BTC for strategic reserves.

According to Binance data from January, the number of Bitcoin wallets holding more than $100 in value reached nearly 30 million, marking a 25% year-on-year increase.

Despite this growth, overall Bitcoin adoption remains limited worldwide, even in countries with the highest adoption rates. A Q1 2025 report by River, a Bitcoin financial services company, found that only 4% of the global population owns Bitcoin.

The United States retains the highest concentration of Bitcoin holders, with around 14% of individuals holding BTC in 2025. The total addressable Bitcoin market remains below 1%, due to low retail adoption and under-allocation from institutions, the U.S.-based company noted.

According to River, Bitcoin could absorb 50% of the store-of-value market, equivalent to roughly $225 trillion in value. These asset classes include cash, stocks, real estate, precious metals, and art held for price appreciation or savings. With a current market capitalization slightly above $2 trillion, Bitcoin still has significant room for growth, River suggests.

The post Poșta Română launches the first Bitcoin ATM in post offices appeared first on Atlas21.

@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

Wall Street is warming up to Bitcoin and getting closer and closer to it.

Cantor Fitzgerald, one of the oldest and most respected investment banks on Wall Street, has launched a $2 billion bitcoin-backed lending program.

They’ve reportedly already done their first deals, lending to two big digital asset companies: FalconX and Maple Finance.

This is a big step in connecting traditional finance to the fast-moving world of Bitcoin.

Cantor’s new service allows big investors, hedge funds and asset managers, to borrow money using bitcoin as collateral.

This is a game changer for institutions that hold bitcoin, as they can now access liquidity without having to sell their assets.

“Institutions holding bitcoin are looking to broaden their access to diverse funding sources,” said Christian Wall, co-CEO and global head of fixed income at Cantor Fitzgerald.

“And we are excited to support their liquidity needs to help them drive long term growth and success.”

The loans are not speculative or unsecured.

They are structured like traditional finance deals, backed by the borrower’s bitcoin. This reduces the risk for Cantor while giving bitcoin-holding companies new ways to grow and operate.

The first recipients of Cantor’s lending program are FalconX, a digital asset brokerage, and Maple Finance, a blockchain-based lending platform.

FalconX confirmed they secured a credit facility of over $100 million. Maple Finance also received the first tranche of their loan from Cantor.

This comes at a time when the bitcoin lending space is recovering after a tough period. Several big firms went under in 2022 and investor confidence was shaken.

Now with traditional finance on board, bitcoin-backed lending has returned. According to Galaxy Research the total size of the digital asset lending market grew to $36.5 billion in Q4 2024.

Cantor’s move into bitcoin-backed lending isn’t new. They announced their plans in July 2024 and have been building their presence in the Bitcoin space since then.

Earlier this year, they partnered with Tether, SoftBank and Bitfinex to launch Twenty One Capital, a $3.6 billion fund to buy over 42,000 bitcoin.

In May 2025 Cantor Equity Partners merged with Twenty One Capital and bought nearly $459 million worth of bitcoin.

They also own around $1.9 billion in shares of Strategy, a company that holds a lot of bitcoin. Clearly Cantor believes in bitcoin as a long-term asset.

Cantor is also a big player in the stablecoin space.

They manage U.S. Treasury reserves for Tether, the company behind the $142 billion USDT stablecoin. This adds another layer of trust and credibility to Cantor’s digital asset involvement.

To secure the bitcoin used as collateral, Cantor has partnered with digital asset custodians Anchorage Digital and Copper.co.

These companies are known for their robust security and institutional-grade infrastructure. Cantor hasn’t disclosed loan terms or interest rates but confirmed the lending will follow current regulations.

This also shows how traditional financial players are embracing DeFi.

Maple Finance for example allows undercollateralized lending using blockchain. By backing companies like Maple, Cantor is innovating while still having control and compliance.

For years, bitcoin-backed loans were only available through digital-asset-native companies like Genesis, BlockFi, and Ledn.

These loans were mostly for smaller clients and retail investors. But with Cantor’s entry, the scale and professionalism of bitcoin lending are expanding.

@ 81022b27:2b8d0644

I’ve always gravitated to ideas and topics that are not quite mainstream:

Well, like CHIROPRACTIC.

But even in chiropractic school, I went fringe. I heard about one of the technique clubs (Toftness) that showed you how you could detect a subluxation by just rubbing your thumb over a piece of plexiglass.

We were discussing that in a group, and most of my friends were saying:

“What a load of shit!”

And that made my ears perk up.

So I started going to the club meetings.

I walk in, and there’s a guy face down on a chiropractic table while another guy was holding what looked like some sort of cyberpunk lens. He started rubbing it and worked it down the guy's spine.

He pointed out areas that were subluxated:

“Here.”

And going further down:

“Here.”

And:

“Here.”

Wow.

Then he “adjusted” by touching the spine with his index finger.

My mind was blown.

So you mean I didn’t have to be adjusted the way Harvey Fish did?

Dr. Fish was a great guy and would adjust students for, I think, $10. You’d go in, wait to see if he had any “real patients.” In between patients, he would adjust the students. He was heavy-handed and sure as hell able to move a bone.

So now I’m intrigued and curious. I studied and practiced any chance I had. I had different friends that I studied different things with.

(Except for Dyslexic Dave - nobody wanted to study with that guy. Our group did once, and we all failed a test. His dyslexia was so powerful, it overcame all of us.)

I’d study all the weird stuff with my friend Victoria, and then we would go get our network chiropractic adjustment from Dr. Michael Scimeca.

I found out that it wasn’t the Toftness lens that had the super-powers. Instead, it was because when your hand detected a change in energy over the spinal segments, there's a “galvanic response” similar to that of a polygraph lie detector test. So it made the skin on my hand “sweat,” and that made the plexiglass squeak and stick.

So it wasn’t the equipment. It was me.

After a while, I realized that I could feel a warmth on my chest right before the lens squeaked. So, I ditched the lens and started working on people where I “felt” the subluxations were located.

Seemed to work well - I always double-checked my “regular” chiropractic findings with what I felt. We studied for exams, then practiced technique on each other.

One time at a seminar, the instructor demonstrated what to do and asked for volunteers - one to be the patient and the other to be the doctor. I watched this guy struggling with his patient. It looked like he had flippers instead of hands; the whole interaction was super awkward.

All of a sudden, I started feeling uncomfortable and just blurted out:

“For God’s sake, leave him alone! Can’t you tell he is super annoyed and angry?”

Oops.

The instructor said, “Yes, maybe we should take a break.”

The guy that was the patient came up to me and asked, “How did you know?”

“I don’t know, I just felt it,” I said.

After that I started trying to see if I could feel what others were feeling. So when I was bored in a class, I’d go down the rows and try to feel what the my fellow students felt and quickly move on.

Going down the row: nothing, nothing nothing. This guy is pissed off, next one: nothing, nothing, Ow! She has a headache.

Dammit! Now I have a headache!

So that turned into a problem: When I worked on someone that had pain or other symptoms, I would take those on for myself. And the person I worked on would leave feeling great.

My friend Juanita did what is called an "attunement," and I became a Reiki Master.

Reiki masters are supposed to move energy around, but I was afraid I’d pick up too much of someone’s vibe and it would make me uncomfortable.

Plus, I can’t be doing energy work if I’m a chiropractor now.

So I kept all that checked and on the "down low"; sometimes I would get a "feeling" about a client while I was working on them. Surprisingly, it was always correct and it helped my client to make progress.

At some point, I started feeling that I needed to be true to myself, and if I had these abilities and I was able to use them to help the people that came to see me, then that's what I was going to do.

I've embraced this side of my work. If my clients need some emotional work, that’s what we work on, if they need some energy work, then they get it.

I suppose some people don’t want a chiropractor that’s metaphysical, but really-that’s how it all started. There are plenty of “evidence-based” chiropractors out there that can’t adjust their way out of a paper bag.

If the power goes off, they couldn’t use their lasers or whatever machine the Chiropractic Physiotherapy Industrial Complex wants you to buy now.

While I appreciate all the fancy parties they throw for us at continuing education seminars, they are infiltrating the chiropractic schools and now we are pumping out new chiropractors that only think they will be successful if they have the latest and greatest shiny machine.

I’ve studied a bunch of different things, I’ve found what works for me and refined it.

I tell my clients :

“I’m a better chiropractor today than I was yesterday, and I was pretty good back then!”

So I guess my next step is teaching some of this information and hoping to pass it on before my time here is up.

And you know what? I will love every damn minute of it!

There's nothing quite like sharing the weird, the wonderful, and the downright strange ways we can help people heal.

So, let's get to it—I've got a lot of sharing and teaching to do—it's going to be exciting!

@ b1ddb4d7:471244e7

“Not your keys, not your coins” isn’t a slogan—it’s a survival mantra in the age of digital sovereignty.

The seismic collapses of Mt. Gox (2014) and FTX (2022) weren’t anomalies; they were wake-up calls. When $8.7 billion in customer funds vanished with FTX, it exposed the fatal flaw of third-party custody: your bitcoin is only as secure as your custodian’s weakest link.

Yet today, As of early 2025, analysts estimate that between 2.3 million and 3.7 million Bitcoins are permanently lost, representing approximately 11–18% of bitcoin’s fixed maximum supply of 21 million coins, with some reports suggesting losses as high as 4 million BTC. This paradox reveals a critical truth: self-custody isn’t just preferable—it’s essential—but it must be done right.

The Custody Spectrum

Custodial Wallets (The Illusion of Control)

• Rehypothecation Risk: Most platforms lend your bitcoin for yield generation. When Celsius collapsed, users discovered their “held” bitcoin was loaned out in risky strategies.
• Account Freezes: Regulatory actions can lock withdrawals overnight. In 2023, Binance suspended dollar withdrawals for U.S. users citing “partner bank issues,” trapping funds for weeks.
• Data Vulnerability: KYC requirements create honeypots for hackers. The 2024 Ledger breach exposed 270,000 users’ personal data despite hardware security.

True Self-Custody
Self-custody means exclusively controlling your private keys—the cryptographic strings that prove bitcoin ownership. Unlike banks or exchanges, self-custody eliminates:

• Counterparty risk (no FTX-style implosions)
• Censorship (no blocked transactions)
• Inflationary theft (no fractional reserve lending)

Conquering the Three Great Fears of Self-Custody

Fear 1: “I’ll Lose Everything If I Make a Mistake”

Reality: Human error is manageable with robust systems:

• Test Transactions: Always send a micro-amount (0.00001 BTC) before large transfers. Verify receipt AND ability to send back.
• Multi-Backup Protocol: Store seed phrases on fireproof/waterproof steel plates (not paper!). Distribute copies geographically—one in a home safe, another with trusted family 100+ miles away.
• SLIP39 Sharding: Split your seed into fragments requiring 3-of-5 shards to reconstruct. No single point of failure.

