Coin360 Daily Dispatch | Crypto Market Updates & Highlights | May 9, 2023

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May 9 2023

2 years ago3 minutes read

Markets360

Crypto Market Update

Written by Van

Xapo Bank Supports Tether Deposits and Withdrawals

Crypto-friendly bank Xapo will allow customers to deposit and withdraw Tether (USDT) by the end of the month, with no fees. Xapo introduced a similar service for USD Coin (USDC) in March, resulting in $48 million in deposits and $4.5 million in withdrawals. The bank offers a 4.1% annual interest rate on deposits.

Bittrex Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

Cryptocurrency exchange Bittrex has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the US with between $500 million and $1 billion in assets and liabilities. Its global platform, Bittrex Global, will continue to serve non-US customers. The filing follows charges for failing to register the platform with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Estonia's Crypto Exchange Exodus After New Regulations

Around 200 cryptocurrency exchanges have withdrawn their applications in Estonia following the introduction of stricter compliance requirements under the new Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Prevention Act, with smaller exchanges in particular finding it difficult to comply with the startup, minimum capital, and compliance requirements. Larger exchanges such as Coinbase, Binance, and Kraken continue to offer services in Estonia.

OKX Sends $60M Crypto to Bankrupt Alameda Research

OKX sent over $60 million worth of crypto assets to bankrupt Alameda Research's wallet. Alameda's wallet's holdings include $61.4 million USDT, 100 million BIT tokens worth $48.61 million, 19,292 ETH worth $26.5 million, among others. FTX creditors are attempting to recover $3.9 billion while there are rumors of FTX restarting operations.

Arkham Intelligence.webp — Source: Arkham

Ethereum Holdings on Exchanges Hit 6-Month Low

The amount of Ethereum (ETH) on centralized crypto exchanges has reached a 6-month low of 26.5 million ETH, valued at roughly $49 billion. Self-custody and staking have been the destinations for a large chunk of the ETH leaving exchanges. However, ETH prices have retreated 1.2% on the day and support currently lies just above $1,800 in the short-term time frame.

Deposit activity for Ether (ETH) staking has reached its highest level since the Shapella upgrade, with over 200,000 ETH deposited this week alone, according to Nansen. This marks the first time deposits have exceeded withdrawals since the upgrade in April, bringing the total staked ETH to 19 million tokens.

Binance to Enable BTC Lightning Network Withdrawals

Binance plans to enable BTC Lightning Network withdrawals following a surge in transaction fees. The network, built on Bitcoin, allows for near-instant and cheap payments. Other exchanges including Bitfinex and Coinbase are also warming up to the technology, but liquidity is limited resulting in payment failure.

Whale Moves $21.7M Dogecoin to Binance Exchange

Anonymous whale transfers 299.9 million Dogecoin, worth $21.7 million, to Binance exchange, alongside other transactions totaling $4 million. Meanwhile, popular meme token PEPE, ranked second to Dogecoin in terms of market capitalization, has lost 11% of its value in the past week.

Binance.US Sells Bitcoin at $700 Premium

Binance.US sold Bitcoin at a $700 premium compared to the market price, while its parent company, Binance, suffered from withdrawal issues due to Bitcoin mempool congestion. Bitcoin's highest intraday price on Binance.US was $28,600, and its lowest intraday value was $27,350.

Wealthy Family Offices Lose Interest in Crypto

Interest in crypto has faded among wealthy family offices, with 62% not invested and uninterested in investing in the future, compared to 39% in 2021, according to Goldman Sachs' latest survey. However, 26% are currently invested, up from 16%. Family offices showed interest in public and private equities, with plans to add fixed-income exposure for higher-rate opportunities.

PayPal Reveals $1 Billion in Crypto Holdings

PayPal disclosed $1 billion in cryptocurrency holdings in its Q1 filing with the SEC. The fintech holds $499 million in BTC, $362 million in ETH, $82 million in BCH and LTC. Its operating margin expansion forecast has been cut. PayPal customers can use the firm’s platform to buy, hold, sell, and send cryptocurrency.

