Kate Irwin

This is a segment from The Drop newsletter. To read full editions, <a href="https://blockworks.co/newsletter/thedrop">subscribe</a>.



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MetaMask has tweaked its fox logo and is making major changes to its crypto wallet, the team <a href="https://metamask.io/news/metamask-roadmap-2025">announced</a> on Thursday.



I chatted with MetaMask co-founder Dan Finlay to get all the deets on how the classic crypto wallet is changing.&nbsp;



“It almost feels like closing Chapter Two on wallets,” Finlay said.



Ethereum’s Pectra hard fork will let MetaMask change its wallet so that it’s asking you way less often to sign something. That could be a plus for safety, and it’s definitely a plus for more seamless usability.&nbsp;



The current way wallets work can be bad for security too — Finlay said a “blind sign” incident was what enabled the recent <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/bybit-hack-raises-security-questions">Bybit hack</a>.&nbsp;



“They were asked to sign a hash just blindly. And they did it. That’s just so deeply, fundamentally broken,” he tells me.



With this update, you’ll be able to revoke permissions right in your wallet. They’re also going to abstract away networks and gas to make using MetaMask feel easier — no more typing in strange codes to add blockchains to your wallet.



“Users are still signing stuff they don&#8217;t understand. And if we want to make this like the rails of an actual functional economy, people need to actually get what they&#8217;re doing, and it has to be like at the deepest level,” Finlay added.


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="alignright is-resized"><img decoding="async" src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXcRlfU1S8IdFTmaIqFLbPWHDi99axY1lxPXERxgIWLg4J1_dif8MOLy1DuAZeIQKp_7QTM1tyBNnFg7PM_RbWbOVpF01MoSbPG5fTOXI4B7ykzhVZ_bxx72M-VkYtjkxb0TM3R9Ig?key=Rviz9PDTT75f7M-Sc1wMW4CU" alt="" style="width:519px;height:auto"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Source: MetaMask</figcaption></figure></div>


They’re also enabling gas-included swaps within the wallet itself, so you don’t have to go through the hassle of getting other gas tokens into that wallet to complete the swap. And next month, they’re going to also let MetaMask users pay gas fees in whatever tokens you hold to make transactions even smoother.



Multiple secret recovery phrases will soon be possible, as will be the ability to sync up your MetaMask profile regardless of what web browser or device you’re using.



The wallet’s page that shows all your tokens will now show all of them in one place, like the Coinbase Wallet, regardless of what chain they’re on. It just makes more sense to see all your crypto in one place. Plus, the wallet will filter out spammy tokens and stuff that’s causing clutter from view.



“We&#8217;re in the, like, spam filtering, trying to filter sewage era of blockchain,” Finlay said. “I hope that people are going to notice like, hey, this, this actually works better.”



And then, similar to what Avalanche is doing with the <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/avalanche-visa-card-payments">Avalanche Visa</a> card, MetaMask is launching a Mastercard-powered credit card that lets you connect your self-custody MetaMask wallet and spend that crypto.


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="alignright is-resized"><img decoding="async" src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXcUFe4gu6bwdGHKYDrRurnXi_yuWtBZ1ZtTDYJQ75GI7BQwZvvqxL3RRPKXFtJGZjluWd_78voExATHnnw9LR4rYnw3-jy2cmyhg61eevJoUjhiIDU1wpN5mxaA1UYbhUvjOKuZ?key=Rviz9PDTT75f7M-Sc1wMW4CU" alt="" style="width:492px;height:auto"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Source: MetaMask</figcaption></figure></div>


Full Bitcoin and Solana support is coming to the MetaMask wallet, too — in a more seamless way than the current third-party enabled option — so your MetaMask can finally feel more like the be-all, end-all crypto wallet of your dreams.&nbsp;



I’ll be honest: I have a MetaMask wallet, a Coinbase wallet, a Phantom wallet, a Ronin wallet, and a Ledger hardware wallet. It’s a lot. It’s too much. I mainly just use my Coinbase wallet because its UX is sleek, and its swaps and automatic network switching just makes more sense. Ease-of-use wins.&nbsp;



But this update could get me to reconsider MetaMask, for sure.



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MetaMask gets an overhaul with better UX, simpler swaps

This is a segment from The Drop newsletter. To read full editions, <a href="https://blockworks.co/newsletter/thedrop">subscribe</a>.



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The Avalanche Foundation has unveiled a payment card called the <a href="https://www.avalanchecard.com/">Avalanche Card</a>, which lets you spend your crypto at fiat-only merchants.&nbsp;



Crypto: It’s not just magic internet money anymore!



I chatted with Eric Kang, Ava Labs’ head of DeFi and business development, to get a clear understanding of how exactly this card works. You aren’t paying merchants directly with crypto, so the card can be used anywhere that accepts Visa. But the crypto is ultimately sold using Avalanche’s C-Chain to pay for transactions that have already occurred with fiat.



“It took us a while to get this out,” Kang tells me. He sees it as an easy way for people to sell or use their crypto without having to go through a crypto exchange or DeFi platform.


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="alignright is-resized"><img decoding="async" src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXem1d2ML1zCkIfWpvoht9-9KDRZ74zejcNsAwyQsgFEH0VlgAyx-0IsDdN3K8fQU21EppdU03fshAXJtbhxS78NVzE3PmjCi6284x1PG65r7e3oKJRZYTQquv6DJbNjVuRzPmQm?key=HETaDUr2BuqaGKnpcmxq-EWB" alt="" style="width:455px;height:auto"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Source: Avalanche Foundation</figcaption></figure></div>


It’s a bit like a mix between a prepaid card and a traditional credit card. You load it up with crypto — USDC, USDT, and AVAX are accepted, with plans to accept bridged bitcoin and potentially other tokens in the future.&nbsp;



Half the US dollar value of those cryptocurrencies is then considered to be your limit, to ensure padding for crypto price fluctuations. You can then use the card at any Visa-friendly merchant, and those charges are logged like a credit card.



