The cobblestones are vibrating under your feet. You’re wearing that all-white getup, and the red bandana tied around your neck is a little tight.

You’re breathing hard and you haven’t even started running yet. That pretty girl at your hostel convinced you that this would be a cool, cultural experience and you thought you’d look super manly with a wild animal chasing behind you.

But right as you’re starting to convince yourself that this act of bravado isn’t worth your life, the vibrations grow more intense, the crowd starts to roar, and there they are…

Bulls.

No, not 800-pound Pamplona bulls that want to stampede and destroy. They’re crypto bulls, Bitcoin maxis, and Ethereum enthusiasts. And because of a new development with Coinbase, crypto bulls may be running amuck in the Spanish economy.

Espresso Shots

☕️ The SEC Will Delay ETF Decisions

In an announcement that is disappointing, but not surprising, the SEC has announced that it will delay its decisions on four of the most prominent Bitcoin ETF applications ahead of the next government shutdown.

Those applications that will be punted are BlackRock, Bitwise, Invesco Galaxy Digital, and Valkyrie.

Following the announcement of an extension in August, this marks the second delay for these four applications.

The new deadline for these decisions will be from October 16 to 19.

Now, we’re just armchair quarterbacking here. But we’re pretty sure the SEC earned a flag on the field and a five-yard penalty for delay of game.

☕️ Chile Embraces the Orb

Worldcoin, a biometric identity and fintech company that has goals of revolutionizing digital security through eyeball scans, is receiving a warm reception in Chile.

Worldcoin’s eyeball scans occur through the use of the company’s Orb verification. The Orbs are silver, globe-like kiosks that scan users’ eyeballs in exchange for Worldcoin’s native WLD token.

200,000 Chileans have already taken the plunge and had their eyeballs scanned by an Orb. This accounts for a little more than 1% of Chile’s population.

For some, such as Carlos Santibañez, the decision is already paying dividends. Worldcoin gives users 25 WLD tokens, worth roughly $42. Santibañez, who’s a 29-year-old Chilean from a small town called Llanquihue, had his eyeballs scanned back in September 2022, and his investment is already worth more than $150.

“After a bit of reading, I found that their data collection is less invasive than what other companies keep,” said Santibañez in an interview with Decrypt. “This made me think: ‘Well, at least I’m making something off this information.’”

While orb adoption is only starting to find its footing in South America, orbs have long been popular with wizards, sorcerers, and even necromancers.

☕️ Parisian AI Enter the Arena

Mistral 7B, a new chatbot from Paris-based Mistral AI, has emerged to give rivals like ChatGPT a run for their money.

Mistral 7B is an open-source, large language model (LLM) like the chatbots that currently dominate the AI space.

What sets Mistral 7B apart from its competitors is a focus on open thinking and adaptability. The paragraphs written by Mistral 7B scored higher than those written by older, more established AI such as LlaMA-2 7B and Beluga 2.

"We’re releasing Mistral 7B under the Apache 2.0 license—it can be used without restrictions," reads a post from the Mistral AI team. "Working with open models is the best way for both vendors and users to build a sustainable business around AI solutions."

Though naturally, the hardest part of developing French AI is to get it to quit starting every paragraph with “Oui, oui, monsieur,” and stroking its mustache while it buffers.

Spilling the Beans

Spain’s Running of the Crypto Bulls 🇪🇸 🐂

Spain. España. A country sometimes referred to as “La Piel de Toro” or “The Bull Skin” by its inhabitants.

It’s a gorgeous country. There’s no denying that.

The nation’s warm weather, delightful finger foods, and penchant for nightlife make it a go-to vacation spot and coveted study-abroad destination.

But internationally, Spain isn’t seen as a global player on par with Russia, China, or the U.S.

Why? It could be that Spain’s government-sanctioned siestas don’t have a set, agreed-upon time. Foreigners may be frustrated to find that the business or restaurant they expected to be open is currently enjoying a midday nap.

Or it could be that human beings have a hard time equating beauty and luxury with diligence and hard work. There aren’t any Ivy League schools in Hawaii.

But whatever the reason for underestimating Spain, that may be about to change.

Coinbase just successfully registered with Spain’s central bank in compliance with its anti-money-laundering standards.

While Spain currently lacks a unique, national licensing system for crypto firms, it will soon have to enact one anyway under Europe’s fast-approaching 2024 MiCA regulation.

And the warm, Spanish reception toward crypto is indicative of more widespread acceptance throughout Europe.

And it turns out, Spain is a much bigger player than anyone gives it credit for. Yes, global superpowers tend to underestimate Spain, but Spain actually has the world’s 15th-largest economy. Moreover, based on the purchasing power of individual inhabitants, it’s also the 37th richest country in the world.

Spain’s pro-crypto stance may not send a ripple, so much as a shockwave, throughout Europe, urging competing nations to action.

But while we’re on the topic of competing nations, let’s turn our attention back to Coinbase’s announcement regarding the successful registration and the exchange’s efforts abroad:

“We are excited to have achieved this registration from the Bank of Spain to support and grow our retail consumers, institutional clients and developer partners in Spain. Most of the world is stepping up to the plate and providing clarity and guidance for the crypto industry. In the last year alone we have obtained VASP registrations in Italy, Ireland, and the Netherlands, as well as in-principle approval and launching in Singapore, launching in Brazil, and, most recently, launching in Canada. Working with regulators in these jurisdictions is a fundamental step in our strategy to grow internationally and continue our momentum.” Said Nana Murugesan, Coinbase’s Vice President of International and Business Development, in the announcement.

Now, there’s one key phrase here: “Most of the world is stepping up to the plate.” And the United States’ glaring omission from the list of Coinbase’s target countries throws some serious shade.

Coinbase is currently embroiled in a lawsuit with the SEC, and we’re all waiting for a definitive verdict on American crypto.

But exchanges like Coinbase can’t afford to wait. They’re going to take their business overseas where they’ll receive a warmer welcome under MiCA regulation.

Spain may just be the latest in a series of nations that are going to rush past America.

We can only hope that developments like these can spur American policymakers to action.

Spain has finished its tapas, and now its central bank is preparing to dive into the entrée: MiCA-backed crypto licensing.

Meanwhile, the U.S. is still stuck on the soup course (and it’s getting cold).

But if the countries in this metaphor are eating at the same restaurant, it’s probably a Spanish restaurant. In this case, the soup would most likely be gazpacho, which is served cold.

Ahem, in the multi-course meal of crypto adoption, America’s gazpacho is getting dangerously close to room temperature.

Crypto 101

LLM: A “Large Language Model” is a type of AI, such as ChatGPT or Mistral 7B, which uses massive data sets coupled with deep learning to understand and produce new text.

Generative AI pulls from LLMs to generate original content. LLMs provide the text, while the goal of Gen. AI is to imitate human creativity.

The Last Sip

The Last Sip: Back to the orbs. Did you know that the black orb Saruman uses in “The Lord of the Rings” is called a palantír? There were seven originally and they’re sometimes called “seeing stones.” Peter Thiel’s software company, Palantir, is named after these wizards’ scrying orbs, so actually, he’s the nerd. Not us.

Stay Caffeinated,

Coffee & Crypto Team

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