List of questions about [Cryptocurrency]

Introduction

If 2024 was the year of the ETF, 2025 is the year of DeFAI (Decentralized Finance + AI). A new breed of market participant has entered the chat: AI Trading Agents. These aren't just simple bots; they are autonomous programs like AIXBT and Virtuals that analyze on-chain data, post on social media, and execute trades without human intervention.

What is an AI Trading Agent?

Unlike traditional grid bots that just buy low and sell high, AI Agents are "intelligent." They read news sentiment, track whale wallet movements, and even "talk" to other agents. In late 2025, projects like Fetch.ai and SingularityNET have evolved into fully functional ecosystems where agents manage millions of dollars in liquidity.

Why DeFAI is Exploding Now

• The "Agentic" Economy: We are moving from tools we use to tools that act for us.
• 24/7 Alpha: AI agents never sleep. With Bitcoin hovering around $90,000, the market moves too fast for humans.
• Access: Platforms like BYDFI are integrating AI-driven signals, allowing retail users to benefit from this tech without needing a PhD in computer science.

How to Position Yourself

You don't need to code your own agent to win.

For the past two years, the crypto narrative has been dominated by one theme: Layer-2 scaling. It seemed like every week a new project launched a "faster, cheaper" Rollup, promising to be the future of Ethereum.

But according to a bombshell report released today by asset manager 21Shares, the party is over. The industry is approaching a saturation point, and the vast majority of these networks are effectively "zombie chains" walking. We are entering a phase of ruthless consolidation where only a handful of dominant players will survive the winter of 2026.

The Saturation of Blockspace

The core problem is simple economics: Supply has outpaced demand. We have built massive amounts of blockspace—cheap, fast capacity for transactions—but we haven't onboarded enough users to fill it.

The report highlights that while technology has improved, liquidity is a finite resource. It cannot be fractured across 50 different chains.

• The Network Effect: Users want to be where the applications are.
• The Developer Trap: Developers want to build where the users are.

This circular loop creates a "winner-take-all" dynamic. The report suggests that niche L2s that offer nothing unique beyond "low fees" (which everyone now has) will see their activity drop to zero. They will become ghost towns with high server costs and no revenue.

The "Big Three" Tighten Their Grip

So, who wins? The data points to a massive consolidation around the Big Three: Arbitrum, Optimism (OP Mainnet), and Base.

These networks have already achieved "escape velocity."

• Base (Coinbase): By leveraging Coinbase's massive retail user base, Base has become the default home for consumer apps and meme coins.
• Arbitrum: Remains the king of DeFi, hosting the most complex financial protocols and deepest liquidity.
• Optimism: Is winning the infrastructure war with its "Superchain" thesis, powering other chains like Worldcoin and Uniswap's Unichain.

21Shares predicts that these giants will act like black holes, sucking in the remaining liquidity from smaller competitors.

What This Means for Your Portfolio

For investors, this is a critical warning signal. In the last cycle, "betting on the new L2" was a profitable strategy. In this cycle, it is a risk vector.

Holding governance tokens of minor L2s with low Total Value Locked (TVL) is becoming increasingly dangerous. As developers migrate to the Big Three to access better liquidity, the value proposition of smaller chains evaporates. The market is shifting from speculating on infrastructure to investing in established ecosystems.

The Pivot to "App-Chains"

The only exceptions to this extinction event will be highly specialized "App-Chains." These are networks built for a specific purpose—like gaming, high-frequency trading, or institutional identity—that general-purpose chains can't handle well.

If a project doesn't have a specific, undeniable use case, it will likely be swallowed by the giants. The era of "just another general-purpose L2" is officially dead.

Conclusion

The crypto market is maturing. We are moving from a chaotic expansion phase to a structured consolidation phase. While this might be painful for bag-holders of smaller tokens, it is healthy for the industry. It means liquidity will be deeper, user experience will be smoother, and the confusion of "which chain do I use?" will finally disappear.

Cryptocurrency heists have rocked the digital world, exposing vulnerabilities in even the most advanced systems. Here’s a concise look at the largest crypto thefts to date, highlighting key incidents and lessons for investors.

1. Bybit Hack (2025) – $1.46 Billion

In February 2025, Dubai-based exchange Bybit suffered the largest crypto heist ever, losing 400,000 ETH from its cold wallet. Hackers, allegedly North Korea’s Lazarus Group, exploited a transfer to a warm wallet using a sophisticated attack on the signing interface. Bybit’s CEO assured solvency, but only a fraction of funds have been traced.

2. Ronin Network (2022) – $625 Million

The Ronin Network, linked to Axie Infinity, lost 173,600 ETH and 25.5 million USDC in March 2022. Hackers, tied to Lazarus Group, compromised private keys via social engineering. Binance recovered $5.8 million, but most funds remain unrecovered, exposing blockchain gaming vulnerabilities.

3. Poly Network (2021) – $611

MillionA lone hacker exploited a vulnerability in Poly Network’s DeFi platform, stealing $611 million. Surprisingly, the hacker returned nearly all funds, claiming it was a “white hat” act to expose flaws. This incident underscored DeFi’s potential but also its risks.

