On 2nd September 2026, engineers within the Tezos ecosystem built a post-quantum previewnet, covering user keys, consensus, and randomness generation.
Though the launch was experimental, it was still further than any major chain has ever gone.
The market noticed. In fact, AMBCrypto reported that XTZ rallied by 30% after the news, hitting a four-month high on an 878% volume surge. Open Interest climbed by 44%, while derivatives volume spiked by 272%.
Tezos’s co-founder Arthur Breitman has been blunt about the stakes. Previously, he has called Bitcoiners’ quantum theories “half-baked crank theories about quantum mechanics.” However, in a recent conversation with AMBCrypto, he clarified,
The crank theories represent a small group of people, though there’s a broader group that sees no urgency, or believes Bitcoin can handle post quantum without any soft or hard fork.
Urgency comes from Google’s “9-minute problem” What exacerbated the debate on crypto and quantum computers? Well, in March 2026, Google published a research paper that compressed the timeline of the quantum threat from a “2040s problem” to a preparation window for “2030–2035.”
The paper cut the estimated physical qubits needed to break Bitcoin’s elliptic curve cryptography by roughly 20x — From millions to fewer than 500,000.
That paper triggered a scramble in the industry. What was even more notable was the “9-minute problem.” For the uninitiated, public keys are exposed in Bitcoin’s mempool while the network confirms it.
Google’s paper also claimed a powerful enough quantum computer could potentially extract a key within approximately 9 minutes under specific assumptions. And Bitcoin’s average block time is 10 minutes.
Google puts the odds of a successful hijack at 41% — not a guarantee, but much too close for comfort.
However, Maksym Sakharov, CEO & Co-Founder of WeFi, told AMBCrypto,
I would be careful about treating the 41% figure as a prediction of what will happen in practice.
He explained,
Google’s paper models a specific attack scenario under a defined set of assumptions, including a sufficiently capable fault-tolerant quantum computer, a public key becoming available almost immediately, and conditions that can favor either the attacker or the legitimate user depending on network behavior.
According to Google’s paper, the attack doesn’t need to crack your cold wallet or steal your seed phrase. It just needs to catch your transaction in that brief window when your key is visible.
Sakharov, talking about the long-term, hypothesized,
Preparation matters more than prediction. The objective should be to ensure that migration paths, governance, and upgrade mechanisms are in place well before advances in quantum computing become an operational concern.
It’s not so easy for Bitcoin For Bitcoin, however, the problem can get even more complicated. Glassnode’s May 2026 research found that over 6 million Bitcoin, or roughly 30% of BTC’s current supply, sits in addresses where the public key is already visible on-chain. That’s roughly $500–600 billion ripe for the taking.
And yet, the contrast between the exchanges is striking. About 1.66 million BTC held on exchanges falls into the exposed category — roughly 40% of all operationally exposed Bitcoin. Coinbase has 5% exposure; Fidelity at 2%.
Binance sits at 85%. Bitfinex, Robinhood, and several others are at or near 100%.
Christopher Smith, co-founder and CEO of Quantus, elaborated on Bitcoin’s exposure problem in conversation with AMBCrypto.
It’s a solvable technical problem, but the social coordination is the difficult part. For various reasons, Bitcoin has cultivated a culture of not changing, but it really is a cultural issue more than a technical issue. If we had a post-quantum address type, then most big addresses could migrate within a few months.
He continued,
The bigger issues are that post-quantum addresses could take years to ship, and nobody has a politically viable solution for Satoshi’s coins, which are currently an $80B quantum canary.
Smith’s argument highlights one of Bitcoin’s unresolved questions. The harder decisions will involve coins that will never migrate, including Bitcoin founder Satoshi’s 1.1 million stash.
Coinbase’s Quantum Advisory Council understands these concerns as well and has thus outlined three options: freeze, burn, or do nothing and take the loss. However, each option here clashes with Bitcoin’s core principles in some way.
So, what’s the solution? For Bitcoin’s network to become quantum-proof, starting today means completion on around 2033. This would uncomfortably overlap with Google’s 2030–2035 preparation window.
One must also remember that Bitcoin’s governance is notoriously slow. It’s an open secret. SegWit took over eight years from conception to adoption, and Taproot underwent the same journey in nearly seven years.
For casual observers on the scene, Bitcoin’s BIP-360 may seem like the solution. It is the network’s quantum-resistance proposal that introduces a new address type called P2MR (Pay-to-Merkle-Root), removes Taproot’s key-path spending, and uses hash-based commitments.
However, be warned, BIP-360 is not quantum-proof. In fact, it does not answer the Bitcoin network’s concerns. As Christopher Smith told AMBCrypto,
The quantum safety of a BIP360 address is the same as a P2PKH address. To make a fully post-quantum address type, we need post-quantum op codes, which requires a decision on which post-quantum algorithm to support, and there is no official process for this.
In a nutshell, BIP-360 has critical limits that cannot be ignored.
First of all, it doesn’t replace Bitcoin’s cryptography as ECDSA and Schnorr signatures remain in use. P2MR reduces exposure by forcing spending through script paths, but it’s merely a risk-reduction measure.
Also, BIP-360 will not migrate existing coins automatically. There is a 2-step process here. To begin with, every wallet, exchange, and custodian needs to support the new quantum-proof addresses. Next, users will have to voluntarily move funds. That coordination hasn’t started yet, and there’s no timeline as to when it will.
Breitman has a word of advice though,
Offer hash-based signatures now. The chain can soft-fork very quickly in an emergency, I believe it will, and that’s a good thing. But users can be very slow moving, and they need to be given ample time, several years, to migrate.
What are the market’s altcoins doing? Altcoin networks have already started their push towards making crypto future-ready, in a sense. The most notable example is the Tezos network, whose post-quantum previewnet went live on 2nd September 2026, with tz5 accounts using ML-DSA-44 signatures.
The network also supports STARK-based consensus aggregation, a ZODA data availability layer, and TzEL private payments on testnet, making it the most comprehensive quantum-resistant network out of any major chain.
According to Breitman,
Starks have come a long way in terms of proving speed and ease of deployment, and they pair very nicely with hash-based signatures.
As far as the rest of the market is concerned, Native Falcon-1024 accounts have been live on Algorand’s mainnet since v5.0.0 in August 2026. Since then, the network has processed over 500,000+ post-quantum-signed transactions. Right now, Falcon-1024 is a NIST Level 5 standard — the highest security category.
The Quantum Resistant Ledger, also dubbed to be the “original post-quantum blockchain,” has been running XMSS since June 2018. That’s eight years of quantum-resistant operations!
The list will be incomplete without mentioning Ethereum since it has released a roadmap targeting full quantum protection by 2029. Account abstraction, also dubbed EIP-8141, will let users switch to quantum-resistant signatures before the protocol-wide migration begins.
‘Quantum-ready’ is already becoming a narrative Today, a network being ‘quantum-ready’ is more than just a talking point. For traders, the differentiator is quite simple — which chains look ready, and which are still dragging their feet?
Currently, only Tezos, Algorand, and QRL have real implementations. Though it is a start, it is concerning, as none of the major altcoin networks, with the exception of Ethereum, even have a concrete roadmap.
Bitcoin does not even have its head in the game.
The window between “we have time” and “we’re out of time” is narrowing. If the transition to post-quantum cryptography arrives sooner, the networks that began preparing early will be the victors.
Maksym Sakharov mulled,
The strongest ecosystems are already thinking about cryptographic migration as part of their long-term roadmap rather than as a future emergency. Good financial infrastructure is designed around the assumption that today’s strongest cryptography will eventually be replaced by
something stronger.
For now, the market is watching, and the chains already in the game have a head start.
For individual users, though, the takeaway is simpler: DYOR. As Sakharov put it,
Individual users cannot realistically prepare for advances in cryptography on their own. Their long-term protection will depend far more on whether the infrastructure they rely on is designed to adapt as security standards evolve.
Final Summary Quantum computers can theoretically steal exposed Bitcoin keys in nine minutes — under the 10-minute window needed for Bitcoin’s mempool. Tezos, Algorand, and QRL are already quantum-ready, while Bitcoin’s BIP-360 is just a risk-reduction measure, not a solution.
There is a particular feeling that comes with trying new things, and on Tezos it is a shared passion for testing the applications of tomorrow. Years after hicetnunc sparked our first taste of a digital renaissance, I still get déjà vu from it, sometimes stronger than before. A small spark of curiosity can lead to many open doors if you let it.
Lately that spark has been firing more often. A wave of new dApps has landed across Tezos, built by small teams and solo developers I get to interact with daily. Inspired by the ‘ART’icle of the Month series, this edition turns the spotlight from the artists to the tools being shipped for them. Here are five dApps that have earned a permanent tab in my browser, along with a moment from each that has stayed with me.
TezCity was born as an idea by Ida Belle, a Montreal-based collector and generative art enthusiast whose love of art began with a family tradition of collecting. After months of building with her team, she introduced the platform in early October as a social home made for Tezos, something this community has wanted for years. It combines a social feed with direct support tools where artists set their own supporter tiers, share posts reserved for those supporters, and receive tips in tez.
Profiles carry collection badges and a total days held score, beginning with Smolskulls and Tezzardz, two infamous Tezos art collections. Every member also receives a permanent number at sign-up, much like the mint ID assigned to a new artwork. I am member #114. The count is growing slowly because the platform is still invite-only at the time of writing, which keeps the early days welcoming for testers. Smolskulls and Tezzardz holders can join without an invite. Animated GIF profile pictures, a points system, and unlockable content for supporters make it fun to come back. Join the waiting list, find a friend with an invite code, and get ready to join the newest movement on Tezos.
Aleatory: Generative Art Evolved #Aleatory is the newest project from skllzarmy, a community developer who keeps earning spotlights for proactive and creative work on Tezos. A shared history shapes how closely I have followed him, but the benefit of using his tools has far outgrown any bias rooted in friendship. Aleatory is a fully on-chain generative art platform where artists publish their own custom generators and the code never changes once it is minted. Each mint is decided based on the code plus a seed taken from the moment a collector mints. Neither the artist nor the platform picks the final outcome fully.
The platform is open by design. Rendering is an open role any developer can fill, royalties are paid by the generator contract itself, and the interface is an open spec anyone can build on. For artists, this is Tezos doing what it does best. It keeps the work alive on-chain whether or not any single website stays online. I have always loved collecting generative art, and this was inviting enough to get me vibe coding my own. I have released four of the seventy generators launched so far, and many of my closest Tezos friends are making code-based art for the first time right alongside me.
The Discord feels alive with friendly, energized builders, and the platform keeps growing in response. Collaboration support, open editions, and a steady stream of fixes all shipped within the first days of launch, largely on user feedback. Because Aleatory is open source, anyone could fork it and build their own version. Instead, a family is forming, sharing code and testing like passionate volunteers aligned under one goal. Start exploring generators here.
TezTowers also comes from skllzarmy, so the same disclosure carries over. Where Aleatory is his passion project, he openly calls TezTowers his cash grab, and he is just as open that the idea is not an original one. That honesty is a big part of the charm, and devs do need to make money. Starting from a working 3D city codebase, he adapted it into a living picture of the Tezos community. Tezonians buy plots, raise towers, and keep upgrading them as the city fills in. Artists and projects can advertise on billboards and flying banners and see how many people view and click their buildings.
More than two hundred plots have sold already, and TezTowers is inviting Tezos organizations to claim a place in town. Tezos Commons stepped up as the first test case, and the Tezos Commons Town Hall now stands across from the residents, home to TC articles, news, and a radio station playing recorded talk shows. Outside, a little Blangs wanders the grounds, waiting for a high five from anyone who stops by. If you are a Tezos project hoping to be represented, there is likely a plot waiting for you, even if you don’t think you have the budget, so just reach out and ask skllzarmy for assistance. Take a stroll through TezTowers here, and expect many upgrades soon including a train to take you around town and even to other Tezos dApps.
The Wall Today: One Pixel Can Start a War #Created by community baker and OG Tezos enthusiast Libertez, The Wall is one shared pixel canvas with a long memory. Everyone paints on the same surface, and once a month the whole wall is captured as a snapshot on Tezos, turning a month of chaotic graffiti into a permanent archive. Its tagline promises that “what happens on the Wall haunts the Block.” The Genesis beta is private and invite-only, which makes the early wall feel like a small room of people who know each other.
The current testers are artists and developers I know well, and a dedicated group chat lets them trade findings and, well… hack the wall. The early walls turned into a race to fill the canvas by any means necessary, with clever workarounds through AI agents and custom browser tools, so limits now govern how quickly pixels can be painted. Libertez is in the chat being a good sport about it, adjusting to find the best compromises. When I mentioned I was about to slap my first design onto the wall, a fellow tester warned me to choose my spot wisely, because “one pixel can start a war.” The chat agreed on the spot that it should be the new tagline. Whatever its final form, there will be fun and chaos for anyone who wants to tag the wall and it will create a storyline in the form of graffiti art. Keep an eye on The Wall Today, here.
Teztree: One Place For Your Tezos Links #Teztree comes from FlexasaurusRex, a Tezos OG and active artist and builder. We have welcomed him on Tezos Commons Spaces, and I have spent time with him twice at TezCon in Seattle, so I came to Teztree already a fan of the person behind it. Where TezCity gives Tezos artists and collectors a social home, Teztree gives that same community a link page to share when networking outwards. Signing a message with your wallet claims your handle, so there is no email, no password, and no recovery flow to manage. The page puts the art first. A featured artwork can display its live objkt price, a grid of your latest mints updates itself, and a .tez domain shows up as a badge beside your name.
Visitors can send tips in tez directly from your page, and Teztree takes no cut. Claiming is free, and Teztree Funding, a new fundraising branch, lets creators receive 95% of each contribution right away. I have kept a Linktree page for about a decade, and Teztree is the first link page that feels truly aligned with the way I share my work. If you have multiple links to share within the Tezos ecosystem, claim your own Teztree here.
Still Connecting #Looking across these five projects, I notice one thing they share. Each is a passion project at heart, even the one its builder cheerfully calls a cash grab. Every builder saw a small gap in their own experience and decided to fill it themselves. That reminds me why I keep trying new things on Tezos. The feeling of hope and excitement still lives in the dApps here, and there is a community to share it with. Thank you to every builder who keeps bringing life to the Tezos community. None of these spotlights are financial advice, only tools I enjoy using and people I am glad to build beside.
The @CFTC has publicly identified six cryptocurrencies as digital commodities under the joint market taxonomy it developed with the SEC, a move that removes years of legal uncertainty for some of the industry's most widely traded assets.
What the Digital Commodity Label Means
For $XLM and $XRP specifically, this settles longstanding questions about their regulatory standing in the United States.
CFTC Takes Sole Jurisdiction Over Spot and Derivatives Markets That jurisdictional clarity is significant: it means exchanges listing spot or derivatives products for $BTC, $ETH, $SOL, $XLM, $XRP, and $XTZ now have a single primary regulator to answer to, rather than navigating overlapping SEC and CFTC oversight.
Sources:
Forvis Mazars: SEC & CFTC Issue Historic Crypto Asset Framework
Bitcoin.com News: US Regulators Recognize XRP's Non-Security Status
Ballard Spahr: SEC and CFTC Clarify When Digital Assets Are and Are Not Securities
The Chairman of the CFTC cited Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Solana (SOL), Stellar (XLM), Tezos (XTZ), and XRP as examples of digital commodities.
Mike Selig, Chairman of the US Commodity Futures Commission (CFTC), cited Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Solana (SOL), Stellar (XLM), Tezos (XTZ), and XRP as examples of “digital commodities.” The announcement comes as the CFTC begins drafting its first formal rules for the cryptocurrency market.
According to Wu Blockchain, Selig, while explaining the crypto asset classification jointly developed by the CFTC and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), presented these six crypto assets as examples of digital commodity categories.
Selig’s remarks are noteworthy in the context of efforts to create a more detailed framework for the regulatory status of crypto assets in the US. The CFTC Chair stated that the institution plans to differentiate between various activities and asset types, rather than classifying the entire crypto market under a single category.
In this context, the CFTC is expected to develop more specific rules for areas such as digital commodities, retail crypto transactions, and physical delivery conducted on the blockchain.
Selig also stated that wallets that do not offer custody services and software developers should be treated separately within the regulatory framework. The aim is to differentiate between organizations that directly hold assets or provide trading services and those that only develop software.
The CFTC’s approach is based on classifying different activities within the crypto ecosystem according to their function, rather than subjecting them to the same regulatory standards.
Selig’s inclusion of BTC, ETH, SOL, XLM, XTZ, and XRP as examples of digital commodities also stands out as a key element of the more detailed crypto asset classification that the institution is preparing.
*This is not investment advice.
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The Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s chairman has named Bitcoin, Ether, Solana, Stellar, Tezos, and XRP as digital commodities. For an industry that spent years arguing over what its biggest tokens actually are, that is a short sentence with a long backstory.
The classification places these assets on the commodity side of the US regulatory divide. That side is supervised by the CFTC, not the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Where the list comes from The tokens are part of a broader group identified in a joint interpretive release from the SEC and CFTC, unveiled on March 17, 2026. That guidance labeled 16 major digital assets as “digital commodities,” which effectively moved them out of the securities classification.
SEC Chairman Paul Atkins and CFTC Chairman Michael S. Selig presented the guidance together at the DC Blockchain Summit.
The release did more than name names. It organized digital assets into five categories: digital commodities, digital collectibles, digital tools, stablecoins, and digital securities.
Only the last of those buckets is typically treated as a security under US law, according to the guidance.
The interpretive release also addressed activities such as mining and staking. It did this through interpretive rules rather than new legislation, which means the agencies clarified how they read existing law instead of waiting for Congress to write a new one.
The XRP chapter finally closes Of the names on the list, XRP probably carries the most baggage. Ripple spent years in litigation with the SEC over whether its token sales amounted to securities offerings.
That fight wound down when all appeals were dropped in August 2025. The commodity classification followed the resolution, with regulators concluding that XRP’s programmatic sales do not constitute securities transactions.
Commodity status is not a free pass Being a digital commodity does not mean being unregulated. These assets remain under the CFTC’s anti-fraud and anti-manipulation jurisdiction in spot markets.
The guidance also notes that regulators keep their authority to pursue fraudulent activity across the digital asset space.
The CFTC is also looking past classification toward trading rules. On October 5, 2026, Selig announced the agency’s intention to advance new regulations covering leveraged retail trading of digital assets.
Those proposals might establish new frameworks under what have been described as Regulation CTX and Regulation CAM.
Why regulators are filling the gap The agencies are moving partly because Congress has not. Legislative efforts such as the CLARITY Act, which aimed to set out a full market structure framework for crypto, have stalled.
The limits are real. Comprehensive market structure rules still require congressional action, and guidance issued by one set of agency heads can be revisited by the next.
Disclosure: This article was edited by John Chen. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
Tezos has launched Quantumnet, its first experimental post-quantum testnet, bringing the core components of a quantum-resistant layer-1 blockchain into a single environment for the first time. Built by engineers at Nomadic Labs, Trilitech and other ecosystem contributors, the network is described in the project’s announcement on the Tezos Spotlight blog as an early preview of a post-quantum version of Tezos, marking the first milestone toward a fully post-quantum instance of the network running on mainnet.
Why the work is starting now No known quantum computer can yet break the elliptic-curve cryptography that blockchains rely on, but the timeline is narrowing. Quantum error correction keeps improving, resource estimates for attacking elliptic-curve cryptography have fallen considerably, and Google has set 2029 as its deadline to complete a full migration to post-quantum cryptography. Tezos co-founder Arthur Breitman said he was pleased to see the project “at the forefront of post-quantum preparedness,” framing the testnet as getting ahead of a threat rather than reacting to one.
What changes inside Quantumnet The testnet switches on quantum-resistant replacements across several layers of the protocol. Accounts gain ML-DSA-44, the signature scheme standardized by the US National Institute of Standards and Technology, which June’s Ushuaia amendment enabled behind a feature flag. For baking rights, Quantumnet removes the Verifiable Delay Function and replaces the existing lottery with a Smooth Weighted Round Robin that distributes rights according to a baker’s weight. Consensus attestations move from BLS signatures to hash-based XMSS signatures with a post-quantum STARK aggregation system built by the LeanEthereum project, while the Data Availability Layer swaps its KZG commitments for ZODA, a two-dimensional tensor-code design that avoids materially increasing data overhead. Confidential transactions are handled at the application level by TzEL, with Sapling and timelock puzzles left out of this first iteration.
A playground before a protocol amendment Quantumnet is explicitly experimental and not intended for production use, with hardware requirements expected to sit above the lightest Tezos setups but within the range of consumer hardware. Development will continue in the open behind a public dashboard tracking live network activity, with the aim of hardening each component and eventually submitting it as a protocol amendment proposal. The route is well-trodden: Tezos on-chain governance has already carried the network through 21 upgrades, including the 12th Lima upgrade that made the chain leaner and more secure, and the work mirrors a wider industry push that has produced proposals such as a post-quantum rewrite of Ethereum’s deposit contract.
AUTHOR
Jide Idowu is a skilled freelance writer with expertise in blockchain technology, cryptocurrency, and digital finance. Known for his ability to break down complex topics into clear, engaging content, Jide crafts articles, blog posts, and analyses that resonate with both beginners and seasoned professionals. His work spans a wide range of subjects, from emerging crypto trends to in-depth explorations of blockchain innovations. With a keen eye for detail and a passion for educating readers, Jide is a reliable voice in the rapidly evolving world of digital assets.
