Today's Headlines:
- Ministry of State Security: Some overseas mapping companies use virtual currency rewards to induce domestic personnel to illegally collect geospatial data
- Binance will launch StarkNet (STRK) at 21:00 tonight
- eBay has cut over 30% of its Web3 team and may close its NFT business
- Tiger Securities CFO: evaluating the listing of other digital assets such as altcoins
- Starknet announces details of STRK token distribution adjustment, and token claims will open at 20:00 on February 20
- The top 10 WLD holders collectively hold 9.15 billion WLD, accounting for 91.5% of the total supply
- Dalian Securities Regulatory Bureau and seven other departments: guard against illegal fundraising in the name of "virtual currency," "metaverse," and "wealth sharing"
- Data: The top 10 STRK holders control 69.15% of the total supply of STRK tokens
Regulatory News
The official public account of the Ministry of State Security stated that the national security agency's work has found that some overseas mapping companies use the method of exchanging map data for virtual currency rewards to induce domestic personnel to purchase and use specialized equipment for map "check-ins," illegally collecting sensitive geospatial information data and uploading it to overseas servers in real time. They even offer high rewards for specific areas, attracting "collectors" to conduct targeted collection. Some domestic personnel, with weak national security awareness, are tempted by the form of making money through map check-ins and unknowingly become accomplices of overseas companies with ulterior motives, aiding in the illegal collection and theft of geospatial data.
Geospatial information data is closely related to national security, and the illegal collection and cross-border transmission of geospatial information data harms our country's sovereignty, security, and development interests. The actions of the overseas companies and domestic individuals involved in data collection are suspected of violating relevant provisions of the "Anti-Espionage Law," "Surveying and Mapping Law," and "Data Security Law." The "Anti-Espionage Law" stipulates that the theft, probing, bribery, or illegal provision of data related to national security and interests by overseas institutions, organizations, individuals, or collusion with domestic institutions, organizations, or individuals constitutes espionage. The "Surveying and Mapping Law" stipulates that engaging in surveying and mapping activities should obtain the corresponding level of surveying and mapping qualification certificates in accordance with the law. Foreign organizations or individuals engaging in surveying and mapping activities in our country should be approved by the relevant surveying and mapping authority in conjunction with the military surveying and mapping department and must not involve state secrets or harm national security. The "Data Security Law" stipulates that any organization or individual collecting data should do so in a legal and legitimate manner and must not steal or obtain data by other illegal means.
The Dalian Municipal Office of the Leading Group for the Disposal of Illegal Fundraising, Dalian Municipal Public Security Bureau, Dalian Municipal Market Supervision Administration, People's Bank of China Dalian Branch, China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission Dalian Bureau, Dalian Securities Regulatory Bureau, and Dalian Municipal Communication Administration issued a risk reminder about guarding against illegal fundraising in the name of "virtual currency," "metaverse," "wealth sharing," and other activities. Recently, some lawless individuals, under the guise of "virtual currency," "metaverse," and other names, have used the banner of "sharing wealth opportunities" to deceive investors through online WeChat groups and nationwide seminars, enticing them to download illegal apps and purchase their self-created illegal virtual currencies, involving illegal fundraising, fraud, and other illegal criminal activities, seriously infringing on the property security of the people and disrupting the order of economic and financial activities.
According to Jin10, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority believes that it is time to provide guidance on tokenized product-related activities and to provide clear regulatory requirements for the banking industry.
UK government plans to pass laws related to stablecoins and crypto collateral within six months
According to Bloomberg, the UK government plans to pass new regulations governing stablecoins and crypto asset collateral services within the next six months. Bim Afolami, Economic Secretary to the Treasury, stated at an industry event on Monday that the UK government is "pushing hard" for legislation. He said, "We hope to get this done as soon as possible. I think it's doable in the next six months." The UK Treasury first promised in October last year to provide clearer information on specific areas of cryptocurrency by 2024. However, broader rules regulating cryptocurrency exchanges are still pending. When asked if this guidance might also become legislation this year, Afolami said he could not provide a timetable.