Binance Coin Shows Bullish Signs, Whales Accumulate

Binance Coin (BNB) price is showing bullish indicators, with increased trading activity and accumulation by whales. Daily Active Users (DAU) on the BNB chain network has increased 27% in the last week. Whale investors are accumulating BNB, indicating regained confidence in its price prospects. Predictions suggest a slight decline followed by a bullish reversal to hit $350.

Optimism's Profitable Addresses Fall, Meme Coins Loom

Ethereum Layer 2 protocol, Optimism, has seen total addresses in profit drop to just over 29%, approximately 178,820 addresses, whilst those with losses equal 68.49% of wallets. Competition from other Layer 2 protocols has diminished the relevance of the OP token for utility and investment, with its value down by 16% in a week. However, creating meme coins could drive bullish sentiment of the OP token.

IntoTheBlock op.webp — Source: IntoTheBlock

Bitcoin SV Surges, Reignites Block Size Debate

Bitcoin SV has surged 28.5% in 24 hours to a nine-week high of $39.3, backed by claims its block size of up to 4 GB and incorporation of script commands giving it Ethereum-like capabilities make it a better option than Bitcoin. Bitcoin fees have risen to $31.91 due to Ordinals transactions, but BSV's remain at $0.0374. Debate has been reignited over whether increasing block size would enhance scalability but, as with the first block size war, it could also threaten decentralisation. Spam filters on Ordinals transactions are being considered.

Cardano Surpasses BTC, ETH in Daily Transaction Volume

Cardano (ADA) has surpassed Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) in daily transaction volume, reaching $13.25 billion. This comes as Ethereum fees skyrocket, surpassing $30 million and prompting investors to flock to Cardano. The Layer 2 Hydra protocol has also drawn more investors to the Cardano network. ADA is changing hands at $0.36, down 2.71% on the day but its growing popularity may push the price upwards.

Canto Blockchain Community to Vote on Incentive Changes

The community of Canto blockchain will vote on reducing liquidity mining incentives and block rewards issuance rate. The proposed changes, if passed, will result in a 38% reduction in mining incentives for each liquidity pool and a 15% decrease in Canto's inflation rate. The proposals are set to go live on May 11.

Microsoft, Goldman Sachs Unveil Canton Network

A blockchain network that will be interoperable and privacy-enabled for financial institutions to synchronise the previously siloed financial markets has been announced by Microsoft and Goldman Sachs. Testing for the ambitious project, called Canton Network and built on Daml, will begin in July, with BNP Paribas, Cboe Global Markets, Digital Asset, Paxos and others also participating.

Ex-FTX CEO Requests Dismissal of Criminal Charges

Lawyers for former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried have requested the dismissal of most of his 13 criminal charges relating to the crypto exchange's downfall. Bankman-Fried's counsel argued that the government turned civil and regulatory issues into federal crimes, also highlighting that FTX had outlasted its competitors during the crypto winter.

His defence team has sought relief from all charges except conspiracy to commit securities fraud on FTX investors, securities fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering. He has been under house arrest since December.

Top Altcoin Gainers and Losers

Gainers:

Bitcoin SV BSV (+28.50%)

Lido DAO Token LDO (+11.54%)

Bitget Token BGB (+7.69%)

Losers:

Stacks STX (-11.28%)

Pepe PEPE (-10.97% )

Klaytn KLAY (-8.54%)

NFT Market Map

NFT collection Pudgy Penguins raises $9 million in seed funding round led by 1kx and including Big Brain Holdings, Kronos Research, and others. The funds will be used in part to monetize the brand's intellectual property through merchandising.

Binance NFT marketplace is set to support Bitcoin-based Ordinals inscriptions trading soon. The latest Binance NFT offering is expected to roll out in the coming weeks, and it includes purchases and trades via Binance accounts.

This article has been refined and enhanced by ChatGPT.

Coin360 Daily Dispatch | Crypto Market Updates & Highlights | May 9, 2023

Crypto Market Update

Table of Contents:

Banking and Regulatory Updates

Crypto Exchanges and Platforms

Investment and Interest Trends

Layer 2 Protocols and Network Developments

Innovation and Collaboration

Legal Proceedings