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| Hashing It Out: Are RWAs the future of crypto?, |
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| Bitcoin’s ‘normal drop’ leads to $256M longs liquidated — Analysts, |
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| Tether vows to freeze assets after Venezuela looks to crypto to bypass oil sanctions, |
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| Cyprus keeps FTX Europe license suspended until September, |
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| Terraform Labs and Do Kwon found liable for fraud in SEC case, |
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| Philippines SEC orders Apple and Google to remove Binance from app stores, |
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| Finland's households turn to Bitcoin mining to heat homes,"A new project in Finland is turning energy from mining Bitcoin (BTC) cryptocurrency into energy to heat homes during the cold Finnish winter. |
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| Bitcoin mining infrastructure firm Hashlabs Mining has introduced a pioneering project enabling heat generation using specially designed Bitcoin mining devices. |
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| The project combines heat production from the hydro-cooled ASIC mining device — a WhatsMiner M63S — with the Finnish district heating system, where the heat is transferred from a centralized source through a network of insulated pipes to multiple buildings. The new project is designed to allow households to benefit from industrial BTC mining. |
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| “With the help of industrial consumers like Bitcoin miners, Finland can increasingly use its massive nuclear power plant to produce heat,” Hashlabs Mining co-founder Jaran Mellerud said in a post on X on April 23. |
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| A local partner of Hashlabs has already integrated two Bitcoin mines with district heating facilities and is currently integrating a third one, Mellerud said. |
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| In the project, Hashlabs specifically utilizes the hot water generated from WhatsMiner M63S mining, which reaches a temperature of 70 degrees Celsius. “The best provider of reliable, high-temperature water for district heating is Bitcoin mining,” the Hashlabs founder stated. |
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| WhatsMiner-generated hot water is set to replace the heat generated in plants utilizing fuels like biomass and other carbon-neutral heat sources, as well as peat, hard coal and others. |
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| As of 2019, most of Finland’s district heat was produced with wood fuels, accounting for 35%, and hard coal with 18%, according to data from Statistics Finland. |
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| Peat ranked the third most important energy source in district heat production in 2019, with 15% produced with peat. |
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| Related: Bitcoin halving will lead to more sustainable BTC mining: Report |
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| The concept of using the energy coming from Bitcoin mining for heating has been gaining momentum in the past few years, with savvy Bitcoin miners finding many ways to make Bitcoin more environmentally-friendly and sustainable. |
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| As previously mentioned by Cointelegraph, some miners found ways to use Bitcoin mining-created heat to warm swimming pools, dehydrate meat to make beef jerky or even dry out timber. In June 2023, a bathhouse in New York told its customers that it was using the byproduct heat from Bitcoin mining rigs as the energy to run its facilities. |
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| Magazine: Lazarus Group’s favorite exploit revealed — Crypto hacks analysis","A new project in Finland is turning energy from mining Bitcoin (BTC) cryptocurrency into energy to heat homes during the cold Finnish winter. |
| Bitcoin mining infrastructure firm Hashlabs Mining has introduced a pioneering project enabling heat generation using specially designed Bitcoin mining devices. |
| “The best provider of reliable, high-temperature water for district heating is Bitcoin mining,” the Hashlabs founder stated. |
| As of 2019, most of Finland’s district heat was produced with wood fuels, accounting for 35%, and hard coal with 18%, according to data from Statistics Finland. |
| Peat ranked the third most important energy source in district heat production in 2019, with 15% produced with peat." |
| Bitcoin ransomware Akira drains $42M from more than 250 companies: FBI,"Akira, a year-old ransomware group, breached more than 250 organizations and extracted approximately $42 million in ransomware proceeds, top global cybersecurity agencies alerted. |
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| Investigations conducted by the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) found that Akira ransomware has been targeting businesses and critical infrastructure entities in North America, Europe and Australia since March 2023. While the ransomware initially targeted Windows systems, the FBI recently found Akira’s Linux variant as well. |
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| The FBI, along with Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), Europol’s European Cybercrime Centre (EC3) and the Netherlands’ National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC-NL), released a joint cybersecurity advisory (CSA) to “disseminate” the threat to masses. |
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| According to the advisory, Akira gains initial access through pre-installed virtual private networks (VPNs) that lack multifactor authentication (MFA). The ransomware then proceeds to extract credentials and other sensitive information before locking up the system and displaying a ransom note. |
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| “Akira threat actors do not leave an initial ransom demand or payment instructions on compromised networks, and do not relay this information until contacted by the victim.” |
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| The ransomware group demands payments in Bitcoin (BTC) from the victim organizations to restore access. Such malware often disables security software after initial access to avoid detection. |
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| Cybersecurity best practices against ransomware attacks. Source: cisa.gov |
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| Some of the threat mitigation techniques recommended in the advisory are implementing a recovery plan and MFA, filtering network traffic, disabling unused ports and hyperlinks and system-wide encryption. |
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| “The FBI, CISA, EC3, and NCSC-NL recommend continually testing your security program, at scale, in a production environment to ensure optimal performance against the MITRE ATT&CK techniques identified in this advisory,” the agencies concluded. |
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| Related: Mystery malware targets Call of Duty cheaters, stealing their Bitcoin |
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| The FBI, CISA, NCSC and the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) previously issued alerts about malware that was being used to target crypto wallets and exchanges. |
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| Directories where information were extracted by the malware. Source: National Cyber Security Centre |
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| The report noted that some of the data extracted by the malware included data within the directories of the Binance and Coinbase exchange applications and the Trust Wallet application. According to the report, every file in the directories listed is being exfiltrated regardless of type. |
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| Magazine: Get Bitcoin or die tryin’: Why hip hop stars love crypto","Akira, a year-old ransomware group, breached more than 250 organizations and extracted approximately $42 million in ransomware proceeds, top global cybersecurity agencies alerted. |
| Investigations conducted by the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) found that Akira ransomware has been targeting businesses and critical infrastructure entities in North America, Europe and Australia since March 2023. |
| While the ransomware initially targeted Windows systems, the FBI recently found Akira’s Linux variant as well. |
| According to the advisory, Akira gains initial access through pre-installed virtual private networks (VPNs) that lack multifactor authentication (MFA). |
| The ransomware then proceeds to extract credentials and other sensitive information before locking up the system and displaying a ransom note." |
| SEC breaks from past policy guidelines in Uniswap crackdown,"The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is contradicting years of its own policy guidelines with its latest action against decentralized crypto exchange Uniswap, according to Cinneamhain Ventures’ Adam Cochran. |
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| In a legal analysis on X, Cochran referred to several previous decisions by the U.S. regulator over the definition of an exchange and what it means for Uniswap’s potential legal battle. |
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| The SEC has previously issued “No-Action Letters” in 1986, 1991 and 1997 for entities seeking guidance on routing and matching trades electronically. According to Cochran, the entities were “looking to establish their first system for routing and matching trades electronically. They were concerned that would make them an “exchange.” |
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| “But the SEC concluded that because the execution was on a separate system that matching, routing, communicating and ordering as a “computer service system” did not meet the holistic definition of “an exchange.” |
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| Another precedent contradicting the SEC relates to classifying front ends as an exchange. The regulator’s guidance in letters from 1989 and 1990 was that an interface that displays and communicates with an exchange is not in itself an exchange. |
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| “The SEC guidance found that because these interfaces, even though they profited from bringing together buyers and sellers to exchange explicit securities the fact that the settlement and payment happened elsewhere meant these interfaces were not exchanges,” explained the venture capitalist. |
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| Cochran also noted that in 1998, on the SEC No-Act. LEXIS 18, the Commission declared the matter settled and would no longer respond to No-Action Letter requests. |
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| In addition, connecting buyers and sellers does not constitute an exchange. The SEC provided this guidance to companies in 1979, 1996 and 1999, according to Cochran’s analysis. |
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| “The exchange needed to involve the legal transfer of the assets and/or finances. So even though a buyer on Uniswap may commit to a purchase, by signing a transaction with their private key the Uniswap Labs frontend, isn’t what’s settling it.” |
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| Another relevant point in the analysis concerns asset listing. In 1998, the commission found that having an electronic system for common stocks that are not listed on an existing exchange does not constitute an exchange, regardless of whether fees are charged. |
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| “In this case, the commission found that once again, so long as their informational interface was no clearing and settling these transactions, then just because it was the primary listing location of an asset, it was not somehow more of an exchange.” |
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| SEC’s Wells notice |
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| Uniswap enables automated token exchanges on the Ethereum blockchain, allowing users to swap multiple crypto tokens without using traditional intermediaries. |
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| Uniswap Labs, Uniswap’s main developer, has been under regulatory scrutiny since 2021. On April 10, however, the platform was served a Wells notice — a formal notification that the regulator’s staff intends to recommend enforcement action. |
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| Uniswap Labs previously claimed it was only responsible for developing the app’s front-end portal. According to the team, the front end is separate from the Uniswap protocol, which is autonomous code released for public use. |
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| Cochran’s analysis backs up these claims. According to him, the front end and the smart contract are separate elements in a crypto trade. |
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| “In fact, we know these elements are distinct, because you can execute trades on the smart contract through other interfaces (like Etherscan or swap aggregators), or even directly through a node.” |
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| Magazine: Bitcoin ETFs make Coinbase a ‘honeypot’ for hackers and governments — Trezor CEO","The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is contradicting years of its own policy guidelines with its latest action against decentralized crypto exchange Uniswap, according to Cinneamhain Ventures’ Adam Cochran. |
| The SEC has previously issued “No-Action Letters” in 1986, 1991 and 1997 for entities seeking guidance on routing and matching trades electronically. |
| According to Cochran, the entities were “looking to establish their first system for routing and matching trades electronically. |
| The SEC provided this guidance to companies in 1979, 1996 and 1999, according to Cochran’s analysis. |
| According to the team, the front end is separate from the Uniswap protocol, which is autonomous code released for public use." |
| Telegram-linked Toncoin flips Cardano to become 9th-largest cryptocurrency,"Toncoin (TON) flipped Cardano’s ADA (ADA) token to become the ninth-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization on April 9. Can Toncoin continue its parabolic rise? |
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| TON becomes the ninth-largest cryptocurrency |
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| Following a 13% daily price increase, TON rose to $6.65 as of 1:45 pm UTC to reach a $23 billion market capitalization, overtaking the ADA’s $22 billion market cap, according to CoinMarketCap data. |
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| TON/USD, 1-day chart. Source: CoinMarketCap |
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| The rally comes a day after TON Society developers set aside $5 million in Toncoin to incentivize users to verify their identity using palm-scanning technology. The project aims to enable digital identity verification for Telegram users over the next five years and will distribute 1 million TON to users participating in the proof-of-personhood program. |
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| The increased interest in TON helped it outperform ADA. TON’s price has surged over 135% during the past month, while ADA’s price has fallen 15%. |
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| TON vs. ADA, 1-month chart. Source: TradingView |
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| Zooming out further, TON’s price increased 183% year-to-date, while ADA price fell 1.30%. |
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| TON launched a $115 million community incentive program on March 20, with $38 million for token mining and user incentives, $22 million for airdrops, $15 million for The League developer ecosystem, and $40 million for liquidity pool boosts. The program aims to drive more user adoption. |
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| In contrast with Toncoin, ADA saw little interest this year, as investor attention was focused on the United States Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and other major blockchain upgrades, such as Ethereum’s Dencun upgrade. |
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| Related: With 10 days to the halving, analysts predict $150K Bitcoin top |
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| Can TON maintain its momentum? |
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| Toncoin’s price action has been drastically outperforming Dogecoin (DOGE). TON rose 130% during the past month, while DOGE only gained 14.8%. Year-to-date, TON is up 177%, while DOGE is up 108%, according to TradingView. |
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| TON vs. DOGE, 1-month chart. Source: TradingView |
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| While Dogecoin’s price action is purely based on speculation-driven demand, Toncoin’s utility within the Telegram messaging app can lead directly to its price appreciation with increasing user uptake. |
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| On the downside, Toncoin’s token distribution could raise concerns among retail investors. According to CoinCarp data, over 60% of Toncoin is held by the 10 largest holders, while 93% of the supply is held by the 100 richest holders. |
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| TON token distribution chart. Source: CoinCarp |
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| Related: Telegram Mini Apps are ‘Trojan horse’ for mass blockchain adoption — TON investments director |
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| This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.","Toncoin (TON) flipped Cardano’s ADA (ADA) token to become the ninth-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization on April 9. |
| The project aims to enable digital identity verification for Telegram users over the next five years and will distribute 1 million TON to users participating in the proof-of-personhood program. |
| Source: TradingViewZooming out further, TON’s price increased 183% year-to-date, while ADA price fell 1.30%. |
| In contrast with Toncoin, ADA saw little interest this year, as investor attention was focused on the United States Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and other major blockchain upgrades, such as Ethereum’s Dencun upgrade. |
| TON token distribution chart." |
| 0G Labs raises $35M pre-seed funding from over 40 crypto investors for on-chain AI,"Web3 modular infrastructure firm 0G Labs announced the successful completion of a $35 million pre-seed funding round on March 25. |
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| According to a press release from 0G Labs, the round received participation from more than 40 crypto-native institutions, including Hack VC and Blockchain Builders Fund. |
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| The funding will be used to build out 0G Labs’ vision of creating a full-stack blockchain-based solution for training, deploying, and running artificial intelligence models. Per the press release, one of the major advantages of its platform is speed over current state-of-the-art solutions such as Ethereum’s smart contract network. |
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| Ed Roman, Managing Partner at Hack V, lauded 0G Labs a pioneer in the area of on-chain generative AI infrastructure: |
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| “0G is positioned as the premier modular data availability solution for web3, including the next frontier of crypto-powered AI networks. Their data availability technology has shown to achieve speeds 1000x+ faster and cheaper than ETH L1, which is simply phenomenal. We’re proud to be their partners in this journey, and can’t wait to see their ecosystem thrive as the team pushes forward towards main-net."" |
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| Pre-seeding is typically the first funding round a startup receives. This $35 million dollar emergence round represents one of the largest initial startup funds for a company operating at the intersection of Web3 and artificial intelligence (AI). |
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| For comparison, OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT and Dall-E, raised $120,000 in its pre-seed round on Aug. 22, 2016. In the time since, OpenAI has ridden the success of its generative AI technology to a current valuation of around $80 billion as of Feb. 2024. |
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| Related: FTX to offload $1B Anthropic stake to pay off bankruptcy debts within weeks — report |
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| 0G Labs’ website states that one of the products it’s developing is called “Uni-Chain.” Accoridng to the site, this is an architecture for Web3 that seamlessly connects networks into a unified metaverse where users can transact with users and services on any chain through through single wallet access. |
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| “Our modular technology will enable frictionless interoperability between chains,” reads the site, “while ensuring security, eliminating fragmentation, and maximizing connectivity for a weightless and open meta-uni-verse.”","Web3 modular infrastructure firm 0G Labs announced the successful completion of a $35 million pre-seed funding round on March 25. |
| According to a press release from 0G Labs, the round received participation from more than 40 crypto-native institutions, including Hack VC and Blockchain Builders Fund. |
| The funding will be used to build out 0G Labs’ vision of creating a full-stack blockchain-based solution for training, deploying, and running artificial intelligence models. |
| In the time since, OpenAI has ridden the success of its generative AI technology to a current valuation of around $80 billion as of Feb. 2024. |
| “Our modular technology will enable frictionless interoperability between chains,” reads the site, “while ensuring security, eliminating fragmentation, and maximizing connectivity for a weightless and open meta-uni-verse.”" |
| ZachXBT claims he is being ‘borderline harassed’ by US law enforcement,"Blockchain investigator ZachXBT has alleged that he’s been the target of what he deems as borderline harassment by the Criminal Investigation Unit (CIU) of the United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as they seek his assistance in blockchain investigations. |
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| According to a March 6 post on X, ZachXBT explained that although he has been willing to help victims and support law enforcement with necessary information, he believes that the U.S. law enforcement agency has crossed his “personal boundaries” in their effort to get his assistance solving blockchain crime. |
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| “They have shown up irl to old addresses, contacted personal emails using private data, and have sent mail when I have public contact methods readily available,” he claimed. |
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| One of the several images shared by ZachXBT depicted an email from an IRS special agent requesting ZachXBT’s assistance while praising him for his “really impressive work.” |
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| “I ran across your profile on social media and I’ve seen some really impressive work, esp. Your use of blockchain tracing tools,” the email from the special agent said while admitting that his skills are limited in the blockchain industry: |
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| “I’ve been an IRS-CI special agent for a while, but I’m pretty new to the crypto/cyber arena and I was hoping you could give me a sense of what I should be looking at if I wanted to make the biggest impact.” |
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| ZachXBT alleges that the multiple means of contact was a “blatant disregard for any professionalism.” |
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| This comes after ZachXBT refused to assist holders of the Complex (SIMPLE) memecoin, minted on the Base blockchain after its developers abruptly shut down the project on April 4. |
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| He explained that he dislikes “spending long periods helping people who willingly choose to gamble on vaporware meme coins vs actual victims.” |
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| Meanwhile, the IRS has been expanding its collaborations with well-known people and companies within the blockchain tracing area for quite some time now. |
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| Related: Wormhole’s huge airdrop attracts scammers, spoof tokens and a $3B valuation |
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| In May 2023, Cointelegraph reported that IRS-CI Chief Jim Lee stated that its partnership with blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis has become invaluable. |
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| Lee explained that the unit’s efforts to investigate crypto-related crimes would be near “impossible” without the infrastructure and tools it now has access to. |
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| At the time, the IRS-CI estimated it had seized $10 billion worth of cryptocurrency since it began investigating a broad body of crimes involving digital assets. |
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| Magazine: NFTs are like nightclubs, crypto is a volatile religion: NFTStats, NFT Collector","Blockchain investigator ZachXBT has alleged that he’s been the target of what he deems as borderline harassment by the Criminal Investigation Unit (CIU) of the United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as they seek his assistance in blockchain investigations. |
| According to a March 6 post on X, ZachXBT explained that although he has been willing to help victims and support law enforcement with necessary information, he believes that the U.S. law enforcement agency has crossed his “personal boundaries” in their effort to get his assistance solving blockchain crime. |
| One of the several images shared by ZachXBT depicted an email from an IRS special agent requesting ZachXBT’s assistance while praising him for his “really impressive work.”“I ran across your profile on social media and I’ve seen some really impressive work, esp. |
| Lee explained that the unit’s efforts to investigate crypto-related crimes would be near “impossible” without the infrastructure and tools it now has access to. |
| Magazine: NFTs are like nightclubs, crypto is a volatile religion: NFTStats, NFT Collector" |
| Wallets linked to Coinbase and Vitalik Buterin have millions ‘stuck’ in bridge contracts,"Dozens of crypto whale wallets with assets ranging from six to seven figures are stuck on multiple decentralized finance (DeFi) bridge contracts. |
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| One of these whale wallets is linked to Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, who has over $1 million worth of assets stuck for over seven months, with other wallets having assets unclaimed for over two years. |
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| According to a report published by crypto analytics firm Arkham Intelligence, several notable whale addresses linked to prominent crypto individuals and entities have their funds stuck in the bridge contracts for as long as two years. |
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| DeFi bridge contracts are software protocols that allow the movement of assets and data between different blockchain networks, enabling interoperability within the DeFi ecosystem. |
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| However, not all DeFi bridges function the same. On the one hand, cross-chain bridges enable users to automatically obtain their assets on the other chain. |
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| On the other hand, traders using native bridges must retrieve their funds manually as there is no way for the smart contract to remind users to do so, which could result in situations where users forget their money. |
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| One wallet linked to “thomasg.eth” has had $800,000 stuck in Arbitrum Bridge for one year and 10 months. Another wallet, linked to Bofur Capital, with 27 wrapped Bitcoin worth $1.8 million, has been stuck for two years and three months. |
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| Similarly, another wallet linked to nonfungible token (NFT) user Mike Macdonald has about $117,000 in assets linked to CryptoPunks sales stuck on a bridge contract. |
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| Arkham suggested the account owner take a look, reminding them that if they “own the account that sent 5 CryptoPunks to, then you might also own the account that received the proceeds after they were sold.” |
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| Another wallet that received 50 Ether (ETH) from Vitalik.eth seems to have been forgotten for seven months despite holding nearly $1 million worth of ETH on the Optimism bridge. |
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| Another linked to Coinbase crypto exchange was also identified and contains $75,000 worth of assets stuck for nearly six months. |
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| Arkham suspects Coinbase tried bridging $75,000 worth of USD Coin (USDC) to ETH and forgot about it. The assets are stuck in the Optimism bridge contract and waiting to be claimed. |
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| Arkham notified whales linked to the stuck and forgotten funds to retrieve them in case they had forgotten about them. It also reminded the community that these instances can occur due to the nature of cross-chain bridges.","Dozens of crypto whale wallets with assets ranging from six to seven figures are stuck on multiple decentralized finance (DeFi) bridge contracts. |
| One of these whale wallets is linked to Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, who has over $1 million worth of assets stuck for over seven months, with other wallets having assets unclaimed for over two years. |
| One wallet linked to “thomasg.eth” has had $800,000 stuck in Arbitrum Bridge for one year and 10 months. |
| Similarly, another wallet linked to nonfungible token (NFT) user Mike Macdonald has about $117,000 in assets linked to CryptoPunks sales stuck on a bridge contract. |
| Another linked to Coinbase crypto exchange was also identified and contains $75,000 worth of assets stuck for nearly six months." |
| Memes are creating a ‘Cambrian explosion’ of crypto onboarding: Base creator,"Base creator Jesse Pollak believes memes will be key to onboarding millions of users to his Coinbase-adjacent layer-2 network, which has already tripled in total value locked (TVL) since March. |
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| During a memecoin hackathon in New York on April 20, Pollak said memes are an important part of the on-chain economy, adding that he is “excited to see more based memes proliferate to help bring the world on-chain.” |
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| “There’s been a ton of energy on Base,” said Pollak, adding: |
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| “One thing that has really stood out to us is that we’re seeing these memes today onboard thousands and thousands of people into this new economy.” |
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| The growth in memecoins and transactions on Base surged following the Ethereum Dencun upgrade in mid-March, which reduced fees on layer-2 networks. |
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| As a result, Base’s TVL has surged almost 250% since the beginning of March, hitting an all-time high of $1.61 billion on April 21, according to DefiLlama. |
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| Base TVL 2024. Source: DeFiLlama |
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| Pollak said that aside from speculation, memecoin creators on Base have also bred countless new ways to onboard people to their communities. |
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| “And what that’s creating is this kind of Cambrian explosion of onboarding experiments where people are taking tons and tons of shots on goal to say ‘how do we get our culture into the hands of more people.’” |
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| “The thing we’ve built more conviction on is that in the years ahead we’re actually going to see these memes bring in millions more people [to Base] — they’re going to be one of the biggest drivers because they’re doing that work constantly to onboard more and more folks through that in a really creative way,” he added. |
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| He added that there were “hundreds of teams and hundreds of sub-cultures” that are evolving, building, and creating, “bringing their culture and energy into this economy” and capital market. |
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| Related: 12 Solana presale memecoins abandoned after just a month |
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| The most popular memecoin on Base at the moment is BRETT, which has a market capitalization of $567 million and has seen a price explosion of 7,780% since the beginning of March. |
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| Other large-cap memecoins on the Coinbase blockchain include DEGEN, with a market cap of $435 million, and TOSHI, with $185 million, according to CoinGecko. |
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| Blockchains such as Solana and Base have become a magnet for memecoin degens in recent months due to their high throughput and low fees. |
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| However, an in-depth investigation by Cointelegraph revealed that 16.7% of new Base memecoins were scams, and more than 90% of them have vulnerabilities. |
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| Magazine: 1 in 6 new Base meme coins are scams, 91% have vulnerabilities","Base creator Jesse Pollak believes memes will be key to onboarding millions of users to his Coinbase-adjacent layer-2 network, which has already tripled in total value locked (TVL) since March. |
| Base TVL 2024. |