Future quantum computers are acting as a threat to the current blockchain technology, which relies heavily on cryptography such as elliptic-curve signatures.
Hence, to protect itself from this threat, Tezos has launched Quantumnet, an experimental test network. However, it is not the final post-quantum version of Tezos or ready for production use.
Instead, it is a testing ground where the developers can identify problems, measure performance, and refine the technology before potentially proposing it as a future protocol amendment.
Tezos plays the test match In an email to AMBCrypto, Zaynah Dargaye, Core Layer 1 Engineering Manager at Nomadic Labs, said,
Quantumnet gives us a space to experiment rigorously and in the open on a major topic for the Tezos ecosystem.
He added,
We are doing this work early so that we have the time to learn, iterate and ultimately make sure Tezos is ready for a post-quantum future, with as smooth a transition path as possible. This is just the beginning, and it is particularly exciting to see this work taking shape.
So for now, Tezos is testing quantum-resistant cryptography across multiple layers of its blockchain, and not just user accounts.
Quantumnet uses ML-DSA-44 for tz5 account signatures and Smooth Weighted Round Robin for baker selection. It also tests post-quantum signature aggregation for consensus and ZODA for data availability.
Meanwhile, TzEL is exploring confidential post-quantum transactions separately. That leaves Tezos with several pieces to test together before any change reaches its live network.
Blockchain prepares against quantum threats This coincided with Ethereum developers targeting the end of 2029 to make L1 quantum-resistant. They planned an intermediate step for late 2026.
At the same time, Bitcoin’s quantum defense has already taken a step forward after StarkWare and the MARA Foundation conducted the first known quantum-resistant Bitcoin transaction on the 27th of August.
Final Summary Quantumnet is not the final post-quantum version of Tezos. Tezos is testing quantum-resistant cryptography across multiple layers of its blockchain.
Tezos may be finally waking up thanks to the broader market’s bullishness. Especially after Tezos closed with higher highs for two consecutive days, breaking above its descending resistance trendline.
In doing so, the altcoin rallied from $0.24, flipped its $0.3 resistance, and hit a high of $0.38 for the first time since May.
At the time of writing, Tezos was trading at around $0.34 following a 30% surge on the daily charts. Over the same period, the altcoin’s trading volume skyrocketed by 878% to $68 million. This may be evidence of high market activity and steady capital flows.
Besides the improvement in market sentiment, Tezos [XTZ] pumped in part due to a recent ecosystem development. According to Tezos commons, XTZ’s post-quantum code has now gone live.
The post-quantum resilient DAL shownet is an experimental network with 12 bakers and 14 DAL nodes. Roomsburg noted that this moves post-quantum work into a live test for Tezos builders. The shownet will replace quantum vulnerable KZG polynomial commitment. The shift will enable developers to test infrastructure through RPC endpoints.
However, Roomsburg also stated that with the shownet now running, the real test will be whether it holds up.
On the flip side, this development also attracted new users to the network. New users increased from 573 to 608. At the same time, a hike in user base also boosted transactions, with daily transactions rising to 121K.
Is risk appetite on its way back? 2026 has seen Tezos struggle significantly, with most of its demand drying up too. However, the shift in market sentiment has now incentivized traders, especially speculators, to return.
According to Coinglass, Tezos’s Open Interest climbed by 44% to $18.1 million, while the derivatives volume surged by 272% to $58 million.
Source: Coinglass Both OI and Volume rising in tandem may allude to strong participation and steady capital inflows. That may be why traders rushed to open strategic positions, either shorts or longs.
Meanwhile, the overall Long/Short Ratio has remained below 1 around 0.96. On the contrary, on exchanges such as Binance and OKX, the metric was above 1.
The ratio suggested that although investors have started to flip longs, the shift is not complete across all exchanges.
What’s next for XTZ? For now, Tezos’s short-term outlook is leaning bullish. The short-term upside momentum has been holding firm and is likely to extend itself.
If the demand across the market holds, XTZ will reclaim $0.38, flip $0.4 in short term, and eye $0.5 in medium term.
However, speculative activity, when elevated, also means high price volatility. Thus, if speculation fades or bulls get flushed out, a drop below $0.3 could follow.
Final Summary Tezos [XTZ] surged by 30%, flipped $0.3 resistance, and touched $0.38 for the first time since May. XTZ’s post-quantum code is now live as Tezos seels to replace vulnerable KZG commitments.
Anchorage Digital has added institutional custody support for Etherlink and seven assets issued on the Tezos layer 2 network, including xU3O8, a token representing physical uranium.
Summary
Anchorage Digital has added custody for seven Etherlink assets, including xU3O8 tokenized physical uranium. Institutional clients can hold the assets in segregated accounts at federally chartered Anchorage Digital Bank. Support covers xU3O8, WXTZ, stXTZ, USDT, USDC, USDSM and wrapped Ether. Etherlink is an EVM compatible Tezos layer 2 used by projects including Uranium.io for tokenized real world assets. Anchorage Digital said institutional clients can now hold xU3O8, wrapped XTZ, stXTZ, USDT, USDC, USDSM and wrapped Ether through Anchorage Digital Bank, N.A., using the same custody infrastructure available for their existing digital asset holdings.
The integration places the Etherlink assets inside segregated custody accounts at the federally chartered bank. Anchorage said clients can use existing policy controls and operational processes without setting up a separate custody arrangement for the network.
xU3O8 stands out among the newly supported assets because it gives holders exposure to physical uranium through a blockchain based token. The commodity has traditionally been traded through specialist intermediaries, with long settlement periods and minimum transaction sizes that limit access for many investors.
Tokenization changes parts of that process by allowing the asset to be transferred and settled onchain. Anchorage said xU3O8 can give allocators uranium exposure through the same operational setup used to manage other digital assets, with settlement measured in minutes instead of weeks.
“Institutions are not short on interest in tokenized real-world assets. They are short on places to hold them that satisfy a risk framework,” Anchorage Digital CEO and co-founder Nathan McCauley said.
McCauley said adding Etherlink allows institutions considering tokenized uranium or onchain dollars to custody the assets at a federally chartered bank while applying controls already used across the rest of their portfolios.
Anchorage Digital Etherlink custody brings xU3O8 into its banking infrastructure xU3O8 represents physical U3O8, commonly known as yellowcake uranium, and operates through Uranium.io on Etherlink.
As crypto.news previously reported, xU3O8 represents physical uranium held in custody, with the token designed to make the commodity transferable and tradable onchain. Tezos co-founder Arthur Breitman presented uranium as the first part of a plan to bring a larger range of commodities, including metals, onto blockchain infrastructure.
Uranium.io had already used tokenization to lower some of the barriers associated with traditional uranium transactions. Its model allows eligible users to gain fractional exposure instead of dealing with the large minimum transaction sizes commonly found in the physical uranium market.
The platform runs on Etherlink and uses smart contracts to handle transactions and custody transfers. Uranium.io opened uranium access through the network with physical uranium procured by Curzon Uranium and stored by Cameco, according to information released when the service was introduced.
Anchorage’s support moves custody of the corresponding token into infrastructure built specifically for institutional clients. The company said unfamiliar collateral can face increased examination from auditors, fund administrators and lenders, putting additional requirements on the institution responsible for custody.
Demand for uranium has been tied to rising electricity requirements from data centers, electrification and other sources of power consumption. Anchorage pointed to nuclear energy’s role in electricity generation as part of the backdrop for institutional interest in uranium, while describing access to the physical commodity as relatively difficult compared with more established financial assets.
Etherlink gives tokenized assets an EVM compatible settlement layer Etherlink is an EVM compatible layer 2 network built on Tezos, allowing developers to use Ethereum based tooling while transactions ultimately settle to Tezos layer 1.
The network combines relatively low transaction costs with fast finality and access to a settlement layer that has operated for years. Those features have been used by projects developing tokenized real world assets as well as decentralized finance applications.
Hardware wallet provider Ledger expanded native support for the network earlier in 2026, giving users access to Etherlink through Ledger Wallet. The integration covered applications including Curve, Morpho, Uniswap and Uranium.io, allowing users to interact with Etherlink assets through self custody.
Anchorage is taking a different route by putting supported Etherlink assets inside its institutional custody framework.
Ben Elvidge, head of alternative assets at Trillitech, said tokenized real world assets need custody infrastructure that institutional investors can use before they can move onto institutional balance sheets.
“Working with Anchorage Digital means the funds and asset managers evaluating assets on Etherlink can custody them at a federally chartered bank, which removes the single biggest obstacle we hear from allocators,” Elvidge said.
Beyond xU3O8, the initial integration covers several assets used across the Etherlink ecosystem. WXTZ is the wrapped version of Tezos’ native XTZ token, while stXTZ represents staked XTZ in liquid token form. USDT, USDC and USDSM provide dollar denominated stablecoin exposure, and WETH represents wrapped Ether.
Anchorage has been expanding institutional onchain access Etherlink support follows a series of integrations through which Anchorage Digital has brought more onchain assets and services into its institutional infrastructure.
Earlier in September, Frgmnt partnered with the company to make its fUSD stablecoin and sfUSD staking product available through Anchorage. Institutional clients gained the ability to hold, mint, stake, unstake and redeem the assets without creating a separate custody arrangement.
Frgmnt mints fUSD against USDC and deploys its backing across selected onchain lending markets. Users seeking the rewards generated by those strategies can stake fUSD for sfUSD. The Frgmnt integration with Anchorage placed those functions inside the custodian’s existing operational environment.
Anchorage expanded its Ethereum staking services in July through an integration with Lido. Institutional customers were given the ability to mint and burn wrapped staked Ether while keeping assets within Anchorage’s custody environment, allowing custody, governance, reporting and settlement to remain on the same platform.
Around the same period, Binance added Anchorage as a custody partner for institutional trading. The arrangement lets clients trade on the exchange while pledged crypto and U.S. dollar collateral remain in segregated custody through Anchorage’s Atlas platform, separating custody and collateral management from trade execution.
Stablecoins have become another part of the company’s institutional business. Anchorage began providing custody for CADD, a regulated Canadian dollar stablecoin issued by Tetra Digital Group, in May. CADD is backed one to one by Canadian dollars held at a licensed Canadian trust company.
Anchorage Digital Bank operates under a federal charter and is regulated by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. Its institutional platform covers services including custody, staking, trading and settlement.
Existing Anchorage clients can access the newly supported Etherlink assets immediately, according to the company. Institutions can use their current Anchorage Digital relationship and custody setup to hold the seven supported assets, including xU3O8, without establishing a separate Etherlink custody workflow.
Anchorage Digital Bank, recognized as the first federally chartered cryptocurrency bank in the United States, has expanded its digital asset custody services by adding Etherlink and seven tokens based on the Tezos layer-2 network. This new offering notably includes xU3O8, a token that provides direct exposure to physical uranium.
Expansion of Custody ServicesThe move allows Anchorage’s institutional clients to securely store and manage a variety of assets issued on Etherlink, an Ethereum Virtual Machine-compatible (EVM) layer-2 network that settles transactions on Tezos. Anchorage confirmed that these tokens are held in segregated accounts, benefitting from protections under the federal bank charter.
The assets now supported include wrapped XTZ (WXTZ), which mirrors the price of the Tezos network’s native coin, liquid staking token stXTZ, stablecoins USDT, USDC, USDSM, and wrapped Ether (WETH), in addition to xU3O8.
Etherlink enables users to deploy EVM-based decentralized applications (dApps) while benefiting from Tezos’s consensus mechanism and security. This network aims to foster broader adoption by bridging Ethereum-native tools and environments with Tezos’s infrastructure.
Mini dictionary: Etherlink is a layer-2 blockchain network compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM), allowing Ethereum-based dApps and assets to operate on Tezos infrastructure while utilizing Tezos consensus and lower transaction costs.
xU3O8: Tokenized Uranium ExposureThe xU3O8 token is designed to represent actual ownership of physical uranium, letting investors gain exposure to the commodity without the challenges of directly storing or handling it. Current data from CoinMarketCap places the token’s market capitalization at just over $9 million, reflecting moderate investor demand for this niche product.
According to Anchorage, direct exposure to physical uranium has long required the involvement of specialist intermediaries and typically came with lengthy settlement periods and significant minimum investment requirements. The company stated that tokenization allows for faster, more efficient settlement, reducing these periods from weeks to minutes for digital asset holders.
xU3O8 allows investors to gain exposure to uranium by holding a digital token backed by physical reserves, with Anchorage emphasizing the benefits of tokenization for faster and more flexible settlement.
Institutional Custody LandscapeAnchorage Digital Bank is regulated as a federally charted trust, focused on providing compliant custody infrastructure for institutional digital asset investors.
While Anchorage is one of the major crypto custody providers in the US, it is not the sole player in this space. In August 2025, Hex Trust, a digital asset custody specialist based in Asia, also integrated Etherlink, enabling custody solutions for xU3O8 and other associated assets. This points to growing institutional interest in tokenized commodities and multi-network asset safekeeping.
By expanding custody to Etherlink assets, Anchorage aims to attract a new wave of institutional participation in digital commodities and stablecoin markets within the Tezos ecosystem.
AssetTypeKey FeatureNow Supported By Anchorage?xU3O8Commodity tokenRepresents physical uraniumYesWXTZWrapped native coinMirrors Tezos’ XTZ priceYesstXTZLiquid staking tokenStaked XTZ for yieldYesUSDTStablecoinPegged to US dollarYesUSDCStablecoinPegged to US dollarYesUSDSMStablecoinPegged to US dollarYesWETHWrapped tokenMirrors Ethereum’s ETHYesThe development reflects a broader trend of integrating physical assets and commodities into blockchain-based investment vehicles, potentially expanding access and liquidity for both institutional and retail investors worldwide.
A blockchain that upgrades itselfMost blockchains upgrade by persuading node operators to install new software. When participants disagree, the result can be a chain split. @tezos takes a different approach: Tezos incorporates a built-in, on-chain mechanism for proposing, selecting, testing, and activating protocol upgrades without the need to hard fork.
On many other chains, decisions are often made by a small group and imposed on the ecosystem, and when participants disagree the result can be a hard fork that splits the chain into two or more competing versions. The self-amendment mechanism writes upgrade procedures into the blockchain itself, so the network can modify its own rules without requiring hard forks.
The process starts with a delegate submitting the hash of a proposal's source code on-chain. The self-amendment process is split into five automatically scheduled periods: a Proposal period, where delegates submit and upvote amendment proposals; an Exploration period, where users vote on the top proposal; and a Cooldown period before the final vote takes place. A Promotion period follows, and finally an Adoption period during which the network prepares to activate the change.
How votes are counted and what happens nextOnly delegates can vote on proposals. A delegate's voting power equals the amount of $XTZ it has staked plus the $XTZ that delegators have delegated to it, also known as its staking balance. Delegates vote Yea, Nay, or Pass. The Pass option allows a delegate to contribute towards the quorum without contributing towards the supermajority.
Each of the five periods lasts 14 baking cycles, roughly 14 days, meaning the full process from proposal to activation takes almost two months. Should any period fail to meet the required threshold, the whole process reverts to the Proposal period, effectively restarting from the beginning.
If an amendment is approved by stakeholders via the governance mechanism, all nodes are automatically upgraded with no manual intervention needed. Once the Adoption period ends and the new protocol is live, a fresh Proposal period opens automatically.
Broader debate about what to build happens separately. This self-amendment process is distinct from the off-chain and less formal Tezos Improvement Process. That off-chain layer is where ideas are discussed and refined before anyone commits code to a formal on-chain proposal.
Sources:
Tezos Documentation: Governance and Self-Amendment
OpenTezos: On-Chain Governance
Octez Documentation: The Amendment and Voting Process
Tezos baking has changed quite a bit over the past few years. The stake requirement has come down, the available tools have improved, and a small home server can handle the whole setup. And with the current state of the market, the dollar entry price is also close to the lowest it has ever been.
So, in this article, we are going to look at what it takes to become a Tezos baker in 2026. How much tez do you need? What kind of machine should you buy? What does the DAL add to the setup? And once everything is running, how much work is involved? Let’s get into it.
Tez Requirements and Rewards #To bake entirely with your own funds, you need 6,000 tez of baking power. At the time of writing, that comes to roughly $1,300. The important thing to understand is that this tez is not spent. It stays in your account while being staked, and you continue to own it.
With that amount, you can operate as a private baker and receive your baking and attestation rights directly. The current staking rewards are at ~7.79% APY, although Adaptive Issuance adjusts the rate over time depending on how much tez is staked across the network. Now, the full 6,000 tez does not have to come from you.
A baker needs at least 600 tez of its own stake, while other holders can provide the remaining baking power. To do that, they can either stake directly with your baker while keeping custody of their funds, or delegate their tez to you. Keep in mind, though, that delegated tez counts as one-third of its balance, so for example, if they delegate 3,000 tez, that would add 1,000 tez of baking power.
Personally, I think starting with your own 6,000 tez is the simplest way to begin as a private baker because it removes the need to find external stakers or delegators. But if you don’t have the amount needed, it’s good to know that there is an alternative way. Regardless of the way you go about it, once you register, your first baking and attestation rights should appear on TzKT within two to three days.
A Small Machine Can Handle It #According to the Octez documentation, the minimum requirements for an Octez node and baker are three CPU cores, 8 GB of RAM plus 8 GB of swap, or 16 GB of RAM, and a 100 GB SSD. But these numbers are only for a Layer 1 node and baker running in rolling mode, which keeps the recent chain history and saves quite a bit of storage.
I said “only”, because a complete baker today also includes a DAL node. For that, the DAL documentation recommends four low-end CPU cores and 16 GiB of memory for a baker with up to 1% of the network’s baking power. For the internet connection, 8 Mbps download and 2 Mbps upload would probably be enough, although I think most people already have access to more than that.
A modern mini PC can cover all of that. If I were buying a machine today, I would probably go with a 500 GB NVMe drive to give the chain some room to grow, even though the official minimum is 100 GB. From a quick look I took, I think you can find a machine like that for around $300 to $500 depending on the brand and where you buy it. Of course, the Octez software itself is free. I would also use a wired internet connection and maybe add a small UPS for those short power cuts that always seem to happen at the worst possible time.
The DAL node runs on that same machine, and its role is to support Tezos scaling with smart rollups such as Etherlink (soon to be Tezos X). But beyond that, the main reason you want to run a DAL node is that since the Rio upgrade, 10% of participation rewards are linked to the Data Availability Layer (DAL), so it makes sense to include it from the beginning. Octez and other baking tools such as TezBake already support it.
Setting Up and Running a Baker #When I spoke with Zir0h earlier this year, he described the initial setup pretty directly: “You get a ledger, 6k XTZ, copy-paste some commands and you have yourself a baker.”
That is obviously simplified, but it captures something important. Today, becoming a baker is much more accessible than it used to be. You can install Octez yourself, or use tools like TezBake that guide you through the process step by step. If you are setting up a node from scratch or need to restore one later, Tzinit also provides regularly updated snapshots that can save a lot of syncing time.
Once your baker is up and running, the day-to-day work is mostly about monitoring and maintenance rather than constant intervention. You could start your day by checking tools like TezWatch for messages and making sure everything is running normally. You don’t have to constantly interact with your baker, but you do want to know when something needs attention.
So, for example, updating your Octez when a new version is out, checking alerts, and making sure your baker is producing blocks and attestations normally. Thankfully nowadays, you have a bunch of tools like Grafazos and TzKT that make it really easy to check your baking rights, missed opportunities, and overall performance.
One thing you need to be careful with is running the same baker on two machines at once. If both machines sign for the same right, you can be slashed. A backup setup needs to be configured properly, and both TezBake and the Octez documentation have guides for adding one safely if you ever reach a point where you feel you need one.
Now, after you have gained some experience running your own baker, you can decide whether to open it to other tez holders. Public bakers can accept external stakers and delegators, increasing your baking power while giving you the opportunity to earn fees. Stakers are handled automatically by the protocol, and while delegators require you to distribute their rewards yourself, tools like TezPay can automate that process as well, helping you to manage a larger baker much more easily.
Overall, becoming a baker is probably easier today than many people imagine. The setup is straightforward, the hardware requirements are very accessible, and you can take the time to learn how everything works before committing to mainnet.
So, if baking has been somewhere on your list of things to try, Ushuaianet or Shadownet (Tezos’ public testnets) is a good place to start. It lets you go through the process, get comfortable with the tools, and understand what running a baker actually looks like without immediately putting real funds at risk.
And if it turns out that baking is something you enjoy, the step from there to mainnet is much smaller than it might have seemed at the beginning.
Maybe the next Tezos baker is already reading this.
In 2026, HEK Basel and the Tezos Foundation launched a year-long partnership.
7 minute read
In 2026, HEK Basel and the Tezos Foundation launched a year-long partnership focused on the presentation, education, and long-term preservation of blockchain-based art. The collaboration builds on a relationship that began in 2022, when HEK publicly committed to exploring blockchain and Web3 technologies as tools for collecting, presenting, and supporting digital art.
Moving beyond the volatile market cycles often associated with NFTs, the program positions blockchain as part of a broader cultural infrastructure and explores how emerging technologies supports artists, expands access, and develops new curatorial formats.