Your crypto isn’t immediately sold when you make a purchase, though. Instead, the crypto is actually sold once a day at the same time (around 9 am ET) based on the past day’s charges before becoming transactions onchain.&nbsp;



Because it’s a credit card, you’ll need to hand over some personal information including your real name, address and social security number or other government ID number to get the card.


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="alignright is-resized"><img decoding="async" src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXd8PrY_gUl6F-y8j4BATuFTOzpEjlkiOxjQh_HWcF665lkJBUWxEDo5K9IIjVUz2lke0gAhYGMW0JV_m8ciifEeEPOGWe47CeE6q2LY-HdW6syEb0q47-BbS2nzISdtfDYd_EA6?key=HETaDUr2BuqaGKnpcmxq-EWB" alt="" style="width:533px;height:auto"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Source: Avalanche Foundation</figcaption></figure></div>


You can also freeze the card, change your card’s PIN, dispute suspicious transactions and set up spending alerts. But because it’s crypto, your credit balance will fluctuate depending on crypto market prices.&nbsp;



Sorting out your taxes with this card could be a challenge if you’re making a lot of purchases. As of right now, selling crypto (even to make a purchase, except for stablecoins and USDC) is considered a taxable event. That could be a headache for some prospective users looking to spend their tokens like cash.&nbsp;&nbsp;



“We recommend that you speak with a tax professional regarding circumstances with the Avalanche Card,” the card’s site reads. “Spending against other crypto assets may involve selling your assets. Selling crypto assets can be a taxable event.”



If you’ve got a great crypto-savvy accountant, though, maybe that’s not the end of the world.&nbsp;



Tech firm Rain Liquidity is facilitating the card. When you load it up with tokens, your card will effectively be a new hot wallet, with addresses for each asset.



The card is being launched in 35 US states, with the remaining 15 off the list due to regulatory reasons. The card is also available in Latin America and the Caribbean.&nbsp;



If you’re a resident or citizen of any US-sanctioned country, however, you won’t be able to get the card — because it’s powered by Visa.



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Avalanche Foundation launches Visa credit card for IRL payments

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The SEC has been killing investigations left and right in the past week, freeing Robinhood, OpenSea and Coinbase from its regulatory probes. 



The agency has now closed its investigation into Uniswap Labs, according to posts from the company published Tuesday.



“This is a huge win for DeFi and reaffirms what we’ve always known — that the technology we build is on the right side of the law, and our work is on the right side of history,” Uniswap Labs <a href="https://x.com/Uniswap/status/1894452298698358989">wrote</a> on X.&nbsp;



In a blog <a href="https://blog.uniswap.org/a-win-for-defi">post</a>, the company called the closure a “welcome relief” and praised the SEC’s new leadership — which no longer includes known crypto critic and former Chair Gary Gensler — for seeing a “more effective path to protecting American consumers.”



Uniswap inventor and Uniswap Labs CEO Hayden Adams shared this stance as well in a lengthy <a href="https://x.com/haydenzadams/status/1894452459113738591">post</a> responding to the news. He argues that Uniswap isn’t a broker and doesn’t fit into existing financial regulatory frameworks. Square peg, round hole.



That’s been an argument used by many crypto executives, believing that digital assets don’t fit neatly into existing classifications like securities or commodities.&nbsp;



Seeing execs at OpenSea, Coinbase and Uniswap applaud the SEC now is such a marked change. Just a few months ago, crypto execs decried the federal agency because of a perceived lack of transparency and clarity — and because they could have been forced to pay tens of millions in fines.



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXdm08mChmArMXCc88OnDPxbo4sXQkEtv4KXV4xXZFbYDXJXBPOa4Yw4VMDN0ZBEhgKoj-UkOYhsNqUOHLtWUNLI0tRpYUYORYzCGnIsnPI1rIwXU-dAVAYbBPICCAQDWK_LkadQ?key=qjM74Mbemo3WOy6B9W5zZFb2" alt=""/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Source: Uniswap TVL over time</figcaption></figure>



Uniswap Labs, however, already spent “tens of millions” fighting the SEC, Uniswap Labs COO Mary-Catherine Lader <a href="https://x.com/Mclader/status/1894463386542362982">shared</a>.



“Massive W for builders,” OpenSea CEO Devin Finzer <a href="https://x.com/dfinzer/status/1894466962337464532">said</a> in response to the closed case.



Most responses from crypto fans were overwhelmingly positive — it’s obviously a win for DeFi, and a win for crypto.&nbsp;



Token prices were up slightly across the board in the hours since the news dropped. But most are still down in the past day and week, suggesting sentiment is still a bit bearish at the moment despite the shuttered SEC probes at OpenSea, Robinhood, Coinbase and now Uniswap. 



Gaming tokens are following that downward trend, too, as they usually do, with most down anywhere from 2% to 15% in the past week.&nbsp;



UNI’s price climbed a little bit as the news dropped, going from $7.87 to $8.28 within roughly 10 minutes. UNI has a market cap of over $4.9 billion.



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Uniswap Labs COO reveals it spent ‘tens of millions’ fighting SEC

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Wildcard has just migrated its Wildpass NFTs to Ethereum mainnet and is planning to launch a token.&nbsp;



Wildcard is an upcoming, crypto-optional PVP battle game I’ve been following for years. You play as a character who can run around a 3D battlefield and throw cards that turn into powerful creatures that autobattle each other. People that spectate Wildcard matches can also be rewarded for watching and engage with the game.&nbsp;



Wildcard is being developed by Playful Studios, whose CEO and co-founder, Paul Bettner, worked on games like Words With Friends, Age of Empires, and Lucky’s Tale.



