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Ethereum on Proof-of-Stake: Comprehensive Guide to The Merge

This guide explains what changes in Ethereum (ETH) with The Merge activation and why it is big deal for entire Web3 segment

On July 15, 2022, Ethereum core developer Tim Beiko suggested Sept. 19 as the “tentative date” for The Merge activation in Ethereum (ETH) mainnet.

As such, Ethereum (ETH) is putting the final touches on its hotly anticipated upgrade that will put an end to Ether proof-of-work (PoW) mining.

Inside Ethereum Merge: Why is #2 blockchain migrating to proof of stake?

Ethereum (ETH) inches closer to The Merge upgrade, i.e., migration from a proof-of-work (PoW) consensus to a proof-of-stake (PoS) one. It is set to make the largest smart contracts network more resource efficient, inclusive and eco-friendly.

Why is The Merge so important for the Ethereum (ETH) blockchain and Web3 sphere as a whole?

The Merge will replace proof-of-work (PoW) consensus with a proof-of-stake (PoS) one, by which Ethereum (ETH) network integrity will be secured by stakers instead of miners;

It is a first in crypto history in which a mainstream protocol radically changes its consensus design;

Ethereum Merge has already been activated in testnets Kovan and Sepolia; Goerli activation will be the dress rehearsal before mainnet;

Proof-of-stake (PoS) consumes less energy, reduces a network’s carbon footprint and makes it more decentralized;

Once Ethereum (ETH) proof-of-stake is rolled out, migration toward sharding will be the next step.

For the first time, Ethereum’s specifications for proof-of-stake (also called Ethereum 2.0, but Ethereum devs recommended avoiding using this name in Q4, 2020) were unveiled more than two years ago. What is Ethereum?

Ethereum (ETH) is the first-ever blockchain (decentralized network) with smart contracts support. It launched in mainnet in July 2015. Ethereum (ETH) was invented by a number of cryptocurrency developers; Vitalik Buterin and Gavin Wood are the best known of them.

Ethereum (ETH) was intended to address the main bottlenecks of Bitcoin (BTC) and other early cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin (BTC), Litecoin (LTC), XRP and all first-gen cryptocurrencies were only suitable for value transfer.

Ethereum (ETH) established itself as a general-purpose decentralized computer. Its smart contracts (software programs on Solidity) are used in thousands of decentralized applications: decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols, marketplaces for non-fungible tokens (NFTs), blockchain-based games and so on.

Ethereum’s native cryptocurrency is dubbed Ether, or ETH. Ether is the largest altcoin; only Bitcoin (BTC) surpasses it by market capitalization.

What is proof of stake?

Proof of stake (PoS) is a class of blockchain consensus algorithms in which validators vote on the next block before adding it to the chain. Proof of stake is considered an improvement over the proof-of-work algorithm thanks to its resource efficiency, eco-friendliness and better decentralization parameters: to join staking, there is no need to purchase expensive mining equipment. There are chain-based and BFT-based proof-of-stake (PoS) systems.

Proof-of-stake systems rely on stakers in their operations: every validator should “stake” (freeze) his/her tokens to guarantee his/her commitment to the integrity of the protocol. By Q3, 2022, Ethereum’s rival, Cardano (ADA), is the largest proof-of-stake system.

As such, to join Ethereum’s proof of stake, a crypto enthusiast should stake at least 32 Ethers (ETH) or almost $50,000 by press time. Two months before the mainnet release of Ethereum’s proof of stake, 13,125,461 Ethers are staked in its “deposit contract,” or over $20.6 billion.

Ethereum activates The Merge: Most crucial update for crypto in 2022

Technically, Ethereum (ETH) started its journey to proof of stake in December 2020 with the launch of deposit contracts and the activation of the so-called Beacon Chain, a basic proof-of-stake (PoS) coordination mechanism. In September 2022, its entire validation structure will migrate to proof of stake (PoS).

The Merge: The Basics

At its core, The Merge is the procedure joining the existing Ethereum (ETH) transactions execution layer — the Ethereum (ETH) mainnet we have known and loved since 2015 — with Beacon Chain as its new consensus layer. Currently, the ecosystem of Proof-of-Work (PoW) miners is a consensus layer; Beacon Chain solves this issue.

Thus, Beacon Chain with Deposit Contract — the storage of all Ethers allocated for staking — will be “injected” into the Ethereum (ETH) mainnet. Beacon Chain will be responsible for processing all network data, including account balances, transactions and so on.

Beacon Chain becomes the engine of block production; proof-of-stake validators will be responsible for processing the validity of all transactions and proposing blocks. At the same time, the new system will keep the entire transactional history of the old Ethereum (ETH).

The Merge: The Testnets

To ensure a smooth transition to proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus, Ethereum (ETH) core developers activated The Merge in a number of closed and public testnets. Since December 2021, Ethereum (ETH) enthusiasts have emulated The Merge specifications in Kintsugi and Kiln purpose-made testnets.

