WuBlockchain Weekly: Grayscale Users Sell Bitcoin, Ethereum ETF Decision Deferred, Hong Kong Crypto ETF Expected to Launch in the First Half of the Year and Top10 News

Jan 26, 2024

1. SEC Delays Decision on BlackRock’s Proposed Spot Ethereum ETF Until March link

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has postponed the decision timeline for the proposed spot Ethereum ETF by BlackRock to March. According to documents filed on Wednesday, “the Commission believes that designating a longer period within which to take action on the proposed rule change is appropriate so that it has sufficient time to consider the proposed rule change and the issues raised therein.” The SEC now faces a deadline of March 10th to either approve, reject, or institute additional proceedings for the proposed fund. The following day, the SEC postponed a decision on the proposal for Grayscale Ethereum Trust to convert into a spot Ethereum ETF.

Bloomberg analyst James Seyffart suggests that delays for spot Ethereum ETFs will continue sporadically over the next few months, with the next significant date of interest being May 23rd.

2. Grayscale Transfers Over 100,000 BTC to Exchanges link

Since the commencement of trading for the spot Bitcoin ETF on January 11th, Grayscale has transferred nearly 113,000 bitcoins from its wallets, with the majority moved to Coinbase Prime for potential sale. As of the early hours of January 25th, according to data on the Grayscale website, GBTC holds approximately 537,000 bitcoins, reflecting a reduction of around 100,000 bitcoins since January 11th. Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas tweeted on January 24th indicating a further decline in GBTC trading volume, possibly signaling exhaustion of selling pressure.

3. US Plans to Dispose of 2,933 Confiscated Bitcoins from Silk Road Enforcement Operation link

The Maryland District Court in the United States has issued a notice of intention to forfeit 2,933 bitcoins that were seized from Ryan Farace and Sean Bridges on February 10, 2021. As of the time of the application submission, the seized bitcoins were valued at approximately $133 million.

4. US, UK, Australia Jointly Sanction Cryptocurrency Traders Associated with Hamas link

The U.S. Treasury’s sanctions watchdog announced on Monday that the U.S. and other governments are blacklisting certain financial institutions associated with Hamas on a global financial blacklist. Australia and the United Kingdom are joining the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) in targeting individuals and entities accused of aiding Hamas in facilitating global financial transactions, both encrypted and unencrypted. Unlike previous sanctions, this round does not involve specific cryptocurrency addresses but freezes 189 cryptocurrency addresses associated with three exchanges.

5. Hong Kong’s First Spot Virtual Asset ETF Expected to Launch Before Mid-Year link

According to the Managing Director and Head of Regulatory Affairs at OSL, a licensed virtual asset trading platform in Hong Kong, they are currently in close communication with many fund companies. About 5 to 10 fund companies are conducting research, with the possibility of launching the first spot virtual asset ETF by mid-year, and progress is expected with the first 5 companies. With only two licensed virtual asset platforms currently available, Chan admits there is pressure to ensure that fees remain reasonable and not excessively high.

6. Binance’s Weekly Summary

a. Binance to Gradually Cease All Russian Ruble (RUB) Services link

Binance has announced its decision to exit the Russian market by selling its operations to CommEX. Consequently, Binance will gradually cease all Russian Ruble (RUB) services. Users are encouraged to convert their RUB assets into other available assets on Binance. Starting from 08:00 (UTC) on February 1, 2024, any remaining RUB balance in users’ Binance accounts will be automatically converted to FDUSD based on the real-time exchange rate provided by xe.com.

b. CNBC: CZ Once Proposed Using his $4.5 Billion Binance Equity as Collateral for Trips to the United States link

Last month, a federal judge denied a travel request from CZ, the founder of Binance, who sought to travel to his home in the United Arab Emirates to attend to family matters involving “hospitalization and surgery” of relatives. A new criminal court document reveals that Zhao proposed to use his $4.5 billion Binance equity as collateral for returning to the United States. The valuation of the stocks is based on the last round of financing for Binance two years ago.

7. Terraform Labs: Strategically Files for Bankruptcy, Continues to Expand Web3 Products link

Terraform Labs has announced that filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection is a strategic step aimed at enabling continued operations and support for the Terra community and ecosystem. During the Chapter 11 proceedings, TFL intends to meet all financial obligations to employees and suppliers without the need for additional financing. The company still plans to expand its Web3 products, complete the acquisition of Pulsar Finance, launch the cross-chain wallet Station v3, and implement upgrades for the Enterprise Protocol cross-chain staking.

8. Tesla Did Not Sell or Purchase Any Bitcoin in the Fourth Quarter link

According to Tesla’s financial report for the fourth quarter of 2023, the company generated total revenue of $25.2 billion, representing a 3% year-over-year increase. Operating profit amounted to $2.1 billion, with an operating profit margin of 8.2%. During the fourth quarter of 2023, Tesla did not engage in any Bitcoin purchases or sales, maintaining a consistent holding of 9,720 BTC for the sixth consecutive quarter.

9. Sotheby’s: Bitcoin Ordinals NFT “Genesis Cat” Sells for Over $250,000 link

FAR, the digital artist, received over 50 bids for the “Genesis Cat” Ordinals NFT, with the winning bid reaching 6.31 BTC, approximately $254,000. Earlier this month, Taproot Wizards announced the Quantum Cats’ Bitcoin Ordinals inscription collection, consisting of 3,333 images, with a creation cost exceeding $66,000 in Bitcoin. The broader auction for this series is scheduled for January 29th.

10. SlowMist Information Security Officer Releases Predictions on Cryptocurrency Industry Security Trends for 2024 link

@IM_23pds from SlowMist released predictions on the security situation in the cryptocurrency industry for 2024: Professional hacker teams’ attacks on cryptocurrency platforms will continue to intensify, primarily using advanced social engineering attacks. Phishing software-as-a-service (SaaS) providers will see new leaders emerge amidst competition, with current active ones like Angel Drainer possibly exiting. Attacks from malicious software-as-a-service targeting cryptocurrencies will increase, with variant attacks being heavily promoted and sold in underground cybercrime networks. Various cryptocurrency asset thieves will multiply and further develop, with more advertisements and a matured industry chain in underground markets. Global law enforcement will crack down heavily on cryptocurrency crimes, leveraging past information to prepare, with profiles of relevant criminal groups gradually being completed.

Fundraising

KEKKAI, a Japanese Web3 security project, completed a seed round financing of 230 million Japanese yen. link
VETA Finance, a blockchain finance platform, completed a strategic financing round of $2.85 million. link
Bagel secured $3.1 million in seed funding led by CoinFund. link
EDX Markets announced the completion of its Series B financing. link
Polymer Labs, an IBC protocol infrastructure provider, completed a $23 million Series A financing round. link
Ingonyama announced the completion of a $21 million seed round financing. link
Doppel disclosed raising $14 million in Series A funding, with a16z leading the round. link
Cryptocurrency bank Sygnum raised over $40 million in financing, led by Azimut Holding. link
B² Network completed a seed round financing with participation from HashKey Capital and OKX Ventures. link
Axiom, an Ethereum historical data protocol, secured a $20 million Series A financing round, with lead investment from Paradigm. link

Learn more, check out crypto-fundraising.info.

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