Coin360 Daily Dispatch | Crypto Market Updates & Highlights | October 2, 2024

Crypto Market Update

Table of Contents

Market Movements and Analysis

• Bitcoin Drops Amid Middle East Tensions
• Ethereum Traders Face $96M Liquidations
• Bitcoin ETFs Face Major Outflows
• Bitwise Files for First XRP ETF

Crypto Exchanges and Expansions

• Binance Expands Operations in Argentina
• Kraken to Delist Monero in Europe
• FTX Estate to Auction Worldcoin Tokens
• Franklin Templeton Joins Aptos Blockchain
• Ava Protocol Partners with Sony's Soneium

Security, Privacy, and Regulatory Updates

• Telegram Shares User Data with Authorities
• Taurus, Chainlink Tackle Tokenization Challenges
• CZ's Wealth Discrepancy Sparks Debate
• EigenLayer's EIGEN Token Faces Scrutiny
• Upbit Lists Wormhole Trading Pairs
• Sky Mavis Introduces Ronin Wallet Gas Fee

DeFi, Tokenization, and Investments

• Pantera Capital to Launch Fund V
• MoonPay Integrates PayPal USD Support

Meme Tokens and Auctions

• DEGEN Soars After Coinbase Listing
• Three Arrows Co-Founders Launch Meme Token

Blockchain Adoption in Traditional Markets

• Christie's Introduces Blockchain Ownership Certificates

NFTs and Web3 Gaming

• Lamborghini Enters Web3 Gaming

Bitcoin Drops Amid Middle East Tensions

Bitcoin's decline amid escalating Israel-Iran tensions saw it fall to $61,500, despite historically bullish October trends. Geopolitical stress led to gold and oil price rises, while Bitcoin tanked 8% since Sept. 29. Short-term holders sent $3B in BTC to exchanges at a loss in the past 2 days, while whales have been accumulating over 50,000 BTC worth $3.15B in the last 10 days. Analysts debate Bitcoin’s “safe-haven” status as newer whales realize only 1% profit, while older whales show modest gains. Optimism persists still; historical data suggests October often triggers a parabolic run, with targets of $75,000-$80,000 by year-end, provided conditions are favorable.

Ethereum Traders Face $96M Liquidations

Ethereum (ETH) traders faced $96 million in long liquidations amid heightened market volatility. Despite losses, optimism persists with positive funding rates, indicating demand for long positions. Technical indicators forecast potential price drops, with a support level at $2,112 if selling pressure continues. Middle East tensions triggered a sharp crypto market downturn.  

Bitcoin ETFs Face Major Outflows

U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs experienced an exit of $242.53 million, its largest outflow in a month, with Fidelity's FBTC leading the losses. Blackrock’s IBIT saw gains, mitigating some losses. Similarly, Ethereum ETFs faced a loss of $48.52 million, with Grayscale’s ETHE leading the losses. Ethereum ETFs have a cumulative net outflow of $572.31 million since July 23. Trading volumes stood at $2.53 billion for Bitcoin and $290.81 million for Ethereum. 

Bitwise Files for First XRP ETF

Bitwise has filed the first spot XRP ETF with the SEC, aiming to offer exposure to XRP's value directly held by the trust. The ETF, if approved, will utilize Coinbase Custody Trust for XRP storage. Predictions are positive, with a strategic approach noted by analysts and the recent Ripple Dubai license approval enhancing the ecosystem. 

Binance Expands Operations in Argentina

Binance has expanded into Argentina after securing regulatory approval, marking its 20th global milestone. CEO Richard Teng emphasized a commitment to a sustainable, secure, and safe blockchain ecosystem. The exchange also obtained approval in Kazakhstan and India. Strict anti-money laundering measures are in place. Previously, Binance settled with the SEC and exited the US market. 

Kraken to Delist Monero in Europe

Kraken announced the delisting of Monero (XMR) for European users by October 31, 2024, citing regulatory pressure on privacy coins. XMR pairs will cease trading, with withdrawals open until December 31. Any remaining XMR will be auto-converted to Bitcoin (BTC). Monero's price fell by 7.2% following the announcement. Riccardo Spagni attributed the move to Monero's privacy features that prevent tracking.  

FTX Estate to Auction Worldcoin Tokens

The FTX Estate is set to auction 22.3 million locked Worldcoin (WLD) tokens, valued at around $37.7 million, offering discounts of 40% to 75% off the current market price. The tokens are part of a strategy to recover funds for creditors, but concerns have arisen regarding the extended lockup periods and potential impact on market dynamics. It came as FTX plans to distribute $6 billion to creditors, with approval from creditors and a confirmation hearing set for October 7. Distributions could begin in 4 to 8 weeks, aiming for completion by year’s end.

Franklin Templeton Joins Aptos Blockchain

Franklin Templeton has joined Aptos blockchain, allowing trading of their $435 million OnChain U.S. Government Money Market Fund. This tokenized fund, one of the largest, is now available on Aptos, Ethereum (via multiple platforms), and other networks. The move reflects Aptos' unique qualities and Franklin Templeton's commitment to decentralized finance innovation. 

