2024-03-26 07:32

Grayscale's GBTC product saw large outflows last week and inflows to other ETFs did not increase in tandem, briefly fueling concerns of a spot-driven selloff. Bitcoin briefly surpassed $71,000 on Tuesday, boosted by sentiment around possible new bitcoin-based institutional product offerings. The London Stock Exchange approved a marketplace for trading BTC and ETH exchange-traded notes (ETNs) in May, which led to strong upside momentum for BTC, traders said. Projects linked to Coinbase Ventures recorded the most gains, with an average 10% increase, while the CoinDesk 20, an index of the biggest tokens, rose 4.47%. Bitcoin (BTC) briefly topped the $71,000 mark early Tuesday before retreating as market sentiment grew on new bitcoin-based institutional product offerings and demand from traditional desks. Crypto markets started rising on Monday as the London Stock Exchange approved a marketplace for trading bitcoin and ether (ETH) exchange-traded notes (ETNs) in May, as reported. The LSE will start to accept applications from April 8. Singapore-based QCP Capital said in a Telegram broadcast there was “strong upside momentum” for bitcoin after the development, with asset managers also continuing to add BTC allocations as a “portfolio diversifier.” “Anecdotally, wealth desks at major banks have been pleasantly shocked at the tremendous demand from clients for bitcoin spot ETFs and requests for structured products,” the firm added. Bitcoin jumped nearly 5% in the past 24 hours, leading the rally among crypto majors, data show. Ether, Solana’s SOL, and Cardano’s ADA rose over 4.5%. Near Protocol’s NEAR and Internet Computer’s ICP jumped over 10% to post the most gains among alternative tokens. Projects linked to Coinbase Ventures, the investment arm of the prominent crypto exchange, recorded the most gains as a category with an average 10% bump. Such gains came as sentiment and on-chain activity on the closely related Base blockchain grew over the weekend. The broader CoinDesk 20, an index of the biggest tokens minus stablecoins, rose 4.47%. Data shows that open interest in crypto-tracked futures jumped nearly 8%, indicative of money flowing into the market—which usually precedes volatility. The rise helped erase losses from last week amid record outflows from the Grayscale bitcoin ETF (GBTC). Inflows to other bitcoin ETFs dropped in tandem, giving rise to concerns of a spot-driven selloff. Some market analysts said the waning inflows were not a sign of concern, however, as long-term investors could have partially profited from their positions. “We also do not see the state of inflows into spot Bitcoin ETFs as any cause for concern,” Bitfinex analysts said in an email “Even though negative ETF outflows featured heavily last week, all of it is from the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), as investors both switch out of the higher fees demanded by GBTC and also take profit, especially as many of these investors are long-term holders who entered during the bear market.” “GBTC investors are not the only sellers in the market. Whale wallet activities have also indicated significant profit taking,” they added. https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2024/03/26/crypto-traders-dismiss-waning-etf-inflows-as-bitcoin-holds-steady-over-70k/

2024-03-26 06:46

The blockchain could see huge traction among retail audiences due to its proximity to the prominent Coinbase exchange, a sentiment that’s driving activity and growth of native Base tokens. Crypto traders are capitalizing on the Base blockchain, which has seen a surge in activity and funds locked due to a meme coin-led frenzy for tokens on the network. Base, developed by Coinbase on OP Stack, has experienced a significant increase in transactional activity, unique addresses, and funds locked, with direct access from Coinbase potentially making it the first network used by new retail users. The popularity of meme coins on Base has led to high gas fees and network congestion, with trading bots contributing to the issue. Crypto traders are seeking profit opportunities on the Base blockchain amid a meme coin-led frenzy for tokens issued on the network, several metrics show. Base, built by crypto exchange Coinbase on OP Stack, went live for developers in August and initially saw muted growth. However, that has changed in the past few weeks, with funds locked on the network rising to nearly $1 billion on Tuesday from $450 million at the start of this month. Blockchain scanners show that transactional activity is up threefold to over 1.5 million a day from an average of under 500,000 a day in the past few months. The number of unique addresses has doubled to 65,000 wallets. Some market observers say direct access to Base from Coinbase’s exchange and wallet applications could make it the first network that retail users use, instead of the several other options – fueling a frenzy. Prices of tokens such as cat-themed toshi (TOSHI), thank you base god (TYBG), normie (NORMIE) and brett (BRETT) have risen as much as 1,300% over the past week, data shows, crossing over $1 billion in cumulative trading volumes. Tokens of technical projects such as decentralized exchange Aerodrome’s AERO and Seamless’ SEAM rose as much as 90% in the past week, CoinGecko data shows. That has generated the network $1.8 million in fees over the past 24 hours. Social sentiment on X has bumped in tandem, with scores of traders calling for a rotation of capital to the relatively new network. Meanwhile, the immense popularity of meme coins on Base has resulted in high gas fees, which exceeded the fees paid by users before the Dencun upgrade, Optimism developer Michael Silberling pointed out on X. Most of the transactions came from meme coin trading and trading bots designed to buy tokens in the first few minutes after issuance, contributing to network congestion and stuck transactions last week. https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2024/03/26/base-blockchain-transactions-jump-on-meme-coin-led-frenzy/