| Source: DeFiLlamaPollak said that aside from speculation, memecoin creators on Base have also bred countless new ways to onboard people to their communities. |
| Blockchains such as Solana and Base have become a magnet for memecoin degens in recent months due to their high throughput and low fees. |
| However, an in-depth investigation by Cointelegraph revealed that 16.7% of new Base memecoins were scams, and more than 90% of them have vulnerabilities." |
| TON’s $5M incentive program aims to drive digital ID verification,"The Open Network (TON) ecosystem developers have set aside $5 million of Toncoin tokens to incentivize users to verify their identity using state-of-the-art palm scanning technology. |
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| TON Society, a community of developers and contributors building out the TON ecosystem, will distribute one million Toncoin to users participating in the voluntary proof-of-personhood program. The project aims to enable digital identity verification for Telegram users over the next five years. |
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| The project uses HumanCode’s technology to allow users to verify their human identity on the blockchain. The application, available on Google Play and Apple Store, lets users scan their palms on a smartphone. |
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| According to information shared with Cointelegraph, the technology provides privacy protection and is hardware-agnostic, allowing the scanner to be used on various mobile devices. |
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| TON Foundation growth director Ekin Tuna said that supporting proof-of-personhood protocols like HumanCode is a step toward a practical reputation system with real-life use cases for TON’s ecosystem: |
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| “A scalable, private, and decentralized identity will help to onboard the first one billion users to the Web3 ecosystem in Telegram.” |
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| HumanCode founder Tim Zhang told Cointelegraph that the technology securely scans a human palm by extracting the pattern directly onto a user's smartphone device. |
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| “This local extraction ensures the pattern is non-reversible, meaning that even if someone were to gain unauthorized access to our server, reconstructing the palm images from the patterns would be impossible,” Zhang explains. |
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| The founder added that the system maintains U.S. SOC2 data security and privacy certifications and implements a triple-layer privacy protection mechanism. The first step involves local extraction of the user’s unique palm pattern, preventing personal information from being transferred off the device. |
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| The extracted feature is encrypted before being sent to HumanCode servers to secure the data during transmission. The verification process is conducted locally on a user’s device, removing the need to transfer sensitive data to external servers. |
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| HumanCode incentives will be given to TON Society members who complete a palm scan and prove their personhood. A ‘soulbound' token is then minted to represent their verified digital identity before users are rewarded for participating. |
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| Cointelegraph also highlighted the reality of increased skepticism for proof-of-personhood technology in conversation with Zhang, given that Worldcoin has received pushback for its iris-scanning technology. |
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| The company’s iris-scanning devices and data collection methods have been subject to investigations and regulatory scrutiny in Hong Kong, Spain and France over the past six months. |
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| A Worldcoin iris-scanning orb on display at ETHGlobal in London in March 2024. Source: Gareth Jenkinson |
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| Zhang said HumanCode’s use of robust security protocols and encryption is an important trust-bridging factor, while suggesting that users might feel less intimidated about scanning their hands instead of their eyes: |
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| “From our experience, palm recognition technology is inherently more acceptable. For most people, scanning your palm with a smartphone camera just feels less intrusive than eye-scanning.” |
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| Zhang also said the technology can potentially combat bots and fraudulent accounts on any social media platform by verifying the authenticity of users through unique palm patterns. This allows a platform to effectively distinguish between real users and automated bots. |
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| In March, the TON Foundation allocated 30 million Toncoin, worth around $115 million, for various community rewards to drive adoption. |
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| The incentives are allocated to four different areas: $38 million worth of TON will go to token mining and user incentives, $22 million for airdrops, $15 million for the League developer ecosystem, and $40 million for liquidity pool boosts. |
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| The Telegram Ad Platform, built on the TON blockchain, officially went live in March 2024. The platform allows Telegram channel owners worldwide to receive financial rewards, exclusively selling advertising and sharing revenue with channel owners in TON. |
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| Magazine: AI didn’t kill the metaverse, it will build it — Alien Worlds, Bittensor vs. Eric Wall: AI Eye","The Open Network (TON) ecosystem developers have set aside $5 million of Toncoin tokens to incentivize users to verify their identity using state-of-the-art palm scanning technology. |
| TON Society, a community of developers and contributors building out the TON ecosystem, will distribute one million Toncoin to users participating in the voluntary proof-of-personhood program. |
| The project aims to enable digital identity verification for Telegram users over the next five years. |
| A ‘soulbound' token is then minted to represent their verified digital identity before users are rewarded for participating. |
| In March, the TON Foundation allocated 30 million Toncoin, worth around $115 million, for various community rewards to drive adoption. |
| Worldcoin reaches 10M users, 70M transactions and at least 13 goats boughtWorldcoin’s World App has reached 10 million total users signed up, with an average of 2 million users a day and more than 5 million a month. |
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| These milestones come less than a year after the service’s launch in June 2023, and according to Tiago Sada, head of product for Worldcoin’s parent company, Tools for Humanity, the project now has more daily users than its total monthly user count in January 2024. |
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| Universal basic income |
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| Worldcoin is a cryptocurrency project aimed at creating a universal basic income. Users register their identity with the company’s “World App” by having their eyes scanned in-person by machines referred to by the company as “Orbs.” |
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| Remco Bloemen, head of blockchain at the Worldcoin Foundation, said in a statement that World App wasn’t intended to be the only solution on the Worldcoin protocol: |
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| “Our hope is that this will encourage other contributors to develop additional wallets for the protocol, as different users have different needs and preferences for their wallet apps. In other words, down the road the Worldcoin community has expressed interest in alternatives to World App, so that a wider range of people can engage with Worldcoin as they choose.” |
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| Goats |
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| One of the more noteworthy use cases for World App, as of late, has been the viral story of a user in Kenya who expressed their gratitude over being able to purchase a goat with the funds they received from a Worldcoin airdrop. |
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| The crypto community rallied to the person, sending an undisclosed amount of cryptocurrency which they reportedly used to purchase even more goats bringing their total to “13 and counting.” |
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| The goat pictured above was even given a proper name: “Sam.” When asked on X why the owner chose to name it that, they responded that it was named after Sam Altman, the co-founder of Worldcoin. |
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| Altman is also the co-founder and current CEO of unicorn artificial intelligence (AI) startup and former not-for-profit company OpenAI. The company’s ChatGPT product is currently viewed as the state-of-the-art for generative AI technology. |
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| Related: Worldcoin tightens privacy checks, allows users to unverify World IDWorldcoin’s World App has reached 10 million total users signed up, with an average of 2 million users a day and more than 5 million a month. |
| Universal basic incomeWorldcoin is a cryptocurrency project aimed at creating a universal basic income. |
| Altman is also the co-founder and current CEO of unicorn artificial intelligence (AI) startup and former not-for-profit company OpenAI. |
| The company’s ChatGPT product is currently viewed as the state-of-the-art for generative AI technology. |
| Related: Worldcoin tightens privacy checks, allows users to unverify World ID |
| The Hong Kong Securities & Futures Professionals Association (HKSFPA) has recommended the city's crypto firms set up a self-regulatory committee and monitor one another for compliance. |
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| “The Hong Kong financial market industry is too focused on supervision,” said the HKSFPA in an April 22 recommendation letter, “but there is no organization to maintain the overall development of the industry."" |
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| The administrative body then noted the need for Hong Kong to stay competitive in the global securities market and “consolidate its status as an international financial center.” In outlining the next steps, the HKSFPA recommended the city’s regulator, the Securities & Futures Commission (SFC), establish ""statutory self-regulating” and autonomous bodies that would instead delegate licensing powers to industry players: |
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| ""In the case of Hong Kong, the Commission recommends that the Securities and Futures Commission still retains the power to supervise market conduct, but splits the licensing power to solely the securities industry, A self-regulatory institution composed of the futures industry, asset management industry and virtual asset industry."" |
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| As per a similar recommendation letter last August, the HKSFPA spoke of a “balanced supervision and development"" that prevents the Hong Kong virtual assets industry ""from going to the extreme direction of supervision."" |
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| Hong Kong Monetary Authority, one of the city's financial regulators (Wikipedia Commons) |
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| That said, self-regulation doesn't always come with a balanced risk-reward dynamic. |
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| For one, Lithuania is tightening its crypto regulations starting in 2025 after reports of compliance failures and embezzlement. The Baltic nation has issued licenses to more than 580 crypto firms and currently maintains little oversight from its licensees. |
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| However, Hong Kong regulators have been much more tolerant of virtual asset firms than their counterparts in other parts of the world. |
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| On April 15, the SFC approved spot Bitcoin and Ether exchange-traded funds for issuers, including Harvest Fund Management, Bosera Asset Management, and China Asset Management (ChinaAMC). Last year, the regulator issued official virtual asset licenses to crypto exchanges Hashkey and OSL. |
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| Meanwhile, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has not yet approved a spot Ether ETF or offered specific licenses for crypto exchanges to register. In addition, the outlook for their approvals currently remains grim. |
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| Related: Hong Kong investment firm Victory Securities reveals Bitcoin and Ether ETF fees","The Hong Kong Securities & Futures Professionals Association (HKSFPA) has recommended the city's crypto firms set up a self-regulatory committee and monitor one another for compliance. |
| Hong Kong Monetary Authority, one of the city's financial regulators (Wikipedia Commons)That said, self-regulation doesn't always come with a balanced risk-reward dynamic. |
| However, Hong Kong regulators have been much more tolerant of virtual asset firms than their counterparts in other parts of the world. |
| On April 15, the SFC approved spot Bitcoin and Ether exchange-traded funds for issuers, including Harvest Fund Management, Bosera Asset Management, and China Asset Management (ChinaAMC). |
| Related: Hong Kong investment firm Victory Securities reveals Bitcoin and Ether ETF fees |
| There may be little reason left for investors to trade MicroStrategy stocks to gain exposure to Bitcoin (BTC) after the approval of several spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETF) this year, argues investment firm Kerrisdale Capital. |
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| MicroStrategy’s executive chairman Michael Saylor, would likely beg to differ. |
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| “The days when MicroStrategy shares represented a rare, unique way to gain access to Bitcoin are long over,” Kerrisdale Capital explained in a March 28 analyst note, adding it believes MSTR price is overvalued. |
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| The firm noted it had short positions on the MicroStrategy stock. |
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| “We are long bitcoin and short shares of MicroStrategy, a proxy for bitcoin which trades at an unjustifiable premium to the digital asset that drives its value.” |
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| MSTR is currently trading at $1,704. Over the last month, it saw a growth of 66.65%, and over the past six months, it has experienced an increase of approximately 419%. |
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| On the other hand, Bitcoin’s price currently stands at $70,849. It has had a one month increase of 15.8%, and soared 163.31% over the past six months. |
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| “Shares of MicroStrategy have soared amid a recent rise in the price of bitcoin but, as is often the case with crypto, things have gotten carried away,” it stated. |
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| MSTR stock price has risen 419% over the past six months. Source: Google Finance |
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| It also pointed out MicroStrategy's increasing debt-to-asset ratio and limited cash flow, which amounted to just $10 million in 2023 from its “sleepy” software analytics business. This made up only 3% of the company's overall enterprise value. |
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| MicroStrategy’s Saylor confident in firm's offering |
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| However, Saylor has said on several occasions that he remains confident his company would continue to be an attractive offer for investors. |
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| In December, Saylor told Bloomberg TV that his company would still offer a high-performance vehicle for people who are Bitcoin-long investors. |
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| “The ETFs are unlevered and they charge a fee,” Saylor told Bloomberg. “We provide you leverage, but we don’t charge a fee.” |
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| Saylor also recently announced that MicroStrategy is undergoing a rebrand as a “Bitcoin development company.” |
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| In a Feb. 12 interview with CNBC, Saylor explained that “it is a natural decision for us given the success of our Bitcoin strategy, and our unique status as the world’s largest public company holder.” |
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| MicroStrategy holds 214,246 Bitcoin, as per data from Bitcoin Treasuries. This is approximately a 54% increase from its holdings of 138,955 Bitcoin this time last year. |
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| Saylor added that MicroStrategy, as an operating company, has more flexibility in managing its capital and operations than an investment trust. |
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| “We’re going to develop software, we’re going to generate cash flow, we’re going to leverage the capital markets, all in order to accumulate more Bitcoin for our shareholders, and also to promote the growth of the Bitcoin network,"" he stated. |
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| On March 19, Cointelegraph reported that MicroStrategy sold another $604 million in convertible notes to buy an additional 9,245 BTC. |
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| Related: Bitcoin is more of a ‘billion-dollar building in cyberspace,’ argues Saylor |
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| Kerrisdale Capital says it remains bullish on Bitcoin, claiming it provides much better direct value for investors. The firm indicated that MSTR's current price implies Bitcoin’s price is $177,000, approximately two and a half times the price of Bitcoin. |
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| The firm also revealed it has long positions in two newly approved spot Bitcoin ETFs, the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) and Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC). |
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| It claimed that shareholders would find equivalent value in owning Bitcoin directly rather than holding MSTR stock at this stage. |
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| “Shareholder value creation has been overwhelmingly driven by simple bitcoin price appreciation – much as it would from owning bitcoin outright. |
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| Despite MicroStrategy seeing significant growth in its stock over the past 12 months, it declined approximately 11.18% on the day. |
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| Cointelegraph reached out to MicroStrategy for comment but did not receive a response at the time of publication. |
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| Magazine: China will intensify Bitcoin bull run, $1M by 2028: Bitcoin Man, X Hall of Flame“We are long bitcoin and short shares of MicroStrategy, a proxy for bitcoin which trades at an unjustifiable premium to the digital asset that drives its value.”MSTR is currently trading at $1,704. |
| The firm indicated that MSTR's current price implies Bitcoin’s price is $177,000, approximately two and a half times the price of Bitcoin. |
| The firm also revealed it has long positions in two newly approved spot Bitcoin ETFs, the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) and Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC). |
| “Shareholder value creation has been overwhelmingly driven by simple bitcoin price appreciation – much as it would from owning bitcoin outright."" |
| Magazine: China will intensify Bitcoin bull run, $1M by 2028: Bitcoin Man, X Hall of Flame" |
| BIS envisions global ‘Finternet’ running on unified ledger technology,"The Bank for International Settlements has presented its fullest and strongest argument so far for unified ledger technology in a paper coauthored by BIS chief Agustin Carstens. The paper describes a “financial system for the future,” which it calls the Finternet, that would use unified ledgers as a vehicle. |
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| Unified ledgers could remove a host of the pain points in the current financial system by improving speed, compliance and privacy in the financial system, the BIS paper claimed. Unified ledgers “bring together multiple financial asset markets […] as executable objects on common programmable platforms.” This flexibility offers advantages over digital transactions on other platforms: |
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| “Even when individuals use sophisticated front-end interfaces to make supposedly ‘digital’ transactions, behind the scenes, movements of money and other financial assets often rely on the owners of siloed proprietary databases to initiate and process transfers.” |
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| Unified ledgers “combine all the components needed to complete financial transactions—financial assets, ownership records, rules governing their use and other relevant information—in a single venue.” This gives them the potential to overcome issues related to technical standards and governance and eliminate third-party messaging systems. |
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| Related: SWIFT proposes a role for itself in a tokenized future on a unified ledger |
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| However, the BIS does not envision a single unified ledger. Rather, multiple unified ledgers would interact among themselves and with the financial system beyond the Finternet through apps. Unified ledgers require tokenization of assets, especially money, for transfers using smart contracts. The proposal creates a tokenization manager role that would monitor regulatory requirements. |
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| Source: Bank for International Settlements |
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| Carstens introduced the concept of unified ledger in February 2023. The topic was taken up again in the 2023 BIS annual report. The recently announced Project Agora also crucially uses unified ledger. The BIS and seven central banks are participating in that project, which involves central bank digital currency and tokenized money transfers. |
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| The idea has also been considered by global financial messaging service SWIFT. The international Monetary Fund’s proposed XC platform is also highly similar in many details. |
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| Magazine: Bitcoin in Senegal: Why is this African country using BTC?","The Bank for International Settlements has presented its fullest and strongest argument so far for unified ledger technology in a paper coauthored by BIS chief Agustin Carstens. |
| The paper describes a “financial system for the future,” which it calls the Finternet, that would use unified ledgers as a vehicle. |
| Unified ledgers could remove a host of the pain points in the current financial system by improving speed, compliance and privacy in the financial system, the BIS paper claimed. |
| Related: SWIFT proposes a role for itself in a tokenized future on a unified ledgerHowever, the BIS does not envision a single unified ledger. |
| Rather, multiple unified ledgers would interact among themselves and with the financial system beyond the Finternet through apps." |
| Crypto-like communication devices could break gov’t surveillance — Telegram founder Durov,"Pavel Durov, founder of the encrypted instant messaging app Telegram Messenger, predicts that rising government surveillance will force the birth of secure communication devices inspired by cryptocurrency hardware wallets. |
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| In a Tucker Carlson interview on April 17, Durov recalled past experiences while expressing how government entities continue to suppress the private exchange of information: |
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| “The world is becoming less amenable. Governments are becoming less tolerant of privacy. And that’s clearly the trend because they have more technological power.” |
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| However, Durov believes that growing oversight will force innovations around hardware devices dedicated to secure communications “in a similar way that we have hardware wallets to store your cryptocurrency.” |
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| He claimed that the United States law enforcement agency, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), attempted to persuade people affiliated with Telegram to install backdoors for surveillance purposes. |
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| Durov said that the geopolitical neutrality of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is ideal for entrepreneurs fighting for privacy and anti-surveillance: |
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| “It’s a small country that wants to be friends with everybody. It’s not aligned geopolitically with any of the big superpowers. And I think it’s the best place for a neutral platform like ours to be in if we want to make sure we can defend our users’ privacy and freedom of speech.” |
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| Speaking about company ownership, Durov said he avoids venture capital (VC) investments to prevent external influence on the way Telegram operates. He revealed that he holds a “few hundred million dollars” in fiat and Bitcoin (BTC), which allows him to bootstrap his projects and companies with 100% ownership. |
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| However, he did raise funds for a few projects in the past, one of which was a cryptocurrency project. |
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| Related: Telegram channels eligible for 50% ad revenue, but there’s a catch |
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| Echoing Durov’s concerns about rising government surveillance, on April 16, American whistleblower Edward Snowden warned that the United States National Security Agency (NSA) is only days away from “taking over the internet” with a massive expansion of its surveillance powers. |
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| Snowden’s alert comes after Elizabeth Goitein, co-director of the Liberty and National Security Program at the Brennan Center for Justice, pointed out that through an “innocuous change” to the definition of “electronic communications surveillance provider” in the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) 702 bill, the U.S. government could go far beyond its current scope and force nearly every company and individual that provides any internet-related service to assist with NSA surveillance. |
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| Magazine: The real risks to Ethena’s stablecoin model (are not the ones you think)","Pavel Durov, founder of the encrypted instant messaging app Telegram Messenger, predicts that rising government surveillance will force the birth of secure communication devices inspired by cryptocurrency hardware wallets. |
| In a Tucker Carlson interview on April 17, Durov recalled past experiences while expressing how government entities continue to suppress the private exchange of information:“The world is becoming less amenable. |
| Durov said that the geopolitical neutrality of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is ideal for entrepreneurs fighting for privacy and anti-surveillance:“It’s a small country that wants to be friends with everybody. |
| However, he did raise funds for a few projects in the past, one of which was a cryptocurrency project. |
| Magazine: The real risks to Ethena’s stablecoin model (are not the ones you think)" |
| US consumer agency flags risks in virtual crypto economies,"The United States Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has targeted crypto-centric gaming in a recent report, cautioning against scams and low consumer safeguards in video games and virtual realms. |
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| In its “Banking in video games and virtual worlds” report released on Thursday, April 4, the consumer protection agency highlights the rising interest among gaming creators in bridging virtual items to reality. |
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| Despite still trailing mainstream gaming platforms like Roblox or Fortnite, the agency highlighted the growth of crypto assets in virtual worlds. Third-party trading platforms enable users to convert digital assets into fiat currency. The report states: |
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| “Notably, some of the largest virtual gaming world publishers have expressed growing interest in positioning their virtual items as crypto-assets that have the ability to be traded outside of the game’s economy.” |
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| The report said that crypto assets in virtual environments like Decentraland and The Sandbox could be exchanged for fiat currency on other cryptocurrency platforms. |
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| Alexander Grieve, government affairs lead at Paradigm, said that reports like the one published by the CFPB could signal upcoming regulatory actions. He suggested that the CFPB, like many federal agencies, is seeking its regulatory role in the cryptosphere, with this report potentially serving as one avenue. |
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| The CFPB report states that online video games and virtual worlds are becoming akin to traditional banking but lack federal protections. The agency received complaints regarding hacking attempts, account theft and assets lost within games, with consumers expressing dissatisfaction over the lack of support from gaming companies. |
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| Related: Crypto-focused lawmaker wants to lead House Financial Services Committee in 2025 |
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| CFPB Director Rohit Chopra highlighted the increasing trend of Americans converting billions of dollars into digital currencies for gaming. With banking and payments shifting to virtual realms, the CFPB said it aims to safeguard consumers from fraud and scams. |
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| The CFPB has shifted its focus toward cryptocurrencies, introducing a proposed rule titled “Defining Larger Participants of a Market for General-Use Digital Consumer Payment Applications.” This rule grants the agency oversight over “larger nonbank firms” providing digital wallet and payment app services. |
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| It mandates nonbank financial entities processing over five million transactions annually to adhere to regulations akin to those imposed on major banks and credit unions. Although the 62-page rule references cryptocurrency sparingly, critics contend it “asserts authority over cryptocurrency” inappropriately. |
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| Magazine: Lawmakers’ fear and doubt drives proposed crypto regulations in US","The United States Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has targeted crypto-centric gaming in a recent report, cautioning against scams and low consumer safeguards in video games and virtual realms. |
| In its “Banking in video games and virtual worlds” report released on Thursday, April 4, the consumer protection agency highlights the rising interest among gaming creators in bridging virtual items to reality. |
| Despite still trailing mainstream gaming platforms like Roblox or Fortnite, the agency highlighted the growth of crypto assets in virtual worlds. |
| Third-party trading platforms enable users to convert digital assets into fiat currency. |
| The CFPB report states that online video games and virtual worlds are becoming akin to traditional banking but lack federal protections." |
| Queensland law enforcement agency calls for more powers to seize crypto,"The Crime and Corruption Commission (CCC), a law enforcement agency in Queensland, Australia, has identified certain gaps in state laws that encourage criminal use of digital assets. |
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| To overcome these legal shortcomings, the agency has proposed modernizing Queensland’s asset confiscation regime. |
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| The CCC questioned the efficacy of Queensland’s Criminal Proceeds Confiscation Act 2002 (CPCA) when it comes to confiscating cryptocurrencies tied to organized crimes, such as money laundering. |
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| The commission has called for a significant reform of the Act that seeks to achieve seven priority outcomes, three of which directly relate to the effective seizure of digital assets. It said: |
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| “Digital assets are expected to continue to proliferate as the criminal environment increasingly becomes less physical, and the CPCA less effective for dealing with digital assets.” |
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| The lack of crypto-related language in the CPCA, such as cryptocurrency, crypto asset or digital asset, is the root cause of the gaps within Queensland’s legislative regime, according to the CCC. |
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| Citing the importance of CPCA to remain fit for purpose within a changing criminal environment, the commission added: |
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| “While digital assets can be restrained and forfeited under the CPCA, there are currently no specific provisions for investigative agencies in Queensland to facilitate effective seizure of digital assets.” |
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| The CCC sees this inability to seize digital assets as hindering Queensland’s ability to gather evidence, attribute ownership of a digital asset, or facilitate the storage or transfers of digital assets, among others. |
