Welcome to The Protocol, CoinDesk’s weekly roundup of the most important stories in cryptocurrency technology development. My name is Margaux Nijkerk, journalist at CoinDesk.
In this issue:
- Ethereum’s Fusaka Upgrade Completes Final Hoodi Test Ahead of Mainnet Launch
- BOB Unveils Bitcoin Vault Liquidation Engine to Power BTC-Backed Stablecoin Loans
- Ledger unveils $179 Nano Gen5, designed for identity in an AI-driven world
- Google claims quantum breakthrough to reignite debate over Bitcoin ramifications
Network News
FUSAKA IS LIVE ON HOODI, ETHEREUM MAINNET NEXT: The final dress rehearsal for Ethereum’s upcoming Fusaka upgrade took place on Tuesday as the blockchain prepares for the activation of the mainnet hard fork. The test, which went live around 6:53 p.m. UTC on the Hoodi testnet, involved adopting a series of code changes intended to make Ethereum more scalable and profitable. Testnets are replicas of a blockchain’s mainnet, providing developers with a safe environment to test major upgrades and resolve any issues before they go live on the mainnet. Hoodi was the last of the three testnets to run a simulation of Fusaka, with two other successful test upgrades on the Holesky and Sepolia networks. Roughly six months after Ethereum’s Pectra upgrade, Fusaka is introducing changes intended to reduce costs for developers, users, and institutions operating on the network. Its centerpiece, PeerDAS, allows validators to verify only segments of data instead of entire “blobs,” easing bandwidth demands and reducing expenses for validators and Layer 2 networks. Margaux Nijkerk Learn more.
BOB UNVEILS VAULT’S LIQUIDATION ENGINE: BOB (“Build on Bitcoin”) has unveiled a new framework allowing Bitcoin holders to borrow stablecoins against their BTC while keeping it secure on the Bitcoin network. The Bitcoin Vault liquidation engine solves some persistent challenges in Bitcoin lending, such as all-or-nothing liquidations and multi-day settlements, founder Alexei Zamyatin told CoinDesk in a Telegram message. A vault, in the context of collateral and lending, is a smart contract that securely locks a user’s cryptocurrency as collateral for a loan. It acts like an escrow, automatically managing the collateral and executing a liquidation (sale of the asset) if its value falls too low. Applying this to bitcoin could turn the most secure and largest crypto asset into active collateral, freeing up billions of BTC liquidity for use in the decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem without forcing holders to sell. BOB’s new design supports partial liquidation, meaning an entire position does not need to be liquidated if it goes underwater; only collateral sufficient to restore the health of the loan is sold. — Jamie Crawley Learn more.
LEDGER NOTES PORTFOLIO AND PRODUCT OFFERINGS: Ledger, the French company known for its crypto hardware wallets, has introduced a radical update to its product line, positioning itself for what it calls a new “age of ownership.” The company unveiled the Ledger Nano Gen5, a redesigned version of its signature device, as well as Ledger Wallet, a reimagined version of its Ledger Live app, and Ledger Enterprise Multisig, a new institutional asset management platform. The new Nano is designed to be more than a crypto wallet, the company said. Ledger now calls it a “signer,” positioning the device not only as a place for digital assets, but also as a place for digital identity in an AI-driven world. Ledger’s shift from calling its devices “wallets” to “signers” marks an evolution in how the company views what it says is the heart of security in the next digital era. The Ledger Nano Gen5 acts as a secure signing device for everything from crypto transactions to smart contracts and identity verification. — Margaux Nijkerk Learn more.
GOOGLE TRACK ON QUANTUM COMPUTING AND THE BITCOIN DEBATE: Google said it had achieved a verifiable “quantum advantage” with its Willow chip, performing a calculation that would take conventional supercomputers thousands of times longer. The reported breakthrough could reignite a debate within the cryptocurrency community about the possible detrimental effects that quantum computing could have on Bitcoin, whose operation and security relies on cryptographic methods that quantum computing could potentially challenge. The chip reportedly simulated quantum chaos in just two hours by measuring out-of-time correlators (OTOCs), a key benchmark for tracking unpredictable particle behavior. The researchers say this achievement brings quantum computing closer to practical applications, such as Hamiltonian learning, where quantum machines could help model complex molecular structures beyond the reach of current tools. For the crypto world, the breakthrough is remarkable, but not alarming. Although quantum computing could one day challenge the cryptographic foundations of Bitcoin, most experts say the reality is still a long way off. – Jamie Crawley Learn more.