Both Kiln and Kintsugi were specially launched to stress test Ethereum’s (ETH) transition to proof of stake. In Q1, 2022, they allowed developers to detect synchronization issues and put some final touches on the post-Merge codebase. Also, developers tried a brand-new “shadow fork” mechanism as in testing The Merge.

In Q2-Q3, 2022, Ethereans activated The Merge in public testnets Ropsten and Sepolia; Goerli testnet will be “Merged” in August 2022.

The Merge: The Timeline

Here is the timeline of the most crucial milestones on Ethereum’s road to The Merge:

June 30, 2015: Ethereum (ETH) launched in mainnet on a proof-of-work consensus;

Q2, 2019: Ethereum (ETH) developers propose Casper as a high-level implementation of how the blockchain can migrate to proof of stake (PoS);

Early March 2020: Vitalik Buterin, with co-authors, releases GASPER, a more advanced implementation of Beacon Chain;

November 20, 2020: Ethereum 2.0 Deposit Contract launched with 32 ETH minimum stake; Ethereans started injecting staking liquidity;

December 1, 2020: Beacon Chain launched as parallel network to Ethereum’s (ETH) mainnet;

October 28, 2021: Beacon Chain underwent Altair upgrade; ETH price spiked to all-time high;

Q1, 2022: Ethereum (ETH) implemented The Merge in Kintsugi and Kiln testnets, “shadow forks” quietly activated;

June-July 2022: Ethereum (ETH) Merge activated in public testnets Ropsten and Sepolia;

July 15, 2022: The Merge activation in mainnet tentatively scheduled for mid-September by coordinator Tim Beiko.

The Merge: The Next Steps

Once The Merge upgrade is live in mainnet and Ethereum (ETH) is running on proof of stake (PoS), the Shanghai update will be its first hard fork in the new consensus. Shanghai will change some aspects of UX/UI, upgrade EVM and reduce gas costs for end users. Also, native execution of BLS operations by Ethereum Virtual Machine will be added.

Last but not least, in the coming months, Ethereum (ETH) will most likely activate sharding. The blockchain will be split up into a network of shards, or interconnected sub-chains. Not unlike NEAR Protocol (NEAR) and Harmony (ONE), this update will improve the performance and throughput of the Ethereum (ETH) mainnet.

Bonus: Will The Merge affect the Ethereum (ETH) price?

As The Merge is the most radical upgrade for Ethereum (ETH) tokenomics, let alone technology, many ETH holders and potential investors are wondering whether it will somehow affect the Ether price.

Typically, every major upgrade is a powerful short-term catalyst for altcoins’ prices. Moreover, with Ethereum’s (ETH) transition to proof of stake, ETH holders will be incentivized to lock their riches for staking. This, in turn, will significantly reduce selling pressure.

Bottom line

Ethereum (ETH), the largest smart contracts network, will replace proof-of-work consensus with a proof-of-stake one on September 19, 2022, with The Merge mainnet activation.

This update is the result of three years of R&D efforts by Ethereum (ETH) developers and one of the most crucial technical changes in crypto’s entire history. Ethereum (ETH) mining will be replaced by staking as the way to add blocks to the mainnet.

Migration to proof of stake makes Ethereum (ETH) more resilient to centralization efforts, eco-friendly and resource efficient. #Ethereum News

https://u.today/ethereum-on-proof-of-stake-comprehensive-guide-to-the-merge

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All Tariffs To Remain In Place ✋️

🇺🇸 President Trump imposes 10% global tariff on all countries and says all tariffs will remain in place, despite Supreme Court ruling.

00:00:28
🚨10% GLOBAL TARIFF🚨

"Effective immediately, all National Security TARIFFS, Section 232 and existing Section 301 TARIFFS, remain in place, and in full force and effect. Today I will sign an Order to impose a 10% GLOBAL TARIFF, under Section 122, over and above our normal TARIFFS already being charged..."

  • President Donald J. Trump
00:01:30
How Our Reality Is Manifested ✨️ In An Easy To Understand Clip

Filmmaker David Lynch's Diagram for Transcendental Consciousness is one of the greatest, easiest to understand explanations for how our reality is made of MIND first, MATTER second.

I promise this is genuinely worth your time.

It's fantastic. 💯

Learn to meditate free here:
https://heartfulness.org/us/

00:14:55
👉 Coinbase just launched an AI agent for Crypto Trading

Custom AI assistants that print money in your sleep? 🔜

The future of Crypto x AI is about to go crazy.