A program both online and offline #The partnership bridges the virtual and physical realms through two exhibitions on virtual.hek and a complementary outdoor presentation during Art Basel. By inviting guest curators to develop exhibitions specifically for virtual.hek, HEK can introduce new perspectives and experiment with forms of media art that are not restricted by the constraints of a physical gallery.
“The collaboration with the Tezos Foundation opens up new curatorial and technological possibilities for HEK,” HEK Director Sabine Himmelsbach said when the partnership was announced. Aleksandra Artamonovskaja, Head of Art at Trilitech, an R&D hub within the Tezos ecosystem, described this approach to ARTnews as a kind of “museum without walls.”
This digital exhibitions are anchored back to HEK’s physical site through a dedicated kiosk, providing multiple points of entry for both on-site visitors and remote audiences
404_LAND, screenshot of the virtual exhibition on virtual.hek.
404_LAND: where the internet appears to end #Curated by Auronda Scalera and Alfredo Cramerotti, the first virtual exhibition 404_LAND (June 12 – August 9, 2026) utilized the “404: not found” error as a philosophical framework. Framing it not as a signal of framework, but as an entry point into a speculative landscape of broken routes, failed coordinates, and disappeared files. The curators described the project as beginning “where the internet pretends to end.”
The design reflected this framework, rather than moving sequentially from one work to the next, visitors were able to freely explore and drift through the virtual landscape of the exhibition.
The theme also opened up a wider concern, considering the ways systems organize access, visibility, memory, and power. 404_LAND therefore asked what remains hidden within digital systems, what becomes lost, and what kinds of spaces might emerge when established structures reach their limits.
In their works, artists Gabriel Massan, Varvara & Mar, Hind AlSaad, Alida Sun, Kat the Port Engineer, and DMSTFCTN, did not simply illustrate the internet’s failures. They examined the political and imaginative possibilities that emerge within those failures. Broken links and unreachable addresses became openings through which other histories, identities, environments, and forms of agency could be considered.
Kat Zhang, the Poet Engineer, Hypomnemata · Chinese V of V (still), 2026.
Connecting curatorial context with blockchain-based releases #The 404_LAND exhibition was accompanied by a series of works released via objkt, a digital art marketplace built on the Tezos blockchain. The releases extended the exhibition into another environment, allowing works to circulate within a network of artists, collectors, and digital art communities.
Artamonovskaja noted in her conversation with ARTnews that roughly half of the collectors on Tezos-based platforms are themselves artists. Artists collect from one another, follow the development of each other’s practices and exchange knowledge. “That kind of patronage model is rare in other art markets,” Artamonovskaja observed, emphasizing that the shared dialogue extends beyond financial transactions.
Although the virtual exhibition is now closed, the releases can still be explored through the 404_LAND collection on objkt.
Gabriel Massan, Victims (still), from the ongoing Ball Of Terror series. Courtesy of the artist.
Education as infrastructure #For visitors unfamiliar with blockchain, technical concepts like wallets and smart contracts can create barriers to understanding certain works. To address this, HEK and the Tezos Foundation integrated hands-on workshops and on-site learning into the program.
“Education is absolutely crucial,” Artamonovskaja told ARTnews. A certain degree of grounding, she argued, is needed to engage fully with artworks that use blockchain as an integral component.
While the museum kiosk helps bridge this divide by introducing blockchain-based art within the institutional setting, interactive workshops allow visitors to learn through direct engagement.
Quayola: En plein air | HEK x Tezos Foundation Reception. June 17, 2026. Courtesy of HEK.
Quayola: En plein air #During Art Basel Week (June 15–21, 2026), HEK and the Tezos Foundation presented En plein air, an outdoor installation by Italian artist Quayola, on HEK’s exterior platform. Drawing from his ongoing Pointillisme series, the artwork engages with 19th-century Impressionist and Neo-Impressionist landscape traditions through computational systems, algorithmic logic, and robotics.
Central to the project is an autonomous quadruped robot equipped with a high-precision scanner that surveyed the Provençal countryside. As it navigates the vegetation, it struggles to accurately capture the complex geometries and shifting colors of the natural environment. Quayola foregrounds the resulting gaps, distortions, and chromatic aberrations, framing these technological limitations as a new form of machinic expressiveness. Custom software then processes the scanned data into point-cloud visualizations, digital prints, and moving-image installations.
The installation was accompanied by the release of Provence, an NFT collection of 15 images from the series available on the objkt marketplace as well as an evening reception celebrating
On June 17, HEK and the Tezos Foundation team hosted an evening reception, where over 300 guests came to celebrate Quayola’s installation and explore the 404_LAND exhibition on the museum’s kiosk.
Quayola: En plein air | HEK x Tezos Foundation Reception. June 17, 2026. Courtesy of HEK.
The challenge of preserving digital art #Beyond public programming, the partnership places a strong emphasis on the long-term preservation of software-based art. Digital works are often vulnerable to technological change, from browser updates, to programming languages changing or becoming obsolete, hardware failures and more. While blockchain preserves ownership records, it does not prevent media files or software dependencies from becoming obsolete over time.
To tackle this, the partnership supports an international training school on NFT preservation at ZKM | Center for Art and Media in Karlsruhe, organized through HEK’s leadership of the working group Software-based Art and Ownership within the EU COST Action European Media and Born-Digital Art Conservation and Knowledge Network (EMBARK). Bringing together European museum professionals to establish practical conservation standards, the initiative embodies what Artamonovskaja describes as “strengthening foundations for future generations of artists working with technology.”
From market attention to institutional practice #The partnership reflects a broader shift in digital art from market speculation toward institutional consolidation. As the initial NFT boom has receded, institutions, artists, and curators are concentrating on foundational cultural questions, which Artamonovskaja described to ARTnews as a period of consolidation, characterized by a more thoughtful and structured approach to digital art.
By combining artistic experimentation and curation with education and conservation, HEK and the Tezos Foundation are moving beyond short-term market attention to build a lasting framework for digital culture by supporting digital artists, educating audiences, and preserving contemporary digital art for future generations.
I honestly don’t know how many browser bookmarks related to Tezos I’ve accumulated over the years.
Every few weeks I end up adding another one. Sometimes it’s a new tool, sometimes it’s a clever dashboard, and sometimes it’s one of those websites that makes you wonder, “Wait…how did I not know this existed already?”
That’s exactly why this series has managed to reach a sixth part. Tezos isn’t just growing through new applications and protocol upgrades. It’s also growing through the countless small tools people build to solve real problems for the rest of the community.
So, let’s add five more bookmarks to the collection.
colleKT #Preview of a room from my collection.
Let’s start with a cool way to experience your Tezos NFTs, or any Tezos collection in general. colleKT is a tool by FAFO Lab that lets you paste any wallet, collection, or even Objkt curation, and it turns it into a virtual 3D gallery that you can walk through and explore the art in a much more interactive way.
Every collection is split into different rooms, with 20 NFTs in each, and you can easily jump to any room you like at any moment. You can also click on any artwork you like and find out more details, like the creator, collection, description, editions, and links back to Objkt.
This is seriously a very helpful tool both for exploring and showcasing collections to others. And it is so easy that anyone can do it.
Teztree #Now let’s move to another tool that showed up recently, and is getting users rapidly. Teztree, created by FlexasuarusRex, is basically a Linktree, pumped with Tezos-related features that will help you get all your Tezos-related (and not only) presence in one place with a bunch of extra options.
More specifically, on top of your personal page where you can add the usual profile information and links to all your socials, websites etc., you can also showcase collected NFTs, your latest mints, feature a specific artwork with its live Objkt price, add tez tipping buttons, and of course, you can customize your page with different themes, fonts, colors, and layouts.
But wait, there’s more! Flex has recently added a Teztree Funding page, allowing anyone to launch crowdfunding campaigns that are funded directly in tez, without any escrow or middleman custody involved. Contributions go straight to the campaign creator’s wallet.
Setting up your Teztree is really easy with a very straightforward and pleasing UI. More than 100 people have already claimed their Teztree handles, and I am sure it will keep growing fast. So go get yours.
ELEVEN #My artistic capabilities in full display!
While we are talking about Flex’s tools, let’s take a look at another one he created recently. ELEVEN is a browser-based pixel editor that lets anyone create 11x11 pixel art.
The artworks you create are fully onchain, and they don’t need to be pinned on IPFS or anything similar. The idea is that this way, there is no server that needs to stay online, no hosting costs, and generally no risk of your artwork disappearing if the platform is ever gone. As long as Tezos exists, your artwork exists too.
The whole UI, including the editor, is super simple and easy to use, and it made even me (I am by no means an artist) want to spend time playing around and eventually minting two pieces for fun. When minting, you can choose how many editions you want, and the trading of the artworks happens on Objkt. The only cost you pay is the storage cost for storing it onchain, the tool itself is free.
And if 11x11 feels too small, Flex just released TWENFIDDY, which uses the exact same UI, but it gives you a 25x25 canvas to work with. Now bring your inner child out and go do some cool drawings!
TEZGOV #Now let’s move to a governance-related tool created by TezCapital. TEZGOV, is an interface designed for bakers, delegators, stakers, and any users who want to be active in the chain’s governance.
Through TEZGOV, as a baker you can register or reactivate your bakery, change baking parameters, secondary keys, and vote on both Layer 1 and Etherlink proposals, all in the same place. But even if you are not a baker, and you are a delegator or a staker, you can use it to stake/unstake, change bakers, and most importantly, signal how you would like your baker to vote on the ongoing governance proposals.
Although the bakers themselves still have the final say for their votes, a lot of them would appreciate knowing if their delegators and stakers are in favor in favor of a particular proposal or not.
NftBiker’s Event’s Manager #If you have been in the Tezos art scene for a while, you most probably have heard about NFTBiker’s Tezos NFTs events page. It is where people can go to find artworks minted for specific events that happened or are still ongoing. Until recently, though, if you wanted to get your Tezos art event or initiative included, you had to ask NFTBiker to set it up for you.
But as an awesome builder that he is, NFTBiker once again wanted to make it much easier for Tezos artists. So in June, he released the Event Manager, which allows anyone to create their own simply by entering the details like the event name, description, dates, tags, limits, and a bunch of other options that you can set up yourself.
Once your event is live, artists who mint their artworks using the tags you defined will have them appear alongside all the other artworks on that event’s page. If you were planning to organize a themed minting event, or any other similar community initiative, I am sure this tool will come in handy!
When I started this series back in 2024, I was thinking that maybe I’d get three or four parts out. Somehow, we are already at Part VI and I still have a list of tools waiting to be featured.
If you haven’t read the previous parts yet, you might wanna take a look as we have now covered a total of 30 different community-built tools and chances are that some of them will probably end up in your bookmarks!
Hidden Gems of the Tezos Ecosystem — Part IHidden Gems of the Tezos Ecosystem — Part IIHidden Gems of the Tezos Ecosystem — Part IIIHidden Gems of the Tezos Ecosystem — Part IVHidden Gems of the Tezos Ecosystem — Part VI don’t think I need to say it at this point, but see you at the next part!
Manchester United is on the hunt for a new training kit sponsor after its deal with Tezos, the blockchain platform that adorned the club’s practice jerseys since 2022, expired in June 2025. The partnership was worth over £20 million annually, making it one of the most lucrative crypto-sports deals in Premier League history.
Reports indicate the club is in advanced talks for replacement deals expected to exceed £18 million annually.
The Tezos experiment and what it actually delivered When Manchester United announced Tezos as its official training kit and blockchain partner in 2022, the deal was heralded as a landmark moment. A top-tier football club aligning with a Layer 1 blockchain protocol felt like validation for an industry still fighting for mainstream credibility.
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The club also launched an MUFC fan token on Socios.com via Chiliz, enabling holders to participate in fan voting and engagement features.
Why crypto-sports deals keep fizzling FTX had its name on the Miami Heat’s arena before, well, you know how that ended. Crypto.com paid $700 million for naming rights to the former Staples Center.
The silence from Manchester United on any new crypto or digital asset partnerships since mid-2025 is telling. No new blockchain deals have surfaced. No expanded fan token initiatives have been announced.
What this means for crypto investors watching sports partnerships For anyone in the crypto space eyeing sports sponsorships as a signal of adoption, the Manchester United case is instructive. These deals are marketing expenditures, not adoption milestones. When a blockchain protocol pays £20 million a year for logo placement, the question investors should ask is whether that spend is generating users, transactions, or developer activity, not just eyeballs.
There’s also the fan token angle to consider. Chiliz and Socios.com built an entire business model around sports fan tokens, but trading volumes and engagement metrics across the platform have declined from their 2021-2022 peaks.
Investors should track two things: who replaces Tezos on United’s training kit, and whether any new deal includes deeper blockchain integration beyond logo placement.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
5 July 2026 | 14:33 Nine of the ten largest privacy-focused cryptocurrencies closed the week green, with gains reaching 27%, extending one of 2026's most persistent sector narratives.
Key Takeaways Humanity led the category with 27.61% weekly gain. Tezos rose 19.86%, Zcash added 18.38%. Zcash’s Ironwood upgrade targets July activation. Canton was the only top-10 decliner. What Counts as a Privacy Coin The category is broader than the classic image of anonymous digital cash. At the basic level, privacy coins are cryptocurrencies designed to conceal some or all transaction details, the sender, the recipient, the amount, or all three, using cryptographic techniques such as zero-knowledge proofs, ring signatures, and stealth addresses. On a transparent blockchain like Bitcoin’s, every transaction is permanently visible and traceable by anyone; privacy coins exist to close that gap, serving users who treat financial confidentiality the way traditional banking treats it: as a default, not a luxury.
The practical use cases run wider than the reputation suggests. Individuals use them to shield savings and salaries from public view, businesses use them to keep supplier payments and payroll confidential from competitors, and users in surveillance-heavy or capital-controlled jurisdictions rely on them where visible crypto holdings carry personal risk. The same technology also has a compliance-friendly face: selective disclosure lets a user prove a payment happened to an auditor or tax authority without exposing their entire financial history to the world.
CoinMarketCap’s privacy coins data reflects that range, spanning three distinct types of projects. The first is true privacy coins, Zcash, Monero, Dash, where hiding transaction details is the core product. The second is major chains that added optional confidential features, such as Litecoin and Tezos. The third is zero-knowledge infrastructure, where the same cryptography serves scaling, identity, or institutional data protection rather than anonymity, and this is where traditional finance has quietly entered the category.
Canton, built by Digital Asset, is the clearest example: its privacy-enabled network is used by major financial institutions, with participants across banking and market infrastructure, because banks cannot legally broadcast client positions on a transparent ledger, confidentiality is a regulatory requirement for them, not a preference. The distinction matters when reading the week’s numbers: regulators treat anonymity-by-default coins and permissioned confidentiality very differently, and the buying was not concentrated in one type. It spread across all three.
The Week’s Numbers Humanity Protocol led the category with a 27.61% gain. Tezos rose 19.86%, followed by Zcash at 18.38%. Midnight gained 9.16%, Chainlink added 8.77%, and Dash climbed 7.43%. Starknet, Monero, and Litecoin advanced 5.08%, 4.33%, and 4.03%, respectively. Canton was the only top-10 decliner, falling 7.96%. The overall crypto market gained roughly 5%, meaning most assets in the category outperformed the broader market. The Core Privacy Coins Zcash (ZEC, $455) pioneered zk-SNARK encryption, letting users choose between transparent and shielded transactions that hide sender, recipient, and amount. Its rally has an on-chain anchor: over 30% of the circulating supply now sits in the shielded pool, an all-time high per CoinGecko, indicating the privacy features are actually being used rather than merely traded.
The asset also carries the sector’s most prominent institutional storyline. BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes made ZEC his fund Maelstrom’s largest holding outside Bitcoin, calling it “Bitcoin with complete privacy,” before liquidating the entire position in June when the Orchard pool vulnerability was disclosed, noting he may buy back in if his supply-integrity concerns prove unfounded. That is precisely what the next catalyst addresses: the network finalized its Ironwood upgrade plan targeting July activation, designed to restore verifiable supply integrity, making this month a direct test of whether the sector’s most-watched exit reverses.
Monero (XMR, $322) is the maximalist version: privacy is mandatory, not optional. Ring signatures, stealth addresses, and confidential transactions obscure every transfer by default, which makes XMR fully fungible and also explains why it faces the heaviest exchange delistings. A recent analyst outlook via CryptoRank frames the trade-off: models project a $400–$600 test if a privacy-driven cycle materializes, against structural headwinds from FATF Travel Rule enforcement, with a mid-2026 network upgrade reducing transaction sizes as the next milestone.
Dash (DASH, $34.8) is the lightest touch of the three, offering opt-in mixing through PrivateSend built on CoinJoin, while functioning primarily as a payments network.
The Privacy-Enabled Majors Litecoin (LTC, $44.6) earns its category spot through MWEB, the MimbleWimble Extension Blocks upgrade that added opt-in confidential transactions to one of crypto’s oldest payment chains. Tezos (XTZ, $0.25), this week’s second-best performer, supports Sapling shielded transactions, the same cryptographic family Zcash developed, at the protocol level. Chainlink (LINK, $7.8) is the least intuitive entry: it appears via DECO, its zero-knowledge oracle technology that lets users prove facts about private data without revealing the data itself, privacy as infrastructure rather than anonymous money.
The Zero-Knowledge Infrastructure Wing Starknet (STRK, $0.03) uses STARK proofs to scale Ethereum, with the privacy potential of the underlying math still largely unexploited. Midnight (NIGHT, $0.033) is a data-protection chain from the Cardano ecosystem, built for selective disclosure so businesses can use blockchains without exposing sensitive records. Humanity Protocol (H, $0.07), the week’s top gainer, applies zero-knowledge proofs to identity, verifying personhood through palm biometrics without exposing the biometric data. Canton (CC, $0.14), the week’s lone decliner, is the institutional outlier: a privacy-enabled network built by Digital Asset and used by major financial firms, where confidentiality serves compliance rather than anonymity.
Why the Sector Is Moving The rotation has a coherent logic. Financial surveillance is expanding, tax authorities increasingly parse transparent blockchains directly, and transparent-chain holdings are trivially traceable, which converts privacy from an ideological preference into a practical hedge.
The thesis has prominent backers: Hayes declared privacy the dominant crypto narrative of 2026 in his essay “Suavemente,” arguing AI-driven chain analysis is eroding pseudonymity, and Naval Ravikant, CEO of AngelList, has publicly backed Zcash with similar framing, per Yahoo Finance.
The shielded-supply growth in Zcash is the cleanest evidence that demand is functional, not just speculative. At the same time, the category carries a permanent discount: MiCA-era compliance rules restrict how European exchanges handle shielded transfers, and privacy-by-default assets like Monero remain delisted from several major venues, which caps liquidity precisely when demand rises.
The week’s pattern, with identity and ZK-infrastructure projects outperforming the classic privacy coins, suggests the market could be buying the broader confidential-computing thesis rather than just anonymous payments. That is the more durable version of the trade: infrastructure privacy faces far less regulatory friction than transaction anonymity while riding the same surveillance narrative. The catalysts ahead are specific and dated, Zcash’s Ironwood activation this month and Monero’s mid-2026 upgrade, which gives the sector something most crypto narratives lack: a calendar. The regulatory ceiling has not moved, but within it, this remains one of the few categories in the market where usage data, upgrade schedules, and price are currently pointing the same direction.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Cryptocurrency markets are highly volatile. Always conduct your own research before making investment decisions.
Author
Kosta has reported on cryptocurrency markets and blockchain infrastructure since 2020, bringing over six years of hands-on experience in the crypto industry built through daily tracking of markets, trends, and emerging blockchain developments. Specializing in Bitcoin on-chain analysis, institutional ETF flows, and digital asset price action, his work at Coindoo has been cited by other news agencies and consistently covers market developments with a focus on data-driven reporting across Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and XRP. Over the years, Kosta has contributed to multiple crypto media outlets in different regions, authoring over 6,000 articles across the sector. His reporting spans cryptocurrency markets and the broader fintech industry, tracking not only price action but also the technological and regulatory forces shaping the ecosystem. To support his analysis, Kosta actively leverages on-chain data and metrics from leading platforms such as Santiment, Glassnode, and CryptoQuant, enabling deeper, evidence-based market insights. He believes in the power of transparency and the data that underpins the blockchain ecosystem. His academic background in Marketing Management from Denmark further complements his analytical approach, adding a strong understanding of communication strategy and content positioning to his work.
Manchester United is preparing to sit down with Bruno Fernandes and hammer out a new deal before the Portuguese midfielder’s current contract runs its course.
Fernandes’s current deal is worth £250,000 per week and is set to expire in June 2026, though it includes a clause for an optional one-year extension that could push it into June 2027. The club reportedly aims to open negotiations before the end of 2026, with a new offer that could reach £375,000 per week plus performance bonuses.
That is a 50% raise.
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The Fernandes factor Fernandes joined Manchester United from Sporting CP in January 2020 for a fee of £47 million. He was handed the captain’s armband and signed a contract extension in April 2022.
Where crypto enters the picture Manchester United has a sponsorship deal with blockchain platform Tezos valued at over £20 million annually, a partnership confirmed in February 2022. That deal made Tezos the club’s official training kit partner.
Fernandes’s contract negotiations themselves have no direct digital asset component. No digital asset ties have been reported in relation to Fernandes’s contract discussions.
