Greetings Bitcoiner,

Welcome to issue #116 of the Bitcoin Breakdown, where we are reminded that Bitcoin wasn't designed to yield more dollars (or any fiat currency) but to serve as a replacement, effectively making its current 'price' an exchange rate rather than an indication of its true value.

Happy readings! 👽️

TOGETHER WITH UNCHAINED*

What is the best approach to bitcoin self-custody?

If you decide to take self-custody, you have to choose between many approaches to secure your bitcoin wealth.

Unchained helps you break down the options and explain how they differ.

Learn about a better way to secure your savings with Unchained multisig vaults.

*You can also advertise with us here.

⚡️ QUICK BITS

• China’s money printer goes brrr as the country plans to issue a further $284B of sovereign debt to help revive their economy, creating liquidity conditions that have benefited Bitcoin's price before.

• Swan Bitcoin files lawsuit, alleges former employees stole proprietary software to start a rival mining company.

• Boltz launches BTCPay Server plugin enabling merchants to accept Lightning payments non-custodially and swap for L-BTC.

• PayPal enables Bitcoin and crypto for 30M business accounts.

• Crypto trading linked to lower quality of life, higher stress, and poor sleep, a new study shows, urging mental health policies aimed at traders.

• Nic Carter, writing for Pirate Wires, exposes how the Biden administration intentionally targeted Silvergate, collaborating with Senator Elizabeth Warren to cause the bank run and undermine crypto banking in 2023.

• Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan reveals that 70% of top financial advisors now own Bitcoin in their personal portfolios.

• Bitcoin reserves on exchanges hits its lowest level in 3 years.

• Xapo Bank secures over $100M in bitcoin in a high-security Swiss nuclear bunker, protected by military-grade security, including 6-ton blast doors and biometric systems.

• Revolve Labs halts Bitcoin mine proposal in Windom, Minnesota, due to residents' noise concerns, despite potential energy savings and economic benefits for the community.

• Iran currently dominates Bitcoin mining with costs over 240 times lower than Ireland, highlighting global energy price disparities and profitability trends.

• Forbes reports on how Bitcoin empowers women to escape financial abuse, reclaim their autonomy, and build a path towards financial independence and privacy.

• Predyx, a new Lightning-native micro prediction market, is launching its upcoming public beta this weekend. Sign up for early access here.

• Branta, a Bitcoin security company that mitigates risk for custodians, merchants, and payment gateways, announces pre-release of its desktop app.

• Binance denies data breach rumors as 13M user details are claimed to be exposed on the dark web, asserting no evidence of a data leak.

• Swedish Police Authority classifies crypto exchanges as 'professional money launderers,' highlighting frequent use in laundering criminal proceeds (pdf download).

• Fountain FM offers double rewards for listeners through September, guaranteeing at least 2 sats per minute and a chance to win 100k sats by participating.

• SEC approves options trading for BlackRock's bitcoin ETF, allowing investors to hedge their bitcoin exposure and expanding Bitcoin's integration into traditional financial markets.

• Israel plans to become a cashless society, ostensibly to combat financial crime, sparking debate over financial control and citizen rights.

• The Verge warns against voluntarily handing your phone to police, highlighting risks with digital IDs.

• Hut 8 launches GPU-as-a-service vertical, deploying 1,000 Nvidia GPUs for AI development in partnership with HPE and Advizex.

• Ether’s market cap sheds about one-third of its value in bitcoin terms in just 12 months.

• First-ever Ark payments were made on the Bitcoin mainnet, marking the debut of a viable alternative to Lightning for a Bitcoin L2 solution.

• MoneyGram, a money transfer service, faces continued global service disruptions after a cyberattack, leaving customers unable to send or receive payments.

• OpenSats announces its seventh wave of Bitcoin grants, funding eight open-source projects enhancing various aspects of the Bitcoin ecosystem.

• Marko Polo, a cybercriminal group, targets crypto users and gamers with a massive malware campaign, using malvertising, spearphishing, and fake brands to steal sensitive data globally.

• Telegram will now share user data with authorities in criminal investigations following CEO Pavel Durov's arrest in France.

• BlackRock amends Bitcoin ETF to require 12-hour withdrawals from Coinbase, addressing investor concerns over transparency and potential ‘paper BTC’ risks.

• Forbes removes Susie Violet Ward's article criticizing the BBC's exaggerated Bitcoin water usage claims, raising concerns about bias and transparency.

