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Biden signs ‘terrifying’ bill giving US agencies more spying power | United States President Joe Biden has signed off on a controversial bill that expands the surveillance powers granted to U.S. government agencies, which critics worry could severely impact the privacy of American citizens.
On April 20, the U.S. Senate voted 60–34 in favor of passing legislation that reauthorizes, extends and amends Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) for an additional two years. President Biden signed it into law a day later.
Champions of the bill, including President Biden and a swathe of members from both sides of the aisle, said the bill was essential in aiding counter-terrorism efforts and preserving the national security interests of the United States.
“Allowing FISA to expire would have been dangerous. It’s an important part of our national security toolkit and helps law enforcement stop terrorist attacks, drug trafficking, and violent extremism,” said Democrat Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, speaking on the Senate floor.
The bill’s critics, however, said that the reauthorization and amendment of FISA would usher in a new era of surveillance and vastly expand spying powers afforded to government agencies, including the National Security Agency (NSA), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
In an April 20 post to X, Elizabeth Goitein, co-director of the Liberty and National Security Program at the Brennan Center for Justice, lashed out at members who voted in favor of the bill, saying they had “sold out American civil liberties.”
“The provision effectively grants the NSA access to the communications equipment of almost any U.S. business, plus huge numbers of organizations and individuals. It’s a gift to any president who may wish to spy on political enemies, journalists, ideological opponents,” wrote Goitein.
“This is a shameful moment in the history of the United States Congress.”
Related: NSA ’just days from taking over the internet’ warns Edward Snowden
Currently, U.S. agencies such as the NSA can force internet service providers such as Google and Verizon to hand over sensitive data concerning their targets.
Now that the bill has been signed into law by President Biden, the U.S. government will be able to go far beyond its current scope of surveillance and force a swathe of companies and individuals providing internet-related services to assist with surveillance.
The bill initially received strong pushback from privacy-conscious Republicans and Democrats alike but was passed through the House of Representatives on April 13. An amendment to the bill — requesting that the security agencies require a warrant for all internet-based surveillance — was also shot down by a slim margin in the House.
NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden said the reauthorization of FISA section 702 meant that America had “lost something important” and described the legislation as being unconstitutional.
On April 13, Senator Ron Wyden described the bill as one of the most “dramatic and terrifying expansions of government surveillance authority in history.”
Magazine: Creating ‘good’ AGI that won’t kill us all — Crypto’s Artificial Superintelligence Alliance |
Memes are creating a ‘Cambrian explosion’ of crypto onboarding: Base creator | Base creator Jesse Pollak believes memes will be key to onboarding millions of users to his Coinbase-adjacent layer-2 network, which has already tripled in total value locked (TVL) since March.
During a memecoin hackathon in New York on April 20, Pollak said memes are an important part of the on-chain economy, adding that he is “excited to see more based memes proliferate to help bring the world on-chain.”
“There’s been a ton of energy on Base,” said Pollak, adding:
“One thing that has really stood out to us is that we’re seeing these memes today onboard thousands and thousands of people into this new economy.”
The growth in memecoins and transactions on Base surged following the Ethereum Dencun upgrade in mid-March, which reduced fees on layer-2 networks.
As a result, Base’s TVL has surged almost 250% since the beginning of March, hitting an all-time high of $1.61 billion on April 21, according to DefiLlama.
Base TVL 2024. Source: DeFiLlama
Pollak said that aside from speculation, memecoin creators on Base have also bred countless new ways to onboard people to their communities.
“And what that’s creating is this kind of Cambrian explosion of onboarding experiments where people are taking tons and tons of shots on goal to say ‘how do we get our culture into the hands of more people.’”
“The thing we’ve built more conviction on is that in the years ahead we’re actually going to see these memes bring in millions more people [to Base] — they’re going to be one of the biggest drivers because they’re doing that work constantly to onboard more and more folks through that in a really creative way,” he added.
He added that there were “hundreds of teams and hundreds of sub-cultures” that are evolving, building, and creating, “bringing their culture and energy into this economy” and capital market.
Related: 12 Solana presale memecoins abandoned after just a month
The most popular memecoin on Base at the moment is BRETT, which has a market capitalization of $567 million and has seen a price explosion of 7,780% since the beginning of March.
Other large-cap memecoins on the Coinbase blockchain include DEGEN, with a market cap of $435 million, and TOSHI, with $185 million, according to CoinGecko.
Blockchains such as Solana and Base have become a magnet for memecoin degens in recent months due to their high throughput and low fees.
However, an in-depth investigation by Cointelegraph revealed that 16.7% of new Base memecoins were scams, and more than 90% of them have vulnerabilities.
Magazine: 1 in 6 new Base meme coins are scams, 91% have vulnerabilities |
ZKasino users fuming as $33M in promised refunds are instead sent to Lido | Blockchain-based gambling project ZKasino is being slammed on X for moving $33 million worth of investor and user funds to staking protocol Lido — a sudden change from its original plan to return the funds.
In an April 20 blog post, ZKasino announced its network had gone live. More than 10,000 users who had bridged a collective 10,515 Ether (ETH) to the network in a bid to collect more of its ZKasino (ZKAS) tokens were expecting they could get their ETH back as initially promised.
Instead, ZKasino’s post said it “made changes from our initial plan,” with all bridged ETH converted to ZKAS at a “discounted rate of $0.055” on a 15-month vesting schedule.
It claimed the changes were “done as a favour” so it could “provide a seamless transition” as its chain doesn’t use ETH. Users also noticed it had changed the wording on its website, removing a statement that said the ETH “would be returned.”
These concerns were further intensified after an on-chain transfer showing ZKasino moved all of its users’ 10,515 ETH into the staking protocol Lido.
Meanwhile, an anonymous crypto developer known as “cygaar” claims that the blockchain ZKasino released was “an Arbitrum Nitro chain that took 2 minutes to deploy” and didn’t use zero knowledge technology or EigenDA despite its claim that it would.
On X, hundreds of posts from apparent ZKasino users who pitched money toward the project are now alleging the project is an exit scam.
Some have even spread the personal information and address of ZKasino’s founder, known on X as “Derivatives Monke,” using it to call for legal action.
More controversy
Venture capital firm Big Brain has added to the controversy as well, claiming in an April 21 X post that ZKasino “appears to be fraudulent” and it “never invested in ZKasino” but was offered a pro-rata token distribution that it had not received and “will not opt to receive.”
This came after ZKasino claimed in an X post in March to have closed a Series A investment round at a $350 million valuation with backing from crypto exchange MEXC and venture firm Big Brain Holdings, among others.
Meanwhile, crypto outlet TechFlow reported on April 21 that MEXC said (translated) it was “just one of the investors” and ZKasino’s “behavior has nothing to do with us. As an investor, we are also victims.”
Related: Solana memecoin frenzy raises questions about crypto utility, reputation
ZKasino, its founder, its parent firm ZigZag Labs and MEXC did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
ZKasino has been largely mute on X through the backlash. The project posted a humdrum update about integrating EIP-3074 on X.
Derivatives Monke has replied to an X user who criticized Monke over ZKasino’s recent decision and, in another post, shared his project’s latest X post with the caption “keep building.”
Web3 Gamer: Bitcoin Halving will pump games, Shrapnel’s ‘simple’ secret revealed |
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? |
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 |
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 |
Bitcoin fees crash after record daily average of $128 on halving day | The average fees paid on Bitcoin have sharply fallen just a day after reaching a record average of $128 on April 20 — the day of the fourth Bitcoin halving.
As of April 21, Bitcoin (BTC) fees have fallen to an average of $8–$10 for medium-priority transactions, according to mempool.space.
Average daily transaction fee on Bitcoin over the last five years. Source: Y Charts
Only one day before, Bitcoin clocked $78.3 million in total fees, beating Ethereum by over 24 times, according to Crypto Fees.
The day included a staggering 37.7 BTC ($2.4 million) paid to Bitcoin miner ViaBTC in the Bitcoin halving block at block height 840,000 — making it the most sought-after piece of digital real estate in the network’s 15-year history.
Much of the demand at block 840,000 came from memecoin and nonfungible token enthusiasts competing to inscribe and etch rare satoshis via the Runes protocol, a new token standard that launched at the halving block.
3,050 transactions were included in that block, meaning the average user paid a little under $800.
Largest fees by blockchains and decentralized finance projects on April 20. Source: Crypto Fees
The higher-than-normal block fees continued until about block 840,200, according to mempool.space; however, block fees have since fallen to around 1–2 BTC.
Related: Bitcoin halving 2024: How to keep BTC mining efficient as rewards decrease
The large block fee payouts to miners throughout on halving day meant they weren’t initially impacted by the block subsidy halving from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC.
But that’s no longer the case now that the average block fee is well below 3.125.
Total fees for block 840,266 came out at 1.64 BTC. With the new block subsidy of 3.125, total rewards came out at 4.76 BTC. Source: mempool.space
Meanwhile, fees on Bitcoin have now topped Ethereum for six consecutive days between April 15 and 20, with its seven-day fee average now at $17.8 million.
The halving event didn’t have a material impact on Bitcoin’s price, which is up 1.5% since then to $64,840, according to CoinGecko.
Magazine: Get Bitcoin or die tryin’: Why hip hop stars love crypto |
‘Penny hasn’t dropped’ for Australia’s next crypto unicorns — Coinbase APAC MD | Australia is primed for its next wave of crypto “unicorns” — startups with a billion-dollar valuation — but not until there is more regulatory clarity around crypto, according to Coinbase’s APAC managing director John O’Loghlen.
“I don’t think the penny’s dropped in Canberra or on the high street in terms of just how much great human capital there is in Australia,” O’Loghlen told Cointelegraph — referring to policymakers and large institutional players.
“It’s really important that we get this clarity in legislation around digital assets so that the sector can be properly funded and give the VC community and other investors certainty around it so that we can keep building the next Illuvium or Immutable.”
While O’Logheln acknowledged there while there had been some regulatory advancements — including the Treasury’s October 2023 consultation paper and an informal regulatory meeting with policymakers at the Blockchain APAC Summit in March — he says it’s still lagging behind a huge uptick in retail and institutional demand for crypto.
According to a 2024 investor survey from Australian crypto exchange Independent Reserve, approximately 27.5% of all Australians — 7.15 million people — now own cryptocurrency. The survey found that 35% of all Australian crypto investors put around $500 per month into digital assets.
27.5% of Australians currently own crypto. Source: Independent Reserve
O’Loghlen also pointed to the growing demand for the utility of stablecoins, digital remittances, and a swathe of other capital-efficient applications of crypto in the Australian fintech industry as prime breeding grounds for the next multi-billion crypto company.
“Some of these companies are really going to be next Canva, the next Xero, the next Atlassian, or the next Afterpay,” he said, naming several multibillion-dollar valuation companies in Australia.
O’Loghlen also sees a significant increase in demand for crypto products on the retail side — with two main sectors piquing his attention.
The first is from an increase in interest in self-managed retirement funds divesting into crypto, which O’Loghlen said were considerable, despite being small relative to the size of their portfolio.
“Even if it's [0.5%] or 1% allocation, when that audience invests, the size of that investment is a considerable multiple of the [younger] cohorts, because their assets under management are significantly sized.”
The next most interesting cohort of investors coming into the market is what O’Loghlen called “HENRYs” — an internal acronym that stands for “High Earners Not Rich Yet.”
“These are working professionals who don’t have a whole lot of debt, don’t have a don’t have a large mortgage — they’ve got good earning potential and they’re really taking time to educate themselves on crypto,” he said.
Related: Australians wouldn’t value retail CBDC for its privacy or safety, RBA finds
Looking ahead, O’Loghlen revealed that Coinbase would be looking to expand its Stand with Crypto campaign to Australia later this year.
He said Coinbase plans to fly in members of its senior leadership to host several events to better help regulators and policymakers understand the potential upsides to cryptocurrency in the country.
“It’s important that people in Canberra — government representatives and policymakers — can see the real use cases for entrepreneurs and founders who are saving money and getting utility out of crypto,” he said.
O’Loghlen’s comments echo those of Kraken Australia’s MD Johnathon Miller, who told Cointelegraph that current market conditions mark an “inflection point” for crypto in Australia.
Magazine: Synthetix founder Kain Warwick: It’s DeFi that’s wrong, not the market |
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 |
Hong Kong investment firm Victory Securities reveals Bitcoin and Ether ETF fees | Hong Kong-based investment firm Victory Securities has reportedly disclosed its proposed fees to investors for Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) following the recent approval of cryptocurrency ETF products within the region.
The announcement comes even though the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has not yet published the list of approved ETF issuers.
If approved by the SFC, Victory Securities’ customers will face proposed fees for Ether and Bitcoin ETF shares in the primary market, set at 0.5% to 1% of the total transaction, with a minimum fee of $850, according to an extract of a translated report shared by Wu Blockchain on April 20.
For investors interested in buying and selling existing ETF shares on the secondary market, the fees will be 0.15% for online transactions and 0.25% for telephone transactions.
Source: Wu Blockchain
The fees are comparable to the rates set out by United States asset managers offering spot Bitcoin ETFs. While different fees in the U.S. are waived until various times this year, asset manager Franklin Templeton has set its fee at 0.19%, while other ETFs range between 0.20% and 0.90%.
The Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) imposes a notably higher fee at 1.5%.
On April 15, Cointelegraph reported that Hong Kong has become the latest country to approve spot ETFs for Bitcoin and Ether.
Related: Hong Kong spot Bitcoin ETF approval draws praise and caution from industry players
At least three offshore Chinese asset managers, including Hong Kong units of Harvest Fund Management, Bosera Asset Management and China Asset Management (ChinaAMC), plan to launch their spot Bitcoin and Ether ETFs soon.
While the approval saw praise from many in the crypto community including local Hong Kong exchanges, others were more skeptical of the ETF's success within the region.
“Mainland China investors probably won’t be eligible to buy Hong Kong-listed spot Bitcoin and Ether ETFs as they are barred from buying virtual assets,” Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas stated in an April 17 post on X.
Magazine: Get Bitcoin or die tryin’: Why hip hop stars love crypto |
Grayscale’s Mini Bitcoin ETF ‘cheap’ fees are ‘hypothetical’ — analysts | Grayscale Investments has declared its upcoming “mini” version of the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) exchange-traded fund (ETF) will be almost a tenth cheaper than the current GBTC fees, making it the most cost-effective option among the approved spot Bitcoin ETFs.
However, investors shouldn’t get their hopes up yet, according to Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas.
“This is pro-forma financials and as such hypothetical,” Balchunas explained in an April 20 post on X, arguing that while changes are possible before launch, the fees were intended to catch investors’ attention.
“The good news is they had to pick a number for this and knew ppl would be watching, and they decided on 15bps,” he wrote.
Grayscale has proposed fees for its new Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust (BTC) to be set at one-tenth of the current 1.5% fee for GBTC, according to a recent filing with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
With a suggested fee of 0.15%, it is positioning its ETF to have the lowest fees among the 11 approved spot Bitcoin ETFs introduced in January, closely followed by trillion-dollar asset manager Franklin Templeton at 0.19%.
Following behind are the Bitwise Bitcoin ETF (BITB) and VanEck Bitcoin Trust (HODL), both at 0.20%.
CEO of crypto-focused reviews portal Apollo, Thomas Fahrer, told his 42,900 X followers in an April 21 post that Grayscale “offering cheap” alternative fees was necessary to compensate for the large GBTC outflows.
“Grayscale has lost 315K BTC in outflows since launching, and they needed to plug the leak,” he said.
Related: Bitcoin halving hype breaks week-long ETFs outflow streak
This comes amid many investors withdrawing funds from the GBTC product since the launch of spot Bitcoin ETFs in January, which offer a more competitive fee for Bitcoin exposure.
Since spot Bitcoin ETFs were introduced on Jan. 11, GBTC has seen approximately $16.73 billion of outflows, as per Farside data.
Cointelegraph recently reported that the shares of the new Bitcoin trust are planned to be distributed to existing GBTC shareholders, as GBTC will also contribute an undisclosed amount of Bitcoin to the new trust.
Magazine: a16z snubs crypto, Mango Markets exploiter found guilty and Worldcoin launches blockchain network: Hodler’s Digest, April 14-20 |
Binance tax evasion trial moved to May 17 in Nigeria | The tax evasion trial in a Nigerian court involving cryptocurrency exchange Binance and two of its executives has been adjourned to May 17. This delay occurred because the exchange had not yet been formally served with the charges.
According to local news agency BusinessDay, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has not served Binance with tax evasion charges. The FIRS lawyer argued that Gambaryan should represent Binance as the primary defendant, had been served, given that both Binance and its executives were charged together.
However, Gambaryan’s lawyer, Chukwuka Ikuazom, objected, citing Nigerian law, stating he couldn’t plead until Binance, the primary defendant, was served. Judge Emeka Nwite adjourned the proceedings for May 17, when he will give a ruling.
Binance and its executives, including Tigran Gambaryan, a 39-year-old U.S. citizen serving as head of financial crime compliance, and Nadeem Anjarwalla, a 37-year-old British-Kenyan regional manager for Africa, were arrested on Feb. 28, and charged with four counts of tax evasion during a visit to Nigeria.
The arrest came after the federal government banned cryptocurrency channels as part of a campaign to curb currency speculation. The court mandated that Binance give the Nigerian government access to data and details of Nigerian traders using its platform.
The charges involve Binance’s failure to register with Nigeria’s Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) for tax remittance. Gambaryan was present in an Abuja court on Friday but did not enter a plea. However, Anjarwalla wasn’t present as he had escaped detention and left the country in March 2024.
Related: USA to forge AI partnership with Nigeria for economic growth
Apart from the tax evasion trial, Binance and its executives face charges of laundering over $35 million by Nigeria’s anti-graft agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). The trial is set to resume on May 2.
Binance, which was not represented in court and had no immediate comment, said on Thursday at the Token2049 crypto conference in Dubai, that it is working closely with Nigeria authorities following the detention of Gambaryan.
Meanwhile, a federal high court in Abuja, Nigeria, has again postponed the bail application hearing for Binance executive Tigran Gambaryan, who remains in custody at the Kuje correctional center.
However, Gambaryan is also suing the government for violating his fundamental human rights. Gambaryan’s motion claims that his detention in Nigeria and the confiscation of his passport violates the country’s constitution, which guarantees an individual’s right to personal liberty.
Magazine: US enforcement agencies are turning up the heat on crypto-related crime |
The 2024 Bitcoin halving is the “most bullish” setup for BTC price | The fourth-ever Bitcoin halving, which occurred on April 20, could give rise to the “most bullish” Bitcoin cycle, based on historical chart patterns combined with the presence of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
For the first time in crypto history, Bitcoin's (BTC) price reached a new all-time high of above $73,600 on March 13, before the halving event. Historically, Bitcoin price rallied to new highs in 518 to 546 days after previous halving events.
The pre-halving all-time high, combined with institutional inflows from the ten United States spot Bitcoin ETFs, created the “most bullish setup” for Bitcoin, according to Sukhveer Sanghera, founder and CEO of Earth Wallet. He told Cointelegraph:
“The combination of nearly all BTC having been mined, early investor via ETFs, increasing demand for inflation hedges, and increased utility — all fundamental aspects of Bitcoin’s value proposition are stronger than ever before.”
BTC/USD, 1-week chart, with halving events. Source: Rekt Capital
Bitcoin price fell 5.6% on the weekly chart, to trade above $63,600, as of 9:58 a.m. in UTC. The world’s first cryptocurrency only rose 2.85% during the past month but rallied over 50% since the beginning of 2024, TradingView data shows.
BTC/USD, YTD chart. Source: TradingView
While Bitcoin’s price action is expected to be bullish in the long term, halvings are historically preceded by short-term corrections.
Bitcoin price could see the end of the current drawdown if price manages to rise above the $65,000 resistance, according to Temujin Louie, the CEO of Wanchain. He told Cointelegraph:
“Historically, Bitcoin halvings were followed by a slump. Expect to see continued consolidation so long as support around $58,000 holds. If BTC breaks recent highs, look for a rapid increase to $80,000, $90,000, or even $100,000 as investors favor round numbers.”
Related: New Bitcoin whales, ETFs are up only 1.6% in unrealized profit — Is the BTC bottom in?
Bitcoin ETF inflows see temporary slump ahead of the halving
The past month’s lagging price action is mainly attributed to slowing Bitcoin accumulation in the ten U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs, as net inflows have turned negative on the week of the halving.
The U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs saw $398 million worth of negative net outflows during the halving week, down from over $199 million worth of net positive inflows during the previous week, according to Dune.
Bitcoin ETF net flows. Source: Dune
Despite the temporary slump, the ten Bitcoin ETFs cumulatively amassed over 835,000 BTC worth $53.5 billion, which is 4.24% of the current Bitcoin supply.
The narrative around Bitcoin’s price action remains positive, despite the temporary slump in ETF inflows, which signals new investors preparing to gain BTC exposure, according to Jonas Simanavicius, co-founder and CTO at Syntropy:
“Early adopters from large capital institutions have entered the market, and it is taking time for the next wave of institutions to prepare their inflows. While big banks predict some downward movement in BTC post-halving, I see strength in BTC due to potential new money inflows and its positioning as a hedge against inflation.
Simanavicius added that Bitcoin is increasingly viewed as a “hedge against political tensions” amid escalating global conflicts, which could bolster its status as a safe haven asset.
Related: Bitcoin supply to run out on exchanges in 9 months — Bybit |
USA to forge AI partnership with Nigeria for economic growth | The United States of America (U.S.A) and Nigeria are poised to engage in discussions on the digital economy, emerging technology, and the advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) to explore potential partnership opportunities.
During the closing ceremony of a four-day Workshop on National Artificial Intelligence Strategy in Abuja, Mr. Arthur Brown, the Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy, revealed this information. Brown stated that within two weeks, senior officials from the U.S. government would convene in Abuja for a conference organized by the U.S.-Nigeria Bi-National Commission.
Providing further details on the upcoming meeting, the deputy chief of mission said the United States aims to capitalize on the momentum generated by a four-day workshop by organizing an AI conference in Lagos.
The partnership aims to strengthen economic ties and ensure that AI deployment is safe, secure, transparent, and trustworthy. Through its diverse agencies, Brown expressed that the United States is prepared to collaborate with Nigeria as equitable partners to advance initiatives spanning talent development, infrastructure, research, and innovation.
He lauded Nigeria for endorsing a significant United Nations resolution on AI and committed to the ongoing partnership between the U.S. government and Nigeria regarding the economy.
Addressing the workshop’s conclusion, Dr. Bosun Tijani, the Minister of Communications Innovation and Digital Economy, emphasized the importance of African governments and leaders taking decisive action to support their aspirations and strategies.
According to a PricewaterhouseCoopers study, artificial Intelligence could contribute $15.7 trillion to the global economy by 2030, with approximately $3 trillion attributed to enhanced productivity and $9.1 trillion arising from novel goods and services.
Related: Mark Zuckerberg says Meta wearables that read brain signals are coming soon
Speaking on anticipated revenue generation and job creation, Tijani emphasized that rather than prioritizing revenue, Nigeria should focus on establishing effective governance for AI, recognizing it as a critical tool to enhance productivity across sectors.
In partnership with the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and the Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC), the Ministry orchestrated a four-day Artificial Intelligence workshop to craft a collaborative framework for implementing AI in the nation.
The four-day artificial intelligence workshop led to the launching of Nigeria’s first Multilingual large language model (LLM) as the country pushes forward to take a leadership position in artificial intelligence development in Africa.
In August 2023, the Nigerian government invited scientists of Nigerian heritage, as well as globally renowned experts who have worked within the Nigerian market, to collaborate in formulating its National Artificial Intelligence Strategy.
Magazine: How to get better crypto predictions from ChatGPT, Humane AI pin slammed: AI Eye |
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 |
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 |
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 |
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.
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Bitcoin halving hype breaks week-long ETFs outflow streak | Bitcoin (BTC) investments in the United States exchange-traded funds (ETFs) market recorded a net positive inflow right before the Bitcoin halving day following five consecutive days of drain.
Anticipating an increase in market value post-halving, investment strategies worldwide recommended adding Bitcoin to existing portfolios. The Bitcoin ETF market followed through with the strategy while putting an end to an outflow streak dating back to April 12.
Spot Bitcoin ETF net flows. Source: Farside
According to Farside data, the U.S. Bitcoin ETF ecosystem recorded outflows for five straight days between April 12 and 18, owing to a lack of contribution from most players. The outflows are majorly attributed to the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust ETF (GBTC), which has been shedding investments since January when the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved spot Bitcoin ETFs.
However, on April 19, five of the 10 approved ETFs recorded positive inflows that overshadowed the GBTC outflows, bringing in a total of $30.4 million to the market.
Negating cumulative outflows of $47.6 million from GBTC ($45.8 million) and Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) ($1.8 million), Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) brought in $54.8 million right before the Bitcoin halving event commenced.
Other inflow contributors include Bitwise Bitcoin ETF (BITB) at $4.9 million, ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB) at $12.5 million, Invesco Galaxy Bitcoin ETF (BTCO) at $3.9 million and Franklin Bitcoin ETF (EZBC) at $1.9 million.
Bitcoin price between two halving events. Source: TradingView
The previous Bitcoin halving took place on May 11, 2020, when the asset had a market value of roughly $8,500. However, the subsequent reduction in BTC issuance appreciated its value to roughly $65,000 in four years, according to data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView.
Related: Bitcoin mining stocks saw spikes across the board ahead of halving event
The Bitcoin block 840,000, which triggered the fourth-ever Bitcoin halving event on April 20, at 12:09 am UTC, momentarily spiked the network fees due to high demand.
Users spent $2.4 million in fees to inscribe runes and rare satoshis on the first halving block. Source: Mempool.space
As a result, Bitcoin users have spent a staggering 37.7 BTC in fees — worth just over $2.4 million at current prices — to nab their share of limited space on the fourth-ever Bitcoin halving block.
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Where will Bitcoin's price be at the next halving in 2028? | Saturday’s Bitcoin (BTC) halving has officially seen the rewards paid out to miners reduced from 6.25 Bitcoin per block to 3.125 BTC. But now, experts turn their eye to where Bitcoin could be by the next halving in 2028.
