Coin360 Daily Dispatch | Crypto Market Updates & Highlights | June 17, 2024

Crypto Market Update

Table of Contents

Bitcoin Market Updates

• Bitcoin Price Influenced by Long-Term Holders and Whales

Ethereum Market Updates

• Ethereum Price Struggles Despite Investor Optimism

Crypto ETFs and Investments

• Bitcoin ETFs See Massive Weekly Outflows
• VanEck Launches Australia's First Bitcoin ETF

Token Launches and Developments

• zkSync Launches ZK Token Across Multiple Exchanges
• Solana's Raydium Surpasses Uniswap in Trading Volume
• Rocket Pool Surges with Anticipation Around Houston Upgrade
• Ethereum's L3 Xai Sets New TPS Record

Regulatory and Compliance News

• Malaysia's IRB Targets Crypto Tax Evasion
• South Korea's New Law Mandates Token Reviews

Industry Leadership and Personnel Changes

• SEC Crypto Assets Division Chief David Hirsch Departs

New Cryptocurrency Initiatives

• Tether Launches Gold-Backed Digital Asset Alloy

Crypto Investment and Fundraising

• Crypto Sector Raises $317 Million in June 2024

Blockchain and DeFi Growth

• TON Blockchain TVL Skyrockets Over Twenty-Sevenfold

Market Reactions and Strategies

• Notcoin Declines Post-Airdrop Claim Period
• Velodrome Trading Volume Surges Amid Political Interest

Legal and Enforcement Actions

• Ripple Proposes $10 Million Penalty in SEC Case

Arbitrage and Market Manipulation

• Solana MEV Bot Profits $30 Million in Arbitrage

Celebrity Involvement in Crypto

• Waka Flocka Flame's FLOCKA Faces Insider Trading Allegations

NFT and Digital Collectibles

• Doodles NFT Project Moves to Coinbase's Base Network
• Paris Match Celebrates 75th Anniversary with NFT Auction

Bitcoin Price Influenced by Long-Term Holders and Whales

As per the latest Bitfinex Alpha report, Bitcoin's market is influenced by selling from long-term holders, whales, and miners, contributing to a 4.4% price drop. New whales are accumulating BTC aggressively, increasing their holdings by 206,783 BTC, while old whales slightly reduced their holdings by 7,266 BTC. Whale wallets holding at least 10 BTC reached 16.16 million, collectively holding 82% of the supply. BTC price risks falling to $62,000 due to increased exchange inflows and price clusters. Despite potential downside, strong support exists above $64,000. Fed's Kashkari considers a December rate cut prediction reasonable, emphasizing data dependency for decision-making.

Ethereum Price Struggles Despite Investor Optimism

Ethereum's price struggles to find support at $3,555 with investors showing optimism by accumulating ETH, despite limited growth potential due to 90% of the supply being in profit. The Ethereum Foundation moved 18,089 ETH ($64.4 million), sparking concerns of a potential market top sale. Despite the drop, Ether's bullish outlook is supported by reduced supply on exchanges and increased accumulation by large holders, while the crypto market faces a general downturn, with Bitcoin and Ethereum dropping 5.6% and 4.4%, respectively, and over three dozen coins recording double-digit losses.

Bitcoin ETFs See Massive Weekly Outflows

U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs saw $580.6 million in weekly outflows, ending a 19-day positive streak. Grayscale’s GBTC led with $274.3 million outflows. Globally, crypto investment products had $600 million outflows, the largest since March. Bitcoin ETFs lost $621 million, while Ethereum ETFs gained $15 million. High outflows followed a hawkish FOMC meeting predicting only one 2024 rate cut, impacting risk assets. The broader crypto market sell-off saw total AUM drop from $100 billion to $94 billion.

VanEck Launches Australia's First Bitcoin ETF

Australia's financial markets are abuzz as VanEck prepares to launch its Bitcoin ETF on the ASX on June 20. This marks Australia's debut in direct Bitcoin investment through an ETF, following similar moves in the US and Hong Kong. Despite anticipation, Bitcoin faces volatility, with significant market fluctuations observed recently.

zkSync Launches ZK Token Across Multiple Exchanges

On June 17, 2024, zkSync launched its ZK token across multiple exchanges, including Binance, Bybit, and KuCoin, reaching a high of $0.30 before dropping to $0.25, with a market cap of $971 million. Despite network and RPC issues, 45% of the airdropped tokens were claimed by over 225,000 wallets. Binance announced a token distribution program addressing community concerns about Sybil attacks, planning to distribute 10.5 million ZK tokens. The token debuted with a $932 million valuation, and South Korea showed strong trading interest.

Solana's Raydium Surpasses Uniswap in Trading Volume

Solana's Raydium decentralized exchange has surpassed Uniswap in trading volume, marking a significant shift in activity toward Solana-based assets. Raydium now leads with $822 million in daily trades, driven by high bot traffic and new meme token launches. Despite this, it faces challenges like bot-driven volatility and fluctuating token popularity.

Rocket Pool Surges with Anticipation Around Houston Upgrade

Rocket Pool (RPL) recently surged to over $30 with significant trading volume, marking one of its highest peaks. The rally was fueled by anticipation around the Houston upgrade and potential for re-staking features. Despite retracing slightly, the project aims to enhance tokenomics by reducing inflation and restructuring staking requirements, positioning itself as a major player in Ethereum's ecosystem.