Ava Protocol Partners with Sony's Soneium

Ava Protocol collaborates with Sony's Soneium to simplify blockchain processes with no-code automation, reducing costs and complexity for creators. Soneium focuses on high-performance decentralized finance and NFTs while integrating Ava Protocol for enhanced capabilities. The partnership aims to empower users in executing transactions with predefined conditions, supported by a collaboration with Circle's USD Coin.  

Telegram Shares User Data with Authorities

Since 2018, Telegram has shared user data with law enforcement agencies, including IP addresses and phone numbers, to aid in criminal investigations. Despite recent policy updates to enhance legal compliance, concerns have arisen about potential impacts on user privacy, free speech, and the platform's shift from its initial strong privacy stance following Pavel Durov's arrest in France.  

Taurus, Chainlink Tackle Tokenization Challenges

Taurus and Chainlink collaborate to address institutional tokenization challenges, focusing on cross-chain mobility, data integration, and security. The partnership aims to improve data transparency, leverage Chainlink data feeds for market pricing, and enhance asset state information to facilitate transactions across multiple chains. The collaboration targets enhancing liquidity and regulatory compliance in the tokenized asset market, offering financial institutions new opportunities for tokenization.  

CZ's Wealth Discrepancy Sparks Debate

Binance co-founder Changpeng Zhao, CZ, faced conflicting reports on his wealth while serving a four-month jail term. Forbes suggested a $3 billion increase, reaching $61 billion by late September 2024. On the contrary, Bloomberg claimed a $5.7 billion drop, from $36.5 billion in June to $30.8 billion at release. These estimates result from valuing his crypto holdings and equity at Binance differently. Despite the discrepancy, CZ emphasized a long-term investment strategy, prioritizing "impact over returns" post-release.

EigenLayer's EIGEN Token Faces Scrutiny

EigenLayer's EIGEN token faced scrutiny following its launch on October 2, 2024, due to transparency issues in token supply and staking rewards. The token's price dropped from $4.39 to $3.57. Staking rewards for early investors are not locked, sparking criticism. New guidelines reveal a 1% annual cap on staking rewards, unlocking gradually over three years. Employees cannot stake until September 2025. Justin Sun sold 5 million tokens for $21 million. 75% of rewards favor ETH stakers. Amid the controversy, EigenLayer updated its documentation to address community concerns, clarifying staking practices and rewards.

Upbit Lists Wormhole Trading Pairs

On October 2, Upbit launched Wormhole (W) trading pairs in KRW, BTC, and USDT, requiring verified personal wallets. Meanwhile, Moo Deng coin dropped 31% from its all-time high, despite futures listing on Bybit, with market cap now below $230M. Analysts suggest profit-taking by whales, though some see it as a potential buy-the-dip opportunity.

Sky Mavis Introduces Ronin Wallet Gas Fee

Sky Mavis announces the end of free transactions for Ronin wallets starting October 9, adopting a 0.01 RON gas fee model. New users will receive five sponsored transactions. Ronin Waypoint aims to streamline onboarding for game studios as Ronin expands its ecosystem beyond Axie Infinity, attracting over 1.4 million daily users.  

Pantera Capital to Launch Fund V

Pantera Capital is set to launch the Pantera Fund V in 2025, offering co-investment opportunities to limited partners committing $25 million or more, without any fees. Investors can choose from three classes – Venture, Illiquids, or an All-in-One option. The fund continues the firm's focus on blockchain innovation, aiming to raise $1 billion by Q1 2025.

MoonPay Integrates PayPal USD Support

MoonPay now supports PayPal USD (PYUSD), a stablecoin backed by U.S. dollar deposits and short-term U.S. Treasuries. This strategic integration allows users to buy and sell crypto using their PayPal accounts. PYUSD, pegged 1:1 to the US dollar, is a dollar-redeemable, payments-focused stablecoin. PayPal aims to capture market share in the digital assets space through PYUSD. After reaching a $1 billion market capitalization, it has seen fluctuations in its supply on different blockchain networks.  

DEGEN Soars After Coinbase Listing

DEGEN surged 160% at one point after Coinbase added it to its listing roadmap, hitting $0.011 before pulling back. Despite a 150%+ rise in 30 days, it’s still below its March high of $0.064. Meanwhile, Base's TVL reached $2 billion as Jesse Pollak, Base's founder, now leads Coinbase Wallet, indicating synergy between Base and Coinbase Wallet’s efforts.

Three Arrows Co-Founders Launch Meme Token

The co-founders of the failed Three Arrows Capital, Su Zhu and Kyle Davies, launched a memecoin named "Three Arrowz Capitel" after their hedge fund collapsed. With a deliberately misspelled name to reference their defunct fund, the token has an 84% insider supply, a 1% trade tax, and has plummeted over 70% since its peak. Non-insiders have minimal holdings. This has raised concerns about the founders' priorities. 

Christie's Introduces Blockchain Ownership Certificates

Christie's will introduce blockchain-based ownership certificates for the upcoming "An Eye Towards the Real: Photographs from the Collection of Ambassador Trevor Traina" auction in New York. Each of the 130 lots will receive digital certificates minted by Kresus on Coinbase's Ethereum layer-2 blockchain, emphasizing transparency and security in art collecting.