Crypto hedge fund Tyr Capital raided by Swiss prosecutors for mismanagement in FTX dispute
According to the Financial Times, the Geneva-based crypto hedge fund Tyr Capital Partners was raided by Swiss prosecutors for allegedly neglecting its exposure risk before the collapse of FTX, facing accusations of "criminal" mismanagement from investor TGT. TGT seeks liquidation and control of remaining assets, including a $22 million claim against FTX. Tyr has refuted all allegations, insisting that it strictly complied with all relevant laws, regulations, and contractual obligations. TGT alleges that Tyr disregarded internal risk requirements to limit exposure to any single counterparty to within 15% of assets and only attempted to withdraw assets on the day of FTX's bankruptcy application.
Project Updates
Ethereum stablecoin USDe developer Ethena Labs announced the launch of a public mainnet and the "Shard Activity" to incentivize users. Ethena Labs stated that the launch of the public mainnet represents the official launch of its stablecoin USDe.
The "Shard Campaign" will be divided into multiple epochs. Each reward involves different activities related to USDe and integration with different communities closely cooperating with Ethena. The first epoch focuses on the liquidity of the USDe Curve pool.
Dymension modular liquidity layer and embedded AMM have been launched
The modular blockchain network Dymension in the Cosmos ecosystem announced that its modular liquidity layer has been launched, and the embedded AMM of Dymension has also been launched.
This launch will establish Dymension as the foundational role for settlement and liquidity layers, allowing users and protocols to share liquidity on the basis of shared security, while laying the foundation for the next phase of permissioned RollApps.
RollApps will launch its assets on the liquidity layer of Dymension, creating a modular ecosystem Launchpad. Each currency pair in the liquidity layer will require DYM as the base asset. After governance approval, other base assets may be whitelisted.
Trust Wallet launches SWIFT, an account-driven smart contract wallet
According to official sources, the crypto wallet Trust Wallet has announced the launch of SWIFT, an account-driven smart contract wallet, which has entered the public testing phase and will be fully launched on February 26. SWIFT currently supports 7 major EVM chains, including Arbitrum, Polygon, BSC, opBNB, Base, Optimism, and Avalanche, with plans to add support for more chains.
According to the official announcement, the decentralized perpetual derivative Layer2 application chain Paradex based on Starknet has officially launched on the mainnet. Paradex, incubated by [crypto institutional liquidity platform Paradigm (note: not the same-named venture capital firm)], aims to combine the liquidity advantages provided by Paradigm with the transparency and self-custody features of decentralized finance (DeFi) to create an independently operated chain.
eBay has cut over 30% of its Web3 team and may close its NFT business
According to NFTgators, e-commerce giant eBay has cut over 30% of its Web3 team, sparking speculation that it may close its NFT business. In June 2022, after eBay's acquisition of NFT marketplace KnownOrigin, it changed its Web3 strategy, and its business and strategy officer Stef Jay resigned, leading to deteriorating relations with KnownOrigin. The company has suspended all digital art plans, and there is increasing internal criticism of the leadership and strategic team. With the backdrop of a bear market in the crypto market, the future of eBay's NFT business is uncertain.
Starknet announces details of STRK token distribution adjustment, and token claims will open on February 20 at 20:00 open
The Starknet Foundation announced on the X platform that the STRK tokens will be available for claiming on February 20, 2024, at 20:00 Beijing time. After receiving community feedback, necessary adjustments were made to the STRK token distribution: approximately 9 million STRK will be distributed to around 900 Ethereum mainnet stakers who were incorrectly calculated as using only one validator; Rated.network updated their staker categorization model based on community feedback, resulting in over 6.9 million STRK being distributed to over 1,000 previously mislabeled individual stakers; issues with approximately 19,000 GitHub handles that changed after the snapshot was taken and were squatted on after the specified announcement, with over 1 million STRK being reserved for potential future community distribution; differences in allowing custodians to claim based on approximately 200,000 user keys on StarkEx have been removed, and a process will be established for these users to receive the specified amount in the future. These adjustments will be applied tomorrow.
Later news, Starknet has started the distribution of STRK tokens for the airdrop claim contract.
Reddit signs $60 million content licensing agreement with AI company ahead of IPO
According to Bloomberg, Reddit Inc. has signed a roughly $60 million contract allowing a large AI company to use its content to train AI models, as it approaches its initial public offering (IPO). This move aims to attract investors with the AI trend and enhance the IPO's value. Reddit's revenue exceeded $800 million last year, growing by about 20%, and it is suggested to be valued at least $5 billion for the IPO. The IPO could potentially launch as early as next month. Details are still being discussed, and Reddit has declined to comment. Additionally, the AI company is seeking content licensing agreements for training programs, including contracts with OpenAI and Axel Springer SE.
