Greetings Bitcoiner,

Welcome to issue #99 of the Bitcoin Breakdown, where we're excited to announce the launch of our new point of sale Sponsor page where you can upgrade using bitcoin directly to become a premium Supporter, built with BTCPay Server, Alby Hub, and Bitcoin Aruba. Try it out here!

Also be sure not to miss the next issue, where we will be celebrating our hundredth issue with a special surprise!

Happy readings! 👽️

TOGETHER WITH UNCHAINED*

…then Bitcoin wants YOU to onboard the next billion bitcoiners

With Unchained Connections, you can get your closest family and friends off the exchange, even if they’re not ready to hold and secure all the keys. Add them to your network, help them onboard, serve as their backup plan, and help them not sell their bitcoin 💎🙌

The money you trust secured by the people you trust 🤝

*You can also advertise with us here.

OPSEC FEATURE ARTICLE

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This week we cover a self-hosted free and open source software alternative to Plex which prioritizes privacy and eliminates subscription costs.

Learn more about this tool in our exclusive review article for Supporters only.

🏆 FEATURE STORIES

• Giacomo Zucco, director at Planb.network, analyzes Trump’s speech at the recent Bitcoin 2024 conference at Nashville, highlighting its entertaining yet controversial nature as he mixes Bitcoin's significance with criticism of cRrYpTo scams, government overreach, and promises of a positive relationship with Bitcoin, despite inherent contradictions (Jul 28 | 4 min read).

• Seth For Privacy posts a tutorial on how to create a BIP 353 privacy-preserving Bitcoin usernames linked to reusable payment methods through simple DNS entries, solving previous challenges of continuously sharing addresses and improving user experience in transactions (Jul 15 | 11 min read).

• Proton Wallet, a self-custodial Bitcoin wallet launched recently by Proton, publishes a definitive and brilliant guide on all things Bitcoin for newcomers to learn about developers, miners, nodes, the blocksize wars, Bitcoin vs. cRyPtO, halvings, the challenges Bitcoin faces, and the future of the web of value (Jul 26 | 16 min read).

• Drew Armstrong and Ariel Deschapell, bitcoin mining experts, explore how bitcoin mining and high-performance computing (HPC) harness energy to create economic value, highlighting their complementary nature in maximizing energy efficiency (Jul 22 | 9 min read).

• Carol Souza, a Bitcoin educator for Area Bitcoin, explores how minimalism contrasts with rampant consumerism, positing that Bitcoin serves as minimalist money, providing a deflationary, secure alternative to fiat currencies while preserving value and promoting financial autonomy in an increasingly inflationary world (Jul 23 | 6 min read).

• Blink, a Lightning company, explores how Bitcoin transforms the savings culture in Africa, addressing traditional saving methods and the challenges posed by economic regulatory constraints while highlighting Bitcoin's potential to offer financial security, combat inflation, and promote economic growth across the continent (Jul 23 | 5 min read).

• Troy Cross, Bitcoiner and Environmentalist, summarizes their recent report for The Nakamoto Project on Bitcoin ownership that reveals while owners are predominantly young and male, they closely reflect the broader American demographic and political landscape, with factors like knowledge, trust, and perceived morality being the strongest indicators of ownership (Jul 23 | 3 min read).

• Andrew Begin, marketer at Galoy, writes that enterprise leaders recognize that Bitcoin's mainstream adoption, exemplified by the approval of Spot Bitcoin ETFs, drives demand for its various use cases, and that adopting Bitcoin allows organizations to enhance value, reduce risks, and build brand loyalty in today's digital economy (Jul 23 | 11 min read).

• Neeraj Agarwal, Communications Director at Coincenter, writes that Bitcoin emerges as a revolutionary alternative to traditional financial intermediaries, offering a cash-like, private transaction method essential for safeguarding personal freedoms against authoritarian control and surveillance in an increasingly digitized world (Jul 24 | 4 min read).

• Bringin, a European Bitcoin company, explores the potentially revolutionary changes in B2B payments that can be driven by Bitcoin and the Lightning Network, highlighting their ability to reduce transaction fees and enable instant settlements while emphasizing the need for effective off-ramping solutions (Jul 27 | 16 min read).

• B10C, a Bitcoin developer, explores mining pool behavior during blockchain forks, analyzing game theory dynamics and recent examples such as ViaBTC and AntPool, highlighting how pools decide which block to mine and why AntPool sometimes opts not to mine on its own blocks during forks (Jul 15 | 5 min read).

• Coin Analytics 98 releases a report about the state of Bitcoin's layer 2 ecosystem, highlighting leading protocols in lending, DEX, staking, and ‘decentralized’ stablecoins, alongside key statistics on NFTs on Bitcoin, emphasizing Q2 2024 performance and top collections (Jul 20 | 3 min read).

POLL

OTHER NEWSLETTERS TO CHECK OUT*

• I Will Teach You To Be Rich focuses on sharing proven systems and time tested advice so you can make changes fast.

• The Flyover sends you the most important and interesting stories of the day in your inbox every weekday.

• FryAI scours through 100+ AI news sources every weekday so you don’t have to.

• Stacked Marketer sends out carefully curated digital marketing news, tech, and actionable advice that can be consumed in 7 minutes or less.

• AI Tool Report teaches you how to save time and earn more with AI.

• Early Bird Stock Market News is the morning financial newsletter that's ruffling feathers.

*You can find more here.

🛠️ TOOLS & PROJECTS

• Unchained, Bitcoin custody service provider, announces Unchained Connections, a feature that will make it easier for users to onboard their friends and family to bitcoin.

• Joltz, a Lightning company, announces Zapier integration to make it as easy as possible for any business to integrate Bitcoin into their existing operations.

• Bitaxe-Satellite is a project that aims to decentralize Bitcoin mining communications by providing an alternative to centralized Internet Service providers.

• Bitbox, a hardware wallet provider, announces it will be integrating silent payments into their wallets.

• Twelve Cash is a service that enables you to easily get your own BIP353 Bitcoin username.

• Amboss, a Lightning company, launches Banco, a peer-to-peer finance app to make it easier for users to onboard friends and family to Bitcoin.

• Breez SDK, a toolkit for Lightning developers, adds Liquid integration.

• Bitvora is a Bitcoin and Lightning API launched with the goal of having every exchange in the world enable sending/receiving Bitcoin over the Lightning Network.

• Andrew Bailey, a Bitcoin educator and researcher, releases a class on the Philosophy and Economics of Bitcoin for free.

• Satoshi Pacioli Accounting, an accounting consultant firm, is offering free tax preparation, filing, and consulting services to US-based open-source Bitcoin developers.

• Coinbits, a Bitcoin-only platform for buying Bitcoin, announces Coinbits Plus, a paid tier with additional features.

• Mempool.Space, a Bitcoin blockchain explorer, launches service to expedite unconfirmed bitcoin transactions via five mining pools.

• Casa, Bitcoin custody service provider, now enables you to secure your bitcoin keys with a YubiKey.

• Street Cyber, a street art initiative, announces release of their first book.

💥MEME BREAK

OTHER RECOMMENDATIONS*

• The Bitcoin Adviser helps high net worth investors unlock the full potential of their Bitcoin investments by offering personalized strategies, secure transitions off exchanges, and clarity with a 1% fee structure, all while building generational wealth.

• Start9 enables 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.

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

*You can find more here.

Thank you for reading!

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Until our next transmission,

Naiw

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