Tezos maintained its relationship with United through the broader crypto market downturn in 2022 and into 2023.
What this means for investors The renewal status of deals like the Tezos-United partnership matters. If United renegotiates its blockchain sponsorship at a higher valuation alongside player contract extensions, it signals that the club views crypto partnerships as stable, bankable revenue.
When one top club maintains a blockchain partnership worth over £20 million per year, it creates pressure on rival clubs to seek similar deals. That competition can inflate sponsorship values, which in turn means more capital flowing from crypto treasuries into sports marketing.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
GeneralCelebrating eight years with eight memorable moments in Tezos' history.
10 minute read
June 29, 2026
Eight years. What a journey it’s been. Since June 30, 2018, Tezos has gone from an ambitious idea to a blockchain with 21 protocol upgrades, one of the most recognized digital art ecosystems in Web3, and a roadmap that continues to push the industry forward.
Looking back, there are countless moments that helped shape this journey. Some were technical breakthroughs. Others were community-driven. Some challenged long-held assumptions, while others opened entirely new chapters for the ecosystem.
To celebrate Tezos’ eighth birthday, I wanted to look back at eight moments that, in my opinion, best capture what has made Tezos such a unique blockchain over the years. There are plenty of other milestones that deserve to be mentioned, but these are the eight that made my list.
Happy Birthday, Tezos. Now, let’s take a trip down memory lane.
1. The Launch: Proving Proof of Stake Could Work #When Tezos launched in 2018, it did so with Proof of Stake at its core, at a time when most major blockchains still relied on Proof of Work.
While the concept had existed for years, Tezos became the first major blockchain to show that Proof of Stake could successfully secure a public network at scale. It also introduced delegation, allowing users to participate in securing the network and earn staking rewards without giving up custody of their tez.
Eight years later, it’s hard not to appreciate just how ahead of its time Tezos was. Many of today’s leading blockchains now launch with Proof of Stake, while others have abandoned Proof of Work in favor of it. What was once considered an ambitious design choice has since become the direction much of the industry has taken, and Tezos led the way.
2. Athens: The First Self-Amendment #Probably my favorite upgrade because it reminds me of home.
For years, hard forks had been the blockchain industry’s way of introducing major protocol changes. While they often brought improvements, they could also split communities, create competing chains, and leave users choosing sides.
Tezos set out to change that.
In May 2019, the activation of Athens turned one of Tezos’ boldest ideas into reality. Instead of hard forking, the network successfully upgraded itself through its on-chain governance process, marking the first successful self-amendment of a blockchain.
Seven years later, Athens remains, in my opinion, one of the defining moments in Tezos’ history. It demonstrated that a blockchain can evolve without fragmenting its community or splitting into competing networks.
3. Tenderbake: Changing the Heart of Tezos #Athens showed that Tezos could evolve without hard forks. Tenderbake took that idea to a whole new level.
When the Ithaca 2 upgrade activated on April 1, 2022, Tezos introduced Tenderbake and did something that very few blockchains have ever attempted. It replaced its consensus mechanism while the network was live. Considering that consensus is the very component responsible for keeping a blockchain running, that’s about as fundamental a change as you can make.
Tenderbake didn’t just change how the network reached consensus. It also introduced deterministic finality, improving transaction certainty for users and creating the foundation for many of the network improvements that followed, including the huge reductions in block times and finality that we have today.
More than anything, though, Tenderbake reinforced one simple idea. On Tezos, no part of the protocol is untouchable. If something can be improved, it can evolve through on-chain governance and self-amendment, even the governance process itself, as we had seen with Edo.
4. Kathmandu: Protocol-Funded Development #This next one is a little different. In fact, there’s a good chance many of you don’t even remember it.
With the Kathmandu upgrade, an independent community developer contributed a piece of code that became part of the protocol. Along with that contribution came an invoice. Once the proposal was approved and activated, the protocol itself automatically paid the agreed 3,000 tez to the contributor.
The amount itself wasn’t really the point. It was the fact that a protocol amendment didn’t just introduce new code, it also rewarded the person who wrote part of it. It’s a small detail in the grand scheme of things, but one that has always stuck with me. Mainly because, although protocol development has always been funded by Tezos Foundation, it was a reassuring reminder that another path already exists should it ever be needed.
5. The First Major Governance Test #One of the original promises of Tezos was that disagreements over protocol upgrades wouldn’t have to end with hard forks and competing chains. In 2022, the Ithaca upgrade proposal became the first real test of that idea.
After concerns were raised during the Exploration period, the original Ithaca proposal was rejected. Rather than splitting the community, protocol developers went back, refined the proposal, and returned with Ithaca 2. This time, multiple competing versions entered the governance process, sparking one of the most active and contested voting periods in Tezos’ history, with passionate debates and different parts of the community backing different paths forward.
In the end, the governance process did exactly what it was designed to do. A proposal was selected, compromises were made, and development moved forward without creating competing chains or splitting the community. Years later, Oxford followed a similar path, with community feedback leading to refinements before the redesigned Adaptive Issuance was eventually introduced in ParisB. All these moments helped to improve the feedback loop between protocol developers and the rest of the community, turning disagreements into discussions that ultimately led to better protocol upgrades.
6. A New Era for Staking with ParisB #And speaking of ParisB, that brings us to the next moment on the list.
The ParisB upgrade introduced the biggest overhaul to Tezos’ staking model since the network launched. It introduced a new staking role alongside delegation, rebalanced how rewards are distributed between active stakers and delegators, and introduced Adaptive Issuance, allowing the protocol’s tokenomics to adjust dynamically based on network participation.
The goal was to encourage more users to actively stake their tez and strengthen the economic security of the network. The results have been hard to ignore. At the time the overhaul was introduced, around 7.5% of the total supply was actively staked. Today, that figure has grown to more than 29%, with participation continuing to increase.
Interestingly, while much of the industry has gradually adopted the staking model that Tezos helped pioneer, Tezos itself didn’t stand still. The staking overhaul pushed the model even further, introducing greater flexibility, accessibility, and stronger incentives for securing the network.
7. Real Adoption: The hic et nunc Moment #Of course, I couldn’t leave hic et nunc off this list. It’s impossible to talk about the history of Tezos without talking about art and the incredible community that formed around it.
At a time when high gas fees on Ethereum had become a major barrier for artists, hic et nunc offered something different. Thanks to Tezos’ low transaction costs, artists from around the world could finally afford to mint and collect on-chain. For many, it wasn’t just their first experience with Tezos, but their first meaningful experience with blockchain technology altogether.
The NFT boom eventually faded, but the Tezos art community didn’t. While hic et nunc eventually gave way to community-driven efforts like Teia, alongside platforms such as Objkt, the culture it helped spark continued to grow. Today, the Tezos art scene remains one of the strongest and most active in the industry, with artists, collectors, galleries, and exhibitions continuing to thrive years after the hype has moved on.
To me, that’s what makes hic et nunc one of the defining moments in Tezos’ history. It brought thousands of new people to Tezos through creativity, helping establish an artistic identity that has made the Tezos art scene second to none.
8. Tezos X: The Next Chapter #And finally, I wanted to end this list by looking ahead.
At TezDev 2024, the Tezos X proposed roadmap was unveiled, outlining one of the most ambitious visions in Tezos’ history. Instead of focusing on a single protocol upgrade, it presented a long-term direction for the network, built around Smart Rollups, the Data Availability Layer, and a modular architecture designed to deliver massive scalability without compromising decentralization or on-chain governance. The roadmap has since evolved, but this was the moment when that journey began.
Since then, that vision has gradually been taking shape. The Data Availability Layer was activated on mainnet, Etherlink launched and continued to mature, and Tezlink emerged on testnet in preparation for Tezos X, which is now just around the corner. Together, they will introduce a shared execution layer where different runtimes can interact with extraordinary composability. At the same time, projects like TzEL are exploring entirely new possibilities made possible by this evolving architecture.
The unveiling of the Tezos X proposed roadmap felt like the natural final moment for this list because it marked the beginning of a completely new chapter for the protocol that is still being written.
So there you have it. These are the eight moments I chose to celebrate Tezos’ eighth birthday. I’m sure everyone would come up with a different list, and that’s part of what makes this ecosystem so special. Tezos has so many sides, so many stories, and so many important milestones that you could probably write an entire book about them.
As for me, I genuinely believe the most exciting moments are still ahead of us. If the first eight years have taught us anything, it’s that Tezos has never been afraid to challenge itself, evolve, and try things that few other blockchains would even attempt. I can’t wait to see what this list looks like another eight years from now.
Now I’d love to hear from you. Which moments would make your list? Did I leave out one that you think absolutely deserves to be there? Let me know, I always enjoy seeing how other people experienced the Tezos journey.
Happy Birthday, Tezos. Here’s to many more years of innovation, creativity, and continuous evolution.
Built by Tezos R&D hub Trilitech, the new web app brings tokenized rare earth metals on-chain alongside gold and uranium as AI-driven industrial demand intensifies.
Metals.io, a new commodity tokenization platform built in the Tezos ecosystem, went live on Monday, giving users access to tokenized gold, uranium, and a basket of rare-earth metals through a single web application.
Developed by Trilitech, a London-based Tezos R&D hub, the platform launches with three assets: xU3O8 tokenized uranium, VNX Gold (VNXAU) — a gold-backed token representing allocated bullion held in Liechtenstein vaults — and the RARE token from Noemon Tech, which offers exposure to a diversified basket of five strategic metals, including hafnium, rhenium, indium, neodymium oxide, and praseodymium oxide.
The platform leverages Tezos' smart-rollup technology, which the team says delivers sub-50ms latency for near-instant transaction confirmations.
Metals.io extends the same underlying technology as uranium.io, a tokenized uranium trading platform that launched on Etherlink — the EVM-compatible Layer 2 powered by Tezos — in December 2024.
"Commodity markets are global and indispensable, yet access to them remains fragmented and layered with intermediaries," said Arthur Breitman, co-founder of Tezos. "As the AI revolution accelerates, energy and critical materials are becoming core economic constraints. Tokenization streamlines ownership and transfer of these assets at a global scale."
Tokenized RWA BoomThe launch comes as tokenized gold has emerged as one of the fastest-growing segments in the broader real-world asset (RWA) sector. The tokenized commodities market stands at approximately $7 billion, according to RWAxyz, with gold-backed tokens still dominating the category.
Tether Gold (XAUT) and Paxos Gold (PAXG) remain the dominant players, controlling more than 95% of the tokenized gold market. Tether recently expanded XAUT to BNB Chain as it pushes its gold-backed token across multiple ecosystems.
Where Metals.io looks to carve out a niche is in its rare earth and industrial metals offering — a category that has seen less tokenization activity than gold despite surging demand.
In February, President Trump signed an executive order creating a $12 billion critical mineral stockpile — dubbed "Project Vault" — backed by a $10 billion loan from the U.S. Export-Import Bank and $2 billion in private sector financing.
The RARE token from Noemon Tech provides exposure to this space. "The current rapid pace of innovation in the AI sector and several other related fields is having a knock-on effect on demand for metals and materials that are critical to these endeavors," said Dimitrios Kavvathas, founder of Noemon Tech. The token provides exposure to elements like hafnium and rhenium, which are essential in semiconductor manufacturing, jet engines, and other high-tech applications.
Meanwhile, the broader tokenized RWA sector continues to grow rapidly. Tokenized RWAs crossed $20 billion in on-chain value in early 2025, and the figure has continued climbing since then. Ethereum alone now hosts over $15 billion in tokenized real-world assets. However, the sector still faces structural challenges — a December report from RWAio estimated that blockchain fragmentation is costing the tokenized asset market between $600 million and $1.3 billion annually due to cross-chain price discrepancies and transaction friction.
This article was written with the assistance of AI workflows. All our stories are curated, edited and fact-checked by a human.
Art on Tezos is no longer a niche experiment; at TezDev 2026 in Cannes, it felt like a working model of where digital culture is going next.
Summary
At TezDev 2026 in Cannes, “Art on Tezos” staged an immersive, projection-mapped environment that framed on-chain work as a living model for digital culture. Speakers highlighted how Tezos lowers costs and barriers so artists from Kurdistan, Africa and South America can build sustainable practices and even escape repression. Trilitech’s planned Tezos-powered exhibition at HEK Basel signals that on-chain art is moving deeper into museum ecosystems, compressing photography’s century-long legitimation curve. TezDev 2026 in Cannes shows how Tezos art has evolved from NFTs into global, politically charged and increasingly institutional grade digital culture and infrastructure.
Art on Tezos: The Future of Digital Creativity Hosted at the Hôtel Martinez on March 30, “Art on Tezos: The future of digital creativity” unfolded as an immersive environment rather than a standard panel. Projection‑mapped works wrapped the room in moving images while a conversation between artists, curators, and ecosystem builders traced how on‑chain art has evolved from early NFTs into complex generative systems and responsive installations.
For curator and art advisor Brian Beccafico, Tezos’ real innovation is who it brings into the conversation. Drawing on his work with marketplaces like Objkt, he stressed that on Tezos “you get to meet a lot of artists coming from places that usually just don’t have access to the broader art markets… artists from Africa… South East Asia, South America,” a sharp contrast with a global art economy where “pretty much 70 percent of global value auctioned… is auctioned in New York.” Lower costs and open tooling translate into economic reality: “even if you’re selling artwork for 100 bucks a piece… in a country where the average income is 300 bucks a month, that’s… sustainable for an artist.”
Aleksandra Art, Head of Arts at Trilitech, placed this shift in a longer media history that runs from early photography to Instagram and now blockchain. She reminded the audience that photography itself was once dismissed—“wait, photography is art? What? Like, no, it’s just a picture”—before fairs, critics, and collectors built a new ecosystem around it. The same dynamic is now playing out in digital art: “we had Instagram launch and all of a sudden there are Instagram artists… that don’t need gallery representation,” and blockchains plus marketplaces extend that logic by “creating these networks that congregate people who are passionate about it.” For her, the crucial break is that digital work “doesn’t have to be a confined gallery space… it can be a vertical screen, horizontal screen, HTML, site specific work,” accessible globally “at any point of time” with “similar experiences for different people.”
Beccafico pushed the political edge of this transformation. He recalled exhibitions where artists from Kurdistan “used crypto to flee terrorism, to flee ISIS during the war in Syria,” arguing that cypherpunk ideals still matter: “being able to free yourself from state‑owned currency, state‑owned control, and censorship is still very much a reality in today’s art world.” The result is a scene in which artists from Iraq, Turkey, South America, and beyond are no longer at the margins but, in his words, “the future of both crypto and the future of the art world.”
Alongside Aleksandra and Beccafico, the session’s participants—Vinciane Jones (Art Partner Manager, Trilitech), artists Patrick Tresset and Georg Eckmayr, and others—situated Tezos inside a broader genealogy of systems‑driven practices, from algorithmic drawing to AI‑assisted installations, now made verifiable and tradable on‑chain. Their discussion aligned with the wider TezDev 2026 program, which underscored how protocol upgrades like Tezos X and faster Etherlink confirmations are intended to support richer real‑time art and gaming experiences, not just finance.
From Cannes to Basel: Institutional Futures for On‑Chain Art Trilitech signaled that TezDev’s immersive exhibition is not a one‑off but part of a longer institutional arc. The team previously announced plans for a forthcoming Tezos‑powered show at HEK (Haus der Elektronischen Künste) in Basel, curated by the established duo Dr. Alfredo Cramerotti and Auronda Scalera, known for pioneering projects at Art Dubai Digital and other major venues that connect blockchain, NFTs, and critical media art. Their involvement points to a future in which on‑chain practices move even further into museum contexts, bringing Beccafico’s emerging‑market artists and Aleksandra’s “fluid,” screen‑native works into dialogue with decades of digital and conceptual experimentation.
If photography’s journey from “just a picture” to museum cornerstone took a century, Tezos (TEZ) artists are compressing that curve into a few intense years, using blockchains not only as markets but as infrastructure for new forms of authorship, community, and survival.
At TezDev 2026, Arthur Breitman reiterated his longstanding belief that crypto’s next frontier is tokenized commodities, unveiling uranium and metals tokens as the start of a broader ‘periodic‑table roadmap’.
Summary
At TezDev 2026, Arthur Breitman said commodities are a better blockchain fit than securities, citing clearer spot regulation. Uranium.io and Metals.io launched with xU3O8, a tokenized uranium product on Etherlink, as the first element in a broader metals pipeline. Trilitech’s Head of Commercial Applications Ben Elvidge said the periodic table will serve as Metals.io’s product roadmap as it expands into alloys and other rare‑earth assets. What if the future of on-chain science were built directly on the periodic table, with each element not just a chemical symbol but a programmable asset, a collateral primitive, and a market in its own right?
If every element is a programmable asset, then the periodic table stops being a chart in a lab and becomes the primitive layer for on‑chain markets, governance, and even scientific experimentation. The open question is whether crypto is ready for that level of physical entanglement, or if it is still more comfortable trading abstractions than rebuilding the world’s material ledger from hydrogen up.
Tezos’ Breitman wants to bring the periodic table on-chain At TezDev 2026, held during ETHCC in Cannes last week, Tezos co‑founder Arthur Breitman told an audience of onlookers that his thesis re: the next frontier for crypto isn’t gaming or NFTs, nor even just commodities, but rather the entire periodic table itself.
“Commodities are super interesting because the regulatory status of spot commodities in most countries is much more amendable I would say to work on a blockchain than it is for securities,” he said, drawing a clear distinction between speculative crypto assets and the physical underpinnings of industrial economies.
Breitman’s comments framed the launch of Uranium.io and Metals.io as the first coordinated attempt to tokenize the periodic table — beginning with uranium, gold, and strategic base metals. “Base metals I think are really interesting. So things like cobalt, cadmium, some precious metals as well. I think there’s still some interest here. Copper, lithium, all of that. There’s an interesting play here,” he told the audience, arguing that on‑chain representations of real commodities could evolve into a programmable collateral layer for global markets.
The flagship uranium token, xU3O8, represents physical yellowcake held in custody and traded 24/7. “Now that it’s tokenized on Etherlink, on top of that perhaps when there’s more liquidity you can imagine perps which is a nice innovation from the DeFi world,” Breitman added, naming uranium as the first element in a wider pipeline of commodities expected to follow.
He connected this to a foundational principle: “There’s an opportunity to create something that doesn’t exist as opposed to trying to replace other systems and there’s a better fit in terms of the technology and the regulatory climate.” Rather than retrofit blockchain to equities or bonds, Breitman’s vision builds markets where none previously existed — in his words, for “long‑tail commodity markets which are underdeveloped.”
Among so-called real-world assets, commodities have traditionally not been seen as the best tokenize, until now. Hyperliquid, with its 24/7 commodities perp trading, turns “outcomes” and commodity exposures into standardized on‑chain contracts that trade 24/7 instead of on banker’s hours. As Bloomberg noted, Hyperliquid’s commodity perpetuals have become a venue for off‑hours hedging in gold and oil, suggesting that once the rails exist, long‑tail commodities don’t just list — they light up with liquidity in the gaps where traditional venues are still dark.
Hyperliquid, Uranium.io, and what Tezos is building are pointed at the same target—on‑chain commodities—but they are attacking it from almost opposite ends of the stack. Hyperliquid is first and foremost a trading machine: it abstracts real‑world underlyings into standardized, cash‑settled instruments and lets users lever up on 24/7 perpetual exposure, with no necessary pretense that any given position is redeemable for a drum of oil or a drum of uranium.
By contrast, Uranium.io and Metals.io are trying to start from the barrel, not the chart: custody first, legal title first, then tokenize that claim and only later plug it into perps, lending, or structured products.
That makes Hyperliquid a venue for price discovery and speculation on top of “commodities as a data feed,” while the Tezos approach wants the token to be the legally enforceable wrapper around the underlying metal itself.
That market intuition, Breitman said, is not lost on veterans of physical trading. “A lot of the people I know that got really early into Bitcoin — I meanback in 2012 — were people who were commodity traders. Commodity traders understand supply and demand,” Breitman noted during a later panel.
A roadmap built from elements Bem Elvidge, Head of Commercial Applications at Trilitech, echoed Breitman’s push: “the periodic table… is actually going to be our product roadmap,” he added. What began with uranium and gold will not be expanding into alloys, rare‑earth oxides, and other verifiable assets intrinsic to the modern industrial base, Elvridge and Breitman said.
For Breitman and those building on Tezos, the promise is straightforward but profound: to bring real‑world metals — tradable, divisible, liquid — onto open ledgers.
But the unresolved tension is whether the future belongs to exchanges that treat commodities as continuous, model‑driven payoff streams, or to asset rails that insist every token maps cleanly back to a warehouse, a regulator, and a stack of shipping documents.
Moreover, even as real‑world assets march on‑chain, the industry still has not answered who actually bears the risk when volatile spot markets collide with immutable code and fragmented regulation. If the periodic table is the roadmap, the unresolved question is whether tokenization is genuinely re‑wiring commodity finance or just rebuilding the same concentrated, opaque structures on a faster settlement rail.
Analyst: Micron’s financial report indicates short-term fluctuations can be ignored as long as earnings prospects underpin its high valuation.