Fear 2: “Hackers Will Steal My Keys”

Reality: Offline storage defeats remote attacks:

• Hardware Wallets: Devices like Bitkey or Ledger keep keys in “cold storage”—isolated from internet-connected devices. Transactions require physical confirmation.
• Multisig Vaults: Bitvault’s multi-sig system requires attackers compromise multiple locations/devices simultaneously. Even losing two keys won’t forfeit funds.
• Air-Gapped Verification: Use dedicated offline devices for wallet setup. Never type seeds on internet-connected machines.

Fear 3: “My Family Can’t Access It If I Die”

Reality: Inheritance is solvable:

• Dead Man Switches: Bitwarden’s emergency access allows trusted contacts to retrieve encrypted keys after a pre-set waiting period (e.g., 30 days).
• Inheritance Protocols: Bitkey’s inheritance solution shares decryption keys via designated beneficiaries’ emails. Requires multiple approvals to prevent abuse.
• Public Key Registries: Share wallet XPUBs (not private keys!) with heirs. They can monitor balances but not spend, ensuring transparency without risk.

The Freedom Dividend

1. Censorship Resistance: Send $10M BTC to a Wikileaks wallet without Visa/Mastercard blocking it.
2. Privacy Preservation: Avoid KYC surveillance—non-custodial wallets like Flash require zero ID verification.
3. Protocol Access: Participate in bitcoin-native innovations (Lightning Network, DLCs) only possible with self-custodied keys.
4. Black Swan Immunity: When Cyprus-style bank bailins happen, your bitcoin remains untouched in your vault.

The Sovereign’s Checklist

1. Withdraw from Exchanges: Move all BTC > $1,000 to self-custody immediately.
2. Buy Hardware Wallet: Purchase DIRECTLY from manufacturer (no Amazon!) to avoid supply-chain tampering.
3. Generate Seed OFFLINE: Use air-gapped device, write phrase on steel—never digitally.
4. Test Recovery: Delete wallet, restore from seed before funding.
5. Implement Multisig: For > $75k, use Bitvault for 2-of-3 multi-sig setup.
6. Create Inheritance Plan: Share XPUBs/SLIP39 shards with heirs + legal documents.

“Self-custody isn’t about avoiding risk—it’s about transferring risk from opaque institutions to transparent, controllable systems you design.”

The Inevitable Evolution: Custody Without Compromise

Emerging solutions are erasing old tradeoffs:

• MPC Wallets: Services like Xapo Bank shatter keys into encrypted fragments distributed globally. No single device holds full keys, defeating physical theft.
• Social Recovery: Ethically designed networks (e.g., Bitkey) let trusted contacts restore access without custodial control.
• Biometric Assurance: Fingerprint reset protocols prevent lockouts from physical injuries.

Lost keys = lost bitcoin. But consider the alternative: entrusting your life savings to entities with proven 8% annual failure rates among exchanges. Self-custody shifts responsibility from hoping institutions won’t fail to knowing your system can’t fail without your consent.

Take action today: Move one coin. Test one recovery. Share one xpub. The path to unchained wealth begins with a single satoshi under your control.

@ 81022b27:2b8d0644

I have a family practice where I see pretty much everything, from infants to the elderly, athletes to people with disabilities.

When someone gets good results, they always want their loved ones to benefit in the same way.

Husbands tell their wives, wives bring in their husbands...

I even had a guy bring both his wife and his girlfriend! On different days, of course.

So, sometimes we notice a little bit of drama here and there. When one of our couples divorces, someone usually gets custody of the chiropractor.

It's rare that I keep seeing both parties.

It's probably for the best, because there was this one time when a guy showed up with his new "friend" while the ex’s best friend was in the waiting area.

Well, it was like an episode of the "Jerry Springer Show" that day.

Let's get to the story:

This one guy I’d been working on started coming in more frequently, complaining of more pain, more aches, more everything.

I've been doing this for a while now, so I told him that when I see this, it's one of two things:

Either you are physically doing something to aggravate the issue,

Or you are under emotional stress.

He told me that he and his wife were having problems, and there was lots of drama.

Of course, I kept working on him. Sometimes I did some emotional work, but with men, I have to be very business-like when dealing with emotions because we don't like to deal with them.

Time passed, and they finally divorced.

He still comes in regularly, and I've noticed he has less pain and fewer issues. His visits are more like "wellness visits"; he seems in better spirits.

I thought I'd never see the ex-wife again, but she showed up today, and when I checked her, she's doing better than ever!

It got me thinking... these people are way better off divorced! They're not in constant fight-or-flight mode; I'm sure they are happier or will be. It's a positive all the way around.

I've been divorced twice. That's not something I'm proud of. I see both those divorces as failures.

I was 23 when I got married the first time. We were both super young and unprepared. We struggled for four years, and then she wanted out.

Not that I blame her; I was unhappy with myself, and my frustration and unhappiness bled into the relationship.

My second marriage lasted a lot longer than the first. After all we were older, ended up having 2 kids and I really, really tried.

I was just terrified of losing my girls. I even recall saying that I was willing to be miserable and unhappy just “for the kids”

The truth is once we separated, I probably spent more “quality time” with my daughters than I had before.

But here’s the thing in both marriages I would have willingly given up the chance to be happier with a clean end to the relationship in order to give it another shot.

At some point you just run out of shots.

I see elderly couples out at restaurants and they hardly say anything to each other. Is it because they know each other so well that they don’t need to speak, or is one of them silently praying the other one will drop dead so they will finally have a chance at happiness?

What I’m trying to say here is:

Maybe there is no hope for that relationship that you are giving CPR

Maybe it’s time to move on.

Live Long and Prosper. 🖖

@ b1ddb4d7:471244e7

Picture this: you’re trying to buy coffee with Bitcoin, but instead of waiting 10 minutes for blockchain confirmation and paying $5 in fees, your transaction completes instantly for a fraction of a penny.

That’s the promise of the Lightning Network, Bitcoin’s most ambitious scaling solution.

But here’s the thing that most people don’t realize – the entire system only works because of an intricate web of technical standards that most users never see.

These standards, known as BOLTs (Basis of Lightning Technology), are the invisible foundation that makes Lightning’s magic possible. Without them, we’d have a fragmented mess of incompatible systems rather than the seamless payment network that’s processing millions of transactions today.

The Protocol Puzzle: Why Lightning Needed Standards

When Lightning Network was first conceived in 2015, it faced a classic chicken-and-egg problem. Multiple development teams were working on implementations – Lightning Labs with LND, Blockstream with c-lightning, and ACINQ with Eclair – but they all had slightly different ideas about how things should work. Without coordination, these would have become isolated islands of functionality.

Think about the early days of instant messaging, when AOL Instant Messenger users couldn’t talk to Yahoo Messenger users. That’s exactly what Lightning developers wanted to avoid. The solution was BOLT – a comprehensive set of technical specifications that would ensure any Lightning implementation could talk to any other, regardless of who built it.

The first BOLT specifications emerged in 2016, but they weren’t just academic exercises. These documents had to solve real engineering challenges: How do you route payments through a network of payment channels? How do you ensure privacy when every transaction could potentially be monitored? How do you handle the inevitable network failures and channel closures?

Inside the BOLT Specifications: A Technical Breakdown

The BOLT specifications read like a blueprint for building a parallel financial system. Each document tackles a specific piece of the Lightning puzzle, and together they create something remarkably sophisticated.

BOLT #1 establishes the foundation – the basic message formats and communication rules that every Lightning node must understand. It’s like defining the grammar of a new language that computers use to talk about money. This specification covers everything from how nodes identify themselves to the basic structure of Lightning messages.

BOLT #2 gets into the nitty-gritty of channel management, the heart of Lightning’s functionality. Payment channels are essentially shared cryptocurrency wallets between two parties, and managing them securely requires incredibly precise coordination. This specification defines exactly how nodes negotiate channel parameters, handle updates, and gracefully close channels when needed. One wrong step here, and funds could be lost forever.

The routing problem gets its due attention in BOLT #4, which implements something called “onion routing” – the same privacy technique used by Tor. When you send a Lightning payment, each node in the path only knows the previous and next hop, never the full route. The sender wraps the payment instructions in multiple layers of encryption, like nested Russian dolls, with each node peeling off one layer to reveal just enough information to forward the payment.

BOLT #7 tackles network discovery – how nodes find each other in the first place. Unlike traditional payment networks with centralized directories, Lightning is completely peer-to-peer. Nodes gossip about available channels and routing fees, creating a constantly updating map of the network that every participant shares.

Perhaps the most user-facing specification is BOLT #11, which standardizes Lightning invoices. Those QR codes you scan to make Lightning payments? They’re not just random data – they’re precisely formatted requests that include payment amounts, destination information, and routing hints, all encoded in a way that any Lightning wallet can understand.

But BOLT #11 is just the beginning of Lightning’s invoice evolution. BOLT #12 represents the next generation of Lightning payments with “offers” – a revolutionary approach that makes Lightning payments as easy as traditional online shopping.

The User Experience Revolution: BOLT #11 and the Invoice Problem

To understand why BOLT #11 was so crucial, you need to appreciate just how clunky early Lightning payments were. Before standardized invoices, sending a Lightning payment required manually entering node public keys, payment hashes, and routing information – a process so error-prone that one wrong character could send your Bitcoin into the digital void.

BOLT #11 changed everything by creating a standardized invoice format that packs all necessary payment information into a single, human-readable string. These invoices use a clever encoding scheme called Bech32 (the same format used for modern Bitcoin addresses) that includes built-in error detection. If you accidentally change a character when copying an invoice, your wallet will immediately know something’s wrong.

But the real genius of BOLT #11 lies in its flexibility. Lightning invoices can include optional routing hints that help wallets find paths to the recipient, even if they’re not well-connected to the broader network. They can specify exact amounts or leave them open for the sender to choose. They can include expiration times, descriptions of what’s being purchased, and even fallback Bitcoin addresses for when Lightning payments fail.

The specification also solved a crucial privacy problem. Early Lightning implementations often revealed too much information about recipients in their invoices. BOLT #11 carefully balances the need for routing information with privacy protection, ensuring that invoices contain just enough data to enable payments without exposing unnecessary details about the recipient’s node or channels.

