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Token airdrops targeted by farm accounts and ‘Sybil attacks’

Amid surging prices, many crypto projects have seen a rise in fake farm accounts, or “Sybil attacks,” named so after a book about a woman with many personalities. These fake accounts create artificial network activity to claim as many tokens as possible during airdrop events, which have become highly lucrative over the years. “We’ve recently taken action by banning approximately 2,000 users whom we suspect were farming Degen,” creators of the Degen memecoin project, which was built on the Farcaster social media protocol, wrote on X. “Taking part in Degen farming, such as coordinated posting or artificial engagement, could lead to bans.” The Degen airdrop is ongoing until Aug. 1 and will reward users who engage with or create quality content posted on Farcaster social channels. However, it appears that a sizable number of users began posting subpar content for the sole purpose of earning airdrop points. “Joining organized actions mainly to earn tokens and posting unrelated content in boosted channels” will result in bans, Degen wrote. Degen's warning to Sybil attackers. Source: Degen The memecoin project is far from the first protocol to suffer from Sybil attacks. On April 4, self-custody wallet Bitget Wallet said it would deduct airdrop points from users who use “emulators and cloud phones” to create artificial wallet referrals and downloads to farm BWB token rewards. “Upholding fairness and integrity for all participants is paramount to us, and we cannot turn a blind eye to any dishonest behavior that violates the rules of conduct for the event,” Bitget Wallet wrote. The Bitget Wallet airdrop has been ongoing for the past month and is scheduled to end on April 27. Users can earn rewards by referring friends, depositing tokens or performing decentralized finance (DeFi) swaps through the self-custody wallet. Despite identifying the problem, cracking down on Sybil attacks remain difficult. “To be certain that we do not inadvertently penalize honest users, we have identified and deducted points only for the top 50 users who boosted their referral points through illicit means,” explained Bitget Wallet. Earlier this year, prominent DeFi developer Banteg also raised an issue with the Ethereum layer-2 protocol Starknet and its airdrop. They claimed to have gone through all Starknet airdrops and “found 1854 people who have either renamed or deleted their account since the activity snapshot.” Banteg also identified an estimated 701,544 addresses that were allegedly linked to repeat or renamed GitHub accounts controlled by airdrop farmers. Despite such revelation, the airdrop farmers’ addresses were included in the Starknet airdrop anyway. Shortly after its launch, Starknet temporarily surpassed a fully diluted valuation of $20 billion. The airdrop is ongoing until June. In a report by Gamic HQ last August, researchers explained that to deploy a Sybil attack, airdrop farmers “leverage scripts or bots to create a massive number of fake accounts on a targeted platform” that proceed to automate tasks such as “generating random usernames and emails, filling out registration forms, and even verifying accounts with CAPTCHAs." Gamic HQ further wrote that Sybil attacks “amass a large portion of the airdropped tokens, leaving less for genuine users who might be more interested in using and supporting the project long-term.” As a result, a project’s reputation is damaged, its token supply inflates and price manipulation may occur as a result of excessive dumping by airdrop farmers after the event is over. However, the firm also noticed several positives as a result of the attacks. “The rise of Sybil attacks has pushed blockchain projects to develop more sophisticated methods for verifying user identities and ensuring fair airdrop distribution,” they claimed. “This ongoing battle will hopefully lead to a more robust and secure blockchain ecosystem in the long run.” Related: Blockchain data-availability protocol Avail announces 600M token airdrop

Amid surging prices, many crypto projects have seen a rise in fake farm accounts, or “Sybil attacks,” named so after a book about a woman with many personalities. Source: DegenThe memecoin project is far from the first protocol to suffer from Sybil attacks. The Bitget Wallet airdrop has been ongoing for the past month and is scheduled to end on April 27. Despite identifying the problem, cracking down on Sybil attacks remain difficult. “The rise of Sybil attacks has pushed blockchain projects to develop more sophisticated methods for verifying user identities and ensuring fair airdrop distribution,” they claimed.

Crypto traders bet $2.4M on spot Ether ETF decision

Crypto gamblers are placing bets on whether spot Ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs) will be approved by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) before May 31. Polygon-based crypto gambling site Polymarket shows that traders have placed “Yes” or “No” bets on whether a spot Ether (ETH) ETF application will be approved before May ends. Over $2.4 million worth of bets have been placed, with about 81% pessimistic about the chances of a spot Ether ETF approval before the deadline. Spot Ether ETF approval’s betting market. Source: Polymarket Crypto traders buy yes or no shares depending on their predictions of how they expect things to go. The share’s value represents the odds of the bet and changes similarly to how the crypto market goes. At the moment, the cost of a Yes share is $0.19, while No is worth $0.81, meaning fewer gamblers believe in the chances of spot ETH ETFs being approved by the end of May. The top trader for Yes holds about $84,000 worth of shares, while the top holder for No has around $127,000 in No shares. If the SEC approves a spot Ether ETF before the betting market’s deadline of May 31, 2024, at 11:59 pm Eastern Time, the market will resolve, meaning that holders of Yes shares can cash out their earnings. However, the opposite also applies if there are no approvals before the deadline. Related: Bitwise files with SEC for spot Ether ETF listing This is not the first time crypto traders gambled on ETF approval results. On Jan. 5, Reddit users criticized Polymarket gamblers for betting on whether spot Bitcoin ETFs would be approved by the SEC before Jan. 15. One Reddit user described the betting as stupid and said it was like putting up dollars to win dimes. Meanwhile, another joked that they were about to lose their kid’s college fund to place a bet. The overall bets on the ETF outcomes have reached at least $12 million on the predictions market. The SEC eventually approved the trading and listing of 11 spot Bitcoin ETFs on Jan. 10. Investment management company Grayscale has expressed confidence in a positive decision by the SEC for spot Ether ETFs by May. On March 25, Grayscale chief legal officer Craig Salm said that the SEC’s perceived “lack of engagement” with applicants does not indicate whether an ETF will be approved or not. Magazine: KuCoin’s desperate $10M airdrop, 1 tweet raises $37M for memecoin: Asia Express

Polygon-based crypto gambling site Polymarket shows that traders have placed “Yes” or “No” bets on whether a spot Ether (ETH) ETF application will be approved before May ends. Over $2.4 million worth of bets have been placed, with about 81% pessimistic about the chances of a spot Ether ETF approval before the deadline. Spot Ether ETF approval’s betting market. Related: Bitwise files with SEC for spot Ether ETF listingThis is not the first time crypto traders gambled on ETF approval results. Investment management company Grayscale has expressed confidence in a positive decision by the SEC for spot Ether ETFs by May.

Sam Bankman-Fried asks to stay in Brooklyn prison for appeal

Former FTX CEO Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried, recently sentenced to 25 years in federal prison, has requested a judge allow him to temporarily remain incarcerated in the New York City area instead of California. In an April 8 filing in United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, Bankman-Fried’s lawyers asked Judge Lewis Kaplan to approve an order allowing the former FTX CEO to remain at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, where he has been since August 2023. According to the legal team, SBF wanted to stay at the Brooklyn prison to “facilitate access to his appellate counsel” as part of his expected appeal for his conviction and sentencing. Before Judge Kaplan announced Bankman-Fried’s 25-year sentence on March 28, attorney Marc Mukasey said his team intended to appeal SBF’s conviction on seven felony counts. No filing appeared in the online portal for the U.S. Court Of Appeals for the Second Circuit at the time of publication. Some legal experts have also suggested that the former FTX CEO could have years knocked off his time in prison based on good behavior. The judge initially ruled that Bankman-Fried would serve his sentence at a medium- or low-security prison in the San Francisco Bay Area, likely due to family members living nearby. Before Judge Kaplan revoked SBF’s bail in August 2023, the former FTX CEO was mainly confined to his parents’ California home near Stanford University. Related: Sam Bankman-Fried speaks out after sentencing: ‘I never thought what I was doing was illegal’ Bankman-Fried was one of the only individuals tied to the collapse of FTX and Alameda Research to plead not guilty and face a jury. Caroline Ellison, Gary Wang, Nishad Singh and Ryan Salame — others associated with the crypto firms charged in the same case as SBF — pleaded guilty and accepted deals. Salame is scheduled to be sentenced on May 28, but it was unclear when Wang, Ellison, and Singh would appear before a judge. Changpeng Zhao, who pleaded guilty to one felony count in a separate case involving cryptocurrency exchange Binance, will be sentenced on April 30. Magazine: ‘Less flashy’ Mashinsky set for less jail time than SBF: Inner City Press, X Hall of Flame

Former FTX CEO Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried, recently sentenced to 25 years in federal prison, has requested a judge allow him to temporarily remain incarcerated in the New York City area instead of California. According to the legal team, SBF wanted to stay at the Brooklyn prison to “facilitate access to his appellate counsel” as part of his expected appeal for his conviction and sentencing. Before Judge Kaplan announced Bankman-Fried’s 25-year sentence on March 28, attorney Marc Mukasey said his team intended to appeal SBF’s conviction on seven felony counts. Some legal experts have also suggested that the former FTX CEO could have years knocked off his time in prison based on good behavior. Before Judge Kaplan revoked SBF’s bail in August 2023, the former FTX CEO was mainly confined to his parents’ California home near Stanford University.

Crypto hacking losses decline in Q1 2024 — Immunefi

The cryptocurrency industry saw a 23% decline in losses due to hacking and scams in the first quarter of 2024 compared to 2023, according to a March 28 research report by blockchain security firm Immunefi. According to the report, the total amount lost to hacking and fraud incidents in Q1 of 2024 amounted to approximately $336.3 million, down from $437.5 million in the same quarter of 2023. The report identifies 46 hacking incidents and 15 cases of fraudulent activities. Crypto losses from hacks, frauds and scams in Q1 of 2024. Source: Immunefi With nearly $100 billion of total value locked in Web3 protocols, decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms remain a significant target for hackers, accounting for all of the exploits identified by Immunefi in Q1, compared to zero for centralized finance platforms. Two projects accounted for the bulk of the losses, totaling $144.5 million, or 43% of the overall amount. The largest attack, amounting to $81.7 million, targeted the cross-chain bridge protocol Orbit Bridge on New Year’s Eve. January saw the highest monthly losses in Q1, totaling $133 million. Mitchell Amador, CEO of Immunefi, highlighted the susceptibility of DeFi platforms to private key breaches, highlighting the pressing need for enhanced security measures across code and protocol infrastructure. Related: Remilia founder claims hack after Ether, NFTs transferred The second-largest attack involved a $62 million exploit on Blast-based nonfungible token game Munchables. However, funds were recovered within 24 hours, as the hacker surrendered the private keys to the wallet containing Munchables’ assets. Overall, $73.9 million (22%) of the stolen funds from seven exploits in Q1 were retrieved. The number of attacks decreased by 17.6%, from 74 in Q1 2023 to 61 in 2024. Hacks accounted for 95.6% ($321.6 million) of losses across 46 incidents, while fraud, scams and rug pulls accounted for 4.4% ($14.7 million) in 15 incidents. Ethereum was the most targeted chain ahead of the BNB Chain, with both networks accounting for 73% of total losses combined. Ethereum had the highest number of attacks, with 33 incidents, accounting for 51% of the losses. BNB Chain experienced 12 attacks, representing 22% of the exploited funds. Other incidents were identified on Arbitrum, Solana, Optimism, Bitcoin, Blast, Polygon, Conflux Network and Base. Magazine: ‘SEAL 911’ team of white hats formed to fight crypto hacks in real time

The cryptocurrency industry saw a 23% decline in losses due to hacking and scams in the first quarter of 2024 compared to 2023, according to a March 28 research report by blockchain security firm Immunefi. According to the report, the total amount lost to hacking and fraud incidents in Q1 of 2024 amounted to approximately $336.3 million, down from $437.5 million in the same quarter of 2023. The report identifies 46 hacking incidents and 15 cases of fraudulent activities. Crypto losses from hacks, frauds and scams in Q1 of 2024. Ethereum was the most targeted chain ahead of the BNB Chain, with both networks accounting for 73% of total losses combined.

Binance Labs shifts investment focus to Bitcoin DeFi

Binance Labs, the venture capital (VC) arm of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, has announced an investment in Bitcoin-native restaking protocol BounceBit. BounceBit merges centralized finance (CeFi) and decentralized finance (DeFi) features in an effort to create more utility for Bitcoin (BTC), wrote Yi He, co-founder of Binance and head of Binance Labs, in an April 11 announcement: "BounceBit unlocks new avenues for Bitcoin's utilization with the fusion of CeFi and DeFi. At Binance Labs, we are always seeking innovators shaping the industry, and we look forward to watching their growth as they achieve their mission to empower Bitcoin through secure and transparent CeDeFi solutions.” BounceBit is among a new wave of protocols aiming to bring DeFi capabilities to Bitcoin in a new technological paradigm known as Bitcoin DeFi (BTCFi). BounceBit aims to expand Bitcoin’s use case from being a store of value to a yield-generating asset with more capital efficiency. The proof-of-stake (PoS) layer-1 ecosystem incentivizes validators to stake both Bitcoin and BounceBit ecosystem tokens as part of its dual-token economy. The Bitcoin-native restaking infrastructure aims to create more utility for Bitcoin, according to Jack Lu, founder and CEO of Bouncebit: “It is our mission to build restaking infrastructure to drive the utilization of Bitcoin and we want to do it in a secure and transparent manner. Our focus on CeDeFi and developing a robust restaking ecosystem is just the beginning. We are grateful to have Binance Labs support us in this endeavor.” Binance Labs became an independent venture capital arm after cutting ties with the Binance exchange in March when its portfolio was worth over $10 billion. It covered more than 250 projects from over 25 countries with a return on investment rate of over 14 times. BounceBit is currently offering its services to more than 110,000 users, with over $782 million in total value locked (TVL), according to its homepage. Related: With 10 days to the halving, analysts predict $150K Bitcoin top BTCFi on the rise ahead of the Bitcoin halving While Bitcoin-native DeFi was considered impossible a few years ago, BTCFi protocols are gaining traction ahead of the much-anticipated Bitcoin halving, set to take place on April 19. Showcasing the demand for BTCFi, decentralized exchange (DEX) MerlinSwap raised 6,599 BTC, worth $480 million, during its initial DEX offering (IDO) from over 52,000 investors on April 5. The record IDO was a testament to the market’s demand for BTCFi which could match Ethereum in DeFi innovation in the future. Nash Lee, co-founder of MerlinSwap, told Cointelegraph: “It symbolizes the community’s eagerness to engage with and drive forward the DeFi revolution on Bitcoin’s platform. It underscores a significant shift toward recognizing the untapped potential of Bitcoin in the DeFi space, highlighting a broad-based demand for innovative, decentralized financial solutions built on the world’s first cryptocurrency.” Related: Bitcoin surpasses 65 million Ordinals inscriptions days before halving

Binance Labs, the venture capital (VC) arm of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, has announced an investment in Bitcoin-native restaking protocol BounceBit. BounceBit merges centralized finance (CeFi) and decentralized finance (DeFi) features in an effort to create more utility for Bitcoin (BTC), wrote Yi He, co-founder of Binance and head of Binance Labs, in an April 11 announcement:"BounceBit unlocks new avenues for Bitcoin's utilization with the fusion of CeFi and DeFi. At Binance Labs, we are always seeking innovators shaping the industry, and we look forward to watching their growth as they achieve their mission to empower Bitcoin through secure and transparent CeDeFi solutions.”BounceBit is among a new wave of protocols aiming to bring DeFi capabilities to Bitcoin in a new technological paradigm known as Bitcoin DeFi (BTCFi). Our focus on CeDeFi and developing a robust restaking ecosystem is just the beginning. We are grateful to have Binance Labs support us in this endeavor.”Binance Labs became an independent venture capital arm after cutting ties with the Binance exchange in March when its portfolio was worth over $10 billion.

ParaSwap DAO votes to compensate hack victims

The community behind the decentralized finance (DeFi) aggregator ParaSwap has agreed to compensate hack victims using funds from its treasury. On April 4, the ParaSwap decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) pitched the idea of refunding the victims of the AugustusV6 contract vulnerability. After a three-day voting period, 96.81% of ParaSwap voters agreed with the DAO’s proposed method of compensating users. The Paraswap community voted to refund victims using DAO treasury funds. Source: vote.paraswap.network The ParaSwap AugustusV6 contract, which momentarily went live on March 18, aimed to improve swapping efficiency and reduce gas fees. However, the contract contained a critical vulnerability, allowing hackers to drain funds from users who approved the upgrade. While a swift rollback prevented a potential $3.4 million loss, roughly $864,000 of assets were lost in the process. ParaSwap collaborated closely with blockchain analytics and security firms Chainalysis and TRM Labs to identify the hacker addresses and trace the movement of the funds. The foundation said: “The (ParaSwap) Foundation will cover the remaining costs linked to the vulnerability, including the refunds, the engagement of security analysts, conducting thorough contract re-audits, communication with authorities, and the formulation and execution of the refund process.” On April 4, ParaSwap announced the recovery of roughly $500,000 worth of assets. “Thanks to this rescue, the amount of funds still unaccounted for — which comprise users drained after depositing to a still compromised account — has been reduced by 63%,” it said. According to ParaSwap, providing full refunds to affected users is a step toward the project’s long-term sustainability. Related: Crypto hacking losses decline in Q1 2024 — Immunefi According to data compiled by blockchain security firm PeckShield, nearly $100 million in digital assets stolen in March hacks were recovered. Total hack losses in 2024 by month. Source: PeckShield While the losses ran into the millions, 52.8% of the hacked funds were returned. Most recovered funds were from the security incident involving the nonfungible token (NFT) game based on the Blast network called Munchables. Magazine: AI didn’t kill the metaverse, it will build it — Alien Worlds, Bittensor vs Eric Wall: AI Eye

The community behind the decentralized finance (DeFi) aggregator ParaSwap has agreed to compensate hack victims using funds from its treasury. On April 4, the ParaSwap decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) pitched the idea of refunding the victims of the AugustusV6 contract vulnerability. After a three-day voting period, 96.81% of ParaSwap voters agreed with the DAO’s proposed method of compensating users. The Paraswap community voted to refund victims using DAO treasury funds. Source: vote.paraswap.networkThe ParaSwap AugustusV6 contract, which momentarily went live on March 18, aimed to improve swapping efficiency and reduce gas fees.

Phishing scam thefts on Base are up 1,900% from January — Scam Sniffer

Ethereum layer 2 Base has seen an 18-fold increase in cryptocurrency funds stolen from phishing scams in March compared to January figures, recent data shows. Approximately $3.35 million was stolen from phishing scammers on Base in March alone, according to blockchain anti-scam platform Scam Sniffer. It marks a 334% month-on-month increase from February’s tally of $773,900 and a massive 1,880% spike compared to January, when Base only lost $169,000 from phishing scams, according to monthly Dune Analytics data compiled by Scam Sniffer. Binance’s BNB Smart Chain observed a similar surge in phishing scams in March, Scam Sniffer noted in an April 2 X post. Approximately $71.5 million was lost to phishing scammers across all chains from 77,529 victims — beating out January and February’s tallies of $58.3 million and $46.8 million, respectively. Source: Scam Sniffer Scam Sniffer told Cointelegraph it expects even more phishing attacks on Base this month as assets and active users on the chain continues to increase. Scam Sniffer noted that phishing links from fake X accounts remain a “primary tactic,” detecting over 1,500 incidents in March. The rise in Base phishing scams comes amid a recent memecoin craze on the Coinbase-backed chain. It has helped push Base’s total value locked above $3.2 billion — marking a 370% increase so far in 2024, according to L2Beat. Cointelegraph reached out to Scam Sniffer for comment. Phishing scams may be up, but hacks are down The surge comes despite crypto hack thefts falling 48% to $187.2 million in March, according to an April 1 X post from blockchain security firm PeckShield. Related: Crypto hacking losses decline in Q1 2024 — Immunefi The figure took into account the $98.8 million that was recovered over the month. Almost all of those recoveries came from the $97million Munchibles exploit. Cryptocurrency sleuth ZachXBT was among those onboarded as a custodian to recover the stolen funds. Total losses from hacks in March. Source: PeckShield Meanwhile, Curio’s MakerDAO-based smart contract lost $40 million, according to updated figures from PeckShield and Prisma Finance fell victim to an $11.6-million hack. The firm is currently negotiating with the hacker on-chain to return those funds. Magazine: ‘SEAL 911’ team of white hats formed to fight crypto hacks in real time

Approximately $3.35 million was stolen from phishing scammers on Base in March alone, according to blockchain anti-scam platform Scam Sniffer. Binance’s BNB Smart Chain observed a similar surge in phishing scams in March, Scam Sniffer noted in an April 2 X post. Scam Sniffer noted that phishing links from fake X accounts remain a “primary tactic,” detecting over 1,500 incidents in March. The rise in Base phishing scams comes amid a recent memecoin craze on the Coinbase-backed chain. Cointelegraph reached out to Scam Sniffer for comment.

Hedera’s HBAR token pumps 96% on misinterpreted BlackRock announcement

Shares of a BlackRock money market fund have been tokenized on the Hedera blockchain sending the Hedera (HBAR) token on a 96% rally in the last 24 hours — but the world’s largest asset manager confirmed it has no relationship with Hedera despite many believing it was actively involved. The widely misinterpreted April 23 HBAR Foundation X post — an organization working with the Hedera community — shared that blockchain trading and infrastructure firms Archax and Ownera tokenized BlackRock’s ICS US Treasury Fund on its network. The video shared with the announcement seemed to suggest Ownera, Archax, and BlackRock were partnered on the venture and HBAR claimed it was “bringing the world’s largest asset manager on-chain.” A BlackRock spokesperson confirmed to Cointelegraph it “has no commercial relationship with Hedera nor has BlackRock selected Hedera to tokenize any BlackRock funds.” "As we have in the past, BlackRock will communicate directly with the public on the evolution of our digital asset strategy,” the spokesperson added. Some crypto influencers with large X followings shared a misinterpretation of the post — which had amassed over 1.6 million views and 2,700 reposts over the last 15 hours — believing it to mean BlackRock was responsible for the $22.3 billion fund’s move onto the blockchain or had partnered with Archax and Ownera. Cardano Ghost Fund DAO founder Chris O’Connor posted that BlackRock had “no involvement” with Hedera’s development and slammed the HBAR Foundation for the way it framed the announcement. “What did happen was a HBAR project through the secondary market tokenized shares of a BlackRock fund. Much like I can buy a Rolex take a pic and post it on my X account. Doesn’t mean Rolex ‘partnered’ with me.” Archax co-founder and CEO Graham Rodford replied to O’Connor, saying “it was indeed an Archax choice to put [BlackRocks fund] on Hedera” and added that “everyone involved was aware.” Related: Envision partners with HBAR and UN on new digitization platform for carbon markets HBAR’s 96% rally in the past day has pushed its price to $0.175 — a two-year high, according to CoinGecko. HBAR’s price over the last three months. Source: CoinGecko Despite the price pump, HBAR is still down over 69% from its September 2021 all-time high of $0.57. The announcement came as the Hedera Global Governing Council — which oversees the Hedera network — recently approved allocating 4.86 billion HBAR ($408 million at the time) for further network development. The funds are part of the HBAR Foundation’s plans to strengthen its user base in 2024, following 2023’s performance, which saw 33 billion transactions processed on the network, the foundation claims. Magazine: Is measuring blockchain transactions per second (TPS) stupid in 2024? Big Questions Update (April 24, 7:30 am UTC): This article has been updated to add an X post from Graham Rodford. Update (April 25, 12:55 am UTC): This article has been updated to add comment from BlackRock.

The widely misinterpreted April 23 HBAR Foundation X post — an organization working with the Hedera community — shared that blockchain trading and infrastructure firms Archax and Ownera tokenized BlackRock’s ICS US Treasury Fund on its network. Cardano Ghost Fund DAO founder Chris O’Connor posted that BlackRock had “no involvement” with Hedera’s development and slammed the HBAR Foundation for the way it framed the announcement. “What did happen was a HBAR project through the secondary market tokenized shares of a BlackRock fund. Source: CoinGeckoDespite the price pump, HBAR is still down over 69% from its September 2021 all-time high of $0.57. Big QuestionsUpdate (April 24, 7:30 am UTC): This article has been updated to add an X post from Graham Rodford.

Bitcoin miner profits get squeezed as hash price drops to lowest since October 2023

After posting record-breaking earnings on the day of the Bitcoin halving, miners now face another reality: a high network hash rate and lower revenues pushing down profits. The average revenue a Bitcoin (BTC) miner earns per performed hash, known as the hash price, has reached its lowest level since October 2023. According to crypto analytics firm CryptoQuant, the hash price for miners dropped from nearly $0.12 in early April to $0.07 post-halving, following a $0.19 peak on halving day. Bitcoin’s halving event slashed miners’ block reward from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC, while the sector’s operational costs remain steady. CryptoQuant’s CEO, Ki Young Ju, estimated that the cost of mining with Antminer S19 XPs would increase from $40,000 to $80,000 following the halving. Bitcoin hash price. Source: CryptoQuant Related: Bitcoin halving will have to battle with ‘weak time of year’ — Coinbase Despite the reduction in rewards, the total network hash rate has remained stable since the halving event, suggesting that BTC mining is still profitable at Bitcoin’s current prices. Cointelegraph Markets Pro shows Bitcoin holding above the $64,000 mark since April 19. “Although it is still too early to see any long-term effects of the halving on the network hashrate, miners seem to be running operations at the same rate as before the halving,” CryptoQuant noted in a report. The total network hash rate held flat at 617 EH/s post-halving. On the day of the halving, transaction fees reached record levels relative to the total revenue generated by miners. Transaction fees represented 75% of total miner revenue on the halving day, which amounted to roughly $80 million. Since then, it has dropped to about 35% of total miner revenue. While the immediate effects show stability, the long-term impacts on the hash rate and overall miner activity could still change. In the past, post-halving periods have seen miners exit the market due to high operational costs. Factors like Bitcoin price movements and changes in electricity costs are likely to play crucial roles in the mining business. Magazine: Creating ‘good’ AGI that won’t kill us all — Crypto’s Artificial Superintelligence Alliance

After posting record-breaking earnings on the day of the Bitcoin halving, miners now face another reality: a high network hash rate and lower revenues pushing down profits. The average revenue a Bitcoin (BTC) miner earns per performed hash, known as the hash price, has reached its lowest level since October 2023. Bitcoin hash price. The total network hash rate held flat at 617 EH/s post-halving. Factors like Bitcoin price movements and changes in electricity costs are likely to play crucial roles in the mining business.

Technical charts suggest a roaring altseason may be just ahead: Analysts

Crypto’s famed “altseason,” a time during bull markets when smaller-capitalization cryptocurrencies skyrocket in value, could be coming very soon, according to market analysts. On April 11, trader and analyst Rekt Capital observed that the altcoin market cap “has been the only constant” despite Bitcoin’s (BTC) price whipsawing over the past few weeks. It has been consistently retesting the $315 billion level as support for weeks now, he added. Crypto traders have been keenly observing altcoin markets as they represent higher risk-to-reward returns, with many expected to surge during the next phase of the bull market. Historically, altcoin price appreciation lags Bitcoin, and charts such as the altcoin market capitalization and Bitcoin dominance can provide traders some signals for when altcoins may be moving into a bull season of their own. Altcoin market cap excluding top 10. Source: Rekt Capital However, altcoins aren’t there yet. Following highs in mid-March, most altcoins have corrected, while BTC remains close to its all-time high of over $70,000. Analysts are now looking at the Bitcoin market dominance chart with renewed interest, though, which has remained over 50% since September 2023 and is currently at 54.5%, according to TradingView. Analyst Crypto Nova said that the shift between Bitcoin dominance rising and dropping is “when altcoins truly start shining.” This hasn’t happened yet, but the “higher highs and higher lows with strong-up candles aren’t there anymore,” she said before adding, “The chart is moving sideways, which is almost always an occurrence before a reversal.” Bitcoin dominance. Source: Crypto Nova Technical analyst Titan of Crypto echoed the sentiment in a post on X last week, stating, “I personally believe there will be another altseason.” The analyst referred to the Ichimoku technical indicator, which they claimed “will play a big role in blocking Bitcoin dominance, initiating the altseason.” Meanwhile, analyst Kevin Svenson told his 140,000 followers in a post on X earlier this week that the altcoin market cap is “positioned for a massive bull run.” “People often forget... after Bitcoin’s halving is when the narrative shifts toward alts,” he added. Related: Altseason is coming — Or at least data suggests that it’s close Altcoins are trading mostly flat on the day as total crypto market capitalization remains around $2.74 trillion. Aside from outliers such as Toncoin (TON), which recently hit an all-time high, most high-cap altcoins remain down heavily from their 2021 peak prices. XRP (XRP), Dogecoin (DOGE), Cardano (ADA), Avalanche (AVAX), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Polkadot’s DOT (DOT) and Chainlink’s (LINK) are at least 60% down from their peaks, whereas Bitcoin is less than 5% down from its all-time high. Magazine: 1 in 6 new Base memecoins are scams, 91% have vulnerabilities

Crypto’s famed “altseason,” a time during bull markets when smaller-capitalization cryptocurrencies skyrocket in value, could be coming very soon, according to market analysts. On April 11, trader and analyst Rekt Capital observed that the altcoin market cap “has been the only constant” despite Bitcoin’s (BTC) price whipsawing over the past few weeks. Altcoin market cap excluding top 10. Analysts are now looking at the Bitcoin market dominance chart with renewed interest, though, which has remained over 50% since September 2023 and is currently at 54.5%, according to TradingView. Related: Altseason is coming — Or at least data suggests that it’s closeAltcoins are trading mostly flat on the day as total crypto market capitalization remains around $2.74 trillion.

How Solana developers are tackling network congestion challenges

The Solana Foundation has pinned recent network congestion issues on a combination of high demand for Solana block space and a failure to implement patches related to its networking stack in a timely manner. Solana Foundation strategy lead Austin Federa spoke exclusively to Cointelegraph during Paris Blockchain Week about efforts to address recent issues with user transaction congestion. “The goal of the Solana project is to build the world’s fastest network that is open, permissionless and decentralized, and that is a tall order. There’s a team of engineers across different core contributor groups working on building the Solana network, and sometimes, they don’t quite get it right,” Federa explained. Solana Foundation strategy lead Austin Federa (left) with Gareth Jenkinson (right) at Paris Blockchain Week. According to the foundation’s strategy lead, Solana’s consensus layer continues to operate as designed, but there is agreement that the network is not living up to expectations from a user experience perspective. “It’s running at about 700 transactions per second now, which is still pretty commendable, even in the sort of degraded state the network is in now. But a lot of work still needs to be done on the Solana core protocol,” Federa said. Network developers have been planning fixes to “bottleneck” issues in a specific component of its networking stack implementation. However, the roadmap for implementing upgrades and expected demand on the Solana network “did not line up,” said Federa, adding: “The charitable view of this is a failure of success. There’s massive demand for the Solana block space, and there’s a huge demand for the network. It’s processing more transactions than Ethereum’s layer 1 and layer 2s combined.” Federa conceded that a less charitable reading of the situation suggests a failure to plan and implement network upgrades. He added that ecosystem developers may have been able to anticipate the sort of demand spikes based on the network’s past usage. Related: Solana devs target April 15 for failed TX fix — It’s ‘not a design flaw’ As previously reported, Solana developers aimed to implement a fix for an “implementation bug” that recently caused the transaction failure rate on Solana to skyrocket. Federa said engineers had “not been sleeping much” as they readied patches and tested features before they hit mainnet: “It has been an ecosystem effort to identify the problem, potential solutions, and short-term and long-term improvements to the network.” Some protocols should have a beta label Solana has copped criticism for network outages over the past two years, with the blockchain going down for short periods of time. However, the layer 1 is not the only protocol that has grappled with downtimes, with Ethereum layer-2s Base, Arbitrum and Starknet having experienced issues in recent months. Federa said that emerging blockchain networks are still in a growth phase, drawing comparisons to the early days of Amazon Web Services and the outages it experienced. Nevertheless, the blockchain industry is being closely scrutinized, and Federa said expectations are not unfounded: “I think it’s appropriate to be upset about downtimes and outages. The goal is 100% uptime, and that should be the goal for the whole industry. If that comes at the expense of no scale, that’s not necessarily the best trade-off.” Federa also highlighted various layer-2 protocols’ downtime and outages as an indicator that the industry is still developing and growing. This is part of the reason why Solana still operates under a beta label. “The beta tag is honest. The network today does not represent the final form of what developers hope it will be in the future, and there might be other networks that probably should also append a ‘beta’ tag to them,” Federa said. Solana released v1.17.31 for general use by mainnet validators on April 15. The release contains enhancements that are anticipated to alleviate ongoing congestion on the network. Magazine: 1 in 6 new Base memecoins are scams, 91% have vulnerabilities

The Solana Foundation has pinned recent network congestion issues on a combination of high demand for Solana block space and a failure to implement patches related to its networking stack in a timely manner. There’s a team of engineers across different core contributor groups working on building the Solana network, and sometimes, they don’t quite get it right,” Federa explained. Network developers have been planning fixes to “bottleneck” issues in a specific component of its networking stack implementation. There’s massive demand for the Solana block space, and there’s a huge demand for the network. Related: Solana devs target April 15 for failed TX fix — It’s ‘not a design flaw’As previously reported, Solana developers aimed to implement a fix for an “implementation bug” that recently caused the transaction failure rate on Solana to skyrocket.

Weekend Wrap: Berachain raises $100M, Trump NFT sales dump and more

Berachain gets $100 million in Series B raise Layer-1 blockchain Berachain — which is yet to announce its mainnet — has raised a $100 million Series B funding round. Venture firms Framework Ventures and Brevan Howard Digital led the round, with contributions from Hack VC, Animoca Ventures and Polychain Capital, among others, Berachain said in an April 12 X post. It will use the money to expand in multiple regions, including Singapore, Hong Kong, Southeast Asia, Africa and Latin America, Bloomberg reported on April 12. Some of the contributors to Berachain’s Series B round. Source: Berachain/X Berachain’s investors backed the blockchain through a simple agreement for future tokens (SAFT) — where the investors gave money for a future Berachain token. The blockchain’s testnet has reportedly processed 100 million transactions, and it is aiming to launch its mainnet in the second quarter of this year, which has been created for compatibility with Ethereum-based applications. Anonymous Berachain co-founder “Smokey The Bera” said in a funding announcement seen by Bloomberg that the raise was “a major validation of our approach to building a blockchain that’s built on feedback from real users and developers.” Smokey the Bera onstage at Hong Kong’s Hack Summit on April 9. Source: Smokey The Bera/X In mid-March, Bloomberg reported that Berachain was raising a $69 million round at a valuation of $1 billion, citing people familiar. The firm didn’t share its new valuation. Trump NFT volumes drop 99% as criminal trial begins Trading of nonfungible tokens (NFTs) spruiked by former United States President Donald Trump has tanked 99% as his New York criminal trial begins. The 45,000-strong Trump Digital Trading Cards NFT collection — the first ever NFTs that Trump licensed his image to — was seeing hundreds of weekly sales in early February, then sank to just a handful of sales since early March, according to OpenSea. The collection hasn’t seen a sale since April 2. The second version of Trump’s NFTs has fared better, with 966 sales in the past 30 days compared to the original’s 16. The weekly trading volume (gray) and average price change (blue) of Trump’s original NFT collection over 90 days. Source: OpenSea Jury selection begins on Monday, April 15, for Trump’s trial — he’s facing 34 felony charges filed by the Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg for allegedly faking business records to cover up a $130,000 payment he made to porn star Stormy Daniels to keep quiet about an alleged affair. Trump has pleaded not guilty. Newsweek reported last month that the NFT collections were pulled from sale until the end of 2024, according to an OpenSea source that didn’t explain why. The former president doesn’t own or control the NFT collection but instead licenses his image to a company that does called NFT International, LLC. Ad giant Dentsu makes Azuki NFT anime series Advertising and creative giant Dentsu partnered with the Chiru Labs, the firm behind the NFT collection Azuki to make an anime series using characters from Azuki’s NFTs. On April 11, Dentsu said it would help make the three-part anime series called Enter The Garden, with episodes to be released throughout 2024. The first will drop on April 30, with a trailer for the episode released alongside the partnership announcement. Azuki is an NFT collection that features anime-style art characters — to which the holders own the intellectual property rights. Some have built businesses off their NFT, including a skateboard and a tea shop. The series will include cameo appearances of the characters and product placement of the businesses owned by NFT holders, Dentsu said. Dentsu’s head of anime operations Yusuke Nii said in the announcement that anime has grown into a “global phenomenon” and claimed the firm would “continue to pursue this partnership even further.” Bitcoin to ‘trend higher’ after weekend flash crash: Novogratz Bitcoin (BTC) will shake off its slump and is set to “trend higher” after a shaky trading weekend following Iran’s attack on Israel, says Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz. Cointelegraph Markets Pro shows Bitcoin dropped over 8% to a three-week low of $61,918 on April 13 after Iran launched hundreds of strikes against Israel for the first time, with Israel reporting one serious injury of a seven-year-old. “After the risk flush, [Bitcoin] will resume its trend higher, Novogratz wrote in an April 13 X post. The price drop saw around $964 million worth of liquidations in the 24 hours over April 13. “I pray cool heads prevail and this is not the start of a major regional conflict,” he added. Bitcoin has already started to gain, seeing a 1.5% bump in the past day to $65,407. Other news Nigeria traced local Binance executive Nadeem Arjarwalla to Kenya after he escaped custody and is taking steps to extradite him. Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission could approve the first batch of spot Bitcoin ETFs on Monday, April 15, which market watchers say could spark another post-halving price rally. Magazine: 5 dangers to beware when apeing into Solana memecoins

Berachain gets $100 million in Series B raiseLayer-1 blockchain Berachain — which is yet to announce its mainnet — has raised a $100 million Series B funding round. Trump NFT volumes drop 99% as criminal trial beginsTrading of nonfungible tokens (NFTs) spruiked by former United States President Donald Trump has tanked 99% as his New York criminal trial begins. The weekly trading volume (gray) and average price change (blue) of Trump’s original NFT collection over 90 days. The former president doesn’t own or control the NFT collection but instead licenses his image to a company that does called NFT International, LLC. Azuki is an NFT collection that features anime-style art characters — to which the holders own the intellectual property rights.

