BlackRock bullish on Bitcoin, Gemini CEO’s ‘delusion,’ and CEXs’ unhappy staff: Hodler’s Digest, July 2-8

10 July 2023

Cointelegraph By Editorial Staff

Top Stories This Week

Larry Fink, the CEO of BlackRock, has recently delivered pro-crypto remarks, claiming “Bitcoin is an international asset” and suggesting U.S. regulators consider how an ETF directly linked to Bitcoin could democratize finance in the country. Under Fink, BlackRock has attempted to launch a spot BTC ETF with crypto exchange Coinbase acting as a surveillance partner. It’s unclear if the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will approve the investment vehicle, given its track record of rejecting all previously filed spot BTC ETF applications to date.

Gemini files lawsuit against Digital Currency Group and Barry Silbert over Genesis and Earn program

Gemini has announced legal action against the conglomerate Digital Currency Group (DCG) and its CEO, Barry Silbert, claiming “fraud against creditors.” Genesis, a DCG subsidiary, had been the crypto lender responsible for operating an Earn program in partnership with the crypto exchange. The suit follows an open letter published by Gemini co-founder Cameron Winklevoss, which slammed Silbert for allegedly trying to play the victim card while owing over a billion dollars to Earn’s investors. “Not even Sam Bankman-Fried was capable of such delusion,” Winklevoss wrote in the letter.

Bitcoin bull run incoming: Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao reveals when

Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao has delivered his prediction for the next Bitcoin bull market. In a July 5 “ask me anything” session on Twitter, CZ gave his thoughts on the next bull run, explaining that the price of Bitcoin has historically moved in four-year bull cycles, and his best bet was that this would continue to occur. While admitting he couldn’t predict the future, Zhao emphasized the upcoming Bitcoin halving event in 2024 and declared 2025 to be the most likely year for the next bull market, stating: “The year after Bitcoin halving is usually the bull year.“

Lawmakers in the United Kingdom are moving forward with legislation aimed at expanding authorities’ ability to target cryptocurrencies used for illicit purposes. A June 27 version of the bill included provisions to allow authorities greater flexibility in the confiscation and civil recovery of crypto assets. In addition, the legislation clarified the government’s authority over digital assets “intended to be used for the purposes of terrorism” or related reasons. The lawmakers will consider all amendments to the bill before it can be made law by royal assent.

Binance, Coinbase and Gemini staff are among the least happy, data suggests

According to a quadrant chart by tech recruitment firm TrueUp using data from Glassdoor, crypto exchanges, including Gemini, Binance and Coinbase, are home to some of the least happy employees in the industry. The chart shows the happiest and least happy workers across over 27 of most valuable crypto firms on different stages of maturity. The defunct crypto lender Celsius, crypto exchange Gemini and trading firm Amber Group top the list of least satisfied employees, followed by Binance and Coinbase. Binance said its “hardcore” work culture could explain some of the results, while Crypto Recruit founder Neil Dundon warned that the data should be taken with a grain of salt.

Winners and Losers

At the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) is at $30,321, Ether (ETH) at $1,868 and XRP at $0.46. The total market cap is at $1.18 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.

Among the biggest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are Bone ShibaSwap (BONE) at 40.88%, Maker (MKR) at 12.94% and Flow (FLOW) at 11.73%. 

The top three altcoin losers of the week are ApeCoin (APE) at -15.13%, Stellar (XLM) at -13.31% and Fantom (FTM) at -12.63%.

For more info on crypto prices, make sure to read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.

Read also


Features

How smart people invest in dumb memecoins: 3-point plan for success


Features

Building community resilience to crises through mutual aid and Web3

Most Memorable Quotations

“The year after Bitcoin halving is usually the bull year.“

Changpeng Zhao, CEO of Binance

“Decentralized perpetuals and futures trading is much newer, so there is a high growth opportunity to be had with on-chain derivatives.”

Henrik Andersson, chief investment officer at Apollo Crypto

“Let’s be clear: Bitcoin is an international asset.”

