Coin360 Daily Dispatch | Crypto Market Updates & Highlights | May 14, 2024

This article comes to you with the generous support of Xtreme.game. Discover the excitement and rewards that await you at Xtreme.game with a 100% deposit bonus!

Crypto Market Update

Table of Contents

Bitcoin and Ethereum Updates

• Bitcoin Drops Below $62,000 Amid U.S. PPI Data
• Ethereum Faces Potential SEC Rejections
• Institutional Inflows for US-Based Bitcoin ETFs
• Meme Coin Surge After Keith Gill’s Return

Exchange and Platform Developments

• Coinbase Experiences Another Outage
• OKX Launches Australian Entity
• Ripple Sells 150 Million XRP
• ChainGPT Launches AI Crypto Advisor
• Rain Exchange Exploited for $14.8 Million
• Poloniex Hacker Moves $53.5 Million in ETH

Regulatory and Legal News

• Falcon Labs Fined for Illegal Trading
• Tornado Cash Developer Sentenced

Blockchain Innovations and Proposals

• Lido Proposes Restaking Ecosystem
• HarryPotterObamaSonic10Inu Launches Layer-3 Blockchain
• Deutsche Bank Joins Project Guardian
• Certik Fixes Security Flaw in Aptos Wormhole Bridge

Market Trends and Analysis

• Worldcoin Drops Amid Inflation Concerns

New Crypto Projects and Investments

• Re Launches Reinsurance Fund on Avalanche
• Colony Lab Introduces Liquid Vesting
• Polymarket Secures $45 Million in Series B Funding

Bitcoin Drops Below $62,000 Amid U.S. PPI Data

Bitcoin dropped under $62,000 following the U.S. PPI data release, with Jerome Powell indicating no rate hikes but a cautious approach toward inflation. Amidst these market conditions, Bitcoin's hash rate dropped due to unprofitable mining rigs being turned off post-halving, which reduced Bitcoin's mining difficulty temporarily. Bitcoin miners are selling assets to manage reduced block rewards and increased operational costs. Despite the uncertainty, new Bitcoin whales accumulated around 200,000 BTC weekly, highlighting robust demand even amid price stagnations.

Ethereum Faces Potential SEC Rejections

As of late May, Ethereum is supposed to face a critical moment with potential SEC rejections of ETH ETFs, which could result in a substantial price drop and shift favor towards Bitcoin and Solana. A Glassnode report indicates Ethereum is lagging behind Bitcoin in speculative interest and price recovery post the Bitcoin halving, with ETH showing a more significant drop and slower recovery compared to BTC. 

In contrast, Ether derivatives for June are concentrated on calls over $3,600, hinting at market optimism for price increases, as per The Block's analysis. Additionally, a new proposal by Vitalik Buterin, EIP-7706, aims to introduce a specific type of gas for transaction calldata on Ethereum, which could reduce costs for data-heavy but computationally light transactions, potentially improving the blockchain’s efficiency and transaction cost structure.

Institutional Inflows for US-Based Bitcoin ETFs

US-based spot Bitcoin ETFs experienced significant activity with $66 million in net inflows on May 14, 2024, prominently featuring Fidelity's FBTC which alone attracted $39 million. This trend was mirrored by institutional players like the State of Wisconsin Investment Board, which revealed a substantial $99 million investment in BlackRock's bitcoin ETF, indicating strong institutional interest. 

Simultaneously, Bracebridge Capital emerged as the largest holder of several spot Bitcoin ETFs, managing a hefty $434 million portfolio across notable funds such as ARKB, IBIT, and GBTC. Meanwhile, the Bank of Montreal's entry into the Bitcoin spot ETF market signaled a notable integration of cryptocurrencies within Canada's major financial institutions. However, despite these investments, the overall trend in the US saw a cooling down, with a net outflow of $931 million from these ETFs since early April 2024.

Meme Coin Surge After Keith Gill’s Return

Following Keith Gill's (Roaring Kitty) return to social media, a significant surge in meme coin activity was observed across various platforms, leading to a record-breaking launch of 14,500 new tokens in a single day through pump.fun on Solana. Notably, the GME memecoin, parodying GameStop, surpassed a $100 million market cap, showing over 2,000% growth within a week. 

Concurrently, PEPE coin achieved an all-time high, climbing 19% with rumors of a potential Coinbase listing boosting its price further. PEPE's trading volume exceeded $5 billion, dominating in both spot and derivatives markets. Substantial price increases are also seen in other meme coins like FLOKI and MOG, indicating a broader impact on the market and a revival of risk appetite reminiscent of the 2021 meme coin rallies.

Coinbase Experiences Another Outage

Coinbase recently experienced a "system wide outage," which it claimed to be fully recovered. However, at that time, its mobile app and website were still facing "degraded performance," and could only be fixed later on. The outage led to concerns, user complaints, and a 3% stock price drop. Coinbase last encountered widespread issues in February in the midst of an intense Bitcoin surge.  

OKX Launches Australian Entity

Crypto exchange OKX launched an Australian entity after intending to expand 12 months ago. President Hong Fang praised Australia's dynamic customer base and educated investors. Services moved to local entities. Users now require a suitability assessment and to meet the definition of a wholesale client under Australian law. OKX stopped some trading products to comply. It's the world's third-largest exchange by volume.  