Polygon CEO says L3s are taking value away from Ethereum, sparking debate

Polygon CEO Marc Boiron riled up the debate on X over the weekend after arguing that layer-3 networks aren’t necessary to scale Ethereum and exist only to rob the mainnet of value. On April 1, the Polygon CEO said that Polygon Labs, a layer-2 scaling network for Ethereum, does not work on layer 3s because they are not needed to scale existing networks. “L3s exist only to take value away from Ethereum and onto the L2s on which the L3s are built,” he said. However, Boiron’s comments didn’t go unchallenged. One respondent commented that layer-2s on Ethereum “ARE value on Ethereum,” to which Boiron replied in partial agreement, adding: “I disagree that L2 value is Ethereum value. Just take this to the extreme. If all L3s settled to one L2, then Ethereum would capture basically no value and, thus, Ethereum security would be at risk.” “Also, we don’t care what people do. They can build L3s on anything, including Polygon networks,” he continued, adding: “We just aren’t trying to suck all value onto Polygon networks instead of sharing with Ethereum its fair share.” Boiron added that Polygon’s mission was to scale Ethereum when nobody else did it, when the right tech was ready, using parallelization of the Ethereum Virtual Machine and with privacy. He argued that “L3s are not consistent with that mission.” Layer-3 protocols are built on top of L2s to host application-specific decentralized applications, providing a range of solutions for scaling, performance, interoperability, customization and costs. Current leading players in the L3 ecosystem and solutions from L2 networks include Orbs, Xai, zkSync Hyperchains and the recently launched Degen Chain on Arbitrum Orbit. However, the sector is still small by comparison, with only four L3 tokens listed by CoinGecko. Related: You can now deploy your own L3 rollup for $50 a month Meanwhile, the senior partnership manager at Offchain Labs, Peter Haymond, argued that there were many benefits to L3s that don’t take value from Ethereum. The low cost of native bridging from L2 rather than L1, the low cost of proving on-chain, custom gas tokens, and specialized state transition functions were among some of them. Arbitrum Foundation researcher Patrick McCorry said he was surprised by Boiron’s take, adding: “L3s seem like a no-brainer, especially when it allows the L2 to eventually become a settlement layer (ie executing the bridge is cheaper) and ultimately relying on Ethereum as global ordering service + final judge of settlement.” On March 31, Helus Labs CEO Mert Mumtaz appeared to agree with Marc Boiron in a separate post on X, stating that “L3s are basically centralized servers settling on other centralized servers (L2s) — controlled by multisigs.” Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin ignited the L3 debate in late 2022 when he said that layer-3s will serve a different purpose to scaling by providing “customized functionality.” A third layer on the blockchain makes sense only if it provides a different function to layer-2s, he said at the time. Magazine: Big Questions: What did Satoshi Nakamoto think about ZK-proofs?

Polygon CEO Marc Boiron riled up the debate on X over the weekend after arguing that layer-3 networks aren’t necessary to scale Ethereum and exist only to rob the mainnet of value. On April 1, the Polygon CEO said that Polygon Labs, a layer-2 scaling network for Ethereum, does not work on layer 3s because they are not needed to scale existing networks. “L3s exist only to take value away from Ethereum and onto the L2s on which the L3s are built,” he said. One respondent commented that layer-2s on Ethereum “ARE value on Ethereum,” to which Boiron replied in partial agreement, adding:“I disagree that L2 value is Ethereum value. If all L3s settled to one L2, then Ethereum would capture basically no value and, thus, Ethereum security would be at risk.”“Also, we don’t care what people do.

Swiss Bitcoiners renew efforts to orange-pill the country’s central bank

Update April 25 at 3:35am UTC: This article has been updated to reflect that 2B4CH's first filing in October 2021 was postponed, and therefore, it didn't fail to obtain the 100,000 signatures needed to initiate a referendum. Several Swiss-based Bitcoiners are renewing attempts to get the Swiss National Bank to hold Bitcoin (BTC) in its reserves by holding a referendum to change the country’s constitution — but they will need to convince more than 100,000 locals to sign a petition first. Adding Bitcoin to the central bank’s reserves would help protect the country’s “sovereignty and neutrality” in an increasingly uncertain world, said Yves Bennaïm, founder and chairman of 2B4CH, a nonprofit think tank leading the charge. “We are in the process of completing the organizational preparations for the committee and preparing the documents that must be submitted to the State Chancellery in order to start the process,” Bennaïm told Swiss news outlet Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ) on April 20. However, 100,000 signatures from Swiss nationals are needed within 18 months for a referendum to be held on issues brought about by Swiss nationals or groups — a threshold that forced 2B4CH to postpone it first attempt in October 2021. 2B4CH first launched the “Bitcoin Initiative” around that time, stating its mission was to add Bitcoin as a reserve currency to Article 99-3 of the Swiss Federal Constitution. Switzerland boasts a population of 8.77 million, meaning about 1.15% of locals will need to sign the petition. “By including Bitcoin in its reserves, Switzerland would mark its independence from the European Central Bank. Such a step would strengthen our neutrality,” said Luzius Meisser, president of the Bitcoin-focused trading platform Bitcoin Suisse, who is assisting Bennaïm with the initiative. Meisser will try to convince the Swiss National Bank about the benefits of adding Bitcoin to its balance sheet in an April 26 meeting. He’ll have three minutes to plead his case. The executive previously tried to convince the central bank to buy 1 billion Swiss francs ($1.1 billion) of Bitcoin each month as an alternative to German government bonds in March 2022, according to NZZ. However, Swiss National Bank Chair Thomas Jordan reportedly said Bitcoin didn’t meet the requirements for SNB to add it as a reserve currency in April 2022. Related: Crypto adoption is booming, but not in the US or Europe — Bitcoin Builders 2023 Meisser is now claiming that Switzerland would be 30 billion Swiss francs ($32.9 billion) richer had the central bank followed his suggestion in 2022 and that leaving it any later risks the chances of other central banks swooping in on Bitcoin, forcing Switzerland to buy at “significantly higher prices than everyone else,” he said. However, Leon Curti, head of research at asset manager Digital Asset Solutions, is hopeful that the recent approvals of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds in the United States and Hong Kong will influence the Swiss National Bank to invest in Bitcoin. 2B4CH told Cointelegraph that they'll take as much time as necessary to get the 100,000 signatures needed to initiate a referendum: "The project is a marathon, not a sprint, putting all the chances on our side to gather the 100k signatures within the allocated timeframe is precisely why we are taking the time to prepare carefully, even if it takes time." The NZZ article brought about a positive response from Joana Cotar, a German politician and Bitcoin activist who strongly opposes a European Union-backed digital currency. Cointelegraph reached out to 2B4CH but didn’t receive an immediate response. Magazine: Bitcoin in Senegal: Why is this African country using BTC?

Several Swiss-based Bitcoiners are renewing attempts to get the Swiss National Bank to hold Bitcoin (BTC) in its reserves by holding a referendum to change the country’s constitution — but they will need to convince more than 100,000 locals to sign a petition first. “By including Bitcoin in its reserves, Switzerland would mark its independence from the European Central Bank. Meisser will try to convince the Swiss National Bank about the benefits of adding Bitcoin to its balance sheet in an April 26 meeting. The executive previously tried to convince the central bank to buy 1 billion Swiss francs ($1.1 billion) of Bitcoin each month as an alternative to German government bonds in March 2022, according to NZZ. However, Swiss National Bank Chair Thomas Jordan reportedly said Bitcoin didn’t meet the requirements for SNB to add it as a reserve currency in April 2022.

Nigeria launches first multilingual large language model in Africa

Through the Ministry of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy, the Nigerian government has launched Nigeria’s first multilingual large language model (LLM) as the country pushes forward to take a leadership position in artificial intelligence (AI) development in Africa. Nigeria’s Communications Minister, Dr. Bosun Tijani, announced on Friday, April 19, that the LLM launch stemmed from a four-day AI workshop held earlier that week in the country’s capital, Abuja. According to Tijani, the launch of the AI tool was facilitated by a collaboration involving Nigerian AI firm Awarritech, global tech company DataDotOrg, the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), and the National Centre for AI and Robotics (NCAIR). The Minister stated, “The LLM will be trained in five low-resource languages and accented English to ensure stronger language representation in existing data sets for the development of artificial intelligence solutions. The project will also be supported by over 7,000 fellows from the 3MTT Nigeria program,” Tijani added that following four days of collaborative work involving over 120 artificial intelligence experts, Nigeria produced an initial draft of its National AI Strategy and unveiled notable advancements and collaborations aimed at propelling the country’s AI development forward. He mentioned that among the announcements was a collaboration between 21st Century Technologies, Galaxy Backbone, and NCAIR Nigeria to expedite the progress of artificial intelligence projects crucial to the nation. 21st Century Technology will be funding the purchase of GPUs to enhance national computing capacity. These resources will aid local researchers, startups, and government entities in AI projects housed at the GBB Data Centre in the FCT. Related: Meta launches ‘most capable openly available LLM to date,’ rivaling GPT and Claude During the workshop, the Minister announced the relaunch of NCAIR, a dedicated entity created to promote research and development in AI, robotics, UAV, and Internet of Things (IoT) and their practical applications in Nigeria’s key sectors. He stated that the enhanced capacity at NCAIR would enable it to more effectively carry out its role as a digital innovation and research center. Tijani revealed that the National AI Strategy has received $3.5 million in seed funding from interested partners. Foreign and local partners support the funding, including UNDP, UNESCO, Meta, Google, Microsoft, Luminate, Lagos Business School, Data Science Nigeria, NITDA, and other agencies under the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy. It includes $1.5 million in direct funding and an additional $2 million invested by 21st Century Technologies into the pilot program. Magazine: How to get better crypto predictions from ChatGPT, Humane AI pin slammed: AI Eye

Through the Ministry of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy, the Nigerian government has launched Nigeria’s first multilingual large language model (LLM) as the country pushes forward to take a leadership position in artificial intelligence (AI) development in Africa. The Minister stated,“The LLM will be trained in five low-resource languages and accented English to ensure stronger language representation in existing data sets for the development of artificial intelligence solutions. He mentioned that among the announcements was a collaboration between 21st Century Technologies, Galaxy Backbone, and NCAIR Nigeria to expedite the progress of artificial intelligence projects crucial to the nation. Tijani revealed that the National AI Strategy has received $3.5 million in seed funding from interested partners. Magazine: How to get better crypto predictions from ChatGPT, Humane AI pin slammed: AI Eye

USDT aims to offer a lifeline to inflation-stricken nations: Tether CEO

The main purpose of the world’s largest stablecoin, Tether USD (USDT), is to help people in inflation-stricken economies protect their purchasing power, according to Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino. In an exclusive interview with Cointelegraph, Ardoino said Tether’s main focus is to help the unbanked population who don’t have access to traditional banking gain access to USDT. “[USDT] is a tool that helps people in places that have been forgotten by the banking industry. These 300 million people are of no interest to the banking industry. These are great people, but they cannot be onboarded by the banking industry because they are too poor to be of interest.” Rampant inflation is forcing people in emerging economies to increasingly look for external financial alternatives, such as the U.S. dollar. This issue is especially pressing in Argentina, where the national currency lost 98% of its value against the dollar, according to Ardoino. “What you want to do if you live in Argentina is to buy the U.S. dollar… We think about USDT as the tool that is helping people. So we have to be so focused on making it the safest that it can be. That's why we have T-bills, gold, and Bitcoin. But now our approach is to be 100% in T-bills in the next few quarters.” Related: Tether USDT stablecoin goes live on TON blockchain Tether is the world’s largest stablecoin with an over $109 billion market capitalization, compared to Circle’s USDC, with a $33 billion market cap in the second place, according to CoinMarketCap data. Ardoino attributes Tether’s success to finding the right market fit, which is people who need access to financial services and U.S. dollars. In contrast, other stablecoin issuers are trying to sell their services to the legacy banking industry. The CEO explained: “So our biggest competitors focus on the banking industry as their customers. But the banking industry has already the best, the best access to the dollar. They have credit cards, debit cards, and banking rails. They work in jurisdictions like Europe and the U.S. where people don't need stablecoins.” Stablecoin usage in Europe and the United States is “approaching zero,” explained Ardoino, adding that serving the world’s unbanked will remain a top priority for the stablecoin issuer: “The people that need a stablecoin are the ones that live in emerging markets. And these people need stability. They need to know that whatever happens, they can redeem for $1.” Tether completed the ‘gold standard’ security audit, the System and Organization Controls 2 (SOC) audit on April 1, This represents the highest level of security compliance that an organization can demonstrate. Related: BlackRock ETF close to overtaking Grayscale, despite second-lowest daily inflows

The main purpose of the world’s largest stablecoin, Tether USD (USDT), is to help people in inflation-stricken economies protect their purchasing power, according to Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino. “[USDT] is a tool that helps people in places that have been forgotten by the banking industry. These 300 million people are of no interest to the banking industry. Ardoino attributes Tether’s success to finding the right market fit, which is people who need access to financial services and U.S. dollars. The CEO explained:“So our biggest competitors focus on the banking industry as their customers.

Fidelity files S-1 application with US SEC for spot ETH EFT with staking

Fidelity filed an S-1 application with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on March 27 to create a spot Ether (ETH) exchange-traded fund (ETF). As expected from an earlier filing, the ETF will give Fidelity the option to stake part of the ETH it holds. The asset management giant’s ETF would trade on the Cboe BZX Exchange. Fidelity Digital Asset Services, which affiliated with sponsor FD Funds Management, would serve as custodian of the trust’s ETH. According to the S-1: The Trust [fund] intends to establish a program to stake a portion of the Trust’s assets through one or more staking infrastructure providers. That decision entails additional risk, the application noted. There would be a risk of loss “including in the form of ‘slashing’ penalties” and liquidity risks while the stake is being processed. In addition, staking rewards would be treated as income for the fund for tax purposes, as a result of which investors will experience a taxable event “without an associated distribution from the Trust.” The application does not specify the expected fees for the ETF. In case of a fork, the custodian will decide which chain the fund will support. Fidelity's spot ETH EFT S-1 application. Source: SEC There are multiple other risks associated with the ETF. The form points out that regulatory measures in the United States and elsewhere could negatively impact the fund. Among the potential causes of the termination of the trust, it lists regulatory action such as the SEC determining the fund to be an investment company under the 1940 Act, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission determining the fund to be a commodity pool under the Commodity Exchange Act and the determination that the fund is a money service business under the rules of the U.S. Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. The SEC is reportedly investigating the Ethereum Foundation, which analysts say could impact the chances of spot ETH ETF approval. There has also been political opposition to spot ETH EFTs. Related: SEC radio silence on Ethereum ETF ‘not a good sign’ — Bloomberg analyst The Ethereum blockchain is also liable to a 51% attack, where a bad actor could take over the governance of the network through a majority vote. “The top three largest staking pools controlled nearly 50% of the ether staked on the Ethereum network,” according to the form. Lido DAO is the largest ETH staking pool, with 31.5% of all staked ETH. Source: David Gokhstein Analysts have said that the introduction of a spot ETH ETF could reduce the influence of DAOs, but create new “concentration risk” depending on how ETFs choose to distribute their ETH among stakers. The SEC has pushed back the approval deadline for other ETH ETFs to May 23. There are eight applicants for spot ETH EFTs awaiting an SEC decision. Magazine: Ether ETFs face Senate opposition, Wright is not Satoshi, and Dencun goes live: Hodler’s Digest, March 10-16

Fidelity filed an S-1 application with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on March 27 to create a spot Ether (ETH) exchange-traded fund (ETF). Fidelity's spot ETH EFT S-1 application. The SEC is reportedly investigating the Ethereum Foundation, which analysts say could impact the chances of spot ETH ETF approval. Lido DAO is the largest ETH staking pool, with 31.5% of all staked ETH. There are eight applicants for spot ETH EFTs awaiting an SEC decision.

Number of new memecoin traders hits record high — IntoTheBlock

Memecoins have kick-started a new crypto frenzy, attracting investors new to trading and searching for the next big token that could bring massive gains. Market intelligence platform IntoTheBlock shows that the number of wallet addresses wallet address holding meme-related tokens for under 30 days hit a record high in March. The analytics platform explained that this indicates a large inflow of new traders buying memecoins in March. The number of traders jumping into the memecoin sector may be attributed to the huge gains displayed by memecoins in the first quarter of 2024. On April 3, coin information tracker CoinGecko dubbed the memecoin sector the “most profitable crypto narrative” during the year’s first quarter. Memecoins displayed 1,312.6% returns on average, the highest among the top tokens by market capitalization. Projects like Book of Meme (BOME) and Dogwifhat (WIF) drove the percentages up amid the memecoin frenzy. Stories highlighting life-changing gains may have also played a role in attracting traders into the sector. A trader turned $62 into $2 million in December after buying a Solana memecoin. The crypto user caught wind of a memecoin called Silly Dragon (SILLY), which poked fun at Solana co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko’s Halloween costume. More recently, another trader turned $13,000 into $2 million within one hour after buying a meme-based token. On April 3, a crypto trader saw a 15,700% gain after buying a memecoin called Donotfomoew (MOEW) that was minted on the Base network. Related: Trader gambles $226K on Solana memecoin, hits $1.69M in 5 days While memecoins have the potential to drive massive gains, not everyone gets too lucky. Some people miss out on gains by selling too early, while others fall prey to scammers using the memecoin presales hype to steal user funds. On March 15, a trader fumbled potential millions after selling BOME tokens before the prices skyrocketed. The trader bought 170 million BOME for $8,000 and sold the tokens for about $131,000. At the time of writing, BOME trades for about $0.01615, meaning the tokens could have been worth $2.7 million in the current market. Presale wallet address of a memecoin project called Condom. Source: Solscan Meanwhile, a Solana memecoin project called “Condom” pulled out on investors before its launch. The creators of the memecoin abandoned its X page and took almost $1 million worth of Solana (SOL) tokens. Magazine: 5 dangers to beware when apeing into Solana memecoins

Market intelligence platform IntoTheBlock shows that the number of wallet addresses wallet address holding meme-related tokens for under 30 days hit a record high in March. The analytics platform explained that this indicates a large inflow of new traders buying memecoins in March. The number of traders jumping into the memecoin sector may be attributed to the huge gains displayed by memecoins in the first quarter of 2024. On April 3, a crypto trader saw a 15,700% gain after buying a memecoin called Donotfomoew (MOEW) that was minted on the Base network. Source: SolscanMeanwhile, a Solana memecoin project called “Condom” pulled out on investors before its launch.

Ripple contests $2B SEC fine, says penalty shouldn’t exceed $10M

Cross-border payment protocol Ripple contested the United States Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) request to impose a $2 billion fine against the blockchain company, saying the penalty should not exceed $10 million. In a new filing, Ripple Labs opposed the SEC’s request to a federal judge to impose the almost $2 billion fine on the company. Ripple urged the court to deny the SEC’s requests for an injunction, disgorgement and pre-judgment interest. Ripple also said the court should issue a more reasonable civil penalty, which should not be more than $10 million. The filing said: “Ripple has every intent of adhering to that guidance in the future and every incentive to do so. The SEC’s Draconian remedial requests are ungrounded in law or principle. This Court should reject them in their entirety.” The filing highlighted that the SEC asked the court to ask Ripple to pay $876 million in disgorgement, $198 million in pre-judgment interest and another $876 million in civil penalties. In total, the amount reached almost $2 billion. Ripple revealed the requested fine amount almost a month ago. On March 25, Ripple Labs chief legal officer Stuart Alderoty revealed that the SEC asked a federal judge to impose such fines on the blockchain company. The lawyer said the SEC remains bent on punishing and intimidating Ripple and the crypto industry. Within the new filing, Ripple described the fine as “unreasonable” and said that $10 million is the actual amount that reflects a portion of their actual revenues. Ripple redacted the actual percentage shared in the document. Related: Pro-XRP lawyer requests to be amicus curiae for Coinbase customers The filing also highlighted that such an amount “would be proportionate in both percentage and dollar amount to comparable digital-asset cases where there was no culpable mental state and no substantial harm or risk of harm to others.” On X, Alderoty suggested that the SEC’s actions and ask for the fine are proof of its “ongoing intimidation against all of crypto” in the United States. The Ripple lawyer said the case had no allegations or findings of recklessness or fraud. In addition, the legal officer believes that Ripple won on “significant” issues and hoped that the judge would fairly approach the final remedies phase of the case. Magazine: Lazarus Group’s favorite exploit revealed — Crypto hacks analysis

In a new filing, Ripple Labs opposed the SEC’s request to a federal judge to impose the almost $2 billion fine on the company. Ripple urged the court to deny the SEC’s requests for an injunction, disgorgement and pre-judgment interest. Ripple also said the court should issue a more reasonable civil penalty, which should not be more than $10 million. Ripple revealed the requested fine amount almost a month ago. The Ripple lawyer said the case had no allegations or findings of recklessness or fraud.

Ernst & Young taps ZK-proofs on Ethereum to automate contracts

Big Four accounting firm Ernst & Young has launched an Ethereum-based solution using zero-knowledge proofs aimed at helping its private business clients facilitate complex contracts. Called the EY OpsChain Contract Manager (OCM), the solution will help private businesses execute complex business agreements in a timely, confidential and cost-effective manner, the firm explained in an April 17 statement. Among the types of contracts that can leverage EY’s Ethereum-based solution are purchase agreements, standardized rate cards, volume discounts, rebates and strike prices. EY said it chose Ethereum — a public blockchain — instead of a private network as it would prevent a party from gaining a “strategic advantage” over another and reduce the risk of sensitive business information being leaked. The firm built OCM as it realized through past client work that accuracy in contract terms could be improved while also cutting cycle times and administration costs by around 90% and 40%, respectively, noted Paul Brody, EY Global Blockchain Leader. “With our zero-knowledge privacy technology, we have industrialized this capability, and we can now get these benefits at a fraction of the up-front cost.” The solution was launched at the annual EY Global Blockchain Summit on April 17. In a recent interview with Cointelegraph, Reed Smith’s On Chain cryptocurrency group leader Celisa Morin noted that TradFi institutions have started to prefer using public blockchains instead of private ones in recent months, with BlackRock’s BUIDL being a textbook example of that. Related: Bitcoin ETF to trigger massive demand from institutions, EY says OCM has been in the works since at least September 2021, when the accounting firm chose Polygon to help build its blockchain enterprise product. Polygon helped EY build Nightfall — an Ethereum-based enterprise solution to orchestrate private transactions — a few months later, in December 2021. However, no mention of Polygon was made in EY’s latest product information sheet for OCM. EY first started experimenting with ZK-proofs in April 2019 for the purpose of building a blockchain-based platform for audit, tax and transaction monitoring. Ethereum has long been its chain of choice to build on. The firm revealed it invested $1.4 billion into AI technologies for its new EY.ai platform late September, aimed at helping companies adopt AI through its in-house built large language model, EY AI EYQ. Magazine: Ethereum is eating the world — ‘You only need one internet’

Big Four accounting firm Ernst & Young has launched an Ethereum-based solution using zero-knowledge proofs aimed at helping its private business clients facilitate complex contracts. Among the types of contracts that can leverage EY’s Ethereum-based solution are purchase agreements, standardized rate cards, volume discounts, rebates and strike prices. Polygon helped EY build Nightfall — an Ethereum-based enterprise solution to orchestrate private transactions — a few months later, in December 2021. EY first started experimenting with ZK-proofs in April 2019 for the purpose of building a blockchain-based platform for audit, tax and transaction monitoring. Magazine: Ethereum is eating the world — ‘You only need one internet’

Chainlink co-founder expects more coins to have ETFs — Token2049

With the crypto space looking for the next narrative to power it higher, Sergey Nazarov, the co-founder of blockchain oracle platform Chainlink, shared some of his ideas on what might be next for crypto. In an interview with Cointelegraph at the Token2049 event in Dubai, Nazarov shared how the crypto exchange-traded fund (ETF) space could develop and what could spur further mainstream adoption for Web3 and digital assets. Cointelegraph reporter Ezra Reguerra with Chainlink’s Sergey Nazarov at the Token2049 event. Source: Cointelegraph According to Nazarov, with Bitcoin (BTC) ETFs being approved, the crypto space could expect more ETFs of other coins and tokens. The executive highlighted that beyond BTC and Ether (ETH), other tokens have the potential to get approved for their own ETF. Nazarov explained: “I think what’s next is more ETFs about coins other than Bitcoin and Ethereum. So, I think the ETF dynamic is going to continue during this year and just grow and grow and grow.” Furthermore, the executive also explained how tokenized real-world assets (RWA) may be generated by Web3 companies and banks in the near future. The executive believes that the Web3 world will further converge with traditional finance through RWA. “Eventually, I expect the Web3 assets to be bought by the banks and the bank assets to be bought by the Web3 protocols for various reasons why they would want each other’s assets.” The executive expects these things to happen in three to four years. Related: Crypto community triumphs: Token2049 attendees brave Dubai storms Nazarov also explained that crypto needs to improve its usability to achieve wider mainstream adoption. “I think the usability of crypto still has a long way to go,” he said. The executive added that user experience is “nowhere near what it needs to be” and that there’s still a lot of work to be done in that aspect. The Chainlink co-founder also shared four main pillars that need to be addressed to spur further adoption into the mainstream. He said: “I would say the usability, the scalability, the connectivity and the privacy are the four main pillars of what I look at the crypto industry when I think about how it is developing.” Nazarov explained that the space is moving closer to these goals and will “keep pushing the limits on what’s possible.” Magazine: Get Bitcoin or die tryin’: Why hip hop stars love crypto

With the crypto space looking for the next narrative to power it higher, Sergey Nazarov, the co-founder of blockchain oracle platform Chainlink, shared some of his ideas on what might be next for crypto. Source: CointelegraphAccording to Nazarov, with Bitcoin (BTC) ETFs being approved, the crypto space could expect more ETFs of other coins and tokens. Nazarov explained:“I think what’s next is more ETFs about coins other than Bitcoin and Ethereum. Related: Crypto community triumphs: Token2049 attendees brave Dubai stormsNazarov also explained that crypto needs to improve its usability to achieve wider mainstream adoption. The Chainlink co-founder also shared four main pillars that need to be addressed to spur further adoption into the mainstream.

BitMEX co-founder must face suit over ‘God Access’ trading desk, judge rules

Crypto exchange BitMEX co-founder Ben Delo is set to face a class-action lawsuit from exchange users after a United States federal judge determined the suit sufficiently showed he was key to an alleged price manipulation plot. Delo, a British citizen, had asked to dismiss the suit last May, claiming U.S. courts have no jurisdiction over him, but New York District Court Judge Andrew Carter shot that down in an order signed on April 3 and published on April 8. “Plaintiffs have sufficiently alleged that Delo has purposely availed himself of the benefits of the forum — the United States,” Judge Carter wrote. The order — taking facts from the investor suit which Judge Carter “presumed to be true" — stated Delo “was central” to alleged manipulation efforts and “conceived of and designed” a liquidation system allowing BitMEX “to profit from the manipulation.” A group of BitMEX users filed the lawsuit in April 2020 against BitMEX and co-founders Delo, Arthur Hayes and Samuel Reed, claiming they had a trading desk with “God Access” to BitMEX customer accounts. The trio used customer information to determine which market moves would liquidate the highest number of users — which would net the exchange a profit — and would conduct trades to make that happen, the lawsuit claimed. Highlighted excerpt of Judge Carter’s order stating Delo used a Lamborghini to market BitMEX in New York. Source: PACER BitMEX revealed the desk in April 2018 after pressure from an independent analyst, the order said. The exchange claimed the desk had a neutral market-making role, but the suit alleges BitMEX continued trading against its customers on burner accounts. Along with designing BitMEX’s liquidation system, the judge wrote the lawsuit showed Delo’s role at the exchange meant he would approve “key financial and trading decisions,” including the operation of the trading desk. “Delo personally traded on the platform, benefitting from these same undisclosed advantages,” the order stated. Related: SushiSwap team treasury takeover looks likely despite heated debate On April 3, Judge Carter denied a motion to dismiss from BitMEX and its Seychelles-based parent firm, HDR Global Trading, finding the suit “sufficiently alleged” the trading desk operated from BitMEX’s office in Manhattan. Delo was sentenced to 30 months probation in June 2022 after pleading guilty that February to failing to maintain an Anti-Money Laundering program at BitMEX in violation of the Bank Secrecy Act. Hayes and Reed also pleaded guilty alongside Delo. Hayes was given two years probation with six months of home confinement, while Reed was given 18 months probation. Magazine: Deposit risk: What do crypto exchanges really do with your money? Update (April 21, 11:15 pm UTC): This article has been updated to clarify in the first and second paragraphs that Judge Carter's order used information from the investor lawsuit.

Crypto exchange BitMEX co-founder Ben Delo is set to face a class-action lawsuit from exchange users after a United States federal judge determined the suit sufficiently showed he was key to an alleged price manipulation plot. “Plaintiffs have sufficiently alleged that Delo has purposely availed himself of the benefits of the forum — the United States,” Judge Carter wrote. Highlighted excerpt of Judge Carter’s order stating Delo used a Lamborghini to market BitMEX in New York. The exchange claimed the desk had a neutral market-making role, but the suit alleges BitMEX continued trading against its customers on burner accounts. Along with designing BitMEX’s liquidation system, the judge wrote the lawsuit showed Delo’s role at the exchange meant he would approve “key financial and trading decisions,” including the operation of the trading desk.

Cboe seeks SEC approval to mix mutual funds with ETFs

Cboe Global Markets has asked the United States Securities and Exchange Commission to approve a rule change that would allow issuers to combine exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and mutual funds. According to a Reuters report on April 4, Cboe submitted a 19b-4 form requesting the green light to add an ETF share class to existing mutual funds, allowing for a multi-share class fund structure. If approved, the rule would allow issuers to combine and offer similar mutual funds and ETFs within a single investment vehicle. Todd Sohn, an ETF analyst at Strategas LLC, told Reuters that “both the number of ETFs and ETF assets could soar” if the SEC approves Cboe’s request. Mutual funds and ETFs present unique differences in their operations, as well as regulatory frameworks. Mutual funds are typically bought and sold at the end of the trading day at a price based on the fund’s net asset value, which is calculated after the market closes. ETFs, on the other hand, trade on exchanges throughout the trading day at market prices, like stocks, and can fluctuate at any time. If the rule change is approved, Bitcoin (BTC) ETF shares could potentially be added to a mutual fund’s portfolio, offering exposure to the digital asset. The proposed system won’t be the first of its kind. Since 2001, the Vanguard Group has had a patented investment strategy that allowed for a unique “share class” structure within their ETFs. This structure enabled Vanguard to offer ETFs as a share class of their existing mutual funds, allowing both funds to share the same underlying portfolio. Vanguard’s patent on this share class concept expired in May 2023. According to Reuters, eight asset managers — including Dimensional Fund Advisors, Morgan Stanley and Fidelity — have since filed for regulatory approval to replicate the model. T. Rowe Price and JPMorgan have also expressed interest in using a similar approach. Cboe’s application must be approved or rejected by the SEC within 240 days. Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas noted that the filing gives issuers a chance to force the SEC to respond to their applications. According to Mordor Intelligence, the North American ETF market is projected to eclipse $8 trillion in 2024 and expand at a compound annual growth rate of 14% to $15.52 trillion by 2029. Magazine: MakerDAO’s plan to bring back ‘DeFi summer’ — Rune Christensen

Cboe Global Markets has asked the United States Securities and Exchange Commission to approve a rule change that would allow issuers to combine exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and mutual funds. If approved, the rule would allow issuers to combine and offer similar mutual funds and ETFs within a single investment vehicle. Mutual funds and ETFs present unique differences in their operations, as well as regulatory frameworks. Since 2001, the Vanguard Group has had a patented investment strategy that allowed for a unique “share class” structure within their ETFs. This structure enabled Vanguard to offer ETFs as a share class of their existing mutual funds, allowing both funds to share the same underlying portfolio.

Sphere 3D’s legal issues escalate as Gryphon seeks to block $10M

The legal battle between Bitcoin miners Sphere 3D and Gryphon Digital Mining has gotten another chapter on March 25, as a new legal action seeks to block $10 million from a recent settlement. In a pre-motion letter filed by Gryphon in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, the miner requests permission to file a motion for prejudgment attachment, seeking to secure $10 million in equity proceeds that Sphere recently received from a settlement related to Core Scientific’s bankruptcy exit. Gryphon wants to ensure that the funds are available to satisfy any judgment it may receive due to Sphere’s alleged breach of contract, which has damages amounting to at least $30 million. Sphere is accused of entering into at least four hosting agreements with other providers, violating the exclusivity clause of their agreement with Gryphon. Gryphon’s letter requesting permission to file a motion. Source: Hogan Lovells/Gryphon. Behind the pre-motion letter lies Sphere’s financial health. According to Gryphon’s letter based on Sphere’s annual report to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the company has publicly acknowledged its potential for bankruptcy, suggesting it may not be able to satisfy future judgments. “Over the last four months, Sphere has revealed its growing financial troubles. On November 28, 2023, in a filing in the Core Bankruptcy Action, Sphere’s counsel acknowledged that the company was operating with a $200 million net loss and that recent losses had overtaken revenue by a two-to-one margin,” reads the letter. According to Sphere’s latest earnings report from March 13, the company’s net loss for 2023 was $23.4 million, compared to $192.8 million the previous year, as the crypto winter hit miners. The companies have been partners since August 2021 and even considered merging under the Gryphon brand. However, in April 2023, Sphere first sued Gryphon after an alleged spoofing attack led to the irregular transfer of Bitcoin. In January 2023, Gryphon CEO Rob Chang was allegedly scammed into sending 18 Bitcoin (BTC) to a spoofing attacker posing as Sphere 3D’s chief financial officer. A few days later, eight more BTC were sent to the same address. At the time, Gryphon claimed to be a victim of Sphere’s “gross negligence” that allowed activities from malicious actors. In addition to dismissing allegations related to the transfer of assets, Gryphon has filed claims against Sphere 3D for breach of contract, negligence, and defamation. The partnership was terminated in October 2023. Cointelegraph reached out to Sphere 3D, but did not receive an immediate response. Magazine: MakerDAO’s plan to bring back ‘DeFi summer’ — Rune Christensen

The legal battle between Bitcoin miners Sphere 3D and Gryphon Digital Mining has gotten another chapter on March 25, as a new legal action seeks to block $10 million from a recent settlement. However, in April 2023, Sphere first sued Gryphon after an alleged spoofing attack led to the irregular transfer of Bitcoin. In January 2023, Gryphon CEO Rob Chang was allegedly scammed into sending 18 Bitcoin (BTC) to a spoofing attacker posing as Sphere 3D’s chief financial officer. In addition to dismissing allegations related to the transfer of assets, Gryphon has filed claims against Sphere 3D for breach of contract, negligence, and defamation. Cointelegraph reached out to Sphere 3D, but did not receive an immediate response.

RFK Jr. wants to put the entire US budget on a blockchain

United States presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wants to put the entire U.S. budget on the blockchain. During a Michigan rally on April 21, he proposed the idea and said the move would allow every American to look at “every budget item anytime they want, 24 hours a day.” “We’re gonna have 300 million eyeballs on our budget, and if somebody is spending $16,000 for a toilet seat, everybody’s gonna know about it.” NEW: RFK Jr. says “I’m gonna put the entire US budget on blockchain” “Every American can look at every budget item in the entire budget, anytime they want, 24 hours a day.” “We’re gonna have 300 million eyeballs on our budget!” pic.twitter.com/TBpkcXt5i1 — Radar (@RadarHits) April 22, 2024 Kennedy’s plan would allow for more transparency and accountability, allowing taxpayers to see where their tax dollars are spent. The blockchain proposal was lauded by many crypto advocates on social media, where people claimed it would be revolutionary and end corruption. One user wrote that transparent public accounting might be the best use case for blockchain tech besides the supply chain: “checks and balances in our government doesn’t work if the branches are in on the corruption together (president and congress particularly) it’s time the people hold them accountable.” Some, however, have criticized the plan, claiming Kennedy is advocating for a central bank digital currency (CBDC) via his blockchain plan. However, in the past, Kennedy has vowed to end U.S. efforts to move toward a CBDC, claiming it infringes on privacy. Related: Bitcoin price hits all-time highs across Argentina, Nigeria and Turkey Kennedy is running as an independent candidate in the upcoming U.S. presidential election after ending his bid to be the Democratic Party nominee in October 2023. He is a strong advocate for Bitcoin (BTC) and blockchain and has been among the few presidential candidates who have endorsed Bitcoin and decentralized technology. He is also the first presidential candidate to accept Bitcoin for campaign donations. Kennedy also revealed his plans to back the U.S. dollar with Bitcoin if elected president. In recent years, more politicians have advocated against centralized government systems — particularly financial ones — as decentralized financial alternatives have grown in popularity. In December 2023, Bitcoin-friendly candidate Javier Milei won the Argentine presidential election on the back of a campaign promising to slash the size of government. Magazine: Unstablecoins: Depegging, bank runs and other risks loom

United States presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wants to put the entire U.S. budget on the blockchain. The blockchain proposal was lauded by many crypto advocates on social media, where people claimed it would be revolutionary and end corruption. However, in the past, Kennedy has vowed to end U.S. efforts to move toward a CBDC, claiming it infringes on privacy. He is a strong advocate for Bitcoin (BTC) and blockchain and has been among the few presidential candidates who have endorsed Bitcoin and decentralized technology. He is also the first presidential candidate to accept Bitcoin for campaign donations.

PAXG hit new high amid Middle East tensions, raising questions about Bitcoin

The gold-backed digital asset from Paxos spiked to an all-time high over the weekend amid a backdrop of rising tensions in the Middle East, leading to some questioning Bitcoin’s (BTC) value as a geopolitical hedge. The PAXG gold-backed crypto token hit $2,855 on April 13 as Bitcoin prices conversely tanked $5,000 in a matter of hours from over $67,500 to bottom out at around $62,700 in a 7.5% daily rout, according to data from CoinGecko. “Bitcoin may be many things, but it is not a geopolitical hedge,” commented Bob Elliott, co-founder and CEO of Unlimited Funds and former executive of Bridgewater, in a post on X. Geopolitical tensions in the Middle East were ramped up over the weekend following an Iranian drone and missile attack on Israeli targets. The former Bridgewater Associates research head added that this weekend was another good empirical test as BTC traded with a “near-perfect negative correlation over the last day to PAXG.” “If anything, it’s becoming an even worse hedge over time,” he exclaimed. BTC and PAXG prices. Source: Bob Elliott The PAXG token could not sustain momentum, however, and retreated to its previous spot gold-linked price level of around $2,376 at the time of writing. The asset has made slow and steady progress since the beginning of March, rising 20% in tandem with prices of the underlying precious yellow metal, which hit a peak of $2,400 per ounce last week. However, some noted that the Paxos token has very little liquidity, with just $36 million daily volume compared to major high-cap crypto assets that trade in the billions. Glassnode on-chain analyst “Checkmatey” commented that those who “posted about the price of an illiquid gold token trading higher today as a dunk on Bitcoin are an unserious market commentator.” Meanwhile, Elliot observed that Bitcoin exhibited similar market action last year when it traded down in the period following the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel, while gold traded up. “These correlations look to be getting more negative over time,” added Elliott, who cited the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. “BTC largely traded randomly in a relatively tight range in the lead-up and following the invasion,” he added. Gold prices jumped 12% during February and March that year. Analyst Willy Woo also referred to price action during the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war, adding that Bitcoin “recovery happens within days.” Related: Bitcoin nosedives as political tensions escalate in the Middle East Elliott concluded that from a geopolitical perspective, Bitcoin is not a store of value asset, and its broader use may link it more closely to aggregate financial assets. “Along the geopolitical dimension, its pretty conclusive BTC is not ‘digital gold.’” At the time of writing, Bitcoin had already started its recovery from the weekend dump, topping $65,800 in early trading on April 15. Magazine: Altseason on the horizon, SEC targets Uniswap, and BTC halving news: Hodler’s Digest, April 7–13

The gold-backed digital asset from Paxos spiked to an all-time high over the weekend amid a backdrop of rising tensions in the Middle East, leading to some questioning Bitcoin’s (BTC) value as a geopolitical hedge. The PAXG gold-backed crypto token hit $2,855 on April 13 as Bitcoin prices conversely tanked $5,000 in a matter of hours from over $67,500 to bottom out at around $62,700 in a 7.5% daily rout, according to data from CoinGecko. BTC and PAXG prices. Source: Bob ElliottThe PAXG token could not sustain momentum, however, and retreated to its previous spot gold-linked price level of around $2,376 at the time of writing. “BTC largely traded randomly in a relatively tight range in the lead-up and following the invasion,” he added.