The Next Evolution: BOLT #12 and the Promise of Offers

While BOLT #11 invoices solved the immediate usability problem, they still had significant limitations that became apparent as Lightning adoption grew. Traditional invoices are single-use, expire relatively quickly, and require the recipient to generate a new one for each payment. Try to explain to your grandmother why she needs to create a new QR code every time someone wants to send her money, and you’ll quickly understand the problem.

BOLT #12, currently being implemented across Lightning software, introduces “offers” – a completely new approach to requesting Lightning payments that works more like traditional payment systems. Instead of creating single-use invoices, merchants and individuals can create reusable offers that work like persistent payment addresses.

The technical innovation behind offers is fascinating. When someone wants to pay an offer, their wallet first contacts the recipient’s node and requests a fresh invoice specifically for that payment. This happens automatically and invisibly to the user, but it solves several critical problems that plagued BOLT #11 invoices.

First, offers enable recurring payments. A subscription service can create a single offer that customers’ wallets can automatically pay monthly, weekly, or on any schedule. The recipient generates a fresh invoice for each payment, maintaining security while enabling the convenience of automated billing.

Second, offers dramatically improve privacy. Because each payment uses a freshly generated invoice, it’s much harder for external observers to correlate multiple payments to the same recipient. Someone monitoring the Lightning network might see that Alice paid 50,000 satoshis to some node, but they can’t easily determine if this was her first payment to that merchant or her hundredth.

The specification also introduces “offer chains” – a way to create offers that can be paid multiple times with different amounts. A coffee shop could create a single offer that customers can pay for any amount, with their wallets automatically calculating tips or adjusting for different menu items.

Behind the Scenes: The Technical Complexity of Simple Payments

What makes BOLT #12 particularly impressive is how it maintains simplicity for users while handling incredible complexity behind the scenes. When your wallet processes an offer, it’s actually engaging in a sophisticated cryptographic dance with the recipient’s node.

The process starts when you scan an offer QR code. Your wallet extracts the recipient’s node information and initiates a connection using the encrypted transport protocol defined in BOLT #8. It then sends a specially formatted request for an invoice, including details about how much you want to pay and any additional information required by the offer.

The recipient’s node validates your request, generates a fresh BOLT #11 invoice specifically for your payment, and sends it back to your wallet. Your wallet then processes this invoice and completes the payment using the standard Lightning routing protocols. The entire process typically takes a few seconds, but it involves multiple round-trips between nodes and several cryptographic operations.

This two-step process – request invoice, then pay invoice – might seem unnecessarily complex, but it elegantly solves problems that plagued earlier Lightning payment systems. It prevents invoice reuse attacks, enables advanced privacy features, and allows for much more flexible payment scenarios.

The Merchant Revolution: From Invoices to Commerce

The evolution from BOLT #11

@ c11cf5f8:4928464d

Howdy stackers! Here we are again with our monthly Magnificent Seven, the summary giving you a hit of what you missed in the ~AGORA territory.

First thing first. let's check our top performing post Ads!

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Top-Performing Ads

This month, the most engaging ones are:

• 01 Bitcoin Magazine Launches V3 Limited Edition Bitcoin Crocs by @RideandSmile, no description, nor images provided. The title speak for the product itself. 31 sats \ 8 comments \ 15 May

• 02 Happy Pizza Day Jerky Offer (10k sats sale 5/22 ONLY) by @beejay, celebrating Bitcoin Pizza Day with a delicious offer for a handmade product. Offer is over but it still available on her online shop and IRL at next Twin Cities Outdoor Agora Market https://stacker.news/items/972209/r/AG 103 sats \ 3 comments \ 22 May

• 03 Lard Tallow lotion by @byzantine, sharing with us one of his preferred online shops that accept sats. Here other two: a Regenerative Farm in TX https://stacker.news/items/983695/r/AG and an artisanal lite roast coffee maker https://stacker.news/items/983668/r/AG 62 sats \ 4 comments \ 20 May

• 04 Bitaxe Gamma 601 for sale by @PictureRoom selling P2P, have you shipped it yet? 121 sats \ 12 comments \ 15 May

• 05 Built An Invisible Book Stage by @kr, he did well creating some expectations for this unique and durable product earlier https://stacker.news/items/903946/r/AG 124 sats \ 4 comments \ 21 May

• 06 "₿lack Market Money" T-Shirts by T&F by @BitcoinErrorLog, that had opened his online store with plenty of incredible products, including an Anti-Surveillance clothing line https://stacker.news/items/994555/r/AG stuff never seen before! 51 sats \ 3 comments \ 24 May

• 07 [SELL] Heatpunk 002 Tee by @thebullishbitcoiner, reviving the second edition of a t-shirt dedicated to home solo miners! 79 sats \ 1 comment \ 28 May

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In case you missed

Here some interesting post, opening conversations and free speech about markets and business on the bitcoin circular economy:

• https://stacker.news/items/992449/r/AG - @Kontext is selling his beloved 2012 Jaguar XF 3.0 V6 Petrol [5M sats], great deal if paid in sats! Have you sold her?
• https://stacker.news/items/987241/r/AG - @RideandSmile shared the Freedom Issue: Letter From the Editor introducing a BM special edition
• https://stacker.news/items/999229/r/AG - @Solomonsatoshi was looking for Green Coffee Beans for DIY home roasting. Will @michaelbinary provide you some?
• https://stacker.news/items/992790/r/AG - @Rayo also introduce the P.A.Z.NIA Radio Network: 52 Hours of Liberation! An interesting livestream for all those interested in freedom.
• https://stacker.news/items/995163/r/AG welcome to @lunin, opening up on SN with Take it step by step and it will work! as part of a promising series: Founder's Thoughts. Here the second post https://stacker.news/items/999867/r/AG Startup according to Mozart

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Hey sellers! Try Auctions

A quick reminder that now you can setup auctions here in the AGORA too! Learn how. The other feature released last month was the introduction of Shopfronts on SN. Check our SN Merch and SN Zine examples. Thank you all! Let's keep these trades coming and grow the P2P Bitcoin circular economy!

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Active Professional Services accepting Bitcoin in the AGORA

Let us know if we miss any, here below the most memorable ones: - https://stacker.news/items/900208/r/AG - @unschooled offering Language Tutoring - https://stacker.news/items/813013/r/AG - @gpvansat's [OFFER][Graphic Design] From the paste editions (It's important to keep these offers available) - https://stacker.news/items/775383/r/AG - @TinstrMedia - Color Grading (Styling) Your Pictures as a Service - https://stacker.news/items/773557/r/AG - @MamaHodl, MATHS TUTOR 50K SATS/hour English global - https://stacker.news/items/684163/r/AG - @BTCLNAT's OFFER HEALTH COUNSELING [5K SAT/ consultation - https://stacker.news/items/689268/r/AG - @mathswithtess [SELL] MATHS TUTOR ONILINE, 90k sats per hour. Global but English only.

Let me know if I'm missing other stackers offering services around here!

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Lost & Found in SN' Wild West Web

Stay with me, we're not done yet! I found plenty of other deals, offers and business related conversations in other territories too...

• BITCOIN... always fucking with my head... by @thecommoner (highly recommended read!)
• The Strange Moral Relativism of "Free Trade" by @Undisciplined (another highly recommended read!)
• What makes society thrive? by @aljaz
• Drop or proxy shipping services that take sats? by @lv99slacker
• Custom Bitcoin Nodes by @anon
• 23 Bitcoin Merch Shops That Sell Shirts For Sats by @hyperfree
• How to create an e-commerce website? by @Bitcoiner1
• Can You Outperform an Apple Tree? by @kr
• B2B Businesses in Bitcoin by @telcobert

Oh boy! Such exciting month! Now our latest weekly appointments:

🏷️ Spending Sunday

(LIVE TODAY) Share your most recent Bitcoin purchases of just check what other stackers are buying with their sats! Today's one open at https://stacker.news/items/1000477/r/AG

All series available here:

🤝 Sellers & Business Club

(UPCOMING EVERY TUESDAY) Here https://stacker.news/items/998773/r/AG wanted to introduce this new series, dedicated to our most active sellers^1. A room to talk about growing business and sales. You will join?

📢 Thursday Talks: What have you sold for Bitcoin this week?

It is losing a bit of momentum, but it will still be opening every week for anyone interested to share sales tips, deals and offers around the Wild West Web! Latest one here https://stacker.news/items/997767/r/AG

Thanks all for reading until here, now... 🫡 Closing remarks as usual. See ya!

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Create your Ads now!

Looking to start something new? Hit one of the links below to free your mind:

• 💬 TOPIC for conversation,
• [⚖️ SELL] anything! or,
• if you're looking for something, hit the [🛒 BUY]!
• [🧑‍💻 HIRE] any bitcoiner skill or stuff from bitcoiners
• [🖇 OFFER] any product or service and stack more sats
• [🧑‍⚖️ AUCTION] to let stackers decide a fair price for your item
• [🤝 SWAP] if you're looking to exchange anything with anything else
• [🆓 FREE] your space, make a gift!
• Start your own [SHOPFRONT] or simply...
• [⭐ REVIEW] any bitcoin product or LN service you recently bought or subscribed to.

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Or contact @AGORA team on nostr DM, and we can help you publish a personalized post.

. #nostr #bitcoin #stuff4sats #sell #buy #plebchain #grownostr #asknostr #market #business

https://stacker.news/items/1000715

@ 1fdb6dac:65eb9a8a

Vivimos en un mundo que nos enseñó a desconfiar de nuestra intuición.\ Un sistema que premia la obediencia, no el pensamiento crítico.\ Que nos médica para sobrevivir, pero no para sanar.\ Que nos quiere separadas, desconectadas, dependientes.

Desde chicas nos formaron para encajar, no para ser libres.\ La escuela nos preparó para ser piezas funcionales de una máquina, no para ser mujeres conscientes, creativas, despiertas.\ La salud se volvió un negocio: pastillas que apagan síntomas, pero nunca llegan al origen.\ La familia, ese espacio de contención y raíces, fue debilitada en nombre de una supuesta “productividad”.

Nos dijeron que para ser fuertes teníamos que dejar de lado nuestros deseos más profundos.\ Que la maternidad era una traba. Que formar familia era mirar hacia atrás.\ Nos empujaron a vivir en una lógica masculina, en la que mostrar sensibilidad era sinónimo de debilidad.\ Pero nada de esto fue casual.

Este sistema necesita que no creas en vos para poder seguir funcionando.\ Necesita que te desconectes de tu cuerpo, de tus vínculos, de tu intuición.\ Y, sobre todo, necesita que te desconectes del valor real de tu tiempo, de tu energía, de tu dinero.