Why is Wildcard still not out yet after more than two years? Building a fun game is hard, but in Bettner’s view, building a good game with crypto ties-ins makes it even harder.&nbsp;



“I personally think it&#8217;s because it&#8217;s like building games while wandering through a minefield,” he tells me with a chuckle. “I’ve got two years of doing this under my belt and I’ve lost count of the number of times where unaligned incentives have attempted to hijack the game design and the focus [away from] just trying to create a truly fun game for a mass audience, because of crypto.”&nbsp;



Simply put, Bettner wants to make a game that you’ll choose over anything else in your Steam library because it’s more fun.



“Crypto has this gravity to it, it has this set of forces that are constantly trying to tug the design of a consumer application, or a consumer product, especially like a game, in certain directions,” Bettner added.&nbsp;



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXfhkVRJ36xYPA3DJ9QyT3FI54ljbm933Kznl5FULy2rsiuRgHxnvF8ksLff2NXyZhgFpzJOBv35ukAyFoXm68E_cSnZ21eLoPJvcB6JKABCiUTly0TuQU-XhGzOIzR3JUbIAiQB?key=bJ6p9_glg2U4JfZ6Os7wH6k9" alt=""/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Source: Wildpass floor prices in Polygon</figcaption></figure>



Wildcard initially released the Wildpass NFTs on Polygon back in 2023 — which gave up to 4,444 fans early access to the game’s development. Bettner calls these holders, and the game’s Discord server’s members, the “golden cohort.” They’re the core community he wants to make happy with the game.



Wildcard founders Bettner and his wife Katy Bettner previously attended the Game Developer’s Conference in the past as part of the Polygon booth, representing part of the chain’s gaming ecosystem (which then also included the now-cancelled shooter Deadrop, which launched Founders Passes on Polygon).



Now, the Wildpass NFTs are leaving Polygon. The team migrated them to the Ethereum mainnet on Monday and covered the cost of gas for the move for holders.&nbsp;



Bettner tells me they’re not committing to any one EVM chain moving forward, but they see the Ethereum mainnet as a good spot for the genesis NFTs because of the chain’s liquidity. The mainnet has higher transaction fees than Polygon, though.



“The Wildpass is not intended to be an asset that people are trading every five seconds,” Bettner explains. For future Wildcard NFTs or rewards meant to be traded frequently, it’s likely the team will pick another EVM chain with lower fees.



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXfaKeliaUBLjR1McVmWmKHxMec0Dx4Xgg2j3jROSVwSMYJDrHHzHG4BmNNaKbQa6UJYLU-6kxhNU6J_5AtlErIkZ6TV0vC0AhP7llHXAh_pVNQ3Kbj3n5up3WTx2cgoAhYV_Bx5sw?key=bJ6p9_glg2U4JfZ6Os7wH6k9" alt=""/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Wildpass stats from Magic Eden on Monday before the move to ETH mainnet</figcaption></figure>



Their <a href="https://x.com/PlayWildcard/status/1892652278902874132">WC token</a>, which hasn’t been released yet, is unlike anything <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/berachain-pengu-burn">we’ve seen recently</a> because this token will be 100% community-owned, with zero team allocation or VC involvement. And it’s not a memecoin, either.



“I’m hoping we can set a new standard here,” Bettner shares. The token won’t have team or VC allocations because he doesn’t want the Wildcard community to feel pitted against the team or investors financially if investors suddenly decide to cash out and send the token nosediving.



The recent <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/sec-robinhood-investigation-update">favorable regulatory climate</a> with Trump’s election and the shakeup at the SEC has also made the team more comfortable launching a token.



“It&#8217;s basically the opposite of a meme token,” Bettner says of the WC token. “It is directly connected to the Wildcard ecosystem and to the value that&#8217;s created in the Wildcard ecosystem.”



Bettner’s Playful Studios is also building Thousands, a blockchain-powered streaming platform like Twitch but with more incentives and rewards for both viewers and streamers.



I previously played an early version of Wildcard — and it’s solid. I’m a fan of MOBA- and arena-battler style games like Overwatch, and I love colorful sci-fi games where characters have special powers. So I am absolutely looking forward to the game’s full launch.



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Wildcard moves NFTs from Polygon to Ethereum, shares token strategy

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Robinhood’s crypto unit is no longer the subject of an SEC investigation.



“This investigation never should have been opened. Robinhood Crypto always has and will always respect federal securities laws and never allowed transactions in securities. As we explained to the SEC, any case against Robinhood Crypto would have failed,” said Dan Gallagher, chief legal, compliance and corporate affairs officer at Robinhood.



The SEC notified Robinhood of its intention to kill the probe on Friday, according to a Monday <a href="https://newsroom.aboutrobinhood.com/sec-closes-investigation-into-robinhood-crypto-with-no-action/">post</a> on Robinhood’s website, after the SEC <a href="https://newsroom.aboutrobinhood.com/robinhood-response-to-receipt-of-wells-notice-from-the-u-s-securities-and-exchange-commission/">issued</a> the firm <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/robinhood-wells-notice-sec">a Wells notice</a> last year.&nbsp;



Robinhood previously faced SEC scrutiny in 2020 over statements it made, and the company paid <a href="https://www.sec.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2020-321">$65 million</a> to settle the issue. In January, Robinhood agreed to pay an additional <a href="https://www.sec.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2025-5">$45 million</a> over a separate SEC issue over alleged securities violations.



Robinhood’s win this week follows the news that the SEC will scuttle investigations into both Coinbase and OpenSea. It means these companies can continue with business as usual — and you can keep trading without interruptions. And more ways to buy and sell crypto could be coming as more companies assess the favorable environment and decide to jump in.



