Coin360 Daily Dispatch | Crypto Market Updates & Highlights | November 29, 2023

Binance's Legal Challenges and Market Resilience

Cristiano Ronaldo faces a lawsuit for promoting unregistered securities with Binance, highlighting the risks of celebrity endorsements in crypto. In the Philippines, the Securities and Exchange Commission warns that Binance is operating without a license and seeks to block the platform. Thailand presents another hurdle, as Binance plans to launch there amidst recent U.S. settlements over anti-money laundering violations. 

Despite these challenges, including a significant DOJ settlement and a dip in market share, analysts from K33 Research suggest that Binance is not going away, noting the resilience of major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ether in the face of these developments.

Hong Kong's Enhanced Crypto Exchange Regulations

Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee emphasizes the need for enhanced powers to combat unlicensed crypto exchanges. Recent incidents involving Hounax and JPEX highlight challenges faced by regulators. The government aims to protect investors through proactive measures, including publishing a list of licensed trading platforms.  

UK Government's Crypto Tax Compliance Push

The UK government urges crypto users to voluntarily disclose unpaid capital gains or income taxes on cryptocurrencies, NFTs, and utility tokens. Users must make necessary payments within 30 days of disclosure to avoid penalties. The government has been clarifying its stance on crypto tax since 2021, emphasizing separate declaration in tax forms.  

U.S. Treasury Sanctions Crypto Mixer Sinbad

The U.S. Treasury has sanctioned crypto mixer Sinbad for supporting transactions linked to North Korea's Lazarus Group. The FBI, Dutch, and Finnish authorities seized the website, and the Treasury blocked its Bitcoin addresses. Sinbad is accused of laundering stolen crypto assets and assisting in sanctions evasion.  

Republic Note's Debut on INX via Avalanche Blockchain

Republic will list the Republic Note, a profit-sharing digital security token, on INX's trading platform via the Avalanche blockchain on Dec. 6. Retail investors can access the token with low minimum investment levels, offering exposure to Republic's portfolio of over 750 private companies. The token's dividends are triggered by liquidity events in the companies it represents.  

Wormhole's Valuation Rise Post-Hacking Incident

Wormhole has raised $225 million at a $2.5 billion valuation, with a peak total value locked of $3.8 billion. After a hacking incident in February 2022, Jump Crypto pledged to replenish over $320 million. The protocol processes over 2 million cross-chain messages daily and has facilitated over $35 billion in transactions.  

KyberSwap's Negotiations Following $47 Million Hack

KyberSwap's $47 million hack led to negotiations with the hacker, who demands a more civil approach. The DAO recovered $4.67 million, while the hacker threatens to postpone talks due to hostility. Initial proposals for fund reimbursement and involvement of law enforcement complicate the situation.  

Zipmex's Debt Repayment Proposal and Creditor Resistance

Zipmex, a troubled crypto exchange, proposes paying creditors 3.35 cents on the dollar, with a potential increase to 29.35 cents. Major creditors oppose the plan and request an independent review. The exchange currently holds $97.1 million in debt, and its CEO denies the reported inaccuracies. Zipmex faced significant losses due to market contagion and unsuccessful capital-raising attempts.  

Poloniex's Gradual Service Resumption Post-Hack

Poloniex plans to gradually resume deposits and withdrawals following a $100 million hack. Services will begin with Tron deposits and withdrawals on Nov. 30, followed by other cryptocurrencies over the next two weeks. An airdrop for users and new listings are also in the works.  

OpBNB's Network Enhancements for DeFi and Gaming

OpBNB, the layer-2 blockchain developed by BNB Chain, aims to double transaction speed to 10,000 TPS and reduce network fees by 90% to $0.0005. The network is based on Optimism’s OP Stack and is expected to support on-chain games and high-frequency DeFi applications. Transaction count has crossed 20 million.  

Bitcoin ETF Delay and Market Predictions Amid Economic Growth

The SEC delays a decision on Franklin Templeton's Bitcoin ETF to January. Despite this, Standard Chartered forecasts Bitcoin reaching $100,000 by 2024, driven by ETF approvals and the halving event. U.S. economy grows 5.2% in Q3, exceeding estimates. 

Bitcoin's price hovers around $38,000 during the release but then dropped to $37,800. Analysts predicted its potential to surpass $40,000, but Santiment data indicates that Bitcoin traders are profit-taking, and the growth in wallets with more than 0 BTC has slowed.

Ethereum's ICO Success and Circulation Growth

Ethereum's 2014 Q3 ICO raised $16 million, offering 2,000 ETH for 1 BTC. An early investor sold 3,000 ETH for a profit of over 660,000%, while 72 million ETH were initially distributed from the Genesis block, now totaling 120.24 million in circulation.  

Jack Dorsey's Investment in Decentralized Bitcoin Mining

Twitter founder Jack Dorsey invests in OCEAN, a Bitcoin mining project aiming to decentralize the industry. OCEAN, led by Bitcoin Core developer Luke Dashjr, introduces a noncustodial pool to empower miners and mitigate centralization concerns. Dorsey's investment aligns with his efforts to address centralization threats in Bitcoin-related ventures.  