Pero hay otra forma.\ Hay otra forma de ser mujer, de ser madre, de ser libre.\ Y empieza por recordar lo que siempre supimos, pero olvidamos:\ La familia es revolución desde el amor.\ Porque una sociedad fuerte nace de vínculos sanos.\ Y eso empieza en casa, en las relaciones donde aprendemos qué es amar, cuidar, sostener, poner límites, construir.

Nos enseñaron a medir el éxito por cuánto nos alejábamos de lo femenino.\ Pero la independencia sin conexión es otra forma de soledad.\ La maternidad no es debilidad. Es fuerza creadora.\ La energía femenina no es pasiva. Es raíz, instinto, visión.

Y así como nos quitaron poder en nuestros cuerpos y vínculos, también lo hicieron con nuestro dinero.

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Dinero, Energía y Libertad

¿Qué es el dinero, si no una forma de energía?\ El resultado de tu tiempo, tu creatividad, tu esfuerzo.\ Sin que te des cuenta, te están robando esa energía.

Nos enseñaron a ahorrar. Pero nunca nos explicaron que, mientras guardamos billetes, su valor se disuelve.\ Que los bancos centrales imprimen dinero —ni siquiera lo imprimen, lo “crean” digitalmente— sin pedirnos permiso, sin pensar en nuestra vida.\ Y mientras tanto, vos trabajás cada vez más… por cada vez menos.

Porque si controlan tu tiempo, controlan tu vida.\ Si te mantienen ocupada, te mantienen distraída.\ Si te desconectan del verdadero valor del dinero, te vuelven dependiente.

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Bitcoin como Llave

Bitcoin no es solo una inversión. Es una herramienta.\ Una llave para volver a tener el control.\ De tu energía. De tu tiempo. De tu vida.

No se trata solo de números.\ Se trata de comprender.\ De construir redes descentralizadas de mujeres libres, que se acompañan, que comparten saberes, que se sostienen.

Porque la verdadera abundancia empieza cuando entendés que el poder vuelve a vos.

Es hora de recordar.\ De mirar hacia adentro.\ Y de tomar decisiones que nos devuelvan a lo esencial:\ La conexión real, el amor como base, y la autonomía como acto sagrado.

@ cae03c48:2a7d6671

Bitcoin Magazine

Bitcoin Life Insurer, Meanwhile, Becomes First Company to Publish Audited Financials Denominated in Bitcoin

Meanwhile Insurance Bitcoin (Bermuda) Limited (“Meanwhile”) announced it has become the first company in the world to release externally audited financial statements denominated entirely in Bitcoin. According to the announcement, the company reported 220.4 BTC in assets and 25.29 BTC in net income for 2024, a 300% year over year increase.

Today marks a global first & historic event for us, along with the public release of our 2024 audited financial statements, covering our 1st year of sales.

As the 1st company in the world to have Bitcoin-denominated financial statements externally audited, we are excited to…

— meanwhile | Bitcoin Life Insurance (@meanwhilelife) June 5, 2025

“We’ve just made history as the first company in the world to have Bitcoin-denominated financial statements externally audited,” said Zac Townsend, CEO of Meanwhile. “This is an important, foundational step in reimagining the financial system based on a single, global, decentralized standard outside the control of any one government.” 

The financial statements were audited by Harris & Trotter LLP and its digital asset division ht.digital. Meanwhile’s financials also comply with Bermuda’s Insurance Act 1978, noting that their BTC denominated financials were approved and comply with official guidelines. The firm, fully licensed by the Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA), operates entirely in BTC and is prohibited from liquidating Bitcoin assets except through policyholder claims, positioning it as a long term holder. 

“As the first regulated Bitcoin life insurance company, we view the BTC held by Meanwhile as inherently long-term in nature—primarily held to support the Company’s insurance liabilities over decades,” Townsend added. “This makes it significantly ‘stickier’ and resistant to market pressures compared to the BTC held by other companies as part of their treasury management strategies.” 

Meanwhile’s 2024 financials also revealed 23.02 BTC in net premiums and 4.35 BTC in investment income, showing that its model not only preserves Bitcoin, but earns it. The company’s reserves (also held in BTC) were reviewed and approved by Willis Towers Watson (WTW). 

Meanwhile also offers a Bitcoin Whole Life insurance product that allows policyholders to save, borrow, and build legacy wealth—entirely in BTC, and has plans to expand globally in 2025.

“We are incredibly proud of today’s news as it underscores how Meanwhile is at the forefront of the next phase of the convergence between Bitcoin and institutional financial markets,” said Tia Beckmann, CFO of Meanwhile. “Now having generated net income in BTC, we have demonstrated that we are earning it through a sustainable insurance business model designed for the long term.” 

This post Bitcoin Life Insurer, Meanwhile, Becomes First Company to Publish Audited Financials Denominated in Bitcoin first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Jenna Montgomery.

@ eb0157af:77ab6c55

The adoption of Bitcoin as a corporate reserve asset is accelerating: public companies have doubled their holdings in just two months.

The use of Bitcoin as a corporate treasury strategy is reaching unprecedented levels. According to a recent report from Standard Chartered, shared with several industry outlets, 61 publicly traded companies collectively hold 3.2% of all bitcoin in circulation.

Geoff Kendrick, global head of digital asset research at Standard Chartered, revealed that these 61 public firms — out of a total of 124 — now own 673,897 BTC.

The report highlights that 58 of the 61 companies analyzed have net asset value (NAV) multiples above 1, indicating that their market valuations exceed the value of their net assets.

The Strategy copycats

A significant takeaway from the report is the speed at which companies are accumulating bitcoin. The 60 companies considered “Strategy copycats” have doubled their holdings in the past two months, from under 50,000 BTC to about 100,000 BTC. Over the same period, Strategy added 74,000 BTC, compared to the 47,000 acquired by the other firms.

This movement continues to expand as new companies announce Bitcoin purchase plans via debt issuance. On June 3, Canadian renewable energy developer SolarBank officially announced its Bitcoin treasury strategy, filing an application to open an account with Coinbase Prime to secure custody services, manage USDC, and set up a non-custodial wallet for its Bitcoin holdings.

Meanwhile, Paris-based Blockchain Group announced a $68 million Bitcoin acquisition, while Norwegian crypto brokerage K33 raised $6.2 million to purchase BTC at the end of May.

The post Bitcoin treasury: 61 publicly listed companies now hold over 3% of total supply appeared first on Atlas21.

@ 9ca447d2:fbf5a36d

Japanese investment firm Metaplanet has announced a massive $5.4 billion plan to increase its bitcoin holdings to 210,000 BTC by the end of 2027 — that’s about 1% of the total bitcoin supply.

Metaplanet on X

The Tokyo-listed company is accelerating its already aggressive bitcoin plan, with CEO Simon Gerovich calling the initiative “Asia’s largest-ever equity raise to buy Bitcoin — again!”

The company’s new capital raise, called the “555 Million Plan”, involves issuing 555 million shares through moving strike warrants. That’s basically a type of option where people can buy shares later, and the price they pay depends on the stock’s price at that time.

So with moving strike warrants, the price at which people can buy the stock goes up or down depending on how the company’s stock is doing. It gives investors more flexibility — and it can make the warrants more attractive — because they don’t get stuck with a bad deal if the stock price drops.

This way the company can raise capital gradually over the next 2 years without impacting the stock market and existing shareholders.

The funds raised will be used to buy bitcoin, with some to redeem bonds and other income-generating strategies like selling put options.

This is a big step up from Metaplanet’s previous targets. Initially aiming to reach 10,000 BTC by the end of 2025, the company now plans to reach:

• 30,000 BTC by end of 2025
• 100,000 BTC by end of 2026
• 210,000 BTC by end of 2027

The Japanese investment firm hopes to be in the “Bitcoin 1% club” which means holding at least 1% of the total 21 million bitcoin supply.

Metaplanet bitcoin targets

Metaplanet is already making good progress. As of June 2025, the company holds 8,888 BTC, acquired at a cost of about ¥122.2 billion (around $849 million) and has already reached 89% of its original 10,000 BTC target for 2025.

This comes after the success of the company’s previous “210 Million Plan” which raised ¥93.3 billion ($650 million) in 60 trading days by issuing 210 million shares.

During that time, the company’s bitcoin holdings grew from 1,762 BTC to 7,800 BTC and the BTC Yield (a key performance metric showing growth in bitcoin per share) increased by 189%.

Year to date the BTC Yield is 225.4%.

Metaplanet’s BTC Yield graph

The stock has reflected this momentum, up 275% since early 2025 and 1,619% over the past year.

Metaplanet’s stock price chart — TradingView

Metaplanet is now one of the most actively traded stocks in Japan and has become a top-ten corporate bitcoin holder globally, recently surpassing Block Inc., the company founded by Jack Dorsey.

Metaplanet sees this as part of a bigger shift in capital markets.

By being a “bitcoin treasury vehicle” listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, it aims to offer investors exposure to bitcoin through regulated equity markets. This is especially useful in Japan where retail investors are often restricted from accessing bitcoin directly.

“Bitcoin is repricing the global cost of capital,” the company said in a statement. “Through our 555 Million Plan, Metaplanet is doubling down on a high-conviction, equity-driven capital markets strategy to accelerate our Bitcoin accumulation trajectory.”

@ 41fa852b:af7b7706

"The poison was never forced - it was offered gently, until you forgot it was poison at all." - Mark Twain

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Happy Sunday, folks.

Below is your weekly roundup of events for the coming week.

Added to the event section this week, an exciting new Scottish Bitcoin Conference, happening in August.

Check out all the details below.

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This week's sponsor is…

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Upcoming Bitcoin Meetups

Happening this week…

1. Dundee Bitcoin: Join them on the 2nd Monday of every month from 17:30 to 20:30 PM at The Wine Press, 16 Shore Terrace, Dundee DD1 3DN. This month's meetup is on Monday 9th. 🍻

2. Canterbury Bitcoin: Meeting this month at the The Dolphin Pub in Canterbury at 7 PM on Tuesday the 10th of June. An informal meetup to discuss Bitcoin and chat. 🍺

3. Glasgow Bitcoin: Meetups are held every second Wednesday of the month. This is a place for people in and around Glasgow to discuss Bitcoin. 18:00 - 23:00 at The Piper Bar, G1 1HL. This month on Wednesday 11th. 🍻

4. St Albans: This is a new meetup happening on the second Wednesday of each month. This month, it's from 19:00 to 22:00 on the 11th at the Robin Hood of St Albans, Victoria St, St Albans. 🍻

5. Children of Riddim - Festival - Bitcoin Stage: Children of Riddim Festival is bringing Bitcoin to the big stage from the 12th--16th June in Hemel Hempstead, with 150+ DJs, artists, and speakers. The Barn of Freedom will host Bitcoin talks, music, and Nostr-powered apps. Tickets and donations for the stage can be made via geyser.fund, with camping included. Acts/speakers include Joe Bryan, Metamick, Roger9000, Angor, and more. 🎉🪩

6. Bitcoin Beach Bournemouth: Every second Thursday of the month at Chaplins Cellar Bar. 529 Christchurch Road, Boscombe, United. You'll find them in the Cogg Room at 19:30. This month it's the 12th. 🍺

7. Bury St Edmunds Bitcoin: is reviving the medieval spirit of the Folkmoot, one Bitcoin meetup at a time. Their second gathering takes place this Friday at 17:30 at Edmundo Lounge. They've also just launched a brand new website.

