Matrixport View_Technology #1

Matrixport Research

Summary

  • There is a proposal to introduce a suite of new features on BTC via soft fork in 2020. These features should further improve the network’s privacy and efficiency. However, given past records, we’re not optimistic about the proposed timeline and viability of the final launch.

  • The long awaited ETH 2.0 is scheduled for release in July 2020. The latest completed audit shows that ETH 2.0 spec is well designed, with only minor changes required. Meanwhile, Vitalik Buterin’s idea of improving ETH’s privacy and efficiency simultaneously is substantiated by the advancement in Loopring and Aztec.

  • USDT is launched on BCH using SLP protocol.

  • Other blockchains such as Qtum, Ontology, Cosmos etc. are also making steady progress in their technical development. Among them, the most exciting development is Cosmos’s publishing of IBC (Inter-Blockchain Communication) demo, a big step taken towards connecting all blockchains.
  • The recent flurry of security incidents has further weakened people’s trust of centralized exchanges. However, Defi, the widely believed solution, is also struggling with its own protocol security issues. Recent examples include the clamp attack on Curve, the double spending bug of OmniCore, etc.

Public Blockchain: Top 10

Pedro Febrero’s vision about Bitcoin in 2020

Opinion☆☆

  • A package of new features are suggested to be activated on BTC via soft fork in 2020

  • MAST: extend smart contract flexibility, improve scalability, increases privacy

  • Taproot : boosting privacy considerably

  • Schnorr signature: support aggregate signature & batch verification, enhance MAST & Taproot

Vitalik’s vision about Ethereum

Vision☆☆☆

  • Expect ETH 2.0 to launch this summer

  • Expect ZK-rollups and Looprings to make huge strides in improving the efficiency of their proofs

  • ZK-rollup: improve scalability by allowing a large number of transactions to be ‘rolled up’ into one

  • Loopring: an open protocol for scalable non-custodial exchanges on using ZK-rollup

ETH 2.0 Audit Complete, Minor Changes Proposed

Official Announcement☆☆☆

  • Least Authority has just concluded the preliminary audit of ETH 2.0

  • Specs are well-designed, but recommended some minor changes

  • ETH 2.0 is scheduled for release in July 2020

Aztec: Efficient Privacy with ZK2 Rollup in ETH

Development Plan☆☆

  • Aztec: a private transaction network on Ethereum, launched on 2020/1/31, with next steps toward ZK2 Rollup (features below)

  • Combined ZK Rollup (scale) and ZK-SNARKs (privacy)

  • Collapse the gas costs of private transactions on mainnet

USDT is now live on BCH using SLP

Implementation☆☆☆

  • Tether is using the Simple Ledger Protocol (SLP) as the technical means to launch USDT on BCH

Public Blockchain: Others

Qtum developers worked at building offline staking

Development Plan☆☆

# PoS; smart contract; account-UTXO mixed

  • The key to achieve offline staking is UTXO, which means they need to follow a strict splitting and recombining algorithm（ Development Plan**）

Ontology launched P2P Claim

Implementation☆☆

# PoS; smart contract; account

  • Enables people to people, things to things, affairs to affairs to authorize and authenticate each other（Implementation**）

Cosmos published IBC demo

Demo☆☆☆

# BPoS; cross chain

  • IBC: Inter-Blockchain Communication

  • Including: real proofs, end-to-end handshakes and working token transfers

Byron Reboot: Marking A New Era For Cardano

Development Plan☆☆

# PoS; smart contract

  • Will begin rolling out the Byron Reboot thanks to the accelerated development process

  • Three key components: new consensus mechanisms, Daedalus wallet updates, and Adrestia （Development Plan**）

Algorand integrated Tether

Official Announcement☆

# PPoS

Tether integrated as the first stablecoin on Algorand（ Official Announcement☆）

Blockchain Adoption in Traditional Industries

Financial Industry

  • DIFC and Mashreq plan to offer blockchain based KYC solution, to support licensed businesses and corporates opening digital bank accounts instantly; （Consortium chain; Partnership achieved;☆）

  • National Bank of Fujairah (NBF), UAE partners Ripple to service huge Indian customers, to ensure secure and real-time payments;（Ripple; Partnership achieved;☆)

  • Users of the Starbucks mobile app are now being presented with Bakkt Cash as a payment option;(Beta test;☆)

  • SMBC and Layer X4 established a company to develop next-generation asset management businesses using blockchain technology;(Consortium chain; Partnership achieved;☆)

  • Thailand‘s Siam Commercial Bank (SCB) is designing a stablecoin (STB, Stable Thai Baht) that is pegged to the Thai baht; STB will be based on Ethereum; ( Ethereum; Plan announced;☆☆)

Supply chain

  • Nike, CK and Tommy have been trialing blockchain and RFID tags to track products on a global supply chain. The aim is to provide a secure way to share data, while retaining ownership of it; (Hyperledger; Under test;☆)

Security Incidents

Exchanges

  • FCoin had difficulty in redemption, with funding gap between 7000-13000 BTC☆☆☆

  • Singapore exchange Coinhako restricted user withdrawals after being attacked☆☆

  • A former employee from Digitex stole private information of more than 8,000 users☆☆

  • Exchanges such as OKEx and Bitfinex shut down on 28 Feb by DDOS attacks☆☆

DeFi

  • BZX protocol was attacked by liquidity arbitrage of combinable assets☆☆☆

  • Curve had an abnormal transaction, and the attacker conducted a clamp attack on the two fund pools, curve.fi and y.curve.fi☆☆

Note: Many of these incidents happened in Jan and Feb☆

Protocol

  • Omni Core team released protocol update to fix doubled transaction bug☆☆

Other

  • An operation and maintenance employee in Baidu illegally controlled 155 servers to “mine crypto assets”: sentenced to three years in prison☆

Note :Top 10 refers to the marketcap rank indicated in coinmarketcap by 2020/3/31 Many of these incidents happened in Jan and Feb

Importance level：low-☆; medium-☆☆; high-☆☆☆

Sources: AMBCrypto, Toshitimes, Coindesk, Cryptobriefing, Medium, Qtum-Medium, Ontology-Medium, cosmos-twitter, Zycrypto, Algorand-twitter,gulfnews, NewsLogical, Decrypt, Blockspaper,Crypto watch, Beosin-Eagle Eye, The block, Block Beats, analyzed by Matrixport

Disclaimer

Matrixport provides this analysis as general information only. Matrixport accepts no responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of any information herein contained and Matrixport shall not be responsible for any loss arising from any investment based on any forecast or other information herein contained. The contents of this materials should not be construed as an express or implied promise, guarantee or implication by Matrixport that the forecast information will eventuate. The cryptocurrency market is highly volatile. Buying, selling, holding, or investing in cryptocurrencies or related product carries various risks and is not suitable for all investors. Please seek expert advice, and always ensure that you fully understand these risks before participating in the cryptocurrency market. Matrixport is not acting as a financial adviser, consultant or fiduciary to you with respect to any information provided. Any information available here is “general” in nature and for informational purposes only.