4. Binance BNB Bridge (2022) – $570 Million

In October 2022, hackers targeted Binance’s BSC Token Hub, draining 2 billion BNB tokens. Quick action froze most funds, limiting losses to $100 million. The attack highlighted cross-chain bridge weaknesses.

5. Coincheck (2018) – $534

MillionTokyo-based Coincheck lost $534 million in NEM coins due to a hot wallet breach. The hack, one of the earliest major thefts, led to tighter regulations in Japan after hackers used phishing and malware.

What These Heists Teach Us

As you can see, these events aren't random. They are targeted attacks on specific vulnerabilities. The recurring themes—compromised private keys, smart contract bugs, and bridge exploits—are the very things we break down in our main security guide.

For a long time, the primary strategy for cryptocurrency investors was simple: HODL (Hold On for Dear Life). The narrative was that Bitcoin is "digital gold," an asset to be saved, not spent.

But as global adoption accelerates, that narrative is changing. Bitcoin is designed to be a peer-to-peer electronic cash system, and today, it is closer to that vision than ever before. Whether you are looking to book a vacation, furnish your home, or just buy a cup of coffee, your digital wallet is now a powerful payment tool.

Here is a breakdown of what you can actually buy with Bitcoin in the current economy.

The "Gift Card" Hack: How to Buy Anything

Let's address the elephant in the room first: major retailers like Amazon and Walmart generally do not accept Bitcoin directly at checkout. However, there is a simple workaround that crypto natives use every day.

Services like Bitrefill, eGifter, and Gyft allow you to purchase digital gift cards using Bitcoin (often via the Lightning Network for instant, low-fee settlement).

• How it works: You send BTC to the platform, and they instantly email you a barcode for Amazon, Uber, Starbucks, or Nike.
• The Benefit: This effectively opens up 99% of the retail world to crypto holders without the merchant needing to upgrade their payment terminals.

Travel the World on the Blockchain

The travel industry has been one of the fastest adopters of cryptocurrency. If you are a digital nomad or just need a vacation, you can leave your credit card at home.

• Flights and Hotels: Platforms like Travala and CheapAir were pioneers in this space. Travala, for instance, allows you to book over 3 million travel products worldwide using Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other assets.
• Space Travel: If you are feeling particularly futuristic, Virgin Galactic has famously stated they accept Bitcoin for space tourism tickets.

Tech, Gaming, and Services

It comes as no surprise that the tech industry loves digital currency.

• Microsoft: You can top up your Microsoft account with Bitcoin to buy games, movies, and apps on the Xbox and Windows stores.
• VPNs and Privacy: Services like NordVPN and ExpressVPN accept crypto payments. This aligns perfectly with the ethos of privacy-conscious users who want to protect their data without leaving a paper trail on a bank statement.
• Twitch: The streaming giant allows users to pay for subscriptions and "bits" using crypto, supporting their favorite content creators directly.

The Rise of Crypto Debit Cards

If you want to spend Bitcoin at your local grocery store or gas station, the easiest method is a Crypto Debit Card.

Major exchanges and fintech companies now issue Visa or Mastercards linked to your crypto wallet.

• The Mechanism: When you swipe the card, the provider instantly sells the necessary amount of Bitcoin for fiat currency (USD, EUR, etc.) and pays the merchant.
• The User Experience: To the cashier, it looks like a standard credit card transaction. To you, it is a seamless way to spend your gains in the real world.

High-Value Assets: Real Estate and Cars

For the "Bitcoin Whales," direct purchases of high-value items are becoming common.

• Real Estate: In forward-thinking jurisdictions like Dubai, Portugal, and parts of the US, sellers are increasingly accepting Bitcoin directly for property deeds to avoid international wire fees and delays.
• Luxury Cars: While Tesla paused Bitcoin payments, many high-end dealerships allow you to buy Lamborghinis, Porsches, and Ferraris with crypto, using third-party processors to mitigate volatility risk.

Conclusion

The question is no longer "Who accepts Bitcoin?" but rather "How do you want to spend it?" Through direct merchants, gift card bridges, and crypto debit cards, Bitcoin has evolved from a speculative asset into a globally recognized currency.

You've likely seen the term floating around on social media, often accompanied by a list of cryptocurrencies and predictions of massive price surges. The term is ISO 20022, and it's being called one of the most significant upgrades in the history of global finance. The narrative is simple: the coins that are "compliant" with this new standard are destined to be the chosen assets for the future of banking. But what is this standard, and is the hype justified? As your guide, let's separate the facts from the fiction.

What Is ISO 20022? A Universal Language for Money

Before we touch crypto, we need to understand the old system. For decades, the global financial system has run on a messaging standard called SWIFT. Think of it as a financial language, but one that is old, limited, and clunky—like a text-only email from the 1990s. ISO 20022 is the long-awaited upgrade. It is a new, highly structured, and data-rich universal standard for exchanging financial messages. It's like upgrading the entire world's financial system from basic text to modern, interactive HTML emails. This new standard allows for far more detailed information to be sent with every transaction, which is crucial for everything from international payments to compliance and security.