8. Stoke Bitcoin Meetup: The Stoke Bitcoin meetup is back! They will have Bitcoin coffee to taste, delivered by hand directly from the mountains of El Salvador and grown by @lacruzboss in Berlin, El Salvador. 15:00 on Friday 13th. ☕️🍻

9. Bitcoin Walk - Edinburgh: Every Saturday they walk around Arthur's Seat in this historic city. Join them at 12 pm to chat about all things Bitcoin and keep fit. 🚶🏽‍♂️🚶🏼‍♀️🚶🏻

10. Bitcoin East: Join Bitcoin East in Bury St. Edmunds on Sunday 15th, 12:00 at Hopsters Bar, Felixstowe. All welcome, Bitcoiners and anyone else curious about Bitcoin. 🍺

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New Businesses Accepting Bitcoin

This week we have…

• Core Agency: A creative communications firm that blends financial expertise with bold storytelling to help businesses in finance and beyond stand out. Based in the UK, they specialise in strategic planning, brand identity, content production, and public relations, delivering everything from investor-focused media to high-impact digital campaigns. With in-house studios for video, animation, and live streaming, Core offers end-to-end solutions that are both visually compelling and commercially effective. Their mission is to bring clarity, creativity, and confidence to brands navigating complex markets. Whether you're a fintech startup or a global institution, Core helps you communicate with purpose and originality. Now accepting bitcoin payments. 📈

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Upcoming Special Events

These events aren't happening next week, but they're important to add to your calendar now as tickets are selling fast.

The Bitcoin Beach Retreat: An annual Bitcoin-only gathering held at a scenic coastal campsite in North Wales. Celebrating its fifth year in 2025, the retreat offers a relaxed, community-driven alternative to traditional conferences.

From July 11--14, up to 120 Bitcoiners will come together to share knowledge, enjoy beachside BBQs, and strengthen their networks under the stars. With no pre-booked speakers, the event thrives on peer-led workshops and spontaneous discussions, fostering genuine connections among attendees. Emphasising local engagement, the retreat directs the majority of its funds into the surrounding community, with 42% of expenses paid in Bitcoin last year.

Whether attending solo or with family, attendees can expect a welcoming environment dedicated to sound money and shared values.

Scottish Bitcoin Conference: Taking place on August 23, 2025, at the Glasgow University Union, located at 32 University Avenue, Glasgow G12 8LX. From 09:00 to 16:30.

Featuring an impressive roster of speakers, including Anthony Scaramucci, Hashley Giles, Rick Messit, Dr. Peter Connor, Claire Chisholm, Roger9000, John Magill, Ian Scanlon, Robin Thatcher, Jamie Plowman, Robbie Maltby, Russell Rukin, Peter Lane, Francesco Madonna, and Sam Roberts.

Open to all, this conference offers a unique opportunity for Bitcoiners and newcomers alike to connect and learn in the vibrant setting of Glasgow.

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Get Involved

• Volunteer: Passionate about merchant adoption? Reach out to Bridge2Bitcoin on Twitter or website.
• Start a Meetup: Want to launch a Bitcoin meetup? We'll support you. Contact us on Twitter or just reply to this email.
• Contribute to BTCMaps: Help maintain this key Bitcoin resource--no coding skills needed. Update a UK area.
• Telegram: Join our Channel for UK meetup updates
• Feedback: Reply to this email with ideas and suggestions.

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This week's sponsors is…

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Get out and support the meetups where you can, visit Bitcoin Events UK for more info on each meetup and to find your closest on the interactive map.

Stay tuned for more updates next week!

Simon.

@ dfa02707:41ca50e3

Contribute to keep No Bullshit Bitcoin news going.

This update brings key enhancements for clarity and usability:

• Recent Blocks View: Added to the Send tab and inspired by Mempool's visualization, it displays the last 2 blocks and the estimated next block to help choose fee rates.
• Camera System Overhaul: Features a new library for higher resolution detection and mouse-scroll zoom support when available.
• Vector-Based Images: All app images are now vectorized and theme-aware, enhancing contrast, especially in dark mode.
• Tor & P2A Updates: Upgraded internal Tor and improved support for pay-to-anchor (P2A) outputs.
• Linux Package Rename: For Linux users, Sparrow has been renamed to sparrowwallet (or sparrowserver); in some cases, the original sparrow package may need manual removal.
• Additional updates include showing total payments in multi-payment transaction diagrams, better handling of long labels, and other UI enhancements.

• Sparrow v2.2.1 is a bug fix release that addresses missing UUID issue when starting Tor on recent macOS versions, icons for external sources in Settings and Recent Blocks view, repackaged .deb installs to use older gzip instead of zstd compression, and removed display of median fee rate where fee rates source is set to Server.

Learn how to get started with Sparrow wallet:

Release notes (v2.2.0)

• Added Recent Blocks view to Send tab.
• Converted all bitmapped images to theme aware SVG format for all wallet models and dialogs.
• Support send and display of pay to anchor (P2A) outputs.
• Renamed sparrow package to sparrowwallet and sparrowserver on Linux.
• Switched camera library to openpnp-capture.
• Support FHD (1920 x 1080) and UHD4k (3840 x 2160) capture resolutions.
• Support camera zoom with mouse scroll where possible.
• In the Download Verifier, prefer verifying the dropped file over the default file where the file is not in the manifest.
• Show a warning (with an option to disable the check) when importing a wallet with a derivation path matching another script type.
• In Cormorant, avoid calling the listwalletdir RPC on initialization due to a potentially slow response on Windows.
• Avoid server address resolution for public servers.
• Assume server address is non local for resolution failures where a proxy is configured.
• Added a tooltip to indicate truncated labels in table cells.
• Dynamically truncate input and output labels in the tree on a transaction tab, and add tooltips if necessary.
• Improved tooltips for wallet tabs and transaction diagrams with long labels.
• Show the address where available on input and output tooltips in transaction tab tree.
• Show the total amount sent in payments in the transaction diagram when constructing multiple payment transactions.
• Reset preferred table column widths on adjustment to improve handling after window resizing.
• Added accessible text to improve screen reader navigation on seed entry.
• Made Wallet Summary table grow horizontally with dialog sizing.
• Reduced tooltip show delay to 200ms.
• Show transaction diagram fee percentage as less than 0.01% rather than 0.00%.
• Optimized and reduced Electrum server RPC calls.
• Upgraded Bouncy Castle, PGPainless and Logback libraries.
• Upgraded internal Tor to v0.4.8.16.
• Bug fix: Fixed issue with random ordering of keystore origins on labels import.
• Bug fix: Fixed non-zero account script type detection when signing a message on Trezor devices.
• Bug fix: Fixed issue parsing remote Coldcard xpub encoded on a different network.
• Bug fix: Fixed inclusion of fees on wallet label exports.
• Bug fix: Increase Trezor device libusb timeout.

Linux users: Note that the sparrow package has been renamed to sparrowwallet or sparrowserver, and in some cases you may need to manually uninstall the original sparrow package. Look in the /opt folder to ensure you have the new name, and the original is removed.

What's new in v2.2.1

• Updated Tor library to fix missing UUID issue when starting Tor on recent macOS versions.
• Repackaged .deb installs to use older gzip instead of zstd compression.
• Removed display of median fee rate where fee rates source is set to Server.
• Added icons for external sources in Settings and Recent Blocks view
• Bug fix: Fixed issue in Recent Blocks view when switching fee rates source
• Bug fix: Fixed NPE on null fee returned from server

Announcement / Archive
GitHub Repo

@ 318ebaba:9a262eae

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@ bf95e1a4:ebdcc848

This is a part of the Bitcoin Infinity Academy course on Knut Svanholm's book Bitcoin: Sovereignty Through Mathematics. For more information, check out our Geyser page!

The Years Ahead

The Lindy Effect is a theory that describes the future life expectancy of a technology or an idea. It states that an idea’s expected remaining lifespan is proportional to its current age so that every additional period of survival implies a longer remaining life expectancy. Bitcoin, which is not only an idea but also a technology and a social experiment, is ten years old now, and therefore, we can expect it to stay around for at least another ten.

At the time of writing, there are exactly 17,669,941 bitcoins around, and twelve and a half new ones are created every ten minutes. 17,669,941 is about 84% of the total supply, that is, the total amount of Bitcoin that will ever exist. Ten years from now, around twenty million Bitcoin will have been found, three more block reward halvings will have taken place, and the reward for each block found will be 1.5625 Bitcoin. The whole world will have a little more than two and a half million new Bitcoin around. This is to be compared with the more than seventeen and a half million that were created during the last ten years when they were cheap and relatively easy to come by. In the network’s first couple of years, you could acquire several Bitcoin by just claiming them from special websites called faucets every once in a while. The US dollar’s cumulative rate of inflation was 15.6 percent during this period. This means that each dollar lost more than one sixth of its value in the last ten years due to quantitative easing, which is the central banker’s term for counterfeiting. It is very unlikely that the cumulative rate of inflation for the US dollar in the upcoming ten years will be any lower than these 15.6 percent since the fractional reserve lending system requires a little more inflation each year to sustain itself. So, a little less than 2.5 million new Bitcoin to share and at least 20% more US dollars in circulation to buy them with.