Senior Market Analyst Daniela Hathorn stated, "As Micron Technology's earnings report once again confirms that the AI investment cycle remains solid, the U.S. stock market has recouped some of its losses. This has boosted market sentiment across the entire semiconductor sector—after high-growth individual stocks underperformed earlier—indicating that as long as profit prospects continue to support high valuations, investors are still willing to overlook short-term fluctuations."
9 minutes ago
Circle partners with Nomura Securities to enter the Japanese yen foreign exchange settlement service market.
Stablecoin issuer Circle plans to collaborate with Nomura Securities to launch instant foreign currency settlement for Japanese corporate clients as early as 2027. The initiative will enable large cross-border transactions to be completed immediately, aiming to boost cross-border investment and trade. This will mark the first entry of a major stablecoin issuer into Japan’s corporate transaction market, allowing companies to convert yen into US dollar-denominated stablecoins for investment and instant transfers.
9 minutes ago
Institutions' Preview: Overview of US May Core PCE Price Index Monthly Rate
The US May core Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Price Index monthly rate will be released tonight at 20:30 (UTC+8). Below are the forecasts from multiple institutions: Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation: 0.2%; Royal Bank of Canada: 0.2%; JPMorgan Chase: 0.3%; Goldman Sachs Group: 0.3%; Bank of Montreal: 0.3%; Moody's Corporation: 0.3%; Standard Chartered: 0.3%; UniCredit: 0.3%; ING Group: 0.3%; HSBC Holdings: 0.3%; BNP Paribas: 0.4%; Wells Fargo: 0.4%; Capital Economics: 0.4%; Citigroup: 0.4%; Deutsche Bank: 0.4%; Nomura Securities: 0.4%; Pantheon Macroeconomics: 0.4%; Société Générale: 0.4%; Scotiabank: 0.4%; Morgan Stanley: 0.4%
9 minutes ago
DA Davidson Raises Micron’s Price Target to $2,000, Retains Buy Rating
U.S. investment bank DA Davidson released a research note stating that Micron Technology has entered a new phase with one of the best performance visibility in the semiconductor industry, a stark contrast to its past standing in the sector. Driven by another quarter of results that handily exceeded expectations and positive forward guidance, Micron’s stock price surged sharply. These signals indicate that the current memory chip boom cycle is far from over. While the company is ramping up capacity investments (with capital expenditure (CAPEX) projected to hit $10 billion in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026, which will bring additional supply), management expects the memory market to remain tight on supply and demand at least through 2027. Against this backdrop, DA Davidson reiterated its "Buy" rating on Micron and raised its price target from $1,500 to $2,000, equivalent to a 20x price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio based on the company’s 2026 calendar year expected earnings per share (EPS).
9 minutes ago
Morgan Stanley raises Micron's price target to $1,200, maintains 'Overweight' rating.
Morgan Stanley released a report raising Micron Technology (MU.O)’s price target from $1,050 to $1,200, while maintaining an "Overweight" rating. The investment bank lifted its fiscal 2027 earnings per share (EPS) forecast for the chipmaker by roughly 40% to $168, and upgraded its free cash flow (FCF) projection from $104 billion to $140 billion. Aligning with Micron’s management, the bank holds that AI will push DRAM demand to consistently outpace supply significantly after 2027. Micron’s last fiscal quarter results matched this trend, with both its quarterly performance and outlook showing notable upside potential.
GeneralWhat it is, why it's being proposed, and how the canonical LST could fit into the Tezos ecosystem
8 minute read
April 22, 2026
On Tezos, participation has always been fairly straightforward. For years, delegation has allowed anyone to earn rewards while keeping their tez liquid and fully accessible at all times. With the ParisB upgrade, staking was introduced as a more active option, where users can lock their tez to earn higher rewards while contributing more directly to network security.
Between delegation and staking, it feels like the bases are covered. One offers flexibility and liquidity, the other offers higher rewards in exchange for locking funds. Both serve clear purposes, and so far, they’ve been working well.
But now, a new approach is being proposed. A couple of months ago, a concept called the “Enshrined Liquid Staking” was introduced on Tezos Agora as another potential option around staking. So naturally, a few questions come up.
What exactly is it? How would it work? And maybe most importantly, do we even need it? Here’s how I’ve come to understand it.
The Limits of Delegation and Staking #What Tezos offers today works well within its own environment. Delegation and staking both do what they’re supposed to do, and for a long time, that’s been enough. But things start to shift once you move beyond that.
If you decide to take your tez into DeFi, or move it to environments like Etherlink (upcoming Tezos X), that connection breaks. Your tez is no longer part of the staking flow. It’s active elsewhere, but at the same time, it’s not earning staking rewards, and it’s no longer contributing to securing the network.
This isn’t unique to Tezos. Across other ecosystems, similar patterns have led to the rise of third-party liquid staking solutions, tokens that represent staked assets while still being usable elsewhere. Things like stETH on Ethereum follow this idea, allowing users to stay exposed to staking while still participating in DeFi. Tezos has already seen early versions of this approach as well, with solutions like stXTZ aiming to bridge that gap.
But as useful as these solutions are, they also introduce a new set of considerations.
Once you introduce a third-party liquid version of staked assets, the way staking works starts to shift.
Instead of interacting directly with the protocol, users rely on an additional layer that handles staking on their behalf. Depending on the design, that layer can involve smart contracts, operators, or specific coordination mechanisms that sit between the user and the network. That changes a few things.
At the network level, stake is what secures Tezos and what gives participants influence in governance. If more and more of that stake is routed through the same liquid staking systems, it can start to concentrate in fewer places. Not because it’s designed that way, but because liquidity naturally pulls users toward the same solution. Over time, that concentration can matter. It can influence how stake is distributed across bakers, and potentially who ends up having more say in the network.
There’s also the question of trust. Even when systems are transparent, users are no longer interacting only with the protocol, they are relying on how that system is built and maintained. Smart contracts reduce the need for intermediaries, but they don’t remove risk entirely. Bugs, upgrades, or admin keys can all affect how that system behaves over time.
None of this makes liquid staking tokens a bad approach. It solves a real need, and it’s already widely used across the industry. But it does introduce an extra layer between users and the protocol, and that layer comes with tradeoffs that need to be understood.
A Different Approach: Protocol-Level Liquid Staking # source: Mathias Bourgoin’s presentation at TezDev
So what if that extra layer didn’t sit outside the protocol, but inside it? That’s the idea behind the proposed canonical LST on Tezos.
Instead of relying on external systems to manage staking, the mechanism is built directly into the protocol itself. There’s no separate operator, no admin keys, and no third-party contract managing the process. From a user perspective, the interaction stays familiar, but the logic behind it is handled directly by the protocol. The rules are defined at that level and follow the same governance process as everything else on Tezos.
From a user perspective, the flow is straightforward. You deposit tez and receive a liquid token in return (sTEZ). That token represents your share of the underlying stake and can be held, transferred, or used elsewhere, just like any other standard token.
At the same time, this doesn’t mean the system is “hands-off.” There are still mechanisms in place to manage how stake is distributed, how risk is handled, and how the system avoids the kind of concentration we discussed earlier. The difference is that all of this is defined at the protocol level, rather than being handled by an external layer.
So how does that actually work in practice?
How It’s Designed to Work # Source: Canonical LST Whitepaper
At a high level, the idea is simple. You deposit tez into the system and receive a liquid token in return, commonly referred to as sTEZ. That token represents your share of the underlying stake and can be held, transferred, or used elsewhere, just like any other token. From there, the system follows an accrual model.
Instead of distributing rewards as separate payouts, rewards are reflected in the value of the token itself over time. In simple terms, one sTEZ gradually becomes worth more tez as rewards accumulate. The same applies in the opposite direction, where if slashing occurs, that value can decrease as well. When you want to exit, you redeem your sTEZ. The system initiates an unbonding process, similar to unstaking today, and once that period is complete, you receive your tez back.
Behind the scenes, the protocol takes care of how stake is distributed across bakers. But unlike traditional delegation or staking, bakers actively choose to participate in this system. They register and define specific parameters, such as how much of their capacity they allocate to this form of staking and the fee applied to it.
The main difference is that users are no longer the ones deciding where their stake goes. Instead, the protocol handles the allocation itself, spreading it across participating bakers while respecting those parameters and keeping things within limits designed to avoid concentration and maintain a more balanced distribution.
One important detail is that this stake does not carry governance rights. Even though it contributes to securing the network, it doesn’t participate in voting. That separation is intentional, as it avoids concentrating governance power through a liquid token that could otherwise scale quickly across the ecosystem.
So where does this leave us? This isn’t meant to replace delegation or staking. Those are still the core ways people participate in Tezos today. This just adds another option, one that brings liquid staking into the protocol itself, without relying on external solutions and the tradeoffs that come with them.
If it works as intended, it could lead to more tez being staked while still remaining usable elsewhere. That would probably increase the overall staking ratio over time, which in turn can reduce issuance. It might also make it easier for newer bakers to get external stake, which feels really helpful when you are starting out. Keep in mind, this is just how I’ve come to understand things based on what’s been shared so far.
The canonical LST is part of the Ushuaia proposal. If it passes, it won’t be fully active right away. Instead, it would be introduced behind a feature flag, allowing it to be tested in controlled environments like testnets and refined over time. Activation would only come later, in the next (V) proposal, once the system has been evaluated in practice.
There are still parameters and details that need to be finalized, and these are already being discussed on Tezos Agora. If you’re interested in digging deeper, check out the TezDev presentation from Mathias Bourgoin, the whitepaper, and the discussion on Tezos Agora. And if you have an opinion on this, don’t just keep it to yourself, jump into the Agora thread and be part of the conversation.
FeaturedGeneralThe Tezos X roadmap is about to become reality. First up: EVM and Michelson apps sharing one ledger.
9 minute read
April 27, 2026
This is a joint post from Nomadic Labs, Trilitech, and Functori.
When first introduced in 2024, the ‘Tezos X’ roadmap described an ambitious vision for Tezos:
A next-generation blockchain architecture with multiple tool stacks running as a single system, starting with EVM and Michelson. High performance, full composability, and broad interoperability.
Fast forward to 2026: the prerequisites are in place, priorities have been sharpened by market signals, and we are happy to announce that the architecture enabling EVM and Michelson to run together as one system is about to ship – starting with a testnet in April.
This blog post covers:
A recap of Tezos X
What’s coming (and when)
Milestones reached
How priorities changed
Tezos X, a recap #Tezos X is a new execution layer for Tezos. It’s where transactions run and smart contracts live – designed to remove friction for users and expand what builders can ship.
For users, Tezos X offers experiences that simply work. Imagine an artist listing an NFT priced in tez on a marketplace written in Michelson (Tezos’ native smart-contract language). A buyer wants to pay in USDC, held by an EVM smart contract. On Tezos X, both contracts share the same chain and the same ledger, so the swap and the purchase settle atomically in a single transaction. No bridge, no wrapped tokens.
For builders, Tezos X offers new designs and frictionless development. A Michelson contract can call an EVM contract (and vice versa) inside one transaction, letting a single app tap user bases and liquidity that used to be siloed. Contracts deployed on the Michelson runtime can also be formally verified – mathematically proven to behave as specified – for extra assurance in audit and in production. EVM developers bring existing Solidity contracts and tooling directly. Michelson developers keep working as they do today – no rewrite needed.
Under the hood, Tezos X is an enshrined, non-custodial rollup: a fast execution layer that settles back to Tezos Layer 1 for security, built into the Tezos protocol itself, with users always in control of their assets and free to exit.
What’s coming now #The execution layer will initially offer two interfaces:
EVM (Etherlink)
Michelson (available on the Tezlink Shadownet testnet)
It will be introduced as an Etherlink upgrade proposal that adds a Michelson interface, effectively evolving Etherlink into the execution layer.
This approach makes the execution layer instantly EVM-compatible, while the Michelson interface brings compatibility with Tezos’ Layer 1. The architecture enables additional interfaces in the future (for example JavaScript), and more will come.
The planned launch of Tezos X was also covered by Tezos co-founder Arthur Breitman in a keynote at the TezDev conference in March 2026. It’s recommended viewing for a high-level update on current protocol and ecosystem developments.
A frictionless path for existing Tezos apps #The Michelson interface offers a way for existing Tezos applications built on Layer 1 to get the benefit of Tezos X.
The vast majority of Michelson contracts can be redeployed as-is and work out of the box.
Developers can keep using the wallets, connectivity libraries, explorers, and other tools they already rely on, thanks to each interface’s interoperability with its origin ecosystem.
Etherlink tools for Layer 1 interoperability (bridges, fast withdrawals) will be extended to include the Michelson interface.
Layer 1 itself continues to evolve toward a lean, fast consensus layer, supporting the existing ecosystem and with XTZ and FA tokens easily transferable to and from the execution layer.
The timeline #The expected near-term timeline is the following:
May 2026: Testing. A new testnet launches with Michelson and EVM interfaces on a single shared ledger. This is the first chance to test native atomic cross-interface calls between Michelson and EVM contracts in practice. Developers will be encouraged to deploy, test, and break things.
June 2026: Etherlink governance vote. After testnet validation, an Etherlink upgrade proposal is submitted to bakers. If approved, Tezos X becomes a reality on mainnet, starting with Michelson and EVM interfaces – live and fully composable.
H2 2026: RISC-V migration. The rollup engine migrates from WASM to RISC-V, enabling more runtimes, JIT compilation, and more predictable gas accounting. Critically, it makes adding new interfaces significantly faster, opening the door to mainstream programming languages later.
Milestones reached #The launch of Tezos X on mainnet builds on numerous improvements and innovations introduced since 2024.
Layer 1 has been continuously optimized for speed, efficiency, security, and decentralization. Block time has been reduced to now 6 seconds, while the staking UX and economics have been improved and fine-tuned. In short, Layer 1 is rapidly becoming a fast, lean consensus layer for Tezos X.
The Data Availability Layer (DAL) has been launched, putting a check mark next to a major milestone on the roadmap. The DAL ensures that Tezos has the bandwidth required for publishing millions of transactions per second, while security and integrity remains guaranteed by Layer 1. The bandwidth is continuously being improved – an upgrade to 10 MB/s is part of the upcoming Ushuaia protocol proposal.
The launch of Etherlink was another key milestone. Besides the added EVM interface for Tezos, Etherlink, Smart Rollup technology offers execution scalability far beyond what can be achieved on Layer 1, while still being non-custodial and governed by Tezos bakers. Etherlink has in many ways been a prototype for Tezos X, with much of the innovation implemented here first.
Priorities: what moved up, what moved down #Though the roadmap and vision have been broadly stable since 2024, priorities have been adjusted in response to market signals.
Some work has moved up on the agenda – and some things have been added – due to necessity or demand, while other items remain on the agenda but are no longer part of the near-term path.
Note that any property mentioned for Etherlink will carry over into the unified execution layer, should the upgrade proposal be adopted.
What moved up
Throughput: During 2025, Etherlink’s maximal throughput was increased almost 14x to 27 Mgas/s (~1300 TPS), with experiments showing further potential for significant increases.
Latency: Work on latency has already enabled 10–20x faster confirmations than originally envisioned, from “subsecond” to milliseconds. Etherlink now offers instant confirmations via a sequencer, enabling 50ms latency today and further reductions in the future.
MEV protection: The instant confirmations provided by the sequencer also offer guarantees about transaction order and the result of the next block, effectively providing MEV protection.
BLS signatures: This signature scheme was introduced to enable signature aggregation, supporting Layer 1 optimization and DAL integration, and bringing protocol-native multisig functionality.
What moved down (for now)
JavaScript interface: The absence of strong demand at this stage means that enabling a JavaScript interface (Jstz) in Mainnet is no longer a near-term priority. An important milestone, the RISC-V migration—required to support additional runtimes such as JavaScript—is targeted for H2 2026, as mentioned above.
Blind sequencer: The current sequencer is decentrally governed by Tezos bakers, holds sequencing power only, and can be replaced by vote. On-chain settlement adds censorship-resistant finality in seconds. Our market analysis indicates that, at this stage, the ultra-low latency achievable with this approach is a stronger value driver for network participants than alternative architectures with higher latency.
Data Availability Sampling: Sampling enables higher scalability by establishing security about available data without requiring an honest majority of nodes to download everything. However, at 10 MB/s bandwidth, the DAL supports plenty of throughput for the near future, and sampling is therefore not a near-term priority.
Finally, an initially envisioned automatic upgrade of Layer 1 apps to the execution layer has been dropped. Instead, app maintainers can move ad hoc, supported by tooling to make the process smooth.
From “canonical rollup” to “execution layer” #Some readers may have noticed that “execution layer” has replaced previous talk of a “canonical rollup”.
While “canonical rollup” partly captures the role Tezos X has in the Tezos architecture in a technical sense, the term “canonical” is not an intuitive descriptor for most people. Also, “rollup” carries Ethereum L2 connotations that don’t match what Tezos X represents:
Ethereum’s L2 landscape is fragmented into largely independent and custodial chains with varying security assumptions, offering limited integration with Ethereum’s Layer 1 and each other.
Tezos X is a unified, single-chain experience for both developers and end users, enshrined in the protocol. No new tokens or controlling entities are involved. The system remains entirely non-custodial.
We believe that “execution layer” better reflects the tightly integrated nature of the architecture, and it sums up the role well: the natural home for applications on Tezos.
Beyond blocks and chains #If the Tezos X roadmap laid out an ambitious path for Tezos, this update marks the point where that path becomes reality.
It is an opportunity for developers and entrepreneurs to think bigger, draw on the best of the EVM and Michelson worlds, and deploy the next generation of Tezos-powered applications and products.
We look forward to supporting builders in exploring the new possibilities through documentation, tutorials, tools, sparring, and other help that makes the path to great products as frictionless as possible.
The long-term belief hasn’t changed. Blockchains should fade into the background. People should use applications that happen to be powered by Tezos, not “use a blockchain” as a primary act. A seamless experience resting on uncompromising security.
Tezos X is what makes it practical: a fast, multi-language, highly composable execution layer secured by a battle-tested, self-amending, and censorship-resistant Layer 1.
GeneralA simpler look at what Tezos bakers are currently voting on, and why this proposal matters for the network's future
6 minute read
April 29, 2026
Tezos bakers are back in voting mode, as the network’s 21st protocol upgrade proposal, Ushuaia, has now been injected and entered the Proposal period of governance.
This latest upgrade proposal brings a handful of notable changes to the protocol, with most of the focus landing on Tezos X infrastructure, Smart Rollup performance, and the early testing of two features that could become much more relevant down the line.
So, let’s take a high-level look at what Ushuaia brings to the table.
A Stronger Backend for Tezos X #A big part of Ushuaia focuses on strengthening the infrastructure Tezos X is being built around, particularly the Data Availability Layer (DAL) and Smart Rollups.
Without getting too deep into the weeds, the DAL is a core part of Tezos’ scaling design. It is what allows Smart Rollups to publish and access large amounts of data without pushing all of that load directly onto Layer 1, making it possible for Tezos to scale without simply bloating the base chain.
The first major change here is a substantial increase in DAL bandwidth, jumping from roughly 0.66 MB/s to 10 MB/s. That is a sizeable expansion in the amount of data Tezos can make available every second, giving Smart Rollups far more breathing room as the network prepares for heavier rollup usage in the future.
Ushuaia also introduces what the core devs call Dynamic DAL Attestation Lag, which changes how quickly that data can move through the system. Instead of DAL data always waiting through the same rigid delay before becoming usable, that waiting period can now be adjusted depending on how quickly the required attestations come in. In short, data does not have to sit around longer than necessary before Smart Rollups can make use of it.
And the backend tuning does not stop there. Ushuaia also includes upgrades to the WASM PVM, which you can think of as the internal workspace where Smart Rollups do their processing behind the scenes.
Ushuaia makes that workspace more efficient when it comes to loading data and preparing storage before tasks are executed, helping rollups run more smoothly as the network continues building toward heavier scaling usage.
Taken together, these changes are all part of Tezos getting its scaling foundation into place. But Ushuaia doesn’t stop at backend improvements. It also introduces two separate feature-flagged additions that give the community an early look at what may be coming further down the line.
Tezos Liquid Staking Takes Its First Step Into Testing #Beyond the infrastructure upgrades, Ushuaia also includes one of the more talked-about additions in recent weeks: Enshrined Liquid Staking.
This is the proposed native Liquid Staking Token model on Tezos (sTEZ**)**, which would eventually allow users to stake their tez while also receiving a liquid tokenized representation of that position that can still be moved or used across DeFi, rollups, etc. In other words, it opens the door for users to keep earning staking rewards without having their capital sit completely idle.
The feature is included behind a feature flag, which allows it to be tested and evaluated on testnets, but it will not automatically activate on mainnet at this stage. This step allows the community to experiment with the system on testnets and prepare for possible future activation once testing is complete.
If you want to learn more about how Tezos’ proposed Liquid Staking Token works, I go into it in more detail here: Understanding Tezos’ Proposed Liquid Staking Token (sTEZ).
Preparing for Quantum-Resistant Accounts #The other feature-flagged addition in Ushuaia is Post-Quantum User Keys, which are new types of accounts designed to resist future quantum computing attacks.
Put simply, these keys use cryptography that could stay secure even if powerful quantum computers exist down the line. You can think of them like stronger locks on a door, they make it much harder for a future technology to break in and compromise your funds.