Despite miners being technically paid less for their efforts in securing the network, halving events are widely regarded by many analysts as being a precursor to significant increases in the price of Bitcoin — with the “supply shock” of new BTC hitting the market from miners being significantly reduced.
Speaking to Cointelegraph, Swyftx lead analyst Pav Hundal looked to the price action that occurred following previous halvings to predict a price increase of at least 100% by the 2028 halving, which would put Bitcoin somewhere around the $120,000 mark.
“We’ve gone from trough to peak price gains of more than 60,000% in 2013, to 12,000% in 2017, and then 2,000% in 2021,” he said.
“Our central scenario is for this trend to continue and to see a high double, or low triple digit percentage point increase in price by the next halving.”
He added that investors would be “hard-pressed” to imagine a scenario where Bitcoin would not be worth more than its current price of $60,000 by the next halving.
Offering a slightly more bullish sentiment, Henrik Andersson, the chief investment officer at Australian crypto investment firm Apollo Crypto, told Cointelegraph that he predicts a peak price of around $200,000 per Bitcoin before 2028.
Andersson said that the price action of Bitcoin would be buoyed by the wider acceptance of Bitcoin from an institutional standpoint brought by the eleven recently approved spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the United States.
Additionally, he said his fund predicts that there will be roughly $65 billion worth of net inflows into the ETFs during the current cycle.
Caroline Bowler, the CEO of BTC Markets told Cointelgraph that she was looking to external predictions from investment banking firms such as Standard Chartered which said the price of Bitcoin could reach as high as $200,000 by the end of 2025.
“In the short window of time we’ve seen with ETF involvement, there has been ongoing support for that thesis,” she said.
Kraken Australia Managing Director Jonathon Miller told Cointelegraph that while the conversation around the time of the halving naturally translates into price predictions, he sees the event as a “reminder of the progress being made towards global adoption.”
“My hope is that by the next Bitcoin halving, crypto adoption will have accelerated so far that even the most stubborn technology laggards will be learning about the halvingprocess for the first time,” Miller said.
The halving could see miners struggle
There are, however, still concerns that come with Saturday’s Bitcoin halving and the next in 2028 — the primary one being that miner rewards could be reduced to a level that makes Bitcoin mining unprofitable in the long run.
Related: 10 days until halving: Bitcoin mining profitability won’t necessarily fall
On Jan. 26, Cantor Fitzgerald released a report outlining that the price of Bitcoin would need to stay firmly above $40,000 if the majority of publicly traded Bitcoin mining companies want to stay in business for the long haul.
Bitcoin miners could struggle if BTC dips below $40k. Source: Cantor Fitzgerald
At current prices, this isn’t an issue for most miners. However, if Bitcoin were to fall below $40,000 — it could create concerns around reve
Andersson looked to an increase of alternative revenue sources for mining firms outside of pure BTC-denominated mining rewards.
He noted the increase in revenue for miners brought about by the popularity of Ordinals and other fee-generating applications such as the upcoming launch of the Runes protocol and layer-2 networks like Stacks.
Similarly, Bowler seemed unfazed by the idea that mining could become “too expensive” saying that the current concerns around mining and energy efficiency should be considered “hyperbole.”
Web3 Gamer: Bitcoin Halving will pump games, Shrapnel’s ‘simple’ secret revealed |
Bitcoin mining stocks saw spikes across the board ahead of halving event | Several Bitcoin (BTC) mining firms listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange closed the trading week with a noticeable 24-hour increase in share prices in the lead-up to the Bitcoin halving event.
On April 20, Bitcoin celebrated its fourth-ever halving event, and the date was likely firmly marked in the calendars of Bitcoin mining firms as it can significantly disrupt business operations.
The halving event slashes miner rewards in half for every block they mine. The most recent halving cut down miners' rewards from 6 BTC to 3.125 BTC per block mined.
However, stock investors were speculating about which firm might take the lead in the industry, with certain mining firms surging as much as 10% in the 24 hours prior to the halving event.
Riot Platforms (RIOT) saw the most significant growth among publicly listed Bitcoin mining firms on the April 19 trading day, with its stock price increasing by 10.13% to $9.13.
On the same day, Riot announced the launch of a new 250-acre mining facility in Corsicana, Texas.
The announcement granted Jason Les, CEO of Riot Platforms, the opportunity to ring the closing bell at the Nasdaq headquarters.
Meanwhile, Marathon Digital (MARA) closely followed with a 9.78% increase to $16.50, while Clean Spark (CLSK) saw a rise of 5.98% to $17.20.
The halving event triggers Bitcoin miners to change up their operational strategies if they want to maintain the same profit margins.
Bitcoin miners who stick with using the same energy and resources to mine Bitcoin will potentially see diminished profits.
This leaves miners with two options, either expand operations to produce the same level of top-line revenue or cease operations altogether.
Hut 8 CEO Asher Gennot recently explained that several Bitcoin mining firms went bankrupt in 2022 due to being overleveraged and unprepared for rising energy costs.
Although major Bitcoin miners have recently been acquiring significant amounts of new equipment in preparation for the event.
Related: Marathon Digital Holdings launches direct Bitcoin transaction submission service
Marathon Digital recently announced its plans to acquire a 200-megawatt (MW) Bitcoin mining facility in Texas for $87.3 million.
Meanwhile, in December 2023, competitor Bitcoin mining firm Riot Platforms purchased 66,560 mining rigs from manufacturer MicroBT in one of the largest expansions of hash rate in the firm's history.
Overall, the S&P 500 — the index that tracks the 500-largest public companies in the United States — experienced another 0.88% 24-hour decrease before the close of the trading week, marking a 3.54% decline over the past five trading days, as per Google Finance data.
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Bitcoin users spend record $2.4M in fees on halving block | Bitcoin users have spent a staggering 37.7 Bitcoin (BTC) in fees — worth just over $2.4 million at current prices — to nab their share of limited space on the fourth-ever Bitcoin halving block.
At 12:09 m UTC on April 20, Bitcoin miner ViaBTC produced the 840,000th block, triggering the automated protocol that cuts miner rewards by 50% from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC per block.
Block 840,000 rapidly became the most sought-after piece of digital real estate in Bitcoin’s history with users dropping a total of 37.67 BTC on fees, according to data from Bitcoin block explorer mempool.space.
Including the miner subsidy of 3.125 BTC, a total of 40.7 BTC — worth $2.6 million — was paid to Bitcoin miner ViaBTC for producing the halving block.
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 degens racing to inscribe and etch rare satoshis on the halving block — with much of the activity stemming from a frenzy of activity on Bitcoin Ordinals creator Casey Rodmarmor’s new Runes Protocol which went live at the same time as the halving.
Runes have been marketed as a more efficient way to create new tokens on the Bitcoin network when compared to the BRC-20 token standard — an Ordinals-based method for creating Bitcoin-based tokens.
Much like BRC-20s, Runes leverages the Bitcoin network and pays fees in Bitcoin to create new tokens. However, the similarities end there. The major difference between Runes and BRC-20s is that Runes utilizes an Unspent Transaction Output (UTXO) model to "etch" new tokens on Bitcoin. This stands in contrast to the "inscription" account model used by Ordinals, according to a protocol explainer from Rodarmor.
In an April 20 post to X, pseudonymous Ordinals developer Leonidas claimed that the fees on the five most recent Bitcoin blocks following block 840,000 had surpassed the Coinbase reward.
“Runes degens have single-handedly offset the drop in miner rewards from the halving,” wrote Leonidas.
A total of $3.82 million in fees — excluding miner subsidies — was spent on the five blocks following the halving, according to aggregated data from mempool.space.
Related: Bitcoin halving 2024: How to keep BTC mining efficient as rewards decrease
Outside of the battle to inscribe one of the first Runes, Bitcoin mining pools were also vying to grab what’s known as an “epic” satoshi. An epic satoshi is the very first satoshi — the smallest possible denomination of Bitcoin — mined on the halving block.
On April 15, Trevor Owens, the managing partner at The Bitcoin Frontier Fund wrote that he was willing to put up a bounty of between $500,000 and $1 million to “buy out” the first Bitcoin block.
Crypto X reacts to the Bitcoin halving
Amid the chaos, pseudonymous trader Hsaka posted a meme that summed up much of the wider sentiment towards the halving event — a brief moment of celebration followed by an immediate return to business as usual.
Source: HsakaTrades
Outspoken Bitcoin critic Peter Schiff also took to X to throw some shade at Bitcoiners amid the halving event.
“I think halving is an appropriate name for what's happening as soon Bitcoin HODLers will experience a halving of their net worths,” said Schiff.
Web3 Gamer: Bitcoin Halving will pump games, Shrapnel’s ‘simple’ secret revealed |
Bitcoin halving 2024 — Done and dusted! | Bitcoin successfully went through its fourth halving event after its 840,000th block was mined. The event slashes mining rewards in half.
The event has the crypto community eagerly awaiting what’s next for the Bitcoin (BTC) price, with some predictions reaching as high as $250,000.
At the time of publication, Bitcoin’s price is $63,960, up 1.16% over the past 24 hours, according to CoinMarketCap data.
From today onwards, Bitcoin miners will receive 3.125 BTC per mined block, down from the previous 6.25 BTC.
The halving is a programmed process in the Bitcoin protocol that happens every 210,000 blocks mined, which is roughly every four years.
The last three halvings occurred in 2012, 2016 and 2020, leading to significant drops in mining rewards over time. The first Bitcoin halving occurred in 2012 when the reward for mining a block was reduced from 50 to 25 BTC.
The primary purpose behind the Bitcoin halving is to ensure scarcity and reduce Bitcoin’s inflation rate over time. Bitcoin’s pseudonymous founder, Satoshi Nakamoto, built the mechanism into the code.
Cutting mining rewards in half slows the rate at which new Bitcoin is created.
The halvings will continue until roughly 2140, when all Bitcoin is mined.
Major Bitcoin miners have been getting ready for the event. Marathon Digital recently announced its plans to acquire a 200-megawatt Bitcoin mining facility in Texas for $87.3 million.
Meanwhile, in December 2023, competitor Bitcoin mining firm Riot Platforms purchased 66,560 mining rigs from manufacturer MicroBT in one of the largest expansions of hash rate in the firm’s history.
Related: Bitcoin halving supply shock set to shake up mining sector
M2 CEO Stefan Kimmel told Cointelegraph:
The Bitcoin halving is a pivotal event that historically signals a shift in the market, usually initiating a bullish trend over the following months. As we approached the fourth halving, the anticipation built, suggesting a continued — if slightly more subdued — upward trajectory.
Despite short-term predictions of price volatility within the crypto community, there remains optimism about the long-term potential of Bitcoin’s price.
Speaking to Cointelegraph, billionaire investor Tim Draper believes that the halving is going to help push Bitcoin’s price up to “$250,000 or more,” a forecast he has consistently proclaimed, particularly in 2022.
“The simple reason that Bitcoin price goes up after the halving is that the supply goes down, and with continued upward pressure on demand, the price goes up naturally in a free market.”
Meanwhile, Herbert Sim, aka “Bitcoin Man,” told Cointelegraph that there are currently other elements at play when speculating over Bitcoin’s price.
“Halving is not the only thing to look out for in the price action,” he declared, indicating that the recent approval of the Bitcoin ETF in Hong Kong will also potentially have a major price impact.
“The big banks of China will all have to start buying Bitcoin themselves too,” Sim stated.
Magazine: Get Bitcoin or die tryin’: Why hip hop stars love crypto |
Here’s where you can catch the Bitcoin halving live | Update (20/04/2024 12:11 UTC): Bitcoin has successfully gone through its fourth-ever halving event.
Bitcoin (BTC) is now just moments away from its fourth-ever halving event since its inception — due to happen on April 20 when Bitcoin’s block height reaches 840,000.
From crypto exchanges to influencers and popular podcasters, live streams and physical events are popping up worldwide, where Bitcoiners are set to celebrate the momentous occasion that many hope will lead to the next crypto bull run.
The event marks the moment when Bitcoin miners’ block issuance rewards are cut in half from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC per block — a mechanism designed to permanently reduce Bitcoin’s inflation rate until it reaches a maximum supply of 21 billion Bitcoin.
Bitcoin halving livestreams
If you’re after an event giving you a look back at the past four-year cycle with a bunch of Bitcoiners then head on over to BITC0IN’s Discord and YouTube channel, which has 68,700 subscribers.
The team will be passing around the virtual microphone to various Bitcoiners. Anyone can speak at the event, and there’ll even be games of poker running simultaneously, as per a recent statement from several “Bitcoin volunteers” on Reddit.
Crypto traders are also hosting private online parties if you’re brave enough to slide in the DMs for an invite, including professional trader Oliver Velez, who declared he is kicking off his private online Bitcoin halving with 2,000 guests just 6 blocks before the 840,000 block is mined, which is roughly an hour before the halving occurs.
If you can’t manage to get into that, then crypto exchange Kraken has loads of well-known Bitcoiners jumping on its Bitcoin Halving livestream, including Dave Portnoy, Jack Mallers, Dylan LeClair, Anthony Pompliano, and Pete Rizzo.
Philippines Bitcoin payments app Pouch is also hosting an online halving party event, encouraging Bitcoiners to invite their mates to be “orange-pilled.”
And, of course, Cointelegraph has its own countdown on the homepage for those who enjoy a simpler approach.
For those wanting to have the satisfaction of witnessing the 840,000th block being mined, and don’t mind constantly refreshing the page, you can visit one of the blockchain explorer websites such as BTCScan or Blockstream.
There are even a few physical halving parties scattered around the world, including one in Switzerland, hosted by the founder of Swiss crypto broker Bitcoin Suisse, and another in Brisbane, Australia, which is being sponsored by Binance.
What will happen after the Bitcoin halving?
Not a lot, at least immediately, according to analysts,
Crypto.com’s general manager for Asia and the Pacific, as well as the Middle East and Africa, Karl Mohan explained that the event probably won't have an instant impact on Bitcoin the same day, and investors should adopt a broader perspective, at least until toward the end of this year:
“It is unlikely for it to have immediate direct impact from day one, but over the next six months we do believe this will create bullish foundations for Bitcoin; we’ve seen it in the past cycles, and we believe this cycle is going to play out the same way.”
Other analysts note that investors shouldn’t fret over short-term Bitcoin (BTC) volatility and instead focus on the bigger picture.
“I always recommend zooming out with Bitcoin’s price and investing with a long-term view.” Coin Stories host Natalie Brunell told Cointelegraph in the days leading up to the halving.
“There’s usually increased speculation around these times, which can lead to volatile price swings both before and after the halving,” she added.
Bitcoin has been trading between $71,069 and $59,698 over the past seven days. Source: CoinMarketCap
Following the last halving in May 2020, Bitcoin’s price experienced a 5% dip one month afterward, only to surge by 180% by year’s end, as per CoinMarketCap data.
Crypto leaders expect many Bitcoin holders to sell a portion of their holdings after the Bitcoin halving.
Collective Shift CEO Ben Simpson anticipates “another sell-off” after the Bitcoin halving, similar to “when the Bitcoin ETF was announced” in January this year.
Within just 11 days of the approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs, the price of Bitcoin plummeted by nearly 15%.
“It was a buy the rumor, sell the news event,” Simpson explained, forecasting that he expects “the same thing to happen here.”
Related: Crypto market ‘underestimates the long-term impact’ of Bitcoin halving: Bitwise
Mohan echoed a similar sentiment that historical data suggests the halving event tends to follow a “buy the rumor, sell the news” pattern.
“Price sensitivity in the short term is going to go through a consolidation phase, again something that we’ve seen in the past cycles. It’s a pattern and trend that is clearly available,” Mohan told Cointelegraph.
In comments to Cointelegraph, Bitget’s managing director Gracy Chen explained that the Bitcoin halving differs significantly in “several key ways” from previous halvings due to how much the market has developed since the last cycle.
“Evolving regulatory landscapes and technological advancements further differentiate this cycle. Additionally, favorable global economic conditions and the recent spot Bitcoin ETFs offer greater market sentiment,” Chen said.
Chen anticipates Bitcoin reaching a six-figure price tag, possibly as early as next year.
“Looking ahead, post-2024, Bitcoin is poised to surpass US$100,000, buoyed by enhanced regulatory frameworks, technological innovations, and favorable macroeconomic conditions,” she stated.
Magazine: China will intensify Bitcoin bull run, $1M by 2028: Bitcoin Man, X Hall of Flame |
Crypto users propose dropping lawsuit against Sam Bankman-Fried to pursue FTX influencers | A group of cryptocurrency users has reached an agreement with former FTX CEO Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried as part of a class-action lawsuit filed in Florida.
In an April 19 filing in United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida, plaintiffs who sued FTX influencers in 2022 announced they had reached a settlement with Bankman-Fried. According to the filing, the plaintiffs recognized the expense and length of proceedings should they continue to pursue judgment against SBF, opting to use some of the information presented at his criminal trial to continue their case against FTX promoters.
“[Bankman-Fried] has knowledge and other information that Class Representatives and Class Counsel believe will be valuable to Class Representatives’ cases against other defendants in the FTX MDL [multidistrict litigation], particularly relating to the underlying actions and their connection to Miami, Florida, where FTX’s U.S. headquarters were based, as well as each MDL Defendants’ knowledge of and assistance with the actions and connections to other states in which jurisdictions over those Defendants is asserted,” said the April 19 filing.
Source: PACER
Subject to court approval, the settlement would resolve the lawsuit between SBF and crypto users seeking recourse for losses during the fall of FTX. The filing suggested that the plaintiffs proposed the settlement on March 28 — the day a judge sentenced Bankman-Fried to 25 years in prison for his conviction on felony felony charges.
The plaintiffs in the lawsuit proposed that Bankman-Fried assist in prosecuting FTX influencers and aid in victim recovery through documents and testimony provided during his criminal trial. The lawyers specifically cited information related to celebrities and companies responsible for endorsing the crypto exchange before its downfall, including sports stars Naomi Osaka, Tom Brady, Stephen Curry and Shaquille O’Neal.
Related: Crypto lawyer wants to depose Changpeng Zhao for civil case
The lawsuit, first filed in November 2022, shortly after FTX filed for bankruptcy, was consolidated into its present form in June 2023. The Moskowitz Law Firm, behind many crypto-based class-action lawsuits, represented the plaintiffs.
Bankman-Fried’s lawyers filed notice to appeal the former FTX CEO’s conviction and sentence on April 11. They also requested SBF remain at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn rather than a federal prison in the San Francisco Bay Area to assist in his defense.
Magazine: ‘Less flashy’ Mashinsky set for less jail time than SBF: Inner City Press, X Hall of Flame |
IRS releases draft of 2025 digital asset reporting form for US taxpayers | The United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the country’s tax service, has released a draft of its new Form 1099-DA “Digital Asset Proceeds from Broker Transactions” for reporting income from digital asset transactions. The form is expected to come into use in 2025 for reporting in 2026.
A broker will prepare Form 1099-DA for every customer who sells or exchanges digital assets. Brokers include kiosk operators, digital asset payment processors, hosted wallet providers, unhosted wallet providers and others, per the form. Copies of the 1099-DA will be sent to customers and the IRS, which will use them for verification purposes.
The 2025 draft 1099-DA IRS reporting form. Source: IRS.gov
The form asks for token codes, wallet addresses, and blockchain transaction locations. Under the rule proposed in August 2023, cryptocurrencies, nonfungible tokens and stablecoins are reportable. The rule stated:
“With third party information reporting that specifically identifies digital asset transactions, the IRS could more easily identify taxpayers with digital asset transactions that are otherwise difficult to discover.”
The crypto community weighed in on the proposed reporting requirements after they were announced. The Blockchain Association said the rule contains “fundamental misunderstandings about the nature of digital assets and decentralized technology.”
Coinbase chief legal officer Paul Grewal said the proposed rules would set a “dangerous precedent for surveillance of the everyday financial activities of consumers by requiring nearly every digital asset transaction — even the purchase of a cup of coffee — to be reported.”
Commenters were no happier with the reporting rules for 2024.
Related: Study claims 99.5% of crypto investors did not pay taxes in 2022
Tax experts have also posted their comments on the web. According to crypto tax and accounting service Ledgible, reporting decentralized finance, where there may not be an intermediary to fulfill the reporting requirements, will be especially challenged by the new rule. It could also significantly increase brokers’ administrative burden, as many process very large numbers of transactions.
Source: Peter Van Valkenburgh
In addition, brokers will be forced to exchange information on digital asset transfers to determine the cost basis (initial value or purchase price) accurately, according to Gordon Law. They have no mechanism in place for such data sharing. Furthermore, there is no way to differentiate between self-transfers and taxable transfers if a crypto owner transfers assets between exchanges.
Taxpayers who underreported their crypto income in previous years may be caught when they report their taxes in 2025. Users of foreign exchanges that formally do not serve U.S. citizens will not submit the form, but the IRS may be able to detect the offshore activity if the taxpayer transfers assets to a U.S. exchange.
The IRS is continuing to accept comments on the draft form.
Magazine: Crazy outcomes when current laws applied to NFTs and the metaverse |
Here’s how crypto game Notcoin onboarded over 30M users — founder | The viral clicker game Notcoin “just solved the issue” of bringing Telegram users into crypto, according to Sasha Plotvinov, founder of Open Builders, the team behind the game.
In January, the crypto game broke records by having 20 million sign-ups within 26 days of its release. Compared to another popular blockchain-based game called Axie Infinity, which had 2.78 million monthly active users at its peak in 2022, Notcoin showed that it’s possible to onboard millions of users into crypto through gaming.
Reporter Ezra Reguerra with Notcoin’s Sasha Plotvinov at the Token2049 event. Source: Cointelegraph
In a Cointelegraph interview at the Token2049 event, Plotvinov shared the story behind the game, which hit about 30 million users in March. The executive said the original goal was to just introduce crypto to users of the Telegram messaging app. He explained:
“It just solved the issue. Or maybe, the task that we all had on how to bring users from Telegram to crypto. So basically, that was the original goal.”
The executive explained that his team spent years looking at Telegram’s massive user base and the TON blockchain, which had “almost zero action but had really good technology.”
After going through the process, the team decided to go with the approach of simplifying the start of the onboarding process. Plotvinov explained:
“At some point you just, you know, come to the idea. All right. So we just need to remove all the roadblocks for the beginning. Then, we need to give something to users so they have the motivation to go for all this Web3.”
The Notcoin co-creator said it became a very “social thing,” with interactions, competitions, leaderboards and squads. “It’s very, very important for such a game. And within Telegram, it’s really easy to basically onboard users, invite users,” he added.
Related: New Telegram mini-apps will be so convenient users won’t know it’s crypto
Plotvinov said this was how the game became a social phenomenon, explaining that 53,000 communities competed with each other in an attempt to climb to the highest league.
The executive also explained that the team did not have a marketing budget. Everything happened “organically,” he explained, adding:
“94% of Notcoiners came from referrals. People invited other people. We call them friends. You have friends, you just invite them and you play together, and you can see how they’re progressing.”
Plotvinov also explained that the Notcoin project moved on from the common approach where projects attempted to convince users that it had value. “We just decided, all right, so why not reverse it and think more like ‘we’re not trying to convince you, it’s probably nothing,’ you know?”
Magazine: Web3 Gamer: Gods Unchained app drops crypto, Kings of Fighters Arena review |
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 |
Institutional adoption in blockchain and crypto at its highest point, says Blockdaemon strategist | Blockdaemon’s Barnaby Hodgkins recently sounded off on the future of the blockchain/cryptocurrency sector at the Token2049 event on April 20 in Dubai.
Despite a freak storm delivering the most rainfall the United Arab Emirates has seen in some 75 years, attendees were able to brave the weather.
Hodgkins, Blockdaemon’s Senior Manager of Growth Strategy, sat down with Cointelegraph’s Ezra Reguerra to discuss the current state of the industry as well as what to expect going forward.
As to the current state of the industry, Hodgkins says there’s still room for growth:
“I would probably say that institutional adoption in the space is at its highest point it's ever been, but I wouldn't mistake that with saying that there's loads of institutional adoption.”
He expanded, adding that there was work yet to be done, “It's the highest it's ever been and as a result there's a lot of reason to be bullish around what's happening.”
Hodgkins cited the launch of the first Bitcoin spot ETFs in January and their ensuing adoption rates as bullish indicators. But there appears to be plenty of runway left for adoption:
“When it comes to wide scale adoption in institutions across the spectrum of institutions, from asset managers to pension funds, to hedge funds, to sovereign wealth funds, I think we're still very much at the foot of the hill.”
Blockdaemon, and by extension its growth manager, Hodgkins, are well positioned to garner a bird’s eye view of the blockchain industry. The company, according to Hodgkins, is “the world's leading Blockchain infrastructure provider.”
Its services span “the entire spectrum of infrastructure needs from dedicated node access, API access ability, to run validators and staking rewards, all the way through to MPC wallet technology.”
Hodgkins says the next few cycles could produce even more industry-changing events. “What we might see in the near future is, potentially, an Ethereum ETF,” he told Cointelegraph, adding that the myriad use cases for blockchain and cryptocurrency technology could lead to mass adoption by industries such as the automotive and transportation sectors.
Related: What are memecoins good for? Social signaling, says Avalanche founder |
ETH restaking drives DeFi TVL to $100B, Solana releases patch for network congestion: Finance Redefined | Welcome to Finance Redefined, your weekly dose of essential decentralized finance (DeFi) insights — a newsletter crafted to bring you the most significant developments from the past week.
The rise of total value locked (TVL) in DeFi protocols above $100 million was aided by the Ethereum liquid restaking in the first quarter of 2024. Protocols such as Lido and EigenLayer are behind the DeFi TVL resurgence.
Solana developers released a patch for the prolonged network congestion on the blockchain on April 15. They promised more patches in the near future to ensure the network returns to normalcy.
Ethereum liquid restaking drove DeFi TVL to $100 billion in first quarter
Decentralized finance TVL almost doubled in the first three months of this year compared to the previous quarter, partially driven by Ethereum liquid restaking initiatives, according to recent research.
