This is a segment from the 0xResearch newsletter. To read full editions, subscribe.
Even taking into account yesterday’s global market selloff, the “Uptober” framing, in the end, did not disappoint.
For the month, bitcoin was up about 11% to close at the second-highest monthly level ever. US bitcoin ETFs saw $2.28 billion in inflows this week (excluding today), capping off a month of roughly $5.63 billion entering the segment.
While it remains to be seen whether that capital is sticky or more of a temporary basis-driven trade, BTC bulls have nothing to complain about.
Heading into November and the US election week, short-term BTC options volatility has surged and inverted the term structure. Several commentators see it as echoing the trends in the run-up to the launch of US spot bitcoin ETFs at the start of the year.
BTC futures open interest accelerated in October, showing steady demand amid election positioning.
New testnets
Space and Time Labs launched the SXT Chain testnet at Chainlink SmartCon in Hong Kong. The move brings a zk-verifiable blockchain indexing platform for developers one step closer. SXT Chain, which uses the ZK Stack, enables decentralized, zk-proven data delivery to smart contracts and is expected to facilitate new possibilities, like onchain credit scoring.
Through what Space and Time calls “Proof of SQL,” developers can query and verify data across chains, including Ethereum and ZKsync’s Elastic Chain ecosystem.
Also launching a testnet this week is =nil; Foundation, debuting its Ethereum L2 powered by zkSharding. Following a successful devnet debut, this release showcases protocol upgrades and a handful of dapps, such as Uniswap v2 demo DEX functionality in a sharded environment.
The zkSharding framework is one option for overcoming the fragmentation currently plaguing Ethereum L2s. It combines appchain scalability with monolithic composability, according to new CEO Avi Zurlo and co-founder Konstantin Lomashuk. Backed by Polychain and Blockchain Capital, =nil; is planning further testnets in 2025.
Nomic has launched its Babylon bitcoin staking on Ethereum testnet. Nomic offers a decentralized solution for bitcoin staking via Babylon, allowing users to avoid centralized custodians. Bedrock’s uniBTC, a liquid staking token (LST) with over 2,000 BTC staked, will be among the first to adopt the protocol.
Mainnet and further EVM chain rollouts are planned for the coming months, pending the increase of Babylong deposit caps.
A twist on the restaking airdrop?
Zircuit has launched what it calls the “EIGEN fairdrop,” an airdrop of 2% of its total supply distributed equally among 190,000+ eligible EIGEN holders. The fairdrop, which is based on an Oct. 8 snapshot, will grant eligible participants who have at least 3 EIGEN tokens — excluding the EigenLayer team and investors — a share of the ZRC token distribution.