• Keir Starmer, UK Prime Minister, introduces new laws to monitor bank accounts, ostensibly to combat benefit fraud.

• BitcoinOS open-sources BitSNARK protocol to enable private transactions and advanced DApps on Bitcoin without altering its core structure.

• German government expands bank account surveillance for counter-terrorism, enabling the Federal Police to monitor suspicious transactions without prior notice to suspects.

• The Tor Project clarifies recent reports of a de-anonymization attack targeting a user of the long-retired Ricochet application.

• Kraken expands its European footprint by acquiring Coin Meester, gaining a registered VASP license to enhance operations in the Netherlands, France, and Poland.

• Bitfarms reaches settlement with Riot Platforms, appoints Amy Freedman to board as part of agreement following corporate governance dispute.

• Bitcoin's bottom slowly erodes as whale wallets increase by 3.5% while middle-class holders decline and smaller wallets swell by 75% in the past year.

• Vice President Harris pledges to support AI and crypto innovation while protecting consumers at Wall Street fundraiser ahead of election.

• VanEck argues that a Harris presidency could be more beneficial for Bitcoin specifically, citing its regulatory clarity and potential to benefit from the acceleration of economic challenges like inflation.

POLL

OTHER NEWSLETTERS TO CHECK OUT*

*You can find more here.

🎥 QUICK MEDIA

• Jack Mallers explains why not even Larry Fink can manipluate or change Bitcoin (Sept 21 | 0:53 min watch).

• Sina of 21st Capital says last week's supply chain attack with exploding pagers in Lebanon should make Bitcoiners more cautious while choosing and acquiring their hardware wallets (Sept 20 | 1:36 min watch).

• Balaji Srinivasen reminds everybody that Bitcoin is about stopping the state from slowly debasing your wealth (Sept 23 | 0:45 min watch).

• Matthew Kratter of Bitcoin University analyzes the heated debate between Michael Saylor and Saifedean Ammous on earning yield from bitcoin and its implications (Sept 23 | 16:58 min watch).

• Ioni Appelberg examines the evolution of humanity across many generations and Bitcoin’s role in it (Sept 23 | 11:36 min watch).

• D-Central provides a step-by-step guide to build a BitChimney, a Bitcoin space heater for those looking to heat their homes while mining Bitcoin (Sept 20 | 4:36 min watch).

• Bitcoin Business Network publishes a video that examines how Bitcoin is revolutionising payments and building financial freedom (Sept 19 | 1:47 min watch).

• Cory Bates shares a clip of Rick Rubin’s recent interview with Jack Mallers in which Rubin realizes that Bitcoin was a discovery and not an invention (Sept 23 | 0:19 min watch).

• Bill Maher, an American talk-show host, joins the group of mainstream journalists who make wild and inaccurate claims about the energy use of Bitcoin mining and gets roasted for it (Sept 24 | 0:52 min watch). 

• Anil Patel’s keynote at Bitcoin 2024 is released wherein he explains why Bitcoin may have already won the race to become the world's most powerful and resilient form of money (Sept 26 | 14:06 min watch).

• Donald Trump says he thinks crypto has got a great future and jokes that maybe the US will pay off its $35T debt with it (Sept 23 | 0:43 min watch).

• SEC Chair Gary Gensler appearing on CNBC reaffirms that Bitcoin is not classified as a security under SEC guidelines (Sept 26 | 9:21 min watch).

• Alby release short trailer for the release of their new mobile Bitcoin Lightning wallet, Alby Go (Sept 25 | 1:30 min watch).

💥 MEME BREAK

AFFILIATES & REFERRALS

• Adopting Bitcoin El Salvador 2024: Secure your spot at the premier Bitcoin conference this November and get 10% off tickets with the code BTCBREAKDOWN!

• Blockstream Jade is the best hardware wallet for you to take self-custody with—enjoy a 10% discount off of with code: BITCOINBREAKDOWN.

• Start9 empowers you to run your own Bitcoin node while also joining the sovereign computing paradigm, where concerns over privacy, censorship, hacks, and fees practically disappear—get a 5% discount by using the code: BITCOINBREAKDOWN.

Thank you for reading!

If you received it from a friend and would like to subscribe, you can do so here:

Until our next transmission,

Naiw

P.S. Looking to start your own newsletter? Use this link to sign up for beehiiv and get a 30-day free trial plus a 20% discount.

Support independent Bitcoin content and consider leaving a Lightning tip:

[email protected]