GM to the 66 new readers who joined this week. Again another huge week in Web3 land. Without further ado. LFG

SCOOPS OF THE WEEK 

⛓️ NFT’s

• Undervalued Projects

• Trader Profits 800 ETH From Baiting A Bot

• NFT Artists Feeling The Pain

• Little Lemon Friends Acquisition

👨‍💻 WEB3

• Universities Set To Play Key Role In Web3 Future

• The $9m LinkedIn Crypto Romance Scam

• Singapore Pledges $112m To Web3 Solutions

🪙 CRYPTO

• Paypal issues dollar-backed stablecoin $PYUSD

• Is Huobi Exchange Insolvent?

• Cathie Wood & Mike Novogratz both bullish on BTC ETF approvals

🏆 SCOOP PREMIUM

• Discover a mysterious NFT project with bags of potential

• Another low-cap crypto gem that is gaining serious traction

⛓️ NFT’s

• NFT Total Market Cap $5.7B - 24/hour change -1%

• Volume Traded 24/hours - $8.2M -9%

  • Total market volumes: Only $8.5m yesterday, consistently decreasing suggesting we are far from a full market reversal.

  • That being said pockets of NFT categories & projects are still managing to sell out & trend upwards despite poor conditions.

  • This demonstrates that now more than ever it is the quality projects that are shining through.

  • I think the poor sentiment we are witnessing in the space, is due to the sheer garbage that has been left in an aftermath of a huge bull run. Until there are more decent projects that give more to the market than take, I believe that the sentiment will remain stagnant on a wider scale.

  • I hope you can see that is actually good/bullish for the space. This could just help explain the poor overall market sentiment above, despite exciting things happening.

  • Price action has been Mixed, MAYC and DeGods gained 3-4% overnight.

  • DeGods performance: Up 7% in a week, outperforming most other PFP projects.

  • Anticipation for Season III: Interest in what Frank will do next.

  • Nakamigos surge: 7-day increase of 45%, reaching 0.33ETH, after a period of silence.

  • Large sales: Notable sale of a CryptoPunk with a gold chain for 65ETH.

Whales Are Scooping up:

• Azuki

• CryptoPunks

• Otherside Koda

• Mutant Ape Yacht Club

• Artblocks

🎙️NEW SPACES SHOW ON (X)

Join our Founder Barbell & his sidekick Immutablelevans to discuss all things from Web3 to why Immutable chooses to have a perm!

Every Wednesday 4PM ET

🔦 UNDERVALUED PROJECTS

The Plague

Floor - 0.29ETH

Why are we bullish?

If you have been reading Scoop for any amount of time, you will know we are huge fans of The Plague. But recently their leader Pons, has dropped 2 very promising IRL businesses, one being ‘Making Coffee’ which is hugely exciting. The businesses are due to benefit the community by attributing value back to $FRG coin, a token that can be earned by staking your Plague NFTs.

With just 1% of Frogs listed, The Plague was recently rated one of the best-value NFT assets in Web3, due to its active Founder presence & community presence. They were rated alongside industry heavyweights like, DeGods, Memeland & Azuki.

Y00ts

Floor - 1.84ETH

Why are we bullish?

Never Fade Frank, a phrase being tossed around crypto Twitter. FrankDeGods is one of the key figureheads pushing Web3 forward, having faced adversity & experienced his rise throughout challenging market conditions.

DeGods season 3 is on the horizon. In fact, all will be revealed tomorrow, August 9th. Now that doesn’t mean rush out & buy a y00t, as you never know, we may get a buy the rumor sell the news type price action. But given Y00ts are second to the wildly successful DeGods, we only see this collection going one way in the long run.

Premium Scoop is packed with Alpha! The market may be flip-flopping but we are still finding you the goods.

This week, unlock a new NFT project with a strong pedigree in the market that is about to launch its second collection and discover why we are bullish.

and of course.. how you can get your hands on a whitelist spot.

In Crypto land, we are on the cusp of a major bull market. Now is the time to dial in, focus and pay attention to what projects are going to move the needle.

In today’s issue of Scoop Premium, we share another low-cap token with high potential for the upcoming bull run that is yet to be found by the masses.

* NOTE - Our Premium Member-only Info is listed at the bottom section of our Newsletter.

Enjoy 14 Days of Premium Access on Us!