DeFi TVL surged from a Q4 2023 low of $36 billion to peak at almost $97 billion in the first quarter of 2024, according to DefiLlama. Since the beginning of the year, it has increased by 81%, reaching a two-year high of $98 billion last week.
Continue reading
Avalanche home loan tokenization protocol raises $10 million in Series A funding
Homium, a home equity line of credit (HELOC) tokenization protocol built on Avalanche, has raised $10 million in a Series A funding round led by Sorenson Impact Group and Blizzard.
“Through shared appreciation home equity loans, Homium introduces a way for homeowners to borrow against their home equity without increasing their monthly debt burden,” wrote Avalanche in an April 15 announcement.
Continue reading
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 network congestion and issues with the open interest jump.
Continue reading
Crypto sleuth warns of scammers behind DeFi protocol
Pseudonymous blockchain investigator ZachXBT warned about a group of scammers attempting to entrap more victims in a new fraud using millions of stolen funds.
In a thread on X, ZachXBT disclosed the findings of an investigation over Leaper Finance, a lending protocol based on Blast. According to the analysis, the group is behind several rug pulls, including those that hit users of Magnate ($6.5 million), Kokomo ($4 million), Solfire ($4.8 million) and Lendora.
Continue reading
DeFi market overview
Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView shows that DeFi’s top 100 tokens by market capitalization had a bearish week, with most trading in the red on the weekly charts. The total value locked in DeFi protocols fell below $90 billion.
Thanks for reading our summary of this week’s most impactful DeFi developments. Join us next Friday for more stories, insights and education regarding this dynamically advancing space. |
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 |
New Telegram mini-apps will be so convenient users won’t know it’s crypto | Telegram’s 900 million users will be able to make peer-to-peer interactions seamlessly as the messaging app incorporates mini-apps and the Tether (USDT) stablecoins. Many users will interface with crypto for the first time and not even notice it.
Developers will also benefit as they launch ecommerce, paywalled content, games and other business activities on top of The Open Network’s (TON’s) layer-1 blockchain more smoothly thanks to the stablecoin, TON Foundation director of investments Justin Hyun told Cointelegraph’s Ezra Reguerra at the Token2049 conference in Dubai. Telegram is also continuing the rollout of its TON-based wallet.
The launch of Tether on TON “really unlocks the creator economy that is already happening in TON and Telegram” as users “no longer need to jump through the barriers of having to acquire a different type of crypto or token,” Hyun said. He added:
“The most interesting use cases are the ones that engage in social viral mechanics. So there are games that are being created on a daily basis that are powered through Telegram mini-apps.”
Those products will be available without downloading outside apps. The advantages of that are clear. Hyun gave the Catizen game as an example. When the developers came to TON from a different blockchain, they gained 2 million users in two months, compared to 600,000 in a year and a half previously.
Related: Telegram commits to TON blockchain, plans to support tokenized emojis and stickers NFTs
Other social media are highly regionalized. “We have seen the rise of super apps which were not able to break through the barriers,” Hyun said, pointing to WeChat in China, Line in Japan and KakaoTalk in South Korea. TON’s global reach and native USDT remove the need for local payment gateways. Tether also makes it possible for Telegram to circumvent the payment restrictions imposed by Google and Apple.
Source: TON
TON is thus returning to the original vision that was scuttled by the inability of The Open Network to hold an initial coin offering in 2020 due to United States Securities and Exchange Commission’s opposition, Hyun said. The TON Foundation was created in 2021 by open-source developers who took over the project.
Magazine: Shanghai Man: Hack of little-known Poly Network highlights East-West crypto divide |
Binance launches ‘Megadrop’ early access program for Web3 rewards | Cryptocurrency exchange Binance recently launched an early access incentive and rewards program for Web3 users featuring airdrops and quests.
Dubbed “Megadrop,” the new program is a token launch platform where users “can subscribe BNB to Locked Products and/or complete tasks in their Web3 Wallet for early access to rewards from selected Web3 projects before their tokens are listed on the Binance Exchange,” according to a Binance blog post.
Essentially, Megadrop will function as a loyalty and rewards program with incentives for participation. Users who sign up for the platform will be given the opportunity to stake Binance’s BNB (BNB) token prior to the launch of projects on the platform.
Users will also have access to quests. The blog post didn’t specify how quests will work, but they’ll likely involve performing engagement tasks such as watching educational videos about Web3 products or signing up for mailing lists.
While similar platforms exist throughout the industry — Coinbase Earn, for example — Binance’s Megadrop appears to separate itself from the herd with a few key differences.
While typical learn-to-earn and staking services tend to be periodic or one-offs, Binance is incentivizing users to engage in long-term participation with an early access platform.
According to the blog post, Megadrop rewards increase as users participate in more events and for longer periods of time:
“Longer subscriptions yield higher scores. […] Users will receive a Web3 Quest Bonus and a Web3 Quest Multiplier when they complete all the designated Web3 Quests with the minimum requirements specified.”
The new platform’s launch comes as the company moves on after paying $4.3 billion in fines and restitution as part of a plea deal with the United States government after the company’s former CEO, Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, pleaded guilty to running afoul of Anti-Money Laundering laws.
Related: Binance’s US settlement was a ‘turning page,’ says exec
CZ is currently slated for sentencing in the U.S. on April 30 after being found guilty of money laundering. Despite the former executive’s current predicament, Binance co-founder He Yi says CZ is in “a positive situation.”
According to analysts, CZ faces anywhere from 12 months to 10 years in federal prison. |
History of Crypto: The future of crypto exchanges, regulatory battles, and governance | Welcome to the History of Crypto, a Cointelegraph series that brings readers back to the most significant events in the crypto space. Powered by Phemex, the timeline allows crypto community members to explore and look back at the important events that shaped the industry into what it is today.
This article explores the period following November 2022, when the FTX exchange collapsed, giving rise to one of the most notorious crypto winters in the history of digital assets.
The period after the collapse of the FTX exchange is known as one of the darkest times in crypto history.
The downfall of FTX and its over 130 subsidiaries catalyzed a chain reaction of bankruptcies and layoffs among Web3 firms, giving rise to one of the longest crypto winters, that saw Bitcoin's (BTC) price bottom out at $16,000.
EXPLORE THE HISTORY OF CRYPTO
Following the bankruptcy that caused a $8.9 billion loss of investor funds, regulators were forced to take action and develop more investor safety-oriented frameworks emphasizing transparency for crypto exchanges and service providers.
United States regulators issued some of the most significant criminal fines in history to Binance despite no evidence of user fund misappropriation. They also fined smaller exchanges in a hawkish effort to prevent potential FTX-like meltdowns.
Explore the History of Crypto. Source: History of Crypto
How did FTX collapse?
The now-infamous FTX exchange collapsed nearly on and a half years ago, sending shockwaves across global crypto markets and wiping out tens of billions of value within a few days.
In essence, FTX collapsed due to user fund misappropriation, which resulted in billions worth of trading losses for its sister company, Alameda Research. The quantitative trading firm used FTX customer funds that Bankman-Fried transferred without consent to fund Alameda’s trading losses, now referred to as the Alameda gap.
Before getting its quantitative trading protocol from Gary Wang, Alameda lost over $500,000 every day throughout an awful month, claimed Michael Lewis in his biography about Bankman-Fried.
The user fund misappropriation started to unravel in November 2022 when it was revealed that a large portion of Alameda’s balance sheet was made up of FTX’s FTT token.
The revelation led to a large sell-off, which caused the FTT token price to plummet, raising widespread concerns about the financial health of FTX and Alameda Research. This led to mass customer withdrawals of up to $6 billion within three days. FTX could not meet the withdrawals as it was forced to suspend them.
FTX filed for bankruptcy on Nov. 11, 2022. Bankman-Fried was arrested in the Bahamas on Dec. 12, 2022, after United States prosecutors filed criminal charges against him. He was extradited to the U.S. in January 2023. Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison on March 28, 2024.
100 Years in Jail?! SBF Trial Verdict Explained. Source: Cointelegraph
Related: Alameda Research FTT token transfer from September fuels wild speculations
The regulatory crackdown after the FTX collapse
The collapse of the FTX exchange triggered a hawkish response from the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which started a broader crackdown on crypto exchanges to avoid another potential FTX-like meltdown.
In June 2023, the SEC sued Coinbase and Binance Exchange for alleged securities violations. In the lawsuit against Binance, the SEC alleged that the company and its founder, Changpeng Zhao, had misappropriated billions of user funds.
EXPLORE THE HISTORY OF CRYPTO
Despite no evidence of user fund misappropriation, Binance was charged with violating Anti-Money Laundering laws and settled to pay one of the most significant criminal fines in history worth $4.3 billion.
As for the Coinbase lawsuit, the SEC claimed that the exchange operates as an unregistered exchange, broker, and clearing agency and violated securities laws by listing 13 tokens it alleged were securities, according to the lawsuit filed in June 2023.
Coinbase sought an order to drop the case, questioning the SEC’s authority over crypto exchanges. The exchange’s motion to drop the legal case was dismissed on March 27, allowing the SEC to proceed with its lawsuit against Coinbase.
How the U.S. SEC is waging an undeclared war on crypto. Source: Cointelegraph
The immediate regulatory response focused on prosecutions and enforcement rather than implementing blockchain-specific regulations, according to Ashar Burney, the legal head of TDeFi, who told Cointelegraph:
“This approach reflects a broader trend where regulators address fraudulent activities within the crypto space through existing legal frameworks, emphasizing enforcement against criminal behavior rather than introducing new regulations specific to blockchain technologies.”
Burney added that the FTX collapse was primarily a “case of criminal fraud,” not a lack of regulatory frameworks.
Related: Paradigm leads $225M funding round for new ‘Solana killer’ L1
How the regulatory landscape evolved post-FTX
Following the FTX collapse, crypto exchanges have started striving for more transparency, spearheaded by Binance, the world’s largest exchange.
By the end of November 2022, Binance launched its Proof-of-Reserves (PoR) system, which shows the amount of underlying assets the exchange holds on behalf of users. This third-party audit aims to show users that the exchange can meet any potential withdrawal requests. Binance’s main assets were overcollateralized by at least 102% as of April 12, according to its PoR page.
Following Binance’s push for transparency, other top exchanges have followed suit, including Coinbase, OKX, Crypto.com, Kraken, and Bybit.
How CZ built Binance and became the richest person in crypto | Crypto Stories Ep. 16. Source: Cointelegraph
Despite the new PoR audit systems, investors still need to conduct due diligence as FTX had also performed numerous financial audits that didn’t uncover the fraud, according to TDeFi’s legal head, Burney, who told Cointelegraph:
“SBF's firm underwent multiple audits by reputable auditing firms, demonstrating the complexity of identifying fraudulent behavior even with established compliance measures. Overall, investors' safety is not significantly different, especially considering that the crypto industry experiences lower fraud rates compared to traditional fintech and investment sectors.”
Beyond the transparency efforts of crypto exchanges, governments worldwide have also taken a more collaborative approach to regulating the nascent crypto industry, according to James Wo, the founder and CEO of DFG, who told Cointelegraph:
“Although countries have different stances with some being more crypto-friendly than others, they all work towards the same goal of providing a framework that prevents Anti Money Laundering (AML) with ample Know Your Client (KYC) processes in countries that do not outright ban it.”
In May 2023, the European Council adopted the first comprehensive legal framework for the crypto industry. The Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) framework aims to protect investors through more rigorous transparency standards and AML rules.
EXPLORE THE HISTORY OF CRYPTO
Thanks to the new MiCA bill, crypto exchanges will become fully regulated entities from the end of 2024, Vyara Savova, senior policy lead at the European Crypto Initiative, told Cointelegraph:
“2024 is the year of MiCA, and the whole EU will now have a comprehensive legal framework for crypto-assets, crypto-asset services, and crypto-asset service providers (also known as CASPs). Crypto exchanges are a type of CASP under MiCA and will become fully regulated in December 2024. “
While MiCA is a significant step for the global regulatory landscape and investor safety, its efficiency will depend on the member state implementations for each country, explained Savova:
“An important aspect that is often overlooked is the role of member state laws in applying this regulation, as these laws will create the supervisory framework in the respective country.”
Hong Kong and Dubai have also introduced crypto regulations that favor innovation in an effort to become known as global crypto hubs. Yet, the most regulatory sign came in January 2024, with the approval of the spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
Related: TradFi Wall Street firms pushing for Ether ETF approval, says former Binance Labs head
Bitcoin ETFs signal an innovation-friendly approach, but investors are not necessarily safer
After months of regulatory battles, the ten spot Bitcoin ETFs were approved by the United States SEC on Jan. 10, enabling traditional investors to gain exposure to BTC through publicly-traded funds.
The approval of the ETFs is a positive development signaling that signals an innovation-friendly approach from U.S. regulators for the future, according to DFG’s Wo, who told Cointelegraph:
“Despite the lawsuits to multiple crypto exchanges, the SEC previously approved the Bitcoin ETF with the Ethereum ETF being filed. This is a signal that governments are more in favor of regulation than outright banning, as seen in many other countries regulators which provide tight regulations for the approval of licenses to operate crypto-related businesses.“
The U.S. ETF approval has also inspired other jurisdictions to follow suit. The Securities Regulatory Commission (SFC) of Hong Kong could approve the first four spot Bitcoin ETF applications by April 15, after the financial regulator has reportedly accelerated the approval process for the first ETFs.
Spot Bitcoin ETF Approved: Impact on Investments with Mark Yusko. Source: Cointelegraph
Related: Hong Kong regulator fast-tracks Bitcoin spot ETF approvals
Despite significant global regulatory developments like ETFs and more regulations around crypto exchanges, investors aren’t necessarily shielded from another FTX-like meltdown, according to DFG’s Wo:
“Although regulation and compliance have stepped up in regulated entities, it does not mean it will not happen again even if we can expect better risk management from these entities. Overall, self-custody will still be the safest as you are in control of your own funds as long as you take sufficient risk mitigations of not clicking on phishing or scam links that may drain your wallet.”
Related: FTX moves to offload 8% stake in Anthropic
Looking ahead to 2024 and beyond
The FTX collapse inspired widespread collaboration between global regulators to prevent another high-profile meltdown. Some of the world’s leading economies have developed new regulations for crypto exchanges, while Europe passed the first comprehensive framework for the crypto industry, setting the benchmark for other regulators.
The European MiCA framework is still a work in progress. The next major part of the bill will set a marketing communication standard for crypto exchanges, which could impact crypto service providers in Europe, according to the European Crypto Initiative’s senior policy lead, Savova, who told Cointelegraph:
“What will develop throughout 2024 is the CASP and, therefore, exchanges’ marketing communications and what will be allowed. It’s a very impactful topic that emerged in France and is now being discussed at the EU level through the Retail Investment Strategy.”
The second consultation package for reverse solicitation guidelines under MiCA is set to end on April 29. The outcome of the consultation will be influential for MiCA’s final implementation in December, according to Savova:
“[This will determine] how exchanges and other CASPs from countries outside of the EU might provide services to EU citizens without a license and how these services should be marketed in Europe. The outcomes of this consultation will be critical for MiCA’s implementation in December.”
According to TDeFi’s Burney, crypto service providers could still see more regulatory scrutiny, including more stringent disclosure and compliance requirements, leading to a more mature industry. Burney said:
“These developments reflect a shift towards a more mature regulatory framework aimed at balancing innovation with regulatory oversight. However, obtaining a license in the US may not entirely prevent exchanges from operating globally and serving US customers, highlighting the challenges of regulating a decentralized and global industry.”
Crypto Bull Market Phase 2: What to Expect. Source: Cointelegraph
Related: Binance Labs shifts investment focus to Bitcoin DeFi |
Telegram commits to TON blockchain, plans to support tokenized emojis and stickers NFTs | Telegram founder Pavel Durov has committed the messaging application's future to blockchain technology, announcing major plans to tokenize features, share ad revenue with users and onboard Tether’s stablecoin at Token2049.
Speaking in front of a packed house in Dubai, Durov sang the praises of blockchain’s ability to promote freedom and privacy before outlining ambition plans to build out functionality on The Open Network (TON).
“The reason we love blockchain. It’s a technology of freedom. We care about freedom. Even our logo, the paper airplane symbolizes freedom to move in three dimensions,” Durov said.
The founder of the app, which reportedly has over 900 million monthly users, said the company strives to give its users the ability to build tools, apps and businesses on Telegram.
Related: TON continues to attract Web3 firms as Telegram Ad Platform goes live
Durov said Telegram has adopted a different approach to monetizing user bases than other major messaging and social media platforms, which sell user data to advertisers. Telegram recently announced plans to share revenue with content generators on its platform through its Ad Network.
Durov described the move as one of the most generous revenue-sharing models in the history of social media. He also said that 50% of the revenue Telegram receives from displaying ads and broadcast channels would be shared with channel owners and content creators using TON’s network:
“All these transactions, the payments for ads, withdrawals of ads are powered by blockchain. We will use the TON blockchain exclusively for that.”
Durov estimates that the advertising market running on blockchain rails could be worth tens of billions of dollars and that users, from owners of large group chats to content creators, will get a decent share of the revenue.
Related: Crypto-like communication devices could break gov’t surveillance — Telegram founder Durov
The use of a blockchain protocol will also allow Telegram to mitigate the limited in-app purchase mechanisms enforced by Apple and Google regarding payment processing.
Despite this, Telegram has allowed app developers and merchants to sell physical goods and services by integrating 40 payment providers, including the likes of Stripe.
Pavel Durov announced plans to allow the tokenization of stickers and emojis on Telegram using the TON blockchain. Source: YouTube
Durov also said that Telegram has already experimented with tokenization, becoming the first social media platform to tokenize its user namespace. According to the founder, this in-platform market generated $350 million in sales and he said that tokenizing other elements of its platform is in the pipeline:
“The next step that we are going to undertake is tokenizing Telegram stickers.”
Durov said that Telegram needs the scalability afforded by TON’s network, which can process tens to hundreds of millions of transactions in the future.
Following Durov’s address at the conference, stablecoin operator Tether announced the launch of U.S. dollar-pegged USDT (USDT) token on the TON network. Tether also unveiled the launch gold-pegged Tether Gold (XAUT) stablecoin on TON.
TON was initially developed by Telegram, but a subsequent legal battle with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission saw the messaging application abandon its development efforts in May 2020.
A small group of open-source developers then took over the project, which led to the establishment of the TON Foundation in May 2021.
Magazine: Get Bitcoin or die tryin’: Why hip hop stars love crypto |
Bitcoin halving puts focus on crypto education initiatives | Over the last couple of months, the crypto world has been abuzz with anticipation for the upcoming Bitcoin halving event.
This pivotal moment, expected to occur on April 20 (based on the UTC time standard), will once again cut the reward for mining new Bitcoin blocks in half, further reducing the supply of the world’s first and largest cryptocurrency, Bitcoin (BTC).
While many investors and traders are speculating on the potential price implications, a growing movement within the industry is shifting this focus toward education and adoption.
Whether through online courses, podcasts, workshops or good old-fashioned books, the push for increased Bitcoin education seems to be fueled by a shared belief that understanding begets trust.
There are a number of initiatives spearheaded by businesses, individuals and educational institutions that promote a deeper understanding of Bitcoin and the digital asset ecosystem as a whole.
Binance Academy
Binance Academy is the official education platform offered by cryptocurrency exchange Binance. It provides a suite of resources to promote the understanding of Bitcoin and its associated technologies. For instance, those new to the world’s pioneering cryptocurrency can sign up for the free “Bitcoin Basics” course, which offers a structured introduction covering the asset’s history, underlying blockchain technology, mining processes, wallets and more.
Binance Academy has prepared several in-depth explanatory articles to help the community grasp the significance of this supply-altering phenomenon. The pieces delve into the mechanics of halvings, their impact on Bitcoin’s issuance rate, and historical price effects surrounding past events.
For traders seeking to analyze Bitcoin’s market movements, the platform provides targeted technical analysis content. A dedicated series explores charting techniques, indicators and other strategies specifically applied to Bitcoin trading and price forecasting. Complementing this is a wide array of video tutorials and articles that unpack various concepts like wallets, forks, mining and more.
Lastly, Binance Academy also maintains a living glossary of Bitcoin-related terminology to ensure key concepts are readily accessible. Through this multiformat approach spanning courses, articles, videos and reference tools, the platform strives to elevate Bitcoin knowledge across skill levels.
Jameson Lopp — Lopp.net
Celebrated cypherpunk, software engineer, columnist and Bitcoin advocate Jameson Lopp has created a comprehensive repository of Bitcoin-related resources on his personal website, Lopp.net, aimed at furthering education and understanding of the pioneering cryptocurrency.
One of the standout offerings on Lopp’s site is his curated “Bitcoin Resources” page, which compiles a vast collection of links and materials covering everything from Bitcoin’s fundamentals (including the halving) and its codebase to developer tools, research papers and educational courses.
Source: Jameson Lopp
Complementing this is Lopp’s article chest, where he regularly publishes pieces unpacking complex Bitcoin concepts and analyzing industry developments while also sharing his expertise as a seasoned cypherpunk. The posts tackle intricate topics like Bitcoin privacy, self-custody best practices and the philosophy behind the technology’s decentralized ethos.
For those seeking a more structured learning experience, Lopp’s website also hosts comprehensive video recordings, allowing viewers to gain insights into Bitcoin’s technical operations from many of the industry’s foremost educators.
Coinbase Learn
Like Binance, crypto exchange Coinbase has recognized the importance of education in driving mainstream adoption. To this end, the company has dedicated the “Learn” section on its website to hosting a wealth of resources that cater to audiences across the crypto knowledge spectrum.
For those just beginning their journey, the “crypto basics” category provides foundational knowledge through beginner-friendly articles explaining concepts pertaining to Bitcoin, cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology. There are also practical guides on setting up wallets and securely sending and receiving digital assets.
As users progress on their learning paths, more advanced topics are covered, including in-depth explainers on major events like Bitcoin’s recurring halving events. The “explore” subsection allows curious learners to dive deeper into emerging trends, use cases, and innovative crypto applications.
Recognizing the importance of staying updated, there is a market updates section where users can find the latest news, analyses and expert insights into market movements.
MIT Bitcoin Club
Launched by one of the most prestigious institutions in the world, MIT’s BTC education program is designed to be holistic in its outlook. It covers a host of topics, ranging from the foundations of the Bitcoin network to more advanced concepts like the creation of decentralized applications atop the Bitcoin ecosystem and the design of hardware wallets.
Starting page for MIT Bitcoin Club's educational resources. Source: MIT
Additionally, there is also a free archive of some of MIT’s own cryptocurrency research and academic papers, providing readers with a technical understanding of experimental ideas permeating the Bitcoin and blockchain ecosystem.
In addition to these free offerings, there is also the option to take online classes, whose topics include cryptocurrency engineering and design, shared public ledgers, and blockchain entrepreneurship, among others.
BitDegree
BitDegree is an online education platform that aims to simplify and democratize access to the Web3 sector.
One of BitDegree’s flagship offerings is its Web3 Missions program. The initiative allows learners to earn valuable crypto rewards and nonfungible token (NFT) certificates by successfully completing various comprehensive examinations.
They cover a wide range of topics, from blockchain fundamentals to emerging trends (such as the aforementioned Bitcoin halving) and upcoming innovative applications within the decentralized web ecosystem. By incentivizing knowledge acquisition, BitDegree aims to foster a more educated, empowered crypto community.
Additionally, the platform hosts various campaigns in collaboration with established Web3 projects called LearnDrops. These typically involve interactive courses that introduce users to specific crypto platforms, protocols or services. Upon their completion, learners are rewarded with the project’s native tokens, NFTs or other incentives. Notable past collaborations include projects like the FIO Protocol, Ledger and PrimeXBT.
Furthermore, BitDegree offers resources spanning cryptocurrency basics, market news, practical tutorials and analyses.
Cointelegraph Learn
Cointelegraph’s own Learn section contains a variety of educational resources for newcomers and veterans of the cryptocurrency industry.
These include “how-to” guides for things like setting up a wallet, staking, getting into decentralized finance and trading Bitcoin options, to name a few.
Cointelegraph Learn also has an “Explained” section detailing complex concepts in the blockchain and cryptocurrency industry to make them more accessible and understandable to a wider audience.
The crypto glossary also explains the myriad of unique terms that are used every day in the cryptocurrency industry.
Cointelegraph's Crypto Glossary. Source: Cointelegraph
In short, there have never been more resources for crypto enthusiasts, traders or even the crypto-curious to learn more about digital currency. As events like the Bitcoin halving gain increasing public attention, demand for knowledge about the world's seminal cryptocurrency will also increase. |
DeFi platform Hedgey Finance hit by $44 million exploit | Hedgey Finance, a token infrastructure platform, has suffered two parallel exploits amounting to a total of $44.7 million worth of lost funds.
Hedgey suffered an exploit worth over $42.8 million Arbitrum (ARB) tokens on the Arbitrum network, according to an April 19 X post by on-chain security firm Cyvers. The attacker has already deposited part of the funds to the Bybit cryptocurrency exchange.
Smart contract vulnerability. Source: Cyvers
Earlier, Hedgey protocol was hacked for a total of $1.9 million worth of crypto on the Ethereum network, according to an X alert by Cyvers.
Hedgey exploit alert. Source: Cyvers
Hedgey protocol confirmed the exploit, adding that it is actively working with auditors to understand the vulnerability behind the potentially ongoing attack. It said in an April 19 X post:
“We're investigating an attack on the Hedgey Token Claim Contract. If you have created active claims, please cancel them using the “End Token Claim" button…”
Shortly after Hedgey confirmed the exploit, scam accounts impersonating the protocol have started posting potentially malicious links under the thread, urging people to ask for a refund or revoke their smart contract approvals, pointing to suspicious links without connection to Hedgey protocol.
The exploit occurred hours before the much-anticipated Bitcoin halving, set to reduce block issuance rewards in half.
Related: New Bitcoin whales, ETFs are up only 1.6% in unrealized profit — Is the BTC bottom in?