Now, let’s look at the Internet itself. Metcalfe’s Law states that the value of a communications network is proportional to the number of users on the network squared. Each new Internet user is a potential new Bitcoin user, especially in those places on the planet where there’s poor Internet connectivity because those places often have a weak local currency that Bitcoin functions as a hedge against. In 2008, 23% of the world’s population had access to the Internet, and in 2018, that number was 48%. In the developing world, the numbers were 14% in 2008 and 41% in 2018. The global numbers might not double again in the forthcoming ten years, but it looks like they’ll keep on rising, especially in developing countries, where they might just double again. All of these indicators (less Bitcoin, more fiat money, more Internet users) point toward a rising Bitcoin price, regardless of its current valuation. Bitcoin has risen in value extremely fast and has added, on average, an additional zero at the end of its price figure roughly every three years. Can it really keep on doing so? Think about the underlying forces that drive the price up. Every single mobile device could potentially hold Bitcoin, yet only a select few do. When more and more people embrace the technology, the whole fear of missing out cycle starts again, and the price jumps up to the next plateau. Note also that every current Bitcoin user can do three things with his or her coins: sell them, lose them, or hold them. On top of this, nothing is stopping an existing Bitcoin user from acquiring more coins.

Bitcoin is an Internet protocol that is very resistant to change. It showed an unprecedented example of this in late 2017 when all of the biggest companies in Bitcoin decided that they were going to implement the proposed Segregated Witness upgrade and then hard fork to 2-megabyte blocks a couple of months later. Segregated Witness, which most users wanted, was activated, but the network’s users resisted the 2-megabyte block hard fork. This led to a lot of frustration among the proponents of the hard fork and led to the creation of a copycat altcoin called Bitcoin Cash. The price of both tokens rose quickly in the aftermath of the fork, but in hindsight, the event was more of a train robbery than a Christmas gift — confusing at best. Segregated Witness does not only free up block space, but it also allows for Layer 2 scaling solutions to be built on top of Bitcoin, such as the Lightning Network. The Lightning Network allows for instant, completely anonymous, nearly free micro-transactions that do not take up block space, and it is up and running right now. In addition to this, the number of Lightning Network transactions that can be carried out simultaneously is only limited by the bandwidth of the nodes. This makes the Lightning Network a future real competitor to Visa or Mastercard. Many other Layer 2 upgrades are in the works, but the core Bitcoin network functions the same way it always has with its inputs and outputs, its public and private keys, and so on.

Will some other token ever replace Bitcoin, then? After all, more efficient protocols are out there. Short answer: no. This has been mentioned several times before in this book, but it can’t be stressed enough. Scarcity on the Internet was a one-time discovery. It was a one-time invention, and it cannot be repeated because resistance to replicability is the invention. Bitcoin’s history and unique position are what makes it truly scarce and resistant to change, and these first ten years will not repeat themselves for any “alternative” token. There is still a lot of confusion about what Bitcoin is, and the idea of sound money on the Internet is a hard concept to grasp since humans haven’t ever encountered absolute scarcity before. The best path forward for any person is arguably to educate him- or herself and others about the invention and what it means. Time will tell whether your sources were true or false, and it is unlikely that Bitcoin will achieve mass adoption in the next couple of years. Still, the infrastructure is in place, and the interfaces of its surrounding software, like wallets, are getting more and more user-friendly every day. Remember, the iPhone was first introduced to the world in 2007, and smartphones had enormous corporate marketing to help them succeed all along the way. Bitcoin grows organically. Let it breathe and watch it evolve but whatever you do, don’t miss the opportunity and acquire some while you still can, at this discounted price.

About the Bitcoin Infinity Academy

The Bitcoin Infinity Academy is an educational project built around Knut Svanholm’s books about Bitcoin and Austrian Economics. Each week, a whole chapter from one of the books is released for free on Highlighter, accompanied by a video in which Knut and Luke de Wolf discuss that chapter’s ideas. You can join the discussions by signing up for one of the courses on our Geyser page. Signed books, monthly calls, and lots of other benefits are also available.

@ dab6c606:51f507b6

Dlhšie som sa zaujímal o to ako funguje biznis s míľami, vernostnými bodmi. Zistil som, že to čiastočne môžu robiť iba veľké korporácie kvôli tomu ako to môžu potom zaúčtovať. A je to daňovo super výhodné. Pridal som aj info o vernostných bodoch a darčekových kartách. Text nižšie napísali rôzne AI ako som sa v tom vŕtal, to je v zásade sumár, zdieľam pre tých, ktorých to zaujíma.

Časť I: Vernostné programy veľkých korporácií

Obchodná logika vernostných programov

Vernostné programy leteckých spoločností a hotelov sú sofistikované obchodné nástroje, ktoré slúžia niekoľkým kľúčovým účelom. Primárne fungujú na zvýšenie zákazníckej lojality vytvorením "switching costs" - zákazníci nechcú prísť o nazbierané body, čo znižuje pravdepodobnosť, že prejdú ku konkurencii.

Zároveň sú významným zdrojom dodatočných príjmov. Napríklad American Airlines zarába viac na predaji míľ bankám ako na niektorých leteckých linkách. Keď Citibank kupuje míle za 1-2 centy za míľu, aerolínia získava okamžitý príjem, zatiaľ čo reálna hodnota pre zákazníka môže byť 3-5 centov pri správnom využití.

Účtovné spracovanie vernostných bodov

Z účtovného hľadiska predstavujú vernostné body odložené záväzky. Keď zákazník získa body, spoločnosť musí vytvoriť rezervu na ich budúce uplatnenie. Body sa oceňujú na základe predpokladaných nákladov na ich uplatnenie, nie na základe nominálnej hodnoty.

Kľúčový je rozdiel medzi cash accounting a accrual accounting: - Cash accounting: Príjmy sa uznávajú pri prijatí platby, náklady pri zaplatení. - Accrual accounting: Príjmy a náklady sa uznávajú v momente vzniku záväzku.

Pre vernostné programy je accrual accounting kritické. Keď aerolínia predá míle banke za $1,000,000, vytvorí zároveň záväzok na budúce náklady (povedzme $600,000), takže zdaniteľný príjem je len $400,000.

Príklad: Predaj míľ banke

Aerolínia predá 50 miliónov míľ Citibank za $1,000,000: 1. Okamžitý príjem: $1,000,000 2. Vytvorenie záväzku: $600,000 (odhadované budúce náklady) 3. Zdaniteľný príjem: $400,000 4. Budúce náklady: Keď zákazníci míle využijú, spoločnosť uzná náklad a zníži záväzok

Pozitívna marža vzniká z niekoľkých faktorov: - Breakage - 15-20% míľ sa nikdy neuplatní - Časová hodnota peňazí - Peniaze od banky investuje okamžite - Marginálne náklady - Prázdne sedadlo má nízky prírastok nákladu

Daňová optimalizácia a offshore štruktúry

Veľké spoločnosti často využívajú medzinárodné štruktúry na optimalizáciu daní z vernostných programov. Typická štruktúra zahŕňa: 1. Materská spoločnosť (USA/EU) - Prevádzkuje lety a poskytuje služby (napr. lety alebo ubytovanie). 2. IP Holding (Írsko/Holandsko) - Vlastní duševné vlastníctvo (IP) k loyalty programu, ako sú značky, softvér a databázy. 3. Loyalty Operating Company (Singapur/Dubaj) - Spravuje predaj míľ bankám a partnerom, koordinuje program a komunikuje so zákazníkmi.

Obchodné vzťahy a platby medzi entitami (príklad s pozitívnym výsledkom pre Singapur)

Tieto entity sú prepojené zmluvami, ktoré určujú, kto za čo platí a prečo, aby sa minimalizovala daňová záťaž: - Banka → Singapur (Loyalty Operating Company): Banka (napr. Citibank) platí $1,000,000 za míle, ktoré ponúka svojim klientom ako odmenu za používanie kreditných kariet. Singapurská spoločnosť je hlavný kontaktný bod pre partnerov, pretože je umiestnená v jurisdikcii s nízkou daňou (17 %) a dobrou infraštruktúrou pre finančné služby. - Singapur → Írsko (IP Holding): Singapurská spoločnosť platí $500,000 ako royalty za použitie IP (značky, softvéru a dát) loyalty programu. Táto platba je vysoká, aby sa presunul zisk do Írska, kde je daňová sadzba ešte nižšia (12,5 %). Tým sa znižuje zdaniteľný príjem v Singapure. - Singapur → Materská spoločnosť (Aerolínia): Singapurská spoločnosť platí $300,000 materskej spoločnosti za poskytnutie služieb (napr. letov), keď zákazníci využijú míle. Táto platba je nižšia ako reálne náklady, aby sa minimalizoval zisk v krajine materskej spoločnosti, kde je daňová sadzba vyššia (napr. 25-35 % v USA alebo EU). - Zisk v Singapure: $1,000,000 (príjem od banky) - $500,000 (royalty do Írska) - $300,000 (platba aerolínii) = $200,000 zisku, ktorý je zdanený pri 17 % v Singapure.

Prečo takéto rozdelenie?

• Írsko (IP Holding): Vysoké royalty platby ($500,000) idú do Írska, pretože daňová sadzba 12,5 % je atraktívna a Írsko je považované za "serióznu" jurisdikciu, ktorá spĺňa medzinárodné pravidlá (napr. BEPS). Zároveň má Írsko zmluvy o zamedzení dvojitého zdanenia s mnohými krajinami, čo uľahčuje presun zisku.
• Singapur (Loyalty Operating Company): Predaj míľ a koordinácia programu prebieha v Singapure kvôli priaznivému daňovému prostrediu (17 %) a strategickej polohe pre ázijské trhy. Zároveň sa tu zanecháva malý zisk ($200,000), aby sa preukázala "ekonomická substance" – teda, že spoločnosť má reálnu činnosť.
• Materská spoločnosť: Platba $300,000 je nízka, aby sa minimalizoval zdaniteľný príjem v krajine s vysokou daňovou sadzbou (napr. USA alebo EU).

Prečo nie 0 % daňová jurisdikcia?

Prečo sa nepoužíva krajina s nulovou daňou (napr. Kajmanské ostrovy)? Kvôli: - Regulatory scrutiny - Daňové úrady pozorne sledujú 0 % jurisdikcie a môžu spochybniť legitímnosť. - BEPS pravidlám - Potreba preukázať "substance" (reálne kancelárie, zamestnancov) v krajine. - Credibility testu - 12,5 % v Írsku alebo 17 % v Singapure vyzerá ako legitímna obchodná operácia.

Výsledkom takejto štruktúry je, že väčšina zisku (60-70 %) je zdanená pri 12,5 % v Írsku alebo 17 % v Singapure namiesto 25-35 % v domovskej krajine aerolínky.

