New paper from Circle Research on Transaction Proximity, a metric that measures how many onchain “hops” separate any wallet from a centralized exchange. Wallets that are within one hop are tagged Easily Attainable Identities (EAIs), giving protocols a potential signal for real-time risk controls. Why it matters: ✅ 56% of large USDC wallets on Ethereum are EAIs ✅ 88% are only 1 hop away ✅ 91% of USDC transfers >$2k touch at least one EAI The paper outlines onchain and offchain methods to surface EAI data, enabling smart contracts and intermediaries to calibrate access, delays, or collateral criteria. Learn more through the blog: https://www.circle.com/blog/refund-protocol-non-custodial-dispute-resolution-for-stablecoin-payments Full paper: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=5275385