Over $500 million stolen in crypto hacks in Q1 2024
The first quarter of 2024 saw 223 hacks and exploits that amounted to a total of over $502 million worth of stolen digital assets, according to the Hack3d report by on-chain security firm CertiK.
This represents a 54% increase compared to the first quarter of 2023, which saw a total of $326 million worth of funds stolen. January was the most lucrative month for hackers, who stole over $193 million worth of crypto in 78 on-chain incidents.
Hacks by type. Source: CertiK
As in previous quarters, compromised private keys remained the top attack vector, with over $239 million lost in 26 such incidents. Compromised private key exploits only account for 11.7% of all security incidents, according to CertiK.
On the bright side, over $77.9 million worth of stolen funds were ultimately returned in the first quarter, most attributed to the Munchables security incident.
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: Prisma Finance exploited in $10 million breach |
Crypto community triumphs: Token2049 attendees brave Dubai storms | Despite the difficulties faced by crypto community members who flew to the United Arab Emirates for Token2049, the number of attendees who persevered surprised leaders and executives who came to the event.
Bus stuck in the middle of the road. Source: Cointelegraph
On April 18, attendees were met with blocked roads and challenges that could have made many people simply turn around and leave the country.
Various leaders in the space who were scheduled to have interviews with Cointelegraph wound up stuck in different airports and had to turn back because of the situation.
Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino had to wait an extra two hours in the sky because his plane was unable to land due to the storm. “I was quite lucky because I only spent two more hours in the sky,” he said.
However, after witnessing the number of people who still made it to the event, Ardoino expressed gratitude for the type of people crypto community members are. He said:
“It’s a good sign that this industry is made by people who are willing always to gather, to discuss and keep pushing the industry forward. I’m grateful to see many people around.”
Ava Labs founder Emin Gün Sirer also shared the challenges his team went through as they went to the event.
“It was very difficult to come here. We were landing in the middle of the biggest storm ever. We spent five hours on what should’ve been a 20-minute landing,” he said.
Fully packed main stage of Token2049. Source: Cointelegraph
Despite this, Sirer believes that attending was the right choice and that it was worth it. He said:
“We ended up going through a lot of water. My luggage and clothes were wet, but it was so worth it because the energy I see in the room right now is amazing.”
Among the attendees, almost everyone faced their own difficulties. Still, since the tickets were sold out three weeks in advance, many crypto enthusiasts flocked to the event.
Crypto community members indulged in the various activities available at the event, including various content-packed talks, project booths and networking.
Ultimately, the crypto community showed resilience amid a historic storm that made attending the event difficult. |
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 |
Scammers exploit Google platform to promote phishing site | Google appears to be promoting a malicious crypto website that directs users to a phishing website clone that drains users’ crypto through Google Ads, an online advertising platform enabling businesses to showcase ads on Google’s search engine results pages.
According to a report by BleepingComputer, threat actors have discovered a method to advertise a counterfeit version of Whales Market, an over-the-counter (OTC) cryptocurrency platform facilitating the trading of airdropped tokens.
The report indicates that the fake version is being advertised as a sponsored link at the top of Google search results.
Cointelegraph has verified that Google is currently promoting the counterfeit Whales Market as an advert. Although it displays a seemingly genuine domain address on the search results page, users are rerouted to [www.whaels.market] instead of the authentic [www.whales.market] upon clicking.
Fake version of Whales Market promoted by Google Ads Source: Google
BleepingComputer also notes that the malicious actors have reportedly registered multiple domains mimicking Whales Market, including [www.whaless.market], which is already inactive.
The fake version replicates the interface of the authentic Whales Market site, deceiving users into connecting their digital wallets. However, malicious scripts are activated upon doing so, siphoning crypto from victims’ wallets.
This incident contributes to similar events where scammers have used Google’s platform to advertise deceptive services.
An example is the nearly $900,000 worth of crypto drained from one of the hot wallets belonging to billionaire investor and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban by an unidentified hacker.
Related: Scam crypto projects using stolen funds for liquidity disappear
In December 2023, Scammers used a wallet-draining service called “MS Drainer” to siphon approximately $59 million in crypto from victims over the past nine months.
The scammers used Google Ads to target victims with fake versions of popular crypto sites, including Zapper, Lido, Stargate, DefiLlama, Orbiter Finance and Radient.
While the individuals responsible for this recent phishing campaign are still unknown, Google appears to be taking action against scammers.
In April, Google filed a lawsuit against Chinese nationals Yunfeng Sun and Hongnam Cheung for deceiving individuals with counterfeit crypto investments through the Google Play store.
Wallet drainers have become a major problem in the Web3 ecosystem. In November 2023, the developer of the “Inferno” drainer claimed to be retiring after successfully stealing more than $80 million from victims during the software’s lifetime.
In March, the developer of “Monkey Drainer,” which had successfully stolen an estimated $13 million up to that point, also announced their retirement.
Magazine: Google sues crypto app scammers, Crypto.com in Korea |
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. |
What are memecoins good for? Social signaling, says Avalanche founder | Love them or hate them, memecoins are all the rage in 2024. Despite the inherent risks of aping a new coin, Avalanche founder Emin Gün Sirer believes they are bringing value and new users into the cryptocurrency ecosystem.
Speaking exclusively to Cointelegraph report Ezra Reguerra at Token2049 in Dubai, Gün Sirer weighed up the benefits and drawbacks of the rise of memecoins across several blockchain protocols. From Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana to Avalanche, memecoins have made fortunes and ruined portfolios in recent months.
“They’re great for the space because they bring people in, they keep them excited, occupied and concentrated on what the technology can do,” Gün Sirer said.
The CEO of Ava Labs conceded that many critics argue that memecoins bring no value to the ecosystem, just as the rise of nonfungible tokens had detractors. Gün Sirer said their value is not tied to the prospect of making fortunes but to attracting newcomers to the space.
Cointelegraph's Ezra Reguera (l) alongside Emin Gün Sirer at Token2049 in Dubai. Source: Cointelegraph
“As someone who is very conservative financially and has been in this space for a very long time, I spent a fair bit of time criticizing Dogecoin and Shiba Inu. But you realize after a while that memecoins serve a purpose, and that purpose will not be obvious to boomers,” Gün Sirer said.
The former Cornell University professor sees memecoins as an opportunity for younger, risk-taking crypto enthusiasts to signal their aptitude for betting on the right projects.
“What is that purpose? That purpose is social signaling. In the same way that some people use a Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT as a profile picture, they’re saying I made so much money off trading that I can afford this,” Gün Sirer explained.
The Ava Labs CEO said that most memecoin traders are not holding tokens long-term and that the nature of the emergent trend relies on the ability to constantly adjust to the movement of value between different memecoins.
“They don’t see it as an investment in that fashion. They see it as a transitory phase. It’s like riding a bike. It’s a dynamic equilibrium. you have to constantly make corrections.”
Gün Sirer conceded that luck also plays its part as traders jump from coin to coin. “You have to be at the forefront of that community movement. You have to guess right. It’s not easy to do, and not everyone can do it,” he said.
This is also why memecoins have “such a premium associated” with people who understand these memes and act early on projects. Gün Sirer said Avalanche has attracted a thriving memecoin culture on its protocol.
The founder said the Avalanche Foundation was one of the first cryptocurrency ecosystem players to endorse memecoins and wants to see the community grow publicly. He cited an influx of users to Avalanche as a direct result of memecoins.
Magazine: Get Bitcoin or die tryin’: Why hip hop stars love crypto |
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.
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Why financial infrastructure needs to be open-source — Hyperledger | Open-source governance and development tools remain prerequisites for governments, organizations and financial institutions that want to leverage blockchain technology.
Speaking exclusively to Cointelegraph at Paris Blockchain Week, Hyperledger executive director Daniela Barbosa discussed why open-source blockchain technology is a non-negotiable requirement for global institutions.
Barbosa, who also serves as the general manager of the Linux Foundation, said shifting critical financial infrastructure onto blockchain protocols hinges on the underlying network being open-source and open governance.
Open-source blockchain infrastructure like Hyperledger Besu operates on Ethereum, but enables public and private permissioned use cases. Source: Daniela Barbosa, Hyperledger Foundation.
“All around the world, organizations are selecting Hyperledger families to work with because they know it’s under the Linux Foundation. It’s under that open governance and open development, and it has the backing of major companies, governments and organizations,” Barbosa explained.
The Hyperledger director said that organizations tapping into their technology stack care not only that the tools are open-source but that there is open development and an active community of diverse maintainers and code contributors.
“Nobody wants to build new rails on code that one company owns. If that company goes out of business or changes its mind and says we’re no longer open source, you must pay license fees to continue using what you built.”
Barbosa also believes the Linux Foundation’s focus is on fostering open governance and the development of tools under its umbrella. She highlighted critical infrastructure like Linux Kernel’s use in a myriad of computing systems as an example of the embeddedness of open-source infrastructure.
“For the last 25 years, the Linux Foundation has been building open source communities and the most important code. Think Linux Kernel and Kubernetes. Essentially, all cloud computing runs on Kubernetes,” Barbosa said.
Related: Hyperledger onboards Citi, forms Besu working group headed by DTCC
The Linux Foundation GM said that several organizations have made efforts to open-source their software and code. However, she questioned whether making this information openly useable on GitHub does enough to make the tools openly developed and governed.
“That’s what the foundation does; we bring that open governance and development. Banks who compete with one another can come and collaborate. Companies like Accenture and IBM could collaborate on things for the community,” Barbosa explained.
Related: Tokenized asset market could hit $16T on public blockchains — RippleX VP
She added that this is an essential long-term consideration for the financial services industry in the event that regulators begin to probe who owns what and makes changes to the underlying code.
Barbosa also unpacked the development history of Hyperledger’s blockchain tools. Hyperledger Besu, a prominent Ethereum execution client, has become one of its most important infrastructure offerings.
Hyperledger Besu is an open-source Java Ethereum execution client. It offers public and private functionality and can run all Ethereum smart contracts. Users can use all Ethereum token standards, including nonfungible token standards ERC-20 and ERC-721.
Hyperledger Besu is among the top three Ethereum execution clients by user numbers. Source: Daniela Barbosa, Hyperledger Foundation.
“By 2019, institutions were very interested in Ethereum ecosystem. This was the contribution that came in from Consensys around the time that the Hyperledger Foundation and Ethereum Enterprise Alliance joined forces,” Barbosa said.
Barbosa cited on-chain data that reflects 12% of Ethereum mainnet users running Hyperledger Besu as an execution client. Consensys Linea runs on the client, as well as Hedera Hashgraph.
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Binance exec remains in jail as bail appeal fails again | A Federal High Court in Abuja, Nigeria has once again postponed the bail application hearing for Binance executive Tigran Gambaryan, who remains in custody at the Kuje correctional center.
Originally set for April 18, the court has rescheduled the hearing for April 22, according to local news agency Nairametrics.
During the court session, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) told the court that Gambaryan’s lawyer submitted an additional affidavit to his bail application on April 16.
Senior counsel E. Iheanacho highlighted new points raised by the defense, requiring time for a proper response in the pursuit of justice.
The judge presiding over the case, Justice Emeka Nwite, agreed to postpone the proceedings. However, Gambaryan’s lawyer, Mark Mordi, emphasized that his client has been held in federal government custody for over 14 days.
He criticized the prosecution for failing to file a response to the additional affidavit submitted with his bail application.
Tigran Gambaryan leaving the court as his bail hearing adjourned at the federal high court in Abuja, Nigeria on April 18. Source: Nairametrics
The trial judge remanded the Binance executive after he pleaded not guilty to money laundering charges by the EFCC. The agency accused Binance, Gambaryan and Nadeem Anjarwalla of concealing the source of $35.4 million revenue in Nigeria, alleging it was the proceeds of unlawful activity.
Following the court’s acceptance of the EFCC’s arraignment of the defendants, Mordi requested the court to provide his client bail under lenient conditions.
Related: Nigeria’s crypto reputation will prevail despite recent setbacks — Exchange exec
The court allowed the EFCC to hold the Binance executives for 14 days and ordered Binance to give the government access to data and details of Nigerian traders using its platform.
Binance and its executives are dealing with two distinct lawsuits: one from the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) related to tax evasion and another from the EFCC accusing them of money laundering and foreign exchange violations.
However, Gambaryan is also suing the government for violating his fundamental human rights. Gambaryan’s motion claims that his detention in Nigeria and the confiscation of his passport violates the country’s constitution, which guarantees an individual’s right to personal liberty.
On Feb. 28, Nigerian officials arrested the two high-ranking Binance executives — Anjarwalla, a 37-year-old British-Kenyan overseeing operations in Africa; and Gambaryan, a 39-year-old American — during a visit to Nigeria.
The arrest came after the federal government banned cryptocurrency channels as part of a campaign to curb currency speculation. However, Anjarwalla escaped detention using a fake passport.
Magazine: US enforcement agencies are turning up the heat on crypto-related crime |
Bitcoin ransomware Akira drains $42M from more than 250 companies: FBI | Akira, a year-old ransomware group, breached more than 250 organizations and extracted approximately $42 million in ransomware proceeds, top global cybersecurity agencies alerted.
Investigations conducted by the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) found that Akira ransomware has been targeting businesses and critical infrastructure entities in North America, Europe and Australia since March 2023. While the ransomware initially targeted Windows systems, the FBI recently found Akira’s Linux variant as well.
The FBI, along with Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), Europol’s European Cybercrime Centre (EC3) and the Netherlands’ National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC-NL), released a joint cybersecurity advisory (CSA) to “disseminate” the threat to masses.
According to the advisory, Akira gains initial access through pre-installed virtual private networks (VPNs) that lack multifactor authentication (MFA). The ransomware then proceeds to extract credentials and other sensitive information before locking up the system and displaying a ransom note.
“Akira threat actors do not leave an initial ransom demand or payment instructions on compromised networks, and do not relay this information until contacted by the victim.”
The ransomware group demands payments in Bitcoin (BTC) from the victim organizations to restore access. Such malware often disables security software after initial access to avoid detection.
Cybersecurity best practices against ransomware attacks. Source: cisa.gov
Some of the threat mitigation techniques recommended in the advisory are implementing a recovery plan and MFA, filtering network traffic, disabling unused ports and hyperlinks and system-wide encryption.
“The FBI, CISA, EC3, and NCSC-NL recommend continually testing your security program, at scale, in a production environment to ensure optimal performance against the MITRE ATT&CK techniques identified in this advisory,” the agencies concluded.
Related: Mystery malware targets Call of Duty cheaters, stealing their Bitcoin
The FBI, CISA, NCSC and the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) previously issued alerts about malware that was being used to target crypto wallets and exchanges.
Directories where information were extracted by the malware. Source: National Cyber Security Centre
The report noted that some of the data extracted by the malware included data within the directories of the Binance and Coinbase exchange applications and the Trust Wallet application. According to the report, every file in the directories listed is being exfiltrated regardless of type.
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Blockchains should make money move like email — Stellar Development Foundation CEO | Blockchain protocols must allow financial assets to move seamlessly across traditional and on-chain infrastructures to achieve mainstream adoption.
Denelle Dixon, CEO of Stellar Development Foundation (SDF), hammered home this crucial point in a conversation with Cointelegraph during Paris Blockchain Week.
“From the beginning, we’ve focused on making money move like email, but we really understood that to do that, you needed the on- and off-ramps and couldn’t rely on transacting with volatile cryptocurrencies,” Dixon said.
The SDF CEO is a former trial lawyer who went on to work at Yahoo and Mozilla. Reflecting on her journey into the blockchain ecosystem, Dixon credited Stellar founder Jed McCaleb for luring her to the layer-1 protocol.
The former Mozilla chief operating officer added that her decision to work with Stellar was driven by the decentralized protocol’s focus on tokenization and fast, low-fee payments that can impact developing economies.
Related: Tokenized asset market could hit $16T on public blockchains — RippleX VP
She said that the ability to tokenize assets on Stellar and link seamlessly to fiat payment rails and gateways has been vital in allowing the protocol to provide utility to its users.
Dixon’s background at Mozilla also remains a guiding compass. She said that driving interoperability between major blockchain protocols is a motivating force behind her work:
“I want this work to be not just for Stellar but to create an interoperability layer across chains and make it so that all blockchains benefit from the hard work that we’ve done.”
The blockchain ecosystem of 2024 is home to hundreds of different protocols that offer users varying and debatable degrees of utility. Communities of these various protocols have also become fervent defenders of their respective blockchains, a point that Dixon said detracts from advancing the utility of the underlying infrastructure. She said:
“It’s really funny. There is tribalism, but sometimes, we continue to promote the tribalism instead of focusing on what’s really true.”
She pointed to recent network outages and congestion issues across major protocols, including the likes of Solana and various Ethereum layer-2 protocols, including Base, Arbitrum and Starknet.
“These challenges are actually bad for the blockchain ecosystem because it makes people look over and say, ‘Maybe we shouldn’t get into this,’” Dixon said.
Related: $250K Bitcoin? Tim Draper says halving, Bitcoin ETFs will drive demand
Social media platforms have become the vehicle upon which this tribalism continues, as users supporting different protocols take potshots at others from time to time. At a higher level, Dixon said there is more thought-share and support than people would realize.
“There is less tribalism than people actually think at the executive level. Like, people are always saying, ‘You and Brad Garlinghouse from Ripple must not get along,’ but actually we do.”
Dixon added that individuals and organizations that are driving the adoption of decentralized protocols share a common belief that the industry is “not a winner-takes-all market.”
“Anybody who’s spent any time on the internet understands that. Look what happened when we actually did have five winners take all the content side of the web. That didn’t play out well for anybody who’s trying to compete,” Dixon added.
Related: ICP’s Schnorr integration ushers in Bitcoin DeFi era
The Stellar Development Foundation launched smart contracts on the Stellar network in February 2024. Dixon said the launch of the Soroban platform was driven by a need for advanced programmability to create a “greenfield space” for developers on Stellar:
“We really need more developers like developers to take the network from 1 billion operations a month to 10 billion a month, and that’s what I would love to see.”
Cool minds will prevail, Dixon concludes while stressing that utility needs to remain a core focus for blockchain and cryptocurrency proponents.
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SEC says Justin Sun ‘traveled extensively’ to US, giving sway to lawsuit | The United States Securities and Exchange Commission has rejigged its lawsuit against Tron founder Justin Sun, claiming he’s “traveled extensively” throughout the country — thus giving it jurisdiction.
The regulator argues it has “personal jurisdiction” over Sun, Tron and two other businesses he controls, as they “purposefully took actions in and directed toward the United States,” it wrote in an April 17 amended complaint to a Manhattan federal court.
Sun spent a total of over 380 days in the U.S. between 2017 and 2019 on business trips to New York City, Boston and San Francisco, the SEC claimed.
It alleged the trips were on behalf of the Tron Foundation, the BitTorrent Foundation and Rainberry — all named in the suit as Sun’s “alter ego” firms.
The SEC reiterated allegations from its original lawsuit last month that Sun and his businesses sold unregistered securities through the Tron (TRX) and BitTorrent (BTT) tokens and that Sun engaged in “manipulative wash trading.”
The SEC took care to allege that TRX and BTT were promoted, offered and sold to “consumers and investors located in the United States.”
It added that “Sun traveled extensively to the United States during the time that TRX and BTT were promoted, offered, and sold.”
Highlighted excerpt of the SEC’s amended suit against Justin Sun. Source: CourtListener
It also claimed Sun’s alleged TRX wash trades took place on the Seattle-based crypto exchange Bittrex.
Related: SEC has ‘very low’ odds of winning against Uniswap: Crypto lawyer
In late March, Sun, a Chinese-born Grenadian citizen, asked to dismiss the suit, arguing the SEC applied U.S. security laws to “predominantly foreign conduct” and had no jurisdiction over him or the Singapore-based Tron Foundation.
He claimed the TRX and BTT tokens were sold “entirely overseas,” and the sales took steps to avoid the U.S. market; he added the SEC did not allege the tokens “were offered or sold initially to any U.S. residents.”
Sun’s lawyers did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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Mark Zuckerberg says Meta wearables that read brain signals are coming soon | Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has hinted his firm is making progress on its first “consumer neural interfaces,” non-invasive wearable devices that can interpret brain signals to control computers.
“One of the things that I’m pretty excited about — I think we’ll start getting some consumer neural interfaces soon. I think that’s going to be pretty wild.”
However, unlike Elon Musk’s Neuralink brain chip, Zuckerberg explained that these devices wouldn’t be something that “jacks into your brain” but something wearable on the wrist that can “read neural signals that your brain sends through your nerves to your hand to basically move it in different subtle ways.”
Meta first began discussing the development of “wrist-based interaction” in March 2021 as part of Facebook Reality Labs Research.
Meta’s wristband works using electromyography (EMG) to interpret brain signals about desired hand gestures and translate them into commands to control devices.
“We’re basically able to read those signals and use them to control glasses or other computing devices,” he added.
The most recent comments came during an interview on April 18 between the Facebook co-founder and tech entrepreneur and YouTuber Roberto Nickson.
“We’re still at the beginning of the journey because we haven’t rolled out the first version of the product, but playing with it internally it’s … it’s really cool … really interesting to see.”
Earlier this year, the Meta CEO said that this neural wristband could become a consumer product in just a few years, using artificial intelligence to overcome the limitations of camera-based gesture tracking.
Mark Zuckerberg on consumer neural interfaces. Source: YouTube
He has also envisioned the neural interfaces to work with Meta’s Ray-Ban augmented reality smart glasses.
Commenting on the firm’s smart glasses, he said the “hero feature” was integrating AI into them. “We’re really close to having multi-modal AI [...] so you don’t just ask it a question with text or voice; you can ask it about things going on around you, and it can see what’s going on and answer questions [...] that’s pretty wild,” he added.
Related: Meta’s AI boss says LLMs not enough: ‘Human level AI is not just around the corner’
Meanwhile, lawmakers in the United States are already working on legislation aimed at protecting privacy in the nascent field of neurotech.
The Protect Privacy of Biological Data Act, which expands the definition of “sensitive data” to encompass biological and neural data, was passed in Colorado this week, according to reports.
In other news, Meta has just released a new version of Meta AI, the assistant that operates across the firm’s applications and glasses. “Our goal is to build the world’s leading AI,” Zuckerberg said.
Meta AI is being upgraded with the new “state-of-the-art Llama 3 AI model, which we’re open-sourcing,” he added.
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Coinbase shares slump, but Base revenue signals it’s undervalued — Analyst | Coinbase (COIN) shares have plummeted 16% over the past five days, mirroring broader volatility in the crypto and stock markets, though one analyst suggests that investors may not be seeing the potential buying opportunity.
“The street isn’t really pricing in the crypto native revenue that I think a lot of the crypto natives understand,” crypto analyst Will Clemente said in a recent Unchained Crypto podcast.
“I think Coinbase is the biggest kind of venture-style bet in public markets since maybe Tesla about five years ago,” Clemente added.
Clemente claimed that traditional investors still view Coinbase “purely as an exchange” despite it making many changes to its business structure over the past 12 months.
“Throughout the bear market, they made a lot of strategic pivots to shift toward what I’m calling a crypto super app,” he declared.
In particular, he noted Coinbase’s Ethereum layer-2 network, Base, which now has a total value locked (TVL) of $5.35 billion and oversees 30.81 daily transactions per second.
“Over the last 30 days, Base has done $30 million of top-line revenue for Coinbase just based on the sequencer fees, which annualizes out to like $360 million a year,” he explained while suggesting that traditional investors are overlooking the significant activity taking place on-chain.
“The street doesn’t even know what Base is, and they’re definitely not extrapolating out the potential of a ton of activity taking place there and the sequencer fees that Coinbase may benefit from that.”
At the time of publication, COIN is currently trading at $218.08, down almost 16% over the past five days, per Google Finance data.
COIN has plummeted 15.96% over the past five days. Source: Google Finance
Coinbase is expected to release its earnings report for the first quarter of 2024 in the next few weeks.
Over the past five days, the S&P 500 is down 3.12%, while Bitcoin (BTC) has declined approximately 4.67%.
Meanwhile, more downside is expected for both markets as geopolitical tensions escalate in the Middle East after there were reports of explosions at Isfahan airport in central Iran.
Related: Coinbase cleared in lawsuit over crypto transactions
The news comes amid Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest continuing its selling spree of COIN.
On April 15, it was reported that ARK sold 3,689 COIN shares worth approximately $824,000.
It was only a month ago that ARK sold off a staggering amount of the stock amid its price seeing a year-to-date increase at the time of approximately 54%.
On March 21, Cointelegraph reported that ARK sold 199,526 Coinbase shares from its exchange-traded funds.
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Ethereum on track for $1B annual profit as DeFi drives Q1 revenue | Blockchain network Ethereum is on the path to $1 billion in annualized profits after it netted income of $365 million in Q1, coming alongside a year-on-year quarterly revenue growth of 155%.
The network’s 2024 first-quarter income is a nearly 200% bump from the $123 million profit in Q4 2023, according to an April 17 report from The DeFi Report analyst Michael Nadeau.
Ethereum’s fee revenue — earned through users paying for transactions — hit $1.17 billion, up 155% from Q1 2023 and an 80% increase from the prior quarter.
Ethereum’s yearly profit and loss since launching in 2015. Source: The DeFi Report
Increased network activity “primarily driven by a surge in DeFi activity during the quarter” was the cause of the revenue bump, Nadeau said.
The activity surge has seen average daily transactions on the blockchain in 2024 already surpass last year’s figures and are closing in on the results from Ethereum’s peak in 2021.
Ethereum's average daily transactions per year (blue) and Ether burned (pink). Source: The DeFi Report
Over 1.15 million average daily transactions have taken place in 2024, slightly up from the 1.05 million last year and just shy of the 1.25 million recorded in 2021.
Ethereum was launched in 2015 but only had its first profitable year in 2023 — earning $623 million — despite its revenues that year being 75% lower than its peak $9.9 billion 2021 revenues.
“This is largely due to the move to proof-of-stake consensus in September of ‘22 — in which token incentives paid to miners (now validators) dropped roughly 80%,” Nadeau explained.
He added Ethereum’s fees have grown at a rate of 58% since 2017.