Like the Liquid Staking feature, Post-Quantum User Keys are included behind a feature flag, which means they are currently for testing and experimentation only, and will not automatically activate on mainnet.
This is an early step in preparing Tezos for the next era of account security, giving developers and the community a chance to explore how these keys behave and integrate before wider adoption.
It’s worth mentioning that there was another feature suggested for Ushuaia that didn’t make it into the proposal. The reason? Community feedback during the heads-up process on Tezos Agora. Almost all features in this proposal went through that same loop, which clearly shows why this feedback loop is so important, the community’s input directly affects what features make it into the proposal.
Ushuaia is an important step forward for Tezos, bringing a range of features and refinements that will make the network’s foundations much stronger and prepare it for the future. As always, I’ve tried to keep this at a high level, so if you’re interested in more details about the individual features, check the announcement on the Nomadic Labs blog.
You can also follow the proposal’s progress through governance on Tezos Agora. The proposal is now live, so bakers can vote, and users should make sure their chosen baker is aware.
After all, governance is one of our strongest tools. Let’s put it to work!
FeaturedGeneralThe first public testnet where Michelson and EVM interact through a shared ledger
6 minute read
May 4, 2026
The Tezos X Previewnet is now live, giving builders their first public environment where the EVM and Michelson interfaces come together in a way that hasn’t been available before.
This testnet offers the first opportunity to experiment with applications that can interact across both environments as part of the same flow.
With that now available, developers can start deploying, testing, and seeing what this new model actually makes possible.
Let’s take a closer look at what’s being introduced here, why it matters, and how you can start experimenting with it.
One System, Not a Set of Workarounds #If you look at how most ecosystems are evolving, they tend to solve problems by adding more pieces.
Different environments, different layers, different chains, each doing its own thing. It works, but it also creates fragmentation. Assets live in one place, applications in another, and moving between them becomes part of the experience, often adding extra complexity, and in many cases, additional risk. Tezos X takes a different route.
Tezos X is designed to reduce that friction by bringing those environments closer together from the start. Within Tezos X, a single shared ledger can be addressed through both the EVM and Michelson interfaces. That design enables native atomic composability.
Native atomic composability is what allows contracts across different environments to interact natively within a single transaction so that either all actions succeed or none do, without requiring intermediary steps like bridging or wrapping assets.
For example, imagine a ticketing platform built with Michelson, where tickets are priced in tez. A buyer comes in holding USDC in a MetaMask wallet on the EVM side. Normally, that means extra steps, swapping, bridging, wrapping, and moving assets across boundaries before anything can actually happen.
Here, those boundaries don’t exist within the system. The EVM user can interact directly with the Michelson contract, and the payment and the purchase can happen together, in a single transaction, executed atomically. All-or-nothing. No bridging, no wrapping, no loose ends.
One action, one result. That’s where things start to get interesting when you’re building.
What This Actually Changes for Builders #Up until now, building usually meant committing to one environment. You pick your stack, your tools, your ecosystem, and everything follows from that.
With Tezos X, that trade-off starts to disappear.
If you’re already building with Solidity, you can keep doing exactly that. Same tooling, same workflows, same mental model. But now, you also have access to the Michelson side when it actually makes sense to use it. At the same time, if you’re building with Michelson, you’re no longer operating in a more isolated environment. You can tap directly into EVM-based users, assets, and liquidity without relying on external bridges or separate deployments.
That opens up a different kind of design space.
Some parts of your app can stay EVM-shaped, flexible, familiar, and easy to work with. But for parts where guarantees really matter, like how assets are handled or how certain rules are enforced, you can lean on the Michelson side.
Michelson contracts can be formally verified, meaning their behavior can be mathematically proven to match what they’re supposed to do. While this is something that can be done with EVM contracts too, it’s generally much easier to do in Michelson, as it was built from the start with formal verification in mind and you can even prove properties that are significantly harder to establish in EVM-based systems.
You don’t need to go deep into the theory to see the value, it simply gives you stronger guarantees where it counts. And with AI-assisted tooling putting formal methods within reach of almost any builder, it is becoming far easier to make use of those guarantees in practice. In an industry that keeps getting reminded how expensive smart contract failures can be, those guarantees are becoming much harder to overlook.
So instead of forcing everything into one model, you can start designing applications where both environments work together within the same transaction flow.
What Comes Next #Once you start thinking about it this way, the next step is seeing how it holds up.
This phase is about seeing how these interactions behave in real conditions, what feels intuitive, what breaks, and what needs to change before anything moves further. It’s where assumptions meet actual usage, and where things become clearer once people start building with it. How builders use it, and where it breaks, will shape what moves forward to mainnet.
And that next step isn’t far off. Following this phase, an Etherlink governance proposal is expected around June 2026. If approved by bakers, Tezos X moves to mainnet with both the EVM interface and the Michelson interface live and fully composable from day one.
If you want to get a broader picture of how all of this fits together, the Tezos X roadmap update goes into more detail on the direction of the project and what’s coming next.
Getting Started #At this point, the most useful thing isn’t another explanation, it’s actually using it. The testnet is live, the environment is there, and this is where builders come in.
Try things out, deploy something small, and see how it behaves. Push it a bit, break a few assumptions, and get a feel for how these interactions work when you’re actually building with them. And if something doesn’t work the way you expect, you can share feedback or ask questions in the dedicated Tezos X channel in the Tezos Discord.
If you want to get started, you can find everything you need here:
Developers behind the Tezos ecosystem launched a testnet prototype for private blockchain payments designed to resist future quantum computing attacks, as concerns grow that advances in quantum technology could eventually compromise existing blockchain privacy systems.
The prototype, called TzEL, uses post-quantum cryptography and zk-STARK proofs to shield transaction data and encrypted payment metadata that could otherwise be vulnerable to “harvest now, decrypt later” attacks, where encrypted blockchain data collected today is decrypted in the future, according to Tezos.
The prototype also uses Tezos’ Data Availability Layer to handle the larger proof sizes associated with post-quantum cryptography, which developers say has been one of the main technical barriers to building scalable quantum-resistant privacy systems onchain.
Source: Tezos
According to the project's whitepaper, the quantum-resistant zk-STARK proofs used by TzEL are roughly 300KB in size, significantly larger than privacy proofs commonly used in existing blockchain systems.
TzEL is currently live on the Tezos testnet and remains in development, while the broader Tezos (XTZ) ecosystem is still in the early stages of transitioning toward post-quantum cryptography.
The crypto industry ramps up post-quantum security effortsThe crypto industry increased efforts to prepare for quantum computing risks throughout April, as concerns continue to grow over the long-term security of blockchain cryptographic systems.
Two major validator clients on the Solana (SOL) network introduced a test version of a post-quantum signature system called Falcon, designed to help protect the blockchain against future quantum threats while minimizing performance tradeoffs.
Meanwhile, MARA Holdings launched the MARA Foundation to support Bitcoin network development, including research into quantum-resistant security measures.
Source: MARA Holdings
Coinbase researchers also said Algorand (ALGO) and Aptos (APT) appeared further along in preparing for potential quantum threats, citing efforts to integrate quantum-resistant cryptography into their networks.
However, the researchers warned that proof-of-stake blockchains may face greater exposure to quantum computing risks because of the signature systems used by network validators.
According to Bernstein researchers, the crypto industry has around three to five years to transition toward quantum-resistant cryptographic standards before quantum computing becomes a threat to Bitcoin (BTC) security.
But not everyone agrees. In May, Adam Back, an early cypherpunk and Bitcoin contributor, said that computers capable of breaking Bitcoin signatures are likely still at least 20 years away.
Magazine: Kraken’s $600M stablecoin firm, Huione scandal deepens: Asia Express
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In brief Tezos launched TzEL, a post-quantum privacy system for blockchain payments on testnet. Arthur Breitman accused parts of the Bitcoin community of dismissing legitimate quantum risks. The project aims to protect encrypted blockchain transaction data from future decryption attacks. While practical quantum computers capable of breaking modern cryptography do not yet exist, Tezos co-founder Arthur Breitman said some pockets of the crypto industry are treating quantum computing like a conspiracy theory while ignoring a legitimate threat to blockchain privacy.
The warning comes as Tezos launches TzEL, a post-quantum privacy system on testnet designed to protect private payments and encrypted transaction data from future “harvest now, decrypt later” attacks. Breitman said Tezos is acting with “a sense of urgency,” while parts of the industry remain complacent about quantum threats in his view.
“Some projects are barely maintained and won’t be upgraded at all; but the important ones will be upgraded, mostly in a timely fashion,” Breitman told Decrypt.
Breitman took particular issue with some in the Bitcoin community promoting what he described as pseudo-scientific theories about quantum computing.
“There are Bitcoiners being applauded on stages for half-baked crank theories about quantum mechanics that fly in the face of established physics,” he said.
The cultural debate centers on whether blockchain networks should begin preparing now for a future where quantum computers could break the elliptic curve cryptography widely used across crypto today.
The concern is especially acute because blockchain data is permanent. By design, transactions and other data are stored publicly on-chain indefinitely, creating the potential for what security researchers call a “harvest now, decrypt later” attack.
In such a scenario, attackers collect blockchain data in the form of public keys and store them until quantum computers become powerful enough to break the cryptography protecting them, thus exposing private keys and allowing for funds to be stolen.
One challenge facing post-quantum privacy systems, however, is scale. Quantum-resistant zk-STARK proofs are substantially larger than the proofs used in many existing blockchain privacy tools, creating storage and throughput problems. Breitman said that Tezos is equipped to handle that challenge.
“Post-quantum shielded transactions can take up a lot of space,” he said. “Tezos has a functioning data availability layer that can absorb them without increasing the load for consensus nodes.”
The project remains experimental, and Breitman said several steps still need to happen before broader deployment. He added that Tezos has also started introducing post-quantum signature support for user accounts as part of a broader effort to prepare the network for future threats.
“The fact the encrypted memo can be decrypted in the future means there is value in switching early,” Breitman said. “Work to make the entirety of Tezos post-quantum is active and ongoing.”
Breitman argued the industry still has time to prepare for quantum threats, but warned that developers are underestimating how quickly that window could close. His comments also come as recent reports from quantum security firm Project Eleven warned that “Q-Day,” the point at which quantum computers become capable of breaking modern cryptography, could arrive as early as 2030.
“The main risk is complacency among developers,” he said. “Elliptic curve signatures won’t be broken in a few months, but there’s a good chance they’ll be broken in a few years. That leaves enough time to upgrade, but not enough to quibble.”
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In brief Tezos launched TzEL, a post-quantum privacy system for blockchain payments on testnet. Arthur Breitman accused parts of the Bitcoin community of dismissing legitimate quantum risks. The project aims to protect encrypted blockchain transaction data from future decryption attacks. While practical quantum computers capable of breaking modern cryptography do not yet exist, Tezos co-founder Arthur Breitman said some pockets of the crypto industry are treating quantum computing like a conspiracy theory while ignoring a legitimate threat to blockchain privacy.
The warning comes as Tezos launches TzEL, a post-quantum privacy system on testnet designed to protect private payments and encrypted transaction data from future “harvest now, decrypt later” attacks. Breitman said Tezos is acting with “a sense of urgency,” while parts of the industry remain complacent about quantum threats in his view.
“Some projects are barely maintained and won’t be upgraded at all; but the important ones will be upgraded, mostly in a timely fashion,” Breitman told Decrypt.
Breitman took particular issue with some in the Bitcoin community promoting what he described as pseudo-scientific theories about quantum computing.
“There are Bitcoiners being applauded on stages for half-baked crank theories about quantum mechanics that fly in the face of established physics,” he said.
The cultural debate centers on whether blockchain networks should begin preparing now for a future where quantum computers could break the elliptic curve cryptography widely used across crypto today.
The concern is especially acute because blockchain data is permanent. By design, transactions and other data are stored publicly on-chain indefinitely, creating the potential for what security researchers call a “harvest now, decrypt later” attack.
In such a scenario, attackers collect blockchain data in the form of public keys and store them until quantum computers become powerful enough to break the cryptography protecting them, thus exposing private keys and allowing for funds to be stolen.
One challenge facing post-quantum privacy systems, however, is scale. Quantum-resistant zk-STARK proofs are substantially larger than the proofs used in many existing blockchain privacy tools, creating storage and throughput problems. Breitman said that Tezos is equipped to handle that challenge.
“Post-quantum shielded transactions can take up a lot of space,” he said. “Tezos has a functioning data availability layer that can absorb them without increasing the load for consensus nodes.”
The project remains experimental, and Breitman said several steps still need to happen before broader deployment. He added that Tezos has also started introducing post-quantum signature support for user accounts as part of a broader effort to prepare the network for future threats.
“The fact the encrypted memo can be decrypted in the future means there is value in switching early,” Breitman said. “Work to make the entirety of Tezos post-quantum is active and ongoing.”
Breitman argued the industry still has time to prepare for quantum threats, but warned that developers are underestimating how quickly that window could close. His comments also come as recent reports from quantum security firm Project Eleven warned that “Q-Day,” the point at which quantum computers become capable of breaking modern cryptography, could arrive as early as 2030.
“The main risk is complacency among developers,” he said. “Elliptic curve signatures won’t be broken in a few months, but there’s a good chance they’ll be broken in a few years. That leaves enough time to upgrade, but not enough to quibble.”
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Recently, Bitcoin (BTC) and altcoins have been warned that the quantum computing threat poses a significant risk and that urgent action is needed.
While many altcoins have taken significant steps in this regard, the latest move comes from Tezos (XTZ).
Tezos has launched TzEL, a post-quantum privacy system for blockchain payments, on its testnet.
Speaking to Decrypt, Tezos co-founder Arthur Breitman emphasized the importance of prioritizing the treatment of quantum risk, while also criticizing some groups.
At this point, Breitman stated that some segments of the crypto industry are treating quantum computing like a conspiracy theory, ignoring a legitimate threat to blockchain privacy, and underestimating the real threats it poses.
Breitman stated that Tezos acted “urgently,” while some parts of the industry, in his opinion, remained indifferent to quantum threats.
According to Breitman, the quantum threat should be a very serious concern. This is because blockchain data is persistent. By its very nature, transactions and other data are stored publicly on the chain indefinitely. This creates the potential for what attackers call a “collect now, decrypt later” attack. In such a scenario, attackers collect blockchain data in the form of public keys and store them until quantum computers become powerful enough to break the encryption protecting them.
Breitman concluded by stating that the project is still in the experimental phase and that several more steps need to be taken before it can be deployed on a wider scale. He also added that Tezos has begun offering post-quantum signature support for user accounts as part of its efforts to prepare the network for future threats.
“Work to fully transform Tezos into a post-quantum state is active and ongoing.”
*This is not investment advice.
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Developers behind the Tezos ecosystem launched a testnet prototype for private blockchain payments designed to resist future quantum computing attacks, as concerns grow that advances in quantum technology could eventually compromise existing blockchain privacy systems.
The prototype, called TzEL, uses post-quantum cryptography and zk-STARK proofs to shield transaction data and encrypted payment metadata that could otherwise be vulnerable to “harvest now, decrypt later” attacks, where encrypted blockchain data collected today is decrypted in the future, according to Tezos.
The prototype also uses Tezos’ Data Availability Layer to handle the larger proof sizes associated with post-quantum cryptography, which developers say has been one of the main technical barriers to building scalable quantum-resistant privacy systems onchain.
Source: Tezos
According to the project's whitepaper, the quantum-resistant zk-STARK proofs used by TzEL are roughly 300KB in size, significantly larger than privacy proofs commonly used in existing blockchain systems.
TzEL is currently live on the Tezos testnet and remains in development, while the broader Tezos (XTZ) ecosystem is still in the early stages of transitioning toward post-quantum cryptography.
The crypto industry ramps up post-quantum security effortsThe crypto industry increased efforts to prepare for quantum computing risks throughout April, as concerns continue to grow over the long-term security of blockchain cryptographic systems.
Two major validator clients on the Solana (SOL) network introduced a test version of a post-quantum signature system called Falcon, designed to help protect the blockchain against future quantum threats while minimizing performance tradeoffs.
Meanwhile, MARA Holdings launched the MARA Foundation to support Bitcoin network development, including research into quantum-resistant security measures.
Source: MARA Holdings
Coinbase researchers also said Algorand (ALGO) and Aptos (APT) appeared further along in preparing for potential quantum threats, citing efforts to integrate quantum-resistant cryptography into their networks.
However, the researchers warned that proof-of-stake blockchains may face greater exposure to quantum computing risks because of the signature systems used by network validators.
According to Bernstein researchers, the crypto industry has around three to five years to transition toward quantum-resistant cryptographic standards before quantum computing becomes a threat to Bitcoin (BTC) security.
But not everyone agrees. In May, Adam Back, an early cypherpunk and Bitcoin contributor, said that computers capable of breaking Bitcoin signatures are likely still at least 20 years away.
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PANews reported on May 15th, citing Cointelegraph, that Tezos ecosystem developers have launched a prototype private blockchain payment testnet called TzEL, designed to withstand future quantum computing attacks. This prototype uses post-quantum cryptography and zk-STARK proofs to protect transaction data and encrypted payment metadata, preventing "collect first, decrypt later" attacks. TzEL leverages Tezos' data availability layer to handle the larger proof size (approximately 300KB) introduced by post-quantum cryptography, which was one of the main technical obstacles to building scalable on-chain quantum-resistant privacy systems. TzEL is currently running on the Tezos testnet and is still under development; the transition of the Tezos ecosystem to quantum-resistant cryptography is still in its early stages.
Key Highlights TzEL, Tezos’ post-quantum privacy solution, is now operational on testnet for blockchain transactions The system combines post-quantum cryptographic methods with zk-STARK proofs to secure payment information against future quantum threats Arthur Breitman, Tezos co-founder, called out crypto community members for underestimating quantum computing dangers Project Eleven, a quantum security company, suggests Q-Day might occur by 2030 Analysts at Bernstein estimate a three-to-five-year window for the sector to adopt quantum-safe protocols The Tezos network has rolled out TzEL on its testnet, a quantum-resistant privacy framework built to safeguard blockchain transaction information against emerging quantum computing capabilities.
🔍 Private transactions today may not stay private forever.
Built using quantum-resistant cryptography via STARK proofs and Tezos Smart Rollup technology.
Learn more ↓
🔗…
— Tezos (@tezos) May 14, 2026
TzEL leverages post-quantum cryptographic techniques alongside zk-STARK proofs to secure both transaction details and encrypted payment information. The technology targets what security experts call “harvest now, decrypt later” scenarios, where adversaries capture encrypted blockchain information today with plans to decode it once quantum computers become sufficiently advanced.
Public blockchain ledgers maintain records indefinitely. This permanence creates long-term vulnerability, as information recorded currently could become accessible once quantum technology matures sufficiently.
A key technical hurdle for quantum-safe systems involves data volume. TzEL’s zk-STARK proofs measure approximately 300KB per proof—significantly larger than privacy verification methods in current blockchain applications. According to Tezos, its Data Availability Layer architecture accommodates these expanded proof sizes while keeping consensus node operations unaffected.
Currently operational on testnet, TzEL remains under active development. The platform is simultaneously developing quantum-resistant signature capabilities for user wallets as part of comprehensive network enhancement initiatives.
Conflicting Views on Quantum Timeline Arthur Breitman, who co-founded Tezos, emphasized the project is moving proactively while much of the sector stays passive. He specifically targeted certain members of the Bitcoin ecosystem.
“There are Bitcoiners being applauded on stages for half-baked crank theories about quantum mechanics that fly in the face of established physics,” Breitman said.
His urgency isn’t universally accepted. Adam Back, a pioneering Bitcoin developer, believes systems powerful enough to compromise Bitcoin cryptography remain two decades away. Michael Shaulov, CEO of Fireblocks, has similarly downplayed concerns, stating the quantum danger is “not actually a threat as people make it out to be.”
Breitman rejected this perspective. “Elliptic curve signatures won’t be broken in a few months, but there’s a good chance they’ll be broken in a few years,” he said. “That leaves enough time to upgrade, but not enough to quibble.”
Project Eleven, specializing in quantum security, has projected that Q-Day—when quantum computers can compromise current encryption standards—might materialize as soon as 2030.
Broader Ecosystem Response Tezos isn’t operating in isolation on quantum preparedness. The Solana ecosystem saw two prominent validator clients release experimental implementations of Falcon, a post-quantum signature protocol, this past April.
MARA Holdings established the MARA Foundation to advance Bitcoin technology development, with quantum-resistant security among its research priorities. Analysts at Coinbase identified Algorand and Aptos as blockchain networks with notable progress in quantum-resistant cryptography implementation.
Researchers at Bernstein project a three-to-five-year timeframe for the cryptocurrency sector to complete its transition before quantum computing poses genuine risks to Bitcoin infrastructure.
Breitman identified developer inaction as the primary concern. “Work to make the entirety of Tezos post-quantum is active and ongoing,” he added.
Quick Answer: Tezos (XTZ) is trading near $0.33–$0.40 as of May 2026, down approximately 96% from its all-time high of $9.12 (October 2021). Analyst forecasts for 2026 range from $0.362 (Changelly conservative) to $2.46 (Coinpedia bull case). For 2030, projections span from $0.217 (Changelly base model) to $5.00 (Cryptopolitan bull). Key catalysts include the Tezos X scalability upgrade in H1 2026, Etherlink’s EVM-compatible Layer 2 growth, the Seoul protocol upgrade (September 2025), and Fortify Labs’ $1.3M startup accelerator open to Tezos and Etherlink builders.