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| The commission recommended reforms such as defining “digital assets” and introducing them to money laundering laws, converting seized assets into stable currencies amid legal proceedings and automatic forfeitures. |
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| Related: Australia poised for ‘inflection point’ of crypto demand — Kraken Aus MD |
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| In March, Alan Kirkland, commissioner of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), unveiled a strategy to foster responsible financial innovation development. |
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| Kirkland pointed out the need to solve the “regulatory trilemma” when it comes to financial innovations, which includes consumer protection, market integrity and encouraging financial innovation. |
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| Kirkland believes that ASIC’s approach to innovation and effective regulation can reduce the associated risks and help promote digital assets to the masses. |
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| Magazine: 1 in 6 new Base meme coins are scams, 91% have vulnerabilities","The Crime and Corruption Commission (CCC), a law enforcement agency in Queensland, Australia, has identified certain gaps in state laws that encourage criminal use of digital assets. |
| To overcome these legal shortcomings, the agency has proposed modernizing Queensland’s asset confiscation regime. |
| The CCC questioned the efficacy of Queensland’s Criminal Proceeds Confiscation Act 2002 (CPCA) when it comes to confiscating cryptocurrencies tied to organized crimes, such as money laundering. |
| The commission recommended reforms such as defining “digital assets” and introducing them to money laundering laws, converting seized assets into stable currencies amid legal proceedings and automatic forfeitures. |
| Kirkland believes that ASIC’s approach to innovation and effective regulation can reduce the associated risks and help promote digital assets to the masses." |
| Coca‑Cola pours $1.1B into generative AI experiment with Microsoft,"The Coca-Cola Company has signed a five-year deal with Microsoft to develop and integrate artificial intelligence (AI) use cases across various business functions. |
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| Coca‑Cola committed $1.1 billion to the Microsoft Cloud for its generative AI and cloud capabilities. According to the announcement made on April 23, the duo will jointly experiment with Azure OpenAI Service and other technologies “to develop innovative generative AI use cases across various business functions.” |
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| In addition, the companies will experiment with the Microsoft Copilot Microsoft 365 AI assistant to test its efficacy in improving workplace productivity. |
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| As part of the drive, Coca-Cola migrated all its applications to Microsoft Azure. Judson Althoff, the executive vice president and chief commercial officer at Microsoft, said: |
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| “Through our long-term partnership, we have made significant progress to accelerate system-wide AI Transformation across The Coca‑Cola Company and its network of independent bottlers worldwide.” |
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| Using Azure OpenAI Service, Coca-Cola is currently exploring the use of generative AI-powered digital assistants to improve performance metrics related to customer experiences, streamline operations, and improve efficiency, among other things. |
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| Coca-Cola’s AI partnership with Microsoft dates back to 2020, which started off as a $250 million agreement. “Microsoft’s capabilities help accelerate our adoption of AI to create incremental enterprise value,” said Neeraj Tolmare, senior vice president and global chief information officer for The Coca-Cola Company. |
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| Related: Microsoft pours $1.5B into UAE AI company, sets sights on global expansion |
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| On April 9, Microsoft AI executive vice president and CEO Mustafa Suleyman revealed the firm’s plans to make a “significant, long-term investment” in the United Kingdom as they start scouting potential candidates in the region. |
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| In a blog post, Suleyman said: |
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| “There is an enormous pool of AI talent and expertise in the U.K., and Microsoft AI plans to make a significant, long-term investment in the region as we begin hiring the best AI scientists and engineers into this new AI hub.” |
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| Suleyman’s statements came as he announced the creation of an AI hub in the United Kingdom. The hub’s goal is to advance AI language models and their infrastructure. |
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| In addition, it would also create tooling for foundation models and collaborate with its AI teams across the globe and its partners like OpenAI. |
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| Magazine: Lazarus Group’s favorite exploit revealed — Crypto hacks analysis","The Coca-Cola Company has signed a five-year deal with Microsoft to develop and integrate artificial intelligence (AI) use cases across various business functions. |
| Coca‑Cola committed $1.1 billion to the Microsoft Cloud for its generative AI and cloud capabilities. |
| According to the announcement made on April 23, the duo will jointly experiment with Azure OpenAI Service and other technologies “to develop innovative generative AI use cases across various business functions.”In addition, the companies will experiment with the Microsoft Copilot Microsoft 365 AI assistant to test its efficacy in improving workplace productivity. |
| As part of the drive, Coca-Cola migrated all its applications to Microsoft Azure. |
| “Microsoft’s capabilities help accelerate our adoption of AI to create incremental enterprise value,” said Neeraj Tolmare, senior vice president and global chief information officer for The Coca-Cola Company." |
| Nilam Resources flagged ‘buyer beware’ as shares pump over Bitcoin plans,"Nilam Resources, a micro-cap company that touted plans this week to acquire $1.7 billion worth of Bitcoin (BTC), has been flagged as a “public interest concern” amid a meteoric 1,500% share price surge on Tuesday, March 26. |
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| OTC Markets Group, the firm that runs OTC Pink, a platform for over-the-counter stock trading, currently labels Nilam Resources (NILA) as “Caveat Emptor” — a designation it hands down to companies it deems worthy of “buyer beware.” |
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| In a glossary page explaining the labels, OTC Markets explained that this “public interest concern” may stem from a spam campaign, questionable stock promotion, any known investigation of the company, regulatory suspensions, or any other disruptive corporate actions. |
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| The OTC listing for NILA also shows it has been deemed a “Shell Risk” — a label given to companies it thinks is likely a shell company based on its annual financial data and other income-related metrics. |
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| Listing for Nila Resources showing the various warning labels Source: OTC Markets |
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| On March 25, Nilam Resources, an investment holding company, announced it had entered into a Letter of Intent to acquire a company that plans to hold 24,800 Bitcoin. |
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| Nilam Resources claimed the deal had been months in the making. It plans to issue a newly authorized “preferred stock” in exchange for the Bitcoin, which will be at a “discounted rate relative to current market prices.” |
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| A day later, its share prices soared, reaching a new all-time high of 33 cents, up 1,700% from 1.8 cents last week. The company’s current market cap currently stands at $280 million, according to OTCMarkets. |
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| However, many crypto-natives aren’t convinced the firm will be able to follow through with its ambitious plan, with some suggesting the announcement is some kind of “marketing stunt.” |
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| “Stunt of a dying penny stock” |
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| Bitcoin analyst and Adamant Research editor Tuur Demeester said he removed his initial tweet sharing Nilam’s announcement on X after “a commenter pointed out that it’s indeed a stunt from a dying penny stock.” |
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| Quinten Francois, a crypto YouTuber and co-founder of Web3 company WhereAt Social also accused the filing of being a “marketing stunt” — common among failing small-cap stocks. |
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| Dylan LeClair, director of market intelligence at digital asset fund UTXO Management also shared doubts, noting the plan would only work if there were legitimate demand for the equity sale. |
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| “A letter of intent is one thing, actually executing is another.” |
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| “Likely flops and is for PR purposes,” he added. |
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| If Nilam is successful, the company will hold more Bitcoin than any other publicly listed company in the United States, except for MicroStrategy. |
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| Related: MicroStrategy sells another $604M of notes to buy 9K Bitcoin |
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| That would include beating Elon Musk’s Tesla and major Bitcoin miners such as Riot Blockchain, Hut 8 Corp, and Marathon Digital Holdings, according to data from BitcoinTreasuries. |
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| Former CEO calls it a “pump and dump” |
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| Former Nilam Resources CEO Ron McIntyre has also reportedly cried foul over the announcement, telling Protos that the press release was issued without his review and that he didn’t have detailed knowledge of the deal. |
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| Asked why he resigned from his position, McIntyre reportedly replied: |
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| “Just look at the chart — it’s a classic pump and dump.” |
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| “There will be a FINRA investigation into Nilam Resources,” he added. |
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| Nila Resources describes itself as an investment holding company. In November last year, it announced it would be pivoting from health and wellness investments to “frontier tech” including medtech, fintech, and climate tech. |
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| It followed up just a day later with an announcement it had acquired TechyTrade, a fintech technology provider. |
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| Nilam Resources did not immediately respond to a request for comment. |
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| Magazine: Asia Express ‘Am I sorry? No’ — 3AC founder. $6B BTC laundered for fast food worker: Asia Express","Nilam Resources, a micro-cap company that touted plans this week to acquire $1.7 billion worth of Bitcoin (BTC), has been flagged as a “public interest concern” amid a meteoric 1,500% share price surge on Tuesday, March 26. |
| Listing for Nila Resources showing the various warning labels Source: OTC MarketsOn March 25, Nilam Resources, an investment holding company, announced it had entered into a Letter of Intent to acquire a company that plans to hold 24,800 Bitcoin. |
| Nilam Resources claimed the deal had been months in the making. |
| Asked why he resigned from his position, McIntyre reportedly replied:“Just look at the chart — it’s a classic pump and dump.”“There will be a FINRA investigation into Nilam Resources,” he added. |
| Nilam Resources did not immediately respond to a request for comment." |
| Philippines SEC accuses eToro of offering unregistered securities,"The Securities and Exchange Commission in the Philippines has issued an advisory against online trading platform eToro, saying it is not authorized to sell or offer securities in the country. |
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| The financial regulator issued the advisory in March, which was posted publicly on April 4, informing the public that the online investment trading platform eToro is “not authorized to sell or offer securities to the public in the Philippines.” |
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| “ETORO’s operations allow Filipinos to create user accounts on their platform for the purpose of investing and trading unregistered investment products,” the SEC wrote in its advisory. |
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| Screenshot from SEC advisory. Source: Philippines SEC |
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| It said the firm is not registered as a corporation in the Philippines and does not have the necessary licenses or authority required under the Securities Regulation Code to sell securities, operate as a broker-dealer, or run an exchange for trading securities in the country. |
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| EToro is a multinational trading company founded in 2007 that is popular with Millennials. The multiasset investment firm has over 33 million registered users worldwide, according to Statista. The platform is available in 140 countries and was valued at $3.5 billion in 2023. |
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| Despite being a multinational company, the Philippine finance regulator advised the public “to exercise caution before investing in these kinds of unregistered online investment platforms and their representatives.” |
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| The bulletin added that anyone acting as salespeople, promoters, influencers, endorsers or agents for eToro in the Philippines could face penalties of up to $88,300 (5 million Philippines pesos) in fines or 21 years imprisonment for violating securities laws. |
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| The eToro company website currently lists the Philippines as a supported country. |
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| Cointelegraph reached out to eToro for clarification but did not receive an immediate response. |
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| Related: Philippine gov’t blocks unlicensed crypto exchange sites |
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| In November 2023, the SEC issued a similar advisory stating that crypto exchange Binance was not authorized to sell or offer securities to the public. |
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| In March, the Philippines National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) began blocking crypto company websites without the necessary licenses. |
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| Later that month, Cointelegraph reported that the SEC instructed the national internet provider to block access to Binance’s website. |
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| “The SEC has identified the aforementioned platform and concluded that the public’s continued access to these websites/apps poses a threat to the security of the funds of investing Filipinos,” stated SEC Chairperson Emilio B. Aquino at the time. |
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| Magazine: Bitcoin ETF guru Eric Balchunas has the last laugh at doubters: X Hall of Flame","The Securities and Exchange Commission in the Philippines has issued an advisory against online trading platform eToro, saying it is not authorized to sell or offer securities in the country. |
| Source: Philippines SECIt said the firm is not registered as a corporation in the Philippines and does not have the necessary licenses or authority required under the Securities Regulation Code to sell securities, operate as a broker-dealer, or run an exchange for trading securities in the country. |
| EToro is a multinational trading company founded in 2007 that is popular with Millennials. |
| The eToro company website currently lists the Philippines as a supported country. |
| Later that month, Cointelegraph reported that the SEC instructed the national internet provider to block access to Binance’s website." |
| GBTC fees will drop when Bitcoin ETFs ‘start to mature’ — Grayscale CEO,"Grayscale’s flagship Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) will drop its fees, the highest of all United States spot Bitcoin ETFs, but only once the products “start to mature,” according to CEO Michael Sonnenshein. |
| |
| Sonnenshein said in an April 10 on-stage interview at Canaccord Genuity’s Digital Assets Symposium that “markets have tended to be very excitable” when commodity or specific thematic exposure products — such its own Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) — debut and give investors access to assets for the first time. |
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| “We’re still kind of very much in that phase for Bitcoin,” he said. |
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| Over time Sonnenshein said the products “start to mature,” and the market consolidates as investors allocate funds heavily toward only a few products. |
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| “That means fees also come down over time. We’ll reduce fees on GBTC, and that also means that we’re kind of at the end of that first inning of that first wave of adoption.” |
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| Typically, new products — such as the recently launched Bitcoin ETFs — make their way to wealth management platforms, Sonnenshein said. |
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| “Those things really haven’t started happening yet,” he added. “We’re not quite yet at that next phase of adoption and growth here in the U.S.” |
| |
| GBTC launched in 2015 and converted to an ETF in January, alongside the launch of nine other Bitcoin ETFs after Grayscale won a lawsuit against the Securities and Exchange Commission — forcing it to review a GBTC conversion bid it denied. |
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| GBTC has the highest management fees out of all U.S. Bitcoin ETFs — pinned at 1.5% a year compared to the 0.30% average of its competitors. |
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| It’s also seen the highest outflows of all its competitors since it converted in mid-January, having $16.1 billion in net outflows to April 11, per Farside Investors data. |
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| Cumulative U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF flows since launching on Jan. 11 with GBTC outflows in gray. Source: Farside Investors |
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| Sonnenshein claimed after GBTC’s conversion it emerged as a “capital markets and risk transference tool” for those wanting Bitcoin exposure. |
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| Related: Bitcoin ETF activity to remain robust until the halving: Santiment |
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| “GBTC has a very large outstanding share supply, a lot of daily liquidity, very tight spread,” he added. “We have seen a lot of engagement from those types of investors.” |
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| Despite Grayscale’s early “100% market share” for Bitcoin ETFs in the U.S., Sonnenshein knew that other issuers coming into the market “would be a net positive for the ecosystem.” |
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| “We really do believe a rising tide does lift all boats when it comes to the adoption, the maturation, the accessibility of the asset class.” |
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| “We’ve seen some of the world’s largest asset managers getting involved in the space, Sonnenshein noted. “I think that just underscores, again, the staying power of the asset class and investor demand for it.” |
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| Magazine: Bitcoin ETFs make Coinbase a ‘honeypot’ for hackers and governments — Trezor CEO","Grayscale’s flagship Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) will drop its fees, the highest of all United States spot Bitcoin ETFs, but only once the products “start to mature,” according to CEO Michael Sonnenshein. |
| GBTC has the highest management fees out of all U.S. Bitcoin ETFs — pinned at 1.5% a year compared to the 0.30% average of its competitors. |
| Cumulative U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF flows since launching on Jan. 11 with GBTC outflows in gray. |
| Related: Bitcoin ETF activity to remain robust until the halving: Santiment“GBTC has a very large outstanding share supply, a lot of daily liquidity, very tight spread,” he added. |
| “I think that just underscores, again, the staying power of the asset class and investor demand for it.”Magazine: Bitcoin ETFs make Coinbase a ‘honeypot’ for hackers and governments — Trezor CEO" |
| "Cryptojacker conned $3.5M from cloud firms to mine crypto, feds allege","United States prosecutors have charged a man with wire fraud and money laundering charges after he allegedly defrauded two cloud computing providers to run a “large-scale illegal ‘cryptojacking’ operation” — with the perpetrator facing up to 50 years in prison. |
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| The Brooklyn U.S. Attorney’s Office on April 15 claimed Charles O. Parks III, also known as “CP3O,” defrauded the two companies of $3.5 million to mine $970,000 in cryptocurrencies, including Ether (ETH), Litecoin (LTC) and Monero (XMR) using the two firm’s resources without paying. |
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| Cryptojacking is when an entity uses resources such as computing power or electricity without permission to mine crypto. Types of malware can inject software to mine crypto that drains a small amount of resources from a network of computers. |
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| Parks was arrested in Nebraska on April 13 and charged with wire fraud, money laundering and engaging in unlawful monetary transactions. |
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| He faces a combined maximum sentence of 50 years in prison and is slated to appear before an Omaha federal court on April 16. |
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| The indictment alleged Parkes created multiple accounts with a subsidiary of “Company 1,” a “cloud computing and consumer electronic device headquartered in Seattle, Washington,” and “Company 2,” a firm that makes “personal computers and related services headquartered in Redmond, Washington.” |
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| From around January to August 2021, Parks allegedly used multiple fake “names, corporate affiliations and email addresses,” including from companies he registered — MultiMillionaire LLC and CP3O LLC — to make accounts at the companies. |
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| He then “tricked and defrauded” the services into “approving heightened privileges and benefits, including elevated levels of cloud computing services and deferred billing accommodations,” the indictment alleges. |
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| Parkes deflected when the providers started inquiring about “questionable data usage and mounting unpaid subscription balances,” prosecutors claimed. |
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| Highlighted excerpt of the indictment against Parkes. Source: U.S. Attorney’s Office |
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| The indictment claims Parkes laundered some of his mined crypto through “Cryptocurrency Exchange 1,” which “bills itself as a ‘decentralized company, with no headquarters.’” |
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| Related: IRS investigation chief expects uptick in crypto tax evasion this year |
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| Other funds were allegedly laundered through a payments provider, bank accounts and a New York City-headquartered nonfungible token (NFT) marketplace. |
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| He structured the payments in a bid to avoid the $10,000 minimum transaction reporting requirements under federal law, the indictment said. Prosecutors claimed to have found multiple instances of Parkes moving $9,999 and smaller amounts from the crypto exchange to a bank account. |
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| Prosecutors alleged Parks used the proceeds for “extravagant purchases,” including a luxury Mercedes Benz, jewelry and “first-class hotel and travel expenses.” |
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| Brooklyn U.S. Attorney Breon Peace said in a statement: “This Office will continue to prioritize prosecuting criminal actors who use new, sophisticated technology to engage in the old scheme of fraud and deceit.” |
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| Magazine: ‘SEAL 911’ team of white hats formed to fight crypto hacks in real time","Cryptojacking is when an entity uses resources such as computing power or electricity without permission to mine crypto. |
| Types of malware can inject software to mine crypto that drains a small amount of resources from a network of computers. |
| Parks was arrested in Nebraska on April 13 and charged with wire fraud, money laundering and engaging in unlawful monetary transactions. |
| He then “tricked and defrauded” the services into “approving heightened privileges and benefits, including elevated levels of cloud computing services and deferred billing accommodations,” the indictment alleges. |
| Prosecutors claimed to have found multiple instances of Parkes moving $9,999 and smaller amounts from the crypto exchange to a bank account." |
| Upbit suspends crypto transactions exceeding 1 million won,"Upbit — one of South Korea’s largest crypto exchanges — will suspend deposits and withdrawals of digital assets of more than 1 million Korean won ($721). |
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| The move comes in response to changes to the virtual asset service provider (VASP) Ten&Ten, one of the local facilitators of deposits and withdrawals. |
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| In an April 17 announcement, Upbit said the suspension of use and termination of Ten&Ten’s Travel Rule Solution service is the reason behind its decision to halt deposits and withdrawals. |
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| The Ten&Ten exchange services stopped transaction support on April 15, and the last date to withdraw crypto assets is April 22 at 10:00 am Korea Standard Time. |
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| Ten&Ten helped the crypto exchange offer crypto deposits and withdrawals of over 1 million won. Other VASPs that allow deposits and withdrawals over 1 million won include Bblock, Gopax, FlatExchange, Aprobit, Prabang, Borabit, BTX, Flybit, Foblegate, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit, Coredocs, GDAC, Hanbitco, Qbit, Korea Digital Asset Trust and Oasis Exchange. |
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| In a report released on April 10, the European Union named Upbit second in market share after Binance, with approximately 528.57 billion in trading volume. |
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| In the first quarter of 2024, the South Korean won surpassed the United States dollar in crypto trading volume. According to Kaiko data, transactions in Korean won on centralized exchanges totaled over $456 billion, slightly exceeding the U.S. dollar's cumulative volume of around $455 billion. |
|
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| Related: South Korean police catch $4.1M crypto scam duo |
|
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| Currently, South Korean financial authorities plan to release new guidelines imposing tighter regulations for token listings on centralized crypto exchanges by the end of April or, at the latest, early May. |
|
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| Authorities will also prohibit listing digital assets with hacking incidents on domestic exchanges unless the root cause is thoroughly determined. |
|
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| The 24-hour trading volume at Upbit fell to $3.8 billion at the start of April after reaching a high earlier in March. On March 5, Upbit recorded a daily trading volume of almost $15 billion, the exchange’s highest trading volume of 2024 so far. |
|
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| The crypto exchange’s surge in daily trading volume may be attributed to Bitcoin reaching a new all-time high of $69,200 on the same day. |
|
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| Hong Kong’s financial regulator has reportedly approved three spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds, which are expected to list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in approximately two weeks. |
|
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| Magazine: ETH price nears 3-year lows vs. Bitcoin — Will an Ethereum ETF stem the tide?Upbit — one of South Korea’s largest crypto exchanges — will suspend deposits and withdrawals of digital assets of more than 1 million Korean won ($721). |
| Ten&Ten helped the crypto exchange offer crypto deposits and withdrawals of over 1 million won. |
| In the first quarter of 2024, the South Korean won surpassed the United States dollar in crypto trading volume. |
| On March 5, Upbit recorded a daily trading volume of almost $15 billion, the exchange’s highest trading volume of 2024 so far. |
| The crypto exchange’s surge in daily trading volume may be attributed to Bitcoin reaching a new all-time high of $69,200 on the same day. |
| Several Bitcoin (BTC) mining firms listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange closed the trading week with a noticeable 24-hour increase in share prices in the lead-up to the Bitcoin halving event. |
|
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| On April 20, Bitcoin celebrated its fourth-ever halving event, and the date was likely firmly marked in the calendars of Bitcoin mining firms as it can significantly disrupt business operations. |
|
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| The halving event slashes miner rewards in half for every block they mine. The most recent halving cut down miners' rewards from 6 BTC to 3.125 BTC per block mined. |
| |
| However, stock investors were speculating about which firm might take the lead in the industry, with certain mining firms surging as much as 10% in the 24 hours prior to the halving event. |
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| Riot Platforms (RIOT) saw the most significant growth among publicly listed Bitcoin mining firms on the April 19 trading day, with its stock price increasing by 10.13% to $9.13. |
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| On the same day, Riot announced the launch of a new 250-acre mining facility in Corsicana, Texas. |
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| The announcement granted Jason Les, CEO of Riot Platforms, the opportunity to ring the closing bell at the Nasdaq headquarters. |
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| Meanwhile, Marathon Digital (MARA) closely followed with a 9.78% increase to $16.50, while Clean Spark (CLSK) saw a rise of 5.98% to $17.20. |
| |
| The halving event triggers Bitcoin miners to change up their operational strategies if they want to maintain the same profit margins. |
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| Bitcoin miners who stick with using the same energy and resources to mine Bitcoin will potentially see diminished profits. |
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| This leaves miners with two options, either expand operations to produce the same level of top-line revenue or cease operations altogether. |
| |
| Hut 8 CEO Asher Gennot recently explained that several Bitcoin mining firms went bankrupt in 2022 due to being overleveraged and unprepared for rising energy costs. |
| |
| Although major Bitcoin miners have recently been acquiring significant amounts of new equipment in preparation for the event. |
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| Related: Marathon Digital Holdings launches direct Bitcoin transaction submission service |
| |
| Marathon Digital recently announced its plans to acquire a 200-megawatt (MW) Bitcoin mining facility in Texas for $87.3 million. |
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| Meanwhile, in December 2023, competitor Bitcoin mining firm Riot Platforms purchased 66,560 mining rigs from manufacturer MicroBT in one of the largest expansions of hash rate in the firm's history. |
|
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| Overall, the S&P 500 — the index that tracks the 500-largest public companies in the United States — experienced another 0.88% 24-hour decrease before the close of the trading week, marking a 3.54% decline over the past five trading days, as per Google Finance data. |
|
|
| Magazine: Get Bitcoin or die tryin’: Why hip hop stars love cryptoSeveral Bitcoin (BTC) mining firms listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange closed the trading week with a noticeable 24-hour increase in share prices in the lead-up to the Bitcoin halving event. |
| On April 20, Bitcoin celebrated its fourth-ever halving event, and the date was likely firmly marked in the calendars of Bitcoin mining firms as it can significantly disrupt business operations. |
| The halving event triggers Bitcoin miners to change up their operational strategies if they want to maintain the same profit margins. |
| Bitcoin miners who stick with using the same energy and resources to mine Bitcoin will potentially see diminished profits. |
| Although major Bitcoin miners have recently been acquiring significant amounts of new equipment in preparation for the event. |
| History of Crypto: The future of crypto exchanges, regulatory battles, and governanceWelcome to the History of Crypto, a Cointelegraph series that brings readers back to the most significant events in the crypto space. Powered by Phemex, the timeline allows crypto community members to explore and look back at the important events that shaped the industry into what it is today. |