It’s also a sign that we’re living in a new regulatory environment.&nbsp;



Long-time SEC Chair Gary Gensler — infamous for his anti-crypto stance — <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/sec-charges-nova-labs-with-fraud">resigned last month</a> when Trump took office. Crypto advocate Paul Atkins is <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/sec-chair-nominee-crypto-past">Trump’s pick</a> for the role. And Trump himself also has <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/empire-newsletter-donald-trump-nft-royalties-memecoin-taxes">NFT collections and a memecoin</a>.&nbsp;



With crypto making a comeback and regulators looking friendlier, other companies like GameStop, <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/gamestop-end-support-crypto-wallets">which previously dumped</a> its NFT marketplace and wallet, are considering coming back into the fray.&nbsp;



Others are still shutting down despite favorable regulators, like The Mystery Society game, which <a href="https://x.com/InviteToMystery/status/1894067480416657428">announced</a> its cancellation on Monday because “the state of web3 gaming is just too challenged right now.”



Crypto projects used to pull the plug on operations because of “regulatory concern.” The question now is, can they use that as an excuse anymore?  Also, will projects still use Cayman Islands foundations? Maybe not — but some, like the OpenSea Foundation, are <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/opensea-announces-token-and-open-beta">still planning tokens</a> that way just in case.



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Robinhood says it’s free from the SEC

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Have you ever felt ashamed selling off a large sum of tokens for fiat currency? Or does it just feel good to take profits? Shaming others for their exits has become a thing on Crypto Twitter this week. So much so, in fact, that some traders have started calling the movement “ShameFi.”



ShameFi as a trend originated from the Kaito token claiming event, which happened this week and left some X users with piles of tokens worth hundreds of dollars for just a handful of tweets (like me). Others got six-figure sums—and promptly traded those Kaito tokens for cash.&nbsp;



Nansen AI CEO Alex Svanevik is one of a few crypto executives outing Kaito sellers on Twitter. He’s been posting <a href="https://x.com/ASvanevik/status/1892725012634673432">links</a> to Nansen charts, showing that Ethereum activist Anthony Sassano is among Kaito’s biggest sellers, among others. “NO MORE YAPS FOR YOU—NOT ALIGNED,” he <a href="https://x.com/ASvanevik/status/1892550491868897664">wrote</a> in one post in all-caps.



Crypto exchange <a href="https://x.com/arkham/status/1892626578015768863">Arkam</a> and Head of Base and Coinbase Wallet Jesse Pollack have also been outing or “shaming” Kaito sellers (Kaito’s token is on Base).



“I think it’s lame to celebrate immediately divesting of long term builders who are rewarding us for our contributions and using tokens to bring us in as cobuilders,” Pollack <a href="https://x.com/ChartFuMonkey/status/1892588286624837759">said</a> in response to a tweet from NFT influencer and Dastan President Farokh Sarmad, who sold his tokens and thanked the team for the “stimmy.”



“I think it&#8217;s net-negative for our culture to celebrate short-term, mindset-driven selling,” Pollack <a href="https://x.com/jessepollak/status/1892709649033609443">wrote</a> in a separate post on Thursday.



Later, he <a href="https://x.com/jessepollak/status/1892648601593250254">clarified</a> his stance: “It&#8217;s fine to sell your airdrop. Taxes, rent, bills, making your life better. All good and all within your rights. Economic freedom. What I think is less positive is celebrating selling immediately. Particularly over the last 12 months, CT and this space has increasingly focused on who can make money fastest.”



Others, like Web3 builder Jordan Feinstein, don’t believe in ShameFi as it’s not an effective tactic to actually get would-be sellers to believe in what you’re building.



“Shamefi is the dumbest fucking thing I&#8217;ve ever heard of in this space. For real. If you don&#8217;t want people to sell your token, they need to believe there&#8217;s more upside to holding it than selling it. If they don&#8217;t believe that, IT&#8217;S ON YOU, not them,” he <a href="https://x.com/JordanEureka_/status/1892617172008202268">wrote</a>.



My two cents? Crypto is such a high-risk, volatile space, that you have to do what’s right for your financial situation. There’s no one-size-fits-all answer as to whether you should sell something immediately or risk waiting something out.&nbsp;



I’m not trying to play the long game with Kaito—and I’m not that much of a yapper—so I swapped the tokens I got for Bitcoin. Kaito’s been pumping since. Oh well.



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‘ShameFi’ takes over Crypto Twitter

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Community Gaming, a crypto-powered gaming platform, launched a prediction market (PM) called Forkast on Ronin this week. Forkast will use the CGX token and let users bet on different real-world outcomes in gaming and influencer culture.



But some traders on Crypto Twitter accused the Community Gaming team and affiliated insiders of selling off the token — before regular users had the chance to claim it early Wednesday morning.&nbsp;



Massive interest in the token took their website down, making new distributions to retail impossible until the site was restored.&nbsp;



Over half a dozen posts from different accounts asked the team who was selling the token because its price had already <a href="https://x.com/Earning_Town/status/1892213093926613317">slipped</a> from $0.3 to $0.03 the morning the token launched. On Wednesday, it was <a href="https://cryptorank.io/price/forkast">down 70%</a> from its all-time high. Now, it’s already at $0.009 — a 90% decline from its ATH.



Community Gaming founder and CEO Chris Gonsalves tells me that neither the team nor its investors have sold their allocations of the token.&nbsp;



“The only entities that have tokens [besides the team, investors, and influencers] are the exchanges themselves who distributed through their listing promotions,” he said Wednesday morning while the website was down.



The token is available on Gate, MEXC and Katana.



“So those traders and the site going down is causing bad price action but any FUD about insiders selling is 100% false. Team tokens are locked for 18 months and all investors for 12 months,” Gonsalves said, adding:



“We sent out 8 creators payments (total of ~25k in CGX tokens) simultaneously when the claim process started and the site crashed right after that so people are sharing a screenshot of that but none of them did anything with those tokens so it&#8217;s just poor optics.”