👉 Here’s what you need to know:

💠 'Based Agent' enables creation of custom AI agents
💠 Users set up personalized agents in < 3 minutes
💠 Equipped w/ crypto wallet and on-chain functions
💠 Capable of completing trades, swaps, and staking
💠 Integrates with Coinbase’s SDK, OpenAI, & Replit

👉 What this means for the future of Crypto:

1. Open Access: Democratized access to advanced trading
2. Automated Txns: Complex trades + streamlined on-chain activity
3. AI Dominance: Est ~80% of crypto 👉txns done by AI agents by 2025

🚨 I personally wouldn't bet against Brian Armstrong and Jesse Pollak.

👉 Coinbase just launched an AI agent for Crypto Trading
👀 XRP, The Simpsons, 1994 The Man Who Put It All Together 🚀

0:00​ XRP and The Simpsons Plus The Rising Phoenix

2:45​ Dr. Coleman Exposes The Entire System In 1994!

17:40​ Gematria With ISO and Ripple Plus Biblical Significance

25:17​ The Significance of The Original Ripple Logo

28:07​ Institut Montaigne Document Highlights Ripple
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30:35​ Chatham House Significance Plus Meld Gold and The XRPL
37:32​ Carney and Georgieva of The IMF Speak On The Global Economy
41:49​ The Story of The Committee of 300 Document
44:58​ HSBC and Credit Suisse Significance Plus Otto B and Ripple
49:36​ The Significance of SIGINT Plus Jed McCaleb VAST Quant and Elon
56:09​ Closing Comments

⚠️ Gold reclaims $5,100

Feb-21st Live Webinar ! How To Physically Rewrite Your Internal State Using Ultrasound

On February 21st at 11am PST, Sterling Cooley is revealing the tools the mainstream isn't ready for you to use at home. https://skool.com/vagus/feb-21st-live-webinar-how-to-physically-rewrite-your-internal-state-using-ultrasound

Most people treat the Vagus Nerve like a static biological wire. They are wrong.

It is a dynamic, vibrating gateway that can be re-tuned through Ultrasound Neuromodulation.

Your nervous system is not a machine; it is a symphony that has been played out of tune for decades.

We have been conditioned to believe that healing requires chemical intervention or talk therapy that barely scratches the surface.

What if the master key to your consciousness isn’t a pill, but a precise acoustic frequency?

We are demonstrating how to physically rewrite your internal state using ultrasound.

On February 21st at 11am PST, Sterling Cooley will demonstrate the tools for ultrasound application.
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Arrive 30 minutes early for a sonic immersion of new music to ...

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🧬VINDICATED! The Epstein Files Connect Gates, Pandemics & Censorship to a Globalist Blueprint for a Biosecurity State🧬

Every warning. Every documentary. Every article. Every post that got us banned. All of it was true. Now what? What can we do? Read on, share this Substack, help us save lives! The Light is shining! ✨

Well, well, well… look what the cat dragged in.

Actually, scratch that. Look what the Department of Justice finally dragged out of Jeffrey Epstein’s email inbox and dumped on the world’s doorstep like a rotting corpse nobody wanted to claim. Yep, that’s right. The Epstein files. It’s hilarious how the “Democratic hoax” and “fantasy” client list we were all told didn’t exist suddenly became a very real, very unsealed document.

For years—years—they called us conspiracy theorists. They slapped “misinformation” labels on our posts faster than Pfizer could print liability waivers. They kicked us off platforms, lied about us in the media, and shadow-banned our reach. Meanwhile, the real conspiracy—the one typed out in black-and-white emails between billionaires, bankers, and a convicted pedophile—was sitting in a government vault, waiting to prove us right.

And now? Now the receipts are public.

The release of Jeffrey Epstein’s files has done far more than expose a network of elite pedophilia and blackmail—it has vindicated truth-tellers like us and countless others who were smeared, censored, de-platformed, and persecuted for warning about the sinister agendas of the globalist elite. The documents reveal shocking connections between Epstein, Bill Gates, pandemic planning, and the systematic suppression of anyone who dared to connect the dots.

We weren’t crazy. We were just early. And they hated us for it.

Epstein, Gates, and the Pandemic “Business Model” They Built Together

One of the most damning revelations from Epstein’s files is his partnership with Bill Gates. Forget the carefully crafted PR spin about “regretting” those meetings. These weren’t casual dinners. These were planning sessions.

Back in 2015, Gates and Epstein exchanged emails about “preparing for pandemics” and strategies to “involve the WHO.” Gates wrote: I hope we can pull this off.”

How’s that for a chill down your spine?

This eerily foreshadowed the 2019 Event 201 simulation—a pandemic exercise hosted by the Gates Foundation, Johns Hopkins, and the World Economic Forum that just happened to model a global coronavirus outbreak… just months before COVID-19 ”mysteriously” emerged in Wuhan. Funny how that works, isn’t it?

But let’s rewind even further, to the real blueprint—the financial architecture that made the pandemic response not just possible, but profitable.

The story crystallizes in a chilling 2011 email exchangeJuliet Pullis, a JPMorgan executive under then-chairman Jes Staley, emailed Jeffrey Epstein with a list of detailed questions. The source? “The JPM team that is putting together some ideas for Gates.