Trader Profits 800 ETH From Baiting A Bot

At a glance 🔎 

• Investor, Hanwe Chang, used a smart strategy to detect a bot that was copying his trades.

• 12 Azuki NFTs which shared a specific trait, were sold simultaneously for 50 ETH.

• An NFT with the same trait was sold for 5 ETH previously so the markup was 10x.

• Having realised that bots were copying his bids, he duped a bot into purchasing at the elevated price set by himself on another account. 

• The profit made stands at $1.5m

  🕵️ Scoops take:

This one has really split the community, On one hand, you have an investor admitting to shill bidding which is in essence an illegal market activity of fraud. On the other hand, you have those saying the bot was simply outsmarted and this is fair game.

In terms of the legality issues, it’s not for us to say, what we will say is that those who do wish to copy those that are high up the Blur leaderboard will forever be behind in trades and secondly, if you wish to use a bot for trading, remember to set a limiter.

An extremely expensive lesson to be learnt.

NFT Artists Feeling The Pain

At a glance 🔎

• One group involved in the space that is feeling the pinch of the market sentiment are the artists.

• Due to the market conditions, royalties have been slashed leading to a decline in artists’ income.

• The top Marketplaces such as Blur and OpenSea reduced royalties in an attempt to boost sales.

• Trading volumes have dropped 95% since January 2022 so the period has been gruelling.

  🕵️ Scoops take:

It was once a great way for investors to show appreciation to the artists but unfortunately died when enforced royalties were no longer fixed.

For context, royalties during the bull run reached the $269m mark but in July 2023 this nose dived to $4.3m.

With the lack of enforced royalties, we may enter a period of stagnation with a lack of motivation there for artists who will undoubtedly feel that their work is not being fairly rewarded.

We have always been massive supporters of enforced royalties, mainly due to the aligned views for the project’s success.

Just another reason for the wishful thinking of a market boost.

Little Lemons Friends Acquisition

At a glance 🔎

• The project took to Twitter to share the news.

• They announced that they are heading towards a complete acquisition in 4 weeks or less.

• Following the news, the project’s floor surged almost 700%

  🕵️ Scoops take: 

It goes without saying that news of acquisition leads to a floor price pump.

There will be a reason the acquisition is occurring and therefore the news of the sale itself will sell.

The project has received widespread praise for its IP so maybe Pudgy Penguins are the benchmark the future owners of the project are looking to overtake in the long run.

The project has an enormous mainstream potential with the Lemon so the future looks juicy.

We are running a giveaway to win of those zesty beasts. Get involved.

THREAD OF THE WEEK

LucaNetz - Leader of Pudgy Penguins caught wind of a Tweet from GaryLHenderson that expressed why Web3 projects building in Web2 will not impact NFT floor price. Luca disagrees and shares his arguments.

What do you think? We personally agree with Luca, but the process will take longer than expected. Just look at rare physical Pokemon cards today.

🌐 WEB3

Universities Set To Play Key Role In Web3 Future

At a glance 🔎

• Universities play a vital role in shaping future Web3 talent, emphasizing the importance of guiding students toward Web3's potential, as per LBank Labs' Czhang Lin.

• LBank Labs celebrated student innovation in Web3 through its Summer Bootcamp competition, offering mentorship and trips as rewards.

• Despite current market challenges, Lin remains optimistic about investing, noting student trends in decentralized finance, liquid staking derivatives, and decentralised applications.

🕵️ Scoops take:

As universities emerge as incubators for the next wave of Web3 pioneers, it's clear that academia's embrace of this technological frontier could have transformative implications. LBank Labs' emphasis on nurturing young talent signals a broader realisation: Web3 isn't just a fleeting trend but a paradigm shift in our digital interactions. Much like the internet's early days, students dabbling in decentralised finance and applications today may very well architect tomorrow's digital ecosystems. By championing Web3 within their halls, universities not only prepare students for a decentralised future but also position themselves as trailblazers in the ever-evolving narrative of digital progress.

The $9m LinkedIn Crypto Romance Scam…

At a glance 🔎

• A Minnesota man lost $9.2 million in a cryptocurrency romance scam involving a fake project named "Coinrule-web3" after being deceived by a woman on LinkedIn.

• The man's wife alerted the police upon suspecting foul play; investigations revealed the "Coinrule-web3" scheme had multiple scam links, and the funds were moved to inaccessible crypto wallets.