“Crypto will outperform everything else” in the years ahead
Nadeau gave his market predictions for the coming years and concluded that “crypto will outperform everything else.”
He expected rising liquidity conditions for the “next few years” as the United States has a large amount of debt needing refinancing this year and the market had priced in three rate cuts this year from the Federal Reserve.
“This should provide a tailwind for risk assets such as tech stocks and quality crypto.”
The U.S. spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds, the Bitcoin halving and what Nadeau called “the innovation cycle” were three additional catalysts “pointing to a bullish setup for the next few years.”
Related: Bitcoin fees top Ethereum for 3 days in a row as halving approaches
The Bitcoin ETFs will serve as a “gateway drug” for increased interest in cryptocurrencies as they enable broad access and the halving — slated for April 20 — “has historically led to a bull run in the year after.”
The “innovation cycle” will also draw in new venture funding and renew retail interest in crypto as it matures, Nadeau believed.
He claimed Bitcoin and Ether (ETH) are “quite correlated” — Bitcoin outperforms early in the bull market as it is the most recognizable cryptocurrency while ETH and altcoins tend to outperform it in the later stages of the cycle.
“It’s noteworthy that altcoins actually rallied so much in the last two cycles that they outperformed Bitcoin across the full length of both cycles,” Nadeau added.
He believed this would continue but only with altcoins “that have clear product market fit.”
Magazine: Joe Lubin — The truth about ETH founders split and ‘Crypto Google’ |
Degen Chain L3 now tops the TPS charts within the Ethereum ecosystem | Degen Chain, a new Ethereum layer-3 network, has recorded the highest transaction per second (TPS) count in the Ethereum ecosystem over the last 24 hours.
Degen’s TPS count increased 62% over the last day to notch 35.7 TPS — beating out the blockchain it was built on, Base, at 29.7 TPS, according to L2BEAT.
Arbitrum One, Ethereum and zkSync Era rounded out the top five.
TPS by Ethereum-based blockchain over the last 24 hours. Source: L2BEAT
Multiplying Degen’s 35.7 TPS by 86,400 seconds in a day means the memecoin chain processed 3.08 million transactions over that timeframe.
But Degen Chain has only notched $819,600 in trading volume over the last day, placing it 35th out of 44 blockchains tracked by CoinGecko.
This means the average value per transaction was a mere $0.27 — which is much lower compared to Ethereum and Base at $1,867 and $170 respectively.
While TPS is widely used to measure a blockchain’s scalability limits, several industry leaders say it is a flawed metric — as it fails to consider the computational size of each transaction.
“[It] is a bit like counting the number of bills in your wallet but ignoring that some are singles, some are twenties, and some are hundreds,” explained Steven Goldfeder, a founder at Offchain Labs who recently spoke with Cointelegraph Magazine.
Related: Memecoin sector’s continued growth hinges on long-term utility
The memecoin turned chain is powered by the Degen (DEGEN) token, which initially started out as a tipping token for users interacting with Degen’s channel on Farcaster — a decentralized social media platform.
This is a textbook example of how a memecoin can actually accrue social value, according to Thomas Tang, a vice president of investments at cryptocurrency venture capital firm Ryze Labs.
“It’s gained massive mass popularity because everyone’s tipping each other, and everyone holds it,” Tang told Cointelegraph.
“So they built a layer 3, based on that.”
Ian Lee of blockchain infrastructure firm Syndicate believes Degen Chain is paving the way for applications on layer 3s. Source: Ian Lee
There is currently $4.1 million in total value locked on Degen Chain, while the three-month-old DEGEN token boasts a market capitalization of $326 million, according to CoinGecko.
Degen Chain is considered an ultra-low-cost, application-specific layer 3 blockchain which was built with Arbitrum Orbit and leverages the settlement layer of Base, an Ethereum layer-2 scaling solution.
Magazine: Is measuring blockchain transactions per second (TPS) stupid in 2024? Big Questions |
Ethereum liquid restaking drove DeFi TVL to $100B in first quarter | Decentralized finance total value locked (TVL) almost doubled in the first three months of this year compared to the previous quarter, partially driven by Ethereum liquid restaking initiatives, according to recent research.
DeFi total value locked surged from a Q4 2023 low of $36 billion to peak at almost $97 billion in the first quarter of 2024, according to DefiLlama. Since the beginning of the year, it has increased by 81% to a two-year high of $98 billion last week.
Messari reported slightly higher TVL figures on April 18, noting that DeFi collateral increased by 65.6% quarter-on-quarter to reach $101 billion. However, it attributed this growth to the prices of the underlying assets increasing and liquid restaking.
“This uptick was primarily driven by asset price appreciation and liquid restaking, led by Ethereum's TVL growth of nearly 71%.”
DeFi total value locked between Q4 2023 and Q1 2024. Source: DefiLlama
The findings were echoed in an April 18 report by Web3 infrastructure and developer platform QuickNode, and institutional crypto data platform Artemis.
“Staking, liquid staking, restaking, and liquid restaking have all been catalysts of DeFi’s recent explosive growth,” it stated before adding that this “explains why staking now represents a large portion of DeFi’s TVL.”
Liquid staking TVL skyrocketed to an all-time high of $63 billion on March 13, primarily driven by Ether (ETH) liquid staking protocol Lido which currently has a 62% market share of the liquid staking ecosystem, according to DefiLlama.
Additionally, liquid restaking protocols such as EigenLayer exploded in popularity and usage during the period. EigenLayer TVL surged a whopping 990% during the first three months of 2024 to end the quarter with $12 billion.
EigenLayer allows ETH to be staked more than once for additional yields.
Liquid staking TVL, Q4, 2023-Q1 2024. Source: DeFiLlama
Related: DeFi TVL reaches $100B as Bitcoin pumps sentiment
QuickNode also reported that a substantial 291% quarter-on-quarter rise in user activity “has roused hopes of a second ‘DeFi Summer’ as there are signals for growth and a transformative shift despite the SEC’s best efforts.”
Nevertheless, since the recent crypto market retreat, DeFi TVL ha declined 11% to $86.6 billion at the time of writing.
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Bitcoin briefly dips under $60K amid reports of worsening Middle East crisis | The price of Bitcoin (BTC) briefly dropped below its critical $60,000 support level again on Friday, falling 5.44% in just two hours amid escalating geopolitical tension in the Middle East.
On April 19, Bitcoin’s price briefly slumped down to $59,698 before quickly recovering to $61,352. It’s a crucial breakdown to note, given that if its price falls down to $59,000, then approximately $243 million in long positions will be liquidated, per CoinGlass data.
Over the last four hours, $34.03 million in Bitcoin long positions have been liquidated, data shows.
This comes amid Iranian state media reporting that explosions had been heard at Isfahan airport in central Iran, according to an April 19 ABC News report.
Explosions were reportedly heard at Isfahan International Airport. Source: ABC News
A similar situation occurred on April 13, when Bitcoin’s price experienced similar volatility after Iran launched an attack on Israel, plummeting 8.4%.
At the time, the price decline wiped out over $130 million in market capitalization within minutes following news of the attack.
Related: Crypto market ‘underestimates the long-term impact’ of Bitcoin halving: Bitwise
Bitcoin holders may also be bracing for heightened volatility as the Bitcoin halving event, which slashes miners’ rewards in half every four years, approaches on April 20.
The Crypto Fear & Greed Index, a major tool tracking the market sentiment in cryptocurrency markets, is down 13 points since last week’s greed index of 79.
Bitcoin’s price broke its crucial $60,000 support level amid tensions in the Middle East. Source: CoinMarketCap
Bitcoin’s price has been threading above the $60,000 mark over the past seven days but briefly fell from an opening of $63,814 on April 17, dropping as much as 7.5% to an intra-day low of $59,648, per data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro.
Open Interest (OI) in Bitcoin has also experienced a slump over the past seven days, dropping approximately 17.6% to $28.06 billion.
Meanwhile, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, Ether (ETH), also experienced a sharp decline, falling 5% below its critical $3,000 price level, briefly dipping to $2,876, before retesting its support level.
The overall crypto market cap is $2.26 trillion, down 0.53% over the past 24 hours.
Magazine: Get Bitcoin or die tryin’: Why hip hop stars love crypto |
Bitcoin hodlers moved $1.7B into ‘accumulation’ wallets during the BTC dip | Hardcore Bitcoin (BTC) holders added a record $1.7 billion worth of BTC to ‘accumulation’ wallet addresses in a single day as the price of Bitcoin fell below $63,000 earlier this week.
More than 27,700 BTC — worth $1.75 billion at current prices — was sent to accumulation addresses in a single 24-hour period between April 16 to 17, a new daily record for Bitcoin, per the latest data from CryptoQuant.
The previous record — where 25,500 BTC was sent to accumulation addresses in a single day — was notched on March 23 this year, when the price of Bitcoin was also hovering around the $63,500 mark.
A record number of Bitcoin was sent to ‘accumulation addresses’ in 24 hours. Source: CryptoQuant
This data shows that there has been an elevated level of motivated buying around the $63,000 range — suggesting that large, dedicated investors maintain their confidence in accumulating and holding Bitcoin for the long term.
An accumulation address is a Bitcoin wallet that shows no previous withdrawals and holds a balance of over 10 BTC. These addresses have been screened to exclude wallets known to be affiliated with Bitcoin miners and crypto exchanges.
These addresses must have also been active at some point in the last seven years.
Related: Is Bitcoin’s negative futures funding rate a sign of an upcoming BTC price crash?
Several market analysts including pseudonymous trader Rekt Capital have suggested that the first few months of this year may be the last time investors can pick up Bitcoin at “bargain prices” before a post-halving rally event.
In an April 17 post to their 453,000 X followers, Rekt Capital said that Bitcoin price action was currently playing out in a similar pattern to previous halving cycles.
Rekt explained that the recent dip — which has seen BTC tumble more than 14% from its all-time high of $73,600 on March 13 — was an expected part of a “pre-halving retrace.”
They predicted that Bitcoin could enter into a “re-accumulation phase” following the halving event — currently slated for April 20.
“Once Bitcoin breaks out from the re-accumulation area breakout into the parabolic uptrend.”
“Historically, this phase has lasted just over a year (~385 days) however with a potential Accelerated Cycle occurring right now, this figure may get cut in half in this market cycle,” added Rekt.
Web3 Gamer: Bitcoin Halving will pump games, Shrapnel’s ‘simple’ secret revealed |
Bitcoin fees top Ethereum for 3 days in a row as halving approaches | Fees on Bitcoin have surpassed Ethereum for three consecutive days as miners and traders prepare for the upcoming Bitcoin halving and, to a lesser extent, the introduction of Runes on Bitcoin.
Bitcoin (BTC) miners cashed in $7.47 million in fees on April 17 — about $160,000 more than the $7.31 million paid to Ethereum stakers, according to Crypto Fees.
Bitcoin miners also raked in $9.98 million and $5.91 million across April 15 and 16 — beating out Ethereum stakers by $3.5 million and 1.1 million on those respective days.
Ethereum, however, maintains a narrow lead on a seven-day average fee basis at $8.55 million compared with Bitcoin’s $7.57 million.
Largest fees by blockchains and decentralized finance projects. Source: Crypto Fees
Bitcoin transaction fees are determined by the size or data volume of the transaction and blockspace demand at the time of the transaction request.
The uptick in Bitcoin fees comes at a crucial time for Bitcoin miners, as April 20’s Bitcoin halving event will result in the mining subsidy being sliced from 6.25 BTC ($398,000) to 3.125 BTC ($199,000).
Currently, about 900 BTC is mined per day, which equates to about $57.2 million at current prices.
Using April 17’s $7.47 million fee count, this means transaction fees accounted for 11.5% of the Bitcoin mining industry’s total block rewards.
However, the share of block rewards from transaction fees will increase considerably after the halving event, as approximately 450 BTC will be mined then.
Miners will, therefore, rely more on higher fees and a continued increase in Bitcoin’s price to make up for the revenue fall that it will experience — at least in the short term — from the halving.
Meanwhile, the introduction of NFT-like Ordinals inscriptions in January 2023 has helped Bitcoin miners chalk up more revenue from transaction fees — and a new revenue stream will become available when Runes, a new Bitcoin token standard, is released when the halving occurs at block 840,000.
Related: China has a Trojan Horse in US Bitcoin mining infrastructure
Runes will compete with Ordinals by aiming to make it easier to create fungible tokens on Bitcoin for memecoin enthusiasts and other community-driven audiences.
Its creator, Casey Rodarmor — who also invented Ordinals — said Runes are fully UTXO-based and, therefore, should not spam Bitcoin to the same extent that Ordinals has.
The recent uptick in Bitcoin fees may have been partially driven by a decline in BRC-20 token prices in recent days as some trader attention shifts to Runes.
Ordinals (ORDI) and Sats (SATS), the two largest BRC-20s by market capitalization, have seen falls of 38% and 43%, respectively, over the last week, according to CoinMarketCap.
Magazine: Get Bitcoin or die tryin’: Why hip hop stars love crypto |
OneCoin lawyer gets bail pending appeal for conviction and 10-year sentence | Mark Scott, a lawyer connected to the OneCoin crypto scheme recently convicted for fraud and money laundering, has been granted bail pending an appeal of his case.
In an April 18 filing in United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, Judge Edgardo Ramos approved bail for Scott three months after sentencing the lawyer to prison for 10 years. A portion of the court filing had been redacted regarding Scott’s health issues, which his legal team argued did not make him a flight risk.
“Based on the record before the Court, given Scott’s medical conditions and because he has not been charged with a violent crime, the Court does not find that Scott is likely to flee or pose a danger to the safety of any other person or the community if allowed to remain on bail,” said Judge Ramos.
Source: PACER
According to a notice filed on Feb. 7, there were “substantial questions” of law to consider in a possible appeal. Scott’s legal team suggested Konstantin Ignatov — brother of Ruja “Cryptoqueen” Ignatova and a leader of the OneCoin scheme — had perjured himself, but prosecutors still used his testimony in their case.
“[T]he Court believes it is quite doubtful that Scott will obtain a reversal or new trial on both counts,” said the judge. “But the Court cannot say that the questions are frivolous. And they are sufficiently integral to the merits of Scott’s conviction that a contrary appellate holding could likely require a reversal or new trial on all of the counts for which Scott has been imprisoned.”
Related: OneCoin: A deep dive into crypto’s most notorious Ponzi scheme
In November 2019, a jury convicted Scott of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering related to his role in laundering millions of dollars through OneCoin. The lawyer laundered funds at the direction of OneCoin co-founder Ruja Ignatova, who remained at large at the time of publication.
OneCoin co-founder Karl Sebastian Greenwood was sentenced to 20 years on fraud and money laundering charges in September 2023 and ordered to pay $300 million in restitution to OneCoin victims. Former OneCoin chief compliance officer Irinia Dilkinska pleaded guilty to two felony counts and was sentenced to four years in prison on April 3.
Magazine: US enforcement agencies are turning up the heat on crypto-related crime |
Blockchain data-availability protocol Avail announces 600M token airdrop | Avail, a Web3 infrastructure layer built using Polygon’s software development kit, will be airdropping 600 million of its native AVAIL tokens to users.
“The Unification Drop is a unifying force bringing different communities together, rewarding developers, governance contributors, technical educators, rollup users, stakers, and other valuable contributors from across multiple blockchain communities,” Avail said in an April 18 statement.
Founded in 2020, Avail consists of three segments: Nexus, Fusion and DA. Avail DA improves base-layer transactions further by scaling rollups via methods such as KZG commitments and data availability sampling.
Data availability enables nodes to verify bundled transactions without having to download all data for a block. Meanwhile, KZG commitments, common in zero-knowledge protocols, allow for the verification of underlying data without revealing private information.
At the same time, Avail Nexus provides a cross-chain bridge for users to transact or swap for assets on multiple blockchains. Finally, Avail Fusion allows the liquid staking of assets on Ethereum, Bitcoin and others.
According to its developers, AVAIL is used to “obtain Avail DA services, secure the unification layer via staking, and take part in governance.” Tokens are airdropped based on a user’s total time, depth and impact of their commitments to the ecosystem. A total of 354,605 wallet addresses will receive the airdropped AVAIL token upon mainnet launch.
Out of the 600 million token airdrop supply, 90 million are allocated to blockchain ecosystem developers, 49.5 million to testnet users, 380 million to rollup users on various blockchains such as Arbitrum One, 70 million to Polygon stakers and 10.5 million to community contributors.
The airdrop is not exclusive to users of the Avail or Polygon ecosystems. “Unification of Web3 requires unification to happen at the most fundamental level,” Avail wrote. “This [airdrop] includes Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, Cosmos, Avalanche, Near, and others who have each made unique contributions to the blockchain ecosystem.”
Many in the Polygon community spoke highly of the airdrop. “Oooh, looks like a massive airdrop is upon @0xPolygon community,” commented Polygon co-founder Sandeep Nailwal, in relation to the news.
Avail was spun off from Polygon Labs on March 16, 2023. At the time, developers explained that the move was due to Polygon shifting its attention to more Ethereum-native data availability efforts. “Avail as a standalone layer will be better positioned to play a leading role in bringing modular blockchain architectures to market and enabling any Web3 project to scale,” Polygon Labs said in a statement.
Related: Polygon CEO says L3s are taking value away from Ethereum, sparking debate |
DAO acquires rights to the image behind the Doge meme | Own The Doge, the decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) associated with the Shiba Inu meme behind the Dogecoin (DOGE) token, announced that it had secured legal rights to the iconic image.
Speaking to Cointelegraph on April 17, Own The Doge project leaders John Monarch and ‘Tridog’ said they had negotiated a deal with Sato Atsuko, the owner of the 18-year-old Shiba Inu Kabosu that became popular for her confused expression while sitting on a couch. The group purchased exclusive licensing and rights for the Doge image, seemingly giving them control over merchandise and other uses for the meme in the crypto space.
“I think [the deal] unlocks a lot for corporations, where there’s confusion around copyright,” said Tridog.
Own The Doge said that with more clarity around the doge image copyright — which had seemingly been a free-for-all for years — there were opportunities for partnerships with big brands. The project said they reached out to Sato roughly three years ago and were able to negotiate a deal to purchase the rights to Kabosu’s image by working with legal experts in Japan and the United States.
Working with Sato and others, the project has already released a documentary on the history of doge and the evolution of the image in and out of the crypto space. According to Tridog, the group was not “looking to enforce” its copyright claim on users and certain brands already using the image to spread its ‘doing only good everyday’ mantra.
“We want to unify the whole doge community,” said Monarch. “We feel like Dogecoin and a lot of the others, like NFT [nonfungible token] side of things, and people who are into memes and the Reddit world, have always kind of diverged [...] it’s all about bringing the tracks together under one cultural umbrella.”
Related: Coinbase to launch DOGE futures, says it ‘transcended’ meme origins
The basis for the Doge image dates back to 2010 when Sato took a casual picture of Kabosu sitting on a yellow sofa in her home in Japan. Monarch suggested he had been the first person to use the term ‘Doge’ on social media, eventually leading to additional memes, the Dogecoin token, and various crypto-themed merchandise.
Tridog said the purchase of the licensing rights likely wouldn’t impact the Dogecoin Foundation or the meme token, which continues to use the image. Kabosu will celebrate her 19th birthday on Nov. 2 at a celebration in Japan. Though old for a dog, she has some catching up to do: the world’s oldest Shiba Inu lived to be more than 26 years old.
Magazine: Real-life Doge at 18: Meme that’s going to the moon |
Meta launches ‘most capable openly available LLM to date,’ rivaling GPT and Claude | Meta raised the artificial intelligence (AI) bar on April 18 by announcing that its newest large language model, Llama-3, is the “most capable” and “best open source model” currently available.
The company’s statements surrounding the general availability of Llama-3, as well as a new standalone “Meta AI” portal, has the tech world abuzz with declarations that the current space leaders — Microsoft, OpenAI, Google and Anthropic — finally have some stiff competition from the company formerly called Facebook.
A Meta blog post made no quibbles about the company’s position concerning where its Llama suite of LLMs now lies in the global AI model hierarchy:
“This next generation of Llama demonstrates state-of-the-art performance on a wide range of industry benchmarks and offers new capabilities, including improved reasoning. We believe these are the best open source models of their class, period.”
Analysts and pundits have long awaited the arrival of Llama-3, with many claiming that preview versions demonstrated better reasoning and performance than contemporary challengers GPT and Gemini, comparable offerings from OpenAI and Google, respectively.
Related: Welcome to the future where on-chain robots serve coffee and crypto rewards
The large language model market continues to expand year over year, with updates to the most popular models seemingly occurring at a steady clip. Current market leader OpenAI is rumored to be on the verge of launching its latest model — GPT-5, if it follows previous naming conventions.
According to a report from Business Insider, the next GPT model will be “materially better” than its predecessors, but these rumors have yet to be substantiated.
As Cointelegraph recently reported, the LLM market is heating up, with Microsoft and Google reportedly trading $100 billion blows. Microsoft and OpenAI pledged $100 billion to build a new AI super data center, while Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis has let on that he believes Google will spend more.
While the costs continue to rise, the rewards could be even greater. At stake, according to both Google and Microsoft, is the development of the world’s first artificial general intelligence (AGI). An AGI system, hypothetically speaking, would be capable of doing any task a human could do, given the proper resources. |
Binance co-founder He Yi says CZ received ‘most optimal outcome’ | Former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, often known as CZ, is in a “positive situation,” according to the cryptocurrency exchange’s co-founder He Yi. CZ is set for sentencing in the United States on one felony charge on April 30.
Yi “dispelled concerns over the regulatory status” at the Binance Chinese Meetup held on the sideline of the Token2049 conference in Dubai, according to the company’s newsfeed. The post did not quote her directly, but added Yi said that:
“CZ's current standing in the US is largely peaceful and past regulatory pressures have been internally anticipated. She believes the existing situation to be the most optimal outcome given the circumstances.”
When he is sentenced in the District Court of Western Washington, CZ could receive a prison term of up to 10 years. The sentence recommended in the guidelines is 12 to 18 months. The single charge resulted from a settlement reached in November that also required the company to forfeit $4.3 billion. That settlement forced CZ to resign as Binance CEO.
Related: Facing potential prison time, former Binance CEO hints at new project
CZ is free in the United States on a $175-million bond, with travel restrictions. He twice requested permission to travel to Dubai, where he lives, because of a medical situation involving one of his children. In response, the U.S. Attorney’s Office sought to seize his passports. CZ holds a Canadian passport and is also a citizen of the United Arab Emirates.
Yi is the mother of at least two of CZ’s three children, although she has denied that they are currently romantic partners. She owns an undisclosed stake in the exchange.
Source: CryptoCoins68
Binance has been distancing itself from CZ since his resignation as CEO. He was replaced by Richard Teng, the former Binance head of regional markets outside the United States. Teng has emphasized that Binance is “totally different” under his leadership. The exchange formed a board of directors earlier this month.
According to reports on April 18, Binance received a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) license in Dubai. As a licensing condition, CZ was reportedly required to give up voting rights in the local entity, Binance FZE, although Binance has declined to comment on that claim.
Magazine: US enforcement agencies are turning up the heat on crypto-related crime |
Mango Markets exploiter found guilty after jury deliberations | A jury has found Avraham “Avi” Eisenberg, the crypto user responsible for a $110 million exploit of the Mango Markets decentralized exchange, guilty of fraud and market manipulation.
In an April 18 ruling in United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, a group of jurors announced that Eisenberg had been found guilty of wire fraud, commodities fraud and commodities manipulation. The decision followed hours of deliberations after closing arguments on April 17.
During a two-week trial, Eisenberg’s legal team claimed that he did not commit any crimes but orchestrated a “successful and legal trading strategy,” which resulted in roughly $110 million from Mango Markets. He returned roughly $67 million of the funds after the exploit but retained more than $40 million following a governance vote by the community. Prosecutors argued that Eisenberg’s actions constituted fraud.
Judge Richard Berman is expected to sentence Eisenberg at a July 29 hearing. He now faces up to 20 years in prison. After his actions on Mango Markets in October 2022, Eisenberg was arrested in Puerto Rico in December and held in U.S. custody since January 2023.
With a verdict handed down in the criminal trial, Eisenberg will likely face civil enforcement actions filed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission in 2023. Both cases had been stayed and could resume two weeks after the conclusion of the criminal case.
Related: Mango Markets exploiter said actions were ‘legal,’ but were they?
U.S. authorities have several ongoing criminal cases pending against high-profile figures in the crypto space. In March, a judge sentenced former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried to 25 years in prison for his conviction on seven felony charges, though his lawyers have filed notice they intended to appeal. Former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao is scheduled to be sentenced on April 30 for pleading guilty to one felony charge.
Magazine: ‘Less flashy’ Mashinsky set for less jail time than SBF: Inner City Press, X Hall of Flame
Update (April 18 at 8:28 pm UTC): This article has been updated to include the date of Avi Eisenberg’s sentencing hearing. |
Former Disney boss launches Web3 game publisher with Marvel, Star Wars talent | A team of Hollywood and gaming luminaries has joined forces to launch a AAA Web3 games publisher in the United Arab Emirates.
Dubbed Galactic Entertainment Publishing, the recently launched venture represents the first arm of parent company Galactic Group.
The firm’s inaugural endeavor, PlanetQuest, has been in active development since 2022. Loren Roosendaal, CEO of Galactic Entertainment and founder of PlanetQuest, told Cointelegraph that despite the game not having launched yet, it’s installed a massive user base:
“PlanetQuest passport holders account for over 300,000 connected wallets, over 200,000 of which hold one or more PlanetQuest NFTs.”
AAA franchise experience
The team behind PlanetQuest is comprised of former employees from Disney, Warner Bros., Activision-Blizzard and Epic. Their previous individual credits include a bevy of franchises, from films such as The Batman, Avengers and Blade Runner to AAA games such as Fortnite, Call of Duty, and Star Wars: Jedi Survivor.
The firm’s chief creative officer, Jon McCoy — who has worked on AAA Hollywood blockbusters throughout his career — said those experiences couldn’t compare with his work with Galactic Group:
“Naturally no first attempt at something new is perfect, but it’s been amazing getting to create a sci-fi universe with the fans in a way that’s never been attempted before. I’ve gotten to fulfill a lot of my childhood dreams, working on Star Wars, Blade Runner and Marvel movies to name a few, but there’s little that compares to being able to interact and build with the fans from day one.”
