Last week, the broader crypto market and the top 100 DeFi tokens experienced significant surges, as the total value locked in DeFi peaked at over $54 billion for the year. The highly-anticipated Shapella upgrade on the Ethereum mainnet was successfully completed on April 12, allowing validators to withdraw their staked Ether after three years. However, only 253 validators have opted to exit their staked Ether position, and analytics firm Glassnode predicts that less than 1% of staked ETH will be withdrawn.
In other news, an Ethereum researcher warned that staking Ether could pose a privacy concern, as it reveals a user’s IP address information. A hacker also exploited an old Yearn.finance contract, minting 1 quadrillion Yearn Tether (yUSDT) and exchanging it for other stablecoins, resulting in a theft of $11.6 million worth of stablecoins. Finally, Fonbnk’s partnership with Tanda aims to increase liquidity and earning opportunities for African micro-entrepreneurs through DeFi-based financial inclusion.