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Today in crypto, Ethereum liquid restaking protocols saw their total value locked (TVL) increase by almost 6,000% in 2024 as demand for staked asset utility grew significantly, Michael Saylor has tipped crypto miner MARA Holdings to be next in line among Bitcoin firms to join the Nasdaq 100, and Thailand’s former prime minister said the country should explore crypto to remain competitive.
Ethereum liquid restaking TVL surges in 2024
According to data from decentralized finance (DeFi) aggregator DefiLlama, liquid restaking TVL on the Ethereum network was approximately $284 million on Jan. 1. By Dec. 15, that figure had climbed nearly 60-fold, reaching $17.26 billion.
The increase in liquid restaking could be attributed to the utility of liquid restaking tokens (LRTs). These assets simplify the complexities of traditional Ether ETH$3,909.02 staking and increase capital efficiency in DeFi.
Liquid restaking tokens (LRTs) build on the foundation of liquid staking tokens (LSTs). In liquid staking, stakers who want to maintain liquidity while participating in network security receive derivative tokens — such as stETH from Lido — representing their staked holdings.
These tokens can be used in other DeFi activities like trading, lending or yield farming, allowing holders to retain the liquidity of their staked assets.
Saylor expects MARA to be “the next” Bitcoin firm to join Nasdaq 100
MicroStrategy founder and Bitcoin bull Michael Saylor has tipped crypto miner MARA Holdings to be next in line among Bitcoin firms to join the Nasdaq 100.
“Thanks Fred. I expect $MARA will be the next,” Saylor said in a Dec. 14 X post, responding to MARA Holdings’ chairman and CEO Fred Thiel, who congratulated Saylor on MicroStrategy’s inclusion in the Nasdaq-100 Index, announced on Dec. 13.
MicroStrategy is expected to join before the trading day begins on Dec. 23.
“Congratulations to $MSTR and @saylor for being the first Bitcoin treasury company to join the Nasdaq 100,” Thiel said.
Thiel said MARA is “working hard to get there.” The crypto miner has spent more than $600 million on Bitcoin in the last two months, according to a Dec. 2 filing with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.
Being included in the Nasdaq 100 means the company is one of the 100 biggest on the Nasdaq by market capitalization. MicroStrategy closed the trading week on Dec. 13 with a market cap of $94.77 billion, according to Financecharts data.
Meanwhile, MARA clocked a market cap of $7.32 billion.
Former Thailand PM says country should explore crypto
Thaksin Shinawatra, the former Prime Minister of Thailand, said that Thailand should explore cryptocurrencies and continue its sandbox experimentation due to the global trend toward digitization and the proliferation of digital currencies.
The former PM added that protectionist trade policies from the incoming Trump administration, and Trump’s proposed idea of paying the national debt with Bitcoin BTC$103,189 were also reasons to explore alternative currencies. In a translated statement, Shinawatra said:
“There are already many cryptocurrencies. Some people say that in the future, we will have more currencies than countries. Today, Thai people must think and understand this.”
Thailand has been exploring various efforts to digitize its economy, including a crypto regulatory sandbox in August 2024 and a cross-border tokenization program with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA).
To read article in Arabic, please visit the website Crypto Mena
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