Ubisoft teases new blockchain game at Paris Blockchain Week

AAA game studio Ubisoft is edging closer to releasing its first blockchain-based game after releasing the first gameplay trailer for Champion Tactics Grimoria during Paris Blockchain Week. The tactical player-vs-player role-playing game’s lead developers gave Cointelegraph an exclusive playthrough at the conference. The RPG allows players to craft blockchain-based figurines with unique features and characteristics that can be combined into a team of three for the turn-based game. Source: ChampionsVerse Champions Tactics The game certainly has the polish and feel of a Ubisoft title, with high-end graphics and animations adding to the depth of gameplay. Players will need to learn what combinations of heroes best complement and counter other players’ picks. Ubisoft Strategic Innovation Lab vice president Nicolas Pouard said the studio had adopted a patient approach to building a blockchain-based title: “We started development last year on the first real game on blockchain. We felt it was too ambitious to start with a AAA title, so we’re testing the waters with Champions Tactics.” Pouard said the studio had adopted a different approach to other developers building blockchain games by starting with creating a universe around the assets and nonfungible tokens that form the core of the title. The game is centered around champion figurines with various skills and abilities. In the vein of DOTA, different champions combine well with certain classes and specs and counter the figurines chosen by opponents in turn-based matches. Ubisoft and Oasys, the gaming blockchain protocol on which the former has built the title, gave visitors in Paris a first-hand look at the gameplay. They also announced a new whitelist that will enable prospective players to begin crafting figurines for their champions roster. Pouard added Ubisoft was not necessarily interested in releasing a game that was driven by financial motivations, but to prove that the studio could release a quality Web3 game that gives players true ownership of digital assets. “We must understand the market and how we launch this kind of game,” he said. “That’s really what we want to achieve here. We want to give the players the power to populate the game with figurines and understand what it means to own your gaming assets.” Oasys also announced a new integration with the omni-chain interoperability protocol LayerZero. This marks a significant step in the former’s 2024 Dragon Update, which focuses on enhancing interoperability across its gaming ecosystem. Magazine: ‘Web3 Gaming sucks’ says Ava, 2M Bitcoin Miner players make 13c: Web3 Gamer

AAA game studio Ubisoft is edging closer to releasing its first blockchain-based game after releasing the first gameplay trailer for Champion Tactics Grimoria during Paris Blockchain Week. Source: ChampionsVerse Champions TacticsThe game certainly has the polish and feel of a Ubisoft title, with high-end graphics and animations adding to the depth of gameplay. Ubisoft Strategic Innovation Lab vice president Nicolas Pouard said the studio had adopted a patient approach to building a blockchain-based title:“We started development last year on the first real game on blockchain. Ubisoft and Oasys, the gaming blockchain protocol on which the former has built the title, gave visitors in Paris a first-hand look at the gameplay. Magazine: ‘Web3 Gaming sucks’ says Ava, 2M Bitcoin Miner players make 13c: Web3 Gamer

Mastercard sees partnerships as key to blockchain remittances in Latam

Mastercard has released a white paper on remittances in Latin America. Remittance rates are growing faster than the global average in the region, and mobile phone and internet penetration will fuel a transition from cash to digital options, the report said. As of 2022, one in ten people worldwide lives in a home that receives remittances worth a total of $831 billion. The average cost of sending remittances to Latin America was 5.8% of the amount sent, compared to a global average of 6.3%, and costs reaching up to 25.5% at times, usually in the poorest regions, Mastercard reported. Competition is increasing, however, sometimes creating a race to the bottom on prices. The report also cited World Bank data that showed that at least half of remittances were transmitted by informal means. The report identifies a number of current remittance options that together “speak to the emergence of a completely new reality in global remittances.” Latin America currently receives 43% of its remittances digitally, compared to a world average of 52%. Digital remittances are expected to be worth $20 billion by 2026. Related: Circle and SBI Holdings partner to boost USDC circulation in Japan MoneyGram and Stellar provide remittances using USDC (USDC), and SBI Remit does so through Ripple, it said. Ripple is also leading the way in developing promising uses for central bank digital currency, along with other, more limited, projects. MoneyGram head of fintech strategy and innovation Luther Maday is quoted in the report: “We can move money more quickly with new channels like USDC, which ultimately translates into additional liquidity for our day-to-day global operations.” There are several other crypto players in the Latin American market, including Binance and Mastercard itself, in partnership with wallet provider Belo. Problems remain in the crypto field, however. Trust, regulatory and technological adoption issues still hinder the progress of crypto players and other providers, the report said. Moreover: “The current digitization efforts are limited to the remittance transaction itself. In order to digitize fully and reduce costs more broadly, the digital money ecosystems in the recipient countries must be fostered.” “It’s not enough that a recipient receives the money in an account, a card, or a wallet if they can’t make digital payments when they spend that money,” the report continued. “The intelligent weaving of partnerships between diverse players” is needed by all remittance providers, the report concluded. Source: WrathofKahneman Magazine: Crypto in the Philippines: Necessity is the mother of adoption

Mastercard has released a white paper on remittances in Latin America. As of 2022, one in ten people worldwide lives in a home that receives remittances worth a total of $831 billion. Digital remittances are expected to be worth $20 billion by 2026. Related: Circle and SBI Holdings partner to boost USDC circulation in JapanMoneyGram and Stellar provide remittances using USDC (USDC), and SBI Remit does so through Ripple, it said. “The intelligent weaving of partnerships between diverse players” is needed by all remittance providers, the report concluded.

OneCoin’s legal boss gets 4 years jail for massive $4B crypto scam

The former head of legal and compliance for the multibillion-dollar OneCoin fraud scheme has been sentenced to four years in jail after admitting she helped launder millions of dollars. 42-year-old Irina Dilkinska was sentenced on Wednesday to four years in jail by United States District Judge Edgardo Ramos, according to an April 3 statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office. In addition to her four-year jail sentence, Dilkinska was sentenced to one month of supervised release and ordered to forfeit $111 million as restitution. Judge Ramos reportedly denied Dilkinska’s request to avoid jail time and return home to care for young children in Bulgaria, according to an April 3 report from Bloomberg. Ramos said Dilkinska was “a woman of great intelligence and a woman who ought to have known better,” adding that she was fully aware of the legal consequences of her actions while involved in operating the $4-billion Ponzi scheme. “I honestly do not understand what prevented her from leaving the scheme before the point when it was brought down,” Ramos said. Dilinska pled guilty to wire fraud and money laundering charges in a Manhattan federal court on Nov. 10. Each charge carried a maximum sentence of up to five years in prison, meaning that Dilkinska faced the possibility of 10 years imprisonment. Dilkinsa is the latest OneCoin executive to land themselves in prison for their role in the fraud scheme. On Sept. 12 last year, the scheme’s co-founder, Karl Sebastian Greenwood, was sentenced to 20 years in prison on fraud and money laundering charges and was ordered to pay $300 million in restitution. Related: Cryptoqueen’s brother is freed after 3 years jail over OneCoin scheme: Report OneCoin was founded by “Cryptoqueen” Ruja Ignatova and Greenwood in 2014 and promised guaranteed returns to investors from a bogus cryptocurrency called “OneCoin.” However, it was later revealed that the company had never built a functioning blockchain and instead operated as a pyramid scheme that made its money by paying commissions to investors to sign up a constant stream of new buyers. Ignatova remains at large, having gone missing in October 2017 after a flight to Greece just 15 days after a federal warrant was issued for her arrest. Some have speculated that Ignatova has been killed following the murders of several OneCoin associates in Mexico in 2020. OneCoin was exposed as fraudulent in 2015 but still managed to generate over $4.3 billion in revenue, recording profits of nearly $3 billion between 2014 and 2016. Magazine: Creating ‘good’ AGI that won’t kill us all — Crypto’s Artificial Superintelligence Alliance

The former head of legal and compliance for the multibillion-dollar OneCoin fraud scheme has been sentenced to four years in jail after admitting she helped launder millions of dollars. 42-year-old Irina Dilkinska was sentenced on Wednesday to four years in jail by United States District Judge Edgardo Ramos, according to an April 3 statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office. In addition to her four-year jail sentence, Dilkinska was sentenced to one month of supervised release and ordered to forfeit $111 million as restitution. Dilinska pled guilty to wire fraud and money laundering charges in a Manhattan federal court on Nov. 10. Dilkinsa is the latest OneCoin executive to land themselves in prison for their role in the fraud scheme.

SushiSwap team treasury takeover looks likely despite heated debate

A controversial proposal to change SushiSwap’s treasury structure by the team behind the decentralized exchange looks like it may go through despite vocal opposition to the proposal on social media. The SushiSwap team made a controversial governance proposal on March 26 to “significantly evolve Sushi by adopting a Labs model.” It aims to restructure the current organization to “enhance operational efficiency and accelerate protocol development.” However, it includes a controversial tokenomics overhaul that aims to deploy decentralized autonomous organization (DAO)-controlled Sushi Treasury’s assets — around 25 million tokens worth roughly $42.5 million — to Sushi Labs. “We request that Sushi DAO award a grant of 25 million Sushi tokens to Sushi Labs, including assets from the Arbitrum airdrop, business development, and partner grants, Kanpai 2.0, Sushi 2.0, rewards, stablecoins, and ‘Sushi House’ funds.” “The revisions will include a singular mint of 25M tokens granted to Sushi Labs and the introduction of a 1.5% APR (baseline) to bolster liquidity, incentivize participation, and fortify the Treasury,” it added. There is a current maximum supply of 250 million SUSHI (SUSHI) tokens under the existing tokenomics model. Additionally, Sushi Labs will be the sole beneficiary of future airdrops awarded by protocols and partners. Voting began on April 3 and is set to end on April 10. So far, around 29 million SUSHI has been pledged, which is more than enough to reach a quorum. Voting for either outcome was pretty evenly matched until recently when it tipped in favor of the “yays.” At the moment, only a third of the votes — 9.7 million tokens — have been lodged against the proposal. Among the whale voters was the Sushi Labs team, which made the proposal and pledged 5.5 million tokens in favor of it. A key opposer went under the “sushicitizens.eth” address and pledged 4.4 million SUSHI against it. Former SushiSwap contributor Naïm Boubziz claims that the team voted for themselves using the protocol’s multisignature wallet after reporting that it had tried to get 4 million SUSHI from the treasury multisig in early March. There were also accusations that the Sushi team took out a loan in order to vote for their own proposal. On April 4, Boubziz said that “they borrowed money for a few hours to add liquidity in order to double their voting power for snapshots.” Sushi “Head Chef” Jared Grey, however, defended against the critics in an April 8 post on X who accused Sushi Labs of manipulating the vote by adding liquidity just before the vote and then removing it afterward, deleting snapshots and voting with the multisig Ops address. “After consulting our legal counsel, I directed the operations team to execute the YAY vote with the OPs wallet and its holdings due to the threat of a hostile takeover,” he said. Related: Community on SushiSwap exploit: The $3.3M hack is ‘weird’ The decentralized exchange protocol is no stranger to power struggles. SushiSwap launched in 2020, surging past industry leader Uniswap following a vampire attack. However, its pseudonymous founder, “Chef Nomi,” reportedly attempted a rug-pull shortly after plunging the protocol into controversy, infighting and the internal chaos that has continued ever since. SUSHI was trading at $1.70 at the time of writing, down 93% from its all-time high three years ago in March 2021. Magazine: 1 in 6 new Base meme coins are scams, 91% have vulnerabilities

There is a current maximum supply of 250 million SUSHI (SUSHI) tokens under the existing tokenomics model. Additionally, Sushi Labs will be the sole beneficiary of future airdrops awarded by protocols and partners. So far, around 29 million SUSHI has been pledged, which is more than enough to reach a quorum. Among the whale voters was the Sushi Labs team, which made the proposal and pledged 5.5 million tokens in favor of it. A key opposer went under the “sushicitizens.eth” address and pledged 4.4 million SUSHI against it.

Coinbase cleared in lawsuit over crypto transactions

Coinbase crypto exchange has achieved a significant victory in an ongoing lawsuit. The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled in favor of Coinbase, confirming that secondary sales of cryptocurrencies on its platform do not violate the Securities Exchange Act. The court’s decision affects a nationwide group of people who traded tokens on Coinbase from Oct. 8, 2019, to March 11, 2022. At the heart of the dispute was whether cryptocurrencies traded on Coinbase met the criteria for securities. The plaintiffs lodged federal claims under Sections 5, 12(a)(1) and 15 of the Securities Act 1933, alongside Sections 5, 15(a)(1), 20(a) and 29(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. They also presented state law claims related to securities legislation in California, Florida and New Jersey, representing a nationwide class of individuals. Summary order by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Source: CTF Assets The plaintiffs contended that Coinbase’s actions amounted to offering and selling unregistered securities. Furthermore, they accused it of violating various provisions of securities laws. However, Coinbase argued that secondary crypto asset sales didn’t meet securities transaction criteria, disputing the relevance of securities regulations. The court examined various aspects, ultimately overturning some of the lower court’s decisions while upholding others. The court determined Coinbase’s potential liability under Section 12(a)(1) of the Securities Act for vending unregistered securities. However, it rejected the plaintiffs’ Securities Exchange Act claims, citing insufficient proof of transaction-specific contracts needed for rescission under Section 29. Related: Coinbase secures restricted dealer license in Canada The court’s decision hinged significantly on interpreting Coinbase’s user agreements, which evolved over time. Varying language across versions complicated title and privity issues critical to the case. Clarity on the applicable user agreement version was emphasized, with discrepancies hindering a definitive resolution. The plaintiffs view the ruling as a step forward in holding crypto platforms accountable under securities laws, advocating for investor protection in the evolving crypto space. Conversely, Coinbase asserts the decision reinforces its position that secondary crypto sales aren’t securities transactions. Furthermore, Coinbase stressed the necessity of regulatory clarity to foster innovation within the industry. The court’s verdict has substantial consequences for overseeing cryptocurrencies and digital assets. Coinbase chief legal officer Paul Grewal expressed gratitude on X social platform, stating that the court reaffirmed no private liability for secondary trading of digital assets on exchanges like Coinbase under federal securities law, emphasizing the significance of contracts. Magazine: How can Bitcoin payments stage a comeback?

Coinbase crypto exchange has achieved a significant victory in an ongoing lawsuit. The plaintiffs lodged federal claims under Sections 5, 12(a)(1) and 15 of the Securities Act 1933, alongside Sections 5, 15(a)(1), 20(a) and 29(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. However, Coinbase argued that secondary crypto asset sales didn’t meet securities transaction criteria, disputing the relevance of securities regulations. However, it rejected the plaintiffs’ Securities Exchange Act claims, citing insufficient proof of transaction-specific contracts needed for rescission under Section 29. Conversely, Coinbase asserts the decision reinforces its position that secondary crypto sales aren’t securities transactions.

‘Buy Bitcoin’ sign that photobombed Janet Yellen sells for $1M

A yellow notepad with “Buy Bitcoin” written on it, which was flashed behind then-United States Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen during a 2017 congressional hearing, has sold at auction for 16 Bitcoin (BTC) — over $1 million. The buyer, identified as “Justin” — also known as “Squirrekkywrath” — was the winning bidder on the Bitcoin auction platform Scarce City. The auction ran for a week, ending on April 24, just after 11:00 pm UTC. The sign was offered up by Christian Langalis, who wrote it out and flashed it to the camera after nabbing a seat behind Yellen at a televised House Financial Services Committee hearing in July 2017. Langalis was escorted out after photobombing Yellen, as signs are not allowed to be displayed during hearings. CNBC reported at the time that after the sign was flashed, Bitcoin traded 3.7% higher, reaching over $2,418. After Scarce City takes its 15% fee, Langalis is set to pocket around $875,000, or 13.6 BTC. In a statement under the listing, Langalis said it was “good to finally liberate this number from my sock drawer and offer it back to the Bitcoin public.” Related: $1M Bitcoin price still in play amid ‘macro liquidity surge’ — Arthur Hayes The listing notes the page with the handwritten sign “was removed from the notepad shortly after the hearing” but was since “reattached with clear archival wire.” The yellow legal pad also contains “an unseen rough draft” of the now-iconic scrawl, along with notes on the hearing monetary policy and Bitcoin. Langalis’ draft of the sign was part of the sale. Source: Scarce City In 2019, Langalis created and sold 21 replicas of the sign, which sold for an average price of 0.8 BTC, worth about $51,300 today. The listing claims the replicas are displayed in the offices of venture firms Paradigm, Blockchain Capital and Castle Island Ventures, along with the crypto think-tank Coin Center. Bloomberg reported that Langalis planned to use the money from the latest sale to help fund a Bitcoin software project. Magazine: Recursive inscriptions — Bitcoin ‘supercomputer’ and BTC DeFi coming soon

A yellow notepad with “Buy Bitcoin” written on it, which was flashed behind then-United States Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen during a 2017 congressional hearing, has sold at auction for 16 Bitcoin (BTC) — over $1 million. The buyer, identified as “Justin” — also known as “Squirrekkywrath” — was the winning bidder on the Bitcoin auction platform Scarce City. CNBC reported at the time that after the sign was flashed, Bitcoin traded 3.7% higher, reaching over $2,418. Source: Scarce CityIn 2019, Langalis created and sold 21 replicas of the sign, which sold for an average price of 0.8 BTC, worth about $51,300 today. Bloomberg reported that Langalis planned to use the money from the latest sale to help fund a Bitcoin software project.

Vitalik Buterin wants rollups to hit stage 1 decentralization by year-end

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin is proposing to raise the bar on what’s considered a rollup in the Ethereum ecosystem — and suggests developers should aim to get their decentralization efforts in order by the end of the year. The comments came in his latest blog post on March 28, reflecting on the year ahead following Ethereum’s latest Dencun upgrade, which significantly reduced transaction fees for rollups on layer 2s. Buterin noted that Ethereum was in the “process of a decisive shift” from a “very rapid L1 progress era” to an era where layer-1 progress will still be very significant. He also said that Ethereum’s scaling efforts have shifted from a “zero-to-one” problem to an incremental problem, as further scaling work will focus on increasing blob capacity and improving rollup efficiency. He continued to state that the ecosystem’s standards will need to become stricter, adding: “By the end of the year, I think our standards should increase and we should only treat a project as a rollup if it has actually reached at least stage 1.” Stage 1 is Buterin’s classification of layer 2’s decentralization progress, whereby a network has advanced enough in terms of security and scaling but is not yet fully decentralized (which would be Stage 2). He observed that only five of the layer-2 projects listed on L2Beat are at either Stage 1 or 2, and only Arbitrum is fully Ethereum Virtual Machine-compatible. The next steps on the roadmap include implementing data availability sampling to increase blob capacity to 16MB per slot and optimizing layer-2 solutions through techniques such as data compression, optimistic execution and improved security. “After this, we can cautiously move toward stage 2: a world where rollups truly are backed by code, and a security council can only intervene if the code ‘provably disagrees with itself,’” he added. Related: Vitalik Buterin is cooking up a new way to decentralize Ethereum staking Buterin said that further changes such as Verkle trees, single-slot finality and account abstraction are still significant, “but they are not drastic to the same extent that proof of stake and sharding are.” “In 2022, Ethereum was like a plane replacing its engines mid-flight. In 2023, it was replacing its wings.” Ethereum is currently at the Surge phase of its upgrade roadmap, with upgrades related to scalability by rollups and data sharding. The next phase, the Scourge, will have upgrades related to censorship resistance, decentralization and protocol risks from miner extractable value, or MEV. Developers should design applications with a “2020s Ethereum” mindset, embracing layer-2 scaling, privacy, account abstraction and new forms of community membership proofs, he said before concluding: “Ethereum has upgraded from being ‘just’ a financial ecosystem into a much more thorough independent decentralized tech stack.” Magazine: ‘Account abstraction’ supercharges Ethereum wallets: Dummies guide

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin is proposing to raise the bar on what’s considered a rollup in the Ethereum ecosystem — and suggests developers should aim to get their decentralization efforts in order by the end of the year. Buterin noted that Ethereum was in the “process of a decisive shift” from a “very rapid L1 progress era” to an era where layer-1 progress will still be very significant. He observed that only five of the layer-2 projects listed on L2Beat are at either Stage 1 or 2, and only Arbitrum is fully Ethereum Virtual Machine-compatible. In 2023, it was replacing its wings.”Ethereum is currently at the Surge phase of its upgrade roadmap, with upgrades related to scalability by rollups and data sharding. The next phase, the Scourge, will have upgrades related to censorship resistance, decentralization and protocol risks from miner extractable value, or MEV.

Binance restricts unverified sub-accounts on Exchange Link program

Crypto exchange Binance announced mandatory Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements for its Exchange Link account holders under the Binance Link Program. On April 5, Binance said that only verified and compliant users will be given access to their sub-accounts. The rule also applies to subaccounts created for deposit purposes and are not used in trading. The exchange said it had been applying restrictions to noncompliant sub-accounts since March 20 and giving an ultimatum to unverified sub-account holders. The exchange noted that by May 20, sub-accounts that have not submitted the necessary KYC information will be “fully restricted” from accessing the Binance Link Program services. Binance restrictions on unverified sub-accounts. Source: Binance Accounts with incomplete KYC information will have their deposits restricted. However, they will be allowed to withdraw their funds. When it comes to trading, the restricted accounts will not be able to place new orders in spot trading and will have all of their existing orders canceled. In futures and margin trading, the restricted accounts will not be able to place new orders but will be allowed to reduce their existing positions. Binance said that the Exchange Link account holders should be the ones to provide any additional information on behalf of their sub-account holders. This includes their source of funds, wealth and proof of address. Binance also added measures to determine whether a sub-account user is involved in politics. If the user is politically exposed, Binance requires them to provide their position and employer details. Those related to politically exposed persons (PEP) must also provide details of their relationship with the PEP. The exchange also noted that they could freeze the funds in a sub-account and restrict access for legal and compliance reasons. The exchange wrote: “In such cases, Binance may sometimes not be able to provide the Exchange Link account holder or their sub-account users with a detailed explanation for legal and compliance reasons.” The exchange also highlighted that it could restrict access to Exchange Link account holders who are unresponsive or uncooperative. This could lead to accounts being downgraded and their sub-accounts fully deleted. Related: Binance exec’s legal case in Nigeria adjourned until April 19 Meanwhile, Binance’s nonfungible token (NFT) arm announced that it will cease support for Bitcoin Ordinals trades and deposits on April 18. The exchange said this is part of its efforts to streamline its offerings on the Binance NFT marketplace. Binance will also cease to offer Bitcoin NFT-related airdrops, benefits and utilities after April 10. Magazine: KuCoin’s desperate $10M airdrop, 1 tweet raises $37M for memecoin: Asia Express

Crypto exchange Binance announced mandatory Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements for its Exchange Link account holders under the Binance Link Program. The exchange said it had been applying restrictions to noncompliant sub-accounts since March 20 and giving an ultimatum to unverified sub-account holders. The exchange noted that by May 20, sub-accounts that have not submitted the necessary KYC information will be “fully restricted” from accessing the Binance Link Program services. Binance said that the Exchange Link account holders should be the ones to provide any additional information on behalf of their sub-account holders. The exchange wrote:“In such cases, Binance may sometimes not be able to provide the Exchange Link account holder or their sub-account users with a detailed explanation for legal and compliance reasons.”The exchange also highlighted that it could restrict access to Exchange Link account holders who are unresponsive or uncooperative.

Bitcoin miner stocks drop on ‘unsubstantiated’ post-halving profit fears: Analyst

Investor confidence in the Bitcoin (BTC) mining sector’s profitability after the cryptocurrency halves its rewards has sent Bitcoin mining shares in the United States and abroad tumbling — but those fears aren’t well founded, an industry analyst said. “Investors will realize their fears were mostly unsubstantiated,” said Mitchell Askew, head analyst at Bitcoin mining firm Blockware Solutions. He cited post-halving profitability concerns and Bitcoin’s 7.5% price fall over the last week as the main catalysts behind miners’ falling stock prices. “[The] halving will be a ‘buy the news’ event for public Bitcoin miners and the private ASIC market.” Marathon Digital (MARA) and Riot Platforms (RIOT), two of the largest BTC miners, have seen their share prices tank around 53% and 54%, respectively, since their February year-to-date (YTD) highs, according to Google Finance. CleanSpark (CLSK) hit a three-year high of $23.40 on March 25 but has since dropped 38.1% to $14.48, although it’s still up nearly 250% this year. CleanSpark’s change in share price over the last month. Source: Google Finance Non-U.S. Bitcoin miners such as Singapore’s Bitdeer Technologies (BTDR) and Australia’s Iris Energy (IRIS), both listed on the Nasdaq, have fallen 40.8% and 47.6% since their mid-February YTD highs of $9.16 and $8.30. The price falls come as the fourth edition of the Bitcoin halving is expected on April 20, which will see Bitcoin mining rewards cut in half to 3.125 BTC — worth about $200,000. Askew said the post-halving profitability fears a evidenced by the performance of the Valkyrie Bitcoin Miners ETF (WGMI), an actively managed fund tracking the Bitcoin mining market, which has had a “near zero” correlation coefficient with Bitcoin in 2024. WGMI’s price relative to Bitcoin is approaching a previous local bottom; however, Askew expects a “rebound” in mining stocks shortly after the halving. Related: Riot, TeraWulf and CleanSpark best-positioned miners for Bitcoin halving — CoinShares Profitability concerns resurfaced in late January when Cantor Fitzgerald reported 11 publicly listed Bitcoin miners wouldn’t mine profitability post-halving if Bitcoin’s price remained around $40,000, its price at the time. If Bitcoin’s price doesn’t continue to rise post-halving, it could force some U.S. Bitcoin miners to migrate or expand offshore in search of cheaper electricity costs, according to Jaran Mellerud, founder and chief mining strategist of Hashlabs Mining. Magazine: Wolf Of All Streets worries about a world where Bitcoin hits $1M: Hall of Flame

Investor confidence in the Bitcoin (BTC) mining sector’s profitability after the cryptocurrency halves its rewards has sent Bitcoin mining shares in the United States and abroad tumbling — but those fears aren’t well founded, an industry analyst said. “Investors will realize their fears were mostly unsubstantiated,” said Mitchell Askew, head analyst at Bitcoin mining firm Blockware Solutions. He cited post-halving profitability concerns and Bitcoin’s 7.5% price fall over the last week as the main catalysts behind miners’ falling stock prices. The price falls come as the fourth edition of the Bitcoin halving is expected on April 20, which will see Bitcoin mining rewards cut in half to 3.125 BTC — worth about $200,000. Askew said the post-halving profitability fears a evidenced by the performance of the Valkyrie Bitcoin Miners ETF (WGMI), an actively managed fund tracking the Bitcoin mining market, which has had a “near zero” correlation coefficient with Bitcoin in 2024.

Clearstream joins ECB wholesale CBDC trials with tokenized securities

Central securities depository Clearstream, a Deutsche Börse Group subsidiary, will take part in European Central Bank (ECB) trials of digital euro wholesale central bank digital currency (CBDC). Clearstream, which operates the D7 post-trade platform, is the only central securities depository (CSD) participating in the first phase of ECB “preparatory” trials. It, in turn, runs a German CSD, the LuxCSD in Luxembourg and an international CSD. Clearstream’s head of issuer services and new digital markets, Jens Hachmeister, said in the statement: “We are expanding our D7 digital securities infrastructure with DLT [distributed ledger technology] components and fostering connections with the main digital payment solutions across the Eurosystem.” Clearstream worked with Google Cloud to expand D7’s capacities. It will test the use of distributed ledger technology for wholesale transactions with tokenized securities and link to three European central bank products: Deutsche Bundesbank’s Trigger Solution, Banca d’Italia’s TIPS Hash-link and Banque de France’s Full DLT Interoperability. Related: ECB should have DLT wholesale settlements when the market wants it, official says According to its statement, Clearstream will conduct “euro-denominated issuances and delivery-versus-payment (DvP) transactions across different use cases and payment models.” Tests are scheduled for May to November of this year and will use real central bank money. The ECB launched the preparatory phase of its digital euro research in October, after a two-year investigative phase. It issued a vendor call in January. Banca d’Italia and Deutsche Bundesbank began working with similar DLT technology in 2021. At the end of 2023, Banca d’Italia signed a memorandum of understanding with the Bank of Korea to explore settlement systems and CBDC. Clearstream has over 18 trillion euros in assets under custody. It participated in SWIFT experiments with CBDC and tokenized assets in 2022. No decision on launching a digital euro will be made until after ECB trials are completed and the corresponding legislation is adopted. The use of tokenized securities is expanding rapidly. In the United States, the market for tokenized U.S. Treasury bonds grew from $114 million to $845 million in the course of last year. Magazine: Are CBDCs kryptonite for crypto?

Central securities depository Clearstream, a Deutsche Börse Group subsidiary, will take part in European Central Bank (ECB) trials of digital euro wholesale central bank digital currency (CBDC). Clearstream, which operates the D7 post-trade platform, is the only central securities depository (CSD) participating in the first phase of ECB “preparatory” trials. Banca d’Italia and Deutsche Bundesbank began working with similar DLT technology in 2021. No decision on launching a digital euro will be made until after ECB trials are completed and the corresponding legislation is adopted. The use of tokenized securities is expanding rapidly.

Nifty News: PayPal removes NFT protections, Adidas NFT sneakers and more

PayPal removes protections for NFT buyers and sellers Multinational payment services firm PayPal is silently taking down protections for purchases related to nonfungible tokens (NFTs). On May 20, amended policies will take effect, removing buyer and seller protection coverages for NFT purchases. In its upcoming policies page, PayPal said that it has revised its Purchase Protection Program to exclude NFTs from eligibility. Excerpt from PayPal’s revisions on NFT protections. Source: PayPal Apart from this, the company also highlighted that it’s also changing its Seller Protection Program to exclude NFT transactions worth $10,000.01 or above. This means that PayPal’s guarantee will no longer cover NFT sales over $10,000 against false claims, chargebacks, or scams that could lead to monetary losses. Adidas and Stepn release NFT sneakers Move-to-earn game Stepn announced that it partnered with popular shoe retailer Adidas to release co-branded sneaker NFTs on the Solana network. Stepn said in the announcement that the collaboration is “long-term” and aims to provide their community with a full experience through multiple activations. According to Stepn, the collaboration aims to offer digital assets that promote healthier and more active lifestyles. The sneakers will cost about 10,000 GMT tokens (the project's native coin), worth about $2,500, according to coin information website CoinGecko. Related: Nifty News: LA’s Bored Ape lovers go hungry, Bitcoiners sell $500 Game Boy dupe and more Louis Vuitton drops $8,400 phygital varsity jacket Fashion brand Louis Vuitton announced the drop of a varsity jacket worth around $8,400, which will have both the physical garment and a corresponding digital collectible NFT. The jacket is designed by the American record producer and singer-songwriter Pharrell Williams and is a part of the fashion brand’s ongoing Via NFT project. Digital representation of the limited edition varsity jacket released by Louis Vuitton. Source: Louis Vuitton The jacket is made from suede buckskin and bears an embroidered logo of the brand. Users can purchase the jacket through a token-gated site and will receive its physical version later in November or December. The jacket is the third product released by the fashion brand exclusively to its Via NFT holders. The first product was a bag worth about $9,000. This was followed by a $6,400 digital mini trunk that was also sold exclusively to token holders. Magazine: Lazarus Group’s favorite exploit revealed — Crypto hacks analysis

PayPal removes protections for NFT buyers and sellersMultinational payment services firm PayPal is silently taking down protections for purchases related to nonfungible tokens (NFTs). In its upcoming policies page, PayPal said that it has revised its Purchase Protection Program to exclude NFTs from eligibility. Excerpt from PayPal’s revisions on NFT protections. Adidas and Stepn release NFT sneakersMove-to-earn game Stepn announced that it partnered with popular shoe retailer Adidas to release co-branded sneaker NFTs on the Solana network. Digital representation of the limited edition varsity jacket released by Louis Vuitton.

Memecoin madness is breaking the Bitcoin halving cycle

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. 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. 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. 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). Coinbase layer-2 network Base has also become a hotbed of memecoin speculation. 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. Rynes added that market fundamentals are not playing much of a role at the moment: “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.” 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.” He added that retail is not here “in any meaningful way” until the entire market goes up together: “Not these isolated sector-specific pumps that are very obviously pushed by crypto natives and just involve a hot ball of money rotating around.” Related: Memecoin presales hit ‘peak degeneracy’ with over $100M raised in 3 days 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. 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. 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. Magazine: 5 dangers to beware when apeing into Solana memecoins

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. 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.

GBTC sees $166M outflows despite CEO’s ‘equilibrium’ remark

The Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) continues to experience significant outflows, with over $166 million and more than 2,500 Bitcoin withdrawn from the fund’s holdings on Friday, April 12. According to Farside Investors data, outflows from GBTC have now exceeded $16.2 billion since its conversion to a spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) in January. Throughout April, the daily outflows from GBTC have fluctuated between $75 million and $300 million. Inflows into other spot Bitcoin ETFs have also slowed, indicating declining investor engagement. GBTC recorded significant outflows of $767 million this week, contributing to the net negative flows from spot Bitcoin ETFs. BlackRock has maintained strong support, with assets under management for its iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF exceeding $15 billion, narrowing the gap to GBTC. Grayscale CEO Michael Sonnenshein hinted on April 10 that outflows from the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust might be stabilizing, suggesting optimism among traders and investors, but outflows have continued. One potential reason behind the massive GBTC outflows is its comparatively high management fee of 1.5%, which is significantly higher than the 0.30% average fee charged by its competitors. Related: Bitcoin price takes liquidity near $69K as gold surge rattles markets Sonnenshein noted that markets often exhibit high excitement when commodity or thematic exposure products first emerge. However, these products mature as time passes, leading to market consolidation as investors focus on a few offerings. According to Farside data, GBTC saw outflows of $17.5 million on April 10, a significant decrease from the $154.9 million outflows recorded on April 9. The previous low was on Feb. 26 when GBTC outflowed $22.4 million. The daily GBTC outflow average since January is $257.8 million. GBTC launched in 2015 and converted to an ETF in January, alongside the launch of nine other spot Bitcoin ETFs after Grayscale won a lawsuit against the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, forcing it to review a GBTC conversion bid it previously denied. Bankrupt crypto lending firm Genesis recently offloaded approximately 36 million GBTC shares to acquire 32,041 Bitcoin. Magazine: Bitcoin ETFs make Coinbase a ‘honeypot’ for hackers and governments — Trezor CEO

The Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) continues to experience significant outflows, with over $166 million and more than 2,500 Bitcoin withdrawn from the fund’s holdings on Friday, April 12. Inflows into other spot Bitcoin ETFs have also slowed, indicating declining investor engagement. GBTC recorded significant outflows of $767 million this week, contributing to the net negative flows from spot Bitcoin ETFs. One potential reason behind the massive GBTC outflows is its comparatively high management fee of 1.5%, which is significantly higher than the 0.30% average fee charged by its competitors. According to Farside data, GBTC saw outflows of $17.5 million on April 10, a significant decrease from the $154.9 million outflows recorded on April 9.

Nansen integrates blockchain data from SportFi chain Chiliz and Ethereum rollup zkSync

Cryptocurrency users looking for the latest “alpha” in SportFi and zero-knowledge rollups can keep close tabs on data and insights from blockchain Chiliz and Ethereum layer 2 zkSync through new integrations on Nansen. The blockchain analytics platform announced the integration of the two different protocols on March 28, unlocking on-chain data analytics and insights for its users. Nansen data journalist Martin Lee told Cointelegraph that the integration provides a high-level overview of both ecosystems, allowing cryptocurrency teams to run their own queries and get insights from the raw data itself via Nansen query: “Users can gain insights into the daily active users and transactions on the chain, as well as which entities and protocols are seeing the most usage via the macro dashboard.” The functionality will unlock data insights into Chiliz, the proprietary blockchain powering scores of fan tokens licensed by high-profile sports teams and organizations worldwide that operate on the Socios platform. Related: Man and machine: Nansen’s analytics slowly labeling worldwide wallets Chiliz and Socios CEO Alexandre Dreyfus says the collaboration will deepen the understanding of the Chiliz ecosystem and potentially drive user adoption and growth of the SportFi ecosystem: “Having Chiliz Chain on Nansen is a critical step to grow the ecosystem and help developers and industry stakeholders to start looking at Chiliz at a legitimate layer-1 with a very long-term vision.” According to data from CoinMarketCap, the Chiliz blockchain has a total market capitalization of $1.2 billion. The ecosystem has attracted many of the biggest football clubs, including Manchester City and Paris Saint Germain (PSG). Chiliz on-chain data as seen on Nansen’s dashboard. Source: Nansen Cointelegraph reviewed Chiliz’s blockchain through Nansen 2, the latest version of the analytics platform, which reflects an average of 2,100 daily active addresses. Manchester City, Binance, Turkish club Trabzonspor, Galatasaray and PSG are listed as the top five entities on-chain over the past week. Related: Animoca eyes SportFi ecosystem, becomes Chiliz Chain validator Ethereum scaling protocol zkSync is one of the major zero-knowledge proof rollups in the ecosystem, processing over a million transactions daily for over 350,000 addresses, according to data from Nansen’s dashboard. ZkSync saw a noticeable drop in transaction fees following Ethereum’s Dencun hard fork. Source: Nansen Matter Labs head of business development, Omar Azhar, believes the integration with Nansen will prove valuable to the zkSync ecosystem and wider Web3 space by making processing on-chain data that is actionable and digestible. “The great benefit of permissionless blockchains such as zkSync is that all the data is public and contains valuable insights for builders, investors and end-users alike,” Azhar said. Related: Paris Saint-Germain begins Web3 drive as a new blockchain validator for Chiliz Chain Nansen has garnered a reputation for its wallet-labeling and blockchain analytics. In October 2022, Cointelegraph interviewed its CEO Alex Svanevik at the firm’s Singapore headquarters, where the founder recounted Nansen’s genesis story and estimated that the platform scans nearly a petabyte of data daily from the variety of blockchains it monitors. Magazine: ‘SEAL 911’ team of white hats formed to fight crypto hacks in real time

Cryptocurrency users looking for the latest “alpha” in SportFi and zero-knowledge rollups can keep close tabs on data and insights from blockchain Chiliz and Ethereum layer 2 zkSync through new integrations on Nansen. The blockchain analytics platform announced the integration of the two different protocols on March 28, unlocking on-chain data analytics and insights for its users. Chiliz on-chain data as seen on Nansen’s dashboard. Source: NansenCointelegraph reviewed Chiliz’s blockchain through Nansen 2, the latest version of the analytics platform, which reflects an average of 2,100 daily active addresses. Related: Paris Saint-Germain begins Web3 drive as a new blockchain validator for Chiliz ChainNansen has garnered a reputation for its wallet-labeling and blockchain analytics.

