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Week of February 13, 2023

Weirdo's Weekly Update — 13 Feb, 2023

The team focuses on HARO-based link building to grow site authority while the SEC's crackdown on Kraken's staking service sparks industry-wide debate. After a week in Taipei, they head to Cebu, Philippines, and spotlight Apex Pro—a decentralized exchange built on Starkware—as the tool of the week.

What are we working on?

The team dedicates weekly hours to outreach and link-building to boost site authority. They employ HARO (Help A Reporter Out), a platform connecting journalists with expert sources. Journalists post queries seeking information; qualified experts respond with relevant insights and receive backlinks when quoted in published stories. Though time-intensive, the strategy has already yielded several high-quality backlinks.

Cryptos

The SEC recently targeted Kraken's staking-as-a-service program for US customers, arguing that staking rewards derived from pooled customer assets constituted active investment management. Kraken shuttered the service and paid a $30 million fine.

The decision sparked significant debate. SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce criticized the enforcement action, while Coinbase expressed confidence in defending its staking program. European fintech Revolut plans launching crypto staking services. The regulatory pressure benefited liquid staking services and staking infrastructure tokens, with Lido announcing a major upgrade featuring a new staking router.

Travel Update

The team spent one week in Taipei before heading to Cebu, Philippines. They flew from Kota Kinabalu via AirAsia (3 hours 20 minutes) and stayed in Zhongzheng District, exploring neighborhoods, parks, street food, and attractions.

A notable advantage: Taiwan permits 90-day visa-exempt stays for EU and US passport holders, making it ideal for visa runs.

They used ChatGPT to plan their itinerary, which proved helpful for organizing activities and dining recommendations.

Currently Listening

Lex Fridman Podcast #358 featuring Aella discussing sex work, OnlyFans, pornography, escorting, dating, and human sexuality.

Currently Watching

Vitalik discussing starting new countries and self-improvement on The Network State Podcast with Balaji.

Tool of the Week

Apex Pro - a decentralized crypto exchange with excellent mobile applications, developed by Starkware and operating on Arbitrum Layer 2. Available across BNB, Ethereum, Polygon, and Arbitrum One networks. Non-custodial, permissionless, and decentralized.

Something to Think About

From James Clear: "It doesn't make sense to continue wanting something if you're not willing to do what it takes to get it."

From Marion Milner: "There seemed to be endless obstacles preventing me from living with my eyes open, but as I gradually followed up clue after clue it seemed that the root cause of them all was fear."

Question to Ask Yourself

James Clear poses: "If you could spend 30 minutes today creating whatever you want, what would you create?"

Content of the Week

How to Update the Firmware on Your Ledger Hardware Wallet?