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| This article explores the period following November 2022, when the FTX exchange collapsed, giving rise to one of the most notorious crypto winters in the history of digital assets. |
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| The period after the collapse of the FTX exchange is known as one of the darkest times in crypto history. |
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| The downfall of FTX and its over 130 subsidiaries catalyzed a chain reaction of bankruptcies and layoffs among Web3 firms, giving rise to one of the longest crypto winters, that saw Bitcoin's (BTC) price bottom out at $16,000. |
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| EXPLORE THE HISTORY OF CRYPTO |
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| Following the bankruptcy that caused a $8.9 billion loss of investor funds, regulators were forced to take action and develop more investor safety-oriented frameworks emphasizing transparency for crypto exchanges and service providers. |
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| United States regulators issued some of the most significant criminal fines in history to Binance despite no evidence of user fund misappropriation. They also fined smaller exchanges in a hawkish effort to prevent potential FTX-like meltdowns. |
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| Explore the History of Crypto. Source: History of Crypto |
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| How did FTX collapse? |
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| The now-infamous FTX exchange collapsed nearly on and a half years ago, sending shockwaves across global crypto markets and wiping out tens of billions of value within a few days. |
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| In essence, FTX collapsed due to user fund misappropriation, which resulted in billions worth of trading losses for its sister company, Alameda Research. The quantitative trading firm used FTX customer funds that Bankman-Fried transferred without consent to fund Alameda’s trading losses, now referred to as the Alameda gap. |
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| Before getting its quantitative trading protocol from Gary Wang, Alameda lost over $500,000 every day throughout an awful month, claimed Michael Lewis in his biography about Bankman-Fried. |
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| The user fund misappropriation started to unravel in November 2022 when it was revealed that a large portion of Alameda’s balance sheet was made up of FTX’s FTT token. |
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| The revelation led to a large sell-off, which caused the FTT token price to plummet, raising widespread concerns about the financial health of FTX and Alameda Research. This led to mass customer withdrawals of up to $6 billion within three days. FTX could not meet the withdrawals as it was forced to suspend them. |
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| FTX filed for bankruptcy on Nov. 11, 2022. Bankman-Fried was arrested in the Bahamas on Dec. 12, 2022, after United States prosecutors filed criminal charges against him. He was extradited to the U.S. in January 2023. Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison on March 28, 2024. |
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| 100 Years in Jail?! SBF Trial Verdict Explained. Source: Cointelegraph |
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| Related: Alameda Research FTT token transfer from September fuels wild speculations |
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| The regulatory crackdown after the FTX collapse |
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| The collapse of the FTX exchange triggered a hawkish response from the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which started a broader crackdown on crypto exchanges to avoid another potential FTX-like meltdown. |
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| In June 2023, the SEC sued Coinbase and Binance Exchange for alleged securities violations. In the lawsuit against Binance, the SEC alleged that the company and its founder, Changpeng Zhao, had misappropriated billions of user funds. |
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| EXPLORE THE HISTORY OF CRYPTO |
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| Despite no evidence of user fund misappropriation, Binance was charged with violating Anti-Money Laundering laws and settled to pay one of the most significant criminal fines in history worth $4.3 billion. |
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| As for the Coinbase lawsuit, the SEC claimed that the exchange operates as an unregistered exchange, broker, and clearing agency and violated securities laws by listing 13 tokens it alleged were securities, according to the lawsuit filed in June 2023. |
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| Coinbase sought an order to drop the case, questioning the SEC’s authority over crypto exchanges. The exchange’s motion to drop the legal case was dismissed on March 27, allowing the SEC to proceed with its lawsuit against Coinbase. |
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| How the U.S. SEC is waging an undeclared war on crypto. Source: Cointelegraph |
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| The immediate regulatory response focused on prosecutions and enforcement rather than implementing blockchain-specific regulations, according to Ashar Burney, the legal head of TDeFi, who told Cointelegraph: |
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| “This approach reflects a broader trend where regulators address fraudulent activities within the crypto space through existing legal frameworks, emphasizing enforcement against criminal behavior rather than introducing new regulations specific to blockchain technologies.” |
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| Burney added that the FTX collapse was primarily a “case of criminal fraud,” not a lack of regulatory frameworks. |
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| Related: Paradigm leads $225M funding round for new ‘Solana killer’ L1 |
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| How the regulatory landscape evolved post-FTX |
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| Following the FTX collapse, crypto exchanges have started striving for more transparency, spearheaded by Binance, the world’s largest exchange. |
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| By the end of November 2022, Binance launched its Proof-of-Reserves (PoR) system, which shows the amount of underlying assets the exchange holds on behalf of users. This third-party audit aims to show users that the exchange can meet any potential withdrawal requests. Binance’s main assets were overcollateralized by at least 102% as of April 12, according to its PoR page. |
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| Following Binance’s push for transparency, other top exchanges have followed suit, including Coinbase, OKX, Crypto.com, Kraken, and Bybit. |
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| How CZ built Binance and became the richest person in crypto | Crypto Stories Ep. 16. Source: Cointelegraph |
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| Despite the new PoR audit systems, investors still need to conduct due diligence as FTX had also performed numerous financial audits that didn’t uncover the fraud, according to TDeFi’s legal head, Burney, who told Cointelegraph: |
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| “SBF's firm underwent multiple audits by reputable auditing firms, demonstrating the complexity of identifying fraudulent behavior even with established compliance measures. Overall, investors' safety is not significantly different, especially considering that the crypto industry experiences lower fraud rates compared to traditional fintech and investment sectors.” |
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| Beyond the transparency efforts of crypto exchanges, governments worldwide have also taken a more collaborative approach to regulating the nascent crypto industry, according to James Wo, the founder and CEO of DFG, who told Cointelegraph: |
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| “Although countries have different stances with some being more crypto-friendly than others, they all work towards the same goal of providing a framework that prevents Anti Money Laundering (AML) with ample Know Your Client (KYC) processes in countries that do not outright ban it.” |
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| In May 2023, the European Council adopted the first comprehensive legal framework for the crypto industry. The Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) framework aims to protect investors through more rigorous transparency standards and AML rules. |
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| EXPLORE THE HISTORY OF CRYPTO |
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| Thanks to the new MiCA bill, crypto exchanges will become fully regulated entities from the end of 2024, Vyara Savova, senior policy lead at the European Crypto Initiative, told Cointelegraph: |
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| “2024 is the year of MiCA, and the whole EU will now have a comprehensive legal framework for crypto-assets, crypto-asset services, and crypto-asset service providers (also known as CASPs). Crypto exchanges are a type of CASP under MiCA and will become fully regulated in December 2024. “ |
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| While MiCA is a significant step for the global regulatory landscape and investor safety, its efficiency will depend on the member state implementations for each country, explained Savova: |
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| “An important aspect that is often overlooked is the role of member state laws in applying this regulation, as these laws will create the supervisory framework in the respective country.” |
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| Hong Kong and Dubai have also introduced crypto regulations that favor innovation in an effort to become known as global crypto hubs. Yet, the most regulatory sign came in January 2024, with the approval of the spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs). |
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| Related: TradFi Wall Street firms pushing for Ether ETF approval, says former Binance Labs head |
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| Bitcoin ETFs signal an innovation-friendly approach, but investors are not necessarily safer |
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| After months of regulatory battles, the ten spot Bitcoin ETFs were approved by the United States SEC on Jan. 10, enabling traditional investors to gain exposure to BTC through publicly-traded funds. |
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| The approval of the ETFs is a positive development signaling that signals an innovation-friendly approach from U.S. regulators for the future, according to DFG’s Wo, who told Cointelegraph: |
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| “Despite the lawsuits to multiple crypto exchanges, the SEC previously approved the Bitcoin ETF with the Ethereum ETF being filed. This is a signal that governments are more in favor of regulation than outright banning, as seen in many other countries regulators which provide tight regulations for the approval of licenses to operate crypto-related businesses.“ |
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| The U.S. ETF approval has also inspired other jurisdictions to follow suit. The Securities Regulatory Commission (SFC) of Hong Kong could approve the first four spot Bitcoin ETF applications by April 15, after the financial regulator has reportedly accelerated the approval process for the first ETFs. |
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| Spot Bitcoin ETF Approved: Impact on Investments with Mark Yusko. Source: Cointelegraph |
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| Related: Hong Kong regulator fast-tracks Bitcoin spot ETF approvals |
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| Despite significant global regulatory developments like ETFs and more regulations around crypto exchanges, investors aren’t necessarily shielded from another FTX-like meltdown, according to DFG’s Wo: |
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| “Although regulation and compliance have stepped up in regulated entities, it does not mean it will not happen again even if we can expect better risk management from these entities. Overall, self-custody will still be the safest as you are in control of your own funds as long as you take sufficient risk mitigations of not clicking on phishing or scam links that may drain your wallet.” |
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| Related: FTX moves to offload 8% stake in Anthropic |
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| Looking ahead to 2024 and beyond |
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| The FTX collapse inspired widespread collaboration between global regulators to prevent another high-profile meltdown. Some of the world’s leading economies have developed new regulations for crypto exchanges, while Europe passed the first comprehensive framework for the crypto industry, setting the benchmark for other regulators. |
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| The European MiCA framework is still a work in progress. The next major part of the bill will set a marketing communication standard for crypto exchanges, which could impact crypto service providers in Europe, according to the European Crypto Initiative’s senior policy lead, Savova, who told Cointelegraph: |
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| “What will develop throughout 2024 is the CASP and, therefore, exchanges’ marketing communications and what will be allowed. It’s a very impactful topic that emerged in France and is now being discussed at the EU level through the Retail Investment Strategy.” |
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| The second consultation package for reverse solicitation guidelines under MiCA is set to end on April 29. The outcome of the consultation will be influential for MiCA’s final implementation in December, according to Savova: |
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| “[This will determine] how exchanges and other CASPs from countries outside of the EU might provide services to EU citizens without a license and how these services should be marketed in Europe. The outcomes of this consultation will be critical for MiCA’s implementation in December.” |
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| According to TDeFi’s Burney, crypto service providers could still see more regulatory scrutiny, including more stringent disclosure and compliance requirements, leading to a more mature industry. Burney said: |
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| “These developments reflect a shift towards a more mature regulatory framework aimed at balancing innovation with regulatory oversight. However, obtaining a license in the US may not entirely prevent exchanges from operating globally and serving US customers, highlighting the challenges of regulating a decentralized and global industry.” |
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| Crypto Bull Market Phase 2: What to Expect. Source: Cointelegraph |
| |
| Related: Binance Labs shifts investment focus to Bitcoin DeFi","The period after the collapse of the FTX exchange is known as one of the darkest times in crypto history. |
| Coinbase sought an order to drop the case, questioning the SEC’s authority over crypto exchanges. |
| How CZ built Binance and became the richest person in crypto | Crypto Stories Ep. |
| Crypto exchanges are a type of CASP under MiCA and will become fully regulated in December 2024. |
| Burney said:“These developments reflect a shift towards a more mature regulatory framework aimed at balancing innovation with regulatory oversight." |
| Trudeau announces $1.8B package to boost Canada’s AI sector,"Canada is committing $1.76 billion (2.4 billion Canadian dollars) of its federal budget to boost its artificial intelligence (AI) sector and maintain the country’s “competitive edge” in AI. |
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| The government unveiled a new package of measures, including investing in AI-related startups, medium-sized businesses and research firms to “secure Canada’s AI advantage.” |
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| “The rapid advance of generative AI today will unlock immense economic potential for Canada, significantly improving productivity and reducing the time workers have to spend on repetitive tasks,” Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in an April 7 statement. |
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| In Montreal, PM Justin Trudeau announces a $2.4-billion package from the upcoming federal budget to build capacity in artificial intelligence.#cdnpoli pic.twitter.com/AbNlOrX2kd — CPAC (@CPAC_TV) April 7, 2024 |
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| The package will see $1.47 billion invested into building computing capabilities and other AI-related infrastructure through the country’s new AI Compute Access Fund, supporting the country’s leading AI researchers and startups. |
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| Another $147 million will be dedicated to AI startups in the agriculture, clean technology, healthcare and manufacturing industries, while $73.5 million will be handed to small and medium-sized AI scale-up companies to boost productivity. |
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| “This will create good-paying opportunities for every generation, boost innovation across the economy, raise productivity, and accelerate economic growth.” |
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| Trudeau noted that many developments in drug discovery, energy efficiency, and housing innovation have already been leveraged by AI in the country. |
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| The fund will also address workers who may be impacted by the AI boom, which will receive up to $36.8 million under Canada’s Sectoral Workforce Solutions Program to re-train and re-skill across various industries. |
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| Employees in the film and animation industries are most at risk of losing their jobs to generative AI, according to a recent report from consultancy firm CVL Economics. |
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| The remaining $36.8 million will be used to create a Canadian AI Safety Institute to further the safe development and deployment of AI. |
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| Canada claims it was the first country in the world to introduce a national AI strategy when it introduced the Pan-Canadian Artificial Intelligence Strategy in 2017, aimed at driving the adoption of AI through research and commercialization. |
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| Related: AI token prices soar: Is it all hype, or is there real potential? |
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| According to data from Statistica, Canada’s AI market is currently worth around $7.4 billion, while the United States market sits at about $106 billion. |
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| Part of Canada’s AI strategy has also reportedly involved attempts to recruit several emerging AI firms from the European Union. |
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| One of Canada’s leading AI startups is Tenstorrent, which partnered with South Korean manufacturing conglomerate Samsung last October to help “bring the next generation of AI chiplets to market.” |
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| Tenstorrent had closed a $100-million funding round led by Samsung and the automotive manufacturer Hyundai two months earlier. |
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| Magazine: Bittensor vs. Eric Wall, AI didn’t kill the metaverse, it will build it says Alien Worlds: AI Eye","Canada is committing $1.76 billion (2.4 billion Canadian dollars) of its federal budget to boost its artificial intelligence (AI) sector and maintain the country’s “competitive edge” in AI. |
| The remaining $36.8 million will be used to create a Canadian AI Safety Institute to further the safe development and deployment of AI. |
| Canada claims it was the first country in the world to introduce a national AI strategy when it introduced the Pan-Canadian Artificial Intelligence Strategy in 2017, aimed at driving the adoption of AI through research and commercialization. |
| According to data from Statistica, Canada’s AI market is currently worth around $7.4 billion, while the United States market sits at about $106 billion. |
| Part of Canada’s AI strategy has also reportedly involved attempts to recruit several emerging AI firms from the European Union." |
| Move-to-earn protocol StepN announces $30M airdrop for users,"Move-to-earn lifestyle app StepN, built on the Solana blockchain, is airdropping 100 million FSL points, worth approximately $30 million, to its users. |
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| According to the April 10 announcement, the FSL points are redeemable at a 1:1 ratio for StepN’s GMT (GMT) token and can also be used in upcoming StepN nonfungible token (NFT) mints alongside obtaining exclusive prizes. “We have decided to launch this huge airdrop campaign as a token of gratitude to our most loyal community members,” said Shiti Manghani, CEO of StepN. |
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| “The first airdrop of this week, for our Badge Holders, was dedicated to our core players,” StepN wrote, continuing: “Those who are truly playing the hard way. For them, we airdropped an FSL Points allocation based on the complexity of their in-app achievements.” |
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| To claim the points, users must sign up for an FSL ID, which is created by the namesake developer that also manages the StepN ecosystem. From there, users can also spend the FSL points in the ecosystem’s NFT marketplace Mooar and strategy game Gas Hero. The $30 million airdrop will be ongoing until the end of April. |
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| Created by FSL in 2021, StepN allows users to earn rewards for walking, jogging or running. Rewards are available after users purchase a virtual Sneaker NFT and link their smartphones. Rewards are issued in the form of GMT tokens, which have an inflationary mechanism, supply cap of 6 billion and current diluted market capitalization of $1.57 billion. |
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| GMT tokens earned by players can then be used to mint new sneakers or level up in the game. On the in-app marketplace, players can lease or sell their NFT sneakers, and their GMT revenues are saved in the in-app wallet, which features a built-in swap function. The lifestyle app currently has more than five million users. |
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| Related: Solana's STEPN hits record high as GMT price skyrockets 34,000% in over a monthMove-to-earn lifestyle app StepN, built on the Solana blockchain, is airdropping 100 million FSL points, worth approximately $30 million, to its users. |
| “The first airdrop of this week, for our Badge Holders, was dedicated to our core players,” StepN wrote, continuing: “Those who are truly playing the hard way. |
| From there, users can also spend the FSL points in the ecosystem’s NFT marketplace Mooar and strategy game Gas Hero. |
| Created by FSL in 2021, StepN allows users to earn rewards for walking, jogging or running. |
| The lifestyle app currently has more than five million users. |
| Solana memecoin frenzy raises questions about crypto utility, reputationThe Solana blockchain is currently outperforming rivals Ethereum, Avalanche and BNB Chain in terms of network activity, growth and adoption — all thanks to the memecoin frenzy that has taken crypto markets by storm. |
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| Over the past month, the Solana blockchain has seen the launch of thousands of new memecoins with billions of dollars in trading volume. Several new memecoins made headlines and rose to new market highs within days, while others grabbed headlines for rugging users and even racism. |
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| Memecoins are digital currencies that derive their name from internet memes and have no practical application outside of being a pop culture reference. These cryptocurrencies are often backed by a strong online community. |
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| Memecoins are not a new concept — during the last bull cycle, memecoins like Dogecoin (DOGE) and Shiba Inu (SHIB) grabbed mainstream attention as their prices soared. |
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| But that was nothing compared to the current memecoin frenzy, which started on Solana and has now spread to several other chains, including Coinbase’s layer-2 platform Base, Binance’s BNB Smart Chain and more. |
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| During the last bull cycle, memecoins grew to new highs over an extended period of time and were primarily fueled by a strong online community. |
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| Dogecoin saw a major push from Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who added DOGE payments to Tesla’s merch store to show his support. |
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| But during the current cycle, memecoins are appearing at unprecedented rates, and tokens barely hours old have amassed millions in trading volume and billions in market capitalization. |
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| The rise of Solana memecoins |
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| According to an April report from CoinGecko, memecoins were the most profitable crypto sector in Q1 2024, recording average returns of 1,312.6% across multiple top tokens by market cap. |
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| Notable gains include BRETT, with a 7,727.6% surge. Dogwifhat (WIF) rose by 2,721.2% over the quarter, while Book of Meme (BOME) briefly surged over 40,000% within days of launching. |
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| BOME was launched on March 14 by pseudonymous artist Darkfarms1 with a market cap of around $4 million. |
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| Within a couple of days of launching, it had reached a market cap of $1.45 billion. Within a week, it was supported by multiple major exchanges, including Binance, Bybit and KuCoin. |
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| Dogwifhat, which launched in November 2023, was among the top 50 cryptocurrencies by market cap by the first quarter of 2024 at nearly $50 billion. |
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| Memecoins distorting crypto’s image |
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| While the Solana memecoin frenzy has made many new crypto millionaires, even more people have lost fortunes chasing the one memecoin that could make them rich. |
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| Furthermore, many new memecoin projects are rug pulls — exit scams in which developers shut down the project and steal the funds they have raised from investors. |
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| Many crypto veterans have warned against investing in memecoins due to their lack of utility and the casino-like atmosphere permeating memecoin markets. |
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| A spokesperson from the research team at crypto exchange Bitrue told Cointelegraph that the market frenzy can “distort the image of cryptocurrencies, potentially undermining their credibility and the broader adoption of blockchain technology.” |
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| “While the influx of new participants and trading volume may initially seem positive, the speculative nature of memecoins raises concerns about the maturity and integrity of the crypto market.” |
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| Proponents believe the memecoin frenzy has attracted a significant number of newcomers to the crypto space and generated substantial profits for some investors. |
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| However, it’s essential to recognize the risks associated with speculative assets like memecoins, as they lack intrinsic value and are highly volatile. While some may profit, many others may incur losses, highlighting the importance of responsible investment practices and education for all participants. |
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| Bitget chief research analyst Ryan Lee believes the rapid rise in the prices of Ether (ETH) and SOL (SOL) — the native assets of two major blockchains on which memecoins are launching, Ethereum and Solana, respectively — is one component propelling the memecoin sector upward. |
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| “One significant factor contributing to the surge in these memecoins is their deployment on the ETH and Solana chains, typically priced in ETH and SOL on decentralized exchange platforms. The upward trend in ETH and SOL prices consequently drives the price appreciation of memecoins,” Lee told Cointelegraph. |
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| The Ethereum ICO era-like frenzy |
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| The memecoin frenzy on Solana has seen a trend similar to other crypto market success stories, wherein the blockchain was flooded with dog- and cat-themed memecoins that raked in millions in trading volume, which was followed by popular memecoins based on world leaders such as former United States President Donald Trump and current President Joe Biden. |
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| At the same time, many developers and users are raising money to launch new memecoins via social media. At a time when major crypto firms are struggling to raise funding from venture capitalists, users on X have raised hundreds of millions of dollars within hours in pre-seed funds. However, not all pre-seed projects were launched, as several were rugged. |
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| Observers have compared the memecoin funding frenzy with thousands of new tokens, characterized by scams and no real-world use cases, to the 2017 initial coin offering (ICO) bubble on the Ethereum network. |
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| During the ICO rush, projects raised millions of dollars, only to deliver tokens with little to no use. But even then, there was at least a pretense of offering a genuine product. |
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| During the 2017 ICO boom, Ethereum network’s capacity was tested thoroughly as daily transactions increased 24x within a year. |
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| Similarly, Solana has seen a 2.5x increase in daily active addresses, from around 600,000 on Jan. 1, 2024 to over 1.5 million by the second week of April. |
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| The ugly side of memecoins |
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| While dog- and cat-themed memecoins ruled the Solana blockchain during the peak of memecoin frenzy, a load of tokens containing racist and homophobic epithets was also unleashed. |
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| Some of these tokens were able to garner market capitalizations into the billions of dollars. |
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| The proliferation of these coins saw many from the crypto community call for intervention from Solana developers. |
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| During the Buidl Asia 2024 event, Austin Federa of the Solana Foundation argued that wallet developers should have the right to institute block lists. He added that practically every wallet in every ecosystem filters out “spam NFTs” and “spam tokens.” He said that “users always have the ability to reveal something if they want to, [...] but the core network needs to remain permissionless.” |
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| Recent: Virtual reality steps up as metaverse struggles to deliver |
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| Conversely, Nansen chief data journalist Martin Lee told Cointelegraph that memecoin trends are a function of the crypto market, which is “the most open and free market there is in the world. The ability to create a token and traders being able to actively trade those tokens are all enabled by the benefits of crypto. They’re not inherently good or bad.” |
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| The memecoin frenzy has divided the crypto community. On the one hand, many crypto veterans who have seen these meme cycles believe it paints crypto in a bad light, as most memecoins offer no utility and are effectively gambling. |
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| On the other hand, proponents claim that memecoins are bringing new traders to the crypto world and showcase the values of a free market where anyone can create a token to trade.The Solana blockchain is currently outperforming rivals Ethereum, Avalanche and BNB Chain in terms of network activity, growth and adoption — all thanks to the memecoin frenzy that has taken crypto markets by storm. |
| Over the past month, the Solana blockchain has seen the launch of thousands of new memecoins with billions of dollars in trading volume. |
| But that was nothing compared to the current memecoin frenzy, which started on Solana and has now spread to several other chains, including Coinbase’s layer-2 platform Base, Binance’s BNB Smart Chain and more. |
| Memecoins distorting crypto’s imageWhile the Solana memecoin frenzy has made many new crypto millionaires, even more people have lost fortunes chasing the one memecoin that could make them rich. |
| They’re not inherently good or bad.”The memecoin frenzy has divided the crypto community. |
| Ethereum restaking protocol EigenLayer, which touts over $13 billion in assets, has launched onto the blockchain’s mainnet, but some key features are still to come and will go live sometime in 2024. |
