Coin360 Daily Dispatch | Crypto Market Updates & Highlights | August 20, 2024

Crypto Market Update

Table of Contents

Market Updates

• Bitcoin Demand Drops; Whales Accumulate Cautiously
• Ethereum Struggles as Whale Sentiment Declines
• Solana ETF Faces Delays Amid SEC Scrutiny
• Ledn Secures $50 Million Bitcoin-Backed Loan

Ethereum and L2 Solutions

• Linea Partners with Status for L2 Rollup Initiative
• Corn Launches Ethereum Layer-2 Powered by Bitcoin
• Starknet Plans STRK Staking via Community Voting
• SushiSwap Integrates Orbs' dLIMIT and DCA Protocols

New Blockchain and DeFi Developments

• Galxe Launches Alpha Mainnet of Gravity Blockchain
• Clearpool Introduces Ozean on Optimism for RWA Yield
• Fabric Cryptography Raises $33 Million for VPU Development

Crypto Platform and Regulatory News

• Space and Time Labs Rebrands to Space and Tokens
• Curve Founder Requests $6.3M CRV for Swiss Stake AG
• Binance Prevents $2.4 Billion in Potential Losses
• MangoDAO's SEC Settlement Proposal Draws Controversy
• Coinbase's Base Network Introduces "Basenames"

Market Reactions and Investor Sentiments

• Voxies and Across Protocol Surge After New Listings
• Meme Coins Yield Huge Returns Amid Market Volatility
• Solana DeFi Users Targeted by 'Bull Checker' Breach

Bitcoin Demand Drops; Whales Accumulate Cautiously

Bitcoin saw a sharp 3% decline to $58,500, triggering over $50 million in liquidations within an hour before recovering. Between April and August 2024, Bitcoin demand has declined, with 80% of short-term holders underwater on their positions, according to an on-chain analyst. Despite market volatility, institutional investors have maintained steady Bitcoin holdings. Whale activity shows a significant slowdown, with large holders adding just 1 BTC per month, indicating cautious accumulation. An unknown whale has been accumulating Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC), raising market interest amid ongoing controversy. The U.S. dollar has sunk to yearly lows, further influencing the broader cryptocurrency market. 

Ethereum Struggles as Whale Sentiment Declines

Ethereum struggles to regain the $3,000 level, with whale investors reducing their holdings. ETH supply in profit hit a low for 2024, with 85.66% of circulating ETH valued higher than recent purchase prices, down from 94% just weeks ago. Despite ETH being 15% up from the year's start, recent buyers faced losses as prices dropped 30%. This suggests many bought ETH in 2024’s second quarter, missing higher prices. Holders from 2023 may still profit, while others could be underwater. The number of addresses holding over 10,000 ETH has declined sharply, falling below 960, the lowest since 2017, indicating bearish sentiment.

Solana ETF Faces Delays Amid SEC Scrutiny

The SEC identified Solana (SOL) as a potential security, delaying Solana ETF approval by withholding crucial 19b-4 forms from the Cboe website. VanEck and 21Shares' applications have faced removal, with concerns about SOL's security classification stalling progress. VanEck continues pushing for approval despite these regulatory challenges, with industry experts suggesting a Solana ETF might not be approved until 2025. SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce's remarks reflect the agency's stringent stance on crypto assets.

Ledn Secures $50 Million Bitcoin-Backed Loan

Ledn has secured a groundbreaking $50 million Bitcoin-backed syndicated loan through a partnership with Sygnum, a leading digital asset banking group. This loan is aimed at expanding Ledn's retail lending operations and marks a significant milestone in institutional crypto finance. Ledn plans to leverage this collaboration to integrate digital assets further into mainstream financial markets, potentially setting a precedent for future crypto-backed financial instruments. 

Linea Partners with Status for L2 Rollup Initiative

Linea has partnered with Status to pioneer its open-source L2 rollup initiative, marking a milestone in Ethereum's scaling efforts. Status will contribute to Linea's development using zero-knowledge technology, aiming to enhance transparency and security. This collaboration underscores Linea's commitment to decentralization and may catalyze broader adoption of layer-2 solutions across the blockchain ecosystem.

Corn Launches Ethereum Layer-2 Powered by Bitcoin

BadgerDAO founder has launched Corn, an Ethereum Layer-2 solution powered by Bitcoin as gas. The platform secured a $6.7 million funding round led by Polychain Capital, marking a significant move in Bitcoin-centric DeFi initiatives. Corn aims to enhance scalability and reduce transaction costs by utilizing Bitcoin's robust network for Ethereum transactions. 

Starknet Plans STRK Staking via Community Voting

Starknet plans to launch STRK staking via its inaugural community voting system, aiming to enhance network security and decentralization. STRK holders will vote on minting mechanisms and protocol adjustments starting with a test phase in September, leading to a Mainnet launch in October. Participation requires staking 20,000 STRK with a 21-day lockup period for unstaking.