PlanetQuest
The company’s first title, PlanetQuest, has been described as existing in a “Star Wars-like” world full of assets that players can own and trade. Everything from ships to entire planets can be copped as digital assets that, ostensibly, players can keep for their own game use or sell/trade to other players for native currency.
Galactic currently has plans to launch tie-in media for PlanetQuest, including novels, comic books and another game to be revealed later, according to a report from VentureBeat.
Related: Disney launches NFT platform with Dapper Labs |
Canada to begin implementing international crypto tax reporting standard | According to a supplement to the 2024 annual budget, Canada expects to apply the international Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF) for taxation by 2026. The country is getting an early start on the new standard, which is expected to be observed by 47 countries by 2027.
The CARF would impose new reporting requirements on crypto asset service providers (CASPs), such as cryptocurrency exchanges, crypto-asset brokers and dealers and crypto-asset automated teller machine operators, whether they are individuals or business entities. The supplemental report listed “stablecoins, derivatives issued in the form of a crypto-asset, and certain nonfungible tokens” as examples of crypto assets.
CASPs would be required to report to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) transactions between crypto assets and fiat and crypto assets for other crypto assets. Crypto asset transfers carried out by CASPs, including payment processing, when the value exceeds $50,000 United States dollars, would also need to be reported. In addition:
“Crypto-asset service providers would be required to obtain and report information on each of their customers, including name, address, date of birth, jurisdiction(s) of residence, and taxpayer identification numbers for each jurisdiction of residence.”
CASPs resident in Canada or doing business in Canada would be subject to the requirements. Transactions by Canadian residents and nonresidents, whether individuals or entities, would be reported.
Related: Crypto industry tops all Canadian fintech investments 2 years in a row
Central bank digital currency and “digital representations of fiat currencies” (such as stablecoins) would not be reported under the CARF, as they are accounted for under amendments to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Common Reporting Standard (CRS) for the sharing of information among international tax authorities.
Source: Luke Belmar
Information collected under the CARF would also be shared internationally. Like the CRS, the CARF was developed by the OECD. The creation of the CARF was motivated by the fact that the CRS did not capture transactions that did not go through traditional financial intermediaries.
The OECD introduced the CARF at a meeting of G20 finance ministers and central bank governors in October 2022. In November 2023, 47 countries pledged to incorporate the CARF into domestic law by 2027. The OECD has 38 members, mainly in Europe.
Magazine: Your guide to crypto in Toronto: Crypto City |
BRC-20 tokens bleed ahead of Bitcoin halving as trader focus shifts to Runes | The two largest BRC-20 tokens saw over 40% declines on the weekly chart, days ahead of the Bitcoin halving. Meanwhile, traders are shifting their focus to Bitcoin Runes, a new token standard on Bitcoin that makes it easier for users to create fungible tokens.
ORDI and SATS down over 40% ahead of the halving
BRC-20 tokens Ordinals (ORDI) and Sats (SATS), the two largest BRC-20 tokens by market capitalization, saw significant declines. ORDI fell over 42%, while SATS fell over 45% over the week, according to CoinMarketCap data.
ORDI and SATS, 1-day chart. Source: CoinMarketCap
BRC-20 token sales have also been declining. PUPS BRC-20 sales fell by 30% in the past 24 hours to $1.4 million, while WZRD BRC-20 sales fell 63% to $1.1 million, according to NFT data aggregator CryptoSlam.
On the other hand, the daily sales volume of RUNE BRC-20 tokens skyrocketed over 4,500% to $251,000, suggesting that traders are shifting their focus to Bitcoin Runes.
Over the past week, PUPS BRC-20 and WZRD BRC-20 tokens were the second and third-largest collections by sales volume across all blockchains, respectively. PUPS amassed over $41 billion in sales volume, while WZRD amassed $16.3 million in weekly sales, according to CryptoSlam.
Top NFT collections by weekly sales volume. Source: CryptoSlam
The surge of interest in Bitcoin Runes, a new protocol for issuing fungible tokens on the Bitcoin network, can be attributed to its upcoming launch, which is set to go live with the Bitcoin halving later this week.
Despite the surging interest, the real market opportunity for Runes may only come months after the first wave of investor hype subsides, according to the pseudonymous decentralized finance (DeFi) researcher Ignas, who wrote in an April 17 X post:
“Runestone, RSIC, and PUPS are already pumping, promising holders shiny new Rune token airdrops. And FOMO threads keep coming. But, like the NFT frenzy post-JPEG reveal, the market could soon cool off.”
Related: Bitcoin slips below $60K, but some traders aren’t turning bearish on BTC just yet
Rune price in danger after Bitcoin halving
Rune prices could see a significant decline after the halving, as they don’t immediately improve the trading experience of BRC-20 tokens and because small traders may be priced out of the increasing Bitcoin (BTC) transaction fees, according to the pseudonymous researcher.
Daily inscription fees and BRC-20 hype wave. Source: Ignas
Ignas expects hundreds of Runes to potentially launch on the market, diluting trader attention and capital inflows.
Paired with the lack of initial utility around Runes, these aspects will make them akin to memecoin trading, according to the pseudonymous researcher, who wrote:
“Finally, utility-wise runes will trade as memecoins like BRC-20s. At least at first, so the excitement of ‘new’ will fade away. Especially if no rune token manages to sustain the pump and degens lose money.”
However, Runes could progressively gain more functionality, which is why Ignas noted that he was “bullish” on Runes long term.
The Internet Computer Protocol (ICP) is planning a Runes integration that will enable ICP smart contracts to interact with Runes and BRC-20 tokens directly on Bitcoin’s base layer, unlocking more possibilities for holders.
ICP’s efforts are part of a new paradigm dubbed Bitcoin DeFi, or BTCFi, aiming to create more utility around BTC and Bitcoin-native assets.
Related: ETH price nears 3-year lows vs. Bitcoin — Will an Ethereum ETF stem the tide?
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. |
Welcome to the future where on-chain robots serve coffee and crypto rewards | The future is here and it has arrived in the form of a fully-automated robot serving coffee and sprinkled-topped ice cream all powered by blockchain technology.
Deployed at Token2049 in Dubai, Peaq, a layer-1 blockchain for DePIN and Machine RWAs (real-world assets), alongside XMAQUINA and ELOOP, launched a live demonstration of tokenizing autonomous value-generating robots.
The robo-cafe demo included serving attendees coffee and soft serve while allowing users to earn crypto rewards for each cup sold via XMAQUINA’s machine pool.
XMAQUINA's automated robo-cafe at Token 2049 Dubai. Source: Peaq
XMAQUINA leverages Peaq IDs for identity management across its network and taps peaq’s other Modular DePIN Functions as part of its architecture. Users are then able to see all the transactions by looking up the robo-cafe’s Peaq ID via Subscan.
Peaq’s layer-1 is then used for the smart contracts that power its business logic, along with setting up machine pools.
The first pool launched will represent the revenues generated by a tokenized automated robo-cafe set up in a strategic location in Europe. According to XMAQUINA, token holders will get a cut from every cup sold.
Cointelegraph heard from Mauricio Zolliker, the co-founder and CEO of XMAQUINA, who explained why the company is using a DePIN-based coffee-serving robot to demonstrate how Web3 technologies can help humans manage automation.
Related: DePINs to decentralize internet access and connectivity in India
Don’t fear the robot
A recent McKinsey report found that automation has the potential to wipe out nearly 375 million jobs by 2030. Add artificial intelligence (AI) to the picture and a further 12 million roles will be lost in the ame time frame.
While the prospect of intelligent robots wiping out jobs across major industries on a global scale sounds worrying, XMAQUINA is trying to use robots, along with decentralized technology, to give people more equity in the situation.
By tokenizing revenues generated by DePINs of autonomous robots, people can become stakeholders in automation, not its victims it claims.
“Everybody gets to be a stakeholder, not just the 1%, which is a more sustainable approach to automation than the alternatives.”
Zolliker said in this way anyone can become an entrepreneur. “Just think of it, users can crowdfund a project of any technological complexity,” he said. “This stimulates wider economic growth by incentivizing the creation of new businesses and also creates new jobs in the process.”
What about user data?
XMAQUINA leverages Peaq's identity management system so users can interact with the technology and the robots. Zolliker explained that Peaq IDs allow the machines to interact with the blockchain and redistribute the rewards in a “secure and trustless manner.”
“They can also store the usage data, properly anonymized, on-chain — for maintenance purposes,” he said.
Token 2049 conference goers getting tokenized coffee and ice cream. Source: Peaq
“As far as the sale transactions are concerned — when the robot sells coffee, in other words — the user data is handled in line with the conventional protocols for credit card payments. All the appropriate protection applies, it’s part and parcel of regular business.”
An automated future
When asked whereelse this technology could be well-suited for this DePIN model, Zolliker answered:
“In essence, it comes down to one simple question: Can the machine create value autonomously? If the answer is yes, it’s most likely a good fit.”
More specifically, he said the project is already looking into different sectors of potential use cases. This includes robots for logistics and delivery, agriculture, manufacturing, service and hospitality, construction and even environmental monitoring.
“People don’t need to fear robots coming for their jobs when they can earn from these robots,” he said.
“While there’s no stopping automation, the most equitable way of moving forward with it is to let everyone have a stake in it.”
Magazine: Bitcoin Halving will pump games, Shrapnel’s ‘simple’ secret revealed: Web3 Gamer |
Nigeria’s crypto reputation will prevail despite recent setbacks — Exchange exec | Nigeria’s global reputation in cryptocurrency is in potential jeopardy due to recent government crackdowns on local exchanges. However, Oladotun Wilfred Akangbe, the chief marketing officer of the Flincap crypto exchange, believes the country can weather the storm.
In an interview with Cointelegraph, Akangbe expressed concerns about Nigeria’s image in the international crypto market following recent events. However, he stated that Nigeria has overcome more severe setbacks in the past.
In February, the Nigerian government used the country’s telecommunication providers to prevent local crypto users from accessing the websites of various crypto exchanges like Binance, OctaFX and others.
Authorities then accused Binance of illegally moving $26 billion out of the country and invited Binance to send representatives to discuss the issue.
Related: Nigeria’s Binance crackdown threatens Web3 industry
Binance executives Tigran Gambaryan and Nadeem Anjarwalla visited Nigeria in February in response to allegations that the exchange manipulated the country’s fiat currency, the naira.
However, the Binance execs were detained and charged with five counts related to money laundering after meeting with Nigerian officials about Binance’s regulatory issues. Anjarwalla subsequently escaped custody and was tracked down to Kenya, where he faces extradition.
Akangbe pointed out that controversies in Nigeria’s crypto sector are to be expected, given the country’s growing crypto adoption. He highlighted Nigeria’s significant role as a cryptocurrency user and blockchain adopter worldwide and remains optimistic about the future of crypto in the country:
“We can turn it around by projecting the fact that we are one of the biggest users of cryptocurrency and adopters of blockchain across the globe. It is normal to have a few controversies in a place where there is so much massive growth. The future remains bright for cryptocurrency in the country.”
Akangbe said the current sentiment in Nigeria toward crypto is a mix of enthusiasm and caution. While there is excitement around the crypto industry’s potential, concerns linger about regulations, cryptocurrency volatility, and the risks of scams and fraud.
Akangbe clarified that the uncertainties are due to the back and forth between the Nigerian government and stakeholders in the crypto space. Local crypto analysts have expressed disappointment with the government’s unfriendly attitude toward crypto in resolving the nation’s foreign exchange challenge.
Magazine: Bitcoin hits new highs, SEC delays options decision, and stablecoin bill looms: Hodler’s Digest, March 3–9 |
BlackRock ETF close to overtaking Grayscale, despite second-lowest daily inflows | BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF), the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), is slowly approaching the market share of Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust ETF (GBTC).
BlackRock’s IBIT recorded the second-lowest daily inflows of $24.9 million on April 17, compared to its lowest day of $20.4 million worth of inflows on April 9, according to Dune data.
Despite the second-lowest daily inflows, IBIT’s current market share of 32.6% is quietly approaching Grayscale’s GBTC market share of 36.8%, which is the largest spot Bitcoin ETF, holding $19 billion worth of Bitcoin (BTC).
BlackRock’s ETF is currently holding $16.8 billion worth of Bitcoin, which is $2.2 billion short of GBTC’s holdings.
Top Bitcoin ETFs by market share. Source: Dune
IBIT flipping GBTC for the first place is not unfeasible, considering that GBTC’s Bitcoin holdings fell by 50% ahead of the Bitcoin halving — from 619,220 BTC on the first day of trading on Jan. 11, to the current 308,105 BTC.
Looking at accumulation patterns, BlackRock’s Bitcoin accumulation has slowed down since its record day on March 13, when IBIT saw $866 million worth of net inflows. However, BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF holdings surged over 10,200%, from 2,621 BTC at launch, to the current 272,550.
Grayscale’s Bitcoin selling has also been slowing down since March 19, when GBTC saw $607 million worth of outflows, as its fourth-largest day of outflows since inception. In comparison, GBTC outflows stood at $79 million on April 17, according to Dune.
IBIT and Grayscale, Bitcoin ETF Flows. Source: Dune
Cumulative ETF inflows have been slowing down since March. Last week saw over $199 million worth of net inflows into the ETFs, down from $2.58 billion in the week beginning March 11.
Bitcoin ETFs weekly net flows. Source: Dune
Bitcoin price has also been subdued due to the slowing ETF inflows. It fell 10.7% during the previous week to trade at $62,971 as of 12:30 pm UTC, according to CoinMarketCap. Bitcoin slipped below $60,000 on April 17, days before the halving.
Related: Bitcoin supply to run out on exchanges in 9 months — Bybit
Grayscale’s GBTC has been experiencing a massive sell-off since it was launched for trading, introducing significant selling pressure for Bitcoin.
The massive outflows can be attributed to GBTC’s high trading fee of 1.5%, which is the highest among all U.S. Bitcoin ETF issuers. In comparison, Grayscale’s IBIT has a 0.25% trading fee, while Franklin Templeton’s ETF only charges a 0.19% fee.
Breaking Down ETF's Impact on Bitcoin Price with Cory Klippsten. Source: Cointelegraph
Related: Top five BTC miners not selling despite Bitcoin halving |
Bitcoin halving could ‘indirectly’ affect cryptocurrency regulation | The additional scrutiny around the Bitcoin (BTC) halving event could have an indirect effect on its future regulation.
This is according to Natalia Latka, policy director and regulatory affairs at blockchain analysis firm Merkle Science.
“While there is no direct impact on regulations or regulators’ approach, the economic and market dynamics influenced by halving events could indirectly affect regulatory considerations, especially in areas related to market stability and investor protection,” Latka told Cointelegraph.
The halving and the approval of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in January are helping to fuel a Bitcoin bull run, making crypto hard to ignore.
Should Bitcoin also become more volatile during this period of increased interest and mainstream media coverage — a not altogether unlikely scenario — regulators could feel inspired to consider action.
Latka went on to outline a further scenario that could lead to increased regulatory scrutiny.
“The Bitcoin halving could also impact energy consumption,” said Latka. “With rewards for mining reduced, less efficient miners could be pushed out of the market, potentially leading to a concentration of mining activities among larger players and a concentration of geographies.”
Latka adds, “This might attract regulatory scrutiny regarding the environmental impact of PoW [proof-of-work], leading to regulations focused on sustainability.”
Further clarity is required in the United States
Cointelegraph spoke with Andrew Balthazor, a litigator with legal firm Holland & Knight, to better understand the current regulatory framework in the United States.
According to Balthazor, U.S. law remains unclear on Bitcoin and cryptocurrency at large.
Recent: Bitcoin halving supply shock set to shake up mining sector
“I think there’s still some clarity in terms of what constitutes a security transaction in the United States, although there’s a general agreement that Bitcoin probably isn’t. We still don’t have a definitive statement one way or the other on even Bitcoin or Ether, or any cryptocurrency for that matter,” Balthazor said.
Frustratingly, when courts have ruled on cryptocurrency, those courts tend not to be high enough to be binding across the union.
“We don’t tend to have a lot of court adjudications saying definitively this token is a security in all circumstances. So, we have some conflicting lower court decisions, which in the U.S. aren’t binding on other courts. So that’s the issue.”
Without clear guidance from the SEC or the courts, the U.S. finds itself in a situation referred to as “regulation through enforcement,” where the bounds of lawful behavior are measured through enforcement action.
Latka said, “The absence of clear, upfront guidelines means businesses often find themselves navigating a regulatory minefield, uncertain if their operations comply with current or future interpretations of laws.”
Balthazor’s experience shows that the situation has a real impact on businesses that want to and are trying to do the right thing:
“I have clients who are frustrated and uncertain about whether their projects might be treated as securities, paying attorneys to negotiate for years.”
Balthazor said this is only possible for companies with “deep pockets,” adding that he would like to see some mechanism put in place so that corporations and the SEC could deal with each other more transparently.
“It would be great to have a more formal process where the SEC could say, ‘Here are our concerns about your project. We think it’s too much like a security for these reasons,’” said Balthazor.
A moving target for U.K. businesses
In the United Kingdom, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) deals with crypto asset regulation, bringing forward rules that, in instances such as the approval of crypto investment products, have been well-received, and in others, such as the introduction of “positive frictions” for U.K. customers of centralized exchanges, have been widely rebuked.
Latka explained how the U.K.’s regulation philosophy and implementation create confusion.
“The U.K.’s approach to regulating crypto assets has been to retrofit existing regulations in a phased manner. This method involves gradually implementing these retrofitted regulations, requiring businesses in the crypto space to constantly adjust to an evolving regulatory landscape,” Latka said.
The approach taken by the FCA means that corporations must always keep one eye on compliance matters as they continue to shift and change.
Latka said, “This ongoing adaptation process can lead to substantial costs and operational inefficiencies for these businesses, alongside a significant degree of legal uncertainty. The challenge arises when regulations designed for traditional financial systems are applied to the rapidly evolving crypto sector.”
FCA announced ETNs in March. Source: FCA
In March CryptoUK — the U.K. trade association for crypto — welcomed the FCA’s approval of crypto exchange-traded notes (ETNs). ETNs are similar to ETFs but exclude retail investors.
CryptoUK asked the FCA to reconsider its position, adding, “We will continue to advocate for a reconsideration of the existing bans on access to appropriate financial investments for retail investors.”
Commentators, including Latka, believe that criticism of the broader regulator landscape in the U.K. is widely true.
Latka said, “There is a conspicuous discrepancy between the growing interest from the public in crypto assets and the regulatory measures in place, highlighting a significant misalignment that requires urgent attention.”
Europe takes a different approach
In Europe, where regulators have introduced bespoke regulation for cryptocurrencies, the chances of the Bitcoin halving making an impact seem more remote.
Recent: Bitcoin returns “too significant to ignore” for world’s retirement plans
The European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) was introduced in 2023, providing a far more comprehensive regulatory framework than the U.K. and a more crypto-tailored solution than in the United States.
However, even here, Latka said that “further clarifications” are still required, as well as “the development of technical guidelines, particularly concerning MiCA’s interaction with existing EU financial regulations and directives.”
So, even in the EU, just a few days out from Bitcoin’s halving, its potential to influence the regulator’s thinking remains. |
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 |
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 |
OKX, Binance and Bybit monthly volumes tripled since late 2023 | A new report says trading volumes on global centralized cryptocurrency exchanges (CEX) like Binance have spiked significantly since late last year.
According to data from the Bybit Institutional Report 2024, many CEXs at least tripled their monthly trading volumes from October 2023 to March 2024.
Released on April 18, Bybit’s report indicates that OKX 30-day volumes have surged as much as 278% since last October, while Binance followed with a 239% increase. Bybit exchange also stood out as one of the fastest-growing platforms in terms of volumes, adding 264%.
All three exchanges have surpassed the industry’s average growth rate of 255%, a spokesperson for Bybit told Cointelegraph.
The U.S.-based exchange Coinbase increased its volumes by 193%, slightly trailing from the average growth rate.
CEX spot trading volumes (Oct. 1, 2023 to March 31, 2024). Source: Bybit
According to Bybit, the significant growth trends in CEX volumes were largely driven by the price rallies of Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH), which followed the approvals of spot Bitcoin BTC exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the U.S.
“For the volume sections, we compare 30-day volumes to eliminate volatilities in volume figures on a daily basis,” a Bybit representative said. Bybit analysts compared October 2023 trading data to March 2024 to show volume growth and see market share changes between CEXs, the spokesperson added.
Despite OKX beating Binance in terms of growth speed over the analyzed period, Binance remains the largest cryptocurrency exchange in terms of market share, accounting for at least 58% of the total spot trading volume, according to Bybit’s data.
Related: Bitcoin supply to run out on exchanges in 9 months — Bybit
In the report, Bybit is positioned as the second-largest exchange by market share, accounting for 9.6% of the market as of March 2023. Rival OKX exchange made up around 9% of the total crypto trading volumes.
Changes in CEX spot market shares. Source: Bybit
According to Bybit data, the growth trend of CEXs has failed to overtake the growth rate of decentralized exchanges (DEX), as major DEX Uniswap v3 increased volumes by 320%.
Derivatives CEXs have also slightly increased 30-day trading volumes, with the biggest derivatives player, Binance, adding around 66% over the period.
“The derivatives market for CEXs is almost entirely dominated by Binance, OKX and Bybit,” the report notes.
Magazine: Synthetix founder: It’s DeFi that’s wrong, not the market |
Tokenized asset market could hit $16T on public blockchains — RippleX VP | Traditional finance (TradFi) firms have warmed up to the idea of tokenizing financial assets on public blockchains as the race toward blockchain-based tokenization heats up.
According to RippleX senior vice president Markus Infanger, TradFi players are finally bringing financial assets on-chain as they look to deploy for production and solve pain points in various value chains.
Speaking exclusively to Cointelegraph during Paris Blockchain Week, Infanger said that TradFi’s use of blockchain is finally becoming tangible.
“We’re starting a paradigm shift for blockchain technology, moving beyond the hype and into real utility. It’s starting to unfold,” Infanger said.
TradFi wants holistic blockchain solutions
The executive said that research estimates pin the future value of tokenized markets at $16 trillion, which is eight times bigger than the total market capitalization of the entire cryptocurrency sector.
“A couple of years ago, many of us in this space were envisioning that. It’s getting closer to reality, and it’s happening on public blockchains. At some point, it looked like it would only happen on JPMorgan Coin or IBM.”
Infanger said that advanced conversations with various financial institutions are ongoing, and they are exploring tokenization projects to issue assets on the XRP Ledger. These firms already have distribution lined up and can articulate use cases and how they want to use the underlying blockchain.
A tangible example of this was HSBC partnering with Ripple-owned technology firm Metaco to allow institutional investors to hold tokenized securities on its new custody platform in November 2023.
Infanger added that Ripple’s business is becoming more holistic by combining various solutions that make use of XRPL.
While Ripple is widely viewed as “a payments-first company” providing a blockchain-based payment solution to solve economic and financial friction, recent developments are broadening its appeal to both TradFi and decentralized finance (DeFi) players.
“We have a custody arm, a payments arm and our contributions to the XRP Ledger. The combination is a holistic digital asset infrastructure value proposition for traditional finance and developers who want to solve DeFi problems,” Infanger explained.
Ripple’s stablecoin
Ripple’s recently announced plans to issue its own United States dollar-pegged stablecoin on XRPL and Ethereum will complement its offering to institutions. Cointelegraph previously spoke to Ripple chief technology officer David Schwartz about the details of the stablecoin.
Infanger added further detail to the impetus behind Ripple’s stablecoin, highlighting that the stablecoin market could reach $2.8 trillion in five years given that there are some $22 trillion that are off-chain.
“Right now, we’re at $130 billion, so there’s clear demand, and there’s an expected trajectory of enormous growth. We’re really still at the early days,” Infanger said.
Another key driver was constant requests from developers in the XRPL ecosystem for a tier-one stablecoin offering like USD Coin (USDC) or Tether (USDT). Infanger said Ripple had used stablecoins in small-scale experimentation alongside XRP (XRP) and its payment product.
“We really envision our institutional DeFi use case, on one hand, tokenization on XRPL and then in our payments product for optionality and some use cases alongside XRP using the stablecoin and for the XRP ecosystem as a whole.”
Ripple has not yet confirmed when it will launch its stablecoin or what it will call the XRPL and Ethereum-based token. |
Arkansas house passes bills restricting crypto mining | The Arkansas State House has passed two bills that could restrict cryptocurrency mining within the state. Although these bills have not yet evolved into full-fledged laws, they lay the groundwork for further discussions leading to potential legislation.
In a Senate hearing on April 17, lawmakers sought to address general concerns such as noise reduction, foreign ownership and the proximity of crypto mines to residential areas.
Two of the eight bills presented to the House on Wednesday passed, even though the Senate only approved one bill last week that addressed cryptocurrencies.
There is considerable debate about whether Act 851 should be amended and the level of detail those amendments should entail. The committees will discuss the matter before potentially passing a law either in the current fiscal session or the next one.
According to the bill, the Arkansas Data Centers Act of 2023 intends to regulate the Bitcoin (BTC) mining industry in the American state, creating guidelines for miners and protecting them from discriminatory regulations and taxes.
Related: Crypto-focused lawmaker wants to lead House Financial Services Committee in 2025
The prolonged and energy-intensive process of Bitcoin mining faces criticism for the waste it generates. Investopedia states that Bitcoin mining produces over 77 kilotons of electrical waste each year.
Crypto mining also presents legal challenges outside the United States. Paraguay lawmakers proposed a bill to temporarily ban crypto mining and related activities in the South American nation, saying illegal crypto mines are stealing power and interrupting the electricity supply.
The proposed legislation aims to prohibit the establishment of crypto mining facilities and activities involving the creation, preservation, storage and trade of cryptocurrencies.
However, Paraguayan senators have halted progress on the mining ban, and officials are now considering the benefits of selling excess energy from its Itaipu hydropower plant to miners.