The questions were precise: What are the objectives? Is anonymity key? Who directs the investments and grants? This wasn’t JPMorgan consulting an expert; it was a trillion-dollar bank asking a convicted felon to architect a billion-dollar philanthropic fund for Bill Gates.

This wasn’t JPMorgan consulting a philanthropic expert. This was a trillion-dollar bank asking a convicted felon to architect a billion-dollar philanthropic fund for one of the richest men on Earth. Let that marinate for a moment.

Epstein’s reply was fluent and commanding. He described a donor-advised fund with a “stellar board” and ties to the Gates-Buffett “Giving Pledge.” He noted the billions already pledged and identified the gap: “They all have a tax advisor, but have no real clue on how to give it away.” His solution? JPM would be an integral part. Not advisor… operator, compliance. Staley’s response: We need to talk.

By July 2011, the plan evolved. In an email to Staley, copying Boris Nikolic (Gates’ chief science advisor), Epstein laid out the core pitch: A silo based proposal that will get Bill more money for vaccines.”

Not “more research for pandemics.” Not “better public health infrastructure.” More money for vaccines.” This is the unambiguous language of capital formation, not charity. It reveals the structure’s intended output planning reached the highest levels.

In August 2011, Mary Erdoes, CEO of JPMorgan’s $2+ trillion Asset & Wealth Management division, emailed Epstein (while on vacation) with additional operational questions.

Epstein’s reply was breathtaking in scope:

  • Scale: “Billions of dollars” in two years, “tens of billions by year 4.”

  • Structure: Donors choose from “silos” like mutual funds.

  • The Kicker: However, we should be ready with an offshore arm — especially for vaccines.”

An offshore arm. For vaccines. For a charitable vehicle. Let that sink in.

So, by the time the world was panicking in March 2020, the financial machinery was already built. The investment vehicles, the donor-advised funds, the reinsurance products at places like Swiss Re, and even the simulation playbooks were dusted off and ready to go.

The pandemic wasn’t an interruption to their business—it was the Grand Opening.

Epstein’s role extended far beyond trafficking; he was a facilitator and blackmail operative for the global elite. The same forces that orchestrated the COVID-19 power grab—the mask mandates, lockdowns, censorship, and coercive mRNA push—are the ones who silenced critics like us.

Gates, despite his documented ties to Epstein (multiple flights on the “Lolita Express” after Epstein’s 2008 conviction), walks freely. He’s on TV. He’s advising governments. He’s still funding “global health initiatives” and pushing digital IDs, vaccine passports, and climate lockdowns.

Meanwhile, people like our friend, Joby Weeks, are under house arrest without charges, and voices like ours were de-platformed, demonetized, and destroyed for saying this very thing.

We told you. You knew it in your gut. Now you have the emails.

Censorship: The Elite’s “Misinformation” Label to Cover Their Crimes

The Epstein files expose not just criminal behavior, but the playbook for the systematic suppression of truth. While Epstein’s powerful friends were being protected by the FBI, the DOJ, and the media, platforms like Facebook (Meta), YouTube (Google), and Twitter went to war against anyone talking about it.

Think about the sheer audacity.

We were banned from social media for calling COVID-19 a “fake pandemic” and exposing the vaccine injury data that’s now undeniable.

Below is a screenshot of the first Facebook post that was taken down and then used as “Exhibit A” in their “reports” about how bad we were, naming us the 3rd most dangerous people on earth after Dr Joseph Mercola and Bobby Kennedy in the digital hit list they called the “Disinformation Dozen.” They attacked us, lied about us, and pressured the media, social media, and population at large to do the same: attack, threaten, and cast us out.

We were labeled “dangerous” for sharing emails, documents, and research that the DOJ and the CDC have now confirmed.

It was never about “safety.” It was about narrative control.

The same institutions that turned a blind eye to Epstein’s crimes for decades—the same ones that let him “commit suicide” in a maximum-security prison with cameras conveniently malfunctioning—suddenly became the ruthless hall monitors of “acceptable discourse,” ensuring only their approved stories could be told.

Big Tech, Big Media, and Big Government are all part of the same protection racket. They shielded Epstein’s client list, and now they shield the architects of the pandemic debacle. Independent journalists, researchers, and health advocates like us, who connected these dots, were systematically de-platformed, demonetized, and destroyed.

Why? Because we were right, and that was the greatest threat of all.

When you’re over the target, that’s when the flak gets heaviest. And brothers and sisters, we were getting shelled.

They Lied About Us While Protecting the Real Criminals

Let’s be crystal clear about what happened here.

We have spent decades exposing the cancer industry, Big Pharma’s corruption, and the suppression of natural health solutions. We produced The Truth About Cancer docu-series, reaching millions worldwide. We warned about vaccine injuries, censorship, and the coming medical tyranny years before COVID-19.