Ripple Sells 150 Million XRP

Ripple reportedly initiated a massive sell-off, unloading 150 million XRP, valued at $75 million, from May's reserves. This move slightly inflates the token supply, exerting sell pressure on the market, impacting XRP's price. The usual account-to-account transfer pattern indicates that these XRP tokens may be funneled into centralized exchanges, further influencing the token's value. 

ChainGPT Launches AI Crypto Advisor

A recent development sees the launch of ChainGPT's Wisdomise AI, an AI-powered crypto advisor and investment assistant. The project aims to offer advanced AI algorithms for digital asset trading. Similarly, KIP Protocol and Aethir join forces to accelerate AI development. The novel Artificial Superintelligence Alliance, formed by three major crypto AI players, plans to deploy AI agents in commercial settings. 

Rain Exchange Exploited for $14.8 Million

Rain exchange suffered a $14.8M exploit, comprising Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and XRP, on April 29. Funds were swiftly transferred into two wallets. Despite this, Rain confirmed that customer funds remained secure, implementing enhanced security. Additionally, CertiK's report noted $502,522,934 crypto losses across 223 onchain security incidents in 2024 Q1, surpassing last year's figures.  

Poloniex Hacker Moves $53.5 Million in ETH

Six months after the Poloniex hack, the attacker transferred 17.8K ETH, valued at approximately $53.5 million, through six wallets to Tornado Cash. This follows previous moves to a sanctioned crypto mixer. The exchange claimed to identify the attacker and offered a $10 million reward with no successful fund recovery. The hacked cryptocurrency was linked to the notorious Lazarus Group, yet Poloniex stated manageable losses and pledged full user compensation.  

Falcon Labs Fined for Illegal Trading

Falcon Labs, a Seychelles-based crypto firm, fined $1.76M by the CFTC for illegal U.S. crypto derivatives trading. This is the CFTC’s first action against unregistered crypto derivatives activities. Falcon Labs operated without proper registration, facing a $1,179,008 disgorgement and a $589,504 penalty. The CFTC remains committed to maintaining derivatives market integrity.  

Tornado Cash Developer Sentenced

A Dutch court has sentenced Tornado Cash developer Alexey Pertsev to 64 months in prison for laundering $1.2 billion in crypto using the Tornado Cash mixer. The ruling sparked outrage in the crypto community, prompting concerns about privacy, surveillance, and the implications for crypto users and the sector as a whole. The community believes this is a fight for privacy and against global banking regulation.  

Lido Proposes Restaking Ecosystem

Lido aims to develop a restaking ecosystem around its stETH token by establishing the Lido Alliance. The proposal by Steakhouse Financial outlines three types of protocols the alliance will focus on promoting. Facing stiff competition from liquid restaking token protocols and EigenLayer, Lido has suffered significant outflows recently, impacting its market share over staked Ethereum.  

HarryPotterObamaSonic10Inu Launches Layer-3 Blockchain

Meme coin HarryPotterObamaSonic10Inu launches a layer-3 blockchain, named "memechain" and powered by AltLayer and EigenDA. BITCOIN marks its one-year anniversary, surging by 8.5% post-announcement. Inspired by a 2010s meme, the coin lies 60% below its peak. 

Deutsche Bank Joins Project Guardian

Deutsche Bank joined Project Guardian in Singapore, focusing on asset tokenization. This initiative includes Memento Blockchain and Interop Labs, known for Axelar Network. The project involves global policymakers and aims to explore an open architecture and interoperable blockchain platform, influenced by market standards. The bank seeks to lead in digital assets and technological advancements.  

Certik Fixes Security Flaw in Aptos Wormhole Bridge

Certik detected and fixed a $5 million security flaw in the Aptos Wormhole bridge, averting potential fake transactions. The flaw involved an incorrectly implemented function, "publish_event," allowing unauthorized access. CertiK promptly notified the Wormhole team, who swiftly produced a patch, leading to an upgrade securing the bridge within three hours. The quick response effectively prevented potential financial losses.  

Worldcoin Drops Amid Inflation Concerns

Worldcoin (WLD) dropped 9% as DeFi^2 raised concerns about inflation and token sales. Daily depreciation at 0.6% was driven by emissions and sales. Worldcoin Foundation plans to sell $200M worth of tokens. DeFi^2 criticized this move and highlighted forthcoming unlocks that may lead to a 4% daily inflation rate and potential market instability. After the allegations, the bearish broader market continued to push its loss further to more than 20%.

Re Launches Reinsurance Fund on Avalanche

Re, a blockchain-powered RWA platform, launched an open-ended reinsurance fund on the Avalanche network, backed by Nexus Mutual with a $15 million commitment and the Vista fund of Ava Labs. The fund aims to support low-volatility insurances initially, offering up to 23% annualized yield, targeting U.S. accredited investors and those outside the U.S. following Re's KYC process.  

Colony Lab Introduces Liquid Vesting

Colony Lab introduces "liquid vesting," permitting early investors to trade tokens before the vesting period concludes, ensuring project stability. The feature's aim is to maintain token value following listings and engage new long-term investors. This innovation aligns with Colony's mission to broaden access to investment opportunities while enhancing the decentralized fundraising ecosystem.  

Polymarket Secures $45 Million in Series B Funding

Polymarket, a crypto-based prediction market platform preparing for robust growth, secured $45 million in a series B funding round. Notable investors include Peter Thiel's Founders Fund and Ethereum creator Vitalik Buterin. As the U.S. presidential election draws near, the platform has seen more than $202 million in wagers this year.