Miners are facing pressure with this week’s upcoming Bitcoin halving. Miners could liquidate $5 billion worth of Bitcoin BTC in the months after the halving, according to the head of research at 10x Research, Markus Thielen.
“The overhang from this selling could last four to six months, explaining why Bitcoin might go sideways for the next few months — as it has done following past halvings,” he said.
Thielen added that the same could happen again, with crypto markets potentially facing “a significant challenge in a six-month ‘summer’ lull.”
Magazine: Wolf Of All Streets worries about a world where Bitcoin hits $1M: Hall of Flame |
Sweden demands $90M in outstanding tax from crypto miners | Swedish crypto miners owe over $90 million in taxes after government investigations revealed four years of misappropriations.
The Swedish Tax Agency —Skatteverket — investigated the operations of 21 crypto-mining firms between 2020 and 2023. The investigation revealed that 18 crypto-mining firms filed “misleading or incomplete” information to benefit from tax incentives.
According to the agency, some crypto firms provided misleading business descriptions to avoid paying value-added tax (VAT) on taxable operations. Others found ways to avoid paying import taxes on mining equipment or income tax on mining revenue.
A rough translation of the Swedish Tax Agency’s statement read:
“The described approach leads to tax disappearing from the country in the form of incorrect payments of input VAT, unpaid output VAT and unreported crypto assets.”
The crypto mining firms are required to pay the tax authorities over 990 million Swedish krona ($90 million) in total. This includes unpaid total VAT of 932 million krona ($85.4 million) and tax surcharges of approximately 57.9 million krona ($5.3 million).
A breakdown of tax obligations for crypto mining firms between 2020 and 2023. Source: Swedish Tax Agency
While the crypto mining firms appealed against the $90 million demand from the Swedish Tax Agency, the administrative court upheld the appeals of two mining firms and rejected the rest. “The amounts above have been adjusted with regard to the verdicts.”
Related: Renewable energy Bitcoin mining company powers up in Sweden
In November 2023, crypto mining firm Hive Digital Technologies acquired a commercial property and a data center in Boden, Sweden. At the time, Johanna Thornblad, Hive’s country president for Sweden, said:
“The new data center will enable HIVE to grow its regional footprint while further demonstrating its commitment to its ESG focus, sustainable practices, environmental responsibility, and energy efficiency with its newest “green” energy powered data center.”
The company confirmed that the property will also house its incoming generation of ASIC servers and increase its Bitcoin (BTC) production.
Hive owns and operates data center facilities in Canada, Sweden, and Iceland, and it promotes the use of green energy to mine digital assets such as Bitcoin on the cloud.
Magazine: Bitcoin Halving will pump games, Shrapnel’s ‘simple’ secret revealed: Web3 Gamer |
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 to return to India after paying $2M fine for non-compliance: Report | Binance crypto exchange is set to return to India after a four-month ban by paying a $2-million fine for non-compliance, according to a report published in The Economic Times.
Binance will be the second overseas exchange after KuCoin to mark a return to the country after India’s financial regulatory body blocked access to crypto exchanges for non-compliance.
The Indian Ministry of Finance’s Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) blocked access to nine foreign crypto exchange’s URLs and mobile applications, including Binance, in the first week of January for failing to adhere to the country’s Anti-Money Laundering Act.
Binance reportedly accounted for more than 90% of Indian crypto trading volume before its ban in January earlier this year.
Indian users flocked to foreign crypto exchanges like Binance to bypass the severe tax impositions, which prompted the government to ban overseas exchanges not registered with FIU.
Now, with FIU registration, foreign crypto exchanges like Binance have to adhere to the same rules and regulations as Indian exchanges.
KuCoin has started a 1% tax deduction at source (TDS), and other foreign crypto exchanges looking to mark an entry into India will have to follow the same.
Related: Taxman: India’s new tax policies could prove fatal for crypto industry
A person with knowledge of the matter told The Economic Times that it is “unfortunate that it took (Binance) more than two years to realize there is no room for negotiations, and (that) no global powerhouse can command special treatment, especially at the cost of exposing the country’s financial system to vulnerabilities,” reported ET.
Binance has a long history in India. It was believed to have acquired the local crypto exchange WazirX in 2019 but later claimed the deal never went through.
Binance claimed it only provided wallet services for WazirX as a tech solution and that WazirX was responsible for all other aspects of the exchange, including user sign-up, Know Your Customer (KYC), trading and initiating withdrawals.
While KuCoin and Binance have decided to become FIU-registered entities in India, OKX, another leading crypto exchange among the nine blocked crypto exchanges, shut its operations completely, citing the regulatory burden.
Cointelegraph has approached Binance for comment but has yet to hear back.
Magazine: Bitcoin Halving will pump games, Shrapnel’s ‘simple’ secret revealed: Web3 Gamer |
Omni Network token falls 55% after airdrop, fake token completely rugs | The Omni Network’s ERC-20 token OMNI dropped over 55% nearly 18 hours after its airdrop, shaving off over half its market capitalization.
Meanwhile, a fake token sporting the same name has just been “rug pulled,” with its price dumping 100%.
The layer-1 testnet blockchain aiming to connect Ethereum rollups doled 3 million OMNI — 3% of its 100 million token supply — to its community contributors on April 17, starting at 11 am UTC. OMNI, market cap was $560 million.
Within half an hour, OMNI dropped nearly 30% from $53.80 to under $39 and has continued to slide to around $24 — an over 55% drop.
The current market cap is $267.5 million, giving it a fully diluted valuation of about $2.57 billion, according to CoinGecko.
OMNI’s price since its airdrop over 16 hours ago has continued to slide. Source: CoinGecko
The airdrop saw early testnet users, builders and community participants get 50% — 1.5 million OMNI — of the latest airdrop, worth about $36.2 million. Eligibility was determined via a snapshot on April 3.
The remaining tokens were split variously between EigenLayer restakers and some nonfungible token (NFT) projects including Pudgy Penguins, among others.
OMNI’s airdrop split, some tokens went to Pudgy Penguin NFT holders. Source: Omni Network
Omni Network outlined on April 15 that 9.27 million OMNI — 9.27% of the total supply — was being set aside as public launch tokens used for “launch pools and liquidity.”
OMNI’s full token distribution plan. Source: Omni Network
The largest chunk of OMNI — 29.5 million at 29.5% of its supply — will be set aside for “ecosystem development” and handed out initially at the discretion of the blockchain’s backing firm, the Omni Foundation.
Nearly a quarter of all OMNI — 23.3 million — was earmarked for investors and advisers.
Advisers today received 625,000 OMNI worth $15 million — another 875,000 OMNI will come after a year, then 437,500 OMNI every six months for two years.
Investors’ tokens were on a three-year unlock schedule, with nearly 6.7 million tokens — worth almost $161 million today — to come after 12 months, with the rest unlocking every six months until their allocation is exhausted.
Related: Withdrawals from real estate betting platform Parcl hit $74M after airdrop
Meanwhile, the developers of a fake OMNI token using the same ticker have pulled a $398,000 exit scam.
Blockchain security firm PeckShield wrote in an April 18 X post that a fake token dropped 100% after the deploying smart contract dumped over 1.7 quadrillion tokens for 132 Wrapped Ether (WETH).
Magazine: The real risks to Ethena’s stablecoin model (are not the ones you think) |
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? |
Yuga Labs offloads 2 NFT games amid effort to ‘unshackle’ BAYC team | Yuga Labs, the firm behind NFT collection Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), has offloaded the intellectual property (IP) for two of its games, HV-MTL and Legends of the Mara, in line with a previously announced effort to refocus the organization.
In an April 17 post to X, Yuga Labs announced that Web3 gaming studio Faraway had acquired the IP, adding that its chief gaming officer Spencer Tucker would join Faraway as the new chief product officer in a bid to ensure continuity between the games at the new firm.
HV-MTL is a nonfungible token (NFT)-oriented “mech” game where players manage and level up their NFTs as well as local environments. Meanwhile, Legends of the Mara is an adventure game that functions as part of the Otherside metaverse, which was launched on April 30, 2022.
Yuga Labs and Faraway have worked closely together for some time, with Faraway previously developing a Mutant Ape Yacht Club-themed game called Serum City.
Yuga’s move to hand over its gaming IP to Faraway reflects a broader move to “unshackle” the team. It was introduced when co-founder Greg Solano rejoined Yuga and replaced Daniel Allegre as the company’s CEO in February this year.
“We want to unshackle the BAYC team at Yuga as much as possible to execute against its vision. More focus, more agility,” Greg Solano wrote in a Feb. 22 post to X that announced his return to the organization.
Related: Bored Ape NFT floor price hits lowest point in over two and a half years
Wednesday’s announcement comes as NFTs experience a broader downtrend across the market, with its flagship BAYC collection being among the hardest hit of top NFT collections.
As of the time of publication, the floor price of the BAYC collection stands at 11.7 Ether (ETH) — worth $35,400 at current prices. The floor price is down a staggering 92% from its all-time of 153.7 ETH, notched on May 1, 2022.
Bored Ape Yacht Club floor price. Source: CoinGecko
Earlier this year, Yuga Labs sparked outrage among holders and members of the NFT community on Jan. 7 when it announced it would be acquiring the controversial Moonbirds collection and bringing on the project’s creator, Kevin Rose, as an adviser.
Magazine: The real risks to Ethena’s stablecoin model (are not the ones you think) |
Former Ethereum dev Virgil Griffith asks for resentencing in North Korea case | Former Ethereum developer Virgil Griffith, who was handed a 63-month prison term in 2022 for assisting North Korea in using blockchain technology, has requested a sentence reduction.
The plea was made in a letter from Glen Garrett McGorty and Alexander Urbelis, attorneys representing Virgil Griffith, to Judge Kevin Castel of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on April 17.
The letter requests that the court revise Griffith’s sentence based on newly enacted revisions to U.S. sentencing guidelines, which provide a two-point offense level reduction for certain “zero-point” offenders.
Griffith was sentenced to 63 months and a $100,000 fine in April 2022 after pleading guilty to violating sanctions laws when he attended a conference in North Korea and assisted the state in using blockchain technology — despite economic sanctions imposed by the United States.
The letter argues that Griffith qualifies for a two-point reduction as a “zero-point" offender based on the criteria outlined in the revised guidelines.
Screenshot from a letter in United States v. Virgil Griffith. Source: Pacer
This reduction would lower his total offense level from 26 to 24, resulting in a revised guidelines range of 51 to 63 months — potentially shaving a year or more off his sentence.
The letter requests that the court order the U.S. Probation Office to draft a revised pre-sentence investigation report, schedule a resentencing hearing, and allow for a briefing schedule so the defense can provide updated information and arguments for their reduction request.
“The defense respectfully requests the opportunity to provide the Court with updated information which would counsel toward a sentence no greater than the lowest end of the new Guidelines range–51 months—if not lower.”
A “zero-point” offender is a first-time, non-violent offender whose crime meets certain criteria indicating a lower risk of recidivism compared to other lawbreakers.
Related: Railgun denies being used by North Korea as it nears $1B total volume
In May 2023, the U.S. Department of Commerce also imposed a 10-year export privilege ban on Griffith, who was serving the first year of his five-year sentence.
This means he was restricted from engaging in any transactions involving commodities, software, or technology that fall under the jurisdiction of U.S. export regulations.
Magazine: Lawmakers’ fear and doubt drives proposed crypto regulations in US |
Gary Gensler’s resignation ‘troll’ post disappoints Crypto X | United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Gary Gensler duped more than a few X users into believing he was resigning from the SEC on Wednesday — before saying he was “not done.”
“It’s been an honor to serve as [SEC] Chair. Over the past 3 years, I’ve seen firsthand how the incredible staff at the SEC serve investors and issuers alike,” Gensler wrote in an April 17 X post.
In following posts, he noted the “more than 2,000 enforcement actions” and rules that the SEC has finalized under his stewardship, which appeared to be teeing up a resignation announcement.
“And we’re not done,” Gensler added, delivering the final punchline.
The posts went viral and have been viewed over 1.1 million times, according to X figures.
“A legendary and respectable troll thread, honestly [in my opinion],” wrote crypto trader Jordan Fish, who goes by Cobie.
“This really does feel like a resignation tweet at first, but then it’s clearly not,” wrote Bloomberg Litigation Analyst Elliott Stein. “Gotta think that was intentional, given Gensler’s seeming penchant for trolling.”
Van Buren Capital general partner Scott Johnsson highlighted Gensler’s posts “leads with [number] of enforcement actions.”
“Would be like [Department of Justice/Bureau of Prisons] highlighting number of incarcerations. Lack of focus,” he added.
In 2023, the SEC’s crypto-related enforcement actions reached a 10-year high under Gensler’s leadership, which brought 46 enforcement actions against crypto firms, doubling from 2021.
U.S. crypto industry executives and some lawmakers have claimed Gensler takes a “regulation by enforcement” approach to crypto, as the SEC argues dozens of cryptocurrencies are securities in lawsuits against crypto companies.
Gensler, meanwhile, has claimed crypto is full of fraud and manipulation and has said companies should “come into compliance.”
The crypto side of X got back at Gensler for his post — in its own way.
Related: Gary Gensler responds to US lawmakers over SEC’s false spot Bitcoin ETF tweet
Unofficial Crypto Twitter archivist “inversebrah” noted the platform’s crypto community “managed to score a couple of helthy [sic] ratios already.” A ratio is when a reply post garners more engagement — such as likes or shares — than the original post it replied to.
In this case, Gensler’s post received around 1,700 likes, but some responses have racked up more than three times that.
Some of the reply posts to Gensler’s thread with a greater number of likes. Source: X
U.S. President Joe Biden nominated Gensler to chair the SEC in 2021. Gensler started his five-year tenure on April 17, 2021, and could serve as chair until April 17, 2026.
It is, however, custom for the SEC chair to resign if the U.S. elects a new president, and Americans are heading to polls on Nov. 5 to vote on a possible rematch between Biden and former president Donald Trump.
Magazine: Crypto regulation — Does SEC Chair Gary Gensler have the final say? |
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’ |
Bitcoin halving searches on Google is at its highest point ever | The level of interest in the Bitcoin halving on Google has soared to its highest point of all time, with predicted data pegging it at more than double that of the last halving in 2020.
Search interest for the term “Bitcoin halving” has already reached a score of 45, according to Google Trends data, with Google predicting it will reach an estimated score of 100 by the end of this month.
Google Trends notes that a value of 100 translates to “peak popularity” for the term.
Search interest for the Bitcoin Halving’has has hit record levels. Source: Google Trends
The Bitcoin (BTC) halving refers to when the rewards paid to miners are halved. The 2024 Bitcoin halving will reduce block rewards from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC.
The halving is currently slated to occur around 4:00 am UTC on April 20, according to the Cointelegraph countdown timer.
Google Trends shows that the Bitcoin halving is seeing the most interest from Nigeria, the Netherlands, Switzerland and Cyprus.
Search interest in the Bitcoin halving was highest in Nigeria. Source: Google Trends
Related: Bitcoin bull Pompliano says BTC will be bigger than gold and ‘the leader in the recovery’
Record levels of interest in the halving event may not come as a surprise following Bitcoin’s banner performance over the last few months.
Bitcoin began the year at a price of $42,200 and soared 74% to reach a new all-time high of $73,600 on March 13, according to CoinMarketCap data.
Bitcoin’s price action has since cooled off and has traded consistently lower since mid-May. At the time of publication, Bitcoin is changing hands for $61,078 — down 17% from its all-time high.
Despite souring sentiment from market participants, several market commentators have pointed to the historical patterns of Bitcoin price action to suggest that Bitcoin could rally significantly in the months following the halving.
Web3 Gamer: Bitcoin Halving will pump games, Shrapnel’s ‘simple’ secret revealed |
Magic Eden passed Blur as leading NFT marketplace in March: CoinGecko | Magic Eden, a Solana-based nonfungible token (NFT) marketplace, recorded its largest monthly trading volume in March, surpassing industry leader Blur.
Its NFT trading volume spiked 194.4% in March to $756.5 million, while Blur marginally increased to $530.4 million, according to CoinGecko’s Q1 2024 report, published on April 17.
CoinGecko said Magic Eden’s rise up the ranks was partly contributed by its new Diamond reward program and its continued partnership with Yuga Labs — at a time when the NFT studio cut ties with NFT marketplaces that weren’t supporting creator royalties.
It marked the sixth consecutive month that Magic Eden increased its trading volume.
NFT marketplaces by trading volume since October 2023. Source: CoinGecko
March marked the first month Blur had been unseated as the leading NFT marketplace by trading volume since OKX’s NFT marketplace capitalized on a Bitcoin Ordinals craze last December. Prior to that, Blur had led trading volumes for 10 straight months after it surpassed OpenSea in February 2023.
However, OKX has lost a large share of Bitcoin NFT trading volume since then to the likes of Magic Eden and UniSat, and as a result, its trading volume has tanked 73.3% since December to $180 million.
Despite this, OKX still managed to rake in the third-largest NFT trading volume in Q1 2024, with Solana-based Tensor and OpenSea rounding out the top five.
Meanwhile, NFT trading volumes across the top 10 marketplaces amounted to $4.7 billion in Q1 2024 — a 51.6% increase from Q4 2023.
Despite the rise, the floor prices of top NFT collectibles such as Bored Ape Yacht Clubs and CryptoPunks have plummeted more than 91% and 64%, respectively, since reaching peaks in May 2022 and October 2021.
Related: 5 ways to monetize your digital art with NFTs
The enforcement of creator royalties has been a major issue between NFT marketplaces and studios of late.
OpenSea, once the leading NFT marketplace, controversially sunset its on-chain royalty enforcement tool last August. Its CEO, Devin Finzer, said the tool hadn’t had the success it hoped and claimed its competitors, such as Blur, Dew and LooksRare, were circumventing it by integrating the Seaport Protocol to bypass OpenSea’s blacklist and therefore avoid creator fees.
But OpenSea partially backtracked on this position earlier this month, enabling support for an ERC-721C programmable earnings standard.
Magazine: NFTs are like nightclubs, crypto is a volatile religion: NFTStats, NFT Collector |
Elizabeth Warren supports enhanced US sanction options for stablecoins | United States Senator Elizabeth Warren has sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen commenting on Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo’s testimony before the Senate Banking Committee on April 9. She pursued the same line of thought as she did during the hearing — Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT).
Warren expressed her support in the letter for the legislative adoption of more comprehensive AML/CFT measures for stablecoins. Adeyemo appeared at the Senate hearing to discuss Treasury proposals for expanding its sanctions powers to blockchain validator node operators, among other measures. The Treasury listed its enhanced enforcement goals in response to gaps in current regulation in a document Warren calls a “letter to Congress” dated November 2023. Warren wrote:
“Those authorities must be adopted into any legislation Congress advances to create a new regulatory framework around the $157 billion stablecoin market.”
Warren was apparently not referring to the stablecoin bill introduced in the Senate by Senators Kirsten Gillibrand and Cynthia Lummis on April 17, the day after the date of her letter. The 179-page Lummis-Gillibrand bill makes almost no mention of AML/CFT.
Related: Elections may swing Senate Banking Committee toward crypto, Sen. Lummis says
Rather, it seems Warren had in mind a bill that is expected to come out of the House of Representatives from Finance Committee Chair Patrick McHenry and ranking member Maxine Waters. Warren sent them a letter on April 8 voicing much of the same concerns as in her letter to Yellen. Warren concluded her letter to the treasury secretary by saying:
“Stablecoin legislation […] must include the full suite of AML tools that Treasury requested in its November 2023 letter to Congress as necessary to effectively combat that threat [of terrorism financing].”
Digital Chamber Senior Policy Associate Taylor Barr commented on X, possibly with the Lummis-Gillibrand bill in mind: “Would love Sen. Warren’s take on the new bill’s increased consumer protection language, added receivership text, or the Fed/OCC’s enforcement power. All this is conveniently left out of her talking points...”
Magazine: Unstablecoins: Depegging, bank runs and other risks loom |
Mango Markets exploiter trial heads to jury | A jury has begun deliberations for charges related to market manipulation and fraud following an alleged $110 million exploit of the Mango Markets decentralized exchange by Avraham “Avi” Eisenberg.
On April 17 in United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, Judge Richard Berman excused the jury for the day following closing arguments by prosecutors and defense attorneys. The individuals will continue deliberations tomorrow on whether to find Eisenberg guilty of commodities fraud and commodities manipulation after a two-week trial.
In October 2022, Eisenberg allegedly executed a series of large purchases on Mango Markets to artificially raise the price of the token relative to USD Coin (USDC), then withdrew the assets from the platform. U.S. authorities arrested Eisenberg in Puerto Rico in December 2022, claiming he “willfully and knowingly” engaged in a scheme involving manipulating the price of perpetual futures on Mango Markets.
During closing arguments on April 17, Eisenberg’s lawyers argued that he did not commit any crimes but orchestrated a “successful and legal trading strategy” resulting in roughly $110 million in gains. Prosecutors claimed he “had to lie” to remove funds from Mango Markets, suggesting fraud was part of his plan.
“My client [...] fully complied with the Mango Markets smart contracts,” said Eisenberg’s attorney, according to reporting from Inner City Press. “He withdrew his own capital. It wasn’t a borrow. And the rest of the money? He returned shortly afterwards. They called Avi brazen. That’s not a crime. He didn’t hack into Mango Markets.”
Following the exploit, Eisenberg returned $67 million worth of crypto to Mango Markets but claimed he had obtained the remainder of the funds legally.
“He had control of $110 million,” said defense attorneys. “But he was seeking to return the funds. Maybe you wouldn’t have done it. But this is how people do it in this world of cryptocurrency. He sent $67 million. What was kept were the profits.”
Related: Mango Markets heist like a fake diamond ring scam: Prosecutor
A jury could come back with a verdict in the case as early as April 18. Reports have suggested that Eisenberg could face up to 20 years in prison if found guilty. He has been held in custody since January 2023.
In addition to the criminal charges, Eisenberg faces civil action brought by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Both cases have been stayed until the conclusion of the criminal trial.
Magazine: US enforcement agencies are turning up the heat on crypto-related crime |
Bitcoin slips below $60K, but some traders aren’t turning bearish on BTC just yet | Bitcoin price briefly fell below $60,000 only a few days before the much-anticipated Bitcoin halving. Yet, many traders remain optimistic about Bitcoin’s long-term price outlook based on historical chart patterns and institutional inflows.
Bitcoin remains in pre-halving “danger zone”
Despite the recent price correction, Bitcoin (BTC) reclaimed a key moving average indicator, which signaled the start of the bull runs during previous market cycles, according to popular crypto analyst Moustache, who wrote in an April 16 X post:
“Many people are expecting much lower prices, but I’m not… BTC reclaimed the [blue] line last month, now backest. When this happened in 2012, 2016 and 2020, Bitcoin was just getting started.”
BTC/USD, 1-month chart. Source: Moustache
Bitcoin has been in the pre-halving “danger zone” for a month since March 14, according to popular crypto analyst Rekt Capital, who wrote in an April 17 X post:
“It has been a month that Bitcoin has been in the ‘Danger Zone’ (orange). In that time, Bitcoin has retraced twice -18% in March and now almost -16% thus far.”
BTC/USD, 1-week chart. Source: Rekt Capital
The pseudonymous analyst added that Bitcoin could already be entering a reaccumulation phase, in an April 17 video posted on X:
“We’ve seen the pre-halving retrace take place because -17% downside has occurred already, so maybe we’re slowly transitioning to the re-accumulation period.
Following the Bitcoin correction, key technical indicators have been reset, suggesting that Bitcoin is no longer overbought now that it fell on the daily chart to 41, down from 58 on April 8.
BTC/USD, 1-day chart. Source: TradingView
Bitcoin price has falle over 7% during the past week. The main reason behind the drawdown could be the recent geopolitical tensions between Iran and Israel, according to John Patrick Mullin, CEO and founder of Mantra, who told Cointelegraph:
“A major event took place this week with Iran and Israel. Crypto markets are more fast-moving than any on the planet, hence events like this reflect almost instantly, which is what we’ve seen. What I will say though, is that a bounce back was seen right after, which is very optimistic long term.”
The current drawdown is considered a healthy correction, as the outlook for the next 18 months remains bullish, according to Mullin:
“Another angle to consider is that historically, miners sell BTC around halving, so short term it could be bearish. But these are healthy corrections, as BTC has been bullish consistently for quite a while, so anything offsetting euphoria is good long term.”
Related: ETH price nears 3-year lows vs. Bitcoin — Will an Ethereum ETF stem the tide?
Bitcoin ETF inflows will drive post-halving rally
Bitcoin traders also remain optimistic thanks to the continued inflows from the 10 spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the United States and the recent approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs in Hong Kong, which are set to launch for trading over the next two weeks.
The Bitcoin ETFs have seen over $12.5 billion in net inflows since launch, amassing over 838,000 BTC, worth $53.7 billion in total holdings, according to Dune.
While the post-halving period is usually followed by short-term price stagnation, this cycle could be different due to the approval of Bitcoin ETFs, according to Ivo Georgiev, CEO of Ambire. He told Cointelegraph:
“[This halving] is different because BTC received institutional approval in the form of an ETF, so there’s a lot more retail and institutions watching this one. It doesn’t happen completely in the background as it did before. It isn’t just a party for crypto natives.”
The listing of the first batch of Bitcoin ETFs in Hong Kong will also contribute to Bitcoin’s price rally, according to Mantra’s CEO, Mullin, who said:
“More and more ETFs announced globally means an inflow of ‘fresh’ funds that weren’t in crypto before, so this is a factor I still see as underrated by most analysts in terms of the scale of the funds coming in. It’s not just BlackRock and Grayscale and Hong Kong, but many more will come, in size crypto hasn’t seen before.”
Related: Bitcoin supply to run out on exchanges in 9 months — Bybit
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. |
Pi Network reaches 10M KYC’d users, but token is still not tradeable | The Pi Network app now has more than 10 million users who have verified their identities by completing the Know Your Customer (KYC) process, according to an April 16 announcement.
