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⌐◪-◪ → Coinbase just launched Verified Pools!

Coinbase is taking another step in bridging TradFi and DeFi with its latest product—Coinbase Verified Pools, a curated selection of liquidity pools available only to users with Coinbase Verification Credentials (KYC).

As expected, these pools live on Base, Coinbase’s L2, which recently caught heat from Standard Chartered for “reducing Ethereum’s market cap by $50 billion.” But personally? This is just the same old ETH vs. L2 value accrual debate we’ve been having for years. Large holders are still accumulating, and I remain bullish.

Back to Verified Pools—the goal here is to bring more assets onchain in a compliant way, unlocking capital that would otherwise stay sidelined due to regulatory concerns. Users get verified, institutions feel safer, and suddenly, we have more liquidity flowing onchain.

I see this as the beginning of something much greater. Over time, every financial institution will launch permissioned pools and onchain services, aligning with my thesis that TradFi will eventually be just a portal to the great shared backend—blockchain global liquidity.

That said, KYC always raises privacy concerns. ZachXBT recently voiced frustration, pointing out that KYC data often becomes a honeypot for leaks and breaches, while doing little to prevent actual financial crime. Always something to watch.

Overall though, this is bullish and will help us bring the world onchain!

⌐◪-◪ → Another Bitcoin Reserve Bill just dropped!

North Carolina has entered the Bitcoin Reserve race. Senate Bill 327, aka the "North Carolina Bitcoin Reserve and Investment Act," would allow the state to invest up to 10% of its $9.5B general fund into Bitcoin.

This isn’t just a one-off event—it’s part of a massive wave of state-level Bitcoin legislation. By my count, 33 of 50 states now have active Bitcoin bills, with some states, like Texas, proposing multiple reserve plans.

The Bitcoin prophecy is playing out in real-time. First, it was corporations. Then, it was banks. Now, states are getting involved. The next step? Nations.

Keep stacking and spread the gospel. We are still so early.

⌐◪-◪ → Raydium is gunning for PumpFun!

Raydium, a core pillar of Solana’s DeFi infrastructure, is going head-to-head with PumpFun by launching “LaunchLab,” a memecoin launchpad designed to rival Pump’s dominance.

This is a direct response to PumpFun’s move to develop its own AMM (automated market maker), which put them in competition with Raydium for token launches. The battle lines are drawn.

LaunchLab will introduce new bonding curves for token pricing and allow third-party interfaces to set their own fees. The result? A more open and competitive launch environment for memecoins.

The market loved the news—Raydium’s token $RAY pumped 30%—but opinions on Crypto Twitter were mixed. Some are bullish on competition, while others worry about the growing normalization of memecoins and the rampant scams they enable.

Personally, this is a win. Raydium has been a foundational player in Solana’s DeFi ecosystem, while Pump.Fun changed the game for memecoin trading. Now, they’re competing, which means innovation, better products, and lower fees for users.

Let the Pump vs. Raydium war begin!

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