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXc-w1WXrsZqD2qrNi-qw5MWMC3m0HJRK__vKLV4E_yOGdhyoyQwOxBxekMNUsblYXDb7A9ln1-drxSsQJVm5E0nDbcUQHt_PJevRYHKKKLb2Geh66YrSlWoznJrn8G0e-3VawaOJQ?key=STpUeLVJS9V_sBKNDC79oh8T" alt=""/></figure>



Ronin’s <a href="https://app.roninchain.com/token/0x656fe582b4c6dc95c598ea54dc820eb36152e2f7?t=owners&amp;p=1&amp;ps=25">blockchain scanner</a> shows me that creators Kyroh, Inspectormnbl, and Raiden are still holding their allocations as of Thursday morning.



A big selloff could mean that those who get allocations of the token don’t see value in holding it long-term. Or, they could just be farmers looking for a quick buck. A tale as old as time in crypto.



If you do end up getting some CGX and don’t want to toss it into the prediction market or sell it just yet, Forkast is promising those who stake CGX various rewards including monthly loot boxes with platform credits, Community Gaming tournament access, and governance participation in Community Gaming’s upcoming player-versus-player (PVP) blockchain.



Yep, that’s right — Ronin is getting an L2 blockchain, PVP. It’s intended for competitive gaming apps, according to the team. The chain will be governed by CGX DAO as well as the PVP Council, as well as anyone who stakes their CGX tokens.



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Community Gaming launches CGX token, Forkast prediction market

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As most of you probably know by now, Doodles — the rainbow-barfing Ethereum NFT collection of 10,000 PFPs of the 2021 NFT boom — is launching a token on Solana.&nbsp;



Response so far has been pretty mixed. A lot of Crypto Twitter loves a token, especially one from an established brand, but there’s also been some criticism. First, there’s the token allocation. As one poster has pointed out, the Doodles team may receive up to 57% of the DOOD tokens, once you combine the parts of the pie that goes to the team plus the other pieces that could go to the team. That doesn’t look too cute, considering how tokens are often marketed as a way to “give back to the community.”



And then there’s the issue of timing. Is launching a token now, on a different chain than the NFT collection, too little, too late? Will DOOD serve any functional purpose, besides offering exit liquidity, a memecoin, and a way to get a bit more attention?&nbsp;



The market has been rough out there for art- and gaming-related tokens lately. PENGU, the Pudgy Penguins’ token, is still down 67% in the past month. PIXELS, the token behind the Ronin-based game of the same name, is also still down 50% in the past month. Apecoin, the once-hyped token behind the Yuga Labs world, remains down 50% in the past year.



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXcG4up-Vn0LJexf2fkJAjSvocp-TBM5cpYvfpNrp0lX9jEIBNEm9UwHZaz8hw5mq2Jhvon0Cw6V8V4D4yqFt0cUE9XcasMGE2NRJ2hO-zHl9LdI5HJugatjUKLSUuEzMHy7M-X4wA?key=xnUEi2Lbmszt8LaPf2XfzfBf" alt=""/></figure>



The Doodles team has tried other brand plays to generate interest in its IP, from striking a deal with rapper-producer Pharrell to join as their chief brand officer in 2023 to partnering with McDonald&#8217;s to release cups in November. Despite those high-profile deals, however, Doodles NFTs haven’t soared above the rest.



The DOOD announcement hasn’t really rejuvenated excitement around the NFT collection either, when we look at sales and volume traded. In the past week, Doodles sales volume is down 32%, according to CryptoSlam data.



Launching a token seems to be the latest way for crypto projects to monetize their IP. While I do think the Doodles’ art and aesthetic is cool in a minimalist way, I’m not sure their token will have a different fate than so many of the others currently out there. Time and time again, we’ve seen an initial pump and then a selloff, followed by flatlining or slowly declining price action.



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Doodles’ Solana token fails to impress

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The Open Network, aka TON, made a splash with Telegram games and crypto integrations built on top, like with NOTcoin, which has seen over $1 billion in total volume traded since its launch.



A TON app page lists over 570 different gaming-related TON apps, which is a staggering number for any chain. But are the games on TON any good — and where does the TON ecosystem go from here?



“It’s been a hell of a ride,” Ivan Gusev, head of fun at TON NFT marketplace Getgems, tells me.



The games that launched on TON in 2024 are very early-stage right now. Jack Booth, co-founder of TON Society, an organization that contributes to TON, tells me he believes the games that release in 2025 and beyond will be evolved — hopefully better — versions of what we’re seeing now.



The tokens launched via TON and Telegram also don’t have much staying power. The games are typically very simple, using “tap-to-earn,” spinning a roulette, or other play-to-earn methods.



“The sustainable token model is something that I think these games will start to implement,” Booth said, noting that in his view, crypto in general has been too much about price speculation thus far.



In addition to playing games to earn altcoins, Telegram users can also buy Telegram usernames, profile decals, stickers, and more via TON as NFTs using the TON cryptocurrency.



Telegram has begun using TON for its own products and ads without notifying TON builders, Booth said. Telegram doesn’t tell TON builders what it’s going to do or when, creating a symbiotic but disjointed relationship.



Booth and Gusev both separately told me that TON builders like themselves have “zero relationship” with Telegram.



“We don’t know Telegram’s plans. I’m pretty sure Pavel doesn’t know Telegram’s plans,” Gusev tells me with a smile, referring to Telegram’s CEO Pavel Durov. “They operate in chaos.”



Despite the mystery around Telegram’s operations, however, TON builders like Booth and Gusev are confident that keeping TON tied to Telegram is the best move — they’re happy on Telegram. 



This is primarily because Telegram already has so many users — billions, in fact, many of whom like crypto. And user acquisition and growth is arguably one of crypto’s biggest hurdles.