Larry Fink, CEO of BlackRock

“The future tells me that we are going toward augmented intelligence that will end up with AI co-mingling with normal brains. Maybe that is the future of humanity.”

Paolo Ardoino, chief technology officer at Tether

“It takes a special kind of person to owe $3.3 billion dollars to hundreds of thousands of people and believe, or at least pretend to believe, that they are some kind of victim.”

Cameron Winklevoss, CEO of Gemini

“Bitcoin-related startup investment, I think particularly at an early stage, had doubled in the last year. So that’s a positive.”

Adam Back, CEO of Blockstream

Prediction of the Week 

BTC price remains ‘undoubtedly bullish’ as $30K Bitcoin buyers emerge

Bitcoin bulls had hopes that new yearly highs would allow BTC/USD to exit its months-long trading range for good, but ended up disappointed. The largest cryptocurrency saw rejection at $31,500 this week, falling below the $30,000 mark just hours later to challenge the lower part of the range.

Longer-term perspectives likewise continued the overall bullish narrative, with short-term retracements and sideways movement below resistance expected.

Pseudonymous trader TraderKoz dispelled fears over a deeper comedown challenging Bitcoin’s uptrend. “With a lot of people talking about shorter-term pullbacks, it’s important to keep the bigger picture in mind and not lose focus,” he wrote on July 6, adding, “Whether we pullback to 28k, 29k, or wherever else, this weekly chart is undoubtedly bullish (in my opinion). And I will be looking to bid dips.”

FUD of the Week 

Multichain MPC bridge sees $100M+ outflows, sparking fears of exploitAbnormally large outflows from the Multichain multi-party computation (MPC) bridge platform are sparking fears of a multimillion-dollar exploit. On July 6, observers noticed that over $102 million worth of crypto had been withdrawn from Multichain’s Fantom bridge on the Ethereum side, as well as $666,000 from Dogechain and $5 million from Moonriver. Several on-chain sleuths took to Twitter to label the event as a possible exploit. Multichain said the movements were abnormal and the team “is not sure what happened and is currently investigating.”Coinbase domain name reportedly used by scammers in high-profile attacksCoinbase’s users have been turning to Twitter to report scams and phishing attacks involving the company’s services and applications in the recent weeks, including claims that scammers are using the crypto exchange’s domain name. According to reports, perpetrators have been using the email “help@coinbase.com” to deceive users and gain access to accounts. Coinbase said anyone scamming its customers will be prosecuted.BarnBridge DAO calls halt to ‘all work’ on DeFi protocol amid SEC probeBarnBridge DAO members have been told to pause “all work” related to the project after a reported probe by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Douglas Park, a lawyer for the decentralized autonomous organization, revealed the news to members in a post on the platform’s Discord channel. All BarnBridge-related products are currently on hold, including its liquidity pools. DAO members are not receiving compensation for work flowing from the investment efforts of the organization.Best Cointelegraph FeaturesShould you ‘orange pill’ children? The case for Bitcoin kids booksHow young is too young to introduce kids to Bitcoin? Parents and the authors of Bitcoin kids books weigh in.Super Mario: Crypto Thief, Sega blockchain game, AI games rights fight — Web3 GamerGods Unchained and My Pet Hooligan join the Epic Games Store and a look at a cute tropical island blockchain game.Natalie Brunell sees a “six figure” Bitcoin price on the horizon, but she’s not in a rush for the bull market to appear anytime soon.AIBinanceBitcoinBitcoin ETFBlackRockBlockchainChangpeng ZhaoCoinbaseCryptocurrenciesDeFiEthereumGary GenslerGeminiHackmemecoinNFTRegulationSECStablecoinsTetherTwitterUnited KingdomUnited SatesUnited StatesUSDCRead also

  

You might also like

FTX liquidated $1.5B in 3AC assets 2 weeks before hedge fund’s collapse  
FTX liquidated $1.5B in 3AC assets 2 weeks before hedge fund’s collapse  

