According to @jessepollak, a significant trend is emerging where every crypto exchange and fintech firm is expected to launch its own Layer-2 blockchain within the next five years, a prediction made by Sam McIngvale of OP Labs, builder of Optimism. This is driven by the success of Coinbase's Base network, which allows for the monetization of custodied assets. In parallel, major technical upgrades are being proposed across the ecosystem. Ethereum (ETH) core developer Barnabé Monnot has proposed EIP-7782 to cut block times from 12 to 6 seconds, potentially doubling network speed. RippleX has released version 2.5.0 for the XRP Ledger (XRP), introducing new features like 'TokenEscrow' and 'PermissionedDEX' to enhance DeFi and compliance capabilities. From a market perspective, Bitwise Asset Management notes that MicroStrategy's (MSTR) stock is at its lowest 10-day realized volatility since it began acquiring Bitcoin (BTC), indicating a potential consolidation phase. Meanwhile, Bernstein has raised its price target for Coinbase (COIN) stock to $510, citing its growing role as crypto's 'universal bank'.

According to @jessepollak, a significant trend is emerging in the Layer-2 space, with OP Labs, the developer behind Optimism (OP), predicting that every crypto exchange and fintech company will run its own blockchain within the next five years. This forecast is heavily influenced by the success of Coinbase's L2 network, Base, which was built using Optimism's OP Stack, as stated by OP Labs' head of product, Sam McIngvale. The primary drivers for this adoption are the ability to monetize custodied assets like Bitcoin (BTC) through on-chain lending and to offer faster, cheaper transactions. This trend is already being followed by exchanges like Kraken, Bybit, and OKX. In a contrasting strategic move, Polygon (MATIC) co-founder Sandeep Nailwal has taken over as CEO of the Polygon Foundation to pivot focus towards the AggLayer for cross-chain liquidity, while retiring its zkEVM network. Additionally, the report notes that Bitcoin Core developers plan to increase the OP_RETURN data limit, which could impact data storage on the Bitcoin network.