Key Takeaways:
XTZ trades ~96% below its October 2021 ATH of $9.12; ranked #97 globally with a $380M+ market cap Tezos X — a major scalability upgrade improving transaction speed — is in H1 2026 deployment Seoul upgrade (September 19, 2025): native multisig, aggregated attestations, one-click un-staking Tezos Art Ecosystem sold 500K+ NFTs in 2025; 243,000+ museum visitors introduced to blockchain art 2026 base case consensus: $0.36–$1.10; bull case $2.46 requires Etherlink and Tezos X adoption momentum What Is Tezos (XTZ)? Tezos is an open-source Layer 1 blockchain built for smart contracts and decentralized applications, founded by Arthur Breitman and Kathleen Breitman. Its mainnet launched in September 2018 after one of the largest ICOs in history — raising $232 million in 2017. Tezos operates on a proof-of-stake consensus mechanism and is notable for its self-amending protocol: the blockchain can upgrade itself through an on-chain governance process that does not require hard forks.
XTZ is the native cryptocurrency used for transaction fees, staking (“baking”), governance participation, and delegation rewards. Token holders who stake XTZ (called “bakers”) earn rewards for validating blocks — currently approximately 4–6% annually — while holders who delegate to bakers earn similar yields without running infrastructure.
Tezos has completed 19 protocol upgrades since mainnet launch, with the 19th upgrade (“Seoul”) activating on September 19, 2025. The upcoming Tezos X upgrade in H1 2026 is its most ambitious scalability milestone — improving transaction throughput while maintaining the security model that has kept Tezos hack-free since 2018.
The Etherlink Layer 2 is Tezos’ strategic expansion into EVM compatibility: an optimistic rollup on Tezos that allows Solidity developers to deploy Ethereum-compatible smart contracts, bridging Tezos’ governance and security with Ethereum’s developer tooling and DeFi ecosystem.
According to CoinMarketCap, XTZ has a circulating supply of approximately 1.01 billion tokens and a market capitalization of approximately $380–400 million as of May 2026.
How Does Tezos Compare to Other Smart Contract Layer 1s? Tezos occupies a niche focused on governance, formal verification, and long-term institutional adoption rather than speculative DeFi velocity.
FeatureTezos (XTZ)Ethereum (ETH)Cardano (ADA)Algorand (ALGO)ConsensusProof-of-StakeProof-of-StakeProof-of-StakePure PoSHard forksNever (self-amending)MultipleMultipleRareSmart contractsYes (Michelson + Ligo)Yes (Solidity)Yes (Plutus)Yes (Python/TEAL)EVM compatibilityEtherlink L2NativeNoNoMarket cap (May 2026)~$380M~$290B~$17B~$700MBlock time10 seconds~12 seconds~20 seconds~3.3 secondsProtocol upgrades19 (no hard forks)Multiple hard forksMultipleMultipleNFT ecosystemActive (500K+ sales 2025)DominantGrowingGrowing Tezos’ unique selling point — the no-hard-fork self-amending protocol — has enabled 19 consecutive upgrades without the community splits that plagued Ethereum Classic and Bitcoin Cash. The trade-off is slower developer adoption compared to Ethereum and Solana.
Tezos (XTZ) Price Today and Market Overview MetricValue (May 2026)Price~$0.33–$0.40Market Cap~$380–400M24h Volume~$15–20MCMC Rank~#97ATH$9.12 (Oct 4, 2021)ATH Drop~96%Circulating Supply~1.01B XTZ As of May 2026, XTZ is trading near $0.33–$0.40. Changelly’s current technical data shows XTZ at $0.38, ranked #97 globally, with bearish sentiment at 57% and a Fear & Greed Index near 38 (Fear). Both the 50-day and 200-day moving averages are above current price, acting as resistance.
Despite weak price action, Tezos has been delivering consistent development milestones. Fortify Labs opened 2026 applications offering up to $1.3 million for startups building on Tezos or Etherlink — a seven-month program with two in-person off-sites in Singapore, targeting integration and growth-stage projects. The Tezos Art Ecosystem sold over 500,000 NFTs in 2025, introduced 243,000+ museum visitors to blockchain art at the Museum of the Moving Image (MoMI), and staged Art on Tezos Berlin as a three-day digital art festival.
The September 2025 Seoul protocol upgrade introduced native multisig support, aggregated attestations for faster finality, and a simplified one-click un-staking mechanism — keeping Tezos competitive for institutional-grade dApp developers.
XTZ Price History Snapshot YearKey Price Level2018Mainnet launch ~$1.60–$4.002019Declined to $0.30–$1.502020Range $1.50–$3.50Oct 2021ATH $9.122022Bear market; fell to $1.00–$2.002023Range $0.50–$1.102024Post-halving recovery $0.60–$1.70Sep 2025Seoul upgrade; trading ~$0.80–$1.10May 2026Near $0.33–$0.40 Tezos’ October 2021 ATH of $9.12 was driven by the broader altcoin mania and NFT adoption (Red Bull, McLaren F1, DojaCat, Toulouse FC all announced Tezos NFT partnerships). The current price of $0.33–$0.40 represents the deepest pullback since early 2019, approaching levels not seen since shortly after mainnet launch.
XTZ Price Prediction 2026 2026 is potentially transformative for Tezos. The Tezos X scalability upgrade in H1 2026 is the most ambitious technical milestone since mainnet launch, and the Etherlink L2’s EVM compatibility creates a new growth surface.
SourceLowHighNotesChangelly$0.362$0.381Conservative; near current levelsMEXC (5% linear)$0.33$0.36Flat growth modelCoinbird$0.74$1.65Avg $1.22; moderate recoveryCryptopolitan—$0.50Q2 2026 targetCoinpedia$0.70$2.46Bull case; Tezos X + Etherlink neededMargex—$16.35Aggressive bull (5-year horizon figure) Changelly and MEXC represent the floor — XTZ drifting near current levels without a macro catalyst. Coinbird’s $0.74–$1.65 range (avg $1.22) is the base recovery scenario, requiring the Tezos X upgrade to demonstrate visible performance improvements. Coinpedia’s $0.70–$2.46 is the bull case: Etherlink attracting EVM developers, Tezos X improving throughput metrics, and Bitcoin-driven capital rotation reaching mid-cap governance blockchains.
For 2026 planning, the realistic range is $0.36–$1.10. The $1+ zone requires the Tezos X upgrade to generate measurable developer activity and at least one new institutional NFT or tokenization partnership.
XTZ Price Prediction 2027 2027 is the prime post-halving altcoin window. Tezos’ no-hard-fork architecture and institutional NFT ecosystem give it a differentiated narrative for capital rotation.
SourceLowHighChangelly$0.40$0.45Coinbird~$0.80~$2.00Margex$14.06~$18Coinpedia—$3.91Cryptopolitan—~$3.00+ Changelly stays near $0.40–$0.45 — minimal appreciation without a fundamental catalyst. Coinpedia’s $3.91 and Cryptopolitan’s $3.00+ represent a meaningful recovery scenario where Tezos captures developer mindshare via Etherlink and governance-first positioning. Margex’s $14.06 minimum (described as a five-year outlook figure) is the aggressive bull case — XTZ returning to $9 ATH territory — requiring a full-cycle altcoin mania with Tezos at the center.
XTZ Price Prediction 2028 2028 is the next Bitcoin halving year — the historical trigger for Tezos’ largest cycle gains.
SourceLowHighChangelly$0.18$0.27Coinpedia—$6.15Cryptopolitan~$2.00~$5.00 Changelly’s 2028 model declines below current prices — a structural bear case where Tezos loses market share to newer Layer 1s. Coinpedia’s $6.15 treats 2028 as a halving-cycle peak where Tezos’ institutional adoption becomes visible enough to drive meaningful capital inflows. Cryptopolitan’s $2–$5 range is the moderate scenario — XTZ recovering to 2023–2024 trading levels.
XTZ Price Prediction 2029 SourceLowHighChangelly$0.18$0.27Coinpedia—$8.08Cryptopolitan$0.75$4.50 2029 is the late-cycle bull phase. Coinpedia’s $8.08 approaches XTZ’s $9.12 ATH — plausible if Tezos X, Etherlink, and the institutional art/tokenization narrative drive two years of compounding adoption. Cryptopolitan’s $0.75–$4.50 range captures both a moderate recovery and a near-ATH scenario. Changelly’s floor of $0.18–$0.27 remains structurally bearish.
XTZ Price Prediction 2030 2030 is the most debated long-term horizon for XTZ.
SourceLowHighChangelly$0.180$0.267MEXC (5%)—~$0.41DigitalCoinPrice—~$1.45Coinbird—~$3.00+Coinpedia—$9.00+Cryptopolitan$0.55$5.00 Changelly’s 2030 floor ($0.180–$0.267) represents actual decline from current prices — a scenario where Tezos’ governance and security advantages are overshadowed by developer ecosystem deficits. MEXC’s flat $0.41 is minimal appreciation. DigitalCoinPrice’s $1.45 and Coinbird’s $3+ represent base-to-moderate bull scenarios. Coinpedia’s $9+ and Cryptopolitan’s $5 max treat 2030 as a potential full recovery to ATH territory — achievable if Etherlink establishes meaningful DeFi TVL and Tezos becomes a recognized institutional tokenization chain.
What Drives Tezos (XTZ)’s Price? Tezos X scalability upgrade (H1 2026). Tezos X is the most technically ambitious upgrade in the protocol’s history — targeting significant throughput improvements while maintaining the formal verification and security properties that make Tezos attractive for institutional applications. Successful deployment and demonstrable performance improvements are the single most important near-term price catalyst.
Etherlink L2 growth. Etherlink is Tezos’ bridge to Ethereum’s developer base: an EVM-compatible optimistic rollup that allows Solidity developers to deploy on Tezos infrastructure. Growing Etherlink TVL and dApp deployments create a new, measurable demand signal for XTZ.
Protocol upgrade cadence. Tezos’ ability to complete its 19th upgrade without a hard fork is a structural differentiator. Each successful upgrade increases institutional confidence that Tezos can deliver governance improvements at scale — directly relevant to enterprise and government tokenization clients.
NFT and digital art ecosystem. The Tezos art ecosystem processed 500,000+ NFT sales in 2025 and has reached 243,000+ new blockchain users through museum partnerships. Growing cultural relevance drives both developer interest and organic token demand from collectors who need XTZ to transact on the network.
Fortify Labs startup pipeline. The Fortify Labs $1.3M accelerator for 2026 creates a structured pipeline of new projects building on Tezos and Etherlink. If the cohort produces successful consumer-facing dApps, it generates the on-chain activity that translates to organic XTZ demand.
Bitcoin halving cycles. XTZ remains highly correlated with Bitcoin market cycles. The 2028 halving is the next major macro trigger. Tezos’ institutional positioning — rather than pure retail speculation — may provide a more defensible price floor during bear markets but also slower appreciation during bull phases.
Is Tezos (XTZ) a Good Investment? XTZ at $0.33–$0.40 prices it near its 2019 lows — before most of its institutional NFT partnerships, its Etherlink L2, and its current Seoul upgrade. The fundamental case for Tezos is stronger now than at this price level in 2019 by most objective measures: more institutional adoption, more protocol upgrades delivered, more ecosystem infrastructure.
The bear case: Tezos has been unable to break out of its structural narrative problem — it is technically sophisticated but has consistently failed to build the DeFi TVL or developer community depth that its architecture merits. Changelly’s 2030 floor of $0.18 is a credible outcome if Etherlink and Tezos X fail to close the gap with Ethereum L2s and other modern Layer 1s.
For investors who believe governance-first, no-hard-fork blockchains will become the standard for institutional tokenization by 2030, XTZ near six-year lows offers asymmetric exposure to that thesis.
Nothing in this article constitutes financial advice. Cryptocurrency investments carry substantial risk.
Where to Buy Tezos (XTZ) Centralized exchanges (CEX):
Binance — XTZ/USDT and XTZ/BTC; highest global liquidity Coinbase — XTZ/USD for US users; available in most US states Kraken — XTZ/USD and XTZ/EUR with strong regulatory compliance KuCoin — XTZ/USDT with competitive fees Gate.io — XTZ/USDT available globally OKX — XTZ/USDT spot and staking options Staking (Baking/Delegation): XTZ holders can delegate their stake to bakers directly in Coinbase, Kraken, or dedicated wallets including Kukai, Temple Wallet, and Ledger. Annual staking rewards are currently approximately 4–6%. Delegation does not lock tokens — delegated XTZ can be transferred at any time. For users committed to long-term XTZ exposure, staking is the recommended approach to avoid dilution from the protocol’s block reward issuance.
Self-custody wallets: The official Tezos-supported wallets are Kukai (web), Temple Wallet (browser extension + mobile), and Umami (desktop). All three support delegation staking directly within the interface.
Frequently Asked Questions What is the Tezos price prediction? For 2026, forecasts range from $0.362 (Changelly conservative) to $2.46 (Coinpedia bull). Coinbird projects a base average of $1.22. MEXC's flat model stays near $0.36. The base case consensus is $0.36–$1.10, with the upper end requiring Tezos X deployment success and Bitcoin-driven altcoin recovery. Above-base scenarios require Etherlink capturing DeFi TVL and new institutional tokenization partnerships.
How high can XTZ go? In a moderate 2030 bull scenario, Cryptopolitan projects $5.00 and Coinpedia targets $9+. DigitalCoinPrice estimates $1.45 for 2030. Coinbird targets $3+. Reaching $5 by 2030 would require XTZ to recover toward its 2021 ATH range — achievable across two halving cycles if Tezos X and Etherlink drive measurable adoption. Changelly's base 2030 model is $0.18–$0.27, representing continued decline.
Will XTZ reach $1 again? XTZ last traded above $1 in late 2024 before the current correction. Coinpedia's 2026 base case targets $0.70–$2.46, making $1 achievable in a moderate recovery scenario. For $1 before year-end 2026, XTZ needs a confirmed close above current 200-day SMA resistance and either the Tezos X upgrade showing visible performance metrics or a Bitcoin-driven broad altcoin recovery. Coinbird's $1.22 average for 2026 represents the most cited realistic $1+ scenario.
What is the XTZ price prediction for 2030? The 2030 range is wide. Changelly projects $0.18–$0.27 (structural decline). MEXC's flat model estimates $0.41. DigitalCoinPrice targets $1.45. Coinbird forecasts $3+. Coinpedia's bull case reaches $9+. Cryptopolitan projects $0.55–$5.00. The most cited realistic planning range for 2030 is $1–$5, depending on whether Tezos X and Etherlink translate into measurable developer adoption through two halving cycles.
What makes Tezos different from other blockchains? Tezos' primary differentiator is its self-amending protocol — it has completed 19 upgrades since 2018 without a single hard fork. This means no community splits, no wasted capital on competing chains, and institutional confidence in long-term protocol stability. Tezos also uses formal verification for smart contracts, reducing exploit risk. The Etherlink L2 provides EVM compatibility without abandoning Tezos' governance model.ShareContentThe theoretical threat of quantum computers to Bitcoin’s cryptographic security now has a dollar figure: $469 billion. That’s the value of 6.04 million BTC, or 30.2% of the total issued supply, whose public keys are exposed on-chain today and could be exploited if a sufficiently powerful quantum compastedQuick Answer: AMP is currently trading near $0.000841, down roughly 99.3% from its June 2021 all-time high of $0.1208. Third-party forecasts for 2026 range widely — from $0.0009 on the bearish end (CoinCodex) to $0.0100 on the bullish end (PricePrediction.net) — with the base-case consensus sitting pasted
Manchester United is gearing up for a busy summer transfer window, targeting at least one new midfielder and potentially a forward to strengthen its squad.
United’s primary midfield target appears to be Ederson, the Brazilian currently at Atalanta. The club is reportedly in advanced negotiations, with a target fee hovering around £38 million. His contract with the Italian side runs through 2027, giving Atalanta some leverage but not an overwhelming amount.
Beyond Ederson, the club has been linked to several other midfield options. Names like Mateus Fernandes, Sandro Tonali, and Carlos Baleba have circulated as alternative or complementary targets.
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The Tezos deal and XTZ’s rough stretch Manchester United signed a training kit sponsorship deal with Tezos back in February 2022. The partnership was valued at more than £20 million per year, making it one of the more significant crypto-sports tie-ups in European football at the time.
The XTZ token has dropped roughly 70% from its peak levels during the partnership era. There have been NFT initiatives launched on the Tezos network as part of the collaboration, but no new crypto-specific developments or token-related announcements have accompanied the current wave of transfer news.
The unofficial fan token problem Separate from the Tezos deal, a community-driven Manchester United Fan Token, trading under the MUFC ticker, exists on the BNB Chain. It carries no official endorsement from the club.
The broader Premier League landscape has not been kind to fan token ambitions. Multiple clubs have faced pushback from supporter groups who view tokenized engagement as a monetization scheme that extracts money from loyal fans without delivering meaningful value.
What this means for investors No measurable crypto market movements have been tied to Manchester United’s current transfer pursuits. XTZ’s price action is driven by broader market dynamics, developer activity, and competitive positioning against other Layer 1 blockchains, not by whether Ederson signs for £38 million.
For anyone holding XTZ, the Tezos-United partnership is worth monitoring primarily for renewal signals. A deal valued at over £20 million annually represents significant spending for a protocol whose token has been in a prolonged downturn.
The MUFC token on BNB Chain lacks official club backing, meaning its value proposition rests almost entirely on community sentiment and speculative trading. The club has no obligation to support its existence.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
Tezos (XTZ) has jumped 6.66% to $0.2514, trading above its 20-day and 50-day simple moving averages on strong intraday buying pressure, according to data tracked by Traders Union. The rally, however, runs into a wall of long-term resistance, with the token still well below its 200-day moving average.
Short-Term Indicators Flash Bullish While Long-Term Trend Resists XTZ’s MACD and ADX both signal ongoing bullish momentum on the prevailing timeframe, and its RSI generates a buy signal, per TradingView chart data. The Ichimoku Kijun line provides immediate support at $0.24035. The Bulls Bears Power indicator also points to strong buyer dominance during the session.
Yet the Commodity Channel Index has moved into overbought territory, and both the Stochastic RSI and Awesome Oscillator return neutral readings. That divergence between short-term strength and medium-term caution suggests the rally may face headwinds. Elevated volatility, a recurring feature in XTZ’s recent sessions, adds to the uncertain setup.
An Analyst Sees Limited Upside Without A Long-Term Breakout Anton Kharitonov, an analyst at Traders Union, noted that Tezos is holding above its 20-day and 50-day moving averages with mixed technical signals. “I remain defensive here,” Kharitonov wrote in his analysis. “Until XTZ/USD overcomes its long-term resistance, the upside looks limited.”
Kharitonov expects sideways movement unless key support or resistance levels are breached. His projected two-to-three-day trading range spans $0.2156 to $0.2574, with a 67% probability assigned to a downward move and only 33% to an upside breakout.
Analysis: A Pattern of Spikes and Reversals The 6.66% gain follows a string of sharp single-day moves in both directions. Tezos surged 10.02% in a prior session before facing heavy selling pressure, and reports of Manchester United sponsorship talks pushed XTZ 7.2% higher earlier this week. Each rally has so far been met with swift retracements, creating a choppy range rather than a sustained uptrend.
That pattern is consistent with low-capitalization tokens caught between speculative catalysts and thin liquidity. Until trading volume deepens or a fundamental catalyst shifts the 200-day moving average, these percentage moves are more noise than signal for longer-term positioning.
Manchester United Link Adds A Speculative Layer Tezos has drawn attention after reports linked it to a potential sponsorship arrangement with Manchester United, contributing to this week’s 7.2% spike.
No formal deal has been confirmed, and the previous session’s selling pressure suggests traders are treating the headline as a short-term catalyst rather than a structural shift. A confirmed partnership could alter that calculus if it brings sustained visibility and transaction volume to the network.
What’s Next? Near-term direction depends on whether XTZ can hold the $0.2156 support floor identified in Traders Union’s projected range. A confirmed break above $0.2574 would signal a potential shift in the short-term trend, while a move below support could accelerate selling toward levels not seen since earlier this quarter.
Resolution of the Manchester United sponsorship reports could also serve as the next meaningful catalyst for the token.
After last week’s plunge of over $1,500, Bitcoin rattled its 2020 positive run. The question remained if the $8,500 critical support level could hold the downfall, and, so far, it has.
The largest cryptocurrency dipped below it to $8,440, but it managed to recover quickly. At the time of this writing, Bitcoin is trading at approximately $8,700.
If BTC continues to increase, the first significant resistance level lies at $8,800, followed by $9,000. The latter also serves as a major psychological line.
BTC/USD. Source: TradingView Most of the cryptocurrency market notes small upwards movements today. Ethereum, Litecoin, Tezos, and EOS are all up with around 1%.
Bitcoin Cash and Bitcoin SV are the most significant gainers among the top 10 coins by market cap. The former is up with 2.66% to $322 and the latter with 4.6% $234.
Contrary, Huobi Token records the largest decline in the top 20. HT is down with over 4% and is currently trading at $4.66.