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| EigenLayer announced the launch in an April 9 blog post but added in-protocol payments to operators from actively validated services (AVS), such as apps and cross-chain bridges, are yet to come. |
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| A mechanism called slashing — when validators get their staked crypto taken from them if they don’t do their job correctly — is also still on the way. |
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| Both will come “later this year” after the EigenLayer marketplace has time to “develop and stabilize,” the protocol said without disclosing a timeline. |
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| As of today, restakers can now delegate their restaked ETH balance to Eigenlayer operators, who in turn operate AVS. |
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| “So there’s still no restaking rewards?” Galaxy Digital vice president of research Christine Kim rhetorically asked in a responding X post. |
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| The promise of restaking protocols such as EigenLayer is to allow users to earn rewards for restaking their already-staked Ether (ETH) tokens — which are 1:1 representative tokens tied to ETH staked in a protocol such as Lido or Rocket Pool. |
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| Coinbase analysts said on April 2 that restaking could increase earnings but “can also compound risks” as the same funds could be shipped around to multiple protocols, which could create complex security and financial issues. |
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| Alongside its mainnet launch, EigenLayer also released a data availability service EigenDA, the first AVS to launch on the protocol aiming to help other blockchain apps store transaction data. |
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| Related: Aave contemplates fee distribution in DeFi shake-up |
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| Other AVS, however, will have to register with EigenLayer and cannot fully deploy right now. |
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| In a separate X post, Galaxy’s Kim said she didn’t understand “why everyone’s hyped about this [EigenDA] news, 99% of getting restaking right depends on the economics, balancing risk with reward.” |
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| “There’s still no risk (ie, slashing) or reward (ie, AVS payouts) live on [EigenLayer] SO there’s no restaking really happening yet [in my opinion],” she added. |
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| EigenLayer has a total value locked of $13.33 billion, according to DefiLlama. |
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| EigenLayer’s total value locked in U.S. dollar terms since its launch. Source: DefiLlama |
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| It overtook Aave in early March to become the second-largest decentralized finance protocol behind Lido, with $33 billion in locked value. |
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| Magazine: Ethereum restaking — Blockchain innovation or dangerous house of cards?Ethereum restaking protocol EigenLayer, which touts over $13 billion in assets, has launched onto the blockchain’s mainnet, but some key features are still to come and will go live sometime in 2024. |
| Both will come “later this year” after the EigenLayer marketplace has time to “develop and stabilize,” the protocol said without disclosing a timeline. |
| Alongside its mainnet launch, EigenLayer also released a data availability service EigenDA, the first AVS to launch on the protocol aiming to help other blockchain apps store transaction data. |
| EigenLayer has a total value locked of $13.33 billion, according to DefiLlama. |
| Source: DefiLlamaIt overtook Aave in early March to become the second-largest decentralized finance protocol behind Lido, with $33 billion in locked value. |
| Crypto VC funding surged 53% in March, Optimism wins largest shareVenture capital funding into crypto jumped by 52.5% month-on-month in March, with crypto projects getting $1.16 billion, mostly in infrastructure and decentralized finance projects. |
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| RootData figures show 180 publicly-announced investments managed to secure investments in the last month — the highest monthly figure since April 2022. |
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| One-fifth of deals saw fundraises of between $1 million to $3 million, while just over 15% raised between $5 million to $10 million. The majority of the funded projects were based in the United States, but they still only made up less than 10% of the total deal count. |
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| Ethereum layer-2 blockchain Optimism got the month’s largest raise when it sold $89 million worth of its tokens in a private deal. Cryptography startup Zama was runner-up with its $73 million Series A. |
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| March’s top 10 largest deals by amount raised. Source: RootData |
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| The monthly deal number was up 25% from February and over 70% from the prior year period, while the total amount raised was also up 28% compared to March 2023. |
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| VC firms recently hinted at their crypto-focused interests for the year ahead. Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) on April 1 earmarked $30 million for a fund focused on Web3 gaming. |
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| Crypto-related VC funding by month since March 2022 with USD amount raised (orange) and number of deals (gray line). Source: RootData |
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| Last week, a16z co-founder Marc Andreessen and Galaxy Digital were top contributors to VC firm 1kx’s $75 million fund targeting crypto-based consumer apps and Hack VC in February raised $150 million to fund early-stage crypto and artificial intelligence startups. |
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| Infrastructure projects were the most well-funded firms in March, making up for nearly $283 million — around a quarter of the total $1.16 billion VC funding. |
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| Decentralized finance (DeFi) projects followed with $228.1 million in funding, making up nearly 20% of the total, with centralized finance (CeFi) projects — such as exchanges — seeing the third-most funding at $85.5 million. |
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| No funding was raised in the DAO category. |
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| Fundraising amount per sector for March 2024. Source: RootData |
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| Last month’s funding is the first time since November that VC funding has broken over $1 billion for the month. |
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| Related: Web3 startups flock to accelerators as crypto enthusiasm surges |
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| It comes after a dampened 2023 for crypto raises after FTX collapsed in late 2022 and took the crypto markets with it. |
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| VC funding has made monthly gains year-to-date as enthusiasm for crypto has made a comeback in tandem with the markets, which PitchBook attributed to the launch of spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the U.S. |
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| Magazine: The secret of pitching to male VCs: Helping female crypto founders blast offVenture capital funding into crypto jumped by 52.5% month-on-month in March, with crypto projects getting $1.16 billion, mostly in infrastructure and decentralized finance projects. |
| One-fifth of deals saw fundraises of between $1 million to $3 million, while just over 15% raised between $5 million to $10 million. |
| Crypto-related VC funding by month since March 2022 with USD amount raised (orange) and number of deals (gray line). |
| Infrastructure projects were the most well-funded firms in March, making up for nearly $283 million — around a quarter of the total $1.16 billion VC funding. |
| Source: RootDataLast month’s funding is the first time since November that VC funding has broken over $1 billion for the month. |
| Web 3 advertising service platform Everyworld has reached a total user base of 225,000 as of March 28. |
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| According to a press release from Everyworld, this milestone for the service occurred within a month of its initial beta. |
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| Everyworld describes its platform as having “elements of a media platform, a game show, an online marketplace and even TikTok,” but also notes that it’s “entirely different.” |
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| As an ad service platform, it serves advertisements from more than 20 games from both the blockchain and traditional gaming sectors. These include Shrapnel, Big Time, Star Atlas, Planet Mojo, The Sandbox, and High Street, and others according to the press release. |
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| Users are incentivized to interact with the content on Everyworld’s platform through a rewards system wherein users earn points towards prize drawings. |
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| CEO Janine Yorio, in a statement given to the press, said: |
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| “The goal is to onboard web3 natives and then to expand to a mainstream audience, and in doing so to demonstrate the transformative power of cryptocurrency to bring people together, rallying communities to collaborate toward common goals. To demonstrate the applicability of this blockchain technology to non-crypto uses, Everyworld displays ad content for both blockchain (web3) and also traditional video games.” |
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| Related: Web3 game Wilder World gets Epic Game Store listing during alpha testing |
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| The company says its ad services protocol is a “win-win” for gamers and developers. According to its website it also conducts conservation efforts with support for various conservation organizations. |
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| “This is an enormous opportunity,” the company’s chief crypto officer, TJ Kawamura, said in a press release, adding that “the users of today’s platforms, games, and other consumer applications demand—and deserve—to be rewarded for engaging with a product. After all, we are in the midst of the most competitive attention economy the world has ever seen, and products, now more than ever, depend on user participation. “ |
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| The Everyworld platform is currently available in select markets excluding the U.S. and Afghanistan, Australia, Belgium, Belize, Bolivia, Canada (province of Quebec), Cambodia, Chad, China, Columbia, Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Myanmar, North Korea, Russia, Singapore, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Thailand, Turkey.Web 3 advertising service platform Everyworld has reached a total user base of 225,000 as of March 28. |
| According to a press release from Everyworld, this milestone for the service occurred within a month of its initial beta. |
| These include Shrapnel, Big Time, Star Atlas, Planet Mojo, The Sandbox, and High Street, and others according to the press release. |
| Users are incentivized to interact with the content on Everyworld’s platform through a rewards system wherein users earn points towards prize drawings. |
| “The Everyworld platform is currently available in select markets excluding the U.S. and Afghanistan, Australia, Belgium, Belize, Bolivia, Canada (province of Quebec), Cambodia, Chad, China, Columbia, Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Myanmar, North Korea, Russia, Singapore, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Thailand, Turkey. |
| Osmosis, dYdX and Synthetix most actively developed DeFi projects: SantimentOsmosis, a decentralized exchange (DEX) built on Cosmos, has surged to become the most actively developed decentralized finance (DeFi) project in the last month, according to data shared by crypto intelligence platform Santiment. |
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| In a March 25 post to X, Santiment wrote that Osmosis had seen over 169 commits on GitHub in the last 30 days. The decentralized perpetuals exchange dYdX stood in second place with 145 commits, while derivatives liquidity protocol Synthetix came in third with 116. |
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| Osmosis was the most-developed DeFi project in the last month. Source Santiment |
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| Santiment explained the list of “developer activity” was collected by compiling all non-redundant GitHub activity listed on each project’s respective records and providing an average number of those values. |
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| The total value locked (TVL) and overall trading volumes on Osmosis significantly increased between early October and March 15. |
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| Osmosis TVL and volumes surged between October and March. Source: DefiLlama |
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| Much of the uptick in activity can be traced back to a surge of interest in airdrop farming on Cosmos-related infrastructure throughout the wider crypto sector, with Osmosis being the primary DEX on Cosmos. |
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| Several projects, such as data availability blockchain network Celestia and multilayer RollApp deployer Dymension, use core elements of the Cosmos ecosystem for their networks and have now yielded hundreds of millions of dollars in airdrops for farmers. |
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| Related: Cosmos-based networks Umee and Osmosis to merge, creating ‘DeFi Hub’ |
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| For dYdX, much of the development activity could be linked to its early-January v4 upgrade, a network shift that saw the decentralized derivatives exchange transition from an Ethereum layer-2 network to a standalone blockchain in the Cosmos ecosystem. |
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| The dYdX v4 network has generated over $60 billion worth of trading volume since going live on Jan. 25, per DefiLlama data. |
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| dYdX v4 has generated over $60 billion in trading volume since its launch. Source: DeiLlama |
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| Meanwhile, the TVL on the Synthetix protocol has also been steadily increasing since mid-February and currently stands at $994 million across the Ethereum and Optimism networks. |
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| In July 2023, Synthetix founder Kain Warwick announced the upcoming launch of a new derivatives front-end called Infinex. The alpha version of the platform is live on mainnet, and the full-release version is currently slated for the coming months. |
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| Magazine: 5 dangers to beware when apeing into Solana memecoinsOsmosis, a decentralized exchange (DEX) built on Cosmos, has surged to become the most actively developed decentralized finance (DeFi) project in the last month, according to data shared by crypto intelligence platform Santiment. |
| In a March 25 post to X, Santiment wrote that Osmosis had seen over 169 commits on GitHub in the last 30 days. |
| The decentralized perpetuals exchange dYdX stood in second place with 145 commits, while derivatives liquidity protocol Synthetix came in third with 116. |
| Osmosis TVL and volumes surged between October and March. |
| The dYdX v4 network has generated over $60 billion worth of trading volume since going live on Jan. 25, per DefiLlama data. |
| Crypto industry analysts are calling the current Bitcoin halving cycle the “weirdest” bull market on record, following a premature Bitcoin (BTC) all-time high and a massive rush into memecoins. |
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| On April 1, Chainlink community liaison Zach Rynes — aka “ChainLinkGod” — said, “This bull market has been weird” in a post to his 171,000 followers on X. |
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| Historically, bull runs would see liquidity flow into Bitcoin before moving into Ether (ETH) and other high-capitalization coins and finally moving down the chain. |
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| However, the market “skipped a couple of steps that we have seen with previous cycles,” with flows going from BTC straight to memecoins, which is “a bit unusual,” commented Rynes. |
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| Memecoin total capitalization surged to $70 billion on April 1, primarily driven by pumps in newly launched tokens, such as Solana-based Dogwifhat (WIF), Book of Meme (BOME) and older memecoins such as Pepe (PEPE) and Bonk (BONK). |
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| Coinbase layer-2 network Base has also become a hotbed of memecoin speculation. |
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| The recently launched Base-native token DEGEN is one example, which has skyrocketed an eye-watering 2,800% over the past month. The memecoin is an unofficial token that was distributed to the community on the decentralized social network Farcaster. |
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| Rynes added that market fundamentals are not playing much of a role at the moment: |
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| “There’s some retail money that’s entered, but nowhere near the levels we’ve seen before; we’re in an attention economy based on specific narratives, not real fundamentals.” |
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| The sentiment was echoed by Ethereum educator Anthony Sassano on April 1, who said that after around a decade in crypto, “I can say with full confidence that this is, by far, the weirdest bull market crypto has ever had.” |
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| He added that retail is not here “in any meaningful way” until the entire market goes up together: |
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| “Not these isolated sector-specific pumps that are very obviously pushed by crypto natives and just involve a hot ball of money rotating around.” |
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| Related: Memecoin presales hit ‘peak degeneracy’ with over $100M raised in 3 days |
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| Another factor adding to the weirdness of this market cycle is that Bitcoin has reached an all-time high before the halving. In previous cycles, the Bitcoin all-time high arrived the year after the halving. |
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| The asset hit $73,734 on March 14, and the Bitcoin halving is just 18 days away now, due on April 20. Analysts have already predicted that the pre-halving retrace is over. |
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| On April 1, technical analyst Moustache highlighted that BTC had reclaimed a key Fibonacci ratio level seen in previous cycles, but this time it was before the halving. |
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| Magazine: 5 dangers to beware when apeing into Solana memecoinsCrypto industry analysts are calling the current Bitcoin halving cycle the “weirdest” bull market on record, following a premature Bitcoin (BTC) all-time high and a massive rush into memecoins. |
| On April 1, Chainlink community liaison Zach Rynes — aka “ChainLinkGod” — said, “This bull market has been weird” in a post to his 171,000 followers on X. |
| Historically, bull runs would see liquidity flow into Bitcoin before moving into Ether (ETH) and other high-capitalization coins and finally moving down the chain. |
| In previous cycles, the Bitcoin all-time high arrived the year after the halving. |
| The asset hit $73,734 on March 14, and the Bitcoin halving is just 18 days away now, due on April 20. |
| The Chinese government has launched a new public blockchain infrastructure platform led by Conflux Network. |
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| The new platform, dubbed “Ultra-Large Scale Blockchain Infrastructure Platform for the Belt and Road Initiative,” aims to offer an underlying public blockchain for cross-border applications, according to an April 1 X post by Conflux Network: |
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| “The main focus of the project is to create a public blockchain infrastructure platform. This platform will be able to support the implementation of cross-border cooperation projects along the Belt and Road Initiative. It will provide the base for developing applications that showcase collaboration across borders.” |
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| Conflux Network is a multichain blockchain ecosystem operated by the Conflux Foundation, also known as the Shanghai Tree-Graph Blockchain Research Institute. |
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| Related: Hong Kong’s in-kind ETF creation could be a significant market opportunity: Analysts |
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| Crypto is thriving in China, despite the trading ban |
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| The governmental blockchain initiative comes despite mainland China’s hostile attitude toward cryptocurrencies. China had started tightening its grip on the crypto industry since at least 2017 when the government ordered Chinese Bitcoin exchanges to shut down. |
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| Despite the ban on crypto trading, 33.3% of Chinese investors hold a large amount of stablecoins, placing them in second place to Vietnam, with 58.6%, according to a December 2023 report by Vietnamese venture capital firm Kyros Ventures. |
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| Traders in mainland China have found ways to circumvent the ban on trading. The majority of investors in the country choose to trade on centralized crypto exchanges, according to the report by Kyros Ventures. |
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| Beijing banned crypto trading and mining in 2021 and prohibited offshore exchanges from offering their services in the country. Before the crypto crackdown intensified in 2021, China controlled two-thirds of the total Bitcoin mining hashing power. |
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| Amid calls for greater industry scrutiny, China is set to make a major amendment to its Anti-Money Laundering (AML) regulations to include cryptocurrency-related transactions. |
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| As the first major revision to China’s AML regulations since 2007, the amendment aims to impose stricter guidelines to curb crypto-related money laundering. |
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| So-called “virtual currency trading platforms” reportedly helped facilitate a $2.2 billion underground banking operation to bypass the country’s forex restrictions, according to a Dec. 24, 2023 report. |
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| Related: Bitcoin network’s carbon emission jumped 17% after China ban: ReportThe Chinese government has launched a new public blockchain infrastructure platform led by Conflux Network. |
| The new platform, dubbed “Ultra-Large Scale Blockchain Infrastructure Platform for the Belt and Road Initiative,” aims to offer an underlying public blockchain for cross-border applications, according to an April 1 X post by Conflux Network:“The main focus of the project is to create a public blockchain infrastructure platform. |
| This platform will be able to support the implementation of cross-border cooperation projects along the Belt and Road Initiative. |
| The majority of investors in the country choose to trade on centralized crypto exchanges, according to the report by Kyros Ventures. |
| Beijing banned crypto trading and mining in 2021 and prohibited offshore exchanges from offering their services in the country. |
| Ripple to launch US dollar stablecoin, aims to compete with USDT and USDCXRP issuer Ripple has announced plans to launch a United States dollar-backed stablecoin and hopes to compete with Circle and Tether for a slice of the market share over the next five years. |
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| Cointelegraph spoke to Ripple chief technology officer David Schwartz ahead of the announcement, which outlines plans for the stablecoin that will initially be issued on the XRP Ledger and the Ethereum blockchain. |
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| “It’s funny that the question you ask, we don’t have an answer to yet. What’s the ticker going to be, and what we’re going to call it? You’re just going to have to call it the Ripple stablecoin for now,” Schwartz said during a video call. |
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| Related: Ripple ‘would certainly welcome’ an XRP ETF: Brad Garlinghouse |
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| Ripple has been toying with the idea of launching a stablecoin for over a year, and Schwartz believes the existing stablecoin ecosystem is not as diverse and robust as it could be. Pinning the stablecoin market’s current value at $150 billion, Schwartz said there’s room for another big player: |
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| “We think it will be over $2 trillion by 2028, and there’s only two market leaders. We don’t think it’s a winner-take-all-all ecosystem, particularly on the DeFi side.” |
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| Ripple’s stablecoin will be pegged at a 1:1 ratio with the U.S. dollar, and the company plans to back the tokens with U.S. dollar deposits, short-term U.S. government Treasurys and “other cash equivalents.” Schwartz said that Ripple would look to emulate Circle’s focus on compliance and likely aim to compete against the USD Coin (USDC) issuer: |
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| “Our angle is going to be very ‘compliance-first.’ We’re very transparent about how the assets are backed, so we’re kind of going to be directly competing against USDC.” |
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| “We’re looking to grab market share. We’re not looking to finesse a couple of extra decimal points by taking risks with other people’s money,” Schwartz added when queried over Ripple’s plans to back the stablecoin with dollar deposits, U.S. Treasurys and cash equivalents. |
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| Circle’s transparency page outlining a slight surplus in reserve assets backing USDC tokens in circulation. Source: Circle |
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| The reserve assets are set to be audited by a third-party accounting firm, and Ripple will publish monthly attestations. Schwartz drew comparisons to the early days of Tether’s (USDT) stablecoin, where critics often sounded the alarm over the potential of the issuer to steal funds and the credibility of its reserve attestations. |
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| “Initially when Tether first launched, a big concern was whether these guys would run off with all the money because they’re very incentivized to do that. Then, after a while, ‘you’re like, wait a minute, these guys have a long-term business,’” Schwartz said. |
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| The top 10 stablecoins by market capitalization. Tether’s USDT is valued at $106 billion. Source: CoinMarketCap |
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| The Ripple chief technology officer added that the reality of launching a new stablecoin that could attract hundreds of millions, billions, or tens of billions of dollars would lead to these types of concerns. The company is leaning on its credibility, track record in the space and strong balance sheet to squeeze its way into the stablecoin market. |
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| “I think we have a credible claim to be in the conversation near the top. If at the end of two years, we’re number three, but the market has grown to 10 times what it is today, that’s still pretty good,” Schwartz said. |
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| Tether’s USDT is issued across 15 different blockchains. Ripple will issue its stablecoin on the XRP Ledger and the Ethereum blockchain. Source: Tether |
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| Cointelegraph also queried why Ripple was interested in a stablecoin offering while XRP (XRP) continues to be positioned as the token for its real-time gross settlement system, currency exchange and remittance network primarily catering to financial institutions. |
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| Schwartz says that Ripplenet serves non-bank payment companies using XRP for transparent payments. However, there are some markets that these firms cannot get into using XRP or supplement liquidity. |
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| Related: XRPL blockchain plugs into cross-chain DeFi |
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| “Having multiple paths to give customers a better experience means you have more customers. If we only did things with XRP, then where XRP wasn’t available, we would just have to tell a customer no,” Schwartz explained. |
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| The introduction of a Ripple stablecoin is also set to complement the ecosystem’s recently launched automated market maker. Schwartz says the stablecoin will provide liquidity and capture volatility and arbitrage opportunities between multiple assets. |
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| Magazine: Ethereum’s ERC-20 design flaws are a crypto scammer’s best friendXRP issuer Ripple has announced plans to launch a United States dollar-backed stablecoin and hopes to compete with Circle and Tether for a slice of the market share over the next five years. |
| You’re just going to have to call it the Ripple stablecoin for now,” Schwartz said during a video call. |
| Schwartz drew comparisons to the early days of Tether’s (USDT) stablecoin, where critics often sounded the alarm over the potential of the issuer to steal funds and the credibility of its reserve attestations. |
| The company is leaning on its credibility, track record in the space and strong balance sheet to squeeze its way into the stablecoin market. |
| The introduction of a Ripple stablecoin is also set to complement the ecosystem’s recently launched automated market maker. |
| BingX exchange openly supports Iranian users, defying sanctionsThe BingX crypto exchange is allowing sanctioned Iranian users to evade restrictions. |
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| The exchange openly displays an Iranian version of its website, and its officials have made statements in Persian in the exchange’s official Telegram group. |
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| According to a translation of one of the statements, “The Bing X exchange has no problem with Iranian users, and it is even possible to authenticate with a national card.” |
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| The exchange also allows Iranian rial to Tether (USDT) swaps in its interface, which are prohibited under United States Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) rules. |
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| Statement by BingX admin. Source: BingX official Telegram channel. |
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| In another post within the official BingX Discord, one user asked if there are any restrictions for registering from Iran regarding the platform's verification. ""It should be fine.."" a BingX representative replied, ""Just follow the instruction on your registration."" |
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| BingX's policy on user registration from Iran. Source: BingX Discord |
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| Iran has been under a variety of sanctions since 1979. The U.S. and the United Nations have accused the country of a wide variety of violations of international law, including seizing property belonging to U.S. companies, funding terrorism and enriching uranium to make nuclear weapons. Iran has denied these claims. |
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| The sanctions generally prevent Iranian residents from using centralized cryptocurrency exchanges, and these exchanges risk being blocked from U.S. and global markets if they do business with Iranians. |
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| According to OFAC, Foreign Financial Institutions (FFIs) risk “correspondent and payable-through account sanctions and blocking sanctions” if they knowingly conduct or facilitate transactions involving the purchase or sale of Iranian rials. |
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| However, it appears that on the BingX exchange, the Iranian rial — an OFAC-sanctioned currency — is directly swappable for other crypto assets. |
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| BingX supporting transactions in the Iranian rial. Source: BingX |
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| BingX facilitates over $974 million in trading volume per day, according to CoinMarketCap data. This makes it one of the top 20 crypto exchanges in the world. |
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| Per data from its official website, the exchange is a registered financial services company in the Republic of Lithuania, giving it a license to do business in the European Union. It is also licensed in Australia as a digital currency exchange and operates from Singapore. |
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| Like all global financial institutions, entities in Australia and Lithuania must comply with the U.S. OFAC sanctions and any sanctions imposed on Iran by their home countries or the European Union. |
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| BingXPersian, where services are offered to Iranian residents, is listed as an official channel of the BingX exchange. Source: BingX |
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| Yet, despite such requirements, the exchange publicly solicits Iran-based users on its social channels and official website. Before November 2021, the exchange was known as Bingbon. |