And what did they do? They called us “Conspiracy Theorists,” “Anti-Vaxxers,” and “Killers.” Dangerous.

They said we were killing people with “misinformation.”

Facebook banned us. YouTube deleted our videos. Legacy media ran hit pieces. PayPal froze our accounts.

All while Bill Gates—a man with documented ties to Jeffrey Epstein, who flew on his plane multiple times after Epstein’s conviction, who got STDs from Russian girls Epstein provided for him for which Gates asked Epstein’s help getting him antibiotics to slip secretly to his then wife, Melinda, so that she would not know about his inexcusable and perverted escapades—yes, THAT Bill Gates—was at the same time, being platformed on every major news network as the world’s health oracle.

All while Anthony Fauci—who funded gain-of-function research in Wuhan through Peter Daszak and EcoHealth Alliance, who lied under oath to Congress, who flip-flopped on masks, lockdowns, and vaccines—was treated like a saint. Time Magazine’s “Guardian of the Year.”

All while Pfizer—a company with a $2.3 billion criminal fine for fraudulent marketing, bribery, and kickbacks—was given blanket immunity from liability and billions in taxpayer dollars to produce a vaccine in record time with no long-term safety data.

Were we the dangerous ones?

No.

We were the truthful ones. And that made us the enemy.

The Weaponized Institutions: From Epstein’s Blackmail to Your Digital ID

Epstein’s operation was never just about blackmail for perversion; it was blackmail for control. The files show his cozy ties to intelligence agencies (Mossad, CIA), financial giants like JPMorgan and Deutsche Bank, and political leaders across the globe.

This is the same cabal now pushing:

  • The Great Reset

  • Digital IDs

  • Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs)

  • 15-minute cities

  • Carbon credit social scoring

  • Vaccine passports

Let’s connect the dots they desperately don’t want you to see:

Financial Control:

JPMorgan banked Epstein for years despite clear red flags—over $1 billion in suspicious transactions flagged internally and ignored. They knew. They didn’t care. They paid a $290 million fine and moved on.

Now, banks like Bank of America, Chase, and PayPal de-bank conservatives, truckers, health freedom advocates, and anyone who questions the narrative. Canadian truckers. Gun shops. Crypto entrepreneurs. The goal is the same: punish dissent and control economic life.

CBDCs are the endgame—a digital leash on every citizen. Programmable money that can be turned off, restricted, or expired. Social credit by another name.

Medical Tyranny:

The FDA, CDC, and WHO—utterly captured by Big Pharma—lied about:

  • COVID origins (Wuhan lab leak dismissed as conspiracy theory)

  • Vaccine efficacy (”95% effective” turned into “you need boosters forever”)

  • Natural immunity (ignored despite being superior)

  • Early treatments (ivermectin, hydroxychloroquine, vitamin D censored and mocked)

They attacked natural health advocates just as they’ve done for decades with cancer cures, detox protocols, and anything that threatens Big Pharma profits. They are not health agencies; they are profit-enforcement arms dressed in lab coats.

Political Corruption:

Epstein’s blackmail ensured elite immunity. His client list includes presidents, princes, CEOs, scientists, and media moguls.

Meanwhile, true dissidents—Julian Assange (tortured in prison for journalism), Edward Snowden (exiled for exposing mass surveillance), and journalists like us—face persecution, imprisonment, debanking, slanderous hit pieces, and/or constant character assassination.

Two systems of justice: one for them, one for you. One for Epstein’s friends, one for truth-tellers.

The Way Forward: They’re Exposed. Now It’s Time to Build.

The Epstein files are more than proof; they are a declaration that the system is rotten to its core. But here’s the beautiful part: they vindicate us completely.

Every warning. Every documentary. Every article. Every post that got us banned. All of it was true.

The globalists’ grip is weakening. The truth—the real, ugly, documented truth—is erupting from the very files they tried to hide. They labeled us liars, but the emails show they were the architects. They silenced us, they censored us, but that only made our voices more necessary.

Epstein did not kill himself. COVID-19 was not natural. The vaccines were not safe or effective. The censorship was not about protecting you—it was about protecting them.

And now? Now it’s time to use this vindication as fuel. Not for revenge, but for revolution. A revolution of truth, health, freedom, and justice.

They tried to bury us. They didn’t know we were seeds.

The Epstein files are a smoking gun. A paper trail. A confession written in emails, financial structures, and offshore accounts.

They prove what we’ve been saying all along:

  • The system is rigged.

  • The elites are criminals.

  • The pandemic was planned.

  • The censorship was coordinated.