The Pi team has promised that it will launch a mainnet and that its tokens will become tradeable if a series of milestones are reached, including after 15 million users pass KYC. With 10 million accounts already verified, the KYC goal will be reached when another five million users complete verification.
Despite this achievement, business analytics platform AIMultiple has claimed that Pi may bring “no value to users” since it “can not yet exchange their Pi coins with fiat currency on exchanges.” Pi Network was launched in 2019 as a centralized app. Users produce Pi tokens by pushing a button from within the app each day, and Pi cannot presently be transferred to other users through a wallet.
Pi Network official website. Source: Pi Network
According to the announcement, 10 million users, called “Pioneers,” have completed identity verification through the app’s native identity verification solution, Pi KYC. This solution provides “a unique and proprietary approach that combines machine automation and crowdsourced, hyperlocal human verification to accomplish secure, accurate and efficient KYC,” the announcement claimed.
Nicolas Kokkalis, co-founder and head of technology for Pi, stated that the achievement “proves that the industry doesn’t need to depend on fiat services to succeed.” He also claimed that the new KYC system will “allow other Web3 services involving ownerships of assets to achieve their identity verification needs through Pi.”
In December 2023, the team announced plans to launch an “Open Network” or mainnet in 2024 if certain conditions are met. These conditions include that 100 Pi apps must have been developed in addition to the 15 million users passing KYC. In addition, the team must have completed all “technology, product, business and legal” work needed to launch the network, and there must not be an “unfavorable external environment” that would hinder the network’s success. The team has not yet announced a specific date for mainnet launch.
AIMultiple analyst Cem Dilmegani claimed that Pi Network will probably not benefit users, stating, “[w]e don’t expect anyone except the founders to benefit from PI Network in a significant way.” That’s because it “works like a direct selling or affiliate marketing system, promising future rewards to users for bringing in new users.” Dilmegani claimed that the affiliate marketing system is used to drive traffic to the app, which is, in turn, used to sell advertising for the benefit of the app’s developer. “Founders are already benefitting from the app,” Dilmegani stated, as they “launched optional video ads at launch to monetize the active user base.”
Dilmegani acknowledged that the Pi team could eventually launch a blockchain mainnet. However, he argued that this was unlikely because it would cause the token to rapidly fall in value as users sold into the market. “Then, the coin would not be valuable enough for people to keep on logging in to click,” which would potentially eliminate the value of the app to advertisers.
Cointelegraph reached out to the Pi team for comment. In response, a representative acknowledged that Pi had taken an “unconventional and novel” approach to blockchain development, such as providing “an intermediate Enclosed Network period of mainnet” instead of launching an open network immediately. This novel approach was taken to “enable utilities building on the platform and KYC processing of millions of our community members, to help the community further build a robust network for the benefit of the whole community before we launch the Open Network.”
The representative claimed that Pi has accomplished multiple goals since its launch, including the creation of “Pi mining mobile app, Pi Browser mobile app as the interface of the Web3 ecosystem, Node application, Testnet and Mainnet blockchains, Wallet, developer platform, a novel KYC solution” and more. The representative argued that not launching an open network right away was worth it, stating, “We believe anything worthwhile takes time and patience, and such components are essential for a healthy launch of the Open Network.”
According to a March 3, 2021 report from Vietnamese media outlet vnExpress, Pi Network is the 22nd most downloaded iOS app in Vietnam. In May 2021, a Vietnamese news outlet reported that Pi had inadvertently leaked images of users’ identity cards to a hacker. However, a Pi Network spokesperson stated that the app handled KYC through a third-party and did not store this data on its servers, nor was there any evidence of a data leak.
Related: Vietnam government warns about crypto trading risks as Pi gains in popularity. |
Pro-crypto Super PAC backs winners of Democratic primaries for House seats | A political action committee (PAC) used $3.7 million toward Democratic candidates in Alabama and Texas for the race to win seats in the United States House of Representatives starting in 2025.
In an April 16 runoff between Democratic candidates to represent Alabama’s 2nd Congressional District, Shomari Figures defeated Anthony Daniels with roughly 61% of the vote. Figures is expected to face off against Republican Caroleene Dobson in the general election, scheduled for Nov. 5.
According to data from the Federal Election Commission (FEC), the Protect Progress Super PAC used roughly $1.7 million from donations, including Coinbase and Ripple Labs, to support Figures’ bid for office between July 2023 and February 2024. A Protect Progress spokesperson told Cointelegraph that an additional $950,000 was reported after February, with the funds used to purchase advertisements supporting Figures and polling.
Protect Progress’ website states the Super PAC “supports Democratic candidates committed to securing the United States as the home to innovators building the next generation of the internet,” specifically promoting blockchain technology. The group is affiliated with the Fairshake Super PAC, which was responsible for funding attack ads targeting Democratic Senate candidate Katie Porter in California.
Figures’ campaign website listed cryptocurrency among his issues as part of efforts “to stimulate innovation and technological advancement” and address regulatory concerns related to digital assets. According to the FEC, the Alabama candidate’s campaign raised roughly $400,000 — 14% of what Protect Progress contributed to his election bid.
“Shomari believes in working together to support innovation and create good paying jobs for his community and all Americans,” Josh Vlasto, a spokesperson for Protect Progress, told Cointelegraph. “We are proud to support leaders like Shomari on both sides of the aisle.“
Related: Crypto users could ‘make a difference in a close election’ in the US — CoinFlip CEO
FEC records showed Protect Progress also used roughly $1 million to support Julie Johnson’s bid to represent Texas’ 32nd Congressional District in the House. Johnson won her local Democratic primary with 50.4% of the vote in March but also raised roughly $1.3 million for her campaign.
Her campaign website stated that the U.S. “must lead the development of crypto and blockchain technology” while expressing concern about “clear rules of the road” for the industry. Following the primary election results, Coinbase chief policy officer Faryar Shirzad posted a congratulatory message on X:
The U.S. general election on Nov. 5 will determine the winner of both aforementioned congressional seats and the other 433 in the House of Representatives, 34 in the Senate, and the Presidency. Other elections are seemingly being represented as a microcosm of pro- and anti-crypto views in government, including one between Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren and lawyer John Deaton.
Magazine: Opinion: GOP crypto maxis almost as bad as Dems’ ‘anti-crypto army’ |
MeWe social network boss says blockchain can solve the TikTok problem | MeWe chairman and CEO Jeffrey Edell recently penned an op-ed detailing how he believes the situation between the United States government and China’s TikTok could be avoided by implementing blockchain technologies.
Edell is in the unique position of helming a social media company with reportedly more than 20 million users that’s made the leap from traditional Web2 to the blockchain.
The TikTok situation
A slew of recent reports indicate that the U.S. is currently weighing an outright ban on China’s TikTok social media platform. There are allegations that ByteDance, the platform’s owner, has turned over sensitive user data to the Chinese government with potential negative implications for U.S. security.
In an op-ed penned for Rolling Stone, Edell wrote that the TikTok situation is, at its crux, a matter of user privacy that could have been averted through decentralization:
“While the concerns surrounding TikTok are valid, I believe the focus should not solely be on one app or one country. Instead, companies should work toward creating and setting strict guidelines for handling personal data, digital identity and users’ privacy, regardless of their origin.”
Edell added that “one way to ensure that personal data is secure and protected is through the use of Web 3-based, blockchain technology.”
Transitioning to blockchain
As Cointelegraph reported, MeWe made the transition from Web2 to the Frequency blockchain network, a Polkadot parachain, in April 2023.
Essentially, the argument for blockchain-based user privacy hinges on who, exactly, has access to user data. On traditional social media platforms, such as X, user data is held and accessed through a centralized control method wherein the company itself retains ownership of all data.
In TikTok’s case, this ostensibly means that ByteDance — and, by legal extension, the government of China — owns all of the platform’s user data, including more than 150 million U.S.-based users.
By placing data on the blockchain and implementing specific privacy controls, a social media network can give users control over their data without compromising platform functionality.
Related: Worldcoin launches its own ‘human-centric’ blockchain network
While MeWe’s user base doesn’t quite stack up to TikTok’s, the company’s transition to blockchain shows that it’s possible.
To that end, Edell shared six best practices for other companies considering the change in his Rolling Stone article: understanding the technology, starting small, choosing the platform that’s right for your organization, staying up to date with regulatory compliance changes, collaborating with stakeholders, and ensuring employees are educated and trained on blockchain. |
Bored Ape floor price sinks, NASA training astronauts in the metaverse: Nifty Newsletter | Welcome to the latest edition of Cointelegraph’s Nifty Newsletter. Keep reading to stay up-to-date with the latest stories on nonfungible tokens. Every Wednesday, the Nifty Newsletter informs and inspires you to dig deeper into the latest NFT trends and insights.
Read about how NASA uses virtual reality (VR) technology and the metaverse to train its astronauts in this week’s newsletter. What’s behind the decline in the floor price of Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) NFTs? And Cointelegraph has exclusive updates from Paris Blockchain Week, including Ubisoft’s blockchain gaming plans.
NASA created a VR metaverse to prep astronauts for life on the lunar space station
While most of us spend our time in the metaverse trading assets or bopping around in virtual reality on legless avatars, astronauts working with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and SpaceX are using the metaverse to prepare for life aboard a lunar space station that has yet to be built.
The first humans to make their homes in deep space, according to NASA, will be the team tasked with operating a space station currently under development called “Gateway.”
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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 Champions 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.
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Bored Ape NFT floor price hits lowest point in over two and a half years
The floor price of BAYC NFTs has fallen over 90% from its peak to 11.1 Ether (ETH) — its lowest point since August 2021.
BAYC is now approaching a sub-10 ETH floor price after a 50% fall since March 1 alone, according to NFT Price Floor.
The NFT collection’s fall from a peak of 128 ETH set on May 1, 2022, is part of an industry-wide decline in popularity for digital art NFTs.
However, it should be noted that a few BAYC NFTs have continued to sell significantly above their floor price, which is calculated by taking the lowest-priced NFT in a given collection.
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VeChain announces tokenized gloves in partnership with UFC
According to an April 12 blog post from VeChain, gloves worn by Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) fighters will soon be tokenized, and their identities will be tracked on the VeChainThor network.
The gloves will contain VeChain near-field communication chips that record fight data, proving the authenticity of each pair, the post stated. After the fight, the athletes will “donate and give away” their gloves, making them into collectors’ items.
The chips inside each pair will allow a buyer to check the item’s authenticity via a VeChainThor network smart contract. Fighters began wearing the gloves at UFC 300 on April 13.
Continue reading
Thanks for reading this digest of the week’s most notable developments in the NFT space. Come again next Wednesday for more reports and insights into this actively evolving space. |
MIT, German central bank will research CBDC privacy in new project | The Deutsche Bundesbank is the latest monetary authority to team up with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Digital Currency Initiative (DCI) to study central bank digital currency (CBDC). President of the German central bank Joachim Nagel spoke at the launch of the project about challenges ahead for the digital euro.
Nagel told MIT students that the joint research will focus on designing security and privacy measures in a CBDC. The problem is that private digital payment solutions often use third-party services that gain access to consumers’ payment data, which they can use for commercial purposes. In contrast:
“A digital euro would offer the highest possible level of privacy. The Eurosystem would not have access to digital euro users’ personal information. Consumers would gain more control over their personal data.”
Nagel went on the say the current payments system does not work well. “German bank cards, for example, don’t always work in other euro area countries, even if they contain a payment scheme operated by an international company,” he said.
Related: Federal Reserve lists CBDCs as one of 7 ‘key duties’ to Congress
As digitalization increases, the Eurosystem is considering “a digital product that complements our analogue product cash,” Nagel said. He was referring to the digital euro specifically, although other options have appeared, such as the United States Federal Reserve’s FedNow service that was launched in July.
FedNow has been the target of harsh criticism, but CBDCs have fared even worse. Privacy and potential effects on the banking industry are big talking points for CBDC opponents. European Central Bank (ECB) officials are increasingly going on the offensive against the criticism. ECB president Christine Lagarde said in September that the digital euro was the subject of conspiracy theories, and ECB officials have criticized the banking community for failing to give CBDC reasonable consideration.
Source: Digital Currency Initiative
Nagel conceded to MIT students that the digital euro, as a “riskless asset,” could contribute to economic instability in times of stress by undermining banks. Holding limits will be placed on the digital euro to counteract that threat, Nagel said. He added that the public has only a vague understanding of the digital euro project, which is now in its preparatory stage.
The DCI has also partnered with the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank of Boston in its Project Hamilton looking at a potential digital dollar, and with the central banks of Canada and the United Kingdom.
Magazine: How the digital yuan could change the world… for better or worse |
Kraken exchange rolls out self-custody crypto wallet, following other CEXs | Crypto exchange Kraken has rolled out its self-custody wallet for digital assets, following the likes of Binance, OKX, Coinbase, Bitget and Bybit.
"Whether you’re a Kraken client or not, you can use multichain Kraken Wallet as your bridge to the decentralized financial system,” the exchange wrote. Currently, Kraken Wallet supports assets on eight blockchains, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, Optimism, Base, Arbitrum, Polygon and Dogecoin.
The Kraken Wallet app on iOS.
Kraken claims that the app “collects the absolute minimum amount of data required to function as a wallet” and that "not even internal app performance analytics are collected.” The company also stated:
“User activity is proxied through Kraken’s own infrastructure, shielding your IP address and preventing your identity and location information from potential external exposure."
For security, the wallet features mobile biometrics and user password protection, while its code has been audited by Trail of Bits. The app’s code is also open-source and available on GitHub.
Functionwise, Kraken Wallet supports decentralized finance tokens, nonfungible tokens, interaction with decentralized applications through Wallet Connect, and “24/7/365” customer support.
"Kraken Wallet is how we invest in the your keys, your crypto ecosystem which is vital for the existence of permissionless financial access," said Eric Kuhn, product director for Kraken Wallet, in a statement.
Exchanges have increasingly turned to the self-custody wallet sector amid a worldwide regulatory tightening on their activities.
On April 11, Kraken announced that it is winding down support for the Monero (XMR) privacy coin for its customers based in Ireland and Belgium. Last October, the exchange suspended support for several stablecoins, such as Tether (USDT) and Dai (DAI), for its Canadian users.
In many jurisdictions, self-custody wallets are not subjected to the same rules that apply to money transmitters, such as exchanges, as they do not natively process fiat money transactions.
On March 19, the European Parliament scrapped a 1,000 euro ($1,080) limit on cryptocurrency payments from self-hosted crypto wallets as part of new Anti-Money Laundering laws.
Similarly, on March 28, U.S. District Judge Katherine Failla ruled that Coinbase Wallet was “not a broker” and, therefore, not subject to brokerage rules set forth by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Related: US investigates Trust Wallet iOS app for vulnerability |
Doctors turn to Apple Vision Pro headset to practice surgery amid cadaver shortage | Veyond Metaverse, a medical technology company, recently announced that its medical telepresence platform would expand its footprint to the Apple Vision Pro.
The company’s real-time translation and remote communication services were previously used on traditional virtual and augmented reality headsets to conduct what it claims to be the world’s first “digital surgery” in 2023.
With the addition of Apple’s recently released Vision Pro headset, Veyond Metaverse appears to be entering the high-end medical telepresence market at a time when the need for new doctors exceeds the global cadaver supply.
Metaverse
Veyond Metaverse is a relative newcomer to the medical technology field. Launched in 2021, its primary services are surgical telepresence and immersive educational experiences.
According to the company’s website, it facilitates telepresence surgery by allowing subject matter experts to assist in or proctor surgeries in remote locations. The surgeon on site with the patient can conduct the physical processes, while the attending physician is able to immerse themselves in the operating space, in real time, via headset.
The company’s other vertical, educational experiences, combines haptic feedback devices with immersive augmented reality to help students learn to make their first cuts.
Medical cadavers remain in short supply after the COVID-19 pandemic caused a global shutdown. To compensate for the lack of physical resources, Veyond Metaverse has combined visceral 3D imagery with special haptic feedback gloves designed to mimic the feel of conducting surgery.
Extended reality
The Vision Pro is among the world’s most advanced (and expensive) mixed-reality headsets. Apple calls it a “spatial computing device” to highlight the idea that it’s not necessarily a dedicated gaming device, but at its core, it’s a virtual and augmented reality headset — often referred to as a mixed reality or extended reality device.
Users donning the headset can see virtual imagery on the screens inside while numerous external cameras capture the outside world. This allows for the combination of real-world and digital imagery.
Related: Apple is poised to bring metaverse mainstream and dominate the market
A recent study conducted by medical researchers in the Netherlands found that VR technologies were being adopted at steadily increasing rates throughout the global medical industry, with further implementation expected as both hardware and software improves. |
US senators introduce new stablecoin bill | United States Senators Kirsten Gillibrand and Cynthia Lummis have introduced legislation establishing a regulatory framework for payment stablecoins.
In an April 17 announcement, the two U.S. Senators said they had introduced the Lummis-Gillibrand Payment Stablecoin Act, a bill the lawmakers had been drafting for months and expected to make public in 2024. According to Gillibrand and Lummis, the legislation prohibited “unbacked, algorithmic stablecoins” — likely a nod at TerraUSD (UST) depegging from the U.S. dollar in 2022 — required one-to-one reserves for issuers, created state and federal regulatory regimes for firms and prevented illicit uses of stablecoins.
“Passing a regulatory framework for stablecoins is absolutely critical to maintaining the U.S. dollar’s dominance, promoting responsible innovation, protecting consumers and cracking down on money laundering and illicit finance,” said Senator Gillibrand. “To draft the strongest bill possible, our offices worked closely with the relevant federal and state agencies and I’m confident this legislation can earn the necessary support in the Senate and the House.”
According to the text of the 179-page bill, state non-depository trust companies would be allowed to issue up to $10 billion in payment stablecoins, with authorized institutions able to issue stablecoins “up to any amount” under a limited-purpose state charter. The legislation also aimed to uphold the current system of state and federal charters and established rules on custody for non-depository trust companies.
“Proper custody practices for issuers are essential, especially in light of FTX,” said a one-page document explaining the bill.
In October 2023, Senator Lummis called for the Justice Department to take action against stablecoin issuer Tether for allegedly facilitating funds Hamas used following the terrorist group’s attack on Israel. She has previously worked with Senator Gillibrand to introduce crypto-focused legislation, including one bill to establish a comprehensive framework clarifying the roles of the Securities and Exchange Commission and Commodity Futures Trading Commission in regulating digital assets.
Related: Is a US stablecoin bill just around the corner? Law Decoded
Lummis and Gillibrand had been teasing the legislation amid concerns from many lawmakers and industry leaders about establishing guardrails for stablecoin issuers in the United States. The House of Representatives took one such bill, the Clarity for Payment Stablecoins Act, out of committee in July 2023. Though the legislation appears to be ready for a full floor vote, it has seen little if any, movement in months.
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. He did not specifically mention Lummis’ or Gillibrand’s efforts at the time.
Magazine: Lawmakers’ fear and doubt drives proposed crypto regulations in US |
Hong Kong spot Bitcoin ETF approval draws praise and caution from industry players | The much-anticipated approval of spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in Hong Kong earlier this week represents a significant industry milestone for some experts. However, others warn that greater market forces, such as persistent inflation and geopolitical risk, could overshadow the bullish event.
“We are delighted to witness the historic moment of the launch of Asia’s first Bitcoin spot ETF and the world’s first Ethereum spot ETF,” said Livio Wang, chief operating officer of Hong Kong-based HashKey Group, in a statement. “This will serve as a significant milestone for traditional financial institutions in Hong Kong to enter the market and provide retail users with a more convenient purchasing gateway.”
At the same time, Wang explained that, unlike U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs, which were approved in January, Hong Kong spot Bitcoin ETFs have several unique features, such as subscription and redemption both via fiat money and via Bitcoin and stablecoins themselves. In addition, Wang spoke highly of Hong Kong regulators approving a spot Ether (ETH) ETF, which has seen greater regulatory hurdles in the U.S.
Similarly, Patrick Pan, CEO and chairman of OSL Exchange, told Cointelegraph that “the initiation of these ETFs is expected to significantly boost capital inflow into the digital asset market in Hong Kong.” Pan also praised Hong Kong spot ETFs’ ability to allow in-kind settlement, explaining that such a structure will result in "uninterrupted trading flows" and "enhanced market liquidity."
Crypto exchange eToro is also bullish on the prospects of Hong Kong spot ETFs. "Hong Kong would become the first Asian jurisdiction to have a bitcoin spot ETF, positioning itself as a rising crypto hub in Asia, as well as potentially paving the way for other neighboring countries and jurisdictions to follow suit with their own ETFs," the exchange wrote in a statement, continuing:
"More potential investors and integrations into the traditional financial system could bode well for the bitcoin price."
However, eToro also noted after the Hong Kong ETF news, all eyes now rest on Bitcoin's Halving event. "The question on every Bitcoin investor’s mind now is if we will see the price rally again to fresh all-time highs given the immediate supply shock from the halving, or will the price fall even lower, with the halving becoming a sell-the-news event after all the build-up, similar to the Bitcoin spot ETF approval earlier this year?” the exchange stated.
Others are not as enthusiastic about the prospects of the Hong Kong spot Bitcoin ETF.
"Mainland China investors probably won’t be eligible to buy Hong Kong-listed spot bitcoin and ether ETFs as they are barred from buying virtual assets," commented Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas. Due to such demand constrictions, Balchunas predicts that Hong Kong spot Bitcoin ETFs will only attract "$1 billion within two years," far less than the approximately $50 billion currently managed by U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs.
Meanwhile, Markus Thielen, founder of Singaporean blockchain analytics firm 10x Research, said that the firm “sold everything last night,” just one day after Hong Kong spot ETFs were approved. “Our growing concern is that risk assets (stocks and crypto) are teetering on the edge of a significant price correction," wrote Thielen, adding:
"The primary trigger is the unexpected and persistent inflation. With the bond market now projecting less than three cuts and 10-year Treasury Yields surpassing 4.50%, we may have arrived at a crucial tipping point for risk assets."
Bitcoin has lost nearly 20% of its value since achieving its all-time high of $73,750 apiece last month. On April 13, the digital asset took a nose-dive due to escalating tensions in the Middle East.
Source: Eric Balchunas (X).
Related: 'China is about to start bidding' — Will Hong Kong Bitcoin ETFs spark the halving rally? |
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 |
Cyprus keeps FTX Europe license suspended until September | The saga of the collapsed cryptocurrency exchange FTX has been inching toward a conclusion but some former parts of the FTX empire are still struggling to continue operations.
The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has extended the suspension of FTX Europe’s license, prohibiting the firm from offering services until September 2024.
Cyprus' securities regulator officially announced the news on April 16, declaring that FTX Europe must proceed with necessary actions to comply with the relevant provisions of The Investment Services and Activities and Regulated Markets Law.
Excerpt from CySEC’s decision regarding FTX Europe. Source: CySEC
As part of the regulatory decision, FTX Europe is banned from providing investment services as well as entering into any business transaction with any person or accepting any new clients. The firm is also prohibited from advertising investment services, the announcement notes.
On the other hand, the regulator required FTX Europe to complete all its transactions and those of its clients upon their request. The Cyprus SEC ordered that the company will also have to return all funds and financial instruments attributable to its clients.
The news comes just a few weeks after a federal U.S. judge sentenced former FTX CEO Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried to 25 years in prison on March 28 after being found guilty on seven counts of fraud and conspiracy to launder money.
After FTX collapsed in November 2022, its then-affiliated firm FTX Europe was named one of the firms included in FTX’s Chapter 11 filing in the United States.
Related: Sam Bankman-Fried asks to stay in Brooklyn prison for appeal
Before getting involved in the FTX empire, FTX Europe was known as Digital Assets AG, a Swiss crypto startup founded by Patrick Gruhn and Robin Matzke. Gruhn and Matzke sold the company to FTX in 2021 for $323 million, which subsequently rebranded to FTX Europe.
Following long-running bankruptcy disputes, FTX sold its subsidiary FTX Europe back to its founders Gruhn and Matzke in February 2024 for $32.7 million.
Following the settlement, Matzke reportedly claimed that FTX’s European expansion was going well until FTX failed internationally in November 2022, adding that the settlement was a good result.
“We are happy to support speedy payouts to EU clients,” Matzke said in February.
Magazine: SBF gets 25 years in prison, Fidelity eyes ETH staking, and Coinbase’s court loss: Hodler’s Digest, March 24-30 |
White hat hacker group SEAL launches crypto threat-sharing center | A team of white hat hackers called the Security Alliance (SEAL) has said it recovered $50 million in assets since its inception in 2023 and has launched a threat-sharing platform to support the crypto space.
On April 17, the alliance announced its free Information Sharing and Analysis Center (ISAC) called SEAL-ISAC — a platform purpose-built for crypto aiming to protect against cyberattacks and financial crimes by providing security intelligence and connections to experts.
Its features include information sharing, threat analysis and alerts, best practices, incident coordination and response and education on security best practices and threats.
Nearly two dozen major crypto organizations, including the Ethereum Foundation, Polygon, Uniswap Labs, Chainalysis and MetaMask, have joined the initiative as early participants.
The platform is built on the open-source Open Cyber Threat Intelligence Platform (Open CTI) and supports centralized and decentralized crypto entities.
The ISAC integrates with SEAL’s other initiatives, such as its SEAL 911 crypto security incident response — a Telegram messenger channel where a team of around 40 white hat hackers can pick up reports of hacks in progress and assist in real time.
Related: Crypto hack losses declined 51% in 2023: Report
Crypto markets are poised to enter another bull cycle following a decline in hack losses in 2023.
More than $7.7 billion has been stolen in crypto hacks since 2016 — the majority pilfered from major exploits in 2021 and 2022, according to DefiLlama.
Crypto total value hacked since 2017. Source: DefiLlama
SEAL team member and Paradigm security head “Samczsun,” told Cointelegraph Magazine in March that the increasing complexity of crypto-related hacks is “the equivalent of taking a college-level course on quadratic equations.”
“Things are getting harder, but it’s a good sign we are forcing the hackers to solve more and more complicated problems,” they added.
Magazine: ‘SEAL 911’ team of white hats formed to fight crypto hacks in real time |