Booth sees 2025 as a year where more favorable US regulation could mean the Telegram Wallet may become available in the US “very soon.”



Updated Feb. 20, 2025 at 1:31 pm ET: Clarified relationship between TON builders and Telegram.



Updated Feb. 19, 2025 at 3:06 pm ET: Clarified language.



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TON builders reveal there’s ‘zero relationship’ with Telegram

OpenSea has finally confirmed the launch of a token, dubbed SEA, via the OpenSea Foundation.&nbsp;



OpenSea is also releasing its OS2 open beta, the next iteration of its token marketplace, which will include memecoins as well as other tokens in addition to NFTs, the company announced Thursday.



The SEA token will be usable on OS2 and is intended to “recognize active and loyal users” as well as early adopters. OpenSea Foundation General Manager James Hu said the SEA token will support the Seaport Protocol and is a “major step” to support the OpenSea community.



SEA’s release date has not yet been announced, however.



OS2 is intended to be “an expansion toward fun-filled trading,” an OpenSea spokesperson told me. Before the open beta, OpenSea had an OS2 waitlist set up where users could join the private beta waitlist by connecting their wallet or entering their email address. OpenSea Genesis NFT holders also <a href="https://x.com/opensea/status/1883908501380153742">had access</a> to the private beta if they held the NFT on Jan. 26.&nbsp;



The OS2 private beta offered two main visual modes: Collector Mode or Pro Mode.&nbsp;



Collector Mode presents a graphic-forward, colorful look that lets you see NFT art details, while Pro Mode shows small images with a data-heavy focus as well as analytics that show charts upfront with data over time.The open beta will also be for casual collectors and advanced users, Stephanie Rheingold, OpenSea director of marketing and communications, confirmed via email.&nbsp;



Easy cross-chain purchases, aggregated marketplace listings, liquidity aggregators, live analytics and an improved search are just a few of OS2’s features that set it apart from its predecessor.



OS2 also has XP — gamerspeak for experience points — which can be earned by listing NFTs for sale and making collection-wide offers. XP is not a cryptocurrency or financial asset. It’s a non-transferable rewards feature, Rheingold said.



OpenSea confirmed the SEA token is coming just days after a few Crypto Twitter users shared links to an “OpenSea Foundation” website. The site, which no longer loads at the time of writing, showed a page to connect a crypto wallet with an image of a shipping container and the words: “Get ready to set sail,” according to <a href="https://x.com/jbondwagon/status/1888958746724069411">multiple</a> <a href="https://x.com/makisalpha/status/1888887431019254132">screenshots</a> shared on social media.&nbsp;



Some posts also claimed to summarize the Terms of Use on that site, noting that US residents would not be eligible and VPNs would be blocked to geo-fence the airdrop. While these restrictions have been the trend with some recent token launches (like <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/berachain-pengu-burn">Berachain</a>), Rheingold told me the OpenSea Foundation has decided SEA will be available to US-based users.&nbsp;



The verified OpenSea Foundation X account then <a href="https://x.com/openseafdn/status/1888972001886249363">responded</a> to such posts earlier this week with the message: “None of the rumors on X today are true. Only trust links that we post from this account.”



OpenSea CEO Devin Finzer also responded to the screenshots indirectly: “Disappointed to see false rumors spreading,” he said in a <a href="https://x.com/dfinzer/status/1888997311084167526">post</a> on Monday.



In a separate post, Finzer <a href="https://x.com/dfinzer/status/1889001705674621145">clarified</a>: “There was some boilerplate language — not actual terms and conditions — on a test website for a short period of time. If it was official, the foundation would have linked to it.”



In 2023, OpenSea launched “<a href="https://blockworks.co/news/opensea-pro-nft-launch-blur">OpenSea Pro</a>,” another version of its NFT marketplace, that caters to “power traders” and <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/blur-opensea-royalties-nft-creators">Blur</a> users.&nbsp;&nbsp;



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OpenSea unveils SEA token and new version of its exchange

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The AI platform Kaito has crypto devs and traders yapping more than ever on Twitter/X recently thanks to Yaps, its tweet-to-earn leaderboard where posting about crypto gets you points. 



After connecting your X account and crypto wallet, Kaito’s AI tool analyzes your posts to decide whether they deserve any points. Your account’s standing will also be partly determined by how many “smart followers” or influential accounts you have following you.



Last week, Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin held the top spot as the #1 Yapper, but has since lost first place to Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao.&nbsp;



Other crypto influencers can be found among the highest-ranking yappers, including some with CryptoPunks, Pudgy Penguins, and Milady PFPs.



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXfASsS_MOYGQfxrWVjJL5DWj89aTfWad1FpBBSpi7jXLqQBdVFCwAMCjDMblVKwhOwehrLzuToql98PVK1EcX7Q5xXqJO35F9WMEBx2mdtHm7X53L4pI1SgusiAbcoj_dfP55k3HQ?key=4q7KpDkOtKMJKfUwkD0NZU94" alt=""/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Kaito’s Yap leaderboard</figcaption></figure>



Unsurprisingly, yappers are already trying to game the system to get as much YAP as possible.&nbsp;



One pseudonymous crypto trader known as “hodl” <a href="https://x.com/hodl_says/status/1887583743549878466">claims</a> that getting your “smart followers” to engage with your crypto posts will get you more points. Echo chambers supposedly won’t help, and posts need to be made at “optimal times” for maximum visibility. Kaito’s <a href="https://faq.yaps.kaito.ai/">FAQ</a> suggests that quality wins over quantity when it comes to <a href="https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/poasting">poasting</a>.&nbsp;



Others have pointed out other possible loopholes that users may have been exploiting to get points. Last week, a few accounts <a href="https://x.com/liam_xbt/status/1887823314405466181">claimed</a> that posting or commenting the word “reply” repeatedly in a post got them hundreds of Yaps. We’ve reached out to Kaito on this, and whether this issue has been fixed.