And we were right. 👍

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💳Citi’s Strategy to Dominate Institutional Payments💳

Citi's Institutional Payments Strategy

Citi’s Strategy to Dominate Institutional Payments is built on a foundation of technological innovation, strategic simplification, and a laser focus on institutional clients. The bank has transitioned from a fragmented global retail bank to a streamlined provider of high-margin institutional services, with its Treasury and Trade Solutions (TTS) and Securities Services segments now considered its "crown jewel." This shift, led by CEO Jane Fraser, involved exiting 14 international consumer markets and slashing decades of "tech debt" through a multi-billion-dollar partnership with **Google Cloud**, creating a modern, unified data and cloud infrastructure.

At the core of Citi’s dominance in institutional payments is Citi Token Services, a blockchain-powered platform launched in September 2023. This service converts client deposits into digital tokens, enabling 24/7, real-time cross-border payments, automated trade finance, and just-in-time liquidity management. By using private blockchain technology managed entirely by Citi, clients avoid the need to host their own nodes. The solution has been successfully piloted with Maersk and a canal authority, demonstrating how smart contracts can reduce transaction times from days to minutes—mirroring the functions of traditional bank guarantees and letters of credit.

Citi is further strengthening its position through strategic partnerships, such as its collaboration with Coinbase to expand digital asset payment solutions for institutional clients, enabling seamless fiat-to-crypto transitions. The bank is also leveraging generative AI to automate regulatory compliance, improve cash forecasting by 50%, and reduce operational case times by 90%, directly enhancing the efficiency and reliability of its payment services.

With a global network spanning 95 countries and a focus on real-time, transparent, and programmable financial services, Citi is redefining the institutional payments landscape. Its strategy—centered on infrastructure modernization, digital asset innovation, and client-centric automation—positions it to capture market share from both traditional banks and fintechs, particularly as cross-border instant payments become the norm by 2028.

As blockchain infrastructure inches closer to the core of global finance, a consequential debate is taking shape inside banks and among institutional investors.

What form of digital money will ultimately dominate on-chain settlement?

Stablecoins have so far captured the spotlight, buoyed by rapid adoption and growing regulatory attention. But a different shift is underway inside the banking sector, where executives are increasingly confident that tokenized bank deposits, and not privately issued stablecoins, could become the preferred on-chain dollar for institutional and wholesale use.

“We don’t start with the asset,” Biswarup Chatterjee, global head of partnerships and innovation, Citi Services at Citi, told PYMNTS. “We typically start with our client need, and then we look at the pros and cons of each type of asset or financing instrument.”

For institutional money, innovation can often begin with constraint.

“When you’re dealing with money as a financial institution, you’re acting in a fiduciary capacity,” Chatterjee said, framing why safety and soundness dominate early conversations with clients.

From that perspective, the critical questions around new digital instruments are regulatory and operational before they are technological. Are these assets well-regulated? Do they operate within clearly defined legal frameworks? Can they be governed with the same rigor as traditional deposits or securities?

For institutions that manage systemic liquidity, and their clients, those questions are becoming non-negotiable. Within that context, tokenized deposits are what is emerging as a natural evolution of existing bank money.

“Within the bank’s network, tokenized deposits are an efficient way for our clients to be able to get that 24/7, always-on availability,” Chatterjee said.

The Race to Define the On-Chain Dollar for Institutional Use

By anchoring decisions in client economics and workflows, banks are positioning themselves less as promoters of specific technologies and more as integrators tasked with assembling the right mix of tools for each use case. Institutional clients are not simply looking for digital replicas of existing money; they are grappling with the friction of moving funds across use cases and jurisdictions.

“There’s this constant need to transform money across its various forms and shapes,” Chatterjee said, adding that payments, working capital and financing increasingly overlap, and inefficiencies emerge when money cannot move fluidly between those roles.

By representing deposits on distributed ledgers, banks can offer real-time movement of money across accounts, entities and geographies without leaving the regulated perimeter. For enterprises and institutions, this promises faster settlement, improved liquidity management and reduced operational friction, all without introducing new balance sheet or counterparty risks.

In this sense, tokenized deposits may turn out to be less disruptive than they appear. They modernize the plumbing of banking rather than bypassing it, extending familiar money into programmable environments.

Regulation, Interoperability and the Velocity of Money

The moment money exits a bank’s direct network, however, the strengths of tokenized deposits begin to fade. Cross-border payments, underbanked regions and counterparties outside major financial institutions can expose gaps in reach and efficiency when it comes to tokenized deposits.

This is where Chatterjee said he sees a role for stablecoins, not as competitors to banks, but as connective tissue.

“When money leaves the bank’s network and goes out into the external ecosystem, that’s where we see the role of stablecoins coming in,” he said, assuming they operate in a “very safe and sound and regulated manner.”

The result is likely to represent not a binary choice but a continuum. Just as checks, wires, cash and instant payments coexist today, digital money is likely to fragment into specialized forms optimized for different environments.

At the heart of the impact financial blockchain is having on digital money’s evolution lies a deceptively simple question: What makes money “good”?