US gov’t among states with largest Bitcoin holdings — Arkham

The United States government is one of the biggest cryptocurrency holders alongside other global states like the United Kingdom and Germany, according to data from Arkham. Arkham, a crypto intelligence platform focused on deanonymizing entities on the blockchain network, has introduced a dashboard featuring the governments with the largest crypto holdings. Announcing the news on April 12, Arkham said that the United States, the United Kingdom and Germany are “some of the largest countries” in terms of crypto holdings. With the new Arkham tracking tool, individuals can observe the real-time balance and transaction history for cryptocurrencies held by governments. According to the data, the U.S. government is the biggest Bitcoin (BTC) whale among global states tracked by Arkham, holding as much as 212,847 BTC at the time of writing, worth around $15 billion based on the current prices. In addition to BTC, the U.S. government also holds around $200 million in other cryptocurrencies like Ether (ETH), as well as major stablecoins like USDC (USDC) and Tether (USDT). Top governments by Bitcoin holdings. Source: Arkham The U.K. government, ranked second, holds 61,245 BTC at the time of writing, worth around $4.5 billion, according to Arkham’s data. The German government owns 49,858 BTC, equivalent to roughly $3.5 billion at the time of writing. The government of El Salvador — the first country to make Bitcoin legal tender in September 2021 — holds significantly less BTC than other countries tracked by Arkham. According to the data, the Salvadoran government holds 5,717 BTC, worth $405 million at the time of writing. Related: Queensland law enforcement agency calls for more powers to seize crypto The release of Arkham’s dashboard of top governments by Bitcoin holdings marks an important milestone in transparency of cryptocurrency assets owned by whales like country states. At the same time, it has been a while since the public found out about massive BTC holdings by the United States government. The dashboard also points to the fact that the U.S. continued to accumulate Bitcoin in the past few years. Since early 2023, the U.S. government has added at least 5,000 BTC, based on Arkham’s data and previous reports. A significant part of the U.S. government Bitcoin holdings comes from confiscations related to darkweb market Silk Road, its hacker Jimmy Zhong, as well as the hackers of crypto exchange Bitfinex. Magazine: Synthetix founder: It’s DeFi that’s wrong, not the market

The United States government is one of the biggest cryptocurrency holders alongside other global states like the United Kingdom and Germany, according to data from Arkham. Arkham, a crypto intelligence platform focused on deanonymizing entities on the blockchain network, has introduced a dashboard featuring the governments with the largest crypto holdings. Announcing the news on April 12, Arkham said that the United States, the United Kingdom and Germany are “some of the largest countries” in terms of crypto holdings. Top governments by Bitcoin holdings. At the same time, it has been a while since the public found out about massive BTC holdings by the United States government.

Levels of consumer trust in crypto increasing: Report

A new Deutsche Bank survey revealed that consumer skepticism about Bitcoin has fallen slightly, although less than a third of survey respondents still expect a sharp price drop by the end of 2024. The survey, published on April 8, polled over 3,600 consumers. Slightly more than half (52%) agree that cryptocurrencies as a whole will be an “important asset class and method of payment transactions” in the future. A similar survey was conducted by Deutsche Bank in September 2023, which showed less than 40% confidence. The amount of respondents who consider crypto to just be a “fad that will eventually fade” has now dropped to less than 1%, according to the survey. The survey also looked at the price of Bitcoin (BTC) in light of the upcoming halving. Deutsche Bank analysts said they expect the price to be supported by regulation, central bank rate cuts and anticipation of a spot Ethereum exchange-traded fund (ETF) approval from the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Related: 10 days until halving: Bitcoin mining profitability won’t necessarily fall A third of the survey participants said they expect Bitcoin to dip below the $20,000 price point by the end of 2024. This figure compares to 35% in February and 36% in January. However, only 10% expect Bitcoin to surpass $75,000 by year-end. This survey comes after much activity surrounding Bitcoin since the beginning of 2024. In January, the SEC approved the first U.S.-based spot Bitcoin ETFs, which pulled in a record $1 billion daily net inflow on March 12. In mid-March, the cryptocurrency hit a new $73,794 all-time high and is anticipated to spike even further, with some estimates as high as a 160% increase after the halving, which means it could hit the $150,000 mark, according to some analysts. The halving is anticipated to occur in mid-April, with many predictions settling on April 20. This event is causing some analysts to take a bullish stance on the cryptocurrency for the year ahead, citing the heightened overall demand and other macroeconomic factors driving the price. Magazine: Memecoins make millionaires, Terraform and Do Kwon liable for fraud, and more: Hodler’s Digest, March 31 – April 6

A new Deutsche Bank survey revealed that consumer skepticism about Bitcoin has fallen slightly, although less than a third of survey respondents still expect a sharp price drop by the end of 2024. A similar survey was conducted by Deutsche Bank in September 2023, which showed less than 40% confidence. The survey also looked at the price of Bitcoin (BTC) in light of the upcoming halving. However, only 10% expect Bitcoin to surpass $75,000 by year-end. In January, the SEC approved the first U.S.-based spot Bitcoin ETFs, which pulled in a record $1 billion daily net inflow on March 12.

Bitcoin ‘no longer cheap’ — Fidelity revises medium-term outlook for BTC

Fidelity Digital Assets has revised its medium-term outlook for Bitcoin (BTC) from “positive” to “neutral” following the first quarter, citing several metrics that suggest Bitcoin is no longer considered “cheap” amid a potential build up of sell pressure. In its latest Signals report released on April 22, Fidelity Digital Assets cited the Bitcoin Yardstick, or Hashrate Yardstick, which works in the same way as the Price-to-earnings ratio is used in stocks, except in this case, it is used to determine if Bitcoin is undervalued. Fidelity noted that the Yardstick remained between a negative one and zero deviations from the mean of 51% in the first quarter, meaning there were “zero days on Q1 where Bitcoin was considered 'cheap.'” This would suggest that Bitcoin is now trading at “fair value,” said Fidelity, which has now revised its medium-term outlook for Bitcoin to neutral. Other metrics it cited that added to its neutral outlook was the fact that long-term holders are adding to sell pressure, while 99% of addresses are in profit, which “could incentivize selling.” Other on-chain metrics backing up the firm’s revision to a neutral outlook in the mid-term included the Net Unrealized Profit/Loss (NUPL) ratio and the MVRV Z-Score, which is used to assess when BTC is over or undervalued relative to its “fair value.” Fidelity highlights the reasons behind its neutral outlook. Source: Fidelity Digital Assets The investment firm, however, has maintained its positive short-term outlook for Bitcoin, saying there was “some potential for short-term profit-taking” at the end of Q1, 2024, but added there were “no extreme indicators that are commonly seen during bull market peaks.” The company cited price levels remaining above a “golden cross” on the Bitcoin chart with the asset trading above its 50-day and 200-day moving averages throughout Q1, indicating bullish momentum. “We believe on-chain indicators are now clearly above the lows or extreme bottoms previously observed,” said the firm’s director of research Chris Kuiper in a post on X on April 23. The report also referred to Bitcoin’s realized price, a metric that aims to capture the average cost basis of all current coin holders. The realized price was around $28,000 at the close of Q1, and has maintained a position of support since mid-January. BTC price against SMAs and RP. Source: Glassnode/Fidelity Additionally, on-chain data showed continued accumulation by smaller investors, with the number of addresses holding greater than or equal to $1,000 worth of BTC growing by 20% since the beginning of the year and hitting new all-time highs. Exchange balances have also continued declining as more investors moved to self-custody, reducing selling pressure, it noted. Related: Bitcoin price breaks above $66K — Has BTC flipped bullish again? Kuiper said that “we are nowhere near the historical extreme highs,” before adding that “this leaves us in a middle-ground or halfway point” of the market cycle. “Historically, a disproportionate amount of price gains occur in the latter half of the cycle.” Bitcoin has remained range-bound since the end of February, oscillating between resistance at $72,000 and support at $60,000. However, it has gained 5% since the weekend halving event and is currently changing hands for a ten-day high of $66,863, according to Cointelegraph data. Magazine: Jameson Lopp: Skeptical of spot Ether ETFs, BTC price prediction dilemma: X Hall of Flame

Fidelity Digital Assets has revised its medium-term outlook for Bitcoin (BTC) from “positive” to “neutral” following the first quarter, citing several metrics that suggest Bitcoin is no longer considered “cheap” amid a potential build up of sell pressure. '”This would suggest that Bitcoin is now trading at “fair value,” said Fidelity, which has now revised its medium-term outlook for Bitcoin to neutral. BTC price against SMAs and RP. Related: Bitcoin price breaks above $66K — Has BTC flipped bullish again? Magazine: Jameson Lopp: Skeptical of spot Ether ETFs, BTC price prediction dilemma: X Hall of Flame

Bitcoin miner Sphere 3D refutes Gryphon’s claims of financial doubts: 'Disingenuous'

Bitcoin miner Sphere 3D has denied reports of financial troubles, claiming that accusations from its former partner Gryphon Digital Mining are “at best disingenuous.” In a court document shared with Cointelegraph, Sphere 3D refuted accusations made a few days earlier by Gryphon to the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, requesting a block on millions of dollars on grounds that Sphere was on the “verge of economic collapse.” On March 25, Gryphon requested court permission to file a motion seeking to secure $10 million in equity proceeds that Sphere recently received from a settlement related to Core Scientific’s bankruptcy exit. According to Gryphon, the move was necessary since Sphere could not pay roughly $30 million in future breach of contract judgments. Sphere 3D, on the other hand, claims to have $45 million in assets and $5 million in liabilities, per its 2023 Annual Report. “A judgment of even $30 million could be rendered against Sphere tomorrow and it would have the means to pay,” reads the document. The company also accused Gryphon of unreasonably multiplying the proceedings, including through counterclaims later dropped. Sphere 3D's response to a pre-motion letter filed by Gryphon Digital Mining. Source: Dontzin Nagy & Fleissig/Sphere 3D. As a result of the market downturn, crypto miners endured a tough winter between 2022 and 2023. According to a source familiar with the litigation, Gryphon’s move to get $10 million from Sphere might be related to its own financial difficulties. “Since April of 2023, it’s been back and forth [...] They [Gryphon] have $18 million in assets, and $27 million in liabilities, which means they have $9 million of negative working capital [...] And on top of that, it looks like from their loan agreement, every single amount of excess income that they generate has to go to pay down their loans with Anchorage,” noted the source. The MSA breach Before their legal dispute, Gryphon and Sphere were bound by a Master Service Agreement (MSA) since 2021, in which Gryphon served as the exclusive provider of management services for Sphere’s blockchain and cryptocurrency operations. Gryphon managed certain digital assets for Sphere, selling them as instructed by the company. The relationship eroded in April 2023, when Sphere initiated legal action against Gryphon following an alleged spoofing incident that resulted in the unauthorized transfer of 26 Bitcoin (BTC) to a malicious actor. Gryphon contended it was the victim of Sphere’s “gross negligence,” blaming them for the security breach. Furthermore, Gryphon alleges Sphere breached the contract by entering into four hosting agreements without Gryphon’s consent. Sphere contends that under the MSA, and through independent discussions with Gryphon, it was allowed to enter contracts with third parties. Sphere also argues that any breaches it committed were minor “technical breaches” and do not justify the large damages Gryphon is seeking. Related: Sphere 3D’s legal issues escalate as Gryphon seeks to block $10M Sphere 3D seeks $25 million in damages Sphere is also seeking damages exceeding $25 million from Gryphon, under claims of failure to file a proof of claim in Core Scientific’s bankruptcy case. Sphere provided $35 million in deposits to Core for hosting services, but only rendered about $1 million in services. After Core declared bankruptcy, Sphere eventually settled with Core for $10 million in reorganized equity. A critical issue for Sphere was the contract that Gryphon entered with Core. This led to a complex situation where Core argued Sphere was not directly involved, complicating Sphere’s efforts to recover its deposits. This situation was further exacerbated by Gryphon’s failure to file a proof of claim in Core’s bankruptcy case by the set deadline. Magazine: Is measuring blockchain transactions per second (TPS) stupid in 2024? Big Questions

According to Gryphon, the move was necessary since Sphere could not pay roughly $30 million in future breach of contract judgments. Sphere 3D, on the other hand, claims to have $45 million in assets and $5 million in liabilities, per its 2023 Annual Report. According to a source familiar with the litigation, Gryphon’s move to get $10 million from Sphere might be related to its own financial difficulties. Sphere provided $35 million in deposits to Core for hosting services, but only rendered about $1 million in services. After Core declared bankruptcy, Sphere eventually settled with Core for $10 million in reorganized equity.

VC Roundup: Investors move into cross-chain, Bitcoin layer-2 and institutional tools

Venture capital firms are moving to seize market share amid the current bull cycle. March’s developments include the acquisition of quantitative trading firm CFT Capital by Web3-native investment company Borderless Capital. The move adds artificial intelligence and quant proprietary trading products to Borderless’ businesses, targeting more efficiency in capital deployment across Web3 verticals, said the company, which has$600 million in assets under management. Borderless is an early investor in Algorand, Blockdaemon and Securitize — the latter of which is BlackRock’s new partner in a tokenized digital fund. The acquisition will also place Borderless in Latin America. “We are currently actively looking for Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil, Chile and Mexico,” Borderless co-founder and managing partner David Garcia told Cointelegraph. For 2024, the venture firm expects cross-chain standardization to be the next chapter in the evolution of the crypto space. “The advent of modularity in blockchains is a long-term trend, and we anticipate new L1s, L2s, and even L3s will emerge. [...] For mainstream adoption, we believe Web3 needs an aggregation layer that can interoperate across any chain,” Garcia said. According to Garcia, another key investment focus at Borderless is decentralized physical infrastructure (DePIN). “We strongly believe DePIN represents a new coordination and innovation paradigm across many diverse industries, including communication, distributed computation, mapping, and transportation.” In this edition of Cointelegraph’s VC Roundup, we feature startups that raised capital during the last weeks of March. Morph receives $20 million in angel and seed funding Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) layer-2 Morph has raised $19 million in a seed round led by DragonFly Capital with additional participation from Pantera Capital, Foresight Ventures, The Spartan Group, MEXC Ventures, Symbolic Capital, Public Works, MH Ventures and Everyrealm. The firm raised an additional $1 million secured in an angel round. The company plans to use the capital toward talent acquisition, developer incentives, and marketing efforts. The blockchain is built on three pillars: decentralized sequencers, optimistic zkEVM integration and modular design. “Being one of the first to launch with a decentralized sequencer on Ethereum is also an example of our commitment to decentralization from the beginning,” said Morph co-founder and chief operating officer Azeem Khan. FLock.io secures $6 million seed round to decentralize AI training London-based Web3 decentralized AI startup FLock.io announced a $6 million Seed fundraising on March 28, co-led by Lightspeed Faction and Tagus Capital. The company aims to deploy its Federated Learning-powered Training Platform with the new funds, designed to decentralize AI agent training, fine-tuning, and inferencing while ending user data collection. “Now, anyone can contribute knowledge and enrich AI models themselves. The result? Community-owned models built by the many, not just the few, with data contributors being fairly rewarded and far more use cases,” said the startup in a statement. Keyring Network raises $6 million for digital asset compliance Keyring Network, founded by a former Nomura quant analyst and a J.P. Morgan investment banker in 2022, has secured $6 million in seed funding, co-led by Gumi Cryptos Capital and Greenfield Capital, with additional support from Motier Ventures, Kima Ventures, UDHC Finance, Eberg Capital and notable angel investors. The platform leverages zero-knowledge technology to address regulatory compliance and market liquidity for financial organizations, enabling private data sharing and identification of qualified participants for secondary market tokenized transactions. “Keyring’s asset-level solution is the most flexible ZK compliance tool catering to financial institutions’ individual DeFi risk appetite. Users can restrict themselves in terms of counterparty interactions, so they can be as conservative as they would like to,” noted Felix Machart, partner at Greenfield Capital. Rails secures $6.2 million for self-custodial perpetuals exchange Crypto perpetuals exchange Rails has raised $6.2 million in a seed round led by Slow Ventures, Round13 Capital, CMCC Global and Quantstamp. The exchange offers self-custody trading of perpetual contracts — a type of futures contract without an expiry date, allowing traders to better employ risk management strategies. The funds will be used to support the development of the platform, which uses smart contracts powered by zero-knowledge proofs. Rails was created as a result of the FTX collapse, said its co-founder Satraj Bramba in a statement. “In addition to getting rugged on FTX, the harder pill to swallow was the loss of the most efficient, productive trading environment we had ever used. [...] This massive gap in the market led to the creation of Rails.” Build on Bitcoin raises $10M seed round led by Castle Island Ventures Hybrid layer-2 solution BOB, or “Build on Bitcoin,” has successfully raised $10 million in a seed funding round led by Castle Island Ventures with contributions from Mechanism Ventures, Bankless Ventures, CMS Ventures, UTXO Management, Asymmetric, Antalpha, Web3.com Ventures, BTC Frontier Fund and Zeeprime. The funds are earmarked for launching the first Bitcoin layer-2 with Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) compatibility, designed to stimulate the onboarding of decentralized applications (DApps) on the Bitcoin network. BOB has also formed a strategic partnership with Anduro, a project by Marathon Digital, to collaborate on Alys, a Bitcoin layer-2 solution for institutions. RACE unveils $5M raise amid testnet launch Tokenization platform RACE has disclosed a $5 million funding raise aimed at supporting its recently released testnet. The platform offers tokenization of assets such as aircraft, real estate, private credits, art, jewelry and gold to accredited and institutional investors. RACE plans to build Decentralized Investment Committees (DICs) composed of industry experts who will perform due diligence on assets, including underwriting, legal services, asset custodianship and financial analysis. “The DIC’s primary role is to conduct thorough due diligence of all potential opportunities before they are tokenized and made available on its infrastructure platform,” the company said in a statement. Investors backing the startup’s funding round were not disclosed. Magazine: Creating ‘good’ AGI that won’t kill us all — Crypto’s Artificial Superintelligence Alliance

March’s developments include the acquisition of quantitative trading firm CFT Capital by Web3-native investment company Borderless Capital. For 2024, the venture firm expects cross-chain standardization to be the next chapter in the evolution of the crypto space. “We strongly believe DePIN represents a new coordination and innovation paradigm across many diverse industries, including communication, distributed computation, mapping, and transportation.”In this edition of Cointelegraph’s VC Roundup, we feature startups that raised capital during the last weeks of March. FLock.io secures $6 million seed round to decentralize AI trainingLondon-based Web3 decentralized AI startup FLock.io announced a $6 million Seed fundraising on March 28, co-led by Lightspeed Faction and Tagus Capital. The platform offers tokenization of assets such as aircraft, real estate, private credits, art, jewelry and gold to accredited and institutional investors.

Ether ETFs will ‘probably be rejected’ in May — VanEck CEO

The chief executive of investment firm VanEck says it’s unlikely the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will approve spot Ether (ETH) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in May. In an April 9 interview with CNBC, Jan van Eck said his firm’s spot Ethereum ETF application will “probably be rejected.” He noted that VanEck was the first to file for a spot Ether ETF in the United States alongside Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest, both of which are awaiting a final decision on May 23 and May 24, respectively. “The way the legal process goes is that regulators will give you comments on your application and that happened for weeks and weeks before the Bitcoin ETFs, but now pins are dropping as far as Ethereum is concerned.” CoinShares CEO Jean-Marie Mognetti was equally pessimistic, telling CNBC, “I don’t see anything being approved this side of the year.” Van Eck’s comments come following prolonged inaction from the U.S. SEC regarding a roster of seven pending applications for spot Ether ETFs. Jan van Eck on ETH ETFs. Source: CNBC Several commentators, including Senior Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas, have also looked to the ongoing “radio silence” between the regulator and prospective fund issuers as a key reason why a May ETF approval seems increasingly unlikely. VanEck’s Ether ETF application is due for a final decision on May 23 — the first of seven fund issuers, including Grayscale, BlackRock and Fidelity, awaiting approval. ETH ETF applications. Source: Bloomberg Balchunas lowered his formal odds for an Ether ETF approval by May from 70% to 35%. The analyst reiterated his stance on the pending approvals and echoed Van Eck’s sentiments in an X post on April 9. The analyst reduced his approval odds to 35% in March. Related: Bitwise CIO ‘excited’ for a product that gives exposure to Ethereum DeFi “As we’ve said, need SEC to give comments on the filing documents (the “critical feedback” he mentions) and that still ain’t happening, even in person they offering nothing. Silence is violence.” Fellow ETF analyst James Seyffart offered a similar take, saying that “zero comments/interactions is a bad sign.” “There’s no reason for the SEC to have done absolutely nothing for months when we knew this was coming,” he added. VanEck’s spot Bitcoin ETF — which trades under the ticker HODL — is the fifth largest of the newly launched 10 funds (excluding Grayscale). It witnessed an inflow of $461.7 million since it launched in mid-January, according to data from Farside Investors data. Commenting on the success of Bitcoin ETFs, van Eck described Bitcoin as a “maturing asset,” adding there are still many investors yet to gain exposure to the asset. Magazine: Bitcoin ETFs make Coinbase a ‘honeypot’ for hackers and governments: Trezor CEO

The chief executive of investment firm VanEck says it’s unlikely the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will approve spot Ether (ETH) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in May. Source: BloombergBalchunas lowered his formal odds for an Ether ETF approval by May from 70% to 35%. VanEck’s spot Bitcoin ETF — which trades under the ticker HODL — is the fifth largest of the newly launched 10 funds (excluding Grayscale). Commenting on the success of Bitcoin ETFs, van Eck described Bitcoin as a “maturing asset,” adding there are still many investors yet to gain exposure to the asset. Magazine: Bitcoin ETFs make Coinbase a ‘honeypot’ for hackers and governments: Trezor CEO

Bitcoin Cash price hiccups amid second-ever halving event

Bitcoin Cash (BCH) stumbled on Wednesday after a three-month-long rally before rebounding shortly after as the blockchain completed its second-ever halving — an event where mining rewards are slashed in half. Bitcoin Cash is a proof-of-work blockchain network and cryptocurrency that was designed to be faster and cheaper to use than Bitcoin (BTC). The first Bitcoin Cash halving event took place on April 8, 2020, with miner rewards dropping from 12.5 BCH to 6.25 BCH. There has been speculation in the lead-up to the halving, with the price of Bitcoin Cash increasing 147.85% over the past three months and 24% over the past 30 days. However, in the day leading up to the halving, Bitcoin Cash's price dipped by 9.94%, falling to $572.21, as per CoinMarketCap data. However, after the halving, it quickly bounced back, reaching $604, a spike of approximately 5.5%. The recent price decline led to liquidations totaling $3.9 million, predominantly affecting long positions at $3.3 million, while short positions accounted for $569,540, as per CoinGlass data. Bitcoin Cash long positions were liquidated to the amount of $3.3 million following the price dip. Source: CoinGlass On March 29, Cointelegraph reported that open interest (OI) in Bitcoin Cash futures perpetual contracts reached all-time highs of $708.75 million. At the time of publication, the OI has continued its ascent, surging even further to $799.23 million. Meanwhile, one X user "DavidShares" explained to his 17,500 followers that many miners had already switched over to mining Bitcoin ahead of the halving. He also noted that hash rates have declined since the halving. The network has now validated 840,004 blocks, indicating just four blocks have been validated since the halving event, as per Bitcoin Unlimited data. In 2017, Bitcoin Cash forked off from Bitcoin due to a group of the community disagreeing over ways of scaling up and decreasing transaction fees to adjust for the growing demand. Related: Memecoin madness is breaking the Bitcoin halving cycle Just two years later, it split again which led to controversy amongst the mining community as several had not upgraded to the new chain, resulting in a wasteful allocation of resources. In November 2019, Cointelegraph reported that miners spent resources mining 14 empty blocks on the old chain that the majority of the Bitcoin Cash network already considered invalid and rejected. Meanwhile, he highly anticipated Bitcoin halving is scheduled to take place on April 20, just 16 days from now. Magazine: China will intensify Bitcoin bull run, $1M by 2028: Bitcoin Man, X Hall of Flame

Bitcoin Cash (BCH) stumbled on Wednesday after a three-month-long rally before rebounding shortly after as the blockchain completed its second-ever halving — an event where mining rewards are slashed in half. Bitcoin Cash is a proof-of-work blockchain network and cryptocurrency that was designed to be faster and cheaper to use than Bitcoin (BTC). The first Bitcoin Cash halving event took place on April 8, 2020, with miner rewards dropping from 12.5 BCH to 6.25 BCH. However, in the day leading up to the halving, Bitcoin Cash's price dipped by 9.94%, falling to $572.21, as per CoinMarketCap data. Meanwhile, he highly anticipated Bitcoin halving is scheduled to take place on April 20, just 16 days from now.

Worldcoin tightens privacy checks, allows users to unverify World ID

Worldcoin, the digital identity and cryptocurrency project built by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, is adding new features to increase the protection of personal data and improve age verification. On April 9, Worldcoin announced two updates: The ability to unverify World IDs via permanent iris code deletion and in-person age verification checks. World ID holders can now unverify their World ID, which serves as a digital passport that verifies an individual’s humanness using “orbs,” which are devices that scan users’ eyeballs to confirm that they are real humans. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman being scanned for Worldcoin. Source: Vulcan Post Unverifying the World ID includes permanently deleting the user’s iris code, a numeric representation of their unique iris texture. The iris code ensures that individuals can only verify one World ID. Once deletion is requested, the individual‘s World ID will become invalid. To protect against fraud, the procedure will require a six-month “cool-off” period to ensure that individuals cannot immediately re-verify humanness. By the end of the cool-off period, users will have their iris code permanently deleted and made unrecoverable. Worldcoin’s new unverify option was developed in consultation with third-party privacy and security experts, including the Bavarian State Office for Data Protection Supervision (BayLDA). According to the startup, BayLDA is Worldcoin’s lead supervisory authority in the European Union. The second update — Worldcoin in-person age verification checks — are introduced to help ensure that the platform is available only to humans above the age of 18 years old. The update includes an on-site age verification check at all orb locations before World ID verification. Third-party personnel will perform the check before entering the venue, the announcement notes. “Worldcoin has always required that individuals be a minimum of 18 years old to obtain a World ID,” a spokesperson for Worldcoin told Cointelegraph, adding: “Individuals have always been asked to confirm they meet this requirement in the app, similar to other apps in wide use today.” Altman, the creator of OpenAI — the firm behind the natural language processing chatbot ChatGPT — launched Worldcoin in July 2023 with the goal of providing a “global financial and identity network based on proof of personhood.” Worldcoin received mixed reactions from the community as many questioned its centralization, privacy and security. Related: TON’s $5M incentive program aims to drive digital ID verification Some governments have also been skeptical about Worldcoin’s security and privacy. Worldcoin’s European Union supervisor, BayLDA, reportedly began an investigation into Worldcoin due to privacy concerns months before its official launch. In late 2023, Worldcoin paused the offline orb verification function for users in India and aims to reinstate the service later in 2024. In August 2023, Worldcoin was banned in Kenya, with the government halting all local activity associated with the platform, including biometric identification. Worldcoin has been working with the Kenyan government to resume operations. In March 2024, Worldcoin declared that it operated lawfully in all of the locations in which it is available and fully complies with related laws. Magazine: 1 in 6 new Base meme coins are scams, 91% have vulnerabilities

On April 9, Worldcoin announced two updates: The ability to unverify World IDs via permanent iris code deletion and in-person age verification checks. World ID holders can now unverify their World ID, which serves as a digital passport that verifies an individual’s humanness using “orbs,” which are devices that scan users’ eyeballs to confirm that they are real humans. Source: Vulcan PostUnverifying the World ID includes permanently deleting the user’s iris code, a numeric representation of their unique iris texture. Once deletion is requested, the individual‘s World ID will become invalid. The update includes an on-site age verification check at all orb locations before World ID verification.

Polkadot active addresses hit record 600K

The Polkadot blockchain has reached a new all-time high in active addresses on its network. Polkadot amassed over 600,000 active addresses on-chain by the end of March, according to data by DotLake, shared in an April 7 X post by Polkadot. “Activity continues to grow in the Polkadot ecosystem, where many apps use dedicated blockspace to prevent issues like network spam.” Polkadot: Active addresses chart. Source: Polkadot Over 41%, or 248,000 of the 605,000 addresses, are attributed to the cross-chain smart contract platform Moonbeam, while 191,000 addresses were created directly on Polkadot, according to DotLake data. The number of unique accounts with non-zero balances is also on the rise, surpassing 5.59 million accounts at the end of March, up from 5.53 million at the end of February. Number of unique accounts. Source: DotLake However, total transactions remain subdued on the network. Polkadot saw a total of 11.58 million monthly transactions in March, slightly up from 10.8 million in April but far below the 31.78 million transactions recorded in December 2023. Number of transactions. Source: DotLake Polkadot’s (DOT) token fell 3.3% in the 24 hours leading up to 12:38 pm UTC to trade at $8.95 as the 14th-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization. DOT is currently down 83% from its all-time high of $55 reached in November 2021, according to CoinMarketCap data. Related: Bitcoin mining profitability won’t necessarily fall after halving DED memecoin fails to deliver In an effort to capitalize on the current memecoin frenzy and bring more participants to the blockchain, the Polkadot community spun up its own memecoin, DOT is $DED (DED), which started trending on X on March 23. Investors holding Polkadot were eligible for 36 DED tokens for every 1 DOT held. Retail sentiment turned sour after the team reduced the initial airdrop allocation from 100% of the token supply to just 5% to create a longer financial runway for the memecoin, explained one of its pseudonymous developers, Giotto De Filippi, during a March 24 X Spaces. DED is currently worth a little over $0.001, with seemingly little interest following the airdrop distribution. The DOT/DED trading pair only amassed $20,536 in 24-hour trading volume, according to the liquidity pool on Hydradx. Related: Google sues alleged China crypto app racketeers: Report

The Polkadot blockchain has reached a new all-time high in active addresses on its network. Polkadot amassed over 600,000 active addresses on-chain by the end of March, according to data by DotLake, shared in an April 7 X post by Polkadot. “Activity continues to grow in the Polkadot ecosystem, where many apps use dedicated blockspace to prevent issues like network spam.”Polkadot: Active addresses chart. Source: PolkadotOver 41%, or 248,000 of the 605,000 addresses, are attributed to the cross-chain smart contract platform Moonbeam, while 191,000 addresses were created directly on Polkadot, according to DotLake data. Polkadot saw a total of 11.58 million monthly transactions in March, slightly up from 10.8 million in April but far below the 31.78 million transactions recorded in December 2023.

Tether announces restructuring to go beyond stablecoins

Tether — the operator of the eponymous Tether (USDT) stablecoin, the world’s largest stablecoin by market value — is restructuring to introduce new divisions beyond stablecoin development. The stablecoin giant has launched a new framework introducing four new business divisions, including Tether Data, Tether Finance, Tether Power and Tether Edu, according to an official announcement on April 18. With the new divisions, Tether aims to expand its mission to provide a range of new infrastructure solutions, investments and services. Tether’s four new business divisions. Source: Tether At Tether Data, the company will focus on strategic investments in technologies, including artificial intelligence and peer-to-peer platforms like Holepunch, Keet and Pear Runtime. Tether Finance will serve as the hub of Tether’s traditional stablecoin products and financial services aiming to democratize the global financial system, the announcement notes. Tether Power targets further development of Tether’s mining and energy efforts, while Tether Edu will focus on digital education and promotion of blockchain adoption regionally and globally. “We disrupted the traditional financial landscape with the world’s first and most trusted stablecoin,” Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino said, stressing that now the company is “daring to kick-start inclusive infrastructure solutions, dismantling traditional systems for fairness.” He continued: “With this evolution beyond our traditional stablecoin offerings, we are ready to build and support the invention and implementation of cutting-edge technology that removes the limitations of what’s possible in this world.” Founded in 2014, Tether is one of the largest companies in the cryptocurrency ecosystem and operates USDT, the largest stablecoin by market capitalization and the biggest cryptocurrency by trading volumes. In March 2024, Tether posted a major historic milestone, hitting an all-time high market value of $100 billion. Related: Stablecoin competition crucial for regulatory engagement — Tether CEO Apart from USDT, Tether operates numerous other stablecoins, including its Euro-pegged Tether Token EURT (EURT), its offshore Chinese Yuan (CNH₮), its gold-backed Tether Gold (XAUt) and others. The top three biggest cryptocurrencies by 24-hour trading volume. Source: CoinGecko Tether’s restructuring is another step in the company’s efforts to move beyond stablecoins. In 2023, the firm was actively entering the Bitcoin (BTC) mining industry, launching its own mining operations and introducing proprietary software. In February 2024, Tether also created an educational branch to provide courses, workshops and other resources for skills development in blockchain technology and related areas. Tether has also been accumulating Bitcoin, purchasing 8,888 BTC for $618 million in late March 2024. As of March 31, Tether held a total of 75,354 Bitcoin, bought at an average price of $30,305. Magazine: Bitcoin Halving will pump games, Shrapnel’s ‘simple’ secret revealed: Web3 Gamer

Tether — the operator of the eponymous Tether (USDT) stablecoin, the world’s largest stablecoin by market value — is restructuring to introduce new divisions beyond stablecoin development. The stablecoin giant has launched a new framework introducing four new business divisions, including Tether Data, Tether Finance, Tether Power and Tether Edu, according to an official announcement on April 18. With the new divisions, Tether aims to expand its mission to provide a range of new infrastructure solutions, investments and services. Tether Finance will serve as the hub of Tether’s traditional stablecoin products and financial services aiming to democratize the global financial system, the announcement notes. Related: Stablecoin competition crucial for regulatory engagement — Tether CEOApart from USDT, Tether operates numerous other stablecoins, including its Euro-pegged Tether Token EURT (EURT), its offshore Chinese Yuan (CNH₮), its gold-backed Tether Gold (XAUt) and others.

Nigeria puts faith in new crypto-friendly regulator

Nigeria’s blockchain stakeholders have expressed hope and confidence in the newly appointed Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The new SEC Chair’s pro-crypto background is seen as an added advantage for the local crypto industry. Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has appointed Emomotimi Agama, the former managing director of the Nigerian Capital Market Institute (NCMI), as the new chair of the SEC. This appointment aims to regulate the capital market, enhance investor confidence, and promote economic development. In interviews with Cointelegraph, local crypto stakeholders shared their opinions about the new appointment. Nathaniel Luz, CEO of Flincap — an over-the-counter crypto exchange — expressed his excitement about the appointment, saying that the Director-General’s favorable views on crypto will likely bring positive changes to the crypto sector. Luz said that the community is looking forward to the new chair working together with startups to streamline their licensing process for operating crypto platforms in Nigeria. With the government issuing licenses for crypto organizations this year, Luz believes assisting numerous crypto startups in obtaining these licenses will ensure compliance and operational stability for exchanges in the country. Related: Nigeria’s central bank forced to deny claims of crypto account freeze Similarly, Lucky Uwakwe, chair of the Blockchain Industry Coordinating Committee of Nigeria (BICCoN) and founder of SaBi Exchange, described the appointment as a “wise decision,” considering the new Director-General’s wealth of experience in blockchain and the capital market. According to Luz, the new leader needs to clearly state that cryptocurrency is not prohibited in Nigeria. Given recent developments and uncertainties surrounding cryptocurrency regulations in the country, stakeholders are seeking a clear declaration from the leadership to confirm the legality of crypto activities. Luz said: “We expect that his administration will separate the baby from the bath water and show that the crypto industry has several exciting benefits for the country. We need to prove to the whole world that we are open for crypto business despite the issues that some exchanges might have experienced in the country.” In February, the Nigerian government used the country’s telecommunication providers to prevent local crypto users from accessing the websites of various crypto exchanges, such as Binance, OctaFX and others. Authorities then accused Binance of illegally moving $26 billion out of the country and invited the firm to send representatives to discuss the issue. Two Binance staff were subsequently detained and charged with five counts related to money laundering after meeting with Nigerian officials. One of them, Nadeem Anjarwalla, escaped custody and was tracked down in Kenya, where he faces extradition. Magazine: US enforcement agencies are turning up the heat on crypto-related crime

Nigeria’s blockchain stakeholders have expressed hope and confidence in the newly appointed Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The new SEC Chair’s pro-crypto background is seen as an added advantage for the local crypto industry. Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has appointed Emomotimi Agama, the former managing director of the Nigerian Capital Market Institute (NCMI), as the new chair of the SEC. In interviews with Cointelegraph, local crypto stakeholders shared their opinions about the new appointment. Given recent developments and uncertainties surrounding cryptocurrency regulations in the country, stakeholders are seeking a clear declaration from the leadership to confirm the legality of crypto activities.

Memecoins are making millionaires, but are they actually good for crypto?