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| BingX was founded by Josh Lu in 2018 and claims to serve over 10 million users. The nationality of its current founder is unknown. |
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| Statement by BingX customer support representative J. Jalali. Source: BingX official Telegram channel |
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| According to another BingX representative, “Iran is in the list of countries with restrictions.” However, “this does not mean a ban on providing services.” In addition, the exchange is also advertising its Iranian rial services and states, “Did you know that you can buy and sell Tether with Rials on Bing X? |
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| BingX touts the buying and selling of sanctioned Iranian rial and toman (1 toman = 10 rial) via peer-to-peer transactions. Source: BingX on Telegram |
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| Response from BingX |
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| On April 13, post publication, a BingX representative told Cointelegraph that Mirzadeh, the Telegram user featured in the above screenshots is not an authorized representative of BingX, and his statements do not mirror the official policies or positions of our company. In addition, they claimed that the Rial to USDT swaps shown above are on an unauthorized subpage of the Paycat website. We want to clarify that the official BingX website is bingx.com. Bingx.paycat.com is not authorized to represent the positions or views of BingX. |
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| The BingX representative also claimed that Iranian users are not allowed on the exchange. However, after publication, a BingX customer service representative stated that there is no requirement for authentication and Persian language users can use the exchange. |
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| BingX's explanation of rules surrounding Iranian users. Source: BingX on Telegram |
| |
| Not a first occurrence |
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| BingX is not the only licensed cryptocurrency exchange that has been caught circumventing sanctions for Iranian users. |
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| In July 2022, Reuters reported that the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world, Binance, was serving Iranian citizens. At the time, Binance denied the claim, stating that it “strictly” adheres to sanctions requirements. |
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| In November 2023, the exchange agreed to a $4.5 billion plea deal with the U.S. Justice Department and the U.S. Treasury, admitting that it failed to maintain an effective policy against money laundering. Its former CEO, Changpeng Zhao, also pled guilty to Bank Secrecy Act violations. |
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| The BingX official website onboarding Iranian residents. Source: BingX |
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| In May 2023, the crypto exchange Poloniex also paid a $7.6 million settlement to the OFAC for failing to retroactively screen users from Crimea, Cuba, Iran, Sudan, and Syria who had registered before the exchange implemented Know Your Customer controls. |
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| Update April 13 2024 7:20pm UTC: Added a screenshot from BingX Telegram |
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| Update April 13 2024 7:15pm UTC: Added a statement from BingX |
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| Update April 12 2024 9:40pm UTC: Added a screenshot from BingX Discord |
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| Related: US Treasury sanctions crypto mixer Sinbad, alleging North Korea ties","The BingX crypto exchange is allowing sanctioned Iranian users to evade restrictions. |
| Source: BingX official Telegram channel. |
| However, it appears that on the BingX exchange, the Iranian rial — an OFAC-sanctioned currency — is directly swappable for other crypto assets. |
| The BingX representative also claimed that Iranian users are not allowed on the exchange. |
| Source: BingX on TelegramNot a first occurrenceBingX is not the only licensed cryptocurrency exchange that has been caught circumventing sanctions for Iranian users." |
| Bitcoin halving puts focus on crypto education initiatives,"Over the last couple of months, the crypto world has been abuzz with anticipation for the upcoming Bitcoin halving event. |
| |
| This pivotal moment, expected to occur on April 20 (based on the UTC time standard), will once again cut the reward for mining new Bitcoin blocks in half, further reducing the supply of the world’s first and largest cryptocurrency, Bitcoin (BTC). |
| |
| While many investors and traders are speculating on the potential price implications, a growing movement within the industry is shifting this focus toward education and adoption. |
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| Whether through online courses, podcasts, workshops or good old-fashioned books, the push for increased Bitcoin education seems to be fueled by a shared belief that understanding begets trust. |
| |
| There are a number of initiatives spearheaded by businesses, individuals and educational institutions that promote a deeper understanding of Bitcoin and the digital asset ecosystem as a whole. |
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| Binance Academy |
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| Binance Academy is the official education platform offered by cryptocurrency exchange Binance. It provides a suite of resources to promote the understanding of Bitcoin and its associated technologies. For instance, those new to the world’s pioneering cryptocurrency can sign up for the free “Bitcoin Basics” course, which offers a structured introduction covering the asset’s history, underlying blockchain technology, mining processes, wallets and more. |
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| Binance Academy has prepared several in-depth explanatory articles to help the community grasp the significance of this supply-altering phenomenon. The pieces delve into the mechanics of halvings, their impact on Bitcoin’s issuance rate, and historical price effects surrounding past events. |
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| For traders seeking to analyze Bitcoin’s market movements, the platform provides targeted technical analysis content. A dedicated series explores charting techniques, indicators and other strategies specifically applied to Bitcoin trading and price forecasting. Complementing this is a wide array of video tutorials and articles that unpack various concepts like wallets, forks, mining and more. |
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| Lastly, Binance Academy also maintains a living glossary of Bitcoin-related terminology to ensure key concepts are readily accessible. Through this multiformat approach spanning courses, articles, videos and reference tools, the platform strives to elevate Bitcoin knowledge across skill levels. |
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| Jameson Lopp — Lopp.net |
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| Celebrated cypherpunk, software engineer, columnist and Bitcoin advocate Jameson Lopp has created a comprehensive repository of Bitcoin-related resources on his personal website, Lopp.net, aimed at furthering education and understanding of the pioneering cryptocurrency. |
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| One of the standout offerings on Lopp’s site is his curated “Bitcoin Resources” page, which compiles a vast collection of links and materials covering everything from Bitcoin’s fundamentals (including the halving) and its codebase to developer tools, research papers and educational courses. |
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| Source: Jameson Lopp |
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| Complementing this is Lopp’s article chest, where he regularly publishes pieces unpacking complex Bitcoin concepts and analyzing industry developments while also sharing his expertise as a seasoned cypherpunk. The posts tackle intricate topics like Bitcoin privacy, self-custody best practices and the philosophy behind the technology’s decentralized ethos. |
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| For those seeking a more structured learning experience, Lopp’s website also hosts comprehensive video recordings, allowing viewers to gain insights into Bitcoin’s technical operations from many of the industry’s foremost educators. |
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| Coinbase Learn |
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| Like Binance, crypto exchange Coinbase has recognized the importance of education in driving mainstream adoption. To this end, the company has dedicated the “Learn” section on its website to hosting a wealth of resources that cater to audiences across the crypto knowledge spectrum. |
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| For those just beginning their journey, the “crypto basics” category provides foundational knowledge through beginner-friendly articles explaining concepts pertaining to Bitcoin, cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology. There are also practical guides on setting up wallets and securely sending and receiving digital assets. |
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| As users progress on their learning paths, more advanced topics are covered, including in-depth explainers on major events like Bitcoin’s recurring halving events. The “explore” subsection allows curious learners to dive deeper into emerging trends, use cases, and innovative crypto applications. |
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| Recognizing the importance of staying updated, there is a market updates section where users can find the latest news, analyses and expert insights into market movements. |
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| MIT Bitcoin Club |
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| Launched by one of the most prestigious institutions in the world, MIT’s BTC education program is designed to be holistic in its outlook. It covers a host of topics, ranging from the foundations of the Bitcoin network to more advanced concepts like the creation of decentralized applications atop the Bitcoin ecosystem and the design of hardware wallets. |
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| Starting page for MIT Bitcoin Club's educational resources. Source: MIT |
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| Additionally, there is also a free archive of some of MIT’s own cryptocurrency research and academic papers, providing readers with a technical understanding of experimental ideas permeating the Bitcoin and blockchain ecosystem. |
|
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| In addition to these free offerings, there is also the option to take online classes, whose topics include cryptocurrency engineering and design, shared public ledgers, and blockchain entrepreneurship, among others. |
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| BitDegree |
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| BitDegree is an online education platform that aims to simplify and democratize access to the Web3 sector. |
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| One of BitDegree’s flagship offerings is its Web3 Missions program. The initiative allows learners to earn valuable crypto rewards and nonfungible token (NFT) certificates by successfully completing various comprehensive examinations. |
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| They cover a wide range of topics, from blockchain fundamentals to emerging trends (such as the aforementioned Bitcoin halving) and upcoming innovative applications within the decentralized web ecosystem. By incentivizing knowledge acquisition, BitDegree aims to foster a more educated, empowered crypto community. |
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| Additionally, the platform hosts various campaigns in collaboration with established Web3 projects called LearnDrops. These typically involve interactive courses that introduce users to specific crypto platforms, protocols or services. Upon their completion, learners are rewarded with the project’s native tokens, NFTs or other incentives. Notable past collaborations include projects like the FIO Protocol, Ledger and PrimeXBT. |
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| Furthermore, BitDegree offers resources spanning cryptocurrency basics, market news, practical tutorials and analyses. |
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| Cointelegraph Learn |
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| Cointelegraph’s own Learn section contains a variety of educational resources for newcomers and veterans of the cryptocurrency industry. |
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| These include “how-to” guides for things like setting up a wallet, staking, getting into decentralized finance and trading Bitcoin options, to name a few. |
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| Cointelegraph Learn also has an “Explained” section detailing complex concepts in the blockchain and cryptocurrency industry to make them more accessible and understandable to a wider audience. |
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| The crypto glossary also explains the myriad of unique terms that are used every day in the cryptocurrency industry. |
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| Cointelegraph's Crypto Glossary. Source: Cointelegraph |
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| In short, there have never been more resources for crypto enthusiasts, traders or even the crypto-curious to learn more about digital currency. As events like the Bitcoin halving gain increasing public attention, demand for knowledge about the world's seminal cryptocurrency will also increase.Over the last couple of months, the crypto world has been abuzz with anticipation for the upcoming Bitcoin halving event. |
| Whether through online courses, podcasts, workshops or good old-fashioned books, the push for increased Bitcoin education seems to be fueled by a shared belief that understanding begets trust. |
| Binance AcademyBinance Academy is the official education platform offered by cryptocurrency exchange Binance. |
| Source: Jameson LoppComplementing this is Lopp’s article chest, where he regularly publishes pieces unpacking complex Bitcoin concepts and analyzing industry developments while also sharing his expertise as a seasoned cypherpunk. |
| BitDegreeBitDegree is an online education platform that aims to simplify and democratize access to the Web3 sector. |
| Payments firm Block, formerly known as Square, has announced plans to develop a Bitcoin (BTC) mining system in response to challenges faced by mining operators. |
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| In an April 23 blog post, Block said it had completed development of a three-nanometer chip used for BTC mining, which led to the firm announcing a “full Bitcoin mining system.” Block — then Square — CEO Jack Dorsey suggested a collaborative approach to decentralize Bitcoin mining in October 2021. |
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| “We’ve spent a significant amount of time talking to a wide variety of bitcoin miners to identify the challenges faced by mining operators,” said Block. “Building on these insights and pursuant to our goal of supporting mining decentralization, we plan to offer both a standalone mining chip as well as a full mining system of our own design.” |
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| Block completed a prototype design of a five-nanometre BTC mining chip in May 2023, claiming at the time the centralization of chip development in the hands of a few companies was harmful to the ecosystem. The firm called on the mining community to provide additional feedback for the system, asking for comments on challenges it faced in purchasing miners, maintenance, transparency and software issues. |
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| Related: Jack Dorsey wants to decentralize Bitcoin mining with new investment |
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| Intel announced in 2023 that it planned to end shipping for its Blockscale 1000 Series ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit) mining chips in April as part of cost-cutting measures. Such chips are often used for mining proof-of-work cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin. |
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| The Bitcoin halving on April 19 cut the block reward for miners from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC. The event will likely shake up the market as miners compete for fewer rewards for the same work until the next halving, expected in another four years. |
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| Magazine: Bitcoin is on a collision course with ‘Net Zero’ promisesPayments firm Block, formerly known as Square, has announced plans to develop a Bitcoin (BTC) mining system in response to challenges faced by mining operators. |
| In an April 23 blog post, Block said it had completed development of a three-nanometer chip used for BTC mining, which led to the firm announcing a “full Bitcoin mining system.” Block — then Square — CEO Jack Dorsey suggested a collaborative approach to decentralize Bitcoin mining in October 2021. |
| “We’ve spent a significant amount of time talking to a wide variety of bitcoin miners to identify the challenges faced by mining operators,” said Block. |
| Related: Jack Dorsey wants to decentralize Bitcoin mining with new investmentIntel announced in 2023 that it planned to end shipping for its Blockscale 1000 Series ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit) mining chips in April as part of cost-cutting measures. |
| The Bitcoin halving on April 19 cut the block reward for miners from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC. |
| South Korean police have caught a pair of fraudsters who stole 5.5 billion won ($4.1 million) from a senior citizen with the promise of profitable crypto investments. |
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| The Haeundae Police Station in Busan, South Korea, detained two individuals in their 20s and 30s for deceiving a senior citizen and stealing 5.5 billion South Korean won spread across multiple transactions. |
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| According to a local report, the victim was promised high returns on cryptocurrency investments between September 2022 and December 2022. |
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| The scammers guaranteed 70% profits in a monthly investment of 1 billion won. The police quoted the fraudsters saying: |
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| “It’s a boom period for coin (cryptocurrency). If you invest 1 billion won, I will call it 1.7 billion won a month later.” |
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| The victim sent 5.5 billion won in total over six different transactions to the scammers, who then forged balance certificates to show as proof of investments. |
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| During the scam, the victim was shown fake balance sheets of crypto investments and real estate contracts. |
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| South Korean police said the fake balance sheet showed 20 billion won worth of cryptocurrencies, even though none of the victim’s 5.5 billion won funds made it to the crypto trading account. |
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| While the police have detained the fraudsters in a timely manner, information about the recovery of funds has yet to be made public. |
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| Related: South Korean crypto criminals face life imprisonment |
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| Meanwhile, South Korea’s most infamous crypto entrepreneur, Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon, was reportedly released from prison in Montenegro on March 23 amid extradition requests from the United States and South Korea. |
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| Kwon is currently facing legal charges for the collapse of the Terra ecosystem in 2022. Prison director Darko Vukcevic reportedly said by phone: |
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| “We released Do Kwon from prison as his regular prison term for traveling with fake papers ended. Since he is a foreign citizen and his documents were withheld, he was taken for an interview to the police directorate for foreigners, and they will deal with him further.” |
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| The decision to release Kwon reportedly came from the Council of the Supreme Court, which is set to review a decision that could grant or deny extradition to his native South Korea. |
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| Magazine: 5 dangers to beware when apeing into Solana memecoinsSouth Korean police have caught a pair of fraudsters who stole 5.5 billion won ($4.1 million) from a senior citizen with the promise of profitable crypto investments. |
| The Haeundae Police Station in Busan, South Korea, detained two individuals in their 20s and 30s for deceiving a senior citizen and stealing 5.5 billion South Korean won spread across multiple transactions. |
| The scammers guaranteed 70% profits in a monthly investment of 1 billion won. |
| South Korean police said the fake balance sheet showed 20 billion won worth of cryptocurrencies, even though none of the victim’s 5.5 billion won funds made it to the crypto trading account. |
| Related: South Korean crypto criminals face life imprisonmentMeanwhile, South Korea’s most infamous crypto entrepreneur, Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon, was reportedly released from prison in Montenegro on March 23 amid extradition requests from the United States and South Korea. |
| Decentralized finance (DeFi) firm 1inch Network has debuted a new debit card with cryptocurrency-to-fiat bridge functionality. The new card was developed in partnership with Mastercard and Baanx. |
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| According to a blog post from 1inch, the new debit cards will feature full functionality, including a physical card featuring an account number, expiration date and the “CVC” security code required to conduct some transactions. It will also have a virtual card feature allowing users to conduct transactions digitally where supported. |
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| Christian Rau, senior vice president of crypto and fintech enablement at Mastercard, said in a statement that the new card serves as a necessary bridge between the Web3 and Web2 worlds: |
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| “We’ve long championed solutions that not only meet customers where they are, but also deliver ubiquity, peace of mind and the highest levels of security. Leveraging Mastercard’s leading technology and standards, the 1inch Card is connecting Web2 and Web3 worlds in an innovative way.” |
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| While most popular crypto and Web3 exchanges have robust features for converting fiat to crypto, and vice versa, such conversion adds extra steps to the payment process. This can slow transactions down, increase security risks and add extra fees to the process. |
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| The advent of crypto-to-fiat debit purchases allows users to retain custody of their crypto and Web3 funds with a single conversion rate to consider at the point of purchase. |
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| Related: Mastercard sees partnerships as key to blockchain remittances in Latam |
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| For now, the cards are only available in the United Kingdom and European economic areas. However, according to 1inch, the company is seeking to expand the program. |
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| Orest Gavryliak, chief legal officer at 1inch Network, told Cointelegraph that “the expansion of the service area depends on our partners. We are indeed working on geographical expansion for the 1inch card. Stay tuned!” |
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| In a post on the X social media app, 1inch Network co-founder Segej Kunz showed off the virtual payment aspect of the new card by completing a one-touch transaction with his smartphone.Decentralized finance (DeFi) firm 1inch Network has debuted a new debit card with cryptocurrency-to-fiat bridge functionality. |
| The new card was developed in partnership with Mastercard and Baanx. |
| Orest Gavryliak, chief legal officer at 1inch Network, told Cointelegraph that “the expansion of the service area depends on our partners. |
| We are indeed working on geographical expansion for the 1inch card. |
| Stay tuned!”In a post on the X social media app, 1inch Network co-founder Segej Kunz showed off the virtual payment aspect of the new card by completing a one-touch transaction with his smartphone. |
| Several identified crypto addresses have millions of dollars either “stuck” or “forgotten” about in at least two large bridge contracts, according to blockchain intelligence firm Arkham. |
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| “There are dozens of accounts with 6-7 figures stuck in bridge contracts, forgotten about,” said Arkham in an April 22 X post., including wallets connected to Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, crypto exchange Coinbase, and several DeFi whales. |
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| The firm attached two screenshots of fund transfers to and from the Arbitrum and Optimism bridges to support their case. |
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| Arkham noted a wallet that received 50 Ether (ETH) from Buterin has had $1.05 million stuck in the Optimism bridge for seven months now. If the address is owned by Buterin, it would represent a small fraction of his $789 million cryptocurrency portfolio, according to Arkham’s data. |
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| Another wallet linked to Bofur Capital, which shares the same name as a Celsius creditor, has $1.8 million in wrapped-Bitcoin (WBTC) stuck in the Arbitrum bridge, which hasn’t moved in 27 months, while Thomasg.eth — the pseudonymous founder behind decentralized air transportation solution Arrow — has $800,000 in Ether stuck in the Arbitrum bridge. |
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| Furthermore, Coinbase tried to bridge $75,000 in USD Coin (USDC) to Ethereum six months ago via the Optimism bridge, but it hasn’t been claimed on Ethereum’s base layer yet, Arkham said. |
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| Related: Wormhole bridge hacker from 2022 was briefly eligible for the recent airdrop |
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| There is, however, also a possibility that the owners behind these wallets still have complete control of the funds and have voluntarily chosen to park the funds there for the time being. |
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| Cross-chain bridges play an important part in modular blockchain networks like Ethereum, which prioritizes data availability and security on the base layer and offloads transaction responsibilities to layer 2s. |
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| However, bridges have become a honeypot site for hackers, as they are often automated by potentially vulnerable smart contracts or a highly centralized validator set. |
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| For example, the $650 million Ronin bridge hack orchestrated by North Korea’s state-backed Lazarus Group came after it obtained access to five of the nine private keys held by transaction validators in March 2022. |
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| Magazine: ‘SEAL 911’ team of white hats formed to fight crypto hacks in real timeSeveral identified crypto addresses have millions of dollars either “stuck” or “forgotten” about in at least two large bridge contracts, according to blockchain intelligence firm Arkham. |
| “There are dozens of accounts with 6-7 figures stuck in bridge contracts, forgotten about,” said Arkham in an April 22 X post., including wallets connected to Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, crypto exchange Coinbase, and several DeFi whales. |
| The firm attached two screenshots of fund transfers to and from the Arbitrum and Optimism bridges to support their case. |
| Arkham noted a wallet that received 50 Ether (ETH) from Buterin has had $1.05 million stuck in the Optimism bridge for seven months now. |
| Furthermore, Coinbase tried to bridge $75,000 in USD Coin (USDC) to Ethereum six months ago via the Optimism bridge, but it hasn’t been claimed on Ethereum’s base layer yet, Arkham said. |
| Binance’s US settlement was a ‘turning page,’ says execBinance’s record-breaking $4.3-billion settlement with the United States last year was a “turning page” for the exchange, which is welcoming the “coming wave of regulation,” said its head of institutional and VIPs Catherine Chen. |
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| Part of Binance’s settlement saw it employ an independent compliance monitor for three years and agree to a five-year U.S. Treasury monitor, which Chen said was “frankly, a great thing from my perspective” on an April 10 Paris Blockchain Week panel moderated by Cointelegraph editor-at-large Kristina Cornèr. |
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| Chen also brushed off concerns that Binance’s performance would suffer under the monitoring agreement, claiming it had “been preparing for it.” |
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| “It is a challenge, but it’s a welcome challenge, and we fully embrace it because we know that that would be great for the market.” |
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| In November 2023, Binance, Binance.US and co-founder Changpang “CZ” Zhao paid the U.S. government $4.3 billion to settle charges of violating Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and sanctions laws. |
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| Zhao agreed to step down as CEO and pleaded guilty to failing to maintain an AML program. He faces up to 18 months in jail, with his sentencing set for April 30. |
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| On the panel, Chen said having regulation in place “gives a lot more clarity” to Binance’s users and “will help them be a lot more comfortable with the industry, with the asset class [and] with the key players.” |
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| Chen on stage at Paris Blockchain Week discussing Binance’s settlement. Source: Paris Blockchain Week |
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| “Although people see challenges for us, it’s actually great. It’s the best thing that can and should happen to the industry,” she added. |
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| Related: Philippines SEC ‘can’t endorse’ ways to retrieve funds after Binance ban |
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| Binance’s new CEO, Richard Teng, told CNBC on April 9 that it “was operating in a certain fashion,” but it had “moved past that as the company moves into greater maturity.” |
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| In an on-stage interview at Paris Blockchain Week the same day, Teng said the exchange — famous for never having formal headquarters under Zhao — was looking for a global HQ and was “speaking to a few jurisdictions.” |
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| The Securities and Exchange Commission is still pursuing charges against Binance, Binance.US and Zhao, claiming they sold unregistered securities and commingled customer assets — allegations that Binance denies. |
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| Magazine: ‘SEAL 911’ team of white hats formed to fight crypto hacks in real timeBinance’s record-breaking $4.3-billion settlement with the United States last year was a “turning page” for the exchange, which is welcoming the “coming wave of regulation,” said its head of institutional and VIPs Catherine Chen. |
| Part of Binance’s settlement saw it employ an independent compliance monitor for three years and agree to a five-year U.S. Treasury monitor, which Chen said was “frankly, a great thing from my perspective” on an April 10 Paris Blockchain Week panel moderated by Cointelegraph editor-at-large Kristina Cornèr. |
| Zhao agreed to step down as CEO and pleaded guilty to failing to maintain an AML program. |
| On the panel, Chen said having regulation in place “gives a lot more clarity” to Binance’s users and “will help them be a lot more comfortable with the industry, with the asset class [and] with the key players.”Chen on stage at Paris Blockchain Week discussing Binance’s settlement. |
| Source: Paris Blockchain Week“Although people see challenges for us, it’s actually great. |
| Some Web3 startups are turning to accelerator programs as crypto enters a new bull market and investors look to get involved in the |
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| Accelerator programs offer mentorship and guidance in return for early equity. For example, United States-based Y Combinator counts several crypto firms, such as Coinbase and OpenSea, among its alumni. |
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| On March 26, Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) revealed the lineup for its spring 2024 crypto startup accelerator. The 25 startups will undergo a 10-week mentorship program in London led by the a16z crypto team. |
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| Operating partner Jason Rosenthal shared a list featuring projects including Farcaster infrastructure, decentralized food delivery and zero-knowledge passport authentication. Startups in a16z’s accelerator get $500,000 from the firm in exchange for 7% equity. Alumni include Flashbots and Phantom. |
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| On Nov. 9, 2023, the Avalanche Foundation and Ava Labs introduced the first group of startups in its accelerator, Codebase. The program will see investments ranging from $500,000 to $1 million for startups. |
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| Helika, a Web3 gaming infrastructure company, revealed its collaboration with Pantera Capital, Spartan Capital, Sfermion and other venture capital firms to allocate up to $50 million to startups participating in its new Web3 gaming accelerator, Helika Accelerate. |
