Accusers say NVIDIA is plotting to monopolize the Ethereum network. Is there a shred of evidence?

Ethereum developers and miners are embroiled in a bitter feud involving accusations of deceit, forgery and harassment. At the heart of the dispute is an allegation that NVIDIA, a major maker of specialized processing chips, is trying to undermine the world’s second-largest blockchain platform.

Critics say that NVIDIA has surreptitiously influenced the development of "ProgPoW," a proposed upgrade to the Ethereum network that would increase demand for cheap “GPU” mining hardware over specialized “ASICS.”
 

The accusers say that the ProgPoW algorithm is custom-built for NVIDIA's own GPUS—meaning, if the upgrade passes, the hardware giant will become the go-to distributor for Ethereum miners. That in turn, they allege, would boost the company's sales, allowing it to consolidate control over the Ethereum network.

The anti-ProgPoW camp scored an early victory on Tuesday when Minehan, responding to her critics, abruptly stepped down from her position at Core Scientific, a mining hardware company based in Bellevue, Washington. Core Scientific is alleged to have connections with NVIDIA and—perhaps worse—Calvin Ayre, the billionaire former gambling tycoon whose own vast mining operation, CoinGeek, supports Bitcoin knockoff and Ethereum competitor Bitcoin SV. Accusers believe that Ayre is quietly pulling the strings, via a series of convoluted mergers and acquisitions.

Binance announces Market Maker Program to tempt whales

Crypto exchange Binance has announced a market maker service designed to encourage big spenders to increase the amount of crypto running through its network. 

The Binance Market Maker Program offers reduced trading fees and higher API limits to traders whose volumes surpass 1,000 Bitcoin a month ($7,880,400) and who have “quality market maker strategies”. 

The hope is that whales use Binance to trade cryptocurrencies, which in turn, would hopefully encourage other traders to follow suit. As more money flows through the exchange, and the liquidity of the exchange rises, it makes it easier for small traders to fulfill orders. 

Documents Binance showed to Decrypt show that 16 coins are included in the program, including Dash, Bitcoin, and Ethereum. All pairings are for USDT (Tether), apart from Bitcoin, which is paired with BUSD.

Here are the biggest stories in the cryptoverse:

• Band Protocol releases Dapp to allow bitcoin trading. 
• UTRUST adds Dash for crypto payments. 
• $300 million deal for Bithumb going bust.  
• Swiss stock exchange prepares Initial Digital Offering. 

JP Morgan analyst thinks Bakkt is responsible for Bitcoin’s price crash

What you need to know

A report by JP Morgan Chase & Co Friday said the underwhelming launch of ICE’s Bitcoin futures contracts exchange, Bakkt, is responsible for Bitcoin’s latest price crash. The project's price fell off a cliff last week, falling more than 20 percent from $10,026 last Sunday to today’s price, $7,933. 
 

Why it's important

The JP Morgan report suggested that “It may be that the listing of physically settled futures contracts (that enables some holders of physical Bitcoin e.g. miners to hedge exposures) has contributed to recent price declines, rather than the low initial volumes,” JPMorgan’s analyst wrote in the report, according to Bloomberg. 

The report said that Bitcoin’s price peaked a while ago, and the market only just started suffering as old deals, excitedly made from the ambitions of Bitcoin’s bull run, finish up. “This position liquidation has also likely contributed to the sharp falls in Bitcoin prices this week,” said the report. 

Cardano teams up with New Balance

Cardano, the world’s #12 largest blockchain platform, celebrated its second birthday today, with the announcement of a new partnership, with the New Balance sports brand, and an ambitious vision for the future. Earlier this week, the platform also launched its network test net. 

Read more here.