Newly revealed court documents show that FTX secretly liquidated $1.53 billion in Three Arrows Capital (3AC) assets just two weeks before the hedge fund collapsed in 2022. The disclosure challenged previous narratives that 3AC’s downfall was solely market-driven.Once valued at over $10 billion, 3AC collapsed in mid-2022 after a series of leveraged directional trades turned sour. The hedge fund had borrowed from over 20 large institutions before the May 2022 crypto crash, which saw Bitcoin (BTC) fall to $16,000.However, recently-discovered evidence shows that the FTX exchange liquidated $1.53 billion worth of 3AC’s assets just two weeks ahead of the hedge fund’s collapse.3AC “asked a bankruptcy court to let it increase its claim against FTX from $120 million to $1.53 billion,” according to “Mbottjer,” the pseudonymous co-founder of FTX Creditor, a group FTX creditors and bankruptcy claim buyers.“3AC says it only recently discovered evidence that FTX liquidated $1.53B of 3AC’s assets just two weeks before 3AC itself went into liquidation, much more than the $120M originally claimed,” they stated.Source: MbottjerThe crypto hedge fund claims it was never notified of these liquidations due to FTX’s own bankruptcy proceedings. A court ruled that 3AC acted in good faith, allowing it to pursue its full $1.53 billion claim in FTX’s bankruptcy case.On Dec. 21, 2023, a British Virgin Islands court froze $1.14 billion worth of 3AC co-founder Kyle Davies and Su Zhu’s assets. Teneo has since estimated that 3AC creditors are still owed roughly $3.3 billion following the hedge fund’s collapse in 2022.Davies claimed that allegations from Teneo — the firm in charge of 3AC’s liquidation — that he and co-founder Su Zhu were “not cooperating” were exaggerated.Related: US court gives Three Arrows nod to increase its FTX claim to $1.53BMissing $1.5 billion not enough to avoid 3AC collapseWhile the $1.53 billion sum is significantly larger than FTX’s previously disclosed liquidations, it may not have been enough to save 3AC from bankruptcy, according to Nicolai Sondergaard, research analyst at Nansen:“From what I can see, even if they in 2022 had the additional $1.5 billion they still would not have been able to meet creditor claims/debt repayments.”“Without being a legal expert, it seems to me that 3AC, while being allowed to pursue a much larger amount, likely won’t get the full $1.53 billion claim. It seems realistic that they will get more, but how much is uncertain,” the analyst added.Related: 3AC liquidators file $1.3B claim against Terraform LabsBinance co-founder and former CEO Changpeng Zhao called the revelations an “interesting turn of events.”Source: CZ BNB“I am curious if FTX had anything to do with the LUNA/UST crash/depeg in May 2022,” Zhao said in a March 14 X post.The collapse of 3AC occurred a month after that of Terraform Labs’ Terra (LUNC) and TerraClassicUSD (USTC) tokens and shortly before crypto lender Celsius paused all user withdrawals after its native token Celsius (CEL) dropped 90%.Magazine: ‘Hong Kong’s FTX’ victims win lawsuit, bankers bash stablecoins: Asia Express

Russia using Bitcoin, USDt for oil trades with China and India: Report  
Russia using Bitcoin, USDt for oil trades with China and India: Report  