Surge in Trading Volume for AI-Focused Crypto Projects

AI-focused crypto projects experienced a significant surge in trading volume, crossing $3 billion, led by RNDR, WLD, and FET tokens. WLD, associated with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, dominated trading activities, while FET commands a market valuation of over $435 million. These AI-related projects collectively boast a market share exceeding $10 billion.  

Circle's USDC Integration with Cosmos' Noble Mainnet

Circle has moved its cross-chain transfer protocol (CCTP) to Cosmos' Noble mainnet, enabling native USDC minting. The total supply of Noble USDC is above $20 million on MintScan. Circle aims to enhance USDC's utility and market position, which has declined from $55 billion to $23.68 billion since mid-2022.  

Base and Blast's Revenue in Layer-2 Network Space

Base, an Ethereum layer-2 solution, has earned over $10 million in cumulative revenue since its launch, indicating the growing appeal of layer-2 networks. Meanwhile, Blast, another layer-2 project, drew $603 million in a week, despite concerns over its pre-launch deposit strategy and security risks, showcasing the market's interest in yield-generating platforms. 

Fantom's Market Resilience and Token Distribution

Fantom (FTM) has surged 10% to $0.3086, showing a 14% weekly gain. It distributed over 505,000 FTM to 12 projects and survived the Multichain hack. Despite recent challenges, it remains resilient and is emerging as a top token to watch.  

Pyth Token's Price Surge Following Airdrop

Pyth token jumps 35% after $77 million airdrop, excluding U.S. users. Solana's PYTH trading at $0.42, Celestia's TIA up 13%. Solana (SOL) and Dogecoin (DOGE) rise, while Bitcoin gains 3% and institutional interest grows amid hopes for a Bitcoin ETF approval by the SEC.  

Grayscale's Growth in Consumer and Culture Crypto Sector

Grayscale's Consumer and Culture Crypto Sector experienced 24% growth in November, covering NFTs, web3 games, metaverse, and governance tokens. Major factors driving this growth include investments from tech companies in metaverse projects, highly funded crypto gaming initiatives, and the potential for mainstream user adoption driven by NFT and gaming applications.  

Iota's Middle East Expansion with Abu Dhabi Foundation

Iota launched the IOTA Ecosystem DLT Foundation in Abu Dhabi with $100M in tokens for Middle East expansion. Regulators approved Iota as the first blockchain-focused organization under new laws. The foundation aims to promote DLT growth and tokenization of assets, aligning with Abu Dhabi's push to lead in the blockchain industry.  

Uniswap DAO's Strategy to Boost Participation

Uniswap DAO voted to delegate 10M UNI to seven active voters to combat low participation. 18.5M UNI holders voted, majority in favor. UNI price surged. DAO engagements suffered due to market conditions and fast growth. Delegates recognized that proactive participation is crucial for healthy governance.  

Sei Labs' EVM Support in Upcoming Upgrade

Sei Labs plans to incorporate Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) support in the upcoming V2 upgrade for its trading-focused Layer 1 blockchain, enabling Ethereum-based contracts to be used on the network. This feature will be facilitated through Geth integration, aiming to appeal to a broader developer base.  

Jump Crypto's Confidential Submission in SEC Lawsuit

Federal Judge Jed Rakoff allowed Jump Crypto to submit materials confidentially in the SEC lawsuit against Terraform Labs. The SEC alleges price manipulation of the stablecoin UST, leading to a collapse. Do Kwon, Terraform's founder, faces criminal charges, jury selection starts in January 2024, and a possible settlement outside of trial is under consideration.  

DCG and Genesis Reach Settlement in Bankruptcy Case

Digital Currency Group (DCG) and Genesis, a bankrupt crypto lender, have agreed that DCG will repay the remaining $324.5 million in loans to Genesis by April 2024, ending a $620 million lawsuit. This deal aims to benefit Genesis immediately and facilitate creditor repayment plans, pending approval from the creditors and the court.  

Cryptocurrency Theft Leads to Jail Sentence

Amir Hossein Golshan, 25, received an eight-year jail sentence for fraud, including theft of cryptocurrency and NFTs. Ordered to pay $1,218,526 in restitution for impersonating an Apple support worker and illegally accessing victims' iCloud accounts. His thefts ranged from $2,000 to $389,000 each. Rise in crypto scams noted.  

Security Incidents at Decentralized Exchanges Velodrome and Aerodrome

Decentralized exchanges Velodrome and Aerodrome experienced front-end attacks, but protocol funds remain secure. Traders are advised to use mirrored links to access the DEXs. Velodrome holds $140 million TVL on Optimism, while Aerodrome has $63 million TVL on Base. $40,000 in funds were observed moving amid the incident. 

Top Altcoin Gainers and Losers

Gainers:

IOTA MIOTA (+38.00%)

Terra Classic USD USTC (+15.41%)

Stacks STX (+6.58%)

Losers:

Blur BLUR (-6.39%)

Sei SEI (-6.30%)

Immutable X IMX (-6.27%)