Coin360 Daily Dispatch | Crypto Market Updates & Highlights | April 30, 2024

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Crypto Market Update

Table of Contents

Market Dynamics and ETF Developments

• Bitcoin Volatility Spikes with New ETF Launches
• Modest Launch for Hong Kong's Spot ETFs
• SEC's Security Stance Impacts Ethereum
• MicroStrategy Expands Bitcoin Holdings Amid Revenue Drop

Regulatory and Legal Updates

• Terraform Labs Advocates Reduced SEC Penalty
• Samourai Wallet Developer Faces Legal Troubles
• FTX to Relinquish Funds to Voyager Digital

Crypto Platform Innovations and Changes

• Mixed Reactions to EigenLayer's Token Airdrop
• BitSNARK & Grail Elevates Bitcoin's Functional Range

Cryptocurrency Market Trends

• BONKKILLER MemeCoin Hits $328 Trillion Cap
• Jameson Lopp Stirs Testnet Controversy

Crypto Transactions and Hackings

• USDC Surpasses Tether in Monthly Transactions
• Yield Protocol Closes After Hackers Steal Funds

NFT and Metaverse Developments

• Moonbirds NFT Revamp Boosts Market Position

Bitcoin Volatility Spikes with New ETF Launches

Bitcoin's market shows signs of volatility and opportunity amidst global liquidity shifts and new ETF launches. Hong Kong's introduction of Bitcoin ETFs boosts market momentum, with prices peaking at $64,714, yet overall conditions remain fragile, leading to BTC’s quick fall to $61,700 at the time of writing. 

Despite a monthly downturn, Bitcoin's dominance is rising, indicating potential for increased market influence. U.S. liquidity dynamics, crucial to Bitcoin's performance, may improve later in 2024, potentially reviving the market. A record 1.6 million daily transactions were processed due to new Bitcoin Runes, reflecting heightened use and innovation in transaction types within the network.

Modest Launch for Hong Kong's Spot ETFs

Hong Kong's Bitcoin and Ethereum spot ETFs launched with a modest $12 million in trading volume, well below the anticipated $300 million by Bloomberg. The US counterparts saw significantly higher initial volumes. 

Despite expectations of strong inflows due to interest from both Eastern and Western investors, the Hong Kong ETFs' debut fell short, even with a well-defined regulatory environment that includes Ethereum not being classified as a security. Meanwhile, in the US, Bitcoin ETFs experienced their third consecutive week of outflows, with significant withdrawals totaling $328 million, highlighting a cooling interest in what was a burgeoning sector.

SEC's Security Stance Impacts Ethereum

The price of Ethereum dropped to a weekly low of $3,042 after reports revealed that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has been privately considering it a security since 2023. Trading volume reached $15 billion in the past day, with Ethereum currently down 15% from a month ago. The SEC's stance on Ethereum has raised concerns regarding the approval of spot Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs).  

MicroStrategy Expands Bitcoin Holdings Amid Revenue Drop

MicroStrategy has increased its Bitcoin holdings to over $15.2 billion by purchasing an additional 122 BTC, despite a 5.5% revenue drop. The company continues an aggressive Bitcoin acquisition strategy, with MSTR stock showcasing 937% growth since 2020, outperforming both Bitcoin and the S&P 500. Operating expenses surged by 152.8%, driven by Bitcoin investments.  

Terraform Labs Advocates Reduced SEC Penalty

Terraform Labs lawyers are advocating for a reduction of the SEC's proposed $5.3 billion penalty to $1 million, arguing that the SEC should seek penalties from a non-entity, the Luna Foundation Guard. This follows the guilty verdict of co-founder Do Kwon for defrauding investors in connection with the algorithmic stablecoin Terra USD.  

Samourai Wallet Developer Faces Legal Troubles

Samourai Wallet developer Keonne Rodriguez pleaded not guilty on criminal charges, under home incarceration with a $1 million bail bond to be secured by May 14. Bail conditions include travel restrictions, monitoring technology, and prohibitions on crypto transactions and firearm possession. Charges involve money laundering and unlicensed money transmitting, facing up to 25 years in prison.  

FTX to Relinquish Funds to Voyager Digital

According to the approved settlement, defunct crypto exchange FTX will relinquish rights to $450 million claimed by Voyager Digital. The agreement, authorized by a bankruptcy judge, will release $445 million from a loan lawsuit and $5 million in escrow to the firm's debtors. Voyager is pursuing settlements as part of its bankruptcy compensation plan.  

Mixed Reactions to EigenLayer's Token Airdrop

EigenLayer's airdrop of EIGEN tokens stirred mixed reactions, highlighting discontent with its allocation methods and restriction policies. Critics decried the minimal token allocation (5%) to early users, non-transferable status upon initial release, and stringent geo-restrictions that excluded stakers from 30 countries including the US and China. 

The linear distribution model also faced scrutiny, viewed as benefiting large stakers disproportionately. Despite these issues, some still praised the airdrop as generous, citing a clear, fair model against potential Sybil attacks. The allocation starkly favored insiders (55%) over the community (45%), sparking significant debate over the fairness of such practices in the crypto community.

BitSNARK & Grail Elevates Bitcoin's Functional Range

A new Bitcoin rollup framework, BitSNARK & Grail, promises to bring full Turing complete functionality to Bitcoin, enabling smart contracts, DeFi, and more. BitcoinOS, with its Sovryn rollups, aims for infinite scalability, near trustless movement of assets, and defeat of state-level attackers. The system could render rival L2s and sidechains obsolete.  

BONKKILLER MemeCoin Hits $328 Trillion Cap

A Solana-based memecoin, BONKKILLER, has surged to a staggering $328 trillion market cap, despite being a honeypot scam that prevents token sales. With most tokens held by the creator and freeze authority activated, investors are unable to sell. This highlights the prevalence of memecoin scams, with one in six on a popular Ethereum scaling solution exhibiting scam characteristics.  

Jameson Lopp Stirs Testnet Controversy

Bitcoin developer Jameson Lopp generated three years worth of blocks in a week on Bitcoin's testnet, causing disruption. This sparked controversy, with some calling it a "griefing attack" and others viewing it as highlighting weaknesses. The incident, seen as a call for attention, has ignited debates about the future of Bitcoin's testnets and the need for resets.  

USDC Surpasses Tether in Monthly Transactions

Circle’s USD Coin (USDC) surpassed Tether in April 2024 with higher transaction volumes, processing $456 billion compared to Tether’s $89 billion, according to Visa. USDC's growth is attributed to regulatory scrutiny concerns regarding Tether, its partnership with Visa, and gradual market gains since late 2023, despite Tether's continued dominance in market cap and user base.  

Yield Protocol Closes After Hackers Steal Funds

In December 2023, Yield Protocol shut down, warning investors to close positions. However, hackers exploited a discrepancy in the pool token balance to steal $181,000 in crypto assets from the protocol's strategic contracts on the Arbitrum blockchain. Despite previous recovery, attempts to retrieve the funds seem improbable. Crypto losses from 46 hacking incidents totaled $336.3 million in Q1 2024, a 23% decline from the previous year.