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| Related: Paradigm’s funding takes Farcaster’s dev to unicorn status |
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| The cryptosphere has seen a resurgence in venture capital activity as the bull market ramps up. Crypto-native venture firm 1kx recently disclosed an oversubscribed $75 million fundraising round, while Hack VC finalized a $150 million round in February. |
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| Sam Lehman, principal at Symbolic Capital, emphasized in a March 26 X post that robust crypto accelerators play a vital role in fostering community among founders within the network-centric Web3 sphere. |
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| Lehman highlighted the rise of new crypto accelerators driven by funds aiming to boost their brand and deploy capital quickly. However, he warned of potential predatory practices among some accelerators: |
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| “Some accelerators are using the early stage at which they invest plus their proposed ‘value-add’ to come in and take extremely big positions in companies immediately. Founders should definitely think twice about whether the terms they’d accept from an accelerator are worth what they’d receive in return.” |
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| Investment activity in Web3 gaming has also steadily increased recently. 0G Labs closed a $35 million pre-seed funding round on March 25, with participation from over 40 crypto-native institutions, including Hack VC and the Blockchain Builders Fund. |
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| Magazine: SEC can proceed with Coinbase lawsuit: Court rulingSome Web3 startups are turning to accelerator programs as crypto enters a new bull market and investors look to get involved in theAccelerator programs offer mentorship and guidance in return for early equity. |
| Helika, a Web3 gaming infrastructure company, revealed its collaboration with Pantera Capital, Spartan Capital, Sfermion and other venture capital firms to allocate up to $50 million to startups participating in its new Web3 gaming accelerator, Helika Accelerate. |
| Related: Paradigm’s funding takes Farcaster’s dev to unicorn statusThe cryptosphere has seen a resurgence in venture capital activity as the bull market ramps up. |
| Crypto-native venture firm 1kx recently disclosed an oversubscribed $75 million fundraising round, while Hack VC finalized a $150 million round in February. |
| Lehman highlighted the rise of new crypto accelerators driven by funds aiming to boost their brand and deploy capital quickly. |
| The director of civil forfeiture in the Canadian province of British Columbia has made an unexplained wealth order to confiscate cash, 45 gold bars and luxury items found in a safe deposit box linked to a co-founder of the QuadrigaCX cryptocurrency exchange. |
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| An unexplained wealth order is a type of court order that compels a person to explain how they acquired their assets. Mike Farnworth, the province’s minister of public safety and solicitor general, said in a statement: |
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| “Through this action, we are demonstrating again that criminals will have to prove that their assets are the proceeds of lawful activity and not financial crime. The international, criminal actions of Quadriga Coin Exchange (Quadriga CX) led to thousands of people losing their life savings.” |
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| QuadrigaCX, once the largest cryptocurrency exchange in Canada, became insolvent in February 2019, shortly after its co-founder, Gerald Cotten, died in India, taking the private keys to QuadrigaCX’s offline storage systems to the grave. |
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| According to documents submitted to the British Columbia Supreme Court, the assets are allegedly the proceeds of criminal activities linked to Michael Patryn, co-founder of Quadriga Coin Exchange, and Gerald Cotten. The order facilitated the seizure of a safe deposit box at CIBC Bank along with an account. |
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| Related: QuadrigaCX creditors set to receive 13% of their claims as an ‘interim dividend’ |
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| Civil forfeiture has existed in British Columbia since 2006, allowing the province to confiscate property without criminal charges. |
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| Inside the safe deposit box were 250,200 Canadian dollars ($184,250) in cash, gold bars, two Rolex watches, a Chanel J12 Black Diamond watch and other jewelry items. |
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| Additionally, the box contained a 45-caliber Ruger 1911 pistol with ammunition and identity documents bearing the names Omar Dhanani and Omar Patryn, according to the CBC. |
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| The order contends that Patryn played a significant role in QuadrigaCX’s activities, including misappropriating customer funds and cryptocurrency, justifying the seizure of assets. |
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| Following the seizure, the next course of action is to prompt a response from Patryn to account for his wealth. |
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| After QuadrigaCX’s collapse, Patryn embarked on a new venture in decentralized finance, participating in various protocols like Wonderland and UwU Lend, using the alias “Sifu.” |
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| Michael Patryn was previously known as Omar Dhanani before two name changes in 2003 and 2008. He has been convicted of various financial crimes in the United States. |
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| Magazine: $3.4B of Bitcoin in a popcorn tin — The Silk Road hacker’s storyAn unexplained wealth order is a type of court order that compels a person to explain how they acquired their assets. |
| The order facilitated the seizure of a safe deposit box at CIBC Bank along with an account. |
| Inside the safe deposit box were 250,200 Canadian dollars ($184,250) in cash, gold bars, two Rolex watches, a Chanel J12 Black Diamond watch and other jewelry items. |
| Additionally, the box contained a 45-caliber Ruger 1911 pistol with ammunition and identity documents bearing the names Omar Dhanani and Omar Patryn, according to the CBC. |
| The order contends that Patryn played a significant role in QuadrigaCX’s activities, including misappropriating customer funds and cryptocurrency, justifying the seizure of assets. |
| United States crypto-related stocks posted gains on Monday alongside a broader market upturn just days after the Bitcoin (BTC) halving — with some notching double-digit percentage gains. |
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| The country’s five largest public-traded Bitcoin miners by market capitalization, Marathon Digital (MARA), CleanSpark (CLSK), Riot Platforms (RIOT) Cipher Mining (CIFR), and Hut 8 (HUT) all gained over the April 22 trading day and have continued to gain in after-hours trading, per Google Finance. |
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| Stronghold Digital Mining (SDIG) was the day’s biggest crypto-related gainer with a 35.3% bump to $3.64, extending 4% after-hours to nearly $3.80. |
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| Riot followed with an over 23% jump to $11.24 and a 3.2% after-the-bell rally to $11.60. |
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| The top 10 U.S. crypto mining stocks in order of their April 22 gains. Source: CompaniesMarketCap |
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| Overall, U.S. crypto miners saw price gains on the day extending their rallies from Friday, April 19. |
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| The Valkyrie Bitcoin Miners ETF (WGMI) — which holds mining stocks and some chipmakers including Nvidia (NVDA) — posted an 11% gain and a 3% rise after hours to $16.69. |
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| The crypto stock price jumps come despite their Bitcoin mining rewards being halved to 3.125 BTC per block after the halving on Saturday, April 20 just after midnight UTC — April 19 at 8:09 pm in New York. |
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| It coincides with a broader U.S. market gain as the Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500, respectively, saw a 1.1% and 0.8% jump on the day after last week’s stretch of losses — which has been attributed to diminished tensions in the Middle East and incoming earnings reports from major tech firms. |
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| Related: Bitcoin ETF demand turns negative around BTC halving |
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| CIBC Private Wealth investment chief David Donabedian however told Barron’s on April 22 that the market dampened on high inflation rates, hiking bond yields, and speculation on the Federal Reserve’s expected rate cuts. |
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| He added nearly half of the country’s largest companies will share their first-quarter earnings this week which could also add to market volatility. |
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| Bitcoin’s price has risen 4.5% to $66,810 since the halving, according to Cointelegraph Markets Pro. Ahead of the event, market commentators predicted mixed results for the cryptocurrency’s price after the halving had taken place. |
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| Bitcoin’s price in the last week with the white vertical line denoting the time of its halving. Source: Cointelegraph Markets Pro |
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| Meanwhile, crypto exchange Coinbase had a 7% gain to $225.86 with a slight 0.8% bump after-hours as did the Bitcoin-buying software firm MicroStrategy (MSTR) — seeing a 12.7% daily gain extending 2.5% after-hours to $1,357. |
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| Web3 Gamer: Bitcoin Halving will pump games, Shrapnel’s ‘simple’ secret revealedUnited States crypto-related stocks posted gains on Monday alongside a broader market upturn just days after the Bitcoin (BTC) halving — with some notching double-digit percentage gains. |
| The top 10 U.S. crypto mining stocks in order of their April 22 gains. |
| Source: CompaniesMarketCapOverall, U.S. crypto miners saw price gains on the day extending their rallies from Friday, April 19. |
| The Valkyrie Bitcoin Miners ETF (WGMI) — which holds mining stocks and some chipmakers including Nvidia (NVDA) — posted an 11% gain and a 3% rise after hours to $16.69. |
| Web3 Gamer: Bitcoin Halving will pump games, Shrapnel’s ‘simple’ secret revealed |
| Gurbir Grewal, the director of the Division of Enforcement at the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), has pushed back against criticism that the regulator is making up rules on crypto as it goes. |
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| In prepared remarks for an SEC Speaks event on April 3, Grewal claimed that companies in the crypto industry had made “many creative attempts” to avoid the commission’s jurisdiction by continuing to operate in the United States. He also addressed concerns that the SEC was “recklessly exceeding” its authority or “regulating by enforcement” in lawsuits brought against crypto firms. |
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| Gurbir Grewal at SEC Speaks on April 3. Source: Practising Law Institute |
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| Grewal pointed to Sam Bankman-Fried as an example of the need for enforcement cases. On March 28, the former FTX CEO was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison for defrauding investors of the crypto exchange, including “people who were forced to sell their home, their car, or take on a second job to make up for their losses.” |
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| “It’s my hope that, after the latest in a long and growing string of courts affirming our authority to police the crypto markets, we can move past them and address the very real issues present in this industry that lead to elevated investor risk: fraud, lack of transparency, commingling of assets, conflicts of interest, and lack of oversight, to mention just a few,” said the enforcement director. |
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| Related: Coinbase Wallet triumph over SEC allegations is a ‘giant win’ for DeFi |
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| Grewal reiterated that the SEC’s standard for determining what a security is under the Howey test had been “clearly and consistently applied.” He did not specifically address reports that the SEC had been exploring whether to classify Ether (ETH) as a security rather than a commodity under the U.S. Commodity Future Trading Commission’s purview. |
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| “These are not secret analyses; they are public documents for the whole world to see,” said Grewal. “Even parties that argue in court that their conduct does not implicate the federal securities laws have themselves used the Howey framework internally for years to evaluate crypto offerings.” |
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| In March, a Utah judge imposed sanctions on the SEC for acting in “bad faith” in a lawsuit it brought against the firm Debt Box. Many industry participants have pointed to the commission’s seemingly inconsistent approach to enforcement on crypto firms and exchange-traded funds, hinting it could lead to an exodus from the United States. |
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| The enforcement director’s comments followed those from SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce, who on April 2 criticized the regulator’s accounting guidelines for institutions looking to custody crypto assets. She and other staff and commissioners will speak at the SEC Speaks event ending on April 3. |
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| Magazine: Lawmakers’ fear and doubt drives proposed crypto regulations in USIn prepared remarks for an SEC Speaks event on April 3, Grewal claimed that companies in the crypto industry had made “many creative attempts” to avoid the commission’s jurisdiction by continuing to operate in the United States. |
| He also addressed concerns that the SEC was “recklessly exceeding” its authority or “regulating by enforcement” in lawsuits brought against crypto firms. |
| Gurbir Grewal at SEC Speaks on April 3. |
| Many industry participants have pointed to the commission’s seemingly inconsistent approach to enforcement on crypto firms and exchange-traded funds, hinting it could lead to an exodus from the United States. |
| She and other staff and commissioners will speak at the SEC Speaks event ending on April 3. |
| Solana decentralized exchange (DEX) Jupiter is allocating 10 million USD Coin (USDC) and 100 million of its native JUP token ($127 million), worth a combined $137 million at the time of publication, to kickstart its Jupiter DAO. |
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| As announced on March 27, the budget “provides the DAO the capability to fund the ideas with USDC and have the JUP allocation for long term incentive alignment with J.U.P Catributors,” Jupiter wrote, continuing: “To ensure that the DAO will be able to execute on these crucial things over the long term, we will aim to top up the same budget on a yearly basis.” |
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| For additional contributions, Jupiter raised the following example: |
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| “If the DAO ends the year with 1.5M USDC and 50M JUP, the team will replenish 8.5M USDC from revenues and an additional 50M JUP will be transferred from the community cold wallets.” |
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| At its inception, the ecosystem funds are stored in a decentralized autonomous organization multisignature wallet with three initial members, with plans to expand access to more custodians within the coming weeks. Parallel to the announcement, the Jupiter DAO wallet address was funded with two separate transactions of USDC and JUP. |
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| We have officially funded 10M USDC and 100M JUP into a DAO wallet. |
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| This operational budget provides the DAO the capability to fund the ideas with USDC and have the JUP allocation for long term incentive alignment with J.U.P Catributors. |
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| Besides LFG selection, the DAO will also… — Jupiter (@JupiterExchange) March 27, 2024 |
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| Jupiter is currently one of the most popular decentralized applications on the Solana blockchain, with $381.49 million in total value locked (TVL), having grown 86% month over month. The DEX accounts for approximately 8% of the Solana ecosystem’s total TVL at the time of publication. The JUP token currently has a fully diluted market cap of $12.5 billion. |
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| With a gain of 807% in the past year, Solana’s SOL (SOL) has become one of the largest cryptocurrencies by market cap. A huge part of that growth was driven by the recent memecoin craze. On March 25, Jeo Boden (BODEN), a Solana memecoin parody of United States President Joe Biden, surpassed $250 million in market cap, with a gain of 54% within the past 24 hours. |
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| Related: Solana takes the lead in weekly stablecoin transfer volumeSolana decentralized exchange (DEX) Jupiter is allocating 10 million USD Coin (USDC) and 100 million of its native JUP token ($127 million), worth a combined $137 million at the time of publication, to kickstart its Jupiter DAO. |
| Parallel to the announcement, the Jupiter DAO wallet address was funded with two separate transactions of USDC and JUP. |
| We have officially funded 10M USDC and 100M JUP into a DAO wallet. |
| This operational budget provides the DAO the capability to fund the ideas with USDC and have the JUP allocation for long term incentive alignment with J.U.P Catributors. |
| With a gain of 807% in the past year, Solana’s SOL (SOL) has become one of the largest cryptocurrencies by market cap. |
| The price of Bitcoin (BTC) could double from its current value of $69,000 in as little as three months time, according to an analyst’s take on a widely used momentum indicator. |
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| Pseudonymous analyst TechDev told their 440,000 followers on X that Bitcoin had closed two consecutive months above the upper Bollinger Band, adding that every time Bitcoin had done this in the past, its price had doubled within the next three months. |
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| This would put Bitcoin at around $140,000 by July. |
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| In technical analysis, Bollinger Bands are a tool that measures the momentum and volatility of an asset within a certain range. Typically, when prices touch the upper band, it can indicate an overbought signal, while touching the lower band indicates an asset being oversold. |
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| However, Bollinger Bands are just one of many technical indicators available to analysts, and according to Investopedia, they are more reactive than predictive, given their use of past price action and volatility data. The metrics can also differ widely during peak bull and bear markets. |
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| Bitcoin has “room to run” |
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| Meanwhile, SkyBridge Capital CEO Anthony Scaramucci took to CNBC on April 6 to predict that Bitcoin could reach as high as $170,000 during the cycle and could eventually trade at around half the total value of the global gold market. |
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| “I’m simply saying it could trade to half the valuation of gold, which is around six to eight to 10 times move from here.” |
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| “It’s not going to happen overnight, and there will be a lot of volatility,” he added. |
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| Bitcoin currently commands a market capitalization of $1.35 trillion, while gold boasts a total value of $15.8 trillion. If Bitcoin were to trade at half the value of gold, its market cap would need to grow roughly six times from here, which would result in a price of roughly $400,000 per BTC. |
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| #Bitcoin is up over 140% over the last year, hitting all-time highs last month fueled by demand from spot ETFs. @Scaramucci discusses why he thinks Bitcoin is back: pic.twitter.com/HJxQEy6XY0 — CNBC's Closing Bell (@CNBCClosingBell) April 5, 2024 |
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| Describing the 10 recently approved spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) as “selling machines,” Scaramucci argued these products would continue to spur increased retail and institutional demand for the crypto asset. |
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| Nine of the 10 spot Bitcoin ETFs have now seen over $12 billion worth of net inflows, with Grayscale being the odd one out. In contrast, when the Gold ETF (GLD) was launched in November 2004, it took nearly one year to notch $10 billion in inflows. |
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| Like many other market commentators, Scaramucci viewed the upcoming Bitcoin halving — currently scheduled for April 20 — as a major catalyst for Bitcoin price appreciation in the short term. |
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| Crypto market cap to hit $5 trillion: Ripple CEO |
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| The optimism also wasn’t lost on Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse, who predicts that the value of the entire crypto sector would double by the end of this year. |
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| In an April 7 report from CNBC, Garlinghouse predicted that the entire crypto sector would be worth $5 trillion by the end of the year, looking to the upcoming halving, regulatory developments and the increasing popularity of Bitcoin ETFs as having a continued positive effect on wider crypto adoption. |
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| Related: Bitcoin halving will have to battle with ‘weak time of year’ — Coinbase |
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| “I’ve been around this industry for a long time, and I’ve seen these trends come and go,” Garlinghouse said. |
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| “I’m very optimistic. I think the macro trends, the big picture things like the ETFs, they’re driving for the first time real institutional money.” |
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| Magazine: Creating ‘good’ AGI that won’t kill us all — Crypto’s Artificial Superintelligence Alliance","The price of Bitcoin (BTC) could double from its current value of $69,000 in as little as three months time, according to an analyst’s take on a widely used momentum indicator. |
| Typically, when prices touch the upper band, it can indicate an overbought signal, while touching the lower band indicates an asset being oversold. |
| Bitcoin currently commands a market capitalization of $1.35 trillion, while gold boasts a total value of $15.8 trillion. |
| Nine of the 10 spot Bitcoin ETFs have now seen over $12 billion worth of net inflows, with Grayscale being the odd one out. |
| Like many other market commentators, Scaramucci viewed the upcoming Bitcoin halving — currently scheduled for April 20 — as a major catalyst for Bitcoin price appreciation in the short term." |
| Bitwise CIO ‘excited’ for a product that gives exposure to Ethereum DeFi,"Cryptocurrency asset management firm Bitwise has hinted interest in offering an exchange-traded product (ETP) covering Ethereum’s ecosystem of layer-2 (L2) networks and applications, according to Bitwise’s chief investment officer, Matt Hougan. |
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| “I’m somewhere between embarrassed and excited with the fact that Bitwise doesn’t have one, because I do think that would be a great product,” Hougan explained in an interview with Forbes, published on March 31. |
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| Hougan said he has “extraordinary confidence” that the Ethereum ecosystem will evolve but said it’s still up in the air, which L2s and applications will come out on top. |
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| “I have a hard time imagining what the future will be like three years from now when there are a hundred popular real-world decentralized applications that people are using and where the economics will flow,” he said, adding: |
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| “So the best way to approach that would be to own them all, which would be a great product for what it’s worth.” |
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| Hougan also reiterated that the market is underestimating the importance of the Dencun upgrade by a factor of 10 or 20. |
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| “It is a complete game changer, and I think the market hasn’t recognized that.” |
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| Hopes for Ether ETFs to launch in December |
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| Meanwhile, Hougan said he was concerned the market may not be ready for a spot Ether (ETH) exchange-traded fund (ETF) by May and that he hopes the United States securities regulator pushes back approval until December. |
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| “It’s hard to get financial advisers to think about Ethereum right now,” as TradFi is still digesting the recently approved spot Bitcoin (BTC) ETFs, Hougan said. |
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| “If you shove it down their throat in May, I’m not sure they will be [ready],” Hougan stressed. |
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| “Part of me hopes that it’s December or something like that because I think that would be better for the market.” |
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| Bitwise filed its S-1 and 19-b4 forms with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to list a spot Ether ETF on March 28. |
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| BlackRock, VanEck, ARK 21Shares, Fidelity, Grayscale Hashdex, Franklin Templeton and Invesco Galaxy are among the other applicants vying for SEC approval for a spot Ether ETF, and many commentators expect May to be a key period for possible mass approvals. |
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| Related: 3 theories why the SEC may be eyeing down Ethereum: Crypto lawyer |
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| However, some analysts’ odds for spot Ether ETF approval have continued to fall, citing the SEC’s apparent lack of willingness to engage with applicants in recent months. |
| |
| But not everyone agrees. Last week, Grayscale chief legal officer Craig Salm said issues common to spot Ether ETFs “were figured out” with the spot Bitcoin ETFs — such as details of creation and redemption procedures, cash and in-kind models, asset protection, loss prevention and custody. |
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| Bitwise is one of 10 spot Bitcoin ETF issuers. Its Bitwise Bitcoin ETF (BITB) has amassed over $1.6 billion in flows — the fourth-most behind BlackRock’s IBIT, Fidelity’s FBTC and Ark 21Shares’ ARKB, according to BitMEX Research, citing March 28 data. |
| |
| Magazine: Crypto regulation — Does SEC Chair Gary Gensler have the final say?","“I’m somewhere between embarrassed and excited with the fact that Bitwise doesn’t have one, because I do think that would be a great product,” Hougan explained in an interview with Forbes, published on March 31. |
| “It’s hard to get financial advisers to think about Ethereum right now,” as TradFi is still digesting the recently approved spot Bitcoin (BTC) ETFs, Hougan said. |
| Last week, Grayscale chief legal officer Craig Salm said issues common to spot Ether ETFs “were figured out” with the spot Bitcoin ETFs — such as details of creation and redemption procedures, cash and in-kind models, asset protection, loss prevention and custody. |
| Bitwise is one of 10 spot Bitcoin ETF issuers. |
| Its Bitwise Bitcoin ETF (BITB) has amassed over $1.6 billion in flows — the fourth-most behind BlackRock’s IBIT, Fidelity’s FBTC and Ark 21Shares’ ARKB, according to BitMEX Research, citing March 28 data." |
| New Telegram mini-apps will be so convenient users won’t know it’s crypto,"Telegram’s 900 million users will be able to make peer-to-peer interactions seamlessly as the messaging app incorporates mini-apps and the Tether (USDT) stablecoins. Many users will interface with crypto for the first time and not even notice it. |
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| Developers will also benefit as they launch ecommerce, paywalled content, games and other business activities on top of The Open Network’s (TON’s) layer-1 blockchain more smoothly thanks to the stablecoin, TON Foundation director of investments Justin Hyun told Cointelegraph’s Ezra Reguerra at the Token2049 conference in Dubai. Telegram is also continuing the rollout of its TON-based wallet. |
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| The launch of Tether on TON “really unlocks the creator economy that is already happening in TON and Telegram” as users “no longer need to jump through the barriers of having to acquire a different type of crypto or token,” Hyun said. He added: |
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| “The most interesting use cases are the ones that engage in social viral mechanics. So there are games that are being created on a daily basis that are powered through Telegram mini-apps.” |
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| Those products will be available without downloading outside apps. The advantages of that are clear. Hyun gave the Catizen game as an example. When the developers came to TON from a different blockchain, they gained 2 million users in two months, compared to 600,000 in a year and a half previously. |
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| Related: Telegram commits to TON blockchain, plans to support tokenized emojis and stickers NFTs |
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| Other social media are highly regionalized. “We have seen the rise of super apps which were not able to break through the barriers,” Hyun said, pointing to WeChat in China, Line in Japan and KakaoTalk in South Korea. TON’s global reach and native USDT remove the need for local payment gateways. Tether also makes it possible for Telegram to circumvent the payment restrictions imposed by Google and Apple. |
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| Source: TON |
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| TON is thus returning to the original vision that was scuttled by the inability of The Open Network to hold an initial coin offering in 2020 due to United States Securities and Exchange Commission’s opposition, Hyun said. The TON Foundation was created in 2021 by open-source developers who took over the project. |
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| Magazine: Shanghai Man: Hack of little-known Poly Network highlights East-West crypto divide","Telegram’s 900 million users will be able to make peer-to-peer interactions seamlessly as the messaging app incorporates mini-apps and the Tether (USDT) stablecoins. |
| Many users will interface with crypto for the first time and not even notice it. |
| Related: Telegram commits to TON blockchain, plans to support tokenized emojis and stickers NFTsOther social media are highly regionalized. |
| Tether also makes it possible for Telegram to circumvent the payment restrictions imposed by Google and Apple. |
| Magazine: Shanghai Man: Hack of little-known Poly Network highlights East-West crypto divide" |
| Bankrupt Voyager platform secures $484M for creditor repayments,"Bankrupt crypto firm Voyager Digital has made progress toward compensating its creditors by securing $484 million through settlements with FTX, Three Arrows Capital (3AC) and Directors and Officers (D&O) insurance claims. This marks a significant milestone in the company’s financial recovery and creditor reimbursement efforts. |
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| In an April 9 filing in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York, Voyager disclosed that the majority of the reclaimed funds, roughly $450 million, stem from a settlement with FTX. |
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| Voyager filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in July 2022 as the crypto market suffered several shocks, including the collapse of the Terra ecosystem in May. |
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| In October 2023, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed parallel lawsuits against former Voyager CEO Stephen Ehrlich for fraudulent statements. |
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| This settlement, including interest, accounts for about 25% of Voyager creditors’ aggregate claims and is anticipated to be disbursed shortly. |
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| In addition to the FTX agreement, Voyager has obtained a claim of approximately $675 million from its ongoing litigation with Three Arrows Capital. Of this amount, $20.43 million represents Voyager’s proportionate share of the initial distribution from 3AC. |
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| The administrator expects additional payments to be disbursed in the coming years as assets are sold off and further litigation settlements are secured. A settlement reached through D&O insurance mediation will also allocate at least $14.35 million to benefit Voyager’s creditors. |
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| Related: Former SEC official compares Dallas Mavericks’ Voyager partnership to heroin |
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| As Voyager progresses through its financial recovery journey, the company faces operational hurdles, including many uncashed checks. Around 270,000 checks totaling $17 million remain uncashed, with the majority valued at less than $25. |