You may also like: Brutal Bitcoin Liquidation Cascade Imminent Below $59K, Warns Analyst Bitcoin Price Crashes Below $60K as Strategy’s MSTR Plunges 10% Bitcoin’s Network Is Booming Even as Prices Remain Below Record Highs Major Crypto Headlines Breaking: Bitfinex Exchange Goes Under Unscheduled Maintenance, Suspects DDoS Attack. The popular cryptocurrency exchange, Bitfinex, went through unscheduled maintenance on Friday. Even though the company suspected a DDoS attack on its network, later, Bitfinex said that all issues had been resolved.
Interestingly, OKEx went through an unscheduled system update on the same day, as well.
Beating the Odds? Insolvent FCoin To Resume Operations And Attempt To Refund Users. FCoin exchange became insolvent in February and was unable to pay its customers an estimated amount of $115m worth of Bitcoin. A few weeks later, however, the firm promised to refund the affected users and to start operating again.
Ripple Partners With European Remittance Company Azimo But Legal Troubles Continue. Ripple partnered up with a European online remittance service company Azimo to serve customers in the Philippines. At the same time, though, the company’s legal issues with Bradley Sostack continue.
Significant Daily Gainers and Losers Bytecoin (23%) BCN skyrockets today with 23% gains against the U.S. dollar to $0.0005. It rises with 21.6% against the largest cryptocurrency, and BCN/BTC currently trades at 6 SAT.
With the most recent price increase, the total market capitalization of Bytecoin is well above $92 million.
AELF (12.32%) Elf is in the green today, as well. It rises to $0.1, after a 12% price jump. Elf trades at 1163 SAT after an 11% increase against Bitcoin.
The company recently published a comprehensive guide on how to utilize its network mechanism securely.
Kyber Network (-12.45%) On the other side of the scale sits KNC’s price. After yesterday’s surge to $0.85, KNC drops to $0.7. It also goes down to 8074 SAT, following a 13.5% drop.
Despite the most recent decrease, Kyber Network still has a total market cap of above $125 million.
The latest bullish appraisal was indicative of the fact that the downturn in the crypto-market was short-lived as the collective market cap sprung to $180 billion. Unfortunately for the bears, a continuation of this upward momentum could potentially help recover the substantial losses incurred by many of these coins during the 12 March market crash, especially in the case of Alts like Tezos, Augur, and FTT.
Tezos [XTZ]
In a recent development for the Tezos ecosystem, the token XTZ was recently listed on the crypto-exchange Poloniex. On its price side, however, the token failed to maintain an upward movement and despite a bullish streak in the early days of 2020, XTZ collapsed to $2.00-level. However, the latest rally did drive the price closer to its resistance level.
At press time, Tezos’s price stood at $1.59, while holding a market cap of $1.12 billion. Additionally, the token registered a trading volume of $90.05 million after surging by 4.21% over the last 24-hours.
Resistance: $2.57, $3.18
Support: $1.23, $0.76
MACD: The signal line hovering below the MACD indicated a bullish phase for the coin.
Chaikin Money Flow: The CMF also noted an upward movement towards the bullish zone.
Augur [REP]
Augur recently announced the fork of MolochDAO, which is focused on funding the development of Ethereum 2.0, to create OracleDAO. This DAO is essentially a smart contract that aims to coordinate efforts to build tools and market Augur, and its token REP.
Augur [REP] was also enjoying the latest price movement as it was up by a whopping 6.67% which drove its price to $10.34. At press time, the coin had a market cap of $113.7 million and registered a 24-hour trading volume of $42.23.
Resistance: $12.75, $17.28
Support: $6.39
Parabolic SAR: The dotted markers were below the Augur price candles which was indicative of a bullish trend.
Awesome Oscillator: The AO indicator also depicted a bullish price trend for the coin with its green closing bars.
FTX Token [FTT]
The recent price action of the crypto-platform FTX’s native token, FTT, has not been very impressive. One of the factors was speculated to be Binance delisting all leveraged tokens linked to the FTX Exchange.
However, following the latest market rally, FTT token was also up by 6.99%, propelling its coin to climb to a value of $2.41. At press time, the token held a market cap of $230.4 million and a 24-hour trading volume of $3.34 million.
Resistance: $2.81
Support: $2.007
Klinger Oscillator: The KO line above the signal line suggested a bullish flip for the token in the near-term.
RSI: RSI spiked from the oversold zone to the 50-median neutral zone, meaning a revival of interest among the investors in the FTT market.
April has begun on a positive note for most altcoins. In less than 48 hours, altcoins across the spectrum have registered gains in their prices. The examples of Tezos, Augur, and Enjin coin are cases in point. Since yesterday, these alts have surged in value, registering price rises up of up to 10 percent.
Tezos [XTZ]
Tezos was in the headlines recently after Coinbase reported that it had migrated its Tezos staking bakery from the United States to Ireland.
At the time of press, Tezos continued to be one of the best performing altcoins, with its trading value increasing to $1.68 while registering an over 10 percent rise in less than two days. If the bullish momentum were to sustain, Tezos will be on track to breach the resistance at $1.79. However, if things take a turn for the worse, Tezos’ supports at $1.5 and $1.4 are likely to come to the rescue of the coin.
At the time of writing, the CMF indicator was just above the neutral zone, indicating relatively high buying pressure. The Stochastic indicator also echoed a similar sentiment as it was firmly placed in the overbought zone.
Augur [REP]
After its massive price drop, Augur was on its way to recover most of its losses. The recent surge saw Augur’s price rise by 4 percent, pushing its price to $10.14. For Augur, if the price were to endure bearish pressure, then there are two supports at $9.8 and $9.5. However, if its upward price action were to continue, Augur would soon be testing the resistance at $11.18.
According to the MACD indicator, the coin underwent a bearish crossover; however, there is the possibility of a reversal since the MACD line was, at press time, heading upwards towards the signal line and may soon go above it. The RSI indicator showed bullish sentiment, as it was moving towards the overbought zone.
Enjin Coin [ENJ]
Enjin Coin, an Ethereum-based cryptocurrency, has had quite an impressive run over the past 24-hours. At press time, ENJ was being traded at $0.092 and it had a market cap of $75 million. In less than 48 hours. the coin managed to increase its price by over 11 percent. For ENJ, there were two strong points of support at $0.084 and $0.080, if the price were to fall. However, if it keeps up the momentum, the resistance at $0.095 would soon be in striking distance.
The MACD indicator for ENJ had undergone a bearish crossover yesterday; however, the MACD line and the signal line looked like they will soon converge. The CMF indicator was showing high buying pressure, generally a bullish sign.
As seen in the chart below, Dash, Tezos, and Augur have all performed relatively well, with their RoIs over the last 90 days up by 51%, 36, and 11%, respectively. Unlike, most altcoins, however, these three coins have managed to push higher, even after the crash on 13 March.
Source: TradingView
Dash Dash had been in the news recently due to its performance over the last two months, with the altcoin performing consistently better than other coins. Further, Dash also migrated to Hive after the Steemit fiasco. Additionally, the price was forming a bearish descending triangle, with the CMF heading lower, at the time of writing.
The VPVR indicator showed the formation of a PoC at the press time price level of $70. The future for the 20th largest crypto seemed slightly bearish, with there being a possibility that Dash’s market cap [$646 million] would fall following a 9% drop in price.
Augur Augur, the 45th ranked cryptocurrency on CoinMarketCap, was about to face off with both the 200 DMA [purple] and 50 DMA [yellow], levels which will act as resistance, preventing the price from trending higher.
The price level [$10.13] was also a confluence of resistance, with the VPVR also highlighting a major level of resistance. Further, a drop from here would take the price of Augur aka Rep token to its PoC at $7.85.
Tezos Tezos’ price has been trending higher since mid-March, with its price going from a low of $6 to $10 and above. At press time, however, the price stood at $10.05, with the token ranked as the 10th largest crypto on CoinMarketCap.
The 24-hour trading volume for XTZ was recorded to be $134 million, with the token recording a 24-hour price change of 3.28%.
After the price breakout, a bearish trend should be expected and the same was highlighted by the MACD indicator which was heading towards the zero-line. This trend might push the price down by a minimum of 9%.
Another week, another round of Crypto Tidbits. Bitcoin has effectively been flat on the week, recently returning to around where it started the week after briefly interacting with the ever-important $7,400 resistance. Altcoins, interestingly, came into their own this week, with Ethereum, Link, Tezos, EOS, among other top altcoins posting double-digit percentage gains in the past seven days.
Bitcoin’s stagnation over the past week comes as the stock market has mounted a strong comeback, with the S&P 500 rallying 12% from last Friday’s close to Thursday’s close despite 6.6 million new unemployment claims in the U.S. and the ongoing coronavirus outbreak.
Despite the non-action, analysts are still bullish on BTC and the rest of the cryptocurrency market. In fact, as reported by NewsBTC previously, BitMEX CEO Arthur Hayes said that while he could see Bitcoin revisiting $3,000, his year-end price target “remains $20,000,” which is 180% above the current price.
As to why he thinks this is the case, he cited that the monetary and fiscal solutions that governments and central banks are enlisting to stave off precision:
“Everyone knows the shift is upon us, that is why central bankers and politicians will throw all of their tools at this problem. And I will reiterate, that is inflationary because more fiat money will chase a flat to declining supply of real goods and labour. There are only two things to own during the transition to whatever the new system is and that is gold and bitcoin.”
Related Reading: Crypto Tidbits: Bitcoin At $7,000, FATF Regulation, Coinbase Backs Ethereum DeFi Bitcoin & Crypto Tidbits Crypto Industry Sees Layoffs: The Bitcoin community and broader crypto space have not been spared in the recent economic carnage. According to a “100% user-generated” list of companies on recruiting/job site Candor, Bitcoin.com, crypto mining firm Bitfarms, and mining hardware manufacturer Bitfury are among the firms in this industry that have begun to lay off staff over the past few weeks. Outside of this, one of the original crypto companies, Factom, has purportedly gone into liquidation, despite securing millions of dollars worth of funding over the past five years and garnering a grant from the U.S. Energy Department. Ethereum DeFi Has Seen Stellar Growth: In a report published April 9th, blockchain analytics site DappReview revealed that transaction volume across Ethereum-based DeFi projects has increased by nearly 800% when comparing Q1 2020’s metrics to that of Q1 2019. Much of this growth was attributed to projects like Maker and Compound — which offer decentralized loans and stablecoin solutions — and derivatives providers like Synthetix and Augur. This growth comes as crypto upstart Thesis and other partners are soon to release tBTC — a project that will act as a decentralized representation of Bitcoin on the Ethereum blockchain. Analysts expect for the launch of this project to boost DeFi adoption, with both ETH and BTC holders Bitcoin Cash & Bitcoin SV See Block Reward Halvings: Both Bitcoin Cash and Bitcoin SV have seen their block reward halvings pass in the past 72 hours. As a result, both networks saw their hash rates and difficulty drop. The halving resulted in an instant 50% reduction in mining revenues for those operating on the BCH and BSV chain, forcing operators running on tight margins to turn off their machines or mine on other networks. Fewer machines mean fewer computers processing blocks, resulting in slower transactions. South Korea Launches Digital Currency Project: On Monday, South Korea’s central bank, the Bank of Korea, revealed that it has launched a pilot program for testing a digital won, which is slated to run to December 2021. A release outlining this move said the program will determine if there are a legal case and ample technical capability to launch a digital currency in South Korea. This comes just six weeks after the South Korean National Assembly passed legislation that will provide a comprehensive framework for the regulation and legalization of cryptocurrencies and Bitcoin exchanges. Twitter CEO & Bitcoin Bull Jack Dorsey Pledges $1 Billion to COVID-19 Relief: Jack Dorsey announced in a Twitter thread this week that Yesterday, Dorsey announced in a Twitter thread — it’s quite fitting, I must say — that he will be “moving $1 billion of my Square equity,” which purportedly corresponds with around 28% of his total wealth, to a LLC called “Start Small” to “fund global COVID-19 relief.” Start Small existed prior to this outbreak, but this is the first time it has seen mainstream attention. The Bitcoin bull intends to allocate the rest of the donation to the promotion of Universal Basic Income and girl’s health and education, calling both issues critical. Fidelity Sees Growth In Crypto Demand: Fidelity Digital Assets — the crypto services division of Wall Street giant Fidelity Investments, a firm with trillions under management — has confirmed it has seen an uptick in interest. Speaking to Frank Chaparro of The Block, a spokeswoman for the firm said that:
“From a trading perspective, we continue to onboard new clients every month and are seeing significant pipeline growth. […] And in recent weeks, we’ve seen more momentum across our business.”
At the time of writing, the cryptocurrency market was noting a sudden surge in market cap and valuation. In fact, Bitcoin, the world’s largest cryptocurrency, was recording a 5% pump in value, a pump that most of the altcoin market followed. At press time, Tezos [XTZ] was up by 4%, Monero [XMR] by 4.45%, and DigitByte [DGB] by 8%.
Tezos [XTZ]
The tenth-largest cryptocurrency on CoinMarketCap, Tezos [XTZ] has been one of the few major assets to reap some profits lately. According to its YTD returns, the coin was returning 44.19% since the beginning of 2020. Despite major falls in the market, the XTZ market had regained its lost value following the crash in March. Further, Binance’s launch of Tezos staking gave a lot of positive momentum to the market.
At press time, the coin was valued at $1.951 with its resistance marked at $2.189 and support at $1.219. However, the coin may have been entering bearish territory.
According to the Awesome Oscillator, the coin had shed its bullish momentum, with bearish momentum soon taking over. However, the trend was lacking strength, suggesting that even though there were sellers in the market, the pressure wasn’t high.
Monero [XMR]
Monero was recording a 0.58% growth in its price over the past 24-hours, with a market cap of $964.28 million. As the charts suggested, the coin was not successful in reversing bearish attacks, with the privacy coin registering losses of 15.69% in the market. XMR was being traded at $55.190, its with immediate resistance at $60.66 and support at $41.956.
The volatility in the market had reduced as the Bollinger bands appeared to converge. However, it would seem that the bulls may return as the moving average had slipped under the candlesticks.
DigiByte [DGB]
The 63rd-ranked coin on CoinMarketCap was recorded to have a market cap of $66.91 million, DigiByte has been at a loss of 10.73% since the beginning of the year. The coin noted a sudden spike in its price over the past week, however, after which it slipped. At press time, DGB was valued at $0.0051, while resistance was noted to be 0.0068, with the support at $0.0040.
Bullish signals were also reversed as the coin’s price went down. As per the MACD indicator, the MACD line was above the signal line until recently. However, with sellers in the market, the MACD line had crossed over the signal line, giving way to a bearish trend.
Crypto markets reach 2019 high; Bitcoin still in charge, XRP and BNB pumping, LTC retreating slowly. Market Wrap Crypto markets have reached their highest level since July 2018 in terms of market capitalization. The momentum has come from Bitcoin hitting another 2019 top, and Ripple’s XRP pumping on a new partnership announcement.
Bitcoin has been grinding higher for the past 24 hours until it topped $9,400 briefly marking its highest price since early May 2018. There is heavy resistance above this and BTC quickly started to retreat back to the $9,200 area where it was trading this time yesterday. According to coinmarketcap.com daily volume dumped 25% in an unnatural looking spike so the figures could be spurious.
Ethereum has been static again and remains at $270 where it was this time yesterday. Without any solid fundamentals ETH remains sluggish and unable to push towards $300. It is still 80 percent down from its all-time high and ‘altseason’ has yet to materialize.
The top ten is a mixed affair during Asian trading today but the top performer is XRP. The Ripple token surged 9 percent after the announcement that the company was partnering with MoneyGram. The deal would involve the deployment of xRapid for cross border transfers using XRP. After topping $0.46 XRP corrected to $0.44 where it currently trades.
An industry defining milestone: together, @MoneyGram and @Ripple are solving the challenges with cross-border payments using the speed and efficiency of #XRP. https://t.co/xIfeJJgSy7
— Brad Garlinghouse (@bgarlinghouse) June 17, 2019
Binance Coin is also doing well today adding 5 percent as the exchange announced that it will issue a number of crypto-pegged tokens on Binance Chain in the coming days, starting with $BTCB, a BEP2 token pegged to $BTC. BSV is up marginally and Litecoin is starting its pullback, dropping 3 percent back towards $130.
The top twenty is also mixed but red is dominating over green as altcoins slide again. NEO and Tezos are dumping 5 percent a piece right now and IOTA and NEM are not far behind dropping 3 percent. Only Cosmos is making anything with 3 percent added on the day.
FOMO: Chainlink Churning Higher Today’s top one hundred top performer is LINK which has cranked 18 percent to hit $2. The fomo is still lingering from the Google Cloud tie up as this altcoin climbs the charts to 24th with a market cap of $700 million. Japan’s Monacoin is also on a roll today adding 15 percent, unsurprisingly most of it on Bitbank in JPY. Zcash is the third most popular altcoin today making 13 percent.
The two usual suspects are at the bottom end of the performance pile, Maximine Coin and Aurora.
Total market cap 24 hours. Coinmarketcap.com Total crypto market cap hit a new 2019 high of $290 billion a few hours ago. The move was driven by BTC and XRP which both pumped within a few hours of each other. Market cap is currently back at $286 billion where it was this time yesterday. BTC is still in the driving seat.
Market Wrap is a section that takes a daily look at the top cryptocurrencies during the current trading session and analyses the best-performing ones, looking for trends and possible fundamentals.
The cryptocurrency market doesn’t appear to be in the best of shape. Most cryptocurrencies are losing large chunks of value in the last 24 hours, and the total market capitalization has dropped with $6 billion in a few days to the current level of $187 B.
The second-largest cryptocurrency, Ethereum, is among the worst-performing altcoins. ETH lost over 7% during the last day, and it’s currently trading at $132. Its latest hard fork, called Istanbul, was released a week ago, but it doesn’t seem to have a positive effect on the price as of yet.
Ripple’s price has been struggling for months, and now it went as low as $0,19 on Bitfinex, before bouncing back to the current level of $0,196. It broke below the strong support level at $0,215 earlier this week, and if it closes below $0,20, the next one will be at $0,185. Last time XRP was under $0,20 was back in 2017 before it skyrocketed to its all-time high of $3,80.
The situation with other major altcoins is not any different. Litecoin is below $40, EOS has lost almost 8%, and it’s at $2,34, and Binance Coin has decreased to $13,08, which is a 10% decline since yesterday. Somewhat unsurprisingly, only one digital asset is green in the top 10, and that’s Tezos. XTZ continues its positive trend as of late surging with 4.5% against BTC and 2% against the dollar.
CryptoMarket. Source: Coin360 As far Bitcoin goes, it’s down with 2.7% to $6,870 on Bitstamp but also tested the $6,800 support level, which managed to keep its stance. If it keeps going down, $6,500 is the next level, and if it reverses, the first resistance is $7,000. With so much blood in the altcoin market, BTC’s dominance is actually increasing, and it has reached 67.2%, after being at 66.4% three days ago.
Total Market Capitalization: $187 B | Bitcoin Market Capitalization: $125 B | Bitcoin Dominance: 67.2%
Major Crypto Headlines The Next Crypto Trend for Exchanges? Coinbase Is Now The Largest Tezos Validator. Tezos is quickly rising as a favorite within the community, and the largest U.S.-based crypto exchange, Coinbase, has become the largest validator for XTZ. People began wondering if this could be the newest trend and if users will be able to choose a specific baker.
You may also like: Market Meltdown: MemeCore Crashes 76% as MIM Breaks Peg to $0.50 Bitcoin (BTC) Dips Below $62K, Ethereum (ETH) Plunges 6% Daily: Market Watch XRP’s Price Could Explode to $8, But This One Zone Is Holding It Back Ready To Explode: Bitcoin Longs Surge 12% To A New ATH, Squeeze Might Crash Bitcoin Price. The number of BTC long positions placed on Bitfinex has reached its all-time high, and it could be related to the following drop. Generally, too many open longs mean that the price of the asset is set to decrease.
Bitmain’s Miner Manufacturing Subsidiary Had $680K In Assets Frozen In a Contract Dispute. One of the largest mining companies, Bitmain, had assets worth $676,000 frozen as ordered by a district court in Shenzhen, China. The decision came after another company, Dongguan Yongjiang Electronics, filed an application for asset protection to dispute a contract with the defendant.
Significant Daily Gainers and Losers Waves (26%) WAVES rises above all other cryptocurrencies in the top 100 with its increase with 26% against the dollar, and it’s currently trading at $0.89. Moreover, it skyrockets with almost 30% against Bitcoin to 12840 SAT. The company recently published an updated explaining how Waves staking works, and it also conducted a Twitter giveaway.
Fetch.ai (12.9%) FET is next on the list, with almost 13% gain against USD. The rise to $0.05 also means that the market cap has reached $34,5 M, and with so many altcoins losing value, FET has broken into the top 100. It surges with 16% against Bitcoin to 765 SAT. The company is set to launch its mainnet today and apparently has attracted severe attention to itself.
Aurora (-27.40%) While red is the predominant color, AOA has taken the lead with its loss of over 27% in the last 24 hours. The current price is $0,0048, and the market cap has plunged to $31,7 M, which actually threatens Aurora’s place in the top 100. Oddly enough, the drop comes a day after the popular crypto exchange, Bithumb, announced a 40,000,000 AOA airdrop event to take place this week.
