A dual-network design and fractal sharding give the Waterfall Network interesting scalability properties. Can a blockchain scale without breaking the promise of decentralization? Waterfall Network argues yes by leaving the linear blockchain model behind. In July 2024, Waterfall Network launched its mainnet and joined the short list of layer-1 protocols that depart from the traditional blockchain architecture. In its latest report, Cointelegraph Research investigates Waterfall Network’s architecture and validator design to assess whether it can become a sustainable, alternative base layer. The full Cointelegraph Research report on Waterfall includes validator roles, DAG propagation mechanics and ecosystem overview. Download the full report here Waterfall Network is a layer-1 protocol that implements a Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG) as its foundational ledger. A DAG is a non-linear data structure that arranges blocks as vertices in a directed graph. Read more
Bitlayer faces competition from other Bitcoin DeFi protocols such as BabylonChain, Stacks and BounceBit. Bitlayer, a Bitcoin decentralized finance (DeFi) infrastructure startup backed by Franklin Templeton, has launched its smart contract bridge on mainnet, aiming to make Bitcoin more interoperable across multiple blockchain networks. The bridge, called BitVM, is described by the company as a “trust-minimized bridging solution for Bitcoin holders.” It enables users to deposit Bitcoin (BTC) into a smart contract, where it is held in escrow and converted into Peg-BTC (YBTC), a tokenized version of Bitcoin that can interact with smart contract platforms. According to Bitlayer, Peg-BTC is designed to facilitate programmability and crosschain compatibility. The company has already secured partnerships to integrate the bridge with networks including Sui, Base, and Arbitrum. Read more
Iurii Gugnin allegedly used fake documents to bypass sanctions and launder $530 million for Russian clients. In the process, he deceived US banks. Iurii Gugnin allegedly used his crypto firm to move $530 million through US banks and crypto exchanges using Tether (USDT), facilitating payments for Russian clients tied to sanctioned banks. Gugnin allegedly failed to implement AML regulations and didn’t file suspicious activity reports (SARs), violating the Bank Secrecy Act and misleading financial institutions. Gugnin also reportedly accessed websites that provided information on indicators of criminal investigation and methods for detecting law enforcement surveillance. Read more