2024-03-26 05:56

Stuart Alderoty, Ripple Labs’ chief legal officer, criticized the SEC and wrote that the company will file its response to the SEC’s motion next month. The U.S. SEC has asked a New York judge to impose a fine of $1.95 billion on Ripple Labs. The SEC asked the Court to consider how easily actors, particularly in the crypto asset space, can today engage in the same sort of conduct as Ripple’s. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has asked a New York judge to impose a nearly $2 billion fine against Ripple Labs, according to court filings. On Monday, Stuart Alderoty, Ripple Labs’ chief legal officer, posted on social media that the SEC was asking for such a fine and that redacted versions of the court documents would be made public by March 26. The SEC's proposal asks the court to order Ripple Labs to pay $876 million in disgorgement, $198 million in prejudgment interest, and $876 million civil penalty, amounting to a total of $1.95 billion. The case began in December 2020 when the SEC filed suit against Ripple Labs and its executives, alleging that they violated federal securities laws by selling XRP to both institutional and retail customers. Last July, New York Judge Analisa Torres' ruled that the sale of XRP on exchanges and through algorithms did not violate U.S. law, only Ripple’s institutional sales of XRP did. “The SEC asks the Court to consider how easily actors, particularly in the crypto asset space, can today engage in the same sort of conduct as Ripple’s and send a strong message that such abuses will not be tolerated,” the filing said. Alderoty criticized the SEC and wrote that the company will file its response to the SEC’s motion next month. The SEC filing said that the “Defendant’s response shall be filed no later than April 22, 2024.” Read More: Garlinghouse Says SEC to Press Judge for $2B in Fines and Penalties in Ripple Case https://www.coindesk.com/policy/2024/03/26/sec-seeks-195b-fine-in-final-judgment-against-ripple/

2024-03-25 20:32

The court documents filed in a New York court on Monday are currently under seal. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is apparently asking a New York judge to levy a $2 billion judgment against Ripple Labs, according to social media posts from the crypto company’s CEO and chief legal officer on Monday. The SEC’s motion for judgment and remedies, filed on Friday, remains under seal to outside parties. According to Stuart Alderoty, Ripple Labs’ chief legal officer, redacted versions of the documents will be publicly available by Tuesday, March 26. The judgment would bring an end to this phase of the multi-year legal battle between Ripple Labs and the SEC, which began in December 2020 when the SEC filed suit against the crypto firm and its executives, alleging that they violated federal securities laws by selling XRP to both institutional and retail customers. When it was filed, the action led to the widespread delisting or trading suspension of XRP from U.S. exchanges. A federal judge ruled last year that Ripple violated federal securities laws in directly selling XRP to institutional investors, though not in selling XRP to retail investors through exchanges. Brad Garlinghouse, Ripple Labs’ CEO, suggested in his X (formerly Twitter) post that the company will fight back against the proposed judgement motion. "The SEC plans to ask the Judge for $2B in a case that involved no allegations (let alone findings) of fraud or recklessness," Garlinghouse wrote. "There is absolutely no precedent for this. We will continue to expose the SEC for what they are when we respond to this." Alderoty wrote that the company will file its response to the SEC’s motion next month, adding "As we all have seen time and time again, this is a regulator that trades in statements that are false, mischaracterized and designed to mislead … Rather than faithfully apply the law, the SEC remains bent on wanting to punish and intimidate Ripple – and the industry at large. We trust the Court will approach the remedies phase fairly." An SEC spokesperson declined to comment. https://www.coindesk.com/policy/2024/03/25/garlinghouse-says-sec-to-press-judge-for-2b-in-fines-and-penalties-in-ripple-case/

2024-03-25 17:30

The stock exchange will accept applications for trading bitcoin and ether crypto exchange traded notes from April 8. The London Stock Exchange (LSE) said it will start a marketplace for bitcoin and ether exchange-traded notes (ETNs). The U.K. regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, said it would allow Recognized Investment Exchanges to create a listed market segment for ETNs earlier this month. The London Stock Exchange will roll out a market for bitcoin (BTC) and ether (ETH) exchange-traded notes (ETN) on May 28, it said on Monday. The stock exchange will accept applications for trading those crypto ETNs from April 8. The market will be subject to the approval of the U.K. regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, the notice said. The FCA said earlier in March that it would not turn down requests from Recognized Investment Exchanges (RIEs) to create a listed market segment for ETNs. The products will be available to professional investors only. At the time, the London Stock Exchange said it planned to accept applications for bitcoin and ether ETNs by the second quarter of this year. Regulators have been moving to make the country more crypto-friendly following several announcements from the U.K. government to make the country a crypto hub. https://www.coindesk.com/business/2024/03/25/london-stock-exchange-will-start-market-for-bitcoin-and-ether-etns-may-28/

2024-03-25 16:50

The value of FTX's FTT token surged 10% on the news. The FTX bankruptcy estate has reached a deal to sell the majority of its shares in artificial intelligence startup Anthropic to two dozen institutional investors, raising $884 million. According to Friday court filings, the top buyer is ATIC Third International Investment Company, a tech investment company wholly owned by the government of Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth fund, Mubadala. ATIC has agreed to purchase 16,664,167 shares of Anthropic from FTX for $500 million. Other buyers include Jane Street Global Trading – an affiliate of the erstwhile employer of former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried – "certain funds" tied to Fidelity Investments and The Ford Foundation. The sale of the Anthropic shares is a big win for the FTX estate, which pledged in January to pay back the defunct exchange's customers 100% of the value of their holdings at the time of the exchange's collapse. FTX's FTT token climbed 10% on the news. FTX and Alameda paid $500 million for the 8% stake in Anthropic in 2021. The subsequent AI boom fueled by ChatGPT's soaring popularity caused the value of the shares to more than double by the time a New York bankruptcy judge gave the estate permission to sell them in February. An earlier attempt to sell the shares in June 2023 ultimately fell through after months of due diligence stalled. The profitable sale is in stark contrast to the firesale of other FTX assets, including the sale of LedgerX last year for $50 million. The exchange's U.S. arm paid $298 for the firm in 2021. https://www.coindesk.com/policy/2024/03/25/ftx-to-sell-884m-of-anthropic-shares-to-two-dozen-institutional-investors/