Kaito calls its Yaps leaderboard “InfoFi” because its top posters are providing what it believes to be insightful information. But if you ask me, it’s SocialFi re-packaged for 2025 (remember friend.tech? And Stars Arena?).&nbsp;



Kaito’s Yaps are SocialFi because its ranking system is using a popularity metric to help determine whether accounts should rise to the top. That’s less of a meritocracy and more of a popularity contest. Nothing necessarily wrong with that, but let’s call a spade a spade.



In crypto, some of the popular kids also happen to be nerds — or <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/changpeng-zhao-sentencing-verdict">convicted felons</a>.



And if you’re asking “wen token,” we don’t actually know yet. So far, this yap-to-earn race is based on the assumption that eventually, a pile of Yap points could help yappers get free money in an upcoming token airdrop.&nbsp;



But because posting is free, the only thing you might lose is the time you spent typing.



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Yap-to-earn takes over Twitter

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There’s been a lot of buzz around Berachain, which <a href="https://x.com/berachain/status/1887485522492203155">launched</a> on Thursday and has already seen over <a href="https://berascan.com/">2 million</a> transactions.&nbsp;



It’s the latest launch by the makers of the Bong Bears NFTs, a collection of 100 smoking bears on the Ethereum blockchain launched back in the 2021 crypto boom.&nbsp;



Berachain, by contrast, is an ambitious Web3 blockchain using “Proof of Liquidity,” with the idea that pooled-up funds will lead to a sustainable ecosystem long-term.&nbsp;



Some, however, are not so sure. An exec with ties to a gaming-focused chain tells me: “[Berachain] bothers me deeply.” They don’t like how the project accumulated a pile of NFT money first and then built a whole chain somewhat randomly years later.



Yet as the pseudonymous Berachain founder Smokey <a href="https://youtu.be/u_eDYZYN9B4?feature=shared&amp;t=80">puts it</a>, Berachain was a series of “happy accidents.”&nbsp;



But there’s another new chain in town. Abstract — which launched last month from the Pudgy Penguins team — continues to hold attention on Crypto Twitter right now, leading some to compare it with Berachain.&nbsp;



One <a href="https://x.com/cnig69/status/1886957776171364813">post</a> that got over 600 likes in less than 24 hours praised Berachain for incentivizing whales and attacked Abstract Chain for catering to “normies and streamers” because Abstract’s platform centers games and livestreaming.&nbsp;



Right now, only about 750 approved accounts can livestream on Abstract (in the past few days, I’ve seen anyone from 57 to 75 streamers live at any given time). Maybe it’ll get more traction than Theta and DLive crypto streaming — or maybe not.



There are already over 35 gaming-related projects on Berachain’s website, suggesting it’s a gaming-friendly chain, too. It got<a href="https://blockworks.co/news/berachain-pre-launch-liquidity"> over $1.6 billion</a> in pre-launch liquidity, while Abstract has just <a href="https://defillama.com/chain/Abstract">$8.49 million</a> in total value locked (TVL) as of Thursday morning.&nbsp;



The bear-themed blockchain has <a href="https://x.com/berachain/status/1887178672995537236">unveiled</a> its token airdrop, too. Berachain is <a href="https://x.com/berachain/status/1887178677810553117">allocating</a> half its token supply to investors (34.3%) and “initial core contributors” (16.8%).&nbsp;



Some early testnet users are <a href="https://x.com/mark_krov/status/1887193558815285305">pissed</a>, as they’re only being allocated a tiny fraction (<a href="https://blog.berachain.com/blog/berachain-airdrop-overview">1.65%</a>) of the airdropped tokens in total.&nbsp;



Another big catch, of course, is that they’re blocking US residents from a number of online sites, including those for the project’s BeraHub, its HONEY stablecoin, and its token and NFT bridges. Will you be able to get around this? I’m currently working from South Africa, so the hub’s site loads for me until I turn on my VPN and choose a US-based IP address. Then, access denied.



Blockchains will inevitably get compared — but it doesn’t make much sense to compare Berachain and Abstract, Abstract Marketing Lead Phineas Totten tells me. “Our product is so distinctly different.”



“We just want to have fun on-chain again,” he adds.



Sony’s Soneium blockchain has also arrived. It launched three weeks ago as a rollup on Optimism. It’s being managed by Sony Block Solutions Labs, separate from Sony Interactive Entertainment and PlayStation.&nbsp;



But that doesn’t mean games on Soneium are 100% out of the picture.&nbsp;



Sam Barberie — head of strategy and partnerships at blockchain gaming infra firm Horizon — tells me he’s been working with Sony on some of their blockchain solutions. Sony’s move into crypto is exciting because they’re, as he puts it, “willing to experiment.” If this experiment works out, he posits, even more big fish could jump into the crypto pond.



“When companies get to see that [success], and the sky doesn’t fall, then it starts to open up more conversations,” Barberie says.



Soneium is a big deal for Web3 — if it can make a splash with US companies or consumers.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">PENGU fire fizzles&nbsp;</h2>



PENGU, the Pudgy Penguins’ NFT token, burned big this week.&nbsp;



The team set over <a href="https://x.com/pudgypenguins/status/1887164609133429246">12.1 billion</a> Pengu tokens on figurative fire in a token burn amounting to roughly $150 million, or about 14% of the total supply. That’s keeping their <a href="https://x.com/pudgypenguins/status/1885027033794621514">promise</a> that after the Pengu claim ended, remaining tokens would be burnt. That’s good news.