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| Voyager has set a deadline of April 20, after which these uncashed checks will be voided if not claimed. |
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| Voyager is also still dealing with the repercussions of an FTX data breach. An investigation is being conducted to identify the origin and consequences of the breach, which resulted in the compromise of creditor data. |
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| As of May 2023, a restructuring plan proposed having Voyager customers recover 35.7% of their claims in cryptocurrency or cash. The crypto exchange settled with the FTC for $1.65 billion in monetary relief in November 2023. |
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| Magazine: Billions are spent marketing crypto to sports fans — Is it worth it?","This settlement, including interest, accounts for about 25% of Voyager creditors’ aggregate claims and is anticipated to be disbursed shortly. |
| In addition to the FTX agreement, Voyager has obtained a claim of approximately $675 million from its ongoing litigation with Three Arrows Capital. |
| Related: Former SEC official compares Dallas Mavericks’ Voyager partnership to heroinAs Voyager progresses through its financial recovery journey, the company faces operational hurdles, including many uncashed checks. |
| Voyager has set a deadline of April 20, after which these uncashed checks will be voided if not claimed. |
| As of May 2023, a restructuring plan proposed having Voyager customers recover 35.7% of their claims in cryptocurrency or cash." |
| BTCFi is an ‘enormous opportunity’ to make Bitcoin a productive asset — Stacks,"Bitcoin decentralized finance (DeFi) will make Bitcoin (BTC) a more versatile asset with yield-generating capabilities, Andre Serrano, product and partnership manager at Stacks, told Cointelegraph in an exclusive interview: |
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| “The vision is simple: Bitcoin is a $1.2 trillion asset class with very little on-chain activity. So there’s an enormous opportunity for protocols and layer-2s to make Bitcoin a productive asset.” |
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| Bitcoin-native DeFi, or BTCFi, is a recent development seeking to bring DeFi capabilities to the world’s first blockchain network. With the current pace of adoption and development, the market for Bitcoin layer-2 networks could overtake the market for Ethereum layer-2s, according to Serrano: |
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| “L2s just open up the design space for what’s possible with Bitcoin… Over the next few years, I fully expect the market for Bitcoin L2s to likely meet and exceed that of Ethereum L2s.” |
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| Serrano’s predictions come days ahead of the anticipated Bitcoin halving, as Bitcoin was trading above the $63,500 mark as of 8:30 am UTC, following a 7.9% weekly decline, according to data from CoinMarketCap. |
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| BTC/USD, 1-day chart. Source: CoinMarketCap |
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| Showcasing investor demand for BTCFi, decentralized exchange (DEX) MerlinSwap raised 6,599 Bitcoin worth $480 million during its initial DEX offering (IDO) on April 5. The IDO attracted over 52,000 participants. |
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| Related: Bitcoin supply to run out on exchanges in 9 months — Bybit |
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| Bitcoin L2 networks are a significant element of BTCFi, enabling lower transaction costs and additional use cases for the world’s first blockchain network. For instance, L2 network Stacks enable the creation of smart contracts on the Bitcoin network. |
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| Stacks’ Serrano argued that L2s for Bitcoin are more important than for Ethereum, which already comes with inherent smart contract capabilities. He added that L2s are necessary to scale the Bitcoin network beyond its current transaction limitations. |
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| Andre Serrano interview with Cointelegraph. Source: Cointelegraph |
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| He noted that some of the “low-hanging fruits” for making Bitcoin a more productive asset involved the creation of yield-generating capabilities and lending protocols around Bitcoin. |
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| Other market participants are also optimistic about Bitcoin-native DeFi. With the current adoption rate, BTCFi could match the innovation of Ethereum DeFi, according to Nash Lee, co-founder of MerlinSwap. He told Cointelegraph: |
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| “[Market appetite] is seeking expansive platforms capable of accommodating the surging volumes and expectations. DeFi stands out as the only sector with the potential to leverage this narrative, providing a sustainable ecosystem for Bitcoin’s evolving use cases. This dynamic sets the stage for Bitcoin DeFi to potentially match, if not exceed, the innovation and complexity seen in Ethereum’s DeFi ecosystem.” |
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| Related: 'China is about to start bidding' — Will Hong Kong Bitcoin ETFs spark the halving rally?","So there’s an enormous opportunity for protocols and layer-2s to make Bitcoin a productive asset.”Bitcoin-native DeFi, or BTCFi, is a recent development seeking to bring DeFi capabilities to the world’s first blockchain network. |
| For instance, L2 network Stacks enable the creation of smart contracts on the Bitcoin network. |
| Stacks’ Serrano argued that L2s for Bitcoin are more important than for Ethereum, which already comes with inherent smart contract capabilities. |
| He added that L2s are necessary to scale the Bitcoin network beyond its current transaction limitations. |
| With the current adoption rate, BTCFi could match the innovation of Ethereum DeFi, according to Nash Lee, co-founder of MerlinSwap." |
| Ore creator proposes rewards to tackle Solana congestion,"Hardhat Chad, the pseudonymous creator of the Ore project, has suggested that the Solana Foundation offer a reward if it intends to incentivize testnet activity. |
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| This suggestion comes after the Solana network faced congestion issues for nearly a week with a transaction failure rate as high as 75%. |
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| In a post on the X social platform, Hardhat Chad said that if Solana blockchain platform wishes to encourage users to participate in testnet activities, such as testing new features or protocols, the Solana Foundation should provide an incentive in the form of SOL (SOL) tokens. |
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| This incentive could motivate users to actively engage in testing, which can improve the platform’s performance and identify potential issues before deployment to the mainnet. |
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| The community’s response to Hardhat Chad’s suggestion was divided. Some supported it, while others disagreed. One user, TheSoftwareJedi, disagreed, advising Chad to focus on building his project first and demonstrating goodwill to the foundation. |
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| The user proposed that Hardhat Chad could apply for funding via a grant from the foundation but stressed the significance of preserving autonomy from foundation incentives. |
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| However, Hardhat Chad clarified that he isn’t looking for funds from the foundation. His goal for Ore is to establish a currency, not develop testnet tools. He’s reassessing incentives to combat spam, questioning the need to prioritize building testnet spam bots. |
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| This proposal comes after Hardhat Chad announced via social media that the immediate cessation of mining operations was essential for the well-being of the Solana network and Ore’s stakeholders. Hardhat Chad emphasized the need for an overhauled smart contract framework amid recent network difficulties. |
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| Related: Withdrawals from real estate betting platform Parcl hit $74M after airdrop |
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| This strategic move also aligns with the project’s roadmap for developing Ore’s second version (v2), emphasizing a commitment to long-term sustainability. |
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| Ore, a blockchain-based project launched on Solana, is exploring the proper distribution method by using a proof-of-work (PoW) token distribution mechanism. The project is experimenting with combining PoW’s security with Solana’s fast transaction capabilities. |
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| Since its introduction, Ore’s activity has contributed significantly to Solana’s network congestion, impacting transaction scheduling and leading to a high rate of failed transactions, especially from the memecoin frenzy on the network. |
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| However, Solana developers have released a mainnet beta update, v1.17.31, to address the ongoing network congestion on the Solana blockchain. |
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| This patch contains enhancements that will help with some of the ongoing network congestion, and further improvements will follow in v1.18. |
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| Magazine: Bitcoin ETFs make Coinbase a ‘honeypot’ for hackers and governments — Trezor CEO","Hardhat Chad, the pseudonymous creator of the Ore project, has suggested that the Solana Foundation offer a reward if it intends to incentivize testnet activity. |
| This suggestion comes after the Solana network faced congestion issues for nearly a week with a transaction failure rate as high as 75%. |
| This proposal comes after Hardhat Chad announced via social media that the immediate cessation of mining operations was essential for the well-being of the Solana network and Ore’s stakeholders. |
| However, Solana developers have released a mainnet beta update, v1.17.31, to address the ongoing network congestion on the Solana blockchain. |
| This patch contains enhancements that will help with some of the ongoing network congestion, and further improvements will follow in v1.18." |
| "Stablecoin, retail CBDC sandboxes are on South African payments roadmap","The South African Reserve Bank has released a digital payments roadmap toward the goals of its Vision 2025, published six years ago. |
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| Adoption of digital payment technologies in the country has been “sluggish,” the report said. It looked at ways to catch up to the vision, including plans for cryptocurrency and central bank digital currency (CBDC). |
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| South Africa’s financial services sector, especially banking, is well-developed. Despite advances in digital payment technology, South Africans with lower and middle living standards remain disproportionately dependent on cash, the report found. User costs, low financial literacy, limited accessibility and lack of trust hinder progress, however. |
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| The roadmap looked at high-level plans to increase accessibility of financial technology, modernize payment infrastructure and remove barriers to use. The scope of the plans is strictly domestic. |
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| Related: South Africa adds new cryptocurrency standards to advertising code |
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| In South Africa, crypto assets are not legal tender, but are not banned. Local online and brick-and-mortar retailer Pick n Pay accepts payment in Bitcoin at over 1,600 locations, for example. The SARB is looking to international best practices for regulation and open to greater use of distributed ledger technology: |
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| “In the interim [before regulations are in place], the SARB is open to allowing eligible stablecoins used for domestic payments to be tested in the regulatory sandbox.” |
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| The SARB said the sandbox would have a two-year timeline. Cryptocurrency is being integrated into the South African financial system through the licensing of exchanges as well. |
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| CBDC will get similar treatment. The SARB launched a study of retail CBDC in 2021. CBDC has the potential for greater cost effectiveness and real-time online and offline peer-to-peer digital payments. The roadmap suggested continuing exploration of both retail and wholesale CBDC for two years. |
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| Source: SA Reserve Bank |
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| Tokenization faces regulatory barriers in South Africa. The SARB noted the benefits of tokenization, especially its enhanced security. However: |
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| “Existing regulations may not be specific or enabling for tokenised use cases, which may result in unregulated or the underregulation of payment activities that introduce risks in the payment ecosystem.” |
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| Meanwhile, the SARB is monitoring the growth of the technology, it said. |
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| Magazine: South Africa’s digital-nomad crypto hub: Cape Town, Crypto City Guide","The South African Reserve Bank has released a digital payments roadmap toward the goals of its Vision 2025, published six years ago. |
| Adoption of digital payment technologies in the country has been “sluggish,” the report said. |
| Despite advances in digital payment technology, South Africans with lower and middle living standards remain disproportionately dependent on cash, the report found. |
| The roadmap looked at high-level plans to increase accessibility of financial technology, modernize payment infrastructure and remove barriers to use. |
| CBDC has the potential for greater cost effectiveness and real-time online and offline peer-to-peer digital payments." |
| Sam Bankman-Fried files to appeal conviction and sentence,"Lawyers representing Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried have filed the paperwork to appeal the conviction and sentence of the former FTX CEO. |
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| In an April 11 notice filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, attorney Alexandra Shapiro said Bankman-Fried intended to appeal his conviction on seven felony counts by a jury and Judge Lewis Kaplan’s sentence of 25 years in federal prison. SBF’s lawyers said they planned to appeal at the March 28 sentencing hearing, so the filing was expected. |
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| The filing came two weeks after Bankman-Fried’s sentencing hearing, at which Judge Kaplan also ordered the forfeiture of $11 billion. On April 8, the former FTX CEO’s lawyers asked the judge to approve an order allowing SBF to remain at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn for the appeal rather than a federal prison in the San Francisco Bay Area. |
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| The case against Bankman-Fried and his associates began in November 2022, when cryptocurrency exchange FTX experienced liquidity issues and filed for bankruptcy. SBF was arrested in the Bahamas — where the firm’s offices were at the time — before being extradited to the U.S. and charged with fraud. A jury convicted Bankman-Fried of seven felony counts in November 2023. |
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| Affected crypto users seem to have split opinions on Judge Kaplan’s sentencing. Many suggested that 25 years was insufficient given the amount of harm Bankman-Fried caused thousands of FTX customers, while others hinted that the time in prison could be an effective deterrent to figures in the space. |
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| Related: FTX co-CEO Salame's sentencing moved to end of May |
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| Bankman-Fried’s filing will now likely go to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, where a panel of judges could decide whether to affirm the decision in the former FTX CEO’s conviction in federal court or reverse the decision and set the groundwork for a possible new trial. Shapiro’s filing did not suggest on what grounds SBF would seek an appeal. |
|
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| Sentencing hearings against Bankman-Fried’s associates at FTX and Alameda Research — including Ryan Salame, Caroline Ellison, Gary Wang and Nishad Singh — are moving forward, with Salame’s sentencing scheduled for May 28. The four individuals all pleaded guilty and accepted deals before SBF’s trial. |
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| Magazine: ‘Less flashy’ Mashinsky set for less jail time than SBF: Inner City Press, X Hall of FlameLawyers representing Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried have filed the paperwork to appeal the conviction and sentence of the former FTX CEO. |
| SBF’s lawyers said they planned to appeal at the March 28 sentencing hearing, so the filing was expected. |
| The filing came two weeks after Bankman-Fried’s sentencing hearing, at which Judge Kaplan also ordered the forfeiture of $11 billion. |
| The case against Bankman-Fried and his associates began in November 2022, when cryptocurrency exchange FTX experienced liquidity issues and filed for bankruptcy. |
| Shapiro’s filing did not suggest on what grounds SBF would seek an appeal. |
| AssangeDAO’s crypto activities suspicious, analysts urge cautionAnalysts at SlowMist have raised concerns about a possible “soft rug pull” on March 10 when a 100 Ether (ETH) transaction from an AssangeDAO address went to a recipient seemingly associated with the decentralized autonomous organization. |
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| The blockchain forensics firm emphasized that while the true intentions of AssangeDAO are unclear, investors should proceed with caution and conduct comprehensive due diligence before interacting with the organization. |
|
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| AssangeDAO, which launched in 2022, rose to prominence with its stand for the freedom of Julian Assange, an Australian activist famous for creating WikiLeaks, a platform committed to disclosing classified data from unidentified origins. |
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| The process of an AssangeDAO-related address transferring funds to another AssangeDAO-related address. Source: SlowMist |
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| Following a 2021 high court ruling in the United Kingdom on Assange’s extradition, backers established AssangeDAO to advocate for his freedom. |
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| The initiative amassed over $53 million in cryptocurrency contributions, including a donation from Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin. |
|
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| The AssangeDAO intends to use the funds to bid on a one-of-one nonfungible token (NFT) from a drop called “Censored” by digital artist Pak in collaboration with Assange. |
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| The sale proceeds are supposed to go toward Assange’s defense fund and additional awareness campaigns as he fights extradition to the United States. |
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| The AssangeDAO’s $53.7 million marked the largest amount raised by a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) using the community funding hosting platform Juicebox, overtaking the widely popular ConstitutionDAO, which raised $49 million from the community in late 2021 to bid on a copy of the first edition print copy of the United States Constitution. |
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| Related: Lido staked SOL holders fret as $24M remains stuck on ‘broken’ contract |
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| However, collaborative analysis by SlowMist and RescuETH discovered that beginning in 2022, AssangeDAO moved most of its funds to multiple addresses, including several associated with cryptocurrency exchanges such as Kraken and Coinbase. |
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| Furthermore, the group transferred more than 1,000 Ether to various unidentified smart contracts, dispersing the funds among numerous addresses. AssangeDAO had not issued any public statements regarding the matter at the time of publication. |
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| SlowMist analysts stressed the importance of transparency in DAO operations, highlighting that the recent transfers have sparked questions, especially regarding where the funds ultimately ended up. |
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| On Nov. 8, 2023, AssangeDAO announced that 16 members of the U.S. Congress signed a letter urging Attorney General Merrick Garland to drop the dangerous and unprecedented charges against Assange. |
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| On March 26, Assange was granted permission by a U.K. court to appeal his extradition to the United States. |
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| Magazine: Beyond crypto — Zero-knowledge proofs show potential from voting to financeThe process of an AssangeDAO-related address transferring funds to another AssangeDAO-related address. |
| Source: SlowMistFollowing a 2021 high court ruling in the United Kingdom on Assange’s extradition, backers established AssangeDAO to advocate for his freedom. |
| Furthermore, the group transferred more than 1,000 Ether to various unidentified smart contracts, dispersing the funds among numerous addresses. |
| SlowMist analysts stressed the importance of transparency in DAO operations, highlighting that the recent transfers have sparked questions, especially regarding where the funds ultimately ended up. |
| On March 26, Assange was granted permission by a U.K. court to appeal his extradition to the United States. |
| BlackRock iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) has notched its first day of $0 in inflows since Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) were introduced in the United States in January. |
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| Ever since its launch on Jan. 11, IBIT has consistently attracted investments worth millions of dollars daily, racking up nearly $15.5 billion in just 71 days. The inflow streak ended for BlackRock on April 24 after it recorded $0 of inflows. |
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| Bitcoin ETF inflow and outflow data. Source: Farside |
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| Most of the other Bitcoin ETF participants witnessed a dry spell as well. Of the 11 United States-registered Bitcoin ETFs, Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) and ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB) were the only two to record inflows of $5.6 million and $4.2 million, respectively. |
|
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| Additionally, Grayscale Bitcoin Trust ETF (GBTC) continued to bleed. On April 24, GBTC recorded $130.4 millio in outflows. As a result, the spot Bitcoin ETFs realized a net outflow of $120.6 million on the day. |
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| While the lack of inflows is a first for IBIT, it’s not uncommon among other ETF participants. Fidelity’s FBTC, for example, has notched three days of $0 inflows in the last two weeks. |
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| To date, the Bitcoin ETF market in the U.S. has accumulated a net $12.3 billion in Bitcoin. However, GBTC outflows have offset some of the inflows notched by the remaining nine Bitcoin ETFs. As of Jan. 11, outflows from GBTC exceed $17 billion. |
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| Related: SEC pushes decision on Franklin Templeton spot Ether ETF |
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| Some of the Bitcoin ETF market participants are also in the process of applying for Ether (ETH) ETFs in the United States. However, the Securities and Exchange Commission recently delayed the approval decisions for several of them. |
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| “The Commission finds that it is appropriate to designate a longer period within which to issue an order approving or disapproving the proposed rule change so that it has sufficient time to consider the proposed rule change, as modified by Amendment No. 1,” the agency wrote in its notice on April 23. |
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| The SEC’s decision on whether to allow the conversion of Grayscale’s ETH Trust to a spot ETH exchange-traded product on NYSE Arca has been extended by 60 days to June 23. |
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| Magazine: 7 ICO alternatives for blockchain fundraising: Crypto airdrops, IDOs & moreBitcoin ETF inflow and outflow data. |
| Source: FarsideMost of the other Bitcoin ETF participants witnessed a dry spell as well. |
| Additionally, Grayscale Bitcoin Trust ETF (GBTC) continued to bleed. |
| As a result, the spot Bitcoin ETFs realized a net outflow of $120.6 million on the day. |
| To date, the Bitcoin ETF market in the U.S. has accumulated a net $12.3 billion in Bitcoin. |
| The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is reportedly getting a gauge on whether traders would embrace 24-hour stock trading, similar to how cryptocurrency markets operate. |
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| To test market sentiment, NYSE’s data analytics team put out a survey asking market participants whether they would support 24/7 or 24-hour weekday trading and if so, what systems should be put in place to protect traders from overnight price swings, according to an April 22 report from the Financial Times. |
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| NYSE — along with the Nasdaq and Chicago Board Options Exchange — currently trade Monday to Friday between 9:30 am to 4:00 pm Eastern Time. |
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| In the United States, assets such as cryptocurrencies, United States Treasurys, foreign exchange and leading stock index futures can already be traded 24/7, while some brokerages offer |
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| Robinhood and Interactive Brokers are such platforms, offering 24-hour weekday access to U.S. stocks by facilitating a “dark pool” trading venue allowing international retail investors to trade shares during their daytime hours. |
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| However, last week, reports emerged that Robinhood halted its 24-hour trading services following increased tensions between Israel and Iran, raising investor concerns about the sustainability of around-the-clock trading. |
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| Managing liquidity in a 24/7 trading arena has al proven a tough task for trading platforms in the cryptocurrency industry. |
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| It often creates a “mismatch between the operating hours of traditional financial institutions and the needs of large crypto traders and market makers,” noted cryptocurrency research firm Kaiko. Sleepless nights are a common complaint for traders when the market becomes extremely volatile too. |
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| While results of NYSE's poll haven’t been released, Skylands Capital senior trader Tom Hearden posted a poll of his own asking his 19,300 X followers whether they would support NYSE moving to 24/7 trading hours — with over 70% of the 1,459 respondents voting “No.” |
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| NYSE’s poll comes as startup firm 24X National Exchange is seeking approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to launch the first round-the-clock exchange in the country. |
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| Related: Stocks and crypto at the edge of ‘significant’ correction: 10x Research |
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| The SEC still has “months” to review the requested rule change, while other stakeholders involved are already looking at pertinent issues, such as who should bear costs and the role of clearing houses, FT said, citing two sources familiar with the matter. |
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| “I have no idea how much volume they’re going to be doing in the middle of the night. But it’s really not up to the SEC to decide whether it’s commercially viable or not,” said James Angel, a finance professor at Georgetown University to FT. |
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| “I’m in favour of letting the market decide. If it succeeds, we’re all better off and if it doesn’t, well, the exchange’s investors lost.” |
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| It marks the second attempt at SEC approval after the firm withdrew a proposal in March 2023, citing operations and technical issues. |
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| Magazine: Jameson Lopp: Skeptical of spot Ether ETFs, BTC price prediction dilemma: X Hall of Flame","The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is reportedly getting a gauge on whether traders would embrace 24-hour stock trading, similar to how cryptocurrency markets operate. |
| NYSE — along with the Nasdaq and Chicago Board Options Exchange — currently trade Monday to Friday between 9:30 am to 4:00 pm Eastern Time. |
| However, last week, reports emerged that Robinhood halted its 24-hour trading services following increased tensions between Israel and Iran, raising investor concerns about the sustainability of around-the-clock trading. |
| Managing liquidity in a 24/7 trading arena has al proven a tough task for trading platforms in the cryptocurrency industry. |
| It often creates a “mismatch between the operating hours of traditional financial institutions and the needs of large crypto traders and market makers,” noted cryptocurrency research firm Kaiko." |
| Former Ethereum adviser files $9.6B lawsuit against US gov't, |
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| NSA ’just days from taking over the internet’ warns Edward Snowden, |
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| Man City and OKX release limited-edition jerseys tied to rare NFTs, |
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| Amazon takes minority share in ChatGPT rival Anthropic AI, |
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| Bitcoin fees top Ethereum for 3 days in a row as halving approaches, |
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| Tether expands AI operations with global recruitment drive for top-tier talent, |
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| Base overtakes Arbitrum for most active addresses so far this month, |
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| SEC lawyers resign after ‘gross abuse’ of power in crypto case — Report, |
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| Mark Zuckerberg says Meta wearables that read brain signals are coming soon, |
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| Bithumb posts 57% annual loss soon after delayed IPO, |
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| Upbit’s trading volume falls below $4B after reaching yearly high in March, |
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| Bitcoin bounces back as Grayscale ETF outflows hit new record low, |
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| Bakkt declares $780M full-year revenue in 2023 earnings report, |
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| Ethena will become highest revenue-generating crypto project — Delphi Labs CEO, |
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| Blockchain and AI: Redefining authorship in publishing, |
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| Hong Kong Bitcoin and Ether ETFs officially approved to start trading on April 30, |
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| Meet the Solana memecoin that suffered two rug pulls but still survived, |
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| UK trade association experiments with Regulated Liability Network, |
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| Terraform Labs was ‘built on lies’ — SEC at trial, |
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| Coinbase Wallet triumph over SEC allegations is a ‘giant win’ for DeFi, |
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| Former NY Fed chief joins Binance.US board, |
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| Father-son team says they’ve recovered $6M in lost crypto, |
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| Web3 investment up 55% in Q1 as crypto VC interest rebounds, |
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| Dubai crypto watchdog aims to ease burdens for small entities, |
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| Sweden demands $90M in outstanding tax from crypto miners, |
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| Bitcoin mining difficulty sets new high pre-halving, |
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| Hut 8 ‘self-mining plans’ make it competitive post-halving: Benchmark, |
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| BNB Chain will enable native liquid staking on BSC, |
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| Crypto VC Paradigm seeking up to $850M raise for fund: Report, |
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| Hong Kong investment firm Victory Securities reveals Bitcoin and Ether ETF fees, |
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| Bitcoin nosedives as political tensions escalate in the Middle East, |
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| eToro’s CEO predicts $100T crypto market amid shifts, |
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| Grayscale spot Bitcoin ETF ‘halves’ before BTC halving, |
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| SEC issues Wells notice to DeFi protocol Uniswap, |
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| Gary Gensler’s resignation ‘troll’ post disappoints Crypto X, |
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