The crypto bull market is back, and with it comes everyone’s favorite — or least favorite — symbol that euphoria is returning: memecoins. Headlines have been abuzz with wild stories of traders turning relatively modest sums of money into multimillion-dollar jackpots by getting in early on a token that ends up exploding. But for everyone who hits a major payday, there is inventively someone else who loses tons of money by betting too much on the wrong coin. It seems like everyone has a strong opinion on memecoins, whether they think they bring a sense of joy and fun to crypto that is often missing or think they distract from the real-world issues blockchain seeks to solve. On episode 14 of The Agenda podcast, hosts Jonathan DeYoung and Ray Salmond speak with Andreas Brekken, founder of no-sign-up crypto exchange SideShift.ai, about the positives and negatives associated with the memecoin frenzy, as well as what it all means for crypto as a whole. The benefits of memecoin hype Brekken believes that memecoins are overall “a super easy and friendly way for normal people to get involved in crypto just using your phone” and “a completely harmless way to use crypto” with one’s friends. He argued that memecoins are a net positive for the crypto ecosystem, as they help people engage with blockchain technology and learn more about how cryptocurrencies work. They also function as a real-world testing ground for the technology: “We’re testing real stuff because the same technology we can use to trade memecoins is literally the same technology we use to trade any other assets on-chain or cross-chain.” The chain-congesting frenzy on Solana, for example, will force the network to improve its speed and reliability, which will ultimately benefit the blockchain in the long term, said Brekken. When asked what more serious crypto projects can learn from meme tokens, Brekken said he admires the speed at which memecoins are able to build strong communities. He also pointed out that many memecoin developers burn their liquidity provider tokens so that their initial liquidity cannot be removed, demonstrating their commitment to a project — something other developers might imitate in the future. Memecoin gambling Most memecoins admittedly have no intrinsic or real-world value. As such, many people approach them as a gambling opportunity, one where there is the hope of making life-changing money. However, a large number of memecoin projects end up being outright scams and rug pulls, meaning that investors face the very real possibility that their funds will go to zero. Brekken compared gambling on memecoins to gambling at Vegas or on sports: Some people go to casinos with a small amount of money and have fun with their friends no matter the outcome, while others cash out their life savings, lose it all on black and are left with nothing but regrets. He added, however, that one must zoom out to get the bigger picture rather than being upset at memecoins themselves: “Maybe the bigger question is, why are people gambling so much? I think one way to look at this is it may be that people are gambling because they don’t trust the system to give them a fair chance, and they’re looking at the inflation, and your money is becoming worthless all the time, and your salary is not going up. So it could be that it’s just a symptom of a financial system that people don’t trust.” To hear more from Brekken’s conversation with The Agenda — including his thoughts on token names and free speech, the future of memecoins, and how memecoin seasons influence the broader crypto ecosystem — listen to the full episode on Cointelegraph’s Podcasts page, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. And don’t forget to check out Cointelegraph’s full lineup of other shows! Magazine: 5 dangers to beware when apeing into Solana memecoins This article is for general information purposes and is not intended to be and should not be taken as legal or investment advice. The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed here are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect or represent the views and opinions of Cointelegraph.

The crypto bull market is back, and with it comes everyone’s favorite — or least favorite — symbol that euphoria is returning: memecoins. He argued that memecoins are a net positive for the crypto ecosystem, as they help people engage with blockchain technology and learn more about how cryptocurrencies work. When asked what more serious crypto projects can learn from meme tokens, Brekken said he admires the speed at which memecoins are able to build strong communities. Memecoin gamblingMost memecoins admittedly have no intrinsic or real-world value. As such, many people approach them as a gambling opportunity, one where there is the hope of making life-changing money.

FTX estate to unload $7.6B locked Solana balance at 68% discount

The estate of bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX will sell its balance of 41 million Solana (SOL), worth $7.65 billion at the time of publication, to institutional investors at around $60, or a 68% discount to its current market price. As told by FTX creditor Sunil Kavuri during FTX co-founder and former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried’s (SBF) sentencing on March 28, not all customers have been made whole by the exchange's bankruptcy. “Sullivan & Cromwell [FTX bankruptcy counsel] has trampled over our property rights,” Kavuri alleged. “They have liquidated billions of dollars of crypto assets. There’s a token S&C sold at 11 cents; it’s now trading at two dollars. FTX had $10 billion [misprint] in Solana tokens — they sold it at 70% discount." In an earlier victim impact statement filed by Kavuri, the FTX creditor claimed that the FTX estate “owns 41.1 million Solana tokens which should be distributed to FTX creditors. They were planning to sell them for $60, the price today is $187." Despite the creditors’ claims, presiding Judge Lewis A. Kaplan reiterated that the March 28 hearing was solely for sentencing SBF, and not for raising issues with creditors’ claims. “I accept your assertion the claim customers will be made whole is inaccurate," said Judge Kaplan. At least one investor seems to have confirmed the discounted sales. On March 27, Canadian blockchain firm Neptune Digital Assets announced it had acquired 26,964 SOL at $64 per token, a 67% discount to its then-market price. Although the firm did not specify its counterparty, the terms of the sale match the offer conditions provided by the FTX estate. As per a March 7 Bloomberg report, the vesting period for the purchase of discounted SOL tokens is four years. Simultaneous to the bankruptcy proceedings, FTX creditors have filed a class action against Sullivan and Cromwell, alleging that the firm participated in the FTX fraud before it became the exchange's bankruptcy counsel. Before its collapse, FTX was an early investor in the Solana ecosystem. Related: Sam Bankman-Fried sentenced to 25 years in prison

The estate of bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX will sell its balance of 41 million Solana (SOL), worth $7.65 billion at the time of publication, to institutional investors at around $60, or a 68% discount to its current market price. “Sullivan & Cromwell [FTX bankruptcy counsel] has trampled over our property rights,” Kavuri alleged. FTX had $10 billion [misprint] in Solana tokens — they sold it at 70% discount." In an earlier victim impact statement filed by Kavuri, the FTX creditor claimed that the FTX estate “owns 41.1 million Solana tokens which should be distributed to FTX creditors. As per a March 7 Bloomberg report, the vesting period for the purchase of discounted SOL tokens is four years.

New Bitcoin whales, ETFs are up only 1.6% in unrealized profit — Is the BTC bottom in?

Institutional investors and Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) holders are barely up in unrealized profits, suggesting that this cohort is likely not to produce much selling pressure in the short term. So, was the dip below $60,000 the local bottom for Bitcoin (BTC) price? Bitcoin ETF holders only up 1.6% in unrealized profit Short-term Bitcoin whales, or investors holding at least 1,000 BTC for up to 155 days have an unrealized profit of just 1.6% on their holdings, according to CryptoQuant data. BTC unrealized profit ratio for whale and miner cohorts. Source: CryptoQuant In contrast, the cohort of old whales holding at least 1,000 BTC for over 155 days has a 223% unrealized profit, according to Ki Young Ju, founder and CEO of CryptoQuant. Ju wrote in an April 19 X post: “Not enough profit to end this cycle, imo [in my opinion].” Unrealized profits for small miners are at 131%, while the cohort of big mining firms is up 81%. Despite the significant unrealized profit, the five largest mining firms have not been selling in anticipation of the Bitcoin halving. Bitcoin selling by the top five mining firms slowed to a two-year low in the first quarter of 2024, when the five largest miners sold a total of approximately 2,000 BTC, according to an April 10 report by Bitwise. Bitcoin mined vs. Bitcoin sold by top 5 miners. Source: Bitwise Bitcoin price fell below $60,000 on April 16 and April 19, before bouncing back toward $65,000. Some technical analysts are anticipating that the BTC price may have formed a “double bottom” pattern. BTC/USDT, 4-hour chart. Source: TradingView Following this week’s dip, key technical indicators have also reset from overbought territory. Bitcoin’s relative strength index (RSI) on the daily chart, for example, is 46, which means that the asset’s price is neutral, down from 76 on March 17, when Bitcoin was overbought. BTC/USDT, 1-day chart. Source: TradingView The RSI is a popular momentum indicator used to measure whether an asset is oversold or overbought based on the magnitude of recent price changes. Related: With 10 days to the halving, analysts predict $150K Bitcoin top Is the Bitcoin bottom in? Bitcoin’s retrace to below $60,000 earlier this week may have marked the local bottom for the market, argued Arthur Cheong, founder and chief investment officer of DeFiance Capital. Cheong wrote in an April 19 X post: “Very high chance that was the local bottom.” Additionally, Bitcoin price broke out from a significant channel on the four-hour chart. This suggests that $72,000 could be up next, according to popular crypto trader Satoshi Flipper’s April 19 X post. BTC/USDT, 4-hour chart. Source: Satoshi Flipper Institutional net inflows from the 10 U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs have turned negative on the week of the halving. The Bitcoin ETFs saw over $147 million worth of cumulative net outflows on April 18, according to Dune. Bitcoin ETF net flows. Source: Dune The slowing ETF inflows were the main reason behind Bitcoin’s downward price action, which is set to turn bullish with the upcoming halving, according to Denis Petrovcic, CEO and founder of Blocksquare. He told Cointelegraph: “While some might anticipate a drop post-halving, the sustained institutional interest and decreased block rewards should keep BTC prices stable or slightly bullish, avoiding the typical ‘sell the news’ fallout.” Related: BRC-20 tokens bleed ahead of Bitcoin halving as trader focus shifts to Runes 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.

So, was the dip below $60,000 the local bottom for Bitcoin (BTC) price? Bitcoin ETF holders only up 1.6% in unrealized profitShort-term Bitcoin whales, or investors holding at least 1,000 BTC for up to 155 days have an unrealized profit of just 1.6% on their holdings, according to CryptoQuant data. BTC unrealized profit ratio for whale and miner cohorts. Source: CryptoQuantIn contrast, the cohort of old whales holding at least 1,000 BTC for over 155 days has a 223% unrealized profit, according to Ki Young Ju, founder and CEO of CryptoQuant. Despite the significant unrealized profit, the five largest mining firms have not been selling in anticipation of the Bitcoin halving.

Bitcoin halving 2024: 5 ways it’s different this time

Another Bitcoin halving has come and gone, the fourth so far, and this one was like no other before it, with institutional investment playing a key role for the very first time. Bitcoin halvings have been historically associated with one essential similarity — a subsequent spike in BTC price, which often occurs some time after the halving. While the community has yet to find out whether the fourth halving will follow the same path, some things are already different about the Bitcoin halving 2024. Crypto user base up at least 400% since the 2020 halving While the speed of new Bitcoin generation has decreased since the first halving, the demand has not stood still. Since the previous Bitcoin halving — which occurred in May 2020 — the global crypto user base has added at least around 400 million users, based on various sources. In 2020, the number of crypto owners worldwide counted around 100 million users, according to the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance (CCAF) estimations. By the end of 2023, the number of global crypto users surged to as high as 580 million people, as estimated by crypto exchange Crypto.com. Global cryptocurrency users from January 2023 to December 2023. Source. Crypto.com Despite Bitcoin being the world’s largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization and the oldest, it apparently has fewer users than the entire crypto ecosystem. According to data from Technopedia, approximately 2.7% of the global population is estimated to own Bitcoin as of 2024, which translates to around 219 million people. If accurate, the estimated figure is up around 208% from 71 million Bitcoin users four years ago, as calculated by Crypto.com. With Bitcoin or most other cryptocurrencies, most user count estimations can not be 100% accurate, as on-chain transaction analysis is often incapable of differentiating between long-term holders and lost BTC, as well as other factors. 2024 pre-halving Bitcoin rally has not been seen before One of the biggest differences between the fourth Bitcoin halving and the three past halvings is that the price has seen extraordinary growth pre-halving in 2024. In the previous cycles, Bitcoin price recorded breakouts after the halving rather than before, and new all-time highs came roughly one year following the halving date. For example, Bitcoin didn’t break out above the previously set ATH of $20,000 before the 2020 halving. In that cycle, the Bitcoin price only crossed ATH 10 months after halving. The picture is much different this time around. In the current cycle, Bitcoin reached all-time highs right before the halving event, setting a record of $73,600 on March 13, 2024. Such a breakout has never been seen before, and multiple analysts agree, including eToro crypto analyst Simon Peters. Miners ‘better shaped’ for halving this time The never-seen-before Bitcoin price appreciation pre-halving has potentially had a positive impact on the mining industry as miners obtained more control over mining costs. “In comparison to the previous halving, it appears miners are in better shape overall in terms of lower levels of debt and potentially better control over their costs, such as electricity,” Fidelity Digital Assets’ director of research Chris Kuiper told Cointelegraph, adding: “What’s also helping miners this cycle is the price appreciation before the halving — something that also hasn’t been seen in previous cycles.” Since the third halving in May 2020, Bitcoin mining energy consumption has significantly increased, surging from around 50 Terawatt hours (Twh) to 99 Twh on April 18, 2024. Bitcoin energy consumption. Source: Digiconomist At the same time, the amount of Bitcoin network’s energy consumption powered by renewable energy sources has also increased, with renewables accounting for 54.5% BTC mining consumption as of January 2024, according to Bitcoin ESG Forecast. As of September 2020, this figure stood at 39%, according to data from CCAF. First Bitcoin halving with spot BTC ETFs in the U.S. One of the most straightforward things about Bitcoin halving 2024 is that this halving is the first ever with BTC exchange-traded funds (ETF) enabled in the United States. After many years of efforts, spot Bitcoin ETFs debuted trading in January 2024, opening exposure to Bitcoin for institutional investors. Related: Not just the halving: Why analysts are bullish on Bitcoin in 2024 According to Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas, spot Bitcoin ETFs have seen “blockbuster success,” which apparently reflects a spike in demand for Bitcoin. Since the first day of trading, all ten spot Bitcoin ETFs combined have increased their holdings by at least 220,000 BTC, which is worth around $14 billion at the time of writing. BlackRock's spot Bitcoin ETF has attracted the biggest amount of inflows among 10 BTC ETFs, with its holdings surging more than 10,000% from just 2,621 BTC on the trading debut to 273,140 BTC on April 18. M2 CEO Stefan Kimmel said: Looking at the broader landscape, while halving garners attention, we are cognizant that it's just a part of a larger narrative. The confluence of ETFs, quantitative easing, and halving will define the future contours of the market. Bitcoin became more globally decentralized and secure Bitcoin has also significantly improved in terms of network security and decentralization. Since 2020 — when most new Bitcoin was mined in Mainland China — Bitcoin has emerged as a more distributed network. Just four years ago, Bitcoin mining in China amounted to nearly 80% of Bitcoin’s total mining hash rate globally. As of February 2024, the biggest Bitcoin mining countries are the United States with 40% of the total hashrate, as well as China and Russia, accounting for 15% and 12%, respectively, according to Hashlab Mining founder Jaran Mellerud. Geographic distribution of Bitcoin hash rate between September 2019 and January 2022. Source: CBECI “This geographic decentralization is continuing as miners migrate to Africa and Latin America to take advantage of cheaper electricity prices,” Mellerud said. Additionally, the Bitcoin blockchain has become more resistant to attacks as its hash rate has surged five times since the previous halving. “It now requires five times more computing power and associated electricity supply, electrical infrastructure, and mining hardware to attack the network,” Hashlab Mining founder noted. Magazine: Bitcoin Halving will pump games, Shrapnel’s ‘simple’ secret revealed: Web3 Gamer

While the community has yet to find out whether the fourth halving will follow the same path, some things are already different about the Bitcoin halving 2024. 2024 pre-halving Bitcoin rally has not been seen beforeOne of the biggest differences between the fourth Bitcoin halving and the three past halvings is that the price has seen extraordinary growth pre-halving in 2024. First Bitcoin halving with spot BTC ETFs in the U.S.One of the most straightforward things about Bitcoin halving 2024 is that this halving is the first ever with BTC exchange-traded funds (ETF) enabled in the United States. After many years of efforts, spot Bitcoin ETFs debuted trading in January 2024, opening exposure to Bitcoin for institutional investors. Magazine: Bitcoin Halving will pump games, Shrapnel’s ‘simple’ secret revealed: Web3 Gamer

Worldcoin launches its own ‘human-centric’ blockchain network

Worldcoin, an identity coin startup founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, is furthering its “human-centric” approach to the Web3 space with its new blockchain network, World Chain. On April 17, Worldcoin announced World Chain, which is a new blockchain initiative designed to prioritize human users, enhance efficiency and foster real-world utility in Web3 applications. Worldcoin recently surpassed 10 million World IDs created and 75 million completed transactions, signaling the project’s rapid expansion. Its own dedicated network has been designed to scale alongside the broader Ethereum network as a layer 2 to meet the project’s needs. Cointelegraph spoke with Tiago Sada, the head of operations at Worldcoin, to better understand the project’s intention with its network and how it plans to keep humans in the center. Related: Worldcoin: Trail of Bits audit shows no direct vulnerability for Orb software Sada said that while technically, World Chain will act similarly to any other L2 and Ethereum, its nuance is that it prioritizes humans over bots, with blockchains often facing congestion due to bot activity. “Usually, the way it works is that every account is fighting for block space. Usually, since bots can move faster and they can outbid humans,” he said, “the networks get saturated with all the transactions for bots, and humans have whatever is left — many times, they can’t even get in.” World Chain’s solution tries to troubleshoot this by favoring transactions completed by verified World ID holders: “It’s going to be an open and permissions network like everyone else, but we are going to prioritize transactions for humans so that their transactions definitely get in, and then the remainder of the block space is just like any other blockchain.” Additionally, Sada explained how verified users will receive a free gas allowance, minimizing friction for newcomers. The protocol aims for an equilibrium where bots and power users ultimately cover gas fees for casual users. He explained how the Worldcoin Foundation would provide an “allowance” to verified humans, which would make their couple of monthly transactions gas free. “The idea with that is just to make it a lot easier for people to get started, so that one does not need to go through the pains of unwrapping and understanding all these things.” The network aligns with Ethereum and also collaborates with projects like Optimism and Base. Worldcoin anticipates a full launch in the summer, with a soon-to-be-expected developer preview. This announcement comes on the heels of a series of changes the project has been implementing, including tightening its privacy checks to improve the protection of user data and ensure that its platform is available only to people over 18 while also allowing permanent deletion of the user’s iris code. On March 22, Worldcoin even made its orb software open-source and implemented a new “personal custody” privacy feature. These moves follow scrutiny from world governments over its privacy practices, which have led to some temporary bans on operations in countries such as Portugal, Kenya and Spain. Responding to the scrutiny, Saba said it is only the natural process of introducing a new protocol that is “fortunately” scaling at Worldcoin’s pace. “When any project starts getting to scale, it’s the government’s job to go in and make sure that everything that the project is saying is actually true. And I think that’s completely natural.” Magazine: 1 in 6 new Base meme coins are scams, 91% have vulnerabilities

Worldcoin, an identity coin startup founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, is furthering its “human-centric” approach to the Web3 space with its new blockchain network, World Chain. On April 17, Worldcoin announced World Chain, which is a new blockchain initiative designed to prioritize human users, enhance efficiency and foster real-world utility in Web3 applications. Worldcoin recently surpassed 10 million World IDs created and 75 million completed transactions, signaling the project’s rapid expansion. Its own dedicated network has been designed to scale alongside the broader Ethereum network as a layer 2 to meet the project’s needs. He explained how the Worldcoin Foundation would provide an “allowance” to verified humans, which would make their couple of monthly transactions gas free.

Nifty News: LA’s Bored Ape lovers go hungry, Bitcoiners sell $500 Game Boy dupe and more

Bored & Hungry LA flips its last NFT-themed burger A Los Angeles burger restaurant which used a Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) nonfungible token (NFT) as its brand is serving up its last patties and fries after two years in business and is being sold to a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO). “Today we say goodbye to the original Bored & Hungry location in Long Beach, CA,” co-founder Andy Nguyen said in an April 8 X post. Nguyen added the “branding and franchising company” Hungry DAO acquired the Bored & Hungry brand, which also has three locations in the Philippines, one in Seoul, South Korea and slated Hong Kong, Singapore and Dubai pop-ups during events later in the year. The restaurant’s founding team will join the DAO as a shareholder, and the brand “will be announcing their new home in the U.S. soon,” he added. Bored & Hungry opened in April 2022 and other Bored Ape NFT holders have started businesses — including a Cuban restaurant in Miami — using their NFTs which they own the rights to. “The supportive BAYC and Web3 community helped us break ground, in becoming the first to utilize ownership of the digital IP asset and create a restaurant brand,” Nguyen wrote. “We’re proud to have made our mark, and excited to see where the community takes it next.” Game Boy dupe will cost $500 to play Bitcoin NFTs The Bitcoin Ordinals-based gaming platform Ordz Games is planning to hock a Bitcoin gaming console and crypto wallet that looks like a Game Boy for a reported $500 price tag. On April 7 at Hong Kong’s Web3 Gaming Expo, Ordz debuted its BitBoy One device, a name blending “Bitcoin” and “Game Boy” — not to be confused with the crypto influencer turned one-time “fighter” of the same name. Ordz Games expects the console will cost around $500, exact price pending, with preorders slated for mid-April, GamesBeat reported. That’s 10 times as pricey as competing handheld retro game consoles such as those from Anbernic, which start at about $50 and its around $50 more than a new entry-level PlayStation 5. The BitBoy One (left) being demonstrated in Hong Kong. Source: BitBoy/X The BitBoy One can play retro-style play-to-earn games put on Bitcoin using its NFT-emulating Ordinals protocol and acts as a wallet to store any Bitcoin (BTC) earned, which — obviously — neither the PS5 nor Anbernic’s consoles can do. The Bitcoin console can also power a Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Network (DePIN) with users able to farm airdrops by leaving it running, according to a press release. Doodles to make animated film with Lil Wayne as a skeleton NFT collection Doodles has teased its upcoming animated film Dullsville and The Doodleverse, which will have rappers Lil Wayne and Coi Leray voicing characters. In an April 5 X post, the collection said it will start to unroll the film’s “storytelling experience” starting in “summer” (that’s mid-year for non-Americans) through music, live events, partnerships, merchandise and NFTs, which it decided to market as “digital collecting experiences.” The marketing blitz will end with the film premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival in September. A poster for the Doodles film. Source: Doodles/X Doodles kept further details about the film sparse but said Lil Wayne, known for his diamond-certified 2008 hit Lollipop and Coi Leray, who rose to prominence with her 2022 platinum hit Players, will voice respective film characters “Captain Stoke” — a skeleton — and “Deysi” — a seemingly anthropomorphic flower. A promotional picture for the Doodles film. Source: Doodles/X The musical pair will also take part in the film’s original soundtrack composed by singer-songwriter and Doodles chief brand officer Pharrell Williams which includes three music videos. NFT sales drop for 5th straight week NFT sales volumes for all blockchains have slid for the fifth week in a row after reaching a year-to-date high in early March led by a significant drop in Ethereum NFT sales. CryptoSlam! data shows the daily total NFT sales volume peaked this year on March 4 at over $80.4 million, which has slid over 50% to nearly $39.4 million five weeks later on April 8. Daily total year-to-date NFT sales volumes in U.S. dollars. Source: CryptoSlam! Ethereum NFT sales volumes have seen a significant downturn, with 30-day figures seeing a nearly 48% drop to $363.3 million — larger than the drops seen by market leader Bitcoin at 13.5%, Solana at over 15% and Polygon’s nearly 34%. The 30-day NFT sales volumes by the top 5 most used blockchains. Source: CryptoSlam! Over the past seven days, however, Bitcoin-based NFTs saw an over 24% volume jump at $97.7 million — the only blockchain in the top five to see a weekly gain. Related: ZachXBT claims he is being ‘borderline harassed’ by US law enforcement The most traded NFTs over the past week and the past 30 days were “Uncategorized Ordinals,” which as the name suggests, is any Bitcoin Ordinal not part of a recognized collection. These vagrant Ordinals saw $156 million in trading volumes over 30 days, a 54% bump from the previous 30-day period — $37.4 million of which was in the past week. Other news Dogecoiners did their own “Runestone” airdrop, copying the hyped giveaway done through Bitcoin Ordinals last month. Crypto exchange Binance shelved supporting Bitcoin Ordinals about a year after introducing them to its NFT marketplace, claiming it needed “to streamline product offerings.” Web3 Gamer: Gods Unchained app drops crypto, Kings of Fighters Arena review

Nguyen added the “branding and franchising company” Hungry DAO acquired the Bored & Hungry brand, which also has three locations in the Philippines, one in Seoul, South Korea and slated Hong Kong, Singapore and Dubai pop-ups during events later in the year. NFT sales drop for 5th straight weekNFT sales volumes for all blockchains have slid for the fifth week in a row after reaching a year-to-date high in early March led by a significant drop in Ethereum NFT sales. Daily total year-to-date NFT sales volumes in U.S. dollars. The 30-day NFT sales volumes by the top 5 most used blockchains. Other newsDogecoiners did their own “Runestone” airdrop, copying the hyped giveaway done through Bitcoin Ordinals last month.

Internet Computer users pledge $80M to decentralize its project ecosystem

Internet Computer community members pledged almost $80 million worth of Internet Computer (ICP) tokens to help decentralize protocols in the ecosystem last year. Contributor to the Internet Computer network, the DFINITY Foundation, released its 2023 protocol ecosystem report on March 27, revealing that the community committed more than 6.5 million ICP tokens to decentralization efforts. The pledge has been made by the Internet Computer’s Service Nervous System (SNS) framework, which allows protocols to become decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs). ICP projects and dapps that received funding through SNS decentralization include decentralized messenger OpenChat, metaverse platform Dragginz, blockchain search engine Kinic, “Web3 TikTok” Hot or Not, the first ICP memecoin Ghost, decentralized verification-as-a-service platform Modclub, on-chain gaming platform BOOM DAO, and social dapp Catalyze. Daily message count on OpenChat surged after October 2023. Source: Token Terminal “The success of the SNS framework has been a big win for decentralized governance worldwide, through its innovative tech stack and multiple network integrations,” commented Lomesh Dutta, Vice President of Growth at DFINITY. The DFINITY Foundation also reported tremendous growth in blockchain gaming activity on Internet Computer, which it said was due to low transfer fees and high scaling capabilities. Additionally, DFINITY distributed $6.25 million in ecosystem grants to 239 projects across 41 countries in 2023 to support the growth of the ICP ecosystem. Overall network usage on ICP increased by 121% year-over-year, indicating constant ecosystem-wide growth, according to the report. Decentralized finance on ICP has also seen steady growth this year, with total value locked increasing 24% to $27 million since Jan. 1, according to DefiLlama. ICP surges after pivot to AI ICP prices have been on fire over the past few days after the network revealed its latest advancements in the realm of artificial intelligence. In a March 22 post on X, DFINITY CEO Dominic Williams posted a video demonstrating what he claims was a world-first: “quite a sophisticated AI running on blockchain” as a smart contract on the Internet Computer. Related: Internet Computer founder‘s $250M plan to help end the war in Ukraine “AI will become the beating heart of our web3, multi-chain world, and this is only my first demo,” he said. Source: Dominic Willams (March 22) ICP prices surged 50% since the announcement and reached a two-year high of just under $20 on March 26, according to CoinGecko. However, the asset remains down 97% from its May 2021 all-time high of $700. Magazine: Why boomers ‘like’ AI pics on Facebook, mind-reading AI breakthrough: AI Eye

Internet Computer community members pledged almost $80 million worth of Internet Computer (ICP) tokens to help decentralize protocols in the ecosystem last year. Contributor to the Internet Computer network, the DFINITY Foundation, released its 2023 protocol ecosystem report on March 27, revealing that the community committed more than 6.5 million ICP tokens to decentralization efforts. The DFINITY Foundation also reported tremendous growth in blockchain gaming activity on Internet Computer, which it said was due to low transfer fees and high scaling capabilities. Additionally, DFINITY distributed $6.25 million in ecosystem grants to 239 projects across 41 countries in 2023 to support the growth of the ICP ecosystem. Related: Internet Computer founder‘s $250M plan to help end the war in Ukraine“AI will become the beating heart of our web3, multi-chain world, and this is only my first demo,” he said.

Crypto ATMs to resurge once Bitcoin ‘FOMO’ hits full swing, says CEO

Bitcoin ATMs will likely see a global acceleration in installations after the Bitcoin halving, a period when crypto FOMO (fear of missing out) typically hits a fever pitch, according to the boss of a major Bitcoin ATM operator. In 2023, crypto ATM installs had their first-ever yearly decline in a decade, owing to a bear market likely exacerbated by the collapse of several crypto firms. However, Bitcoin Depot CEO Brandon Mintz notes that 2024 has already started with a bang, with 1,469 crypto ATMs installed in just the first three months, compared to the over 3,000 removed by around the same time in 2023, according to data from CoinATMRadar. “It’s looking really positive that the industry continues to see a lot of growth in kiosk count,” Bitcoin Depot CEO Brandon Mintz told Cointelegraph. Over 400 ATMs have been installed between March 1 and March 27. Source: CoinATMRadar Mintz is now tipping an industry-wide ATM rebound with Bitcoin (BTC) back in swing, which has already twice beaten its all-time high in March. In past bull markets, Mintz noted that “later in the cycle, especially that period of FOMO that starts happening,” is when crypto adoption surges and, with it, brings more customers. “The adoption rate is really helpful because if more people are buying Bitcoin, then a portion of those are likely going to Bitcoin ATMs.” That, however, typically comes later in the cycle and “it’s still pretty early,” according to Mintz. “We aren’t even at the halving yet,” he said, mentioning the event slated for late April when Bitcoin’s mining rewards are cut 50%. “In the past, more of the uptick we’ve seen has been after the halving,” he added. “After the halving is when the price skyrockets the most, and that’s when the FOMO phase starts.” While the ATM count has recently climbed, Mintz claims over the past 18 months, the number of ATM operators has dropped. One of the largest was the 5,000 ATM-strong operator Coin Cloud, which went bankrupt in February 2023. “A lot more of them were struggling and went out of business than was shown publicly,” he said. The drop “happened pretty quickly” after crypto exchange FTX collapsed in November 2022 and took the crypto market with it, he added. Bitcoin Depot’s fourth quarter and full 2023 results released on March 25 saw full-year revenues up 7% year-on-year to $689 million, though net income dropped 54% to $1.6 million. It also bought 900 ATMs to install in the first quarter of 2024 and has plans for 940 ATMs to go live in convenience stores in 24 United States states. According to CoinATMRadar, the Bitcoin ATM operator shares the market with a small number of other operators. The runner-up rival operator Coinflip has just over half that with over 4,200, while Bitstop is third with over 2,500. Spot Bitcoin ETFs are no bother Of the 37,001 crypto ATMs in the world, the United States is home to nearly 83% of them, with over 30,600, per CoinATMRadar. In January, the U.S. also approved spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs), which some have hailed as an adoption catalyst for institutions and retail punters looking to get into Bitcoin. Mintz was unshaken by what impact the ETFs could have on Bitcoin ATMs. “We view it as a totally different customer base,” he said. Related: Bitcoin ATM flaw could’ve given hackers ‘total control’ “A large portion of our customer base transacts primarily in cash or only in cash because they’re underbanked or unbanked,” he added. On the other hand, Bitcoin ETF buyers are “more high-income individuals with brokerages and brokers.” “[The] vast majority of all of our customers make less than $90,000 to $100,000 a year, so our customer base is not that likely to have a brokerage account or a broker and has not been likely to have just been sitting on the sidelines waiting for [an ETF] when it’s so easy to just buy through a Bitcoin ATM,” Mintz said. Instead, he thinks the ETFs driving Bitcoin’s price higher could mean more ATM usage as Bitcoin adoption climbs. “If adoption increases, we think it likely translates to increased usage of Bitcoin ATMs. So in the grand scheme of things, I think it is way more helpful to us in our industry than it is in terms of impacting us in a negative way.” Big Questions: How can Bitcoin payments stage a comeback?

Bitcoin ATMs will likely see a global acceleration in installations after the Bitcoin halving, a period when crypto FOMO (fear of missing out) typically hits a fever pitch, according to the boss of a major Bitcoin ATM operator. In 2023, crypto ATM installs had their first-ever yearly decline in a decade, owing to a bear market likely exacerbated by the collapse of several crypto firms. According to CoinATMRadar, the Bitcoin ATM operator shares the market with a small number of other operators. Spot Bitcoin ETFs are no botherOf the 37,001 crypto ATMs in the world, the United States is home to nearly 83% of them, with over 30,600, per CoinATMRadar. “If adoption increases, we think it likely translates to increased usage of Bitcoin ATMs.

Bitcoin miner bankruptcies will be less common this cycle — Hut8 CEO

There will be far fewer Bitcoin (BTC) mining firms filing for bankruptcy in the coming years than there were in 2022, says Hut 8 CEO Asher Gennot. Speaking in an April 3 interview with Bloomberg, Genoot said that the main cause of bankruptcies in 2022 came from firms being overleveraged and unprepared for rising energy costs. “A big area that led to a lot of bankruptcies in the mining sector and distressed assets was because of the leverage of 2021,” said Genoot. “A lot of companies grew with that and that debt couldn't be serviced in 2022 when Bitcoin prices went down and energy prices went up.” Compute North, Celsius Mining, and Core Scientific — which has since relisted on the Nasdaq — were among several of the Bitcoin miners that filed for bankruptcy during the crypto winter in 2022. However, Genoot said that since then, Bitcoin miners have typically relied on less leverage and higher volumes of debt-free capital coming from equity markets to grow their businesses. He expects to see an uptick in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity among smaller-scale Bitcoin miners, something he predicts will contribute to a far lower rate of bankruptcies. Bitcoin would likely need to retrace to $30,000 or $40,000 for a significant amount of M&A activity or “distress opportunities” to unfold, Genoot explained. The Bitcoin halving is currently slated for April 20 when block 840,000 is reached. The event will reduce miner rewards from 6.25 BTC ($412,000) to 3.125 BTC ($211,000) at current prices. Genoot added that investors will flock toward “large-scale operators who have the lowest marginal cost of production,” in the wake of the halving. The Hut CEO said he took a similar course of action last December when he founded US Bitcoin Corp (USBTC) and combined it with Hut 8 Mining Corp’s operations in an all-stock merger. The merger is now registered as Hut 8 Corp in Miami, Florida, which boasts over 9,100 Bitcoin, worth $600 million on its balance sheet. Related: Riot, TeraWulf and CleanSpark best-positioned miners for Bitcoin halving — CoinShares Bitcoin is currently priced at $66,000, with the halving event now 17 days away. Bitcoin’s change in price over the last 7 days. Source: Cointelegraph Markets Pro Historically, Bitcoin has set new all-time highs approximately 6-12 months after the halving event, occurring three consecutive times in 2012, 2016 and 2020. Bitcoin bucked this trend in recent weeks, surpassing its previous all-time high price of $68,990 on March 5, roughly 46 days out from the halving. Several industry pundits look to the recent launch of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds in the United States as the main contributor to Bitcoin’s outsized and atypical price action in recent months. Magazine: This is your brain on crypto — Substance abuse grows among crypto traders

However, Genoot said that since then, Bitcoin miners have typically relied on less leverage and higher volumes of debt-free capital coming from equity markets to grow their businesses. He expects to see an uptick in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity among smaller-scale Bitcoin miners, something he predicts will contribute to a far lower rate of bankruptcies. The Bitcoin halving is currently slated for April 20 when block 840,000 is reached. Related: Riot, TeraWulf and CleanSpark best-positioned miners for Bitcoin halving — CoinSharesBitcoin is currently priced at $66,000, with the halving event now 17 days away. Source: Cointelegraph Markets ProHistorically, Bitcoin has set new all-time highs approximately 6-12 months after the halving event, occurring three consecutive times in 2012, 2016 and 2020.

Meta announces VR education metaverse for ages 13 and up

Meta is bringing its enterprise level Quest services to the education sector, the social media giant announced on April 15. The company’s Quest virtual reality (VR) headsets have become “by far the most popular extended reality (XR) headsets on the market” according to Statista. The sector is expected to reach an installed user base of more than 34 million units by the end of 2024. If that prediction remains true, the VR sector will have demonstrated a compound annual growth rate of approximately 27.3% since 2020 when, according to Statista, the installed VR user base was about 14.2 million. In order to maintain its pole position, Meta recently unveiled a slew of products and services aimed at the enterprise metaverse market. As Cointelegraph recently reported, the pivot showed a shift away from individualized user experiences such as games and one-off immersive environments. The next leg in this pivot appears to be a greater push towards educational products and services. Per a blog post from Meta’s president of global affairs, Nick Clegg: "Later this year Meta will be launching a new product offering for Quest devices dedicated to education. … It will allow teachers, trainers and administrators to access a range of education-specific apps and features and make it possible for them to manage multiple Quest devices at once, without the need for each device in a classroom or training environment to be updated and prepared individually.” The new product’s name and details are to be revealed “in the coming months” with a full launch anticipated by the end of 2024. According to the blog post, it’ll be available in the Quest for Business market which includes most territories in Europe, Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, and the United States. Meta gave several examples of educational facilities already employing Quest headsets, including a life sciences course at the university of Glasgow that immerses students inside the human body, a criminal justice course at New Mexico State that places users at a virtual crime scene, and a business class at Stanford University that helps prepare students for interviews. Related: NASA created VR metaverse to prep astronauts for life on lunar space station

Meta is bringing its enterprise level Quest services to the education sector, the social media giant announced on April 15. The company’s Quest virtual reality (VR) headsets have become “by far the most popular extended reality (XR) headsets on the market” according to Statista. If that prediction remains true, the VR sector will have demonstrated a compound annual growth rate of approximately 27.3% since 2020 when, according to Statista, the installed VR user base was about 14.2 million. In order to maintain its pole position, Meta recently unveiled a slew of products and services aimed at the enterprise metaverse market. Related: NASA created VR metaverse to prep astronauts for life on lunar space station

With 10 days to the halving, analysts predict $150K Bitcoin top

With only 10 days left until the much-awaited halving, Bitcoin is still trading above the $70,000 psychological level, bolstering bullish long-term price predictions from market analysts. Following the halving, Bitcoin (BTC) price could appreciate over 160% to reach a cycle top of above $150,000, according to a research report by Bitfinex analysts shared with Cointelegraph. “Using a straightforward regression model, we predict a 160% post-halving price surge in the next 14 months, taking the price to between $150,000 - $169,000.” Bitcoin fell 2.2% in the 24 hours leading up to 11:50 am UTC to trade at $70,694. The world’s first cryptocurrency is up over 7.5% on the weekly chart, according to CoinMarketCap data. BTC/USDT, one-month chart. Source: CoinMarketCap However, the analysts note that there is more built-up selling pressure than in previous cycles due to Bitcoin hitting a new all-time high before the halving for the first time in crypto history. While this is a sign of confidence for Bitcoin bulls, it could also introduce significant selling pressure, as 1.87 million BTC, or 9.5% of the circulating supply, was bought above the $60,000 mark. The analysts noted: “This underscores the active engagement of Short-Term Holders at higher prices, reflecting evolving ownership dynamics amidst market activity and institutional influence through spot ETFs. Increased entity movement suggests a shift in the cycle towards the gradual distribution of dormant supply and profit-taking.” However, Bitcoin prices could see a sharp decline during the halving period due to the Federal Reserve’s quantitative tightening, which is removing liquidity from markets. Arthur Hayes, the co-founder of BitMEX, wrote in an April 8 blog post: “That is why I believe Bitcoin and crypto prices in general will slump around the halving [...] It will add propellant to a raging firesale of crypto assets.” Related: How high can Bitcoin go? New BTC price prediction sees cycle top at $180K Bitcoin ETFs amass 4.28% of circulating BTC supply The inflows from the United States spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have been a significant part of Bitcoin’s price rally. By Feb. 15, the Bitcoin ETFs accounted for about 75% of new investment in the world’s largest cryptocurrency as it surpassed the $50,000 mark, according to CryptoQuant research. Since their launch, the Bitcoin ETFs have amassed over 841,900 BTC, worth $59.2 billion, which represents 4.28% of the Bitcoin’s circulating supply. With the accumulation pattern of the past two weeks, the Bitcoin ETFs are set to absorb 2.6% of Bitcoin supply per year, according to Dune. Bitcoin ETF Flows chart. Source: Dune Bitcoin ETFs amassed over $500 million worth of net inflows last week, with a total of $286 million worth of daily net inflows on April 8, during this week’s first trading day, according to Dune data. Related: 10 days until halving: Bitcoin mining profitability won’t necessarily fall

With only 10 days left until the much-awaited halving, Bitcoin is still trading above the $70,000 psychological level, bolstering bullish long-term price predictions from market analysts. Following the halving, Bitcoin (BTC) price could appreciate over 160% to reach a cycle top of above $150,000, according to a research report by Bitfinex analysts shared with Cointelegraph. Since their launch, the Bitcoin ETFs have amassed over 841,900 BTC, worth $59.2 billion, which represents 4.28% of the Bitcoin’s circulating supply. With the accumulation pattern of the past two weeks, the Bitcoin ETFs are set to absorb 2.6% of Bitcoin supply per year, according to Dune. Related: 10 days until halving: Bitcoin mining profitability won’t necessarily fall

Withdrawals from real estate betting platform Parcl hit $74M after airdrop

Investors providing liquidity to the Solana-based real estate betting platform Parcl have pulled more than $74 million from the protocol following its airdrop snapshot earlier in April. Parcl distributed its native PRCL tokens to eligible users on April 15 after announcing that it had taken a snapshot of users' point balances on April 3. Users began pulling funds shortly after the snapshot was taken. Parcl’s total value locked has fallen 39.6% to $112.1 million from its $185.6 million peak on April 2, per DefiLlama data. Parcl users have withdrawn more than $74 million since the snapshot. Source: DefiLlama Parcl is a decentralized real estate trading platform that allows users to speculate on the price movements of real estate markets in major cities. Its users who participated in the airdrop campaign were allocated 80 million PRCL tokens — 8% of the total 1 billion token supply. The platform’s PRCL token debuted at a price of $0.62 and fell as low as $0.45 in the four hours following the airdrop. It has since slightly recovered to around $0.55, according to CoinGecko. Parcl’s is down 12.5% over the past 24 hours. Source: CoinGecko Amid a wider market tumble that has seen Bitcoin (BTC) fall more than 7% on the week, recently airdropped tokens on the Solana network have been among the worst performers. Related: How Solana developers are tackling network congestion challenges The native W token of the cross-chain bridging platform Wormhole is currently down 54% from its launch on April 3. At the time, the Wormhole airdrop saw more than $800 million distributed to eligible users. Similarly, TNSR — the native token of the Solana-based NFT platform Tensor — has tumbled 52.6% from its launch on April 3. Solana-based tokens have been weighed down by a significant decline in the price of Solana (SOL) itself, which is currently down 30.7% on the month. Additionally, the Solana network has been plagued by congestion issues, which saw a record 75% of user transactions fail on April 5. Magazine: The real risks to Ethena’s stablecoin model (are not the ones you think)

Investors providing liquidity to the Solana-based real estate betting platform Parcl have pulled more than $74 million from the protocol following its airdrop snapshot earlier in April. Parcl distributed its native PRCL tokens to eligible users on April 15 after announcing that it had taken a snapshot of users' point balances on April 3. Source: DefiLlamaParcl is a decentralized real estate trading platform that allows users to speculate on the price movements of real estate markets in major cities. Its users who participated in the airdrop campaign were allocated 80 million PRCL tokens — 8% of the total 1 billion token supply. Similarly, TNSR — the native token of the Solana-based NFT platform Tensor — has tumbled 52.6% from its launch on April 3.