In Other news
- Western Union (WU) plans to introduce a stablecoin for its 100 million-user payments network, joining the ranks of traditional financial companies leveraging blockchain rails to power global transfers. The company, known for its cross-border payments and cash network among retail customers, plans to roll out the US Dollar Payment Token (USDPT) in the first half of next year, according to a press release. The token will be issued by Anchorage Digital, a federally regulated digital asset bank, using the Solana network, a public blockchain designed for fast and low-cost settlements. Christian Sandor Learn more.
- The traditional world of wealth management and private banking, much of which is hardened and doubly timid when it comes to cryptocurrency investing, is once again under increasing pressure to deliver digital assets to wealthy clients, particularly in crypto hotspots like Dubai, Switzerland and Singapore. Swiss software company Avaloq, which serves many private banks and wealth managers, examined the investment attitudes of high-net-worth individuals in the UAE (based on surveys of 3,851 investors and 456 wealth management professionals conducted in February/March 2025), and found that while demand for digital assets in this region is unusually high (39% of high-net-worth clients hold cryptocurrencies), only 20% of these crypto investors used a traditional wealth manager. The UAE, known for its oil and ultra-high net worth offices and a low-tax hub for expat workers, is also fast becoming one of the world’s hottest crypto hubs, with Dubai offering a clear regulatory framework in the form of the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA), in place since 2022. Nowadays, the children of these ultra-high net worth families are educating their elders about crypto – e.g. Trump. In this context, analysis from Avaloq in the United Arab Emirates reveals that 63% of investors have changed managers or are considering doing so. The reason is partly because their questions about crypto remain unanswered, according to the survey. — Ian Allison Learn more.
Regulation and policy
- Some of the crypto industry’s most prominent names are among those footing the bill for the controversial construction of a White House ballroom that began in recent days with the leveling of the historic East Wing. But even as Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal asks them to explain their connection to the project, they mostly avoid the spotlight. CoinDesk asked crypto companies on Trump’s long list of private sector benefactors to comment on their support and intentions to respond to the senator’s investigation, but only a Coinbase spokesperson responded. Ripple, Tether and Gemini, whose co-founders Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss were donors, remained silent, although all received letters from Blumenthal, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. “Coinbase is pleased to support the Trust for the National Mall, a 501(c)(3) partner of the National Park Service, and looks forward to responding to the committee’s requests,” the company offered in response. — Jesse Hamilton Learn more.
- Prediction Market Kalshi filed a federal lawsuit against the New York State Gaming Commission, arguing that the state’s attempt to terminate certain event-based contracts violates federal law. In a complaint filed in the Southern District of New York, Kalshi asked the court to block New York authorities from enforcing state gambling laws that the company says do not apply to its operations. Kalshi is registered with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) as a Designated Contracts Marketplace (DCM), which gives it federal rights to list and clear derivatives tied to real-world events, including sports scores, it said in the filing. The dispute centers on Kalshi’s recent offering of contracts for sporting events, which the company self-certified with the CFTC earlier this year. Contracts allow users to take opposing financial positions regarding whether a team wins or advances in a tournament, among other outcomes. — Francisco Rodrigues Learn more.
Calendar
- November 17-22: Devconnect, Buenos Aires
- December 11-13: Solana Breakpoint, Abu Dhabi
- February 10-12, 2026: Consensus, Hong Kong
- February 17-21, 2026: EthDenver, Denver
- March 30-April. 2, 2026: EthCC, Cannes
- April 15-16, 2026: Paris Blockchain Week, Paris
- May 5-7, 2026: Consensus, Miami