Časť II: Loyalty programy a alternatívy pre malé biznisy

Prečo je loyalty program problematický pre malé biznisy

Na rozdiel od veľkých korporácií, malé biznisy ako kaviarne narážajú pri vernostných programoch na zásadný problém: cash accounting povinnosť. V mnohých krajinách musia malé firmy (pod $25M ročne) používať cash accounting, čo znamená: - Príjem z predaja bodov sa zdaní okamžite - Náklady sa odpočítajú až keď zákazník body využije (možno o rok) - Vzniká daňový a cashflow problém - daň sa platí z peňazí, ktoré "stratíte" v budúcnosti

Predstavte si kaviareň, ktorá predá vernostné body za €100. Okamžite musí zaplatiť daň (povedzme €21), ale náklady na kávu poskytnutú za body odpočíta až v budúcnosti.

Alternatívne modely pre malé biznisy

Existujú daňovo výhodnejšie alternatívy:

1. Gift Cards model

• Príjem sa NEUZNÁ pri predaji gift karty
• Príjem sa uzná až keď zákazník kartu využije
• Príklad: Predáte gift cards za €10,000 v decembri, získate cash okamžite, ale daň platíte postupne, ako zákazníci karty využívajú počas nasledujúceho roka.
• Časová hodnota peňazí: Peniaze môžete investovať (napr. 6 % ročne = €600 extra zisk na €10,000)
• Breakage benefit: 2-10 % kariet sa nikdy nevyužije, po určitom čase (3-5 rokov, podľa legislatívy) môžete zostatok uznať ako čistý zisk.

Príklad: Starbucks Starbucks mal v roku 2022 na účtoch $1,5 miliardy v nevyužitých gift cards. Odhadovaný breakage 3 % znamená $45 miliónov čistého zisku – bezúročná pôžička od zákazníkov s bonusom, že časť sa nikdy nevráti.

2. Subscription model

• Mesačný príjem = okamžité zdanenie
• Mesačné náklady = okamžitý odpočet
• Príklad: €10/mesiac za "premium membership" s určitými benefitmi

3. Discount Coupons

• Žiadny príjem pri vydaní kupónu
• Znížený príjem pri uplatnení (predáte za nižšiu cenu)
• Príklad: 20 % zľavový kupón = predaj kávy za €4 namiesto €5

Outsourcing loyalty programu: Podrobnosti o Shopify Loyalty

Platformy ako Shopify Loyalty predstavujú elegantné riešenie pre malé biznisy, ktoré chcú ponúkať vernostné programy bez účtovných a daňových komplikácií. Poďme si to rozobrať podrobne:

Ako funguje Shopify Loyalty

• Shopify ako tretia strana: Shopify vlastní a spravuje celý vernostný program vrátane bodov a softvéru. Zákazník má svoj "účet" priamo u Shopify, nie u konkrétneho obchodu. To znamená, že body nie sú vaším záväzkom, ale záväzkom Shopify.
• Vaša úloha: Vy (napr. kaviareň) platíte Shopify mesačný poplatok (napr. €29) za používanie platformy a malý transakčný poplatok (napr. €0,20) za každé uplatnenie bodov (reward). Vy ste v podstate "dodávateľom služieb" pre Shopify – poskytujete odmeny, keď vám Shopify pošle objednávku.
• Získavanie bodov: Zákazník získava body za nákupy v obchodoch, ktoré sú zapojené do Shopify Loyalty programu. Napríklad, ak zákazník nakúpi kávu za €5 vo vašej kaviarni, Shopify mu pripíše body (napr. 5 bodov za každé euro, teda 25 bodov). Konkrétne pravidlá (koľko bodov za euro) si nastavujete vy cez Shopify platformu, ale technicky body spravuje Shopify.
• Využitie bodov: Zákazník môže body využiť na odmeny (napr. kávu zadarmo za 100 bodov), ale zvyčajne len v obchodoch zapojených do Shopify siete. To znamená, že ak vaša kaviareň používa Shopify Loyalty, body získané u vás môžu byť využité u vás alebo v iných obchodoch v rámci Shopify ekosystému, ak to Shopify umožňuje. Väčšinou však obchody nastavujú program tak, aby boli body využiteľné primárne u nich, čím sa zvyšuje lojalita k ich značke.
• Proces uplatnenia bodov: Keď zákazník chce využiť body (napr. 100 bodov za kávu zadarmo), Shopify pošle objednávku vám (kaviarni) na poskytnutie odmeny. Vy kávu vydáte, ale nedostanete za ňu priamy príjem od zákazníka – ide o marketingový náklad. Zároveň platíte Shopify transakčný poplatok (€0,20). Účtovne to nie je predaj, takže nevzniká zdaniteľný príjem ani povinnosť vystaviť bloček.
• Účtovné spracovanie: Keď zákazník využije body:
• Žiadny bloček = žiadny zdaniteľný príjem
• Náklad kávy (€2) + Shopify fee (€0,20) = €2,20
• Účtuje sa ako "Promotional expenses" alebo "Marketing costs"

Prečo musí byť loyalty program outsourcovaný tretej strane (ako Shopify)?

Malé biznisy nemajú kapacitu ani zdroje na správu vlastného loyalty programu "in-house" z týchto dôvodov: - Daňová a účtovná komplexnosť: Ak by ste spravovali loyalty program sami, museli by ste vytvárať rezervy na budúce záväzky (body, ktoré zákazníci využijú neskôr), odhadovať breakage rate (percento nevyužitých bodov) a riešiť cash vs. accrual accounting. Pre malé firmy, ktoré často musia používať cash accounting, to znamená okamžité zdanenie príjmu, ak by body predávali, ale odpočet nákladov až v budúcnosti – vzniká cashflow nesúlad. - Technologická infraštruktúra: Správa bodov, databáz zákazníkov a integrácia s platobnými systémami vyžaduje sofistikovaný softvér a IT tím, čo je pre malé firmy nákladné a komplikované. - Legálna separácia: Keď program spravuje tretia strana ako Shopify, body sú ich záväzkom, nie vaším. Pre vás to znamená, že nemáte žiadne budúce záväzky vo svojej účtovnej knihe – len mesačné náklady (poplatok Shopify), ktoré sú daňovo odpočítateľné ako bežný výdavok. - Ekonomická efektivita: Shopify združuje tisíce obchodov, čím dosahuje ekonomiku rozsahu – nižšie náklady na softvér, bezpečnosť a správu dát. Malá kaviareň by sama nikdy nedokázala vytvoriť takýto systém za rozumnú cenu.

Prečo to nemôže byť in-house z daňového hľadiska?

Ak by malá firma spravovala loyalty program sama: - Okamžitý daňový problém: Ak by firma predávala body (napr. za peniaze alebo ako súčasť nákupu), príjem by musela zdaniť hneď, hoci náklady na poskytnutie odmien (napr. káva zadarmo) by mohla odpočítať až v momente, keď zákazník body využije. To vytvára cashflow nesúlad, pretože daň platíte skôr, než reálne "stratíte" peniaze na odmenu. - Zložité rezervy: Musela by odhadovať, koľko bodov sa využije, a vytvárať účtovné rezervy, čo je administratívne náročné a vyžaduje drahých účtovníkov alebo softvér. - Riziko chýb: Nesprávne odhady breakage rate alebo zlý manažment záväzkov môžu viesť k daňovým kontrolám a pokutám.

S Shopify sa tieto problémy eliminujú – vy platíte len mesačný poplatok a transakčné fees, ktoré sú jednoducho účtované ako marketingové náklady. Shopify preberá celú zodpovednosť za správu bodov a záväzkov voči zákazníkom.

Prípadová štúdia: Vernostné body pre kaviareň (model 10 + 1 zadarmo)

Pozrime sa na konkrétny prípad malej kaviarne, ktorá ponúka klasický vernostný program typu "10 + 1 zadarmo". Zákazník dostane 1 bod za každú kúpenú kávu (napr. za €3) a po nazbieraní 10 bodov dostane jednu kávu zadarmo. Rozoberieme, ako to funguje účtovne, či ide o "promotional expense" a aký je rozdiel medzi in-house správou a použitím Shopify.

Ako funguje program "10 + 1 zadarmo"

• Získavanie bodov: Zákazník kúpi kávu za €3 a dostane 1 bod (napr. pečiatku na kartičku alebo digitálny záznam). Body nemajú peňažnú hodnotu na predaj – sú čisto odmenou za nákup.
• Využitie bodov: Po nazbieraní 10 bodov (čo znamená nákupy za €30) zákazník dostane kávu zadarmo (hodnota €3).
• Reálny náklad pre kaviareň: Náklad na výrobu kávy zadarmo je nižší ako predajná cena, napr. €1,50 za suroviny a prácu.

Účtovné spracovanie (In-house)

Ak kaviareň spravuje program sama (in-house), účtovný proces závisí od toho, či používa cash accounting (bežné pre malé firmy) alebo accrual accounting: - Cash accounting: - Pri nákupe kávy zákazníkom: Kaviareň účtuje príjem €3 za každú kávu a vydá bloček. Bod (pečiatka) nemá peňažnú hodnotu, takže sa neúčtuje ako záväzok ani príjem. - Pri uplatnení 10 bodov: Keď zákazník dostane kávu zadarmo, nevzniká príjem (€0), ale vzniká náklad na výrobu kávy (€1,50). Tento náklad sa účtuje ako "Promotional expense" alebo "Marketing cost", pretože ide o formu zľavy alebo reklamy na udržanie zákazníka. - Daňový dopad: Žiadny príjem pri vydaní kávy zadarmo, náklad €1,50 je daňovo odpočítateľný ako bežný výdavok. - Accrual accounting (menej bežné pre malé firmy): - Pri nákupe kávy zákazníkom: Kaviareň účtuje príjem €3, ale zároveň vytvára malý záväzok na budúcu odmenu (napr. €0,30 za každý bod, čo je odhad nákladu na budúcu kávu zadarmo deleno 10). Teda z €3 príjmu je zdaniteľný príjem len €2,70. - Pri uplatnení 10 bodov: Keď zákazník dostane kávu zadarmo, kaviareň zníži záväzok o €3 (10 bodov x €0,30) a účtuje náklad €1,50 na výrobu kávy. Rozdiel môže byť upravený ako breakage alebo iný zisk, ak sa odhady líšia od reality. - Daňový dopad: Zdaniteľný príjem je nižší už pri prvom nákupe, ale účtovníctvo je zložitejšie kvôli odhadom a rezervám.

Je to Promotional Expense? Áno, v oboch prípadoch (cash aj accrual) sa náklad na kávu zadarmo účtuje ako "Promotional expense" alebo "Marketing cost", pretože ide o formu zľavy na podporu lojality zákazníkov. Nie je to považované za bežný predaj, pretože nevzniká príjem ani bloček.

