🏔️ Bitwise Launches AVAX ETF

**Sky Ecosystem's USDS stablecoin launches on Avalanche** with native issuance capabilities and purpose-built cross-chain infrastructure. **Key features include:** - Native USDS and sUSDS tokens without wrapped versions - Burn-and-mint transfer mechanism eliminating idle bridge liquidity - Governance parameters controlled by Sky **Technical foundation:** The integration uses Skylink, Sky Ecosystem's bridge developed by Grove Finance, an established Avalanche partner focused on institutional-grade stablecoin infrastructure. **Benefits:** Builders gain simplified stablecoin liquidity management, while the ecosystem adds significant assets with reduced technical compromises. USDS serves as Sky Ecosystem's primary stablecoin, offering access to Sky Savings Rate (~3.75% APY via sUSDS), Sky Vaults, and ecosystem rewards. The stablecoin is designed for exchange integration and regulatory compliance.

**Matthew Hougan, Chief Investment Officer at BitWise, outlined the growing institutional interest in Avalanche.** Key factors driving demand: - Institutional recognition of blockchain infrastructure capabilities - Avalanche's positioning as a premier platform for institutional building - Growing venture capital confidence in the ecosystem This follows earlier discussions from Parafi Capital and Dragonfly, who highlighted Avalanche's technical advantages for institutional deployment. The trend suggests institutions are moving beyond Bitcoin and Ethereum to evaluate specialized Layer 1 platforms for specific use cases.

**Avalanche is experiencing a significant surge in developer activity** over the past six months. Key growth metrics include: - Builder Hub accounts increased **20x** - Unique contract deployers surpassed **400,000** - Verified contracts onchain exceeded **700,000** - Tracked projects reached over **550** This dramatic increase in builder engagement suggests **strong momentum** for the Avalanche ecosystem heading into 2025. The growth follows previous spikes in development activity, including nearly 3 million contracts deployed in a single week earlier this year. *These metrics indicate healthy ecosystem expansion* as more developers choose Avalanche for their blockchain projects.

Avalanche's C-Chain has achieved a **new record** for daily transactions in 2025, demonstrating the network's growing adoption and technical capabilities. The milestone highlights the **increasing activity** on Avalanche's primary smart contract chain, which handles most DeFi and dApp transactions on the network. This follows a pattern of **sustained growth** throughout the year, with network activity consistently reaching new heights as more users and developers choose Avalanche for their blockchain needs.