The Binance Savings Platform announced its support for the distribution plan of Starknet (STRK) tokens to Binance ETH staking users. According to the official announcement, the key details of the distribution are as follows:
Binance ETH staking users will receive STRK tokens in their spot wallets based on the snapshot taken at 07:59 on September 16, 2022 (GMT+8), according to the total amount of BETH in their qualifying wallets.
Eligible users will receive the STRK token distribution within 30 days after the official distribution date determined by the Starknet Foundation (i.e., 20:00 GMT+8 on February 20, 2024).
Binance will announce the final BETH: STRK distribution ratio, the list of qualifying wallets, and the completion status of the STRK distribution plan.
Binance will launch T+4 BTCUSDT daily options
Binance Options will launch T+4 BTCUSDT daily options at 16:00 on February 21, 2024 (GMT+8). T+4 BTCUSDT daily options are European option contracts.
Starknet Foundation announced the launch of the Starknet DeFi Spring event in collaboration with OpenBlock, a plan that will last for six to eight months, during which 40 million STRK will be distributed to DeFi protocols participating on Starknet.
The protocol distribution will be determined and distributed every two weeks. At the end of each cycle, the allocation will be based on a review of network activity and the compliance and performance of participating protocols. The allocation is dynamic and allows for continuous adjustments based on performance metrics to ensure alignment with the evolving needs of the ecosystem and the contributions of the protocols. The plan is expected to run until October 2024, covering eligible protocols in DEX and the broader DeFi ecosystem.
With these allocations, each participating protocol will design, announce, and execute incentive plans to reward users participating on their platforms with allocated STRK. All received STRK will be distributed to users by each protocol. Each protocol will be responsible for its own STRK distribution and may have different plans to specify how and which users can earn STRK. The first round of participating protocols will begin their plans on February 22, 2024, and users can claim reward allocations from the protocols until March 7, 2024.
PancakeSwap burns approximately 8.97 million CAKE, worth about $25 million
Multi-chain decentralized exchange PancakeSwap announced the burning of 8,969,474 CAKE tokens, worth about $25 million.
Binance will list StarkNet (STRK) at 21:00 tonight
Binance will list StarkNet (STRK) on February 20, 2024, at 21:00 (Beijing time) and open trading for the STRK/BTC, STRK/USDT, STRK/FDUSD, and STRK/TRY spot trading pairs. Users can now start depositing STRK in preparation for trading. Withdrawals will be open on February 21, 2024, at 21:00 (Beijing time).
Tiger Securities CFO: Evaluating the listing of altcoins and other digital assets
According to Cointelegraph, Tiger Securities CFO John Fei Zeng stated in an interview that the company is currently evaluating altcoins and other digital assets for potential listing after regulatory approval, while implementing an international expansion strategy in licensed markets such as Australia, the United States, Singapore, Hong Kong, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand. He said, "In addition to stocks and options, cryptocurrencies are becoming an important asset class. Therefore, adding new asset classes is a natural extension of the brokerage business, and the underlying Web3 technology also aligns with Tiger's fintech background." The company currently has 865,500 fund accounts and manages assets worth $18.9 billion. Earlier reports indicated that Tiger Securities' No. 1 brand upgrade was approved by the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission, allowing professional investors to trade virtual assets through Tiger Securities on the licensed platform of the Securities and Futures Commission.
Funding News
Web3 social protocol beoble raises $7 million in two funding rounds
According to Cointelegraph, the Web3 social protocol beoble completed its seed round funding three months after announcing pre-seed, raising a total of $7 million, with major investors including Hashkey, Samsung, DCG, DWF Ventures, Nomura Laser Digital, Cypher Capital, and Blockchain Founders Fund. The raised funds will be used to launch beoble V2 next month, to improve Web3 social media interaction, and provide advanced features such as multi-chain integration, in-app social trading, and OTC functionality.