Účtovné spracovanie (cez Shopify Loyalty)

Ak kaviareň používa Shopify Loyalty na správu programu "10 + 1 zadarmo", proces je jednoduchší: - Pri nákupe kávy zákazníkom: Kaviareň účtuje príjem €3 za kávu a vydá bloček. Shopify pripíše bod zákazníkovi do jeho účtu (nie je to váš záväzok, ale Shopify). - Pri uplatnení 10 bodov: Shopify pošle objednávku na vydanie kávy zadarmo. Kaviareň vydá kávu (náklad €1,50) a zaplatí Shopify transakčný poplatok (€0,20). Celkový náklad €1,70 sa účtuje ako "Promotional expense" alebo "Marketing cost". - Daňový dopad: Rovnako ako pri in-house, žiadny príjem pri vydaní kávy zadarmo, náklad €1,70 je daňovo odpočítateľný ako bežný výdavok. Navyše nemusíte riešiť žiadne záväzky alebo odhady breakage, pretože body spravuje Shopify.

Rozdiel medzi In-house a Shopify

• In-house:
• Výhody: Plná kontrola nad programom, žiadne mesačné poplatky tretej strane (napr. €29 Shopify fee).
• Nevýhody: Ak použijete accrual accounting, musíte vytvárať rezervy a odhadovať breakage, čo je administratívne náročné. Pri cash accounting je to jednoduchšie (žiadne záväzky), ale ak by ste body predávali za peniaze, vzniká daňový nesúlad (príjem zdanený hneď, náklad až neskôr). Navyše musíte sami spravovať databázu bodov (pečiatky, softvér), čo je časovo náročné.
• Shopify Loyalty:
• Výhody: Žiadne záväzky vo vašej účtovnej knihe, Shopify spravuje body a technológiu. Účtovne je to jednoduché – len mesačný poplatok (€29) a transakčné poplatky (€0,20) ako marketingový náklad. Nemusíte riešiť odhady ani breakage.
• Nevýhody: Platíte mesačné poplatky a transakčné fees, čo zvyšuje náklady (napr. €0,20 navyše za každú kávu zadarmo). Máte menšiu kontrolu nad programom, pretože ho spravuje tretia strana.

Záver pre kaviareň: Program "10 + 1 zadarmo" je účtovne považovaný za Promotional expense v oboch prípadoch (in-house aj Shopify), pretože káva zadarmo je forma marketingu na udržanie zákazníkov. Rozdiel je v administratívnej záťaži a nákladoch – Shopify zjednodušuje účtovníctvo a správu, ale za cenu mesačných poplatkov. In-house je lacnejšie, ale náročnejšie na správu, najmä ak by ste chceli používať accrual accounting alebo predávať body za peniaze.

Záver

Vernostné programy sú sofistikovaný nástroj zákazníckej lojality, ale ich účtovné a daňové aspekty sa výrazne líšia medzi veľkými a malými firmami. Veľké korporácie využívajú accrual accounting a medzinárodné štruktúry na optimalizáciu daní, zatiaľ čo pre malé biznisy sú často výhodnejšie alternatívne modely ako gift cards alebo outsourcing celého programu, ktoré eliminujú daňové a cashflow problémy. Gift cards navyše prinášajú okamžitý cash flow, časovú hodnotu peňazí a breakage benefit, čo z nich robí ideálny nástroj pre podniky všetkých veľkostí. Shopify Loyalty ponúka malým firmám spôsob, ako implementovať vernostný program bez účtovných komplikácií, pretože preberá technickú a právnu zodpovednosť, čím umožňuje sústrediť sa na core biznis. Pre jednoduché programy ako "10 + 1 zadarmo" je účtovný dopad podobný (Promotional expense), ale Shopify zjednodušuje správu za cenu dodatočných poplatkov.

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@ edf0da8b:b2652fa3

If you've been active on Nostr, you've probably realized that your posts come and go like waves. There’s no content-surfacing algorithm to keep them afloat. So, unless someone happens to scroll past at just the right time, your insights, event announcements, or deep reflections are getting swept away. There is no pretty profile page that refers to your content.

That’s where Npub.pro comes in—and it’s what I used to build my own website as a transformative coach and Wim Hof method instructor.

This article is about how Npub.pro works, my experience with it, and why it may be useful to you, too.

What is Npub.pro?

Npub.pro is a web service that pulls your posts from the Nostr protocol and weaves them into a clean, customizable website. It uses open-source templates from Ghost, making it easy to create a beautiful, functional landing page without needing to write any code.

If you're already posting on Nostr, Npub.pro turns that content into something lasting and visually appealing—like a curated blog or even a business homepage.

Why I Chose Npub.pro for My Coaching Business

My work centers on personal transformation for leading a sovereign life—emotional, mental, and physical. I lead workshops, retreats and 1:1 sessions, and I needed a quick and simple place online that would communicate who I am, what I offer, and what’s coming up next.

Since I already post regularly on Nostr, it made sense to reuse that content. But instead of letting my posts drift away in the feed, Npub.pro gave me a way to give them structure and longevity.

Plus, it really looks good.

Features That Make It Worthwhile

Easy Website Creation

You don’t need to become technical. The Npub.pro dashboard is simple and intuitive. Just pick a template, connect your Nostr keys, add your posts individually or based on hashtags, and voilà—your content starts showing up. You can experiment with different templates freely, without messing things up.

Multiple Templates for Different Needs

There is a good amount of templates to choose from, for photo blogging, journaling or podcasting etc. I started with "Liebling," switched to "Micro-Ruby" for a bit, and finally settled on "Massively"—it shows my often picture-based posts clearly and lets me feature a highlight post at the top.

Tag-Based Categories

You can organize your content into sections like I did with “About & Events,” “Wim Hof Method,” or “Natural Living.” If you tag your Nostr posts accordingly and set up your categories in your dashboard, they’ll just fall into place.

Free Hosting + Custom Domains

Npub.pro is completely free if you’re okay with a domain like yourname.npub.pro. If you want something more professional, you can link a custom domain. I got mine for about $10/year from Namecheap. For now, even custom domains are free to connect. If you host your media on Nostr with e.g. Primal or Nostr.Build (subscription-based), and get a custom domain name, you have a complete low-budget website up and running.

What to Watch Out For

Npub.pro is not perfect and still evolving. Here are some limitations to keep in mind:

No Native Lead Capture or Email Signup

If you for example want to offer a PDF or free online class in exchange for email addresses, you’ll need to get creative with external links. Unfortunately, there’s no built-in call-to-action feature for non-Nostr users … yet.

No Pay-walled Content or Membership Features

If you’re looking to monetize content or offer member-only areas, you can hope and ask the Npub.pro team for future features.

Some Trial & Error Required

Tagging needs to be done when you post. Adding tags retroactively with versatile clients like Amethyst won’t make old posts appear on your website. I had to republish a few posts just to get them sorted into the right category. Expect a few hiccups, but it’s manageable.

Npub.pro and Nostr

Npub.pro is part of a bigger picture—the rise of Nostr as a decentralized social network. It’s censorship-resistant, Bitcoin-integrated, and potentially an all-in-one protocol for media, messaging, publishing, and payment. That's crazy to think about!

Right now, the infrastructure is still getting there. Not everything works reliably yet, and complex and visually rich experiences like Instagram-style clients (e.g. Olas) still fall short. But Npub.pro is one of those services that shows where it can be heading: toward digital sovereignty.

Is Npub.pro for You?

If you’re already active on Nostr, I think this is a no-brainer. You can turn your feed into a curated blog or landing page with very little extra effort.

Even if you're not yet using Nostr yet, Npub.pro is still worth exploring if:

• You want a free or low-budget minimal website that’s connected to your social media content.
• You care about decentralization and owning your data.
• You’re okay with less customization and a little experimentation here and there while things improve.

So in short, Npub.pro is a smart, and simple way to publish your presence online—especially if you want your content to live beyond the scroll on Nostr.

Final Thoughts

I was surprised how good everything looked in the end on desktop, tablet and mobile and how easily you can manage your content. It’s not perfect for all needs, but it does the job remarkably well for a first website or personal landing page. And by using Npub.pro, you’re helping build the future of open, user-owned publishing online.

Check Out Npub.pro

https://npub.pro

My Website:

www.bennubreath.me

Old-school Socials:

https://youtube.com/@bennubreath

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@Npub.pro @brugeman

NpubPro #DecentralizedWeb #GhostCMS #WimHof #DigitalSovereignty #OpenWeb #ContentCuration #BuildWithNostr #WebsiteHosting #Freedom #Transformation

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"Privacy is necessary for an open society in the electronic age. Privacy is not secrecy.  A private matter is something one doesn't want the whole world to know, but a secret matter is something one doesn't want anybody to know. Privacy is the power to selectively reveal oneself to the world." - Eric Hughes, A Cypherpunk's Manifesto, 1993

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Privacy is essential to freedom. Without privacy, individuals are unable to make choices free from surveillance and control. Lack of privacy leads to loss of autonomy. When individuals are constantly monitored it limits our ability to express ourselves and take risks. Any decisions we make can result in negative repercussions from those who surveil us. Without the freedom to make choices, individuals cannot truly be free.

Freedom is essential to acquiring and preserving wealth. When individuals are not free to make choices, restrictions and limitations prevent us from economic opportunities. If we are somehow able to acquire wealth in such an environment, lack of freedom can result in direct asset seizure by governments or other malicious entities. At scale, when freedom is compromised, it leads to widespread economic stagnation and poverty. Protecting freedom is essential to economic prosperity.

The connection between privacy, freedom, and wealth is critical. Without privacy, individuals lose the freedom to make choices free from surveillance and control. While lack of freedom prevents individuals from pursuing economic opportunities and makes wealth preservation nearly impossible. No Privacy? No Freedom. No Freedom? No Wealth.

Rights are not granted. They are taken and defended. Rights are often misunderstood as permission to do something by those holding power. However, if someone can give you something, they can inherently take it from you at will. People throughout history have necessarily fought for basic rights, including privacy and freedom. These rights were not given by those in power, but rather demanded and won through struggle. Even after these rights are won, they must be continually defended to ensure that they are not taken away. Rights are not granted - they are earned through struggle and defended through sacrifice.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.

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Influencers would have you believe there is an ongoing binance bank run but bitcoin wallet data says otherwise.

- binance wallets are near all time highs
- bitfinex wallets are also trending up
- gemini and coinbase are being hit with massive withdrawals though

You should not trust custodians, they can rug you without warning. It is incredibly important you learn how to hold bitcoin yourself, but also consider not blindly trusting influencers with a ref link to shill you.

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If you found this post helpful support my work with bitcoin.