Why Is the Crypto World So Excited? The "Bridge" Narrative

The excitement in the crypto space comes from the idea that as the entire global banking system—we're talking trillions of dollars a day—migrates to this new standard, they will need modern, efficient networks to operate on. The theory is that certain cryptocurrencies, which are already built with the principles of fast, data-rich transactions, will be perfectly positioned to act as the "bridge" for this new financial system. The projects that can format their transaction data to be compatible with the ISO 20022 standard are seen as having a massive head start in the race for institutional adoption.

The So-Called "ISO 20022 Compliant" Cryptos

You will consistently see a specific list of cryptocurrencies associated with this narrative. These are projects that have focused on enterprise-level solutions and cross-border payments. The most commonly cited include XRP (Ripple), XLM (Stellar), IOTA, Quant (QNT), and Algorand (ALGO). These projects are either part of ISO 20022 standards bodies or have built their technology to be easily compatible with the new messaging format.

A Crucial Reality Check: What "Compliance" Really Means

This is the most important part of this guide. While the narrative is powerful, you must understand a critical distinction. ISO 20022 is a messaging standard, not an endorsement of any specific cryptocurrency. A project being "compliant" means its technology can create and process messages that fit the new format. It does not mean that SWIFT, the Federal Reserve, or any major bank has officially chosen that crypto to run their systems. The idea that there is a magical "switch" that will be flipped on a certain date, causing these coins to be instantly adopted, is a dangerous oversimplification.

How You Should Think About It as an Investor

So, is it all just hype? Not necessarily. A project's focus on becoming ISO 20022 compatible is a strong signal of its intent and professionalism. It shows that the team is not just focused on retail investors, but is building for the future of enterprise and institutional finance. This focus on real-world utility and integration with the traditional financial system is a powerful bullish factor. However, it should be viewed as one piece of a much larger research puzzle, not as a guaranteed golden ticket.

You have a powerful graphics card (GPU) in your computer. You bought it for gaming, for content creation, for its sheer performance. But what if that same piece of hardware could do more? What if it could be a machine that earns you crypto?

Welcome to the world of GPU mining. If you're curious about putting your hardware to work, you're in the right place. I'm here to be your guide, to cut through the hype, and give you a realistic look at how GPU mining works and what the best crypto to mine with a GPU might be today.

Why Is Your GPU So Good at Mining?

The reason your gaming GPU is a mining powerhouse comes down to one thing: parallel processing. A CPU (Central Processing Unit) is great at handling a few complex tasks at once. A GPU, on the other hand, is designed to handle thousands of relatively simple tasks simultaneously—like rendering every pixel in a video game.

It turns out that the mathematical "puzzles" used to secure many cryptocurrency networks (part of a process called Proof-of-Work) are exactly the kind of repetitive, parallel tasks that GPUs excel at.

The Big Question: Can You Mine Bitcoin with a GPU?

Let's get this out of the way immediately: No, you can no longer mine Bitcoin effectively with a GPU.

In the early days of Bitcoin, you absolutely could. But as Bitcoin grew, specialized hardware called ASICs (Application-Specific Integrated Circuits) were developed. These machines do nothing but mine Bitcoin, and they are thousands of times more powerful and efficient at it than any GPU. Today, the Bitcoin GPU mining era is over; trying to compete would be like entering a Formula 1 race with a go-kart.

So, What Can You Mine? The World of ASIC-Resistant Coins

This is where it gets interesting. Because ASICs dominated Bitcoin, new cryptocurrencies were created with a specific goal: to be "ASIC-resistant." They use different hashing algorithms that are intentionally difficult for ASICs to solve but remain perfect for GPUs.

This created a vibrant ecosystem of GPU-mineable coins. When you are looking for the best crypto to mine with a GPU, you are really looking for these ASIC-resistant projects.

A Look at Popular GPU-Mineable Cryptos

The landscape for GPU mining is always changing based on profitability and new projects. However, some consistent examples include:

• Kaspa (KAS): Uses the kHeavyHash algorithm, which is highly efficient for GPUs and was designed to be ASIC-resistant.
• Ravencoin (RVN): Its KawPoW algorithm is specifically designed to level the playing field for GPU miners.
• Ergo (ERG): Features the Autolykos2 algorithm, which is memory-hard, making it difficult to create efficient ASICs for it.
• Flux (FLUX): A decentralized cloud infrastructure project that uses a proof-of-work algorithm friendly to GPU miners.

Disclaimer: This is not financial advice. Profitability can change rapidly. Always do your own research.

Is It Still Worth It? The Reality of Profitability

Before you start, be realistic. Your profitability depends on three main things:

• Your GPU's Hashrate: How powerful it is.
• Your Electricity Cost: This is often the biggest factor.
• The Current Price of the Coin: The value of what you're mining.