Key Data
Data: FTX/Alameda currently holds nearly $1.2 billion in crypto assets
According to Lookonchain statistics, the total value of assets held by FTX/Alameda currently stands at $1.19 billion. These assets include: 266.84 million FTT tokens, worth approximately $482.98 million; 25 million WLD tokens, worth about $168 million; 105.47 million BIT tokens, worth about $83.33 million; 1500 bitcoins (BTC), worth about $77.64 million; and 104.02 million STG tokens, worth about $71.36 million.
Bitcoin futures open interest breaks $24 billion, reaching a record high since mid-November 2021
Coinglass data shows that the total open interest of Bitcoin futures contracts across the network is 461,960 BTC (approximately $24.22 billion). Among them, the open interest of Bitcoin futures contracts on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) has reached 130,710 BTC (approximately $6.84 billion), hitting a historical high and ranking first; Binance's open interest in Bitcoin futures contracts is 113,690 BTC (approximately $5.96 billion), ranking second. It is reported that in mid-November 2021, when the price of Bitcoin exceeded $65,000, it set a record of $24 billion.
According to the latest weekly report from CoinShares, the total inflow of funds into digital asset investment products reached $2.45 billion last week, setting a record high for weekly inflows, bringing the total inflows for the year to date to $5.2 billion. These inflows, combined with the recent positive price trends, have raised the total assets under management (AuM) to $67 billion, reaching the highest level since December 2021. In terms of regions, the United States accounted for the majority, with a total inflow of $2.4 billion. Other regions such as Germany and Switzerland saw inflows of $13 million and $1 million, respectively, while Sweden saw an outflow of $2 million.
Bitcoin accounted for over 99% of the inflows, despite some investors using this opportunity to increase their short positions in Bitcoin (which received an inflow of $5.8 million). Ethereum also benefited from an inflow of $21 million. The recent downtime of Solana affected market sentiment, leading to an outflow of $1.6 million. Avalanche, Chainlink, and Polygon saw inflows of $1 million, $900,000, and $900,000, respectively, with consistent inflows every week this year.
Investors in blockchain stock ETFs decided to take profits last week, resulting in a total outflow of $167 million.
The top 10 WLD holders collectively hold 9.15 billion WLD, accounting for 91.5% of the total supply
Lookonchain released analysis data on the WLD token, including token economics, top holders, financing, and smart money dynamics. The total supply of WLD tokens is 10 billion (approximately $74.71 billion), with a circulating supply of 130.76 million (approximately $975.92 million), accounting for 1.31% of the total supply. Regarding token economics, the distribution by the Worldcoin community accounts for 75%, the initial development team accounts for 9.8%, TFH investors account for 13.5%, and TFH reserves account for 1.7%.
Regarding the top holders, the top 10 holders collectively hold 9.15 billion WLD (approximately $706 billion), accounting for 91.5% of the total supply. Among them, Teneo, the liquidator of Three Arrows Capital, holds 75 million WLD (approximately $579 million), accounting for 0.75% of the total supply. Alameda: FTX Bankruptcy Estate holds 25 million WLD (approximately $193 million), accounting for 0.25% of the total supply. In terms of financing, Worldcoin has raised a total of $240 million in three rounds of funding.
Regarding whale and smart money dynamics, in the past week, three whales withdrew a total of 2.8 million WLD (approximately $21 million) from Binance and OKX. In addition, the smart money address starting with "0x0258" is very good at buying WLD at low prices and selling at high prices. On November 1st, they bought 267,062 WLD (approximately $534,000) and sold on December 19th, earning $519,000 (+97%). On January 12th, they bought 282,448 WLD (approximately $784,000) and sold 16 hours ago, earning $1.08 million (+137%).
Data: The top 10 STRK holders control 69.15% of the total supply of STRK tokens
According to Scopescan monitoring, the top 10 STRK holders control 69.15% of the total supply of STRK tokens. Earlier reports stated that Teneo, the liquidator of Three Arrows Capital, is the ninth largest holder of STRK tokens, having received 134.18 million STRK.
Earlier reports indicated that Wintermute is suspected to be a market maker for STRK tokens, having received 2 million STRK and deposited 500,000 STRK into Binance; Teneo, the liquidator of Three Arrows Capital, has received 134.18 million STRK, making it the ninth largest holder. Flow Traders may be another market maker for STAK, with a market-making quantity of 5 million tokens. Amber Group is also suspected to be a market maker for STRK, with a market-making quantity of 1 million tokens.
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