Japanese investment firm sees stock price soar after adopting Bitcoin

Publicly listed Japanese firm Metaplanet has announced it has bought 1 billion yen ($6.5 million) worth of Bitcoin (BTC) as a core treasury asset, following in the footsteps of American giant MicroStrategy. Metaplanet is an investment firm focused on Web3 and metaverse-related businesses. The decision to adopt BTC as a treasury asset was backed by Sora Ventures, UTXO Management, and notable individuals such as Mark Yusko, founder of Morgan Creek Capital, and Jack Liu, a founding member of Ordiswap. Metaplanet announcement. Source: Metaplanet Jason Fang, founder of Sora Ventures, called Metaplanet “Asia’s first MicroStrategy.” He added that the firm’s adoption of BTC would enable Japanese investors to gain exposure to Bitcoin without regulatory risk. The adoption of BTC has already helped Metaplanet gain major market momentum, with the stock price up 89% in post-announcement. Metaplanet stock price momentum. Source: Google In its official X announcement, Metaplanet called the move a significant milestone, anticipating it would help position the firm “as a pioneer in the adoption of digital assets in Japan.” Related: Billionaire investor Bill Miller puts 50% of net worth in Bitcoin Using Bitcoin as a treasury asset was popularized by the Fortune 500 company MicroStrategy, led by Michael Saylor. The United States-based public firm started buying Bitcoin in August 2020 when it traded in the $10,000 range. Over the next four years, the Nasdaq-listed firm has amassed over 214,246 BTC at an average purchase price of $33,706.00 per BTC, totaling $6.91 billion. The current market value of MicroStrategy’s BTC holding is over $15 billion, giving it over 100% profit. Even at the peak of the bear market in 2022, when the firm’s BTC holding was running at a loss, Saylor refused to sell; instead, he doubled down by buying more. Saylor bought Bitcoin as a treasury-hedging asset and motivated other publicly listed companies to adopt it. Saylor claimed he had convinced Tesla CEO Elon Musk to purchase $1.5 billion of BTC in January 2021. Magazine: How to protect your crypto in a volatile market — Bitcoin OGs and experts weigh in

Publicly listed Japanese firm Metaplanet has announced it has bought 1 billion yen ($6.5 million) worth of Bitcoin (BTC) as a core treasury asset, following in the footsteps of American giant MicroStrategy. The adoption of BTC has already helped Metaplanet gain major market momentum, with the stock price up 89% in post-announcement. The United States-based public firm started buying Bitcoin in August 2020 when it traded in the $10,000 range. Over the next four years, the Nasdaq-listed firm has amassed over 214,246 BTC at an average purchase price of $33,706.00 per BTC, totaling $6.91 billion. Magazine: How to protect your crypto in a volatile market — Bitcoin OGs and experts weigh in

Wealth management firms to boost Bitcoin ETF holdings — Bitwise CEO

Bitwise CEO Hunter Horsley has predicted that wealth management firms will increase their holdings of Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETFs). The prediction comes at a time when Bitcoin ETFs are expected to gain even more traction after the halving. Horsley’s prediction aligns with the broader market belief that there is increasing demand for ETFs, given that Bitcoin investments in the United States ETF market recorded a net positive inflow right before the Bitcoin halving day following five consecutive days of drain. BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) is closing the gap with Grayscale’s, standing just $2 billion shy. This positions BlackRock to potentially surpass Grayscale as the world’s largest Bitcoin fund. Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) experienced a 68-day period of value decline, shedding nearly $16 billion and reducing its assets to $19.4 billion. In contrast, IBIT saw continuous asset growth, reaching approximately $17.3 billion in total assets. However, notable capital outflows have been observed from Grayscale’s spot Bitcoin ETF. Over the last five days alone, investors withdrew $89.9 million, contributing to a net outflow of $1.6 billion since January. Despite its early lead, Grayscale’s supremacy in the Bitcoin ETF market seems to be diminishing. Fidelity and BlackRock quickly gained substantial market shares from the onset of trading. For instance, Fidelity and BlackRock Bitcoin ETFs experienced net inflows of $37.3 million and $18.7 million, respectively, in the same week, providing relief to some of the market’s liquidity issues. Related: Bitcoin mining stocks saw spikes across the board ahead of halving event Bitwise’s CEO describes the adoption of Bitcoin ETFs by registered investment advisers (RIAs) and multifamily offices as “stealthy but significant.” He notes that major financial entities are discreetly conducting thorough assessments of the Bitcoin market. According to Farside data, GBTC saw outflows of $17.5 million on April 10, a significant decrease from the $154.9 million outflows recorded on April 9. The previous low was on Feb. 26 when GBTC outflowed $22.4 million. The daily GBTC outflow average since January is $257.8 million. GBTC launched in 2015 and converted to an ETF in January, alongside the launch of nine other spot Bitcoin ETFs after Grayscale won a lawsuit against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, forcing it to review a GBTC conversion bid it previously denied. Bankrupt crypto lending firm Genesis recently offloaded approximately 36 million GBTC shares to acquire 32,041 BTC. Magazine: Get Bitcoin or die tryin’: Why hip hop stars love crypto

Bitwise CEO Hunter Horsley has predicted that wealth management firms will increase their holdings of Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETFs). The prediction comes at a time when Bitcoin ETFs are expected to gain even more traction after the halving. Despite its early lead, Grayscale’s supremacy in the Bitcoin ETF market seems to be diminishing. According to Farside data, GBTC saw outflows of $17.5 million on April 10, a significant decrease from the $154.9 million outflows recorded on April 9. Bankrupt crypto lending firm Genesis recently offloaded approximately 36 million GBTC shares to acquire 32,041 BTC.

Bitcoin ‘pretty unlikely’ to revisit $50K price level, says analyst

The frequency of Bitcoin reaching higher support price levels, as well as the “lack of immediate froth” in the derivatives markets, suggests that its price is unlikely to retrace down to $50,000 anytime soon, according to a crypto analyst. Senior analyst at digital asset fund UTXO Management, Dylan LeClair, explained in an analyst note on April 7 that if Bitcoin (BTC) rises back into the $70,000–$75,000 price range, it will put significant pressure on short positions. “As we’ve consolidated, an increasing amount of short liquidations are building from 70-75k,” he stated. If Bitcoin’s price rises to $70,000, approximately $174.17 million will be liquidated, according to CoinGlass data. Bitcoin liquidation map. Source: CoinGlass Should it reach the upper boundary of LeClair’s range ($75,000), around $830 million worth of short positions would face liquidation. This translates to roughly a 7.8% increase from Bitcoin’s current price of $69,344. Likewise, a similar percentage change of 7.5%, but in a downward movement, occurred on March 15, resulting in $525.2 million in liquidations. LeClair explained although a decline in Bitcoin’s price to $50,000 — a 27% decrease from its current price at the time of writing — could trigger substantial liquidation of long positions, he doesn’t foresee it, considering the recent price shifts and the increasing support levels. “While there is a large cluster of longs that could be taken out at ~50k, given the structure of higher lows and the lack of immediate froth in the derivatives landscape currently, I find it pretty unlikely we revisit that level,” he stated. “Not impossible of course,” he warned. Bitcoin’s price last dipped below $50,000 on Feb. 13, hitting $49,725. Just a day before, on Feb. 12, it reached $50,000, a level not reached since December 2021. He backed up his claims by citing the recent action by global asset manager BlackRock, which updated its Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) prospectus on April 5, adding five big Wall Street firms as new authorized participants. New members include ABN AMRO Clearing, Citadel Securities, Citigroup Global Markets, Goldman Sachs and UBS Securities Related: Bitcoin’s 2028 halving price target is $435K, historical data suggests Prominent crypto traders are speculating over Bitcoin’s price ahead of the halving event, which is set for April 20. This event occurs every four years and will cut miner block rewards by 50%, from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC. Cointelegraph recently reported that Bitcoin’s price has risen around 658% since the last Bitcoin halving in 2020. If historical chart patterns were to repeat, Bitcoin’s price would reach $434,280 per coin by the 2028 halving if it performs similarly to the current cycle. Crypto trader Rekt Capital believes there’s considerable potential for further upward movement in the short term. He told his 443,000 followers in an April 7 post that the market is approximately one-third through the “bull market” phase. 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. Magazine: Bitcoin ETF guru Eric Balchunas has the last laugh at doubters: X Hall of Flame

The frequency of Bitcoin reaching higher support price levels, as well as the “lack of immediate froth” in the derivatives markets, suggests that its price is unlikely to retrace down to $50,000 anytime soon, according to a crypto analyst. If Bitcoin’s price rises to $70,000, approximately $174.17 million will be liquidated, according to CoinGlass data. This translates to roughly a 7.8% increase from Bitcoin’s current price of $69,344. Bitcoin’s price last dipped below $50,000 on Feb. 13, hitting $49,725. Cointelegraph recently reported that Bitcoin’s price has risen around 658% since the last Bitcoin halving in 2020.

BlackRock CEO ’very bullish’ on Bitcoin as its ETF crosses $17B

BlackRock CEO Larry Fink has been “pleasantly surprised” by the performance of his firm’s spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) and has reiterated he's “very bullish” on the long-term viability of Bitcoin. “IBIT is the fastest growing ETF in the history of ETFs. Nothing has gained assets as fast as IBIT in the history of ETFs,” Larry Fink said in a March 27 interview with Fox Business. Fink said the iShares Bitcoin Trust’s (IBIT) performance has even “surprised” him at how well it has performed over the first 11 trading weeks. IBIT has a strong start to trading, tallying $13.5 billion in flows in the first 11 weeks, with an $849 million daily high on March 12, according to Farside Investors. IBIT averages a little over $260 million in inflows per trading day. “We’re creating now a market that has more liquidity, more transparency and I'm pleasantly surprised. I would never have predicted it before we filed it that we were going to see this type of retail demand,” Fink said. Asked whether IBIT would “do good, but not this good,” Fink responded: “Yes, definitely.” “I’m very bullish on the long-term viability of Bitcoin,” the BlackRock CEO added. BlackRock CEO Larry Fink says the $IBIT Spot #Bitcoin #ETF is the fastest growing ETF in history pic.twitter.com/NOsDlFgROi — Simon Dixon (@SimonDixonTwitt) March 27, 2024 IBIT currently holds $17.1 billion in Bitcoin, according to BitMEX Research, and took only two months to reach the $10 billion mark — a milestone that took the first gold ETF two years to reach. Of all the currently approved ETFs, IBIT only trails the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust in Bitcoin holdings — at $23.6 billion in BTC. Grayscale's Bitcoin holdings have continued to slip, however, down from 620,000 BTC it held before converting to a spot Bitcoin ETF. The nine-spot Bitcoin ETF issuers (excluding Grayscale) now hold over $34.1 billion in Bitcoin, with IBIT, the Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) and ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB) leading inflows. Related: Bitcoin currently in ‘middle of the bull run’ — Grayscale report Meanwhile, some industry pundits predict that some spot Bitcoin ETF issuers could eventually shut down due to a lack of profits. “Most of the current ETFs launched will never even break even as costs will only work if they get to billions of assets under management, which they won’t,” Hector McNeil, the co-CEO and founder of white-label ETF provider HANetf, recently told Cointelegraph. Several ETF issuers have lowered fees to try to be competitive against some of the bigger players. But these smaller issuers “face an uphill battle in entering this turf war of giants,” according to Bloomberg ETF analyst Henry Jim. “If they match fees, they won’t have enough revenue to survive, and if they don’t lower fees, they won’t be able to gather enough critical mass assets to survive.” Asset management firm Hashdex had its spot Bitcoin ETF approved on March 27, making it the 11th and latest entrant to a competitive spot Bitcoin ETF market in the United States. Magazine: Wolf Of All Streets worries about a world where Bitcoin hits $1M: Hall of Flame

BlackRock CEO Larry Fink has been “pleasantly surprised” by the performance of his firm’s spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) and has reiterated he's “very bullish” on the long-term viability of Bitcoin. Grayscale's Bitcoin holdings have continued to slip, however, down from 620,000 BTC it held before converting to a spot Bitcoin ETF. The nine-spot Bitcoin ETF issuers (excluding Grayscale) now hold over $34.1 billion in Bitcoin, with IBIT, the Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) and ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB) leading inflows. Related: Bitcoin currently in ‘middle of the bull run’ — Grayscale reportMeanwhile, some industry pundits predict that some spot Bitcoin ETF issuers could eventually shut down due to a lack of profits. Several ETF issuers have lowered fees to try to be competitive against some of the bigger players.

Solana's mainnet beta update v1.17.31 aims to resolve congestion issues

Solana developers have released a mainnet beta update, v1.17.31, to deal with the ongoing network congestion on the Solana blockchain. The update was released on April 12, and now, after three days of testing, it is being recommended for general use by mainnet beta validators. This patch contains enhancements that will help with some of the ongoing network congestion and will be followed by further enhancements in v1.18. The current version will help improve the network congestion and issues with the open interest jump. Some of the key upgrades include: Show staked vs. non-staked packets sent down/throttled Quic: use smallvec to aggregate chunks, save 1 alloc per packet BankingStage Forwarding Filter Tighten the minimal streams per 100ms for staked node Treat super low staked as unstaked in streamer QOS Default staked client in LocalCluster Solana developer Anza asked validators to upgrade the latest patch only when there’s less than a 5% delinquent stake. Delinquency on Solana refers to inactive validators, and the percentage refers to the total stake for offline validators. Thus, validators are requested to install the updates only when there are less than 5% inactive validator stakes on the network. Related: Over $1B in US Treasurys have now been tokenized on-chain Amid a growing network activity and memecoin frenzy, Solana network faced congestion issues for nearly a week with a transaction failure rate as high as 75%. While developers were working on the fix, a co-founder of Solana noted that the ongoing network congestion issues were merely a bug rather than a network issue. The Solana Foundation attributed current network congestion problems to various factors, including a large demand for Solana block space and a delayed implementation of patches to tackle network-related issues. Solana Foundation strategy lead Austin Federa told Cointelegraph that developers had been working non-stop to fix the issue, but the network demand has outpaced the timely developer intervention. Federa added that engineers had “not been sleeping much” as they readied patches and tested features before they hit mainnet. However, Solana devs have developed a series of patches to tackle the ongoing issue, with the first released for developers on April 15. Magazine: Bitcoin ETFs make Coinbase a ‘honeypot’ for hackers and governments — Trezor CEO

Solana developers have released a mainnet beta update, v1.17.31, to deal with the ongoing network congestion on the Solana blockchain. The update was released on April 12, and now, after three days of testing, it is being recommended for general use by mainnet beta validators. This patch contains enhancements that will help with some of the ongoing network congestion and will be followed by further enhancements in v1.18. The current version will help improve the network congestion and issues with the open interest jump. While developers were working on the fix, a co-founder of Solana noted that the ongoing network congestion issues were merely a bug rather than a network issue.

Pricing aggregators caused Pax Dollar to depeg

The recent depegging of the Pax Dollar (USDP) stablecoin was caused by issues with pricing aggregators, not the protocol itself, according to a Paxos spokesperson The Pax Dollar’s price briefly surged to $1.29 on April 16 before returning to $1 within three hours of the depeg, according to CoinMarketCap data. A Paxos spokesperson told Cointelegraph: “These platforms pull pricing data from trading venues. Yesterday, there were sharp spikes in price on certain venues that impacted the price of USDP on pricing aggregators. Paxos does not control markets or trading activity on other trading venues.” The depegging happened during a significant market cap increase for USDP, which briefly rose from a $140 million market cap to a $181 million market capitalization when the coin hit $1.29, according to CoinMarketCap. USDP market capitalization, weekly chart. Source: CoinMarketCap USDP’s market capitalization fell back to $140 million at the exact time it regained parity with the U.S. dollar. USDP currently sits at a $134 million market capitalization. Despite the temporary price fluctuation, USDP will always remain redeemable at fair value via Paxos, according to the spokesperson: “Paxos always values USDP as $1, and customers can always create and redeem USDP from Paxos for $1. Paxos offers APIs that offer 1:1 redemption 24/7. If venues choose not to implement these APIs or don’t want to make sure liquidity is supported, it is up to the user to determine the best approach for ordering.” Paxos’ USDP is currently the 13th-largest stablecoin by market capitalization, according to CoinMarketCap data. Related: Bitcoin slips below $60K, but some traders aren’t turning bearish on BTC just yet Trader liquidated for $529,000 following depegging An unknown trader was liquidated for $529,000 worth of Circle’s USD Coin (USDC) on April 16, shortly after Pax Dollar surged to $1.18, according to an April 17 X post by on-chain security firm PeckShield. Trader liquidation. Source: Peckshield Traders employing different platforms should keep a close eye on the platform’s order book to avoid similar risks. A Paxos spokesperson told Cointelegraph: “When trading on any venue, users should take a look at the order book before placing a larger order. Particularly for stablecoins, users should make sure they use limit orders” Pax Dollar has experienced significant price fluctuations on more than one occasion. USDP hit an all-time low of $0.87 on March 13, 2020, and rose as high as $2.02 on Nov. 16, 2021, according to CoinMarketCap. Related: Binance gets Dubai crypto license following CZ’s departure: Report

The recent depegging of the Pax Dollar (USDP) stablecoin was caused by issues with pricing aggregators, not the protocol itself, according to a Paxos spokespersonThe Pax Dollar’s price briefly surged to $1.29 on April 16 before returning to $1 within three hours of the depeg, according to CoinMarketCap data. A Paxos spokesperson told Cointelegraph:“These platforms pull pricing data from trading venues. Yesterday, there were sharp spikes in price on certain venues that impacted the price of USDP on pricing aggregators. USDP market capitalization, weekly chart. Source: CoinMarketCapUSDP’s market capitalization fell back to $140 million at the exact time it regained parity with the U.S. dollar.

As Sam Bankman-Fried’s sentencing approaches, letters invoking vegan lifestyle call for leniency

Advocates for Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried, expected to be sentenced on March 28 following his conviction on seven felony counts, have called for leniency for the former FTX CEO. In letters filed in United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on March 26, five individuals called on Judge Lewis Kaplan to impose a light sentence on SBF. The letters, from people who knew Bankman-Fried personally or were impacted by the collapse of FTX, highlighted SBF’s vegan lifestyle, his experience dealing with autism, and the exchange’s plan to repay users. Dr. Adam Hesterberg, who lived with SBF from 2012 to 2014, argued the former FTX CEO should receive “leniency in his sentence” based in part on converting half of their household to vegetarianism or veganism. Others who did not know the CEO personally suggested that Judge Kaplan consider Bankman-Fried’s atypical “personality traits” in and out of the courtroom. “I can speak from experience that the mind of those on the spectrum works differently,” said Maria Centrella, a mother of a child diagnosed with autism. “Though I have never met Sam, I firmly believe that while he may be an MIT grad - he did not fully understand the scope of what was going on and did not have malicious intent.” Prosecutors submitted a sentence recommendation that Bankman-Fried serve between 40 and 50 years for his role in misusing funds at FTX and Alameda Research. SBF’s lawyers recommended he serve 6.5 years behind bars. The maximum allowable sentence gives Judge Kaplan the discretion to sentence SBF for up to 110 years, but many have suggested that this outcome is unlikely. Related: SBF says proposed 50-year sentence casts him as ‘depraved super-villain’ Bankman-Fried’s immediate family and others submitted similar character references to the judge in February, claiming that throwing him in prison would be “draconian” and present the risk of physical danger given his personality. Many of the letters do not mention the impact the collapse of FTX had on investors, who lost access to millions of dollars. “SBF does not deserve to get off lightly for his crimes because of the ‘autism defence,’” said AutismBC Director Lucas Gates in a Feb. 28 X post. “He knew what he did was fraud, and he should go to prison for the rest of his days.” The former FTX CEO has been in prison since Judge Kaplan revoked his bail in August 2023 following alleged attempts to influence or intimidate witnesses in his criminal case. In November, a jury convicted Bankman-Fried on all seven counts after a month-long trial. Magazine: ‘Less flashy’ Mashinsky set for less jail time than SBF: Inner City Press, X Hall of Flame

Advocates for Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried, expected to be sentenced on March 28 following his conviction on seven felony counts, have called for leniency for the former FTX CEO. The letters, from people who knew Bankman-Fried personally or were impacted by the collapse of FTX, highlighted SBF’s vegan lifestyle, his experience dealing with autism, and the exchange’s plan to repay users. Others who did not know the CEO personally suggested that Judge Kaplan consider Bankman-Fried’s atypical “personality traits” in and out of the courtroom. The maximum allowable sentence gives Judge Kaplan the discretion to sentence SBF for up to 110 years, but many have suggested that this outcome is unlikely. Many of the letters do not mention the impact the collapse of FTX had on investors, who lost access to millions of dollars.

Bitcoin halving impact on altcoins

Bitcoin’s (BTC) growing dominance over the last 15 years signifies the importance of the mechanisms creator Satoshi Nakamoto devised to overcome the shortcomings of the fiat ecosystem — one of them being halving. Nakamoto invented the Bitcoin halving mechanism, which reduces the BTC rewards for mining over time to slow down the issuance of the limited 21 million BTC. The Bitcoin halving in 2024—like the previous three halving events—is set to leave a long-lasting impact on Bitcoin as well as the countless altcoin ecosystems it helped create over the years. Altcoins will react differently to the Bitcoin halving depending on various factors, including tokenomics, value proposition and its overall contribution toward financial freedom. The Bitcoin Halving 2024 will put five key dimensions of altcoins to the test — market sentiment, market price, technology stack, blockchain forks and allocation of reserves. Changing investor sentiment The Bitcoin market heavily influences the investment patterns of crypto investors. Given that the Bitcoin price has soared after every halving, investors are eyeing altcoins that have the potential to skyrocket post-halving. The Fear & Greed Index for Bitcoin and other large cryptocurrencies based on the analysis of investors' online emotions and sentiments. Source: alternative.me Bitcoin’s stellar price appreciation and retention across 2024 have boosted investors’ confidence. As a result, current market sentiment suggests that many investors are anticipating an altcoin boom. Speaking to Cointelegraph, the BNB Chain core development team echoed the market sentiment, stating that “The Bitcoin halving is known for triggering shifts in market sentiment within the Web3 ecosystem.” Related: Is the Bitcoin halving the right time to invest in BTC? According to the BNB (BNB) developers, projects with solid fundamentals and innovative technologies attract more investors’ attention during Bitcoin halving events. Altcoin projects are prepping new incentive programs and campaigns to attract crypto opportunists. “On our end, we are seeing more initiatives aimed at fostering ecosystem growth and innovation,” the team added. Upgrades in technology stack Bitcoin halvings often serve as a catalyst for innovation and evolution within the broader Web3 technology stack. And for altcoins, this technological catch-up is made possible by consistent and prolonged support from the developer community. Advancements in the Bitcoin network serve as a blueprint for altcoin ecosystems as they cater to the rising public demand for faster transactions, improved utility, and price appreciation, among others. Source: Casey Rodarmor, the creator of Bitcoin ordinal NFTs Mo Shaikh, co-founder and CEO of Aptos Labs, told Cointelegraph, "The Bitcoin halving underscores the exploding global interest in Web3. Across Aptos ecosystem and beyond, we are seeing near webscale utility potential for millions—and soon billions—of people in DeFi, gaming, and entertainment.” The core BNB developers underscored the importance of updating the underlying technology to address specific market needs and enhance a token’s utility and adoption. In-house initiatives and support programs targeted toward incentivisng builders “encourage technological advancements and ecosystem growth,” which ensure that the ecosystem is primed for long-term success. Speaking to Cointelegraph, Stefan Kimmel, CEO of the M2, revealed that the crypto exchange's strategy aligns with the upcoming halving that is set to permanently reduce the issuance of Bitcoin. Kimmel added: “Looking at the broader landscape, while halving garners attention, we are cognizant that it’s just a part of a larger narrative. The confluence of ETFs, quantitative easing, and halving will define the future contours of the market.” Similarly, aspiring future-ready projects must pick and choose the right upgrades in tune with Bitcoin halcving 2024. Altcoin price movement The altcoin ecosystem reciprocates the price movements in Bitcoin. However, some tokens will outperform others during the bull market. Investors monitor short-term volatility in altcoins around the time of Bitcoin halving, intending to add altcoins into their portfolio. The halving has historically impacted Bitcoin’s price dynamics, which has reverberated through the altcoin market. The team added: “Staying informed and identifying altcoins with strong fundamentals and promising growth trajectories remain paramount for profitable trades.” Additionally, changes in Bitcoin’s mining rewards and difficulty post-halving may indirectly affect altcoin mining profitability, influencing miners' behavior and potentially impacting altcoin prices. According to Kimmel, M2 plans to remain focused on delivering solid yield products and fostering cryptocurrency adoption and innovation, irrespective of these cyclical events. Related: ‘Bitcoin-only’ buy-and-hold investing outperforms altcoins over long term, analysis shows Consensus-based blockchain forks The changes accompanying Bitcoin halvings often bring forth particular challenges that require community members of altcoin ecosystems to vote on ‘make or break’ decisions. Diverging economic incentives for miners, farmers and stakers coupled with community disagreements and governance issues often result in soft and hard forks. Source: Peter Todd, Bitcoin developer Consensus-based blockchain forks may be a solution to address disagreements within the community. These forks can create new cryptocurrencies with modified protocols designed to meet the needs and preferences of specific factions within the community. On the other hand, some communities prefer working on the existing blockchain rather than building one from scratch. For example, BNB Chain core developers revealed they are working on BNB Beacon Chain Fusion, an upgrade dedicated to making the BNB Chain ecosystem more efficient. BNB Smart Chain (BSC) is also introducing a major upgrade, BEP 336, with the mainnet hard fork scheduled for June. Related: Generation Z and millennials choose crypto over stocks — Report Bitcoin reserves allocation Investors looking for greater return on investment (ROI) post-halving often reallocate some of their Bitcoin holdings into various altcoins. Diversification, as an investment strategy, increases one’s chances of higher returns and helps spread risk across different assets. On the flip side, altcoin projects have been found to increase their Bitcoin allocation in the treasury to minimize volatility. Explaining the intent, BNB Chain core devs added: “Altcoins with strong use cases, supportive communities, and promising growth prospects may attract a portion of Bitcoin reserves, contributing to increased liquidity and trading volume in the altcoin ecosystem.” Investors should take a ‘do your own research (DYOR)’ approach when delving into altcoin investments. Background checks about the founder and their team, audit reports, and market credibility are some factors to consider when researching new altcoin projects. Magazine: Synthetix founder Kain Warwick: It’s DeFi that’s wrong, not the market

The Bitcoin halving in 2024—like the previous three halving events—is set to leave a long-lasting impact on Bitcoin as well as the countless altcoin ecosystems it helped create over the years. Altcoins will react differently to the Bitcoin halving depending on various factors, including tokenomics, value proposition and its overall contribution toward financial freedom. The Bitcoin Halving 2024 will put five key dimensions of altcoins to the test — market sentiment, market price, technology stack, blockchain forks and allocation of reserves. Given that the Bitcoin price has soared after every halving, investors are eyeing altcoins that have the potential to skyrocket post-halving. Investors monitor short-term volatility in altcoins around the time of Bitcoin halving, intending to add altcoins into their portfolio.

Crypto.com expands in South Korea despite increasing regulatory scrutiny

Centralized cryptocurrency exchange Crypto.com will launch its cryptocurrency trading app to South Korean retail investors on April 29. The platform will initially offer access to over 150 cryptocurrencies and nonfungible tokens (NFTs) on the Crypto.com app for South Korean users, which is a significant market segment for the company’s growth, wrote Eric Anziani, the president and CEO of Crypto.com, in an April 2 announcement: “South Korean regulators are thoughtfully advancing the sector and we look forward to continuing to collaborate with them to help grow the industry responsibly.” The new platform will take over from crypto exchange OK-Bit, which was acquired by Crypto.com in 2022. OK-Bit will cease services on April 29, the day of the app’s launch. The new app will exclusively serve retail investors in the country, as South Korean institutions have been banned from investing in crypto since 2017. Since the country’s financial regulators refuse to recognize crypto as financial assets, institutions are also banned from investing in crypto-related exchange-traded funds. The launch in South Korea is part of the crypto exchange’s global expansion efforts. Crypto.com has a strong presence in “tier one” jurisdictions such as North America, Western Europe, the United Kingdom and Asia. The exchange has been working on bolstering its South Korean presence since at least 2022 when it secured an Electronic Financial Transaction Act and virtual asset services provider registration in the country. Related: Crypto.com president talks up MiCA, allowing exchanges to expand across Europe South Korea tightens regulatory crypto oversight The expansion comes despite tightening regulations for crypto exchanges and company executives in the country. South Korea’s Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) announced a tightening of regulatory measures for crypto exchanges in the country, including the possibility of expelling platforms that are deemed “unsuitable,” according to a Feb. 12 report. South Korea’s rising crypto generation. Source: YouTube The FIU also aims to expand the scope of screening procedures in the crypto market and prevent unfit exchanges from entering the economy. In February, South Korea’s Financial Services Commission (FSC) proposed a new amendment that would mandate new crypto firm executives to obtain regulatory approval before assuming their roles. If the amendment is accepted, new executives won’t be able to work until the FSC formally approves their applications. Related: Upbit’s trading volume falls below $4B after reaching yearly high in March

Centralized cryptocurrency exchange Crypto.com will launch its cryptocurrency trading app to South Korean retail investors on April 29. The new app will exclusively serve retail investors in the country, as South Korean institutions have been banned from investing in crypto since 2017. The launch in South Korea is part of the crypto exchange’s global expansion efforts. Related: Crypto.com president talks up MiCA, allowing exchanges to expand across EuropeSouth Korea tightens regulatory crypto oversightThe expansion comes despite tightening regulations for crypto exchanges and company executives in the country. In February, South Korea’s Financial Services Commission (FSC) proposed a new amendment that would mandate new crypto firm executives to obtain regulatory approval before assuming their roles.

12 Solana presale memecoins abandoned after just a month

At least 12 Solana presale memecoins have been “completely abandoned” in the last 30 days after raising a combined $26.7 million from investors, according to figures shared by independent blockchain sleuth ZachXBT. In an April 21 post to X, ZachXBT highlighted 12 Solana memecoin projects that raised funds through the controversial presale method, many of which have plunged significantly since launching and one which appears not to have launched any token at all. According to ZachXBT, the most costly “abandoned” presale project was a memecoin dubbed “I like this coin,” which sported the ticker LIKE. The project’s pseudonymous founder, pokeee.eth, raised a staggering 52,220 SOL (SOL) tokens ($7.7 million at current prices) for the memecoin and launched the coin on March 17 with a market capitalization of $577 million; however, the memecoin’s value plunged rapidly, falling more than 90% in the first eight hours. As of the time of publication, LIKE is down 99.2% from its launch price. Notably, the memecoin’s official X account hasn’t made a single new post since March 31 — and pokeee.eth hasn’t mentioned the coin since then either. The second-largest alleged abandoned presale is for a token called MOONKE. Launched by another pseudonymous founder, RockyXBT, on March 20 to an outsized valuation of nearly $500 million, MOONKE soon charted a similar path to LIKE, plummeting more than 99% from its launch price in a matter of hours. The MOONKE memecoin failed to gain traction. Source: Birdeye One project that raised 4,567 SOL ($812,000 at current prices) never even launched its token. Cointelegraph contacted both pokeee.eth and RockyXBT for comment but did not receive a response by the time of publication. Related: What are memecoins good for? Social signaling, says Avalanche founder The market’s enthusiasm for memecoins has dwindled somewhat in recent weeks, with several of the larger Solana-based memecoins, including Dogwifhat (WIF), sliding more than 40% since April 1. Solana memecoin market leader Dogwifhat has tumbled more than 40% since April 1. Source: CoinGecko At the time, last month’s memecoin frenzy saw several market pundits draw comparisons to the Ethereum initial coin offering (ICO) era boom of 2017 where hundreds of crypto projects raised millions of dollars, but ultimately, most failed to deliver. One of the most notable Solana presale debacles in recent months came in March when the developer of a memecoin called Slerf (SLERF) claimed to have accidentally burned the entire presale allocation of SLERF in a “fat finger” burn error. Despite the Slerf dev burning a staggering total of 535,000 SOL (worth around $10 million at the time), the coin soon quickly became a cult favorite among memecoin investors, who rallied behind the token and saw it rally to a market cap peak of around $750 million. Magazine: 1 in 6 new Base meme coins are scams, 91% have vulnerabilities

At least 12 Solana presale memecoins have been “completely abandoned” in the last 30 days after raising a combined $26.7 million from investors, according to figures shared by independent blockchain sleuth ZachXBT. According to ZachXBT, the most costly “abandoned” presale project was a memecoin dubbed “I like this coin,” which sported the ticker LIKE. The second-largest alleged abandoned presale is for a token called MOONKE. Solana memecoin market leader Dogwifhat has tumbled more than 40% since April 1. One of the most notable Solana presale debacles in recent months came in March when the developer of a memecoin called Slerf (SLERF) claimed to have accidentally burned the entire presale allocation of SLERF in a “fat finger” burn error.

Winklevoss twins become co-owners of Bitcoin soccer club, inject $4.5M of BTC

Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss have joined as co-owners of Bitcoin podcaster Peter McCormack’s Real Bedford Football Club (RBFC) after investing $4.5 million worth of Bitcoin (BTC) to support the club’s plans. The Winklevoss twins executed the investment and acquisition through their investment firm, Winklevoss Capital, according to a recent statement. The funding will be used to establish a Bitcoin treasury for the club, with McCormack telling Cointelegraph the treasury aims to safeguard the club “against long-term fiat debasement.” “The investment helps with the infrastructure. We need to grow this with our ambitions,” McCormack explained. Additionally, the funds will be allocated toward developing a new training center and ongoing support for girls’ and youth football. In 2021, McCormack acquired RBFC, which is based in his United Kingdom hometown of Bedford, with a population of just under 200,000. He holds ambitions for RBFC — which accepts Bitcoin for game day tickets, merchandise, sponsorships and beverages — to compete in the English Premier League alongside well-known U.K. clubs like Manchester United and Chelsea. Related: Gemini mulled forming a ‘juggernaut’ with Genesis before it went to smoke “We are a long way from the Premier League. As exciting as that is our ambition, I work on one league at a time,” McCormack stated. The Winklevoss twins share McCormack’s vision of bringing RBFC to the top league in the United Kingdom. “We’re not just investing in a football club, we’re investing in a dream to bring Premier League football to Bedford,” Cameron Winklevoss said. “We share in Peter’s deep conviction in Bitcoin and its ability to supercharge RBFC’s quest to make it into the Premier League,” Tyler Winklevoss added. This comes after it was recently reported that the Winklevoss twins donated $4.9 million to the crypto-focused Fairshake super political action committee to support crypto-friendly candidates in the upcoming United States elections. Magazine: 1 in 6 new Base meme coins are scams, 91% have vulnerabilities

Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss have joined as co-owners of Bitcoin podcaster Peter McCormack’s Real Bedford Football Club (RBFC) after investing $4.5 million worth of Bitcoin (BTC) to support the club’s plans. The Winklevoss twins executed the investment and acquisition through their investment firm, Winklevoss Capital, according to a recent statement. Related: Gemini mulled forming a ‘juggernaut’ with Genesis before it went to smoke“We are a long way from the Premier League. The Winklevoss twins share McCormack’s vision of bringing RBFC to the top league in the United Kingdom. “We’re not just investing in a football club, we’re investing in a dream to bring Premier League football to Bedford,” Cameron Winklevoss said.