Ethereum's L3 Xai Sets New TPS Record

Ethereum's L3 Xai, powered by Offchain Labs, set a TPS record of 101.72, contributing to a combined 245.87 TPS for L2 and L3 networks. Xai's Vanguard: Genesis campaign drove this spike with 1.3 million wallets participating. Despite its high TPS, Xai's TVL is modest at $1.33 million compared to Arbitrum One's $17.78 billion.

Malaysia's IRB Targets Crypto Tax Evasion

Malaysia's Inland Revenue Board (IRB) has launched "Ops Token" to combat crypto tax evasion, conducting raids across the Klang Valley targeting entities suspected of underreporting cryptocurrency transactions. This initiative aims to enhance tax compliance and revenue by addressing significant tax leakages in digital asset exchanges. The IRB warns non-compliant traders of stringent enforcement measures ahead.

South Korea's New Law Mandates Token Reviews

South Korea is implementing a new law mandating its 29 registered crypto exchanges to conduct biannual reviews of more than 600 listed tokens. Starting July 19, exchanges must ensure these tokens meet stringent regulatory guidelines through initial semiannual evaluations and subsequent quarterly maintenance checks. The law aims to bolster transparency in the crypto market and enhance protection for virtual asset users. Violations could result in significant penalties, including jail time or fines up to five times the amount of illicit profits. 

SEC Crypto Assets Division Chief David Hirsch Departs

David Hirsch, chief of the SEC's crypto assets division, has departed after nearly nine years. He began as an enforcement attorney in 2015, taking over the crypto division in 2022. Reflecting on his tenure, Hirsch praised collaborative efforts within the SEC but looks forward to new challenges after a break. Hirsch also clarified he is not joining pump.fun amid rumors suggesting otherwise.

Tether Launches Gold-Backed Digital Asset Alloy

Tether has launched Alloy, a new gold-backed digital asset known as aUSDT, pegged to the US dollar and backed by Tether Gold. It aims to combine gold's stability with digital currency benefits, allowing users to mint tokens on Ethereum. Alloy expands asset options and targets institutional use, integrating gold transactions into portfolios efficiently.

Crypto Sector Raises $317 Million in June 2024

By mid-June 2024, the crypto sector secured $317 million through 37 venture deals, with Avail leading at $43 million. Overall, since May 2014, crypto startups have raised over $100 billion, with the peak funding month being October 2021 at $7 billion. Recent notable raises include Bitstamp's $200 million, Farcaster's $150 million, and Babylon's $70 million. High-profile fundings in late 2023 and early 2024 include Together.AI and Wormhole ($225 million each) and Swan Bitcoin ($165 million).

TON Blockchain TVL Skyrockets Over Twenty-Sevenfold

Since March, the TON blockchain has experienced a significant surge, with its total value locked (TVL) skyrocketing over twenty-sevenfold. Recently, TON's TVL doubled in just three weeks, reaching an all-time high of over $600 million. This rapid growth underscores robust investor confidence and highlights TON's expanding decentralized finance ecosystem. The surge was driven by decentralized exchanges like Ston.fi and liquid staking projects such as Tonstakers. 

Notcoin Declines Post-Airdrop Claim Period

Notcoin experienced a 12% decline following the conclusion of its NOT airdrop claim period. The drop comes amidst market reactions post-airdrop, affecting investor sentiment. Notcoin's team plans to unveil strategies this week aimed at incentivizing gold and platinum stakers with additional rewards, possibly to stabilize and regain market confidence.

Velodrome Trading Volume Surges Amid Political Interest

Velodrome (VELO) has experienced a 67% surge in trading volume following the disclosure that US lawmaker Mike Collins holds approximately 100,000 VELO tokens. Despite a subsequent price decline of 4.33%, Collins' investment signals growing political interest in cryptocurrencies ahead of the 2024 US elections. This move could potentially influence VELO's market dynamics in the near term.

Ripple Proposes $10 Million Penalty in SEC Case

On June 13, Ripple cited the SEC's Terraform Labs settlement to propose a $10 million penalty, but the SEC rebuffed it, stating the comparison is invalid due to differing circumstances. The SEC lowered its settlement demand from $2 billion to $102.6 million, but argued Ripple's proposed penalty wouldn't be sufficient to deter future misconduct. The case, which began in 2020, continues with significant implications for cryptocurrency regulation.

Solana MEV Bot Profits $30 Million in Arbitrage

A Solana-based MEV sandwich bot named "arsc" has generated over $30 million in profits through sophisticated arbitrage attacks in just two months. Operated with discretion, it manages multiple wallets, including one with $19 million in assets, primarily in SOL and USDC. The bot leverages MEV strategies to manipulate transactions and maximize gains discreetly.

Waka Flocka Flame's FLOCKA Faces Insider Trading Allegations

American rapper Waka Flocka Flame's FLOCKA cryptocurrency launch on June 17 faced immediate insider trading allegations, with nearly 40% of its total supply acquired before the public announcement. Suspicious wallet activity revealed rapid distribution to multiple addresses, suggesting deliberate market manipulation. The incident underscores ongoing challenges of transparency and fairness in celebrity-backed crypto ventures.