• Cryptocurrency romance frauds are rising globally, with U.S. victims losing $185 million to such scams from January 2021 to March 2022.

  🕵️ Scoops take:

The rise of crypto romance scams, as exemplified by the distressing $9.2 million loss faced by a Minnesota resident, underscores a pervasive and alarming trend in the burgeoning web3 landscape. As the digital frontier expands, so too do the avenues for deception. While cryptocurrencies promise democratized finance and empowerment, they equally offer nefarious actors sophisticated tools to exploit the unsuspecting. It's imperative that as society accelerates into this digital age, education and vigilance must pace alongside. Such incidents serve as stark reminders: while the web3 realm brims with potential, it demands an informed and cautious approach to navigate its pitfalls.

Singapore Pledges $112m To Web3 Solutions

At a glance 🔎

• Singapore's central bank, MAS, dedicates $112 million to boost fintech initiatives, including Web3, under its renewed Financial Sector Technology and Innovation (FSTI) scheme.

• The FSTI scheme targets various innovative tracks and emphasises collaboration with industry stakeholders for emerging fintech solutions, including trials and commercialisation.

• Since 2015, the financial sector development fund has granted $340 million to foster innovation and technology adoption in the financial domain, with a focus on nurturing fintech talent.

🕵️ Scoops take:

Singapore's $112 million investment in fintech, emphasising Web3, is a visionary move. This melding of traditional finance with emerging tech positions Singapore as a global fintech leader. Such strategic integration of innovation signals the future of finance: a blend of the new and the established. As Web3 gains traction, nations must invest wisely to remain at the forefront.

🪙 CRYPTO CRUNCH

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• Crypto Total Market Cap $1.18T - 24/hour change +2.32%

• Volume Traded 24/hours - $33.33B +4.28%

• $BTC having its best day in almost a month, having broken out today.

• As we speak we are on the cusp of smashing up past $30K, is this finally the breakout?

• The whole of crypto Twitter is pretty bullish right now.

• If you are operating on a higher timeframe with swing trades over weeks & months (what we would recommend), signs pretty much point to GO right now.

• It is only a matter of time before we fully reclaim the liquidity below and charge upwards to $32K beyond. Which will undoubtedly cause Alts to skyrocket, especially with falling Bitcoin dominance.

• As mentioned last issue, unless you are a full-time chartist, it is always going to be extremely difficult to time the exact local bottom.

• Accumulation of Bitcoin, ETH, or your favorite ALT coins at these prices for the mid to long-term is likely a safe bet. Of course, there will always be fluctuations, but it is better to buy & hold than to miss the bottom & the token leaves you in the dust.

  Crypto narratives to focus on this summer

• - AI Tokens

• - Telegram trading Bot tokens

• - Decentralised Exchange Tokens

• - Liquid Staking derivative projects

• - Metaverse & gaming tokens

• - RWA - Real-World Asset tokens

• - Cross Chain Projects

• - ‘Real Yield’ Bearing tokens/projects

Top Stories

• Paypal issues dollar-backed stablecoin $PYUSD

• Is Huobi Exchange Insolvent?

• Cathie Wood & Mike Novogratz both bullish on BTC ETF approvals

😡 THE REKT SECTION 😡

Azuki Drainer

As always in this space, it is a ruthless environment.

The level of competition is unique but with that comes the act of greed leading to investors pledging to things they really shouldn't.

A recent scam took place by way of a Google Ad (always make sure you are going on to the correct website…simple we know!)

By simply going on the wrong website, over 111 ETH ($200k) was obtained and now sits in a scammer’s wallet.

Check out the below thread for the finer details.

🏆 WEEKLY WINNER 🏆

CryptoPunks

Depending on when you joined the space, you would maybe have assumed that the Bored Ape Yacht Club was the number 1 project to be involved in within the space.

The gains they made from mint to bull-run had the rest of the space in envy but what if the statistics showed they are actually not the number 1 project to be involved in?

Step up CryptoPunks.

Now Punks certainly aren’t the new kid on the block, they have run the course and distance of the space but recent statistics show they may be about to lap the rest.

The current gap between Punks and BAYC is currently the largest it has been since December 2021 and this trend has been heading in one direction since April of last year.

Whether this is a case of Yuga Labs diversifying too much or the Punks maintaining a timeless efficiency it is the investors who have dictated the Punks shall reign supreme.

And that's a wrap for today gang!

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