Massive Bitcoin consolidation sparks sell-side liquidity concerns

CryptoQuant founder and CEO Ki Young Ju believes that the movement and consolidation of 2,000 Bitcoin (BTC) by an unidentified individual or entity into a single wallet indicates a “sell-side liquidity crisis waking up old Bitcoin.” Young Ju pointed out that the pattern of the transactions suggests the coins were sold via OTC. A sell-side liquidity crisis refers to a situation with a shortage of available assets in a market, leading to difficulties for sellers in finding buyers or executing trades at desired prices. This can result in increased volatility and price fluctuations. An unidentified individual or entity who received 2,000 Bitcoin in mining rewards in 2010 consolidated them into a single wallet. The transaction occurred on March 26, as observed by developer Mononautical, on X. It consolidated 40 batches of mining rewards, each comprising 50 Bitcoin, into a single wallet. Bitcoin miners are compensated for verifying blocks on the Bitcoin network. Initially, each block yielded 50 Bitcoin. However, at intervals of approximately four years, this reward is halved. The forthcoming Bitcoin halving will decrease block rewards from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC. It’s anticipated around April 21, but this date may change. Related: Mysterious Bitcoiner spends $64K to inscribe 9MB of data on Bitcoin The Bitcoin rewards were valued at around $600 when this unknown entity mined these blocks. Now, they amount to nearly $140 million, as per Cointelegraph’s price index page. Mononautical noted: “Imagine hodling for 14 years as the value rockets from a few hundred dollars to $140 million.” During the weekend, there was another significant Bitcoin transfer. The fifth-wealthiest Bitcoin address moved $6 billion worth of Bitcoin to three different addresses. According to data from blockchain analytics firm Arkham, the address was funded with 94,500 Bitcoin in 2019. This Bitcoin sat unmoved until the weekend when it was split up and sent to the new addresses leaving just 1.4 Bitcoin ($99,000) remaining. In January, an individual transferred 26.9 Bitcoin (valued at $1.2 million then) from what appeared to be from Binance to the Bitcoin network’s genesis wallet, where retrieval is impossible. The genesis wallet was the first ever wallet on the Bitcoin network set up by Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonymous creator of Bitcoin. In July 2023, a dormant Bitcoin wallet holding over 1,037 Bitcoin (worth $31 million then) suddenly woke after an 11-year slumber, transferring out the entire stash. Magazine: Who is ‘Mr. 100’? Mysterious Bitcoin whale becomes 14th-biggest BTC holder

An unidentified individual or entity who received 2,000 Bitcoin in mining rewards in 2010 consolidated them into a single wallet. It consolidated 40 batches of mining rewards, each comprising 50 Bitcoin, into a single wallet. The fifth-wealthiest Bitcoin address moved $6 billion worth of Bitcoin to three different addresses. The genesis wallet was the first ever wallet on the Bitcoin network set up by Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonymous creator of Bitcoin. In July 2023, a dormant Bitcoin wallet holding over 1,037 Bitcoin (worth $31 million then) suddenly woke after an 11-year slumber, transferring out the entire stash.

US Treasury official outlines proposals for tighter crypto crime control

United States Deputy Treasury Secretary Adewale Adeyemo continued advocating for more enforcement powers for his agency in testimony before the Senate Banking Committee on April 9. In a hearing on countering illicit finance, terrorism and sanctions evasion, Adeyemo outlined three proposed reforms to improve U.S. enforcement efforts against international bad actors using crypto. Adeyemo was following up on proposals made by the Treasury Department in November. In his latest testimony, Adeyemo listed three changes the department was looking for. Those were to introduce secondary sanctions targeting “foreign digital asset providers” engage illicit finance. U.S. sanctions prohibit institutions from using U.S. correspondent accounts and transaction processing through banks, Adeyemo said, but crypto exchanges and money services do not always depend on the use of correspondent accounts. “A new secondary sanctions tool” is needed: “We can clarify that our authorities can reach extraterritorially when digital asset entities harm our national security while taking advantage of our financial system.” Adeyemo did not elaborate on the form the new secondary sanctions might take. Related: Elections may swing Senate Banking Committee toward crypto, Sen. Lummis says The second reform the Treasury is seeking would expand the powers of “existing authorities” to reach the digital asset ecosystem. Third, Adeyemo said, was “addresses jurisdictional risk from offshore cryptocurrency platforms.” He called the last point a “key challenge.” He noted: “There is clear overlap between these proposals and the bills coming out of this Committee.” Adeyemo was referring at least in part to committee member Elizabeth Warren and chair Sherrod Brown’s Digital Asset Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2022, which Warren reintroduced in the current congress. Both authors are prominent crypto skeptics. Source: Eleanor Terrell Adeyemo pointed to the use of crypto by terrorist groups, North Korea and in the fentanyl trade as evidence of the Treasury’s need for greater enforcement powers. He conceded that “we continue to assess that terrorists prefer to use traditional financial products and services,” but cautioned, “we fear that without Congressional action to provide us with the necessary tools, the use of virtual assets by these actors will only grow.” Banking Committee chair Sherrod Brown released a statement supporting the Treasury Department’s enforcement goals ahead of Adeyemo’s testimony. Ranking member Tim Scott praised the work the Treasury Department has done, but concentrated on foreign policy issues that he believes threaten U.S. security. Magazine: Terrorism and Israel-Gaza war weaponized to destroy crypto

In a hearing on countering illicit finance, terrorism and sanctions evasion, Adeyemo outlined three proposed reforms to improve U.S. enforcement efforts against international bad actors using crypto. Adeyemo was following up on proposals made by the Treasury Department in November. In his latest testimony, Adeyemo listed three changes the department was looking for. Those were to introduce secondary sanctions targeting “foreign digital asset providers” engage illicit finance. Related: Elections may swing Senate Banking Committee toward crypto, Sen. Lummis saysThe second reform the Treasury is seeking would expand the powers of “existing authorities” to reach the digital asset ecosystem.

Binance gets Dubai crypto license following CZ’s departure: Report

Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, received a long-awaited regulatory license in Dubai. Binance received its Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) license after co-founder Changpeng Zhao gave up his voting power in the exchange’s local entity, unnamed people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg on April 18. The Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority’s (VARA) final requirement for granting the VASP license was for Zhao to give up his voting power in Binance FZE, the Dubai-based unit of the exchange, according to unnamed people familiar with the matter. While Binance's current CEO, Richard Teng, confirmed receiving the license, he said that Zhao giving up his voting power was "pure speculation", in a statement shared with Cointelegraph: “That's pure speculation. Again, we don't comment on media speculation... Our relationship, our dealings with regulators are confidential." The full regulatory license signals a significant win for Binance, which has been under regulatory scrutiny since the FTX collapse. In November 2023, Binance agreed to pay a $4.3-billion settlement to United States authorities to settle federal charges related to a lack of Anti-Money Laundering (AML) protocols violating the Bank Secrecy Act. Binance co-founder Zhao pleaded guilty to one felony count, namely for failing to maintain adequate AML protocols, and resigned as part of the plea deal. Zhao’s sentencing is set for April 30. He faces up to 18 months in prison. Related: Top five BTC miners not selling despite Bitcoin halving Why did Binance’s Dubai unit sever ties with Zhao? Dubai’s VARA officials wanted to ensure that they didn’t interfere with Binance’s recent settlement with U.S. authorities, which forced Zhao to step down from his position as the CEO of Binance. This was the main reason for VARA requiring Zhao to cede his voting powers in Dubai FZE. After Zhao’s voting control was surrendered, VARA took a stringent look at the products that the exchange planned to offer in Dubai, according to people familiar with the matter. Despite receding voting rights, Zhao remains the ultimate beneficial owner of Binance FZE’s Abu Dhabi-based parent company. Gaining a full license in the United Arab Emirates has been a focal point for Binance’s future operations, according to Alex Chehade, Binance Dubai’s general manager, who told Cointelegraph: “Binance identified that the senior leadership of the UAE wanted to establish the region as a focal point for Web3. They’re trying to diversify away from fossil fuels, and they see [crypto] as a great driver for doing so.” Binance received a preparatory minimal viable product license from VARA in September 2022, which enabled the exchange to offer a range of digital asset services for qualified retail and institutional investors. Related: Bitcoin halving will lead to more sustainable BTC mining: Report

Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, received a long-awaited regulatory license in Dubai. Binance received its Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) license after co-founder Changpeng Zhao gave up his voting power in the exchange’s local entity, unnamed people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg on April 18. The full regulatory license signals a significant win for Binance, which has been under regulatory scrutiny since the FTX collapse. This was the main reason for VARA requiring Zhao to cede his voting powers in Dubai FZE. Despite receding voting rights, Zhao remains the ultimate beneficial owner of Binance FZE’s Abu Dhabi-based parent company.

Ethena announces integration with exchange wallets

Synthetic stablecoin protocol Ethena Labs has integrated with centralized exchange wallets of Binance, Bybit, OKX, and Bitget as of April 10. “Users locking USDe for at least 7 days through exchange Web3 wallets are eligible for a 20% reward boost starting today,” said Ethena developers. The incentives, issued in the form of “Ethena sats,” can be converted to its native ENA token at the end of each campaign. To earn sats, users must first deposit Ethena USDe stablecoins into their exchange wallets, connect to the Ethena decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol, and stake their holdings. The protocol has a total value locked of $2.274 billion at the time of publication, generating an annualized revenue of $178 million. The protocol’s ecosystem rewards have attracted considerable attention and usage. As told by blockchain analytics firm Lookonchain, since the start of Ethena Staking Season 2, the top 10 wallets have withdrawn a total of 37.5 million ENA ($51 million) and staked them. On March 8, less than one month after launching its USDe stablecoin, Ethena became the highest-earning decentralized application in crypto when it offered a 67% annual percentage yield (APY) on USDe. The protocol currently has an APY of 24% on its stablecoins. However, the yield is not without risks, as it relies on trading income of complex Ethereum derivatives to pay out promised returns. Amid concerns over its high yield, Guy Young, founder of Ethena Labs, told Cointelegraph in an interview on Feb. 22 that comparisons to the failed Terra stablecoin, TerraUSD (UST), were just “knee-jerk reactions” and that the firm’s yields were organic and sustainable. “The biggest piece we’re trying to get across is that Anchor’s yield was just totally made up,” Young said. “It was just venture capital firms putting money into [USTC yield protocol] Anchor and then paying out a yield, which came from nowhere.” Meanwhile, Ethena’s yields, which are publicly verifiable, are derived from a combination of Ethereum consensus layer inflation rewards, execution fees paid to Ether (ETH) stakers, maximal extractable value fee captures acquired by Ether stakers, and trading income provided by Ethena Labs. Specifically, the firm opens short derivative positions when it receives long-position collateral assets for minting USDe. The spread, or difference in value between the two positions, is then paid out to USDe holders as yield. Related: Frax Finance dives into DeFi liquidity with $250M USDe allocation

Synthetic stablecoin protocol Ethena Labs has integrated with centralized exchange wallets of Binance, Bybit, OKX, and Bitget as of April 10. “Users locking USDe for at least 7 days through exchange Web3 wallets are eligible for a 20% reward boost starting today,” said Ethena developers. The incentives, issued in the form of “Ethena sats,” can be converted to its native ENA token at the end of each campaign. To earn sats, users must first deposit Ethena USDe stablecoins into their exchange wallets, connect to the Ethena decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol, and stake their holdings. On March 8, less than one month after launching its USDe stablecoin, Ethena became the highest-earning decentralized application in crypto when it offered a 67% annual percentage yield (APY) on USDe.

Binance’s $1B emergency ‘SAFU’ fund now makes up 3% of UDSC supply

The world’s largest crypto exchange, Binance, is converting its Secure Asset Fund for Users (SAFU) into Circle’s USD Coin (USDC) stablecoin and now holds 3% of its circulating supply. The company announced the move on April 18, stating that “we are transferring 100% of SAFU’s assets to USDC” but didn’t elaborate on why, other than it was “making use of a trusted, audited, and transparent stablecoin for SAFU,” which further enhances its reliability and ensures it remains stable at $1 billion. The exchange’s Secure Asset Fund for Users is an emergency insurance fund established in 2018 to protect Binance users in extreme situations, such as exchange hacks, where users could be reimbursed for unforeseen losses. According to Etherscan, the SAFU wallet address made a transaction of 800 million USDC on Ethereum at 2:35 am UTC for a transaction fee of just $1.88. There was also a transfer of 1.36 million BNB (BNB) worth around $754 million and a 16,277 BTC transfer as part of the conversion process. The billion-dollar Binance insurance fund now represents around 3% of the $32.6 billion supply of Circle’s stablecoin. It is the second conversion of the fund in just over a year. In March 2023, Binance announced that it had replaced the Binance USD (BUSD) holdings in the SAFU with Tether (USDT) and TrueUSD (TUSD). The move at the time was in response to a regulatory crackdown on BUSD issuer Paxos, which announced that it would stop minting the exchange-backed stablecoin. Related: Crypto exchange insurance funds surge more than $1B amid bull market Tether remains the world’s dominant stablecoin, with a circulating supply at record levels of $108 billion, giving it a market share of 69%, according to CoinGecko. Circle’s USDC is the second largest stablecoin, with a market share of around 20%, with its supply increasing by 33% since December 2023. Related: 'China is about to start bidding' — Will Hong Kong Bitcoin ETFs spark the halving rally?

The world’s largest crypto exchange, Binance, is converting its Secure Asset Fund for Users (SAFU) into Circle’s USD Coin (USDC) stablecoin and now holds 3% of its circulating supply. The exchange’s Secure Asset Fund for Users is an emergency insurance fund established in 2018 to protect Binance users in extreme situations, such as exchange hacks, where users could be reimbursed for unforeseen losses. According to Etherscan, the SAFU wallet address made a transaction of 800 million USDC on Ethereum at 2:35 am UTC for a transaction fee of just $1.88. The billion-dollar Binance insurance fund now represents around 3% of the $32.6 billion supply of Circle’s stablecoin. Circle’s USDC is the second largest stablecoin, with a market share of around 20%, with its supply increasing by 33% since December 2023.

Google sues alleged China crypto app racketeers: Report

Google’s parent company, Alphabet, has filed a lawsuit against two people based in China for using the company’s platform for scam cryptocurrency apps that amassed over 100,000 downloads. Alphabet claims that scammers used its platforms, Google Play and YouTube, to upload and advertise fraudulent crypto apps. The online giant alleges that the defendants engaged in a pattern of racketeering after committing hundreds of acts of wire fraud. The lawsuit was filed Thursday, April 4, in a federal court in New York, according to an April 4 Bloomberg report. The scam apps were designed to look like genuine digital asset investments aiming to persuade users to deposit their funds, which users could never withdraw. Despite Google continually removing fraudulent apps, many have bypassed its fraud detection systems. The two scammers first started uploading the racketeering apps in 2019. The lawsuit is a crucial step for safeguarding the platform’s users, wrote Halimah DeLaine Prado, Google’s general counsel: “This litigation is a critical step in holding these bad actors accountable and sending a clear message that we will aggressively pursue those who seek to take advantage of our users.” Related: Funds hacked in 2024 increased by 15.4% vs. the same period in 2023 — Immunefi Crypto phishing scams up 50% in March Approximately $71 million was lost to phishing scammers in March across all chains from 77,529 victims, which is a 50% increase compared to February, according to an April 2 X post by Scam Sniffer. Stolen funds from crypto scams in March. Source: Scam Sniffer A total of $173 million worth of digital assets were lost to phishing scams in the first quarter of 2024, with 90% of the stolen assets being ERC-20 tokens on the Ethereum network. Phishing scams are a form of social engineering scams where attackers convince victims to share sensitive information or install malicious software of their own accord. Hacks and exploits have been a growing concern in the crypto industry, especially for decentralized finance applications. A total of $1.8 billion was lost to crypto hacks and scammers in 2023, of which 17% can be attributed to the North Korean Lazarus Group, according to a Dec. 28 report by Immunefi. Related: Crypto.com expands in South Korea despite increasing regulatory scrutiny

Alphabet claims that scammers used its platforms, Google Play and YouTube, to upload and advertise fraudulent crypto apps. The lawsuit was filed Thursday, April 4, in a federal court in New York, according to an April 4 Bloomberg report. The scam apps were designed to look like genuine digital asset investments aiming to persuade users to deposit their funds, which users could never withdraw. Stolen funds from crypto scams in March. Phishing scams are a form of social engineering scams where attackers convince victims to share sensitive information or install malicious software of their own accord.

Tether issued on TON blockchain at a ‘great start,’ says CEO — Now at $60M

$60 million worth of Tether (USDT) has already been issued on The Open Network (TON) since it began supporting the blockchain on April 19, making it the 11th-largest blockchain for Tether out of 16. On April 19, the stablecoin issuer announced a collaboration with the TON Foundation at the Token2049 crypto conference in Dubai that would see Tether begin to be minted on TON. The firm also revealed it has launched the gold-pegged Tether Gold (XAUT) stablecoin on TON as well. The Open Network team said that cross-border payments were instant, free and as easy as sending a text message to Telegram’s 900 million users in a post on X. Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino commented in a post on X on April 21 that Tether had made a “great start” with $35 million USDT issued on TON. However, according to the Tether Transparency report, the authorized supply issued on TON has grown to $60 million as of 11:30 pm UTC on April 21. The collaboration allows Telegram’s users to send transfers freely and instantly among all platform users. “All you need to do is send a DM [direct message], no need for a blockchain address, and no need to download a new app,” the messaging company stated. USDT on TON will be accompanied by fully integrated on-ramps from most fiat currencies globally at launch, it added before stating that soon, integrated global off-ramps will enable users to withdraw supported fiat currencies directly to bank accounts or cards. However, the majority of Tether’s $109.8 billion circulating supply is on the Tron network, which has $57.8 billion. Ethereum has $51 billion USDT in circulation, a number that has been dwindling as more Tether is deployed on different blockchains to alleviate high network fees on Ethereum. USDT issuance on various blockchains. Source: Tether Transparency Report Solana is the third-largest network supporting Tether with $1.9 billion issued. The stablecoin has also been issued on Avalanche, Omni, Cosmos, Tezos, Near, EOS and Celo, among others. Related: Binance’s $1B emergency ‘SAFU’ fund now makes up 3% of UDSC supply Tether has a market share of 69% of the entire stablecoin market capitalization, which is around $159.5 billion, according to CoinGecko. Its closest rival, Circle, has a share of 21% for its stablecoin, USD Coin (USDC), of which there are $33.7 billion in circulation. Toncoin (TON) prices reacted to the announcement with a 22% spike but quickly returned to previous levels. The asset is trading down 1.6% on the day at $6.13 at the time of writing, according to CoinGecko. Magazine: The real risks to Ethena’s stablecoin model are not the ones you think

$60 million worth of Tether (USDT) has already been issued on The Open Network (TON) since it began supporting the blockchain on April 19, making it the 11th-largest blockchain for Tether out of 16. On April 19, the stablecoin issuer announced a collaboration with the TON Foundation at the Token2049 crypto conference in Dubai that would see Tether begin to be minted on TON. The firm also revealed it has launched the gold-pegged Tether Gold (XAUT) stablecoin on TON as well. However, according to the Tether Transparency report, the authorized supply issued on TON has grown to $60 million as of 11:30 pm UTC on April 21. Source: Tether Transparency ReportSolana is the third-largest network supporting Tether with $1.9 billion issued.

Solana devs target April 15 for failed TX fix — It’s ‘not a design flaw’

Solana developers are targeting April 15 to implement a fix for an “implementation bug” that recently caused the transaction failure rate on Solana to skyrocket. “Solana’s current issue is not a design flaw, it’s an implementation bug,” stressed Mert Mumtaz, the CEO of Helius Labs, a blockchain infrastructure firm that provides back-end support exclusively to the Solana network. “It is important to make this distinction because implementation errors are usually trivial [while] design errors are generally serious and more fundamental,” Mumtaz explained to his 108,000 X followers on April 8. Data showed that over 75% of non-vote Solana transactions failed on April 4 amid the recent memecoin mania on the network, but that figure has since fallen to 64.8%. Mumtaz said the issue concerns the way in which Solana developers implemented “QUIC” — a Google-developed data transfer protocol that loops all nodes in on the current state of the network. But this implementation issue shouldn’t be seen as an overall design flaw, according to Mumtaz, using car design as an example to explain the situation. All cars have four tires and an engine, but “there are many implementations of the car design,” like BMW, Mercedes, Toyota, F1 and Tesla, he explained. If one BMW model is poor at steering, then “we don’t say that all cars are flawed” — instead, we say that specific model is broken and needs a fix, he added. Similarly, Solana’s implementation of QUIC has certain deficiencies and bugs in its current state, Mumtaz explained. “However, that doesn’t mean ‘Solana’ has a design flaw — it means it chose a buggy implementation for this part of its design.” In other words, Solana needs to change a tire rather than recreate an entirely new model or network in blockchain terms. Related: Trader turns $13K into $2M within 1 hour as memecoin frenzy continues Mumtaz also shared a comment by Solana researcher Richard Patel, who believes Firedancer’s implementation doesn’t suffer from the same issues: The fix will take place on April 15, should no additional issues come about in testing, Mumtaz noted. A reconfiguration of QUIC will likely take place on April 15 before it is replaced with a superior solution at a later date, Mumtaz told Cointelegraph. Solana’s network failures have prompted community concern, given Solana’s (SOL) token boasts a market cap of $79.9 billion, while an additional $4.6 billion in value is locked on the network, according to DefiLlama. Magazine: Memecoins make millionaires, Terraform and Do Kwon liable for fraud, and more: Hodler’s Digest, March 31 – April 6

Solana developers are targeting April 15 to implement a fix for an “implementation bug” that recently caused the transaction failure rate on Solana to skyrocket. “Solana’s current issue is not a design flaw, it’s an implementation bug,” stressed Mert Mumtaz, the CEO of Helius Labs, a blockchain infrastructure firm that provides back-end support exclusively to the Solana network. But this implementation issue shouldn’t be seen as an overall design flaw, according to Mumtaz, using car design as an example to explain the situation. Similarly, Solana’s implementation of QUIC has certain deficiencies and bugs in its current state, Mumtaz explained. Magazine: Memecoins make millionaires, Terraform and Do Kwon liable for fraud, and more: Hodler’s Digest, March 31 – April 6

Tether’s USDT stablecoin goes live on TON blockchain

Stablecoin operator Tether is strengthening ties with Telegram’s Web3 ecosystem by launching its U.S. dollar-pegged USDT (USDT) stablecoin on The Open Network (TON). Tether made the announcement on April 19, also revealing it would launch the gold-pegged Tether Gold (XAUT) stablecoin on TON as well. The announcement was made during a joint keynote speech involving Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino, Telegram founder Pavel Durov and The Open Platform CEO Andrew Rogozov at the crypto event Token2049 in Dubai. At the same event, Tether also announced it would be restructuring and introduced four new business divisions: Tether Data, Tether Finance, Tether Power and Tether Edu. The Open Platform CEO Andrew Rogozov, Telegram CEO Pavel Durov, Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino (from left to right) at the Token2049 in Dubai According to Ardoino, TON and Tether share a vision of an open, decentralized internet and a borderless financial system. “The launch of USDT and XAUT on TON will allow seamless value transfer, increasing activity and liquidity while offering users a financial experience that can match those found in the traditional financial system,” the Tether CEO stated. This latest development marks another milestone in Tether’s expansion across multiple blockchains, bringing its coverage to 15 chains, including Tron and Ethereum. The milestone is also essential for the TON network, whose native token, Toncoin (TON), overtook Dogecoin (DOGE) as the ninth-largest cryptocurrency by market cap on April 16. “The TON blockchain works with Telegram, meaning USDT and XAUT on TON have the potential to provide a simple, borderless experience for peer-to-peer payments for Telegram’s user base which Telegram estimates at over 900 million global users,” the announcement reads. Related: Crypto-like communication devices could break gov’t surveillance — Telegram founder Durov Something unique about USDT’s launch on TON is that the TON ecosystem enables transfers between fiat and crypto and has ambitions to beat traditional finance in efficiency and ease of use, TON Foundation’s marketing head, Jack Booth, told Cointelegraph. He ad: “[There are] built-in on-ramps for fiat at the launch and global off-ramps to bank cards and accounts coming soon. This will be the first time a mass audience will be able to use crypto infrastructure for global payments.” USDT’s launch on TON isn’t the first instance of the two ecosystems intersecting. Since at least 2023, USDT has been one of the default cryptocurrencies available on Wallet, a third-party custodial wallet available to Telegram users, alongside other coins like Bitcoin (BTC) and Toncoin. At the time of writing, the Tron network is the default blockchain available for USDT on Wallet, enabling TRC-20 USDT. According to Halil Mirakhmed, chief operating officer of Wallet, TON-based USDT will become another option on Wallet, while TRC-20 USDT will stay. The Tron blockchain accounts for the biggest share of issued USDT at the time of the announcement, according to data from Tether. The news comes a few weeks after Tether launched a recovery tool in March 2024 that allowed users to migrate USDT between different blockchains. On March 4, USDT crossed an all-time high market cap of $100 billion. Additional reporting by Felix Ng. Magazine: The real risks to Ethena’s stablecoin model (are not the ones you think

Stablecoin operator Tether is strengthening ties with Telegram’s Web3 ecosystem by launching its U.S. dollar-pegged USDT (USDT) stablecoin on The Open Network (TON). Tether made the announcement on April 19, also revealing it would launch the gold-pegged Tether Gold (XAUT) stablecoin on TON as well. At the same event, Tether also announced it would be restructuring and introduced four new business divisions: Tether Data, Tether Finance, Tether Power and Tether Edu. At the time of writing, the Tron network is the default blockchain available for USDT on Wallet, enabling TRC-20 USDT. According to Halil Mirakhmed, chief operating officer of Wallet, TON-based USDT will become another option on Wallet, while TRC-20 USDT will stay.

Ethereum liquid staking protocol Puffer Finance raises $18M in Series A

Puffer Finance, a liquid staking project built on Ethereum restaking protocol Eigenlayer, has secured $18 million in a Series A funding round to launch its mainnet. According to the April 16 announcement, the round was led by Brevan Howard Digital and Electric Capital, with key investments from Coinbase Ventures, Kraken Ventures, Lemniscap, Franklin Templeton, Avon Ventures (a VC fund affiliated with Fidelity Investments' parent firm), Mechanism, Lightspeed Faction, Consensys, Animoca, GSR and other angel investors. According to data from DefiLlama, shortly after its early test phase in February, Puffer Finance surpassed a total value locked (TVL) of $1.2 billion. To date, the protocol has raised a total of $23.5 million in venture capital funding. Puffer Finance’s TVL since launch. Source: DefiLlama “Following this round, Puffer secured a strategic investment from Binance Labs, enhancing its position within the Liquid Restaking ecosystem,” Puffer Finance said in its announcement, alluding to “technological advancements” in tandem with its mainnet launch. Puffer Finance’s technology allows Ethereum validators to reduce their capital to just 1 Ether (ETH), down from the 32 ETH required for individual stakers. In addition, users who stake Ether via Puffer receive Puffer liquid restaking tokens (nLRTs), which can then be used to farm yields in other decentralized finance protocols simultaneously with their Ethereum staking rewards. The process, known as liquid staking, has been long practiced by other blockchains, such as Cosmos, and has only recently moved to Ethereum after the Merge upgrade that shifted the network to proof-of-stake. “We aim to significantly reduce the barriers for home validators to participate, while delivering the most advanced liquid restaking protocol,” Amir Forouzani, core contributor at Puffer Labs, said in a press statement. On March 6, Cointelegraph reported that EigenLayer shot passed decentralized finance lending protocol Aave in TVL, with $10.4 billion worth of crypto committed to the protocol after temporarily removing a cap on how much users could stake. Dune Analytics data shows EigenLayer has over 107,900 unique depositors, with DefiLlama stats showing that 74% of staked tokens are Wrapped Ether (wETH) and Lido Staked Eth (stETH). Liquid staking protocols are currently the largest DeFi protocol category with nearly $55 billion in locked value across about 160 protocols — buoyed mainly by Lido, the largest protocol by locked value at $35 billion. Related: Restaking protocol EigenLayer partially launches on Ethereum mainnet

Puffer Finance, a liquid staking project built on Ethereum restaking protocol Eigenlayer, has secured $18 million in a Series A funding round to launch its mainnet. According to data from DefiLlama, shortly after its early test phase in February, Puffer Finance surpassed a total value locked (TVL) of $1.2 billion. Source: DefiLlama“Following this round, Puffer secured a strategic investment from Binance Labs, enhancing its position within the Liquid Restaking ecosystem,” Puffer Finance said in its announcement, alluding to “technological advancements” in tandem with its mainnet launch. In addition, users who stake Ether via Puffer receive Puffer liquid restaking tokens (nLRTs), which can then be used to farm yields in other decentralized finance protocols simultaneously with their Ethereum staking rewards. Related: Restaking protocol EigenLayer partially launches on Ethereum mainnet

Bitcoin halving: Why it’s important for BTC scarcity

The fourth-ever Bitcoin halving occurred a few hours ago at the 840,000th block. The halving is considered the most important economic mechanism influencing Bitcoin (BTC) supply and creating scarcity for the asset. The Bitcoin network’s fourth halving event, reduced block issuance rewards from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC per mined block, effectively slashing Bitcoin’s issuance rate in half. The halving is a crucial mechanism for Bitcoin’s scarcity and market valuation, according to Karim Chaib, the CEO of crypto platform Dopamine App. Chaib told Cointelegraph: “Scarcity is a fundamental economic principle that affects the value of an asset. By programmatically ensuring that the supply of Bitcoin increases at a slower rate over time, the halving events underscore Bitcoin's scarcity.” The halving is hard-coded in Bitcoin’s code base, which happens every 210,000 blocks mined, which equates to roughly every four years. The Bitcoin network witnessed its first halving in 2012 when the Bitcoin’s issuance rate was reduced from 50 BTC to 25 BTC per mined block. The last two halvings occurred in 2016 and 2020, significantly slashing Bitcoin’s issuance rate to the current 3.125 BTC. This hard-coded scarcity makes Bitcoin stand out from traditional store-of-value assets, according to Chaib, who told Cointelegraph: “This programmed scarcity is a key feature that differentiates Bitcoin from traditional assets like gold, which can become less scarce as new means of extraction and production are developed. Bitcoin, by contrast, has a capped supply of 21 million coins, making it fundamentally inflation-proof.” Related: Bitcoin supply to run out on exchanges in 9 months — Bybit Is Bitcoin the next gold? Bitcoin’s economic design and halving mechanism are effective mathematical methods to make Bitcoin a deflationary asset, which makes it the first reliable alternative to gold, according to Jonas Simanavicius, co-founder and CTO at Syntropy. He told Cointelegraph: “Gold has served for thousands of years as the primary store of wealth because it is difficult to increase its supply and it is global... Nothing else came close to having a predictably slow-growing supply—until Bitcoin.” Bitcoin price rose 122% during the past year, while Gold price rose 19%. During 2024, Bitcoin is up over 51% year-to-date (YTD), while Gold price increased 15% YTD, according to TradingView. Precious metals and real estate were considered the best store of value assets throughout the years. But the digital age is seeking more liquid assets for faster movements, which will ultimately benefit Bitcoin, said Simanavicius: “Over time, Bitcoin has not only survived, but its backing power of extensive computation and decentralization has also grown so strong that more people and institutions recognize this security, and the benefits such as immediate transactability, geopolitical decentralization, and ease of carry outweigh those of other asset classes.” Related: Top five BTC miners not selling despite Bitcoin halving

The halving is considered the most important economic mechanism influencing Bitcoin (BTC) supply and creating scarcity for the asset. The Bitcoin network’s fourth halving event, reduced block issuance rewards from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC per mined block, effectively slashing Bitcoin’s issuance rate in half. The halving is a crucial mechanism for Bitcoin’s scarcity and market valuation, according to Karim Chaib, the CEO of crypto platform Dopamine App. The Bitcoin network witnessed its first halving in 2012 when the Bitcoin’s issuance rate was reduced from 50 BTC to 25 BTC per mined block. Bitcoin, by contrast, has a capped supply of 21 million coins, making it fundamentally inflation-proof.”Related: Bitcoin supply to run out on exchanges in 9 months — BybitIs Bitcoin the next gold?

New Zealand tests the water on ‘digital cash’ issuance

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) opened a 101-day public consultation on the principles and design options it created for the country’s digital dollar. However, the central bank plans to discuss the issuance of a central bank digital currency (CBDC) in future consultations. The RBNZ has taken a four-stage approach to CBDC issuance and aims to issue an in-house digital dollar by 2023. New Zealand’s central bank is in the second stage of its digital cash initiative, which involves exploring high-level design options for digital cash and related consulting and budgeting. New Zealand’s four-stage approach to CBDC issuance. Source: consultations.rbnz.govt.nz On April 17, the central bank released a consultation paper to help determine “future work on whether digital cash is right for New Zealand.” The consultation closes on July 26. The consultation paper promotes CBDC adoption while highlighting the need to align with other central banks and the declining cash usage. “Cash is no longer a core payment medium for many people. The frequency of cash use by New Zealanders continues to fall.” The consultation paper asks 12 questions about four broad topics: personal opinion on New Zealand’s CBDC, the benefits of digital cash, strategic design and managed issuance. According to the RBNZ, launching a CBDC along with a robust supporting infrastructure can spur innovation in the local payments sector. Concurrently, the RBNZ is developing alternate formats for its digital cash consultation paper, which will be available in late May. Related: Printing money for fools is a ‘great business to be in’ — NZ central bank head Andrew Bayly, the minister of commerce and consumer affairs of New Zealand, recently warned against the country’s sluggish approach toward experimenting and adopting innovations on digital assets and blockchain technology. In response to the inquiries by the parliamentary Finance and Expenditure Committee into cryptocurrencies, Bayly’s office said: “The current ‘wait and see’ approach could risk New Zealand missing out on the benefits of development in the digital asset industry.” The ministry’s advisers made eight key recommendations for New Zealand to get back on the global crypto wave, which includes adopting policies and regulations to encourage developments in digital assets and blockchain and facilitate greater collaboration between government and industry players, among others. Magazine: 6 Questions for Kieren James-Lubin, who wants us to ‘get on the same page’ about grandma

However, the central bank plans to discuss the issuance of a central bank digital currency (CBDC) in future consultations. The RBNZ has taken a four-stage approach to CBDC issuance and aims to issue an in-house digital dollar by 2023. New Zealand’s central bank is in the second stage of its digital cash initiative, which involves exploring high-level design options for digital cash and related consulting and budgeting. Source: consultations.rbnz.govt.nzOn April 17, the central bank released a consultation paper to help determine “future work on whether digital cash is right for New Zealand.” The consultation closes on July 26. Concurrently, the RBNZ is developing alternate formats for its digital cash consultation paper, which will be available in late May.

Retail interest in crypto ‘quite low’ compared to last bull run — LunarCrush CEO

While Bitcoin and other digital asset prices are increasing, retail investors are not yet “believing the hype,” according to Joe Vezzani, the CEO of social media analysis platform LunarCrush. Vezzani said that compared to the last major bull run, social interactions and overall retail interest are “still quite low.” In the last six months, posts mentioning Bitcoin (BTC) showed bursts of activity in January and March. Posts created mentioning the keywords “Bitcoin” or “BTC” in the last six months. Source: LunarCrush The January mentions may be due to the hype surrounding the spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs). On Jan. 10, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved spot Bitcoin ETF applications from asset managers. There was also a surge of posts in March as Bitcoin reached a new all-time high. However, the number of posts remained steady despite the Bitcoin rally to $73,737 on March 14. Posts created mentioning “Ethereum” or “ETH” in the last six months. Source: LunarCrush Social mentions of the keywords Ethereum or ETH remained somewhat steady in the last six months. However, the data shows that these keywords have seen a downward trend since the beginning of March. Meanwhile, Solana’s (SOL) token shows several bursts in the last six months, likely driven by the memecoin frenzy on the network. Despite this, social media posts mentioning Solana or SOL declined at the beginning of April. Posts created mentioning “Solana” or “SOL” in the last six months. Source: LunarCrush Vezzani said that if factoring out spam and bots from the interactions, the crypto space could be experiencing a decline in social media activity. He explained: “In terms of the number of creators and influencers posting daily, we have witnessed growth. However, the notable change we are not observing is in the level of engagement with those creators.” Even with upcoming major events like the Bitcoin halving, the executive does not believe there would be a substantial shift in retail engagement. Vezzani argued that the halving “is typically perceived as more of an insider event.” “Bitcoin is already challenging for newcomers to grasp, and when we introduce concepts like halving, we risk alienating the public and diminishing their interest in that discourse,” he added. Related: Number of new memecoin traders hits record high — IntoTheBlock When asked why it’s important to look at the social engagement data, Vezzani said that crypto markets continue to be fragmented, with new coins and exchanges emerging. Because of this, the executive believes that looking at social engagement gives traders an edge. He said: “Traders who leverage social media data acquire a significant edge over the rest of the market by having access to an additional critical metric that drives market movements at their disposal.” The executive also argued that information on social media could shield traders from downside risks or identify promising coins that could maintain their social media presence over time. Magazine: Bitcoin hits new highs, SEC delays options decision, and stablecoin bill looms: Hodler’s Digest

While Bitcoin and other digital asset prices are increasing, retail investors are not yet “believing the hype,” according to Joe Vezzani, the CEO of social media analysis platform LunarCrush. Vezzani said that compared to the last major bull run, social interactions and overall retail interest are “still quite low.” In the last six months, posts mentioning Bitcoin (BTC) showed bursts of activity in January and March. Despite this, social media posts mentioning Solana or SOL declined at the beginning of April. Source: LunarCrushVezzani said that if factoring out spam and bots from the interactions, the crypto space could be experiencing a decline in social media activity. Because of this, the executive believes that looking at social engagement gives traders an edge.

