Earn Digest #4 - [5th May to 9th May]

Over the weekend, a wave of protocol launches and upgrade roll-outs reshaped the DeFi landscape—here’s what you need to know.

1. Ethereum’s Pectra Upgrade Goes Live

Ethereum’s most ambitious network update since The Merge is now in production. Dubbed Pectra, it brings three Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIPs) that together supercharge validator operations and expand smart-contract flexibility:

• EIP-7251 boosts the per-validator stake cap from 32 ETH all the way to 2,048 ETH, letting large stakers consolidate positions and improving overall network efficiency.
• EIP-6110 moves deposit activation onto the execution layer, slashing the average wait time from around 12 hours down to just 13 minutes. This greatly accelerates onboarding of new validators.
• EIP-7702 empowers Externally Owned Accounts (EOAs) to behave like smart contracts, enabling batched transactions and gas sponsorship without needing a full contract wallet.

Together, these changes shorten validator setup times, reduce network load, and open the door to novel gas-pay models for everyday users.

2. Superstate Debuts On‐Chain Equities on Solana

Superstate’s Opening Bell launch marks the first on-chain equities trading venue on Solana. Through their new platform, @superstatefunds brings traditional stock tickers to Solana’s high-throughput environment, complete with:

• 24/7 trading—no market-close pauses.
• Seamless share transfers between legacy exchanges and on-chain accounts.
• Full compliance via KYC/AML integrations and a regulated transfer agent.

This is a landmark step toward bridging mainstream equity markets with decentralized infrastructure.

3. Stripe Expands Into Stablecoins

Payment giant Stripe rolled out Stablecoin Financial Accounts in over 100 countries across Latin America, Africa, Asia, and Eastern Europe (excluding North America and Western Europe). Key details:

• Users can hold USDC (via Circle) and USDB (Stripe’s own bridged token).
• Funding options include ACH, wire transfers, or direct crypto deposits to EOAs.
• Stripe aims to serve under-banked regions with fast, low-cost cross-border payments.

By leaning on regulated stablecoin rails, Stripe is weaving crypto rails into global payments infrastructure at scale.

4. Morpho Labs Unveils “Morpho Lite”

Morpho Labs released a pared-down lending interface called Morpho Lite, designed for users who want straightforward on-chain borrowing and lending without the full suite of advanced features. They’ve also open-sourced the code, inviting developers to integrate or extend the UI for bespoke use cases.

5. Jupiter Exchange Launches Ultra v2

On the AMM aggregation front, @JupiterExchange shipped Ultra v2, featuring:

• MEV Protect to minimize sandwich and extraction risks.
• JupShield scam detection alerts.
• Gasless trading support for friction-free swaps.
• Self-learning liquidity optimization on Juno across 50+ AMMs.
• Priority support tiers for Ultra v2 users.

These enhancements aim to deliver both safer and more efficient swaps across Solana’s DEX ecosystem.

6. Lido Finance V3 Testnet Arrives on Hoodi

Lido’s next-generation staking architecture hit testnet with modular stVaults. Developers can now spin up vaults with custom fee models, bespoke validation logic, and tailored risk controls—all while preserving the familiar stETH experience. This modularity opens Lido up as a building block for other DeFi protocols.

7. 1inch Aggregator Expands to Solana

Decentralized exchange aggregator @1inch is live on Solana, bringing access to over $7 billion in on-chain liquidity directly to Solana users. This multi-chain expansion deepens trading options and further cements 1inch’s role as a cross-chain DEX router.

8. Supra Labs Rolls Out Testnet Alpha

Blockchain middleware provider @SUPRA_Labs launched an invite-only alpha of their hybrid parallel execution engine, SupraSTM. It includes built-in oracle feeds and native cross-chain messaging—foundational pieces for building high-performance, multi-chain DeFi applications.

What’s Next?

Stay tuned for deeper coverage on how these launches and upgrades will ripple across your favorite wallets and dApps. In next week’s review, we’ll track TVL shifts, fresh partnership announcements, and emerging layer-2 innovations.

Until then, happy staking—and enjoy your yields!