Russian companies have been using cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and USDt to facilitate trade with China and India amid international sanctions, according to a Reuters report.Russian oil companies have used crypto assets including Bitcoin (BTC) and Tether’s USDt (USDT) for international trade, Reuters reported on March 14, citing four sources with direct knowledge of the matter.One Russian oil trader reportedly conducts tens of millions of dollars worth of monthly transactions using digital assets, according to a source who spoke on condition of anonymity due to a non-disclosure agreement.While the Russian finance minister publicly declared in late 2024 that Russia is free to use assets like Bitcoin in foreign trade, the use of crypto in oil transactions with China and India had not been previously reported.Russia’s oil trade in crypto: How does it work?According to Reuters, Russia’s foreign oil trade in crypto involves intermediaries who manage offshore accounts and facilitate transactions in the buyer’s local currency. One example includes a Chinese buyer of Russian oil that pays a trading company acting as a middleman in yuan into an offshore account.The middleman then converts payments into crypto assets and transfers it to another account, which then sends it to a third account in Russia and converts it to Russian rubles, sources said.Crypto will be used no matter of sanctionsAccording to one of Reuters’ sources, crypto will likely continue to be used in Russia’s foreign oil trading regardless of whether any sanctions are in place and even if the sanctions are lifted and Russia is free to use the dollar.“It is a convenient tool and helps run operations faster,” the report said, citing the source.The news comes amid the Bank of Russia officially proposing to legalize cryptocurrency investments for high-net-worth individuals who have at least $1.1 million in securities and deposits.Bitcoin remains highly restricted in mainland ChinaWhile Russia has been increasingly open to Bitcoin, including its use in foreign trade, mainland China has maintained a cautious and restrictive approach toward cryptocurrency.Since banning virtually all crypto transactions in 2021, authorities in mainland China have maintained a restrictive agenda on crypto, while neighboring jurisdiction Hong Kong has emerged as a global crypto hub.Related: Indian authorities arrest alleged Garantex founder for US extraditionDespite the restrictions, mainland China has remained one of the global leaders in Bitcoin mining, raising controversy over the application of its crypto ban.Source: Jan3As the United States moves forward with its strategic Bitcoin reserve initiative, some industry observers believe China will not ignore Bitcoin’s growing role in the global financial landscape.According to data from the Bitcoin technology company Jan3, the Chinese government may be holding at least 193,000 BTC.Magazine: Ridiculous ‘Chinese Mint’ crypto scam, Japan dives into stablecoins: Asia Express

Texas court issues judgment against Bancor DAO after it ignored summons  
Texas court issues judgment against Bancor DAO after it ignored summons  

A Texas federal judge has entered a default judgment against Bancor DAO, which operated the decentralized finance platform Bancor, after it failed to respond to an online summons. Judge Robert Pitman issued the judgment after Bancor DAO did not appear to defend itself following a summons that was posted on the DAO’s forum in January 2024.“Defendant Bancor DAO has failed to answer or otherwise defend itself within the time allowed, and that plaintiffs have demonstrated that failure,” wrote district court clerk Philip Delvin on March 13.The class action involves investors who claim they lost tens of millions of dollars due to the exchange’s failure to warn about liquidity issues during a 2022 withdrawal spike.Clerk’s entry of default against Bancor. Source: Law360According to the plaintiffs, who filed the suit in May 2023, Bancor deceived investors about its impermanent loss protection mechanism for liquidity providers and also claimed its token was an unregistered security. They said Bancor’s ILP operated at a deficit and tried to cover by launching a new product, v3, which promised “some of the most competitive returns anywhere without asking users to take on any risk.”Impermanent losses occur within DeFi automated market maker models when liquidity providers deposit assets into a pool, and one of the tokens loses value against another in the pool. Bancor paused impermanent loss protection, citing “hostile” market conditions in June 2022.The plaintiffs also argued that Bancor DAO is an “unincorporated general partnership” consisting of vBNT tokenholders and could be sued in that capacity, according to Law360.The case was previously dismissed entirely because the protocol developers were not based in the United States, but was reopened in December.The plaintiffs said that the DeFi platform “does not appear to be registered in any jurisdiction and has no physical office location, mailing address, officers, directors, or appointed agents.”Bancor is an onchain liquidity protocol that enables automated, decentralized exchange across blockchains. It has $38 million in total value locked, a figure that is down 98% since its peak in May 2021, according to DeFillama.Related: Lawsuits could be catastrophic for DAOs if denied ‘limited liability’The ruling follows precedent from a similar case where the Commodity Futures Trading Commission won a default judgment against Ooki DAO.A California federal judge also ruled in November that DAOs and their governing members can be sued in cases involving unregistered securities.Magazine: Mystery celeb memecoin scam factory, HK firm dumps Bitcoin: Asia Express

Open chat
1
BlockFo Chat
Hello 👋, How can we help you?
📱 When you've pressed the BlockFo button, we automatically transfer to WhatsApp 🔝🔐
🖥️ Or, if you use a PC or Mac, then we'll open a new window to load your desktop app.
BlockFo
BlockFo