Bitcoin gears up for a ‘massive’ short squeeze, price could go ‘vertical’

As Bitcoin (BTC) toes around the $70,000 price mark, there’s speculation that short-sellers are feeling the pressure due to diminishing downtrends and quicker-moving uptrends, potentially driving Bitcoin’s price to $80,000, according to an analyst. “This is a textbook sign that shorts are being squeezed as we hit fresh all-time high territory,” trading resource The Kobeissi Letter stated in a March 26 X post. The Kobeissi Letter explained the main factor for the BTC short squeeze is the margin between institutional long positions and hedge fund short positions is “at a record high.” Institutions net long against hedge funds net short. Source: X/The Kobeissi Letter “While hedge funds hold nearly 15,000 in net short contracts, institutions hold nearly 20,000 in net longs,” the post added. Meanwhile, it noted that Bitcoin’s price dips “keep on getting shorter and shorter.” Over the past seven days Bitcoin hit its lowest point at $61,224 on March 20 while reaching its peak at $71,511 on March 26, representing a gap of just 8.7%, per CoinMarketCap data. Bitcoin’s current price is $70,480. If it reaches $71,000, $156.18 million in short positions will be liquidated, per CoinGlass data. A climb to $75,000 will liquidate $3.85 billion in short positions. Crypto exchange Swyftx lead analyst Pav Hundal told Cointelegraph at this point, it might propel Bitcoin into unprecedented all-time highs. Currently, Bitcoin’s all time high is $73,737. “The potential for a violent price action is off the charts right now. If we see a short squeeze, Bitcoin could go vertical to $80,000 and from there you really are starting to seriously think about the $100,000 point at some point this year,” Hundal said. Asset managers with long exposure to BTC is at all-time highs. Source: Chicago Mercantile Exchange. Swan Bitcoin CEO Cory Klippsten told Cointelegraph that while he enjoys watching the ongoing tug-of-war between long and short positions, eventually, one faction will crack. “Somebody gotta break at some point, they are piling up more and more capital behind their views to try and defend it. It is fascinating, we guide all our clients to not think about the 5-10 years. Nevertheless, I am a willing and avid speculator,” Klippsten said. Read more: Bitcoin whale accumulation suggests pre-halving BTC rally will continue Hundal suggested that asset managers may be hedging their bets with both positions. “This is not a classic bulls versus bears battle. Asset managers are sitting on record piles of long exposure to Bitcoin,” he explained. Hundal suggested asset managers are taking both positions to mitigate the downside exposure. “It’s likely that those same investors are covering their bets by taking out shorts. It’s a risk game. Institutional investors will be happy to pay a premium to protect their downside risk,” Hundal stated. Klippsten suggested the increased trading activity in Bitcoin could be in anticipation of the upcoming Bitcoin halving, which is slated for April 21. “Bitcoin’s halving event is historically marked by speculative trading, where traders buy the rumor and sell the news,” Klippsten explained, adding this could lead to a short-term downturn in Bitcoin’s price: “It’s important to remember that although the price may respond favorably, there’s also a possibility that we experience a temporary drop in price post-halving.” Magazine: Bitcoin ETFs make Coinbase a ‘honeypot’ for hackers and governments: Trezor CEO

The Kobeissi Letter explained the main factor for the BTC short squeeze is the margin between institutional long positions and hedge fund short positions is “at a record high.”Institutions net long against hedge funds net short. Source: X/The Kobeissi Letter“While hedge funds hold nearly 15,000 in net short contracts, institutions hold nearly 20,000 in net longs,” the post added. If it reaches $71,000, $156.18 million in short positions will be liquidated, per CoinGlass data. A climb to $75,000 will liquidate $3.85 billion in short positions. Swan Bitcoin CEO Cory Klippsten told Cointelegraph that while he enjoys watching the ongoing tug-of-war between long and short positions, eventually, one faction will crack.

EU enacts crypto regulations to combat money laundering

The European Parliament approved new regulations that establish formal due diligence obligations for cryptocurrency companies with the goal of combating money laundering. The new laws are aimed at improving “due diligence measures and identity checks” for customers, extending to entities such as crypto asset managers. These entities will also be required to report any suspicious activities to authorities. This new legislation, approved on April 24, will impact crypto-asset service providers (CASPs), like centralized crypto exchanges under the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation and various other entities, including gambling services. MiCA is a regulatory framework introduced by the European Union to oversee digital assets and their markets. It was enacted in June 2023 and will be fully enforceable by the end of the year. A new agency, the Authority for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AMLA), has been designated to oversee and supervise the implementation of the new rule. AMLA’s office will be situated in Frankfurt, Germany. However, the law has not been formally adopted by the Council and has yet to be published in the EU Office Journal. Patrick Hansen, EU strategy and policy director at Circle, expressed anticipation for the vote’s outcome in a post on X. He mentioned that the package would proceed to be officially adopted by the Council of the EU and come into effect three years later. Related: EU watchdog warns handful of exchanges may dominate crypto market In another post, Hansen mentioned that these CASPs will be required to adhere to standard Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) procedures such as customer due diligence . He noted that this requirement is not novel, as all crypto exchanges and custodial wallet providers in the EU are already obligated to comply with these regulations under existing legislation. Hansen described the final version as a “positive result” for the crypto sector. He noted that earlier iterations of the proposed AMLR suggested a much stricter approach, which would have necessitated KYC on the self-custody originator/beneficiary. However, he credited industry efforts for advocating a risk-based approach with multiple options, ultimately leading to consensus. Last month, a majority of the European Parliament’s lead committees scrapped the 1,000-euro ($1,080) limit on cryptocurrency payments from self-hosted crypto wallets as part of new AML laws. Magazine: Cyprus keeps FTX Europe license suspended until September

The European Parliament approved new regulations that establish formal due diligence obligations for cryptocurrency companies with the goal of combating money laundering. The new laws are aimed at improving “due diligence measures and identity checks” for customers, extending to entities such as crypto asset managers. This new legislation, approved on April 24, will impact crypto-asset service providers (CASPs), like centralized crypto exchanges under the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation and various other entities, including gambling services. Patrick Hansen, EU strategy and policy director at Circle, expressed anticipation for the vote’s outcome in a post on X. He noted that this requirement is not novel, as all crypto exchanges and custodial wallet providers in the EU are already obligated to comply with these regulations under existing legislation.

Crypto advocacy group claims stablecoin bill would ‘violate free speech rights’

United States-based cryptocurrency advocacy organization Coin Center has expressed concerns about a bill recently introduced in the Senate to establish a regulatory framework and guardrails for payment stablecoins. In an April 19 notice, Coin Center claimed that the Lummis-Gillibrand Payment Stablecoin Act — introduced by Senators Kirsten Gillibrand and Cynthia Lummis — would be “bad policy” and unconstitutional for its proposed prohibition on algorithmic stablecoins. The group argued that banning such stablecoins essentially targeted code, seemingly an unconstitutional act under the protections of the First Amendment. “[I]t may make sense to require issuers of products like Terra to register with the SEC and make appropriate disclosures (which for all practical purposes would make their use as a stablecoin infeasible), but an outright ban on a particular business model is unnecessary and anti-innovation,” said Coin Center. “If one can comply with the securities laws, one should be able to bring a product to market.” Coin Center Executive Director Jerry Brito said that attempting to create a regulatory framework for stablecoins in the U.S. was a “laudable effort.” According to the text of the proposed bill, only U.S.-approved issuers would be allowed to issue dollar-backed stablecoins. Lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate are working toward legislative solutions to stablecoins. Coin Center suggested that the Clarity for Payment Stablecoins Act — a bill set for a full floor vote in the House — had a “not unreasonable” approach to algorithmic stablecoins by proposing a two-year moratorium rather than an outright ban. Related: Elizabeth Warren supports enhanced US sanction options for stablecoins The depegging of TerraUSD (UST) from the U.S. dollar was one of the events that contributed to a crypto market downturn in 2022. Several firms filed for bankruptcy, and U.S. authorities and regulators continued to pursue criminal and civil charges against individuals involved in illicit activities. Senator Sherrod Brown, who chairs the Senate Banking Committee, reportedly said on April 16 that a stablecoin bill would be one of his goals in the legislative session, provided his concerns were addressed. There were no plans in the House to schedule the Clarity for Payment Stablecoins Act for a floor vote at the time of publication. Magazine: Unstablecoins: Depegging, bank runs and other risks loom

United States-based cryptocurrency advocacy organization Coin Center has expressed concerns about a bill recently introduced in the Senate to establish a regulatory framework and guardrails for payment stablecoins. In an April 19 notice, Coin Center claimed that the Lummis-Gillibrand Payment Stablecoin Act — introduced by Senators Kirsten Gillibrand and Cynthia Lummis — would be “bad policy” and unconstitutional for its proposed prohibition on algorithmic stablecoins. The group argued that banning such stablecoins essentially targeted code, seemingly an unconstitutional act under the protections of the First Amendment. Senator Sherrod Brown, who chairs the Senate Banking Committee, reportedly said on April 16 that a stablecoin bill would be one of his goals in the legislative session, provided his concerns were addressed. There were no plans in the House to schedule the Clarity for Payment Stablecoins Act for a floor vote at the time of publication.

Thailand’s biggest crypto exchange goes on hiring spree ahead of IPO

Bitkub Capital Group Holdings, the owner of Thailand’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, is hiring financial advisers to facilitate its planned initial public offering (IPO) listing. Bitkub aims to go public on the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) in 2025, CEO Jirayut Srupsrisopa told Bloomberg on April 1. The upcoming public listing aims to raise new capital and boost Bitkub’s profile. In addition to hiring advisers, Bitkub is now actively expanding staff despite cutting its headcount by 6% in 2022 and 2023. Jirayut said that the Thai exchange is looking to add 1,000 employees by 2025, doubling the workforce from the current 2,000 people. Bitkub initially announced plans to launch an IPO in Thailand in a 2023 shareholder letter without disclosing details. Based in Bangkok, Bitkub is the largest crypto exchange in Thailand, accounting for 77% of the market share as of December 2023, according to data from HashKey. The exchange handles roughly $30 million in daily trading volumes. Other major Thai crypto exchanges include Upbit — which launched in 2021 — along with Bitazza and Zipmex. However, Zipmex suspended trading activity in November 2023 following a crackdown from local regulators. Market share of top four Thai crypto exchanges as of 2022. Source: CoinGecko Thailand has emerged as a major crypto player in recent years. It reportedly had more than 13 million crypto users as of 2023, accounting for roughly 18% of its total population, according to data from Statista. It is projected that this figure will reach 17.7 million users in 2028. Amid growing adoption, cryptocurrency firms have been moving to grab market share from Bitkub in Thailand. A major global rival, Binance, officially launched its local subsidiary in January 2024, and is planning to open to the public in 2024. Thailand’s Kasikornbank — one of the largest in the country — acquired a majority stake in the Satang crypto exchange in October 2023. Related: Thailand approves personal income tax exemption for token earnings The new details about Bitkub’s planned IPO come after the exchange sold a 9.2% stake in its crypto exchange unit — called Bitkub Online — to tech holding company Asphere Innovations in July 2023. At the time, the stake was worth 600 million baht, or $16.5 million. According to Jirayut, Bitkub expects Bitkub Online’s valuation to rise as trading volumes on the platform near levels not seen since the last crypto bull market in 2021. Bitkub Online accounts for roughly 80% of Bitkub Capital’s earnings. In 2022, SCB X, a financial firm that owns the nation’s largest bank by market value, canceled a 17.85 billion baht plan to acquire a 51% stake in Bitkub Online amid increased regulatory scrutiny. Magazine: KuCoin’s desperate $10M airdrop, 1 tweet raises $37M for memecoin: Asia Express

Bitkub Capital Group Holdings, the owner of Thailand’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, is hiring financial advisers to facilitate its planned initial public offering (IPO) listing. Bitkub aims to go public on the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) in 2025, CEO Jirayut Srupsrisopa told Bloomberg on April 1. Based in Bangkok, Bitkub is the largest crypto exchange in Thailand, accounting for 77% of the market share as of December 2023, according to data from HashKey. It reportedly had more than 13 million crypto users as of 2023, accounting for roughly 18% of its total population, according to data from Statista. Thailand’s Kasikornbank — one of the largest in the country — acquired a majority stake in the Satang crypto exchange in October 2023.

Pro-XRP lawyer requests to be amicus curiae for Coinbase customers

Pro-XRP lawyer John Deaton has upheld his pledge to support customers of cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase by requesting to serve as a friend of the court in the exchange’s legal battle against the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). In an April 19 filing in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, Deaton requested to represent 4,701 Coinbase customers by appearing as amicus counsel in the ongoing lawsuit that commenced in June 2023. “I am admitted or otherwise authorized to practice in this court and I appear in this case as counsel for 4,701 Coinbase Customers,” the filing stated. During an April 18 podcast interview with Fox Business journalist Eleanor Terrett, Deaton suggested that his motivation for supporting the Coinbase customers was to protect everyday individuals aiming to “build a little wealth” in their lives. “This isn’t about crypto, this is about freedom. This is about upward mobility, this is about people who want a fighting chance, people who want to build a little wealth. They are not looking to get rich, they’re not crypto bros,” he declared. This comes after Coinbase filed an interlocutory appeal in its lawsuit against the SEC only days after the court denied its motion to dismiss the entire lawsuit. The interlocutory appeal revolves around the “controlling question” whether an investment contract requires “something contractual," according to Coinbase chief legal officer Paul Grewal. Related: Coinbase shares slump, but Base revenue signals it’s undervalued — Analyst Deaton has filed several amicus counsel requests over the past few years in support of the crypto community. In September 2023, he submitted his notice of appearance as a friend of the court in the LBRY v SEC lawsuit. Most notably though, was in 2021 when Deaton filed an amicus brief on behalf of over 6,000 XRP (XRP) holders in the lawsuit between the SEC and Ripple Labs. In more recent news, Deaton has been campaigning for a Senate position, aiming to secure the seat currently held by crypto skeptic Senator Elizabeth Warren. On April 15, Cointelegraph reported that Deaton outraised Senator Warren over the first quarter of this year for his bid to seize her Senate spot — bankrolling $1.36 million compared to Warren’s $1.09 million. It comes just over a month after Deaton told his 324,100 X followers that he invested $500,000 of his own money into the Senate campaign. However, he called on his followers to help raise an additional $500,000. Magazine: China and the crypto ETFs, Thai NFT music fest, KuCoin’s 1.3M new bots: Asia Express

“I am admitted or otherwise authorized to practice in this court and I appear in this case as counsel for 4,701 Coinbase Customers,” the filing stated. During an April 18 podcast interview with Fox Business journalist Eleanor Terrett, Deaton suggested that his motivation for supporting the Coinbase customers was to protect everyday individuals aiming to “build a little wealth” in their lives. This comes after Coinbase filed an interlocutory appeal in its lawsuit against the SEC only days after the court denied its motion to dismiss the entire lawsuit. Related: Coinbase shares slump, but Base revenue signals it’s undervalued — AnalystDeaton has filed several amicus counsel requests over the past few years in support of the crypto community. In September 2023, he submitted his notice of appearance as a friend of the court in the LBRY v SEC lawsuit.

Microsoft AI to make long-term investments in the UK — CEO

Microsoft’s artificial intelligence (AI) arm is making a long-term bet on the United Kingdom as it launches its new AI hub in London. In a blog post, Microsoft AI executive vice president and CEO Mustafa Suleyman said the company plans to invest long-term in the region. He wrote: “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.” The executive said the company will actively hire “passionate innovators” who want to contribute to their goals in the coming weeks and months. Suleyman said these individuals will work on the “most interesting and challenging AI questions” of our time. On March 19, Microsoft AI hired Suleyman to lead its AI initiatives as its CEO and executive vice president. Suleyman co-founded the artificial intelligence startup DeepMind, which Google acquired in 2014. 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. In addition, it would also create tooling for foundation models and collaborate with their AI teams across the globe and its partners like OpenAI. Community members met the move with enthusiasm. On X, Neil Cameron described the development as a “huge win for the ecosystem” in the United Kingdom. Tom Tugendhat, a member of the U.K. parliament, said that it’s a vote of confidence in the U.K. as a global hub for AI. Related: First VR developer integrates with OpenAI, setting stage for no-code VR development United Kingdom Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has shown positive interest in AI and sees it as one of the pieces that would contribute to his legacy. On Oct. 26, 2023, Sunak delivered a speech expressing his belief in the potential of AI technology. He said: “I genuinely believe that technologies like AI will bring a transformation as far-reaching as the industrial revolution, the coming of electricity, or the birth of the internet.” Apart from the U.K., Canada is also getting a boost to its AI sector. On April 7, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau unveiled a $1.76 billion budget to boost the country’s AI sector and maintain its competitiveness on the global stage. Magazine: 1 in 6 new Base meme coins are scams, 91% have vulnerabilities

Microsoft’s artificial intelligence (AI) arm is making a long-term bet on the United Kingdom as it launches its new AI hub in London. In a blog post, Microsoft AI executive vice president and CEO Mustafa Suleyman said the company plans to invest long-term in the region. On March 19, Microsoft AI hired Suleyman to lead its AI initiatives as its CEO and executive vice president. Suleyman’s statements came as he announced the creation of an AI hub in the United Kingdom. Tom Tugendhat, a member of the U.K. parliament, said that it’s a vote of confidence in the U.K. as a global hub for AI.

Is Bitcoin’s on-chain bull run momentum over? Indicator flashes red

Bitcoin (BTC) OGs appear to be gearing up to cash in on their gains ahead of the Bitcoin halving, according to a leading indicator popular among crypto traders. An indicator called the Value Days Destroyed (VDD) Multiple recently spiked above 4.0, leading crypto commentators to speculate that the wider market could be nearing the end of the bull run. “Has on-chain momentum topped?” pseudonymous trader TXMC Trades asked their 83,200 X followers in an April 10 post. The VDD Multiple is intended to highlight instances where the price of Bitcoin could be showing signs of overheating and nearing its peak during major market cycles. A higher VDD Multiple reading indicates a larger amount of Bitcoin quickly entering the market, likely to be sold. It is measured by multiplying the existing Coin Days Destroyed metric by the current price of Bitcoin to compare spending velocity over time. Currently, it stands at 3.03, having briefly surged to 4.21 on March 28. It has doubled since the beginning of this year when the VDD multiple hovered around 2.04 on Jan. 1, as per GlassNode data. The VDD multiple indicator peaked at 4.4 in April 2013. Source: Glassnode The last time the VDD multiple went above 4 was in January 2021, when Bitcoin was $40,257. However, the brief peak before the cooldown didn’t result in a market downturn, as Bitcoin’s price promptly surged. Just two months later, Bitcoin’s price soared by 52.2% to $61,283 in March 2021, as per CoinMarketCap data. It is now just nine days to the Bitcoin halving, and it has surpassed the levels observed before past halving events. During the same timeframe preceding the last halving on July 9, 2016, the VDD multiple stood at 0.419, while it reached 1.606 10 days before the 2020 Bitcoin halving. Related: Bitcoin analysis eyes CPI as whales ‘pressure’ BTC price below $69K A senior researcher at Glassnode, who goes by the name CryptoVizArt on X, attributed the soaring VDD Multiple levels to the substantial outflows from Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust (GBTC). “Volume and age of Grayscale coins moving since 10th of January, push VDD to new highs,” he stated in an April 10 post on X. On Jan. 10, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission approved spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) for trading. Since their approval, GBTC has shed a total of $15.96 billion in assets, as per Farside data. The fund’s high fees relative to the other Bitcoin ETFs were also noted as a reason for the elevated outflows. Bitcoin has surged by 56% since Jan. 1 this year, climbing from $44,172 to its current price of $69,260 at the time of publication. Magazine: Nic Carter vs. the Bitcoin Maxis, ‘no regrets’ about losing $10M DOGE: X Hall of Flame 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.

Bitcoin (BTC) OGs appear to be gearing up to cash in on their gains ahead of the Bitcoin halving, according to a leading indicator popular among crypto traders. An indicator called the Value Days Destroyed (VDD) Multiple recently spiked above 4.0, leading crypto commentators to speculate that the wider market could be nearing the end of the bull run. A higher VDD Multiple reading indicates a larger amount of Bitcoin quickly entering the market, likely to be sold. The VDD multiple indicator peaked at 4.4 in April 2013. It is now just nine days to the Bitcoin halving, and it has surpassed the levels observed before past halving events.

Australian regulators bust unlicensed blockchain mining companies

Hundreds of Australian investors are more than 160 million Australian dollars ($104 million) out of pocket after three cryptocurrency mining companies, NGS Crypto Pty Ltd, NGS Digital Pty Ltd and NGS Group Ltd (collectively “NGS companies”) collapsed into liquidation. According to an April 12 report, the Australian Security and Investments Commission (ASIC) launched civil proceedings against the companies and their directors, Brett Mendham, Ryan Brown and Mark Ten Caten. The NGS companies have been accused of targeting local investors to establish self-managed superannuation funds (SMSFs) and then convert the funds into cryptocurrency for investment in blockchain mining packages with promised fixed-rate returns. The ASIC alleges that approximately 450 investors entrusted a total of 62 million AUD ($40 million) to these companies, which also operated without the necessary Australian license. The financial watchdog expressed concern over the potential dissipation of digital assets invested in blockchain mining and successfully petitioned the Federal Court to appoint liquidators specifically for NGS companies’ digital currency holdings. Mendham has also been barred from leaving Australia. Additionally, ASIC has moved to prevent NGS companies from offering financial services in Australia without proper authorization. Related: Australians wouldn’t value retail CBDC for its privacy or safety, RBA finds ASIC Chair Joe Longo cautioned Australians against investing their SMSFs in cryptocurrency and reiterated the commission’s commitment to scrutinizing crypto products to ensure investor protection through regulatory compliance. Meanwhile, fellow Australian cryptocurrency entities DCA Capital, Digital Commodity Assets Pty Ltd and the Digital Commodity Assets Fund are also facing liquidation and federal court proceedings. Concerns from investors regarding mismanagement, lack of proper licenses and potential breaches of managed investment scheme regulations prompted the action. KordaMentha, appointed as liquidators, has discovered debts totaling 100 million AUD ($65 million) owed to 100 investors. The federal court has frozen the assets of DCA Capital’s director, Ashod Balanian, amounting to 55 million AUD ($36 million), and he has been instructed to surrender his passport. Regulators in Australia have been giving more attention to its crypto regulatory landscape over the past couple of months. On March 21, ASIC Commissioner Alan Kirkland highlighted the need to solve the “regulatory trilemma” for financial innovation, including consumer protection, market integrity and encouraging financial innovation. Australia has recently been called a country poised for an “inflection point” of crypto demand. While the local demand for institutional crypto still lags, stablecoins and welcoming policy moves could spark a movement. Magazine: Filecoin staking platform busted, Matrixport says ‘short ETH’: Asia Express

Hundreds of Australian investors are more than 160 million Australian dollars ($104 million) out of pocket after three cryptocurrency mining companies, NGS Crypto Pty Ltd, NGS Digital Pty Ltd and NGS Group Ltd (collectively “NGS companies”) collapsed into liquidation. The NGS companies have been accused of targeting local investors to establish self-managed superannuation funds (SMSFs) and then convert the funds into cryptocurrency for investment in blockchain mining packages with promised fixed-rate returns. The financial watchdog expressed concern over the potential dissipation of digital assets invested in blockchain mining and successfully petitioned the Federal Court to appoint liquidators specifically for NGS companies’ digital currency holdings. Additionally, ASIC has moved to prevent NGS companies from offering financial services in Australia without proper authorization. Meanwhile, fellow Australian cryptocurrency entities DCA Capital, Digital Commodity Assets Pty Ltd and the Digital Commodity Assets Fund are also facing liquidation and federal court proceedings.

Bitcoin mining revenue peaked at $107M on BTC halving day

Revenue earned from Bitcoin (BTC) mining exceeded the $100 million mark for the first time, recording an all-time high daily earnings on Bitcoin halving day, 2024. On April 20, Bitcoin miners earned a total of $107.7 million in mining rewards and transaction fees as community members willingly paid exorbitant fees to get their transactions recorded on the 840,000th Bitcoin block. Total value in U.S. dollars of block rewards and transaction fees paid to miners. Source: blockchain.com Investors wanting to be a part of Bitcoin’s history spent 37.7 BTC (worth $2.4 million) in fees alone to nab their share of limited space on the Bitcoin block, which triggered the fourth halving event. The block included 3,050 transactions, meaning the average user paid a little under $800. Users spent $2.4 million in fees to inscribe runes and rare satoshis on the first halving block. Source: Mempool.space The record-breaking fees were attributed to the race to inscribe and etch rare satoshis on the halving block. Much of the activity stemmed from a frenzy of activity on Bitcoin Ordinals creator Casey Rodarmor’s new Runes Protocol, which went live at the same time as the halving. The previous all-time high revenue for Bitcoin miners was $78.7 million on March 11, when the Bitcoin price broke a new high of $71,415. However, the jump in revenue was directly correlated with Bitcoin’s market price as miners get rewarded in BTC in exchange for confirming transactions over the blockchain. The Bitcoin halving event on April 20 slashed mining rewards in half for the fourth time, reducing them to 3.125 BTC for every block mined until the next halving reduces them even further. Related: Where will Bitcoin’s price be at the next halving in 2028? With declining hype around Bitcoin halving, the average fees paid on Bitcoin have fallen sharply just a day after reaching a record average of $128 on April 20. Average daily transaction fee on Bitcoin over the last five years. Source: YCharts As of April 21, Bitcoin transaction fees have fallen to an average of $8–$10 for medium-priority transactions, according to mempool.space. Magazine: Get Bitcoin or die tryin’: Why hip hop stars love crypto

Revenue earned from Bitcoin (BTC) mining exceeded the $100 million mark for the first time, recording an all-time high daily earnings on Bitcoin halving day, 2024. The previous all-time high revenue for Bitcoin miners was $78.7 million on March 11, when the Bitcoin price broke a new high of $71,415. The Bitcoin halving event on April 20 slashed mining rewards in half for the fourth time, reducing them to 3.125 BTC for every block mined until the next halving reduces them even further. With declining hype around Bitcoin halving, the average fees paid on Bitcoin have fallen sharply just a day after reaching a record average of $128 on April 20. Source: YChartsAs of April 21, Bitcoin transaction fees have fallen to an average of $8–$10 for medium-priority transactions, according to mempool.space.

39% of Canada’s institutional investors have exposure to crypto: KPMG

Canada-based institutional investors significantly increased their crypto exposure last year compared to the last bull run, a survey from accounting firm KPMG has revealed. Nearly 40% of institutional investors reported having direct or indirect exposure to crypto assets in 2023 — up from 31% in KPMG’s 2021 study, the company according to an April 24 report. Source: KPMG KPMG received 65 responses, 31 of which identified as institutional investors with most managing more than $500 million in assets, while the remaining 34 were financial services organizations. The survey found that one-third of the institutional investors have allocated 10% or more of their portfolios to crypto assets — up from a fifth two years ago. Kunal Bhasin, a partner and leader at KPMG Canada’s Digital Assets practice said it “appears” the firms are looking to invest in alternative asset classes that act as a debasement hedge and a reliable store of value in the face of increasing inflation and rising debt in the United States. A large majority of investors cited a maturing market and improved custody infrastructure as key reasons behind investing in crypto assets while increased client demand for crypto asset services was cited as a key factor for financial firms expanding their offerings. Canada’s world-first approval of spot Bitcoin and Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in February 2021 helped local investors become “increasingly attracted” to the asset class, noted Kareem Sadek, another executive at KPMG’s Digital Assets practice. But the recent approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs in the United States marked a “milestone moment” for many market participants in Canada, Sadek added. Related: KPMG in Canada adds BTC and ETH to its treasury The report found that half of the institutional investors surveyed have crypto asset exposure through Canadian ETFs, close-ended trusts or other regulated products, while 58% have exposure through the stock market — such as Galaxy Digital on the Toronto Stock Exchange — up from 36% in 2021. More institutional investors are also receiving exposure through derivatives markets — now at 42% compared to 2021’s 14%. The only fall came from venture capital or hedge fund firms, falling to 25% from 2021’s 29%. Magazine: 7 ICO alternatives for blockchain fundraising: Crypto airdrops, IDOs & more

Canada-based institutional investors significantly increased their crypto exposure last year compared to the last bull run, a survey from accounting firm KPMG has revealed. Nearly 40% of institutional investors reported having direct or indirect exposure to crypto assets in 2023 — up from 31% in KPMG’s 2021 study, the company according to an April 24 report. Source: KPMGKPMG received 65 responses, 31 of which identified as institutional investors with most managing more than $500 million in assets, while the remaining 34 were financial services organizations. The survey found that one-third of the institutional investors have allocated 10% or more of their portfolios to crypto assets — up from a fifth two years ago. More institutional investors are also receiving exposure through derivatives markets — now at 42% compared to 2021’s 14%.

Ethereum client diversity improves, non-Geth clients now account for 34%

The market share of Geth — a major Ethereum execution client — has fallen from a high of 84% in late January to 66% following Coinbase’s recent move to switch around half of its validators to Nethermind, though one commentator says that the fight for decentralization is far from over. The reduced reliance on Geth helps to address a long-feared centralization risk for Ethereum, with concerns a critical bug in an execution client with a 66% or more share could stop the chain from finalizing. One commentator however, warns that the industry shouldn't decalre victory just yet though. On March 22, Coinbase Cloud revealed that “roughly 50%” of its validators switched to Nethermind, which helped bump the execution client’s share up to 22%, according to Client Diversity. Besu owns a 10% share of Ethereum validators, while Erigon — which is also being supported by Coinbase — has a 2% share, bringing the total minority client share to around 34%. Share of execution clients on Ethereum. Source: Clientdiversity.com Execution clients on Ethereum play a major role in handling transactions and executing smart contracts on the blockchain. Geth is widely regarded as the most advanced client. However, its strong preference among Ethereum validators has led to an imbalance in execution client diversity over the last few years. The fight isn’t over yet "We can’t declare victory yet,” Lachlan Feeney, founder and CEO of Ethereum infrastructure firm Labrys told Cointelegraph. Feeney claims the methodology Client Diversity uses to obtain its figures is flawed and that Geth needs to move a “decent amount below the 66% threshold to account for any margin of error before we are confident that a supermajority bug isn’t possible.” The “real victory” cannot be declared until no singular client controls greater than a 33% share, Feeney added. He emphasized the importance of solo staking in diversifying executions clients, which would also prevent those stakers from being subjected to a supermajority bug on Geth. Related: Vitalik Buterin on fix for Ethereum centralization: Make running nodes easier Ethereum decentralization advocate “Superphiz” recently voiced that a critical bug in Geth could potentially wipeout 80% or more of Ether (ETH) staked on the network. There are currently 31.5 million Ether staked, according to Beaconcha.in, which is worth about $113.5 billion at current prices. Meanwhile, Coinbase said it will continue to play its part in diversifying its own validator set to help decentralize Ethereum: “Ensuring the security of our customers’ assets and contributing to the resiliency of the Ethereum network are — and have always been — of paramount importance to us. Diversifying execution clients on our validators helps us accomplish both.” Coinbase said it intends to “evenly distribute” its validators between Geth, Nethermind and Erigon over the long term. Feeney noted that Sigma Prime, Kiln, Octant, Lido, Ankr and Twinstake have also reported a reduced reliance on Geth. Magazine: Ethereum restaking: Blockchain innovation or dangerous house of cards?

On March 22, Coinbase Cloud revealed that “roughly 50%” of its validators switched to Nethermind, which helped bump the execution client’s share up to 22%, according to Client Diversity. Besu owns a 10% share of Ethereum validators, while Erigon — which is also being supported by Coinbase — has a 2% share, bringing the total minority client share to around 34%. Share of execution clients on Ethereum. Source: Clientdiversity.comExecution clients on Ethereum play a major role in handling transactions and executing smart contracts on the blockchain. However, its strong preference among Ethereum validators has led to an imbalance in execution client diversity over the last few years.

10 days until halving: Bitcoin mining profitability won’t necessarily fall

Bitcoin mining profitability won’t necessarily fall after the upcoming Bitcoin halving, despite a 50% Bitcoin (BTC) supply issuance reduction, Laurent Benayoun, the CEO of Acheron Trading, told Cointelegraph in an interview: “In dollar terms, it’s not obvious that miners would be worse off after the halving, quite the opposite […] The decrease in mining rewards is going to be compensated by an increase in network fees.” The Bitcoin halving is set to reduce block issuance rewards from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC on April 19. Following previous halvings, smaller mining firms were forced out of business due to the decreased block rewards. However, this will be different after the 2024 halving due to the increasing network fees boosted by Ordinals inscriptions and Bitcoin-native decentralized finance, or BTCFi, Benayoun told Cointelegraph: “We’ve seen NFTs popping up on the Bitcoin blockchain, and we’ve seen a number of projects trying to build DeFi on the Bitcoin network. So all those elements are leading to an increase in network fees.” Bitcoin network fees are transaction fees paid to incentivize miners to include a transaction in the following block. FOLLOW BITCOIN HALVING COVERAGE IN FULL HERE Average Bitcoin transaction fees are currently at $4.88 per transaction, down from $16.13 per transaction a month ago, on March 5. Bitcoin transaction fees rose over 86% during the past year, according to YCharts. Bitcoin average transaction fees chart. Source: YCharts Related: BTCFi innovation to match Ethereum DeFi in the future — MerlinSwap co-founder Bitcoin mining companies would generally stay profitable if the Bitcoin price remained above the $70,000 mark, Joe Downie, the chief marketing officer of NiceHash, told Cointelegraph: “If the price stays above $70,000, most miners will continue to be profitable since, at current block rewards, they are profitable at a BTC price of over $35,000. Less than that and they likely lose money.” Bitcoin price fell 4.3% during the previous week to trade at $66,851 as of 10:22 am UTC. BTC has been trading below the $70,000 mark since April 1, according to CoinMarketCap data. BTC/USDT, 1-day chart. Source: CoinMarketCap Beyond Bitcoin’s price action, a mining firm’s profitability will depend on its mining equipment’s quality and energy efficiency. Downie explained: “[Bitcoin halvings] make a lot of older hardware less profitable due to less reward received for the work done by the machine. Newer, more energy-efficient models will continue to be profitable though, so it does not depend on the size of the mining farm, but on the type of mining equipment.” Bitcoin miner revenue recorded its second-best day in history on March 6, reaching $75.9 million a day after the Bitcoin price hit a new all-time high above $69,200. Thanks to Bitcoin’s price appreciation, combined with the increasing network fees, fewer mining firms will be forced out of business compared to past cycles, says Acheron Trading’s Benayoun: “We used to see in previous cycles in 2017 and 2021, less efficient mining operations being forced out of business. I don’t think this will be the case this time around, because of this increase in network fees.” Related: Is the Bitcoin halving the right time to invest in BTC?

So all those elements are leading to an increase in network fees.”Bitcoin network fees are transaction fees paid to incentivize miners to include a transaction in the following block. FOLLOW BITCOIN HALVING COVERAGE IN FULL HEREAverage Bitcoin transaction fees are currently at $4.88 per transaction, down from $16.13 per transaction a month ago, on March 5. Bitcoin transaction fees rose over 86% during the past year, according to YCharts. Bitcoin average transaction fees chart. Source: CoinMarketCapBeyond Bitcoin’s price action, a mining firm’s profitability will depend on its mining equipment’s quality and energy efficiency.

History of Crypto: The ICO Boom and Ethereum's Evolution

In this article, we will venture through one of the most transformative periods of crypto history, known as the initial coin offering (ICO) boom. ICOs swept onto the crypto scene in early 2017, allowing thousands of new blockchain-based projects to rapidly raise significant amounts of capital by selling pre-released tokens directly to investors. Projects issued their tokens in exchange for funding to launch new networks and decentralized applications (DApps). EXPLORE THE HISTORY OF CRYPTO What is an ICO? An ICO is a token sale that blends the initial public offering (IPO) model commonly used in the world of traditional finance with crowdfunding, selling the tokens to raise funds for a blockchain-based project. It is important to note that while the ICO boom is looked back upon as a time when projects and investors made some seriously outsized returns, it was also rife with exit scams and rug pulls, something that would later draw the watchful eye of regulators and the relevant financial authorities. The biggest ICOs of the boom Despite the ICO boom being riddled with various types of regulatory and financial turmoil, it laid the groundwork for launching some of the larger projects in crypto today including Ethereum, EOS Network (EOS) Chainlink (LINK), Filecoin (FIL), Tezos (XTZ), and Telegram (TON). The largest ICO was executed by a private company called Block.one, the creator of the EOS network. EOS raised a staggering $4 billion in 2018. The second-largest ICO was conducted by Telegram, which raised $1.7 billion. However, unlike many of the other ICOs — which were offered directly to retail investors — Telegram’s ICO was largely gated and thus limited to private investors with significant sums of capital. The decentralized storage network Filecoin is the third-largest ICO, raising over $257 million in 2017. Ethereum’s role in the ICO boom Ethereum itself was initially funded through an ICO, raising a total of $18 million between July 22 and Sept. 2, 2014. Investors in the Ethereum ICO received Ether (ETH) in exchange for Bitcoin (BTC), with more than $2.2 million worth of Ether being sold within 24 hours of the ICO going live. The vast majority of ICOs in the 2017 through 2018 period took place on the Ethereum network, with smart contracts allowing developers to spin up new tokens and launch protocols more easily than any of the other available blockchain networks. The Ethereum network allowed developers to create new ERC-20 tokens and automatically distribute them to investors once the funding threshold had been met. Then, the projects were governed by DAOs moving forward. The functionality offered by Ethereum saw the price of the network’s native token Ether rise rapidly in conjunction, skyrocketing from a price of around $10 in January 2017 to a peak of nearly $1,400 in January the following year. Similarly, the increased use of Ethereum during the ICO boom saw ERC-20 tokens become the industry standard and laid much of the groundwork for Ethereum’s continued prominence in the crypto ecosystem today. The ICO boom and legal woes Despite many projects that raised funds from ICOs using their newfound capital for the right reasons, thousands of projects were either poorly planned or downright fraudulent, relying on hype and sketchy marketing tactics with no real roadmap or legitimate plans for development. It was the gradual rise of these projects revealing themselves to be illegitimate that drew the attention of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The regulator first cottoned on to the issues associated with ICOs in 2017, following an investigation into a 2016 ICO from an organization called “The DAO,” from which the watchdog concluded that the sale in question was illegal and constituted the offering of unregistered securities. This precedent saw the SEC take legal action against Block.one — the parent company of the EOS network — ordering them to pay $24 million in fines. Similarly, the agency also ordered Telegram to pay $18.5 million in fines and return a staggering $1.2 billion to its ICO investors. Telegram was forced to abandon the project due to the native TON token being deemed a security. As the project’s codebase was open-source, the TON network was later salvaged by a community of developers. Follow the History of Crypto! Despite being on the receiving end of regulatory scrutiny, ICOs played a pivotal role in fundraising for some of the most important blockchain projects in existence today. Notably, the ICO boom laid the groundwork for Ethereum’s rise to dominance within the crypto ecosystem today, establishing ERC-20 tokens as the industry standard and significantly increasing the use of Ethereum by developers. EXPLORE THE HISTORY OF CRYPTO Look forward to the next piece in our History of Crypto series, where we will delve into the crypto winter of 2018 and look at the most important elements in the evolution of Ethereum during the same time. Follow Cointelegraph for insightful updates on the developments in crypto history.

In this article, we will venture through one of the most transformative periods of crypto history, known as the initial coin offering (ICO) boom. Ethereum’s role in the ICO boomEthereum itself was initially funded through an ICO, raising a total of $18 million between July 22 and Sept. 2, 2014. Similarly, the increased use of Ethereum during the ICO boom saw ERC-20 tokens become the industry standard and laid much of the groundwork for Ethereum’s continued prominence in the crypto ecosystem today. Similarly, the agency also ordered Telegram to pay $18.5 million in fines and return a staggering $1.2 billion to its ICO investors. Follow Cointelegraph for insightful updates on the developments in crypto history.