SushiSwap Integrates Orbs' dLIMIT and DCA Protocols

SushiSwap has enhanced its platform by integrating Orbs' dLIMIT and DCA protocols, enabling users to set limit orders and implement dollar-cost averaging strategies directly on the decentralized exchange. This integration allows traders to place on-chain limit orders with customizable parameters like price deviations and expiry dates, enhancing trading flexibility and strategy execution on SushiSwap.

Galxe Launches Alpha Mainnet of Gravity Blockchain

Galxe has launched the alpha mainnet of its Layer 1 blockchain Gravity, integrating all its products like Quest and Compass. Gravity, a proof-of-stake platform using Arbitrum Nitro, promises seamless cross-chain interactions and high throughput with its Jolteon consensus. The Gravity Mainnet is slated for Q2 2025, supported by native G token staking and governance features.

Clearpool Introduces Ozean on Optimism for RWA Yield

Clearpool has launched Ozean on Optimism, a pioneering RWA yield chain in DeFi. Ozean integrates real-world assets (RWAs) like the USDX stablecoin and ozUSD yield-bearing token, alongside a novel liquidity layer called Oxygen. It promises native on-chain yield and compliance features, aiming to tap into a vast market while contributing to Optimism's ecosystem growth.

Fabric Cryptography Raises $33 Million for VPU Development

Fabric Cryptography raised $33 million in a Series A round co-led by Blockchain Capital and 1kx to develop its Verifiable Processing Unit (VPU), a chip enhancing cryptographic workloads for the blockchain industry. Additionally, Binance Labs invested in Corn, a Bitcoin yield-generating network, which focuses on providing users with a decentralized way to earn returns on their Bitcoin holdings. Sorella Labs, a startup tackling Ethereum's MEV problem, secured $7.5 million in seed funding led by Paradigm. YeagerAI, developer of the decentralized AI network GenLayer and non-deterministic smart contracts, secured $7.5 million in seed funding led by North Island Ventures. 

Space and Time Labs Rebrands to Space and Tokens

Space and Time Labs, backed by Microsoft’s M12, rebrands Cenit Finance to ‘Space and Tokens’ and integrates its tokenomics simulator. This enhances SxT’s capabilities in managing and simulating token economies with verified on-chain data. The platform aims to optimize token utility and distribution strategies, supporting developers in creating more effective token economies.

Curve Founder Requests $6.3M CRV for Swiss Stake AG

Curve Founder Michael Egorov has proposed securing 21 million CRV, valued at $6.3 million, from Curve DAO's Community Fund to support Swiss Stake AG's development efforts. The request, lacking detailed expenditure plans, has sparked skepticism among DAO members, who question its transparency and sustainability amid concerns over fund management and community support.

Binance Prevents $2.4 Billion in Potential Losses

Binance has successfully prevented over $2.4 billion in potential losses from crypto scams and fraud in the first seven months of 2024. This effort protected more than 1.2 million users, with $1.1 billion of the prevented losses linked to suspected crypto scams. Binance credits its advanced internal risk engine, combining AI-based and manual reviews, for detecting and preventing these fraudulent activities. 

MangoDAO's SEC Settlement Proposal Draws Controversy

MangoDAO's SEC settlement proposal, aimed at resolving a securities violation case, has garnered attention and controversy. The DAO plans to pay a $223,228 fine, destroy its MNGO tokens, and cease trading them in the U.S. Despite reaching quorum approval among its members, concerns linger over the actual benefits to investors and whether delisting tokens adequately protects their interests. The settlement emphasizes neither admission nor denial of wrongdoing, amidst ongoing regulatory scrutiny following a previous $110 million exploit by Avraham Eisenberg in 2022.

Coinbase Base Network Introduces "Basenames"

Coinbase's Base network launched "Basenames," simplifying wallet addresses into user-friendly names via Ethereum Name Service (ENS). Basenames are auctioned starting at 100 ETH, decreasing to 0.39 ETH over 36 hours. Separately, by August 2024, Base had 4 million active addresses, driven by the "Onchain Summer" event and its $1.5 billion Total Value Locked (TVL).

Voxies and Across Protocol Surge After New Listings

Binance announced the USD-margined futures listing for Voxies (VOXEL), causing the token’s price to surge 75% to $0.2446. Across Protocol (ACX) saw a 14% price increase following its listing on Coinbase on August 21, 2024. Both listings spurred significant market optimism, with futures on Voxies offering up to 50x leverage.

Meme Coins Yield Huge Returns Amid Market Volatility

On August 20, 2024, a trader turned $2,800 into $320,000 by investing in the Reddit Dog (r/snoofi) meme coin. Meanwhile, the Sundog meme coin on the Tron network spiked in value after the launch of the SunPump platform. Both events highlight the volatile nature of meme coins and the potential for significant profits amidst growing interest in this market.

Solana DeFi Users Targeted by 'Bull Checker' Breach

Solana DeFi users faced a security breach from the malicious 'Bull Checker' browser extension, identified by Jupiter. The extension, targeting Solana-related Reddit users, allowed tokens to be siphoned from wallets during routine dApp interactions. Jupiter urges affected users to uninstall any extensions with extensive permissions immediately to safeguard their assets.