For Chatterjee, the answer hinges on universal acceptance and trust.

“What makes a currency strong … has a lot to do with universal acceptance,” he said.

Assets that cannot be readily transferred or accepted risk becoming stranded, unable to circulate productively; while trust is fundamental to the value and stability of money, no matter its form. That logic applies equally to tokenized deposits and stablecoins. Without trust and transferability, neither is likely to function as a true institutional settlement asset.

Despite the focus on tokens and technology, Chatterjee was clear about where long-term value resides. It is not in the token itself, but in service.

“Client service and the client experience is what is going to drive the winning proposition,” he said.

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New Allegations Link Former National Intelligence Leaders Clapper and O’Sullivan to UFO Shoot-Down and Retrieval Program

Written by Christopher Sharp - 24 January 2026

Multiple sources have told Liberation Times that, during the Obama administration, senior intelligence figures James Clapper and Stephanie O’Sullivan oversaw a program relating to Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP) within the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. 

The sources allege the effort involved the shootdown and recovery of exotic vehicles thought to be of non-human origin.

Three separate sources told Liberation Times that Clapper allegedly ran the program alongside O’Sullivan, dating back to his tenure as Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence from 2007 to 2010

During that period, O’Sullivan led the CIA’s Directorate of Science and Technology before being promoted in 2009 to become the agency’s third-most senior officer.

One source alleged to Liberation Times that Clapper and O’Sullivan oversaw a program codenamed ‘Golden Domes,’ which the source claimed was jointly run by the CIA and the United States Air Force (USAF), where Clapper previously served.

The source further alleged that the program could detect and track UAP even when ‘cloaked’ and as they physically manifested.

The same source claimed the program employed a mix of electronic and laser-based capabilities intended to bring down what the source described as ‘exotic non-human vehicles.’

Sources were unable to offer Liberation Times a clear explanation for why the U.S. government would choose to engage UAP, including whether any such actions were taken routinely, in specific circumstances, or in relation to any potential understandings or rules of engagement involving other purported non-human factions.

In the recently released documentary ‘The Age of Disclosure’, James Clapper alleged that a secretive USAF program had been actively monitoring UAP, particularly over the highly classified Area 51 facility in Nevada - an epicentre of cutting-edge military development and testing.

Clapper, a former Chief of USAF Intelligence, stated:

“When I served in the Air Force, there was an active program to track anomalous activities that we couldn’t otherwise explain - many of them connected with ranges out west, notably Area 51.”

In a recent interview with journalist Megyn Kelly, former intelligence official, USAF veteran, and UAP whistleblower David Grusch claimed that James Clapper managed a UAP program, stating:

“I'm a little bit disappointed as a fellow Air Force officer…. That's all he said in the documentary: that there was a program he was aware of. 

 

“In fact, without being inappropriate, I will say that General Clapper was well aware of the crash retrieval issue, managed the crash retrieval issue, and, when he was a DNI [Director of National Intelligence], USDI [Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security], DIA [Defense Intelligence Agency], he placed people in critical roles to manage this issue, both publicly - and I'll just say not publicly as well - and I'll allow the audience to distill what I'm saying at the, at the risk of being inappropriate or going too far with my discussion. 

 

“So General Clapper, Stephanie O’Sullivan, other folks in the IC [Intelligence Community] that are well aware of this issue, that were in rooms discussing this issue, I ask you to be greater leaders on this. I should not be the only former military officer and intelligence official that is being completely candid with the information that they were exposed to.”

Grusch’s lawyer, Charles McCullough III served as the Intelligence Community Inspector General, reporting directly to then–Director of National Intelligence James Clapper.

In that role, according to his biography, McCullough ‘oversaw intelligence officers responsible for audits, inspections, and investigations. Furthermore, he was responsible for inquiries involving the Office of the Director of National Intelligence as well as the entire Intelligence Community.’

                            Above: Charles McCullough, III and James Clapper

Grusch, in that same interview, also alleged that former Vice President Dick Cheney, who has since died, was the “closest person” to a “mob boss,” exerting “central leadership” over UAP-related activities.

Notably, Dick Cheney’s wife, Lynne Cheney, served on Lockheed Corporation’s board of directors from 1994 to 2001.

Against that backdrop, in written testimony to Congress, Lue Elizondo, the former director of the Pentagon’s Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program, claimed that Naval Air Station Patuxent River in Maryland was among the sites prepared in connection with an alleged transfer of UAP materials to Bigelow Aerospace from Lockheed Martin - an organisation long accused of involvement in an alleged UAP reverse-engineering program.

In a 2013 Fox News interview, Dick Cheney said he first met James Clapper around 25 years earlier, when Clapper was serving as a USAF intelligence officer in Korea.

James Clapper served as the fourth Director of National Intelligence under President Obama from August 2010 to January 2017. Before that, he was Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence from 2007 to 2010 under President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney.

