CZ Steps Down From Binance Amid Guilty Plea

Quick Take

• CZ steps down from Binance.
• Circle introduces the Bridged USDC Standard.
• Optimism outlines efforts for OP Stack chain compatibility.
• RWA.xyz expands its directory listings.

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CZ Steps Down From Binance Amid Guilty Plea

Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) is stepping down as CEO following a guilty plea for money laundering violations. The U.S. Department of Justice has charged Binance with the facilitation of over $1 billion in transfers to sanctioned countries. Binance agreed to pay a $4.3 billion penalty to settle with the DOJ. Binance also faced charges for its failure to implement Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements. CZ is set to appear in a Seattle courtroom for his sentencing on February 23, 2024, while currently being released on a $175 million bond. In a tweet announcing his resignation, CZ named Richard Teng as Binance's new CEO.

Circle Introduces Bridged USDC Standard

Circle introduced the Bridged USDC Standard, a set of specifications for deploying bridged USDC tokens on EVM chains that enables the ability to upgrade the token contract to native USDC at a later point. It allows rollup teams to transfer ownership of a bridged USDC token contract to Circle for the execution of upgrades. The standard aims to address the rapid expansion of USDC deployments across EVM chains and rollups. It eliminates the need to migrate bridged USDC into native USDC. It also enables the bootstrapping of USDC liquidity on new chains until an official native version becomes available.  Linea and Scroll have already implemented this standard for bridged USDC on their ZK-EVM chains.

OP Chain Compatibility For The Superchain

Optimism is working to enable synchronized upgrades for all OP Stack chains within The Superchain. There are two key initiatives for making The Superchain a reality. The first initiative introduces a protocol version system for node operators, enabling them to voluntarily participate in future Superchain upgrades. The feature is being integrated via the Canyon hardfork. The second initiative aims to streamline multichain contract upgrades by removing hardcoded configurations. It allows Superchain members to use a unified set of implementation contracts for protocol upgrades. The changes will go live upon governance approval.

RWA.xyz Expands Directory Listings

RWA.xyz, an analytics platform for tracking real-world assets and offchain activity, expanded its directory to feature infrastructure providers, DeFi protocols, and asset issuers. The directory has also been revamped, featuring improved search, advanced filtering, verified profiles, and a streamlined listing process. The site now tracks over 200 RWA projects.

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