šŸ§  Binance saga: it's even wore than I thought

Therapy Recap: Binance is worse than I thought, bitcoin is not boiling the oceans and Bitcoin miners save Texas

GM.

Welcome to Bitcoin Therapy. The newsletter with the perfect balance of memes and knowledge.

First, happy and relaxing Sunday to 2,401 patients reading today. Subscriber number go up! šŸš€

I'm not going to lie, I almost didnā€™t send this email. I have a massive headache right now. Shoutout to the guy who invented painkillers. I owe you one.

Alright, enough complaining. Hereā€™s what I got for you this week:

  • Binance saga: It's even worse than I thought

  • Research: Bitcoin energy usage equivalent to U.S. tumble dryers

  • Bitcoin miners saved Texas from blackouts

Estimated read time: 3 minutes and 14 seconds

Before we begin, a big thank you to Wasabi Wallet for sponsoring this weekā€™s email. ā¤ļø

BINANCE: ITā€™S EVEN WORSE THAN I THOUGHT

*sniff sniff*ā€¦smell that? Thatā€™s the smell of more Binance drama.

I wrote about Binance's red flags in a previous edition. But thereā€™s a lot more dirt thatā€™s been discovered on them since then.

And let me tell you: Binance is a train wreck. A very slow one, but still.

Travis Kling, a crypto fund manager who follows the situation closely, has kindly made a list of all the red flags at Binance for us šŸ‘‡ 

Whew. This list is longer than all the no-coiners who have blocked me on Twitter (and thatā€™s LONG).

So how come Binance is still up and running? Well, few potential reasons, according to Travis:

  1. CZ is loaded with cash and can keep the ship going with his personal assets (running crypto casino = $$$)

  2. Asian crypto investors trust CZ or do not understand the severity of the situation

But wait. A hero appears to defend Binance from the FUDsters!

Their ex-head of PR jumps out and tweets (xweets? xites?) this brainfart of a defense:

So, instead of saying something like, ā€œBinance has not collapsed because we have all customer deposits and can fulfill 100% of withdrawalsā€, he saidā€¦that?

Now I understand why he is an ex-head of PR.

Itā€™s also interesting how he starts with ā€œBinance has not collapsed.ā€ Itā€™s as if he knows somethingā€¦

Pssstā€¦Patrick. I know youā€™re reading this. Slide into my DMā€™s so I can cover this story. Thanks.

And to add a cherry on top, our boy Jim Cramer said on CNBC that he is buying BNB and is bullish on Binance.

RIP Binance.

DO YOU LIKE POOPING IN PRIVACY?

If you answered ā€˜yes,ā€™ congratz: youā€™re normal.

You know whatā€™s also normal? Not revealing absolutely everything about your financial activity to third parties.

And you do exactly this by not coinjoining your Bitcoin. This blog explains why itā€™s essential for keeping your Bitcoin private and thus SAFE,

I recommend Wasabi Wallet for this. Hereā€™s why:

  1. Beginner friendly

  2. Privacy by default

  3. No minimum Coinjoin amounts

What are you waiting for? Take back control of your privacy and freedom.

Join 500,000+ Wasabi users by downloading it at wasabiwallet.io

NEW RESEARCH: BITCOIN USES LESS ENERGY THAN U.S. DRYERS

So, Bitcoin and dryers. I tried to think of a joke here but couldnā€™t. Iā€™ve failed you.

Anyways. The University of Cambridge revised its Bitcoin energy estimate: Bitcoin mining uses less energy than clothes tumble dryers in the U.S.

  • Muricans drying their underwear = 108 TWh

  • The world securing the hardest money ever known to mankind = 95.5 TWh

So what does it mean? Well, it means you should stop drying your clothes and destroying the planet, you selfish motherphucker.

But in all seriousness, this is big for 2 reasons:

  1. For YEARS, thinkboi intellectuals used this poorly done research to attack Bitcoin

  2. Itā€™s rare to see a political science institution admit their mistakes

Thanks for putting pressure on them, BlackRock and co! šŸ¤

Bottom line: Bitcoin is not destroying the planet any more than dryers or Christmas lights. Karens in disbelief.

MINERS SAVE TEXAS FROM TOTAL BLACKOUT

ā€œI need a heroā€ - Bonnie Tyler

Well, I got one, Bonnie. He doesnā€™t wear a cape or boots, but he is a force of good for the world. His name is Bitcoin.

What happened? Earlier this week, the Texas electricity grid ERCOT was close to a total blackout. I say ā€˜closeā€™ because Bitcoin miners prevented it.

Hereā€™s what happened:

  • The US Grid operates at 60hz, but it fluctuates based on how much demand there is for electricity

  • When demand is greater than supply ā€”> frequency falls below acceptable range ā€”> rolling blackouts are issued ā€”> if supply canā€™t keep up, a total blackout happens

  • To counter these fluctuations, ERCOT has programs called ā€˜Ancillary servicesā€™

  • One part of these services is that Bitcoin miners can quickly shut off during intense grid usage (for example, during heat waves or when everyone and their dog watched Barbie) or generation outages

And this is exactly what happened. ERCOT went into ā€œemergency modeā€ for ~2 hours on Wednesday night.

Now, an important clarification: It was not only Bitcoin miners who helped stabilize the grid. Ancillary services consist of various tools that help with loads and generators. Bitcoin is just one part of these services.

BUT, Bitcoin did play a role in preventing a blackout. Hereā€™s the proof:

  • A Texas Bitcoin Miner, Marshall Long, runs 3 small Bitcoin mines in Houston

  • He documented all 3 mines simultaneously going offline during the emergency

  • Marshallā€™s Bitcoin miners helped stabilize the grid and prevent blackouts

Now I know itā€™s not the simplest topic, but I hope I explained it well enough.

But if not, think about it like this: Bitcoin miners are like giant batteries that can quickly release and suppress energy. This makes them a great tool for stabilizing the electrical grid. Capiche?

The sad part? I can foresee future headlines by mainstream media:

ā€œPuppies are dying due to blackouts - all because of greedy Bitcoin minersā€

Oh well. They attack, and we expose them as the clowns they are.

RABBIT HOLE READS šŸ•³ļøā€¦ā€¦šŸ‡

  • Ripple acquires Fortress, Swanā€™s custodian. The XRP army is growing, lol.

  • Thereā€™s a 75% chance a Bitcoin spot ETF will launch this year ā€“ Bloomberg analysts. My bags are ready for ze pump.

  • Average Bitcoin trade size increased $850 ā†’ $2000+ after Grayscale whipped SECā€™s ass. Thanks, Gary.

THIS WEEK IN A MEME šŸ“…

FROM THE ARCHIVE šŸ“

Is it possible to miss someone youā€™ve never met?

Hal Finney

PATIENT REVIEW šŸ§ 

Thatā€™s it for this one. Big thanks to our sponsor Wasabi Wallet, who allows us to write Bitcoin Therapy.

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See you next Sunday,

Bitcoin Therapy Team

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