Clapper also previously served as Director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency and Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency

In his book Facts and Fears, he recounts how he was assigned as the USAF senior resident officer at the National Security Agency (NSA) to represent Air Force interests. In February 1980, then-NSA Director Vice Admiral Bobby Inman presided over Clapper’s promotion to colonel, as he assumed responsibility for all Air Force personnel stationed at the NSA.

Clapper writes in his book that he served as an intermediary for Vice Admiral Bobby Inman, whom he describes as “an icon and a legend” and who has also been alleged to be a UAP gatekeeper.

Inman was clearly aware of the link between O’Sullivan’s former office and UAP-related matters. In a now-public phone call with NASA engineer Bob Oechsler, Inman said that Everett Hineman, then Deputy Director of the CIA’s Directorate of Science and Technology, would be “the best person” to ask whether any recovered UAP vehicles might be made available for technological research outside military channels.

Notably, former NSA administrator Mike Rogers has recalled in an interview that, while serving as Director of National Intelligence, Clapper unexpectedly ordered him and his team to review the NSA’s files and provide everything relating to UFOs.

Upon being nominated as Director of National Intelligence by President Obama in 2010, Clapper was described as having developed close ties to the intelligence community during his long career and is particularly close to senior managers at the CIA.

In 2011, Clapper recommended that President Obama nominate Stephanie O’Sullivan as Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence (PDDNI). 

Before her nomination, O’Sullivan served as the CIA’s Associate Deputy Director from December 2009 to February 2011, working alongside the Director and Deputy Director to provide overall leadership of the agency, with a particular focus on day-to-day management. 

                                                Above: Stephanie O’Sullivan

Before that, she served as the CIA’s Deputy Director of Science and Technology for 4 years. According to Liberation Times sources, the CIA’s Directorate of Science and Technology has and continues to be involved in coordinating UAP retrieval missions and safeguarding technologies derived from UAP-related research carried out by the Department of War (DoW) and its contractors.

Based on the best available open source information, previous Deputy Directors of the CIA’s Directorate of Science and Technology include:

  • Albert Wheelon 1963-1966

  • Carl Duckett 1966-1967

  • Leslie Dirks 1967-1982

  • R. Evan Hineman 1982-1989

  • James Hirsch 1989-1995

  • Ruth David 1995-1998

  • Gary Smith 1999-1999

  • Joanne Isham 1999-2001

  • Donald Kerr 2001-2005

  • Stephanie O’Sullivan 2005-2009

  • Glenn Gaffney 2009-2015

  • Dawn Meyerriecks 2015-2021

  • Todd Lowery 2021-present

In his book, ‘Facts and Fears’, Clapper writes that he knew O’Sullivan by reputation as a brilliant technical engineer, and that then-CIA Director Leon Panetta put her forward to him as his deputy - someone who could help cover his blind spots when CIA-related issues arose

Clapper describes the day of O’Sullivan’s confirmation to PDDNI - a title O’Sullivan jokingly referred to as ‘P-Diddy’ - as ‘an extremely happy one’. Their working relationship within the ODNI was extremely close, and Clapper has written that he learned to adopt the line “Stephanie speaks for me, even when we haven’t spoken.”

O’Sullivan entered the intelligence world after responding to a cryptic newspaper classified advert seeking an “ocean engineer”. That move led her to TRW, the defense contractor absorbed into Northrop Grumman, and later the Office of Naval Intelligence. Liberation Times sources allege that Northrop Grumman’s Tejon Ranch Radar Cross Section Facility in southern California is a site where UAPs are routinely retrieved.

Since her retirement from government in 2017, O’Sullivan now serves as a member of the Board of Trustees of the Aerospace Corporation and is on the Board of Directors of Battelle Memorial Institute. 

Battelle and The Aerospace Corporation have both been referenced publicly in connection with UAP programs

Sources also note that O’Sullivan sits on the board of HRL Laboratories, formerly Hughes Research Laboratories, part of the wider Hughes corporate legacy that is closely associated with the Hughes Glomar Explorer, the vessel later linked to the CIA’s effort to recover a sunken Soviet submarine.

Sources told Liberation Times that Stephanie O’Sullivan has been questioned by the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence about her alleged role in a UAP program

The sources further allege that she misled committee members, including then Senator Marco Rubio, now Secretary of State, by nervously claiming that she had no involvement.

Allegations of kinetic engagement have surfaced in other contexts. 

In written testimony submitted to Congress, journalist George Knapp relayed what he said he was told by figures linked to a former Russian Ministry of Defense UAP program: that Russian fighter aircraft were dispatched to intercept UAP on numerous occasions and, in a small number of cases, were ordered to fire. 

Knapp wrote that after several alleged incidents in which aircraft subsequently crashed, a standing order was issued instructing pilots to disengage and ‘leave the UFOs alone because, quote, “they could have incredible capacities for retaliation.”’ 

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