That burn hasn’t sent the token climbing, though. Pengu is down 5.5% in the past day, and down roughly 73% in the past month. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Raised by wolves</h2>



Yet another gaming-adjacent token may be on the horizon.&nbsp;



WolvesDAO, an invite-only group of Web3 gaming enthusiasts, may be releasing a token. The WolvesDAO hosts Twitter Spaces, but they also have a robust, exclusive Discord server that frequently purges inactive members.&nbsp;



WolvesDAO cofounder Sam Steffanina tells me via DM: “Something along those lines” of a token is in the works following a <a href="https://x.com/WolvesDAO/status/1887181047718203505">few</a> mysterious <a href="https://x.com/WolvesDAO/status/1886842509948580040">posts</a> to the group’s X page.&nbsp;



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<li><a href="https://blockworks.co/newsletter/empire">Empire</a>: Start your day with top crypto insights from David Canellis and Katherine Ross.</li>



<li><a href="https://blockworks.co/newsletter/onthemargin">Forward Guidance</a>: Explore the growing intersection between crypto, macroeconomics, policy and finance with Ben Strack, Casey Wagner and Felix Jauvin.</li>



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Berachain and Abstract are buzzing, but face criticism

This is a preview of upcoming newsletter The Drop. To read full editions after launch, <a href="https://thedrop.beehiiv.com/subscribe" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">subscribe</a>.



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



Bitcoin and the rest of the crypto market took a turn for the worse over the weekend in price drops that have largely been blamed on <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/trump-tariffs-trade-war">Trump’s promised tariffs</a>. I overheard a handful of X Spaces hosts sound the alarms about it on Monday, acting as though the bull market was over. 



But now that it’s Tuesday, things are already recovering. Tariffs on Mexico and Canada have been delayed, allowing bitcoin and some other cryptos to partially recover.



As often happens, gaming tokens were harder hit.



Immutable’s IMX token fell 14% from Sunday to Monday. Since then, it’s recouped a bit of that loss, but still remains down roughly 26% in the past week.&nbsp;



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXee-772v40wcWM_U_lKuws5XG3hC0BMJqWVVfXX7cdD4fQB6mzq4n6MCyH6SvzwlsaZYrUaYIHgfhkf-IcbmmkF-uZDvB42AuWiNU-qV-JPAr9DoH8ye8X90HchLkcwmYQEkhNLqQ?key=1Aue4niH7Xg5RL1f7t8gn2Ac" alt=""/></figure>



Some other market notables:



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>SAND, GALA, Ronin, AXS, MANA, BEAM, APE and PRIME all saw similar losses in the same period, with prices dropping anywhere from 21% to 30%.&nbsp;</li>



<li>Notcoin, the Telegram tap-to-earn game’s token, is down about 35% in the past week.</li>



<li>PIXEL fell roughly 32%.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>



Still, it’s not all bad news across the gaming token sector.&nbsp;&nbsp;



Sui is only down less than 2% in the past week. Sweat Economy continues to churn ahead, seeing its price rising about 8% in the past week. GoMining is also up modestly, as is Xterio and other smaller market-cap tokens.&nbsp;



That’s just a handful of winners though — price <a href="https://coinmarketcap.com/view/gaming/">data</a> shows that most other gaming tokens have had a rough week.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">XP Alert&nbsp;</h2>



<a href="https://blockworks.co/news/pudgy-penguins-parent-layer-2-blockchain">Abstract</a>, the blockchain from the Pudgy Penguins team, doesn’t have a native token (yet). But it is issuing <a href="https://docs.abs.xyz/portal/overview">XP</a> — gamerspeak for experience points — and distributing it for the first time <a href="https://x.com/Phin_totten/status/1886780598531834197">today</a>. How did you do?



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Deadrop is dead — we all know why</h2>



You’ve probably heard by now that Midnight Society, the studio behind the “vertical extraction shooter” Deadrop, has shut down.&nbsp;



It had promise — think Call of Duty for crypto fans with a heavy Bladerunner vibe. And, I guess, cars you could drive into battle. Kind of cool?



Deadrop’s premature death isn’t surprising, though.&nbsp;



Last year, one of its other co-founders and primary marketer — Guy “Dr. Disrespect” Beahm — admitted in a (since-deleted) <a href="https://x.com/JakeSucky/status/1823741433825698082">X post</a> that he had inappropriate conversations with a minor. That incident was revealed as the reason for Beahm’s permanent ban from Twitch, which had previously been kept under wraps for years.



Shortly after that news broke late last year, the studio laid off some staff in September. Then, last week, the studio <a href="https://x.com/12am/status/1885061680398213160">posted</a> a brief note announcing that it’s shutting down. The studio didn’t say exactly why, and instead asked the broader gaming community to help its 55+ developers find new gigs.&nbsp;



One of its other co-founders, Robert Bowling, purged his social media accounts before the shutdown.



One former Midnight Society employee told me: “It is what it is. We just couldn’t get the Dr. D stink off us.”&nbsp;



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Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><a href="https://blockworks.co/newsletter/daily">Blockworks Daily</a>: The newsletter that helps thousands of investors understand crypto and the markets, by Byron Gilliam.</li>



<li><a href="https://blockworks.co/newsletter/empire">Empire</a>: Start your day with top crypto insights from David Canellis and Katherine Ross.</li>



<li><a href="https://blockworks.co/newsletter/onthemargin">Forward Guidance</a>: Explore the growing intersection between crypto, macroeconomics, policy and finance with Ben Strack, Casey Wagner and Felix Jauvin.</li>



<li><a href="https://blockworks.co/newsletter/research">0xResearch</a>: Get alpha directly in your inbox — market highlights, charts, degen trade ideas, governance updates, and more.</li>



<li><a href="https://blockworks.co/newsletter/lightspeed">Lightspeed</a>: All things Solana, in your inbox, every day from Jack Kubinec and Jeff Albus.</li>



<li><a href="https://blockworks.co/newsletter/thedrop">The Drop</a>: The newsletter for crypto collectors and traders, covering games, tokens, apps, memes and more.</li>
</ul>