Today's Headlines:
- a16z Invests $100 Million in Ethereum Re-Staking Protocol EigenLayer
- Do Kwon's Defense Lawyer Vows to Appeal to Avoid Extradition to the United States
- US Bankruptcy Judge Approves FTX's Sale of Anthropic Shares
- Axie Infinity Co-Founder's Personal Wallet on Ronin Chain Hacked, Loss of Approximately $10 Million Worth of ETH
- StarkWare Modifies Token Unlock Schedule for Early Contributors and Investors, 5.8 Billion Tokens to be Unlocked This Year
- Binance Labs Announces Investment in Ethereum Re-Staking Protocol Renzo
- Uniswap Mobile App Launches ENS-Based Readable Username Service "uni.eth"
- US Bitcoin Spot ETF Nets Inflows of $251.4 Million on February 22
Regulatory News
EU Establishes New Anti-Money Laundering Agency in Frankfurt, Germany to Regulate Cryptocurrencies
According to CoinDesk, the EU has chosen Frankfurt, Germany as the location for its new Anti-Money Laundering Agency (AMLA), which will directly regulate the cryptocurrency industry. AMLA is composed of the agency itself and national regulatory authorities of the 27 EU member states, with the task of ensuring compliance with all agreed EU anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing obligations. Mairead McGuinness, EU Commissioner for Financial Stability, Financial Services, and Capital Markets Union, stated: "We are reducing the risks associated with large cash payments, with a cash payment limit of €10,000 within the EU. At the same time, we are addressing the risks posed by cryptocurrencies." Nine EU cities, including Rome and Paris, competed for the location, and Frankfurt was ultimately selected through a joint vote by the European Parliament and Council.
Project Updates
US social media platform Reddit submitted an IPO application to the NYSE on Thursday, with Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, and Bank of America serving as lead underwriters, and institutions such as Citigroup and Deutsche Bank also participating in the underwriting. The company stated in its S-1 filing: "We invest a portion of our excess cash reserves in Bitcoin and Ethereum, and we have also acquired a small amount of Ethereum and Matic through the sale of certain virtual goods, and may continue to do so in the future.
Franklin Templeton Submits Ethereum Spot ETF 19b-4 Filing
Fox reporter Eleanor Terrett tweeted that, according to a public regulatory filing, CBOE has submitted an Ethereum spot ETF 19b-4 filing on behalf of Franklin Templeton. Franklin Templeton had already submitted an S-1 application to the SEC last Monday.
Coinbase Former CTO: Bitcoin-to-Fiat Exchange Rate Hits All-Time High in 14 Countries
Balaji Srinivasan, former Chief Technology Officer of Coinbase, tweeted that the Bitcoin-to-fiat exchange rate has hit an all-time high in 14 countries, including Japan, Argentina, Turkey, Nigeria, and others. The total population of these 14 countries exceeds 1 billion, with a combined GDP of over $7 trillion.
Blueberry Protocol Faces Exploit Attack, Protocol Currently Suspended
DeFi lending protocol Blueberry Protocol announced via X platform that it has been subjected to an exploit attack, but the official statement assures the safety of user funds, with only three markets - BTC, OHM, and USDC - being affected. The team is in communication with security experts and plans to attempt to contact the attacker to return the remaining 91 ETH. Additionally, the protocol has been temporarily suspended until further notice.
PancakeSwap Plans to Expand its Ecosystem with the Launch of "Alliance" Program
PancakeSwap plans to expand its ecosystem with the launch of the "Alliance" program, which will allow developers to clone the PancakeSwap platform on other blockchains. CAKE token holders will benefit from successful alliance branches, as they will receive native DEX tokens from the alliance. Additionally, a portion of transaction fees will be used to burn CAKE tokens to reduce supply.
Uniswap Mobile App Launches ENS-Based Readable Username Service "uni.eth"
Uniswap has introduced a new web3 username, uni.eth, which is built on the ENS infrastructure and ENS subdomains, allowing users to convert 0x addresses into readable usernames. This feature is provided for free through the Uniswap mobile app and supports usage across a wide range of web3 applications. Users can customize public profiles and add personalized settings. The claiming process is simple and only requires operation after updating the Uniswap mobile app.
OP Labs tweeted that the Delta upgrade will launch on the OP chain, introducing cross-batch functionality that will reduce fixed management costs of operating the OP chain by over 90%. Cross-batch will support the adoption of the OP stack by lowering L1 costs of the OP chain, thereby reducing the risk of launching new L2s using the OP stack. Node operators need to upgrade their nodes before the Delta upgrade, with no impact on end users.
Beosin: Whale Address on Ronin Chain Suspected Private Key Leak, Loss Exceeds $10 Million
According to Beosin's KYT Anti-Money Laundering Analysis Platform, the address 0x121ad060686848b196df8ca5c5e24722efe57115 on the Ronin chain, jihoz.ron (0xa09a9b6f90ab23fcdcd6c3d087c1dfb65dddfb05), is suspected to have a private key leak. Multiple tokens were transferred to the address 0x39f817976c51a91b60145febad81067e69713105 and exchanged for ETH, then cross-chain transferred to Ethereum, and subsequently flowed directly into Tornado.cash.
US Bankruptcy Judge Approves FTX's Sale of Its Anthropic Shares
According to Reuters, US Bankruptcy Judge John Dorsey of Delaware on Thursday approved FTX's sale of its stake in the artificial intelligence startup Anthropic. Previously, FTX reached an agreement in court with FTX clients who opposed the sale of shares. According to court documents, FTX invested $500 million in Anthropic in 2021, currently holding 7.84% of the company. Based on Anthropic's latest valuation, the value of FTX's shares may exceed $1 billion. Court documents indicate that FTX plans to sell these shares at a profit and will retain flexibility to sell the shares at the "best and most appropriate time." FTX plans to use the proceeds to repay clients.
StarkWare tweeted that, after considering community feedback, they will adjust the token unlock schedule for early contributors and investors to make it more gradual. The revised schedule is as follows: 0.64% of the initially minted 10 billion tokens (64 million tokens) will be unlocked on April 15, instead of the originally planned 13.4% (1.34 billion tokens). Gradual unlocking will continue at a rate of 0.64% (64 million tokens) per month until March 15, 2025, and then will increase to 1.27% (127 million tokens) per month over the next 24 months until March 15, 2027. According to the new unlocking plan, 5.8 billion tokens held by early contributors and investors will be unlocked by the end of 2024, instead of the previously planned 2 billion tokens. An additional 14 billion tokens will be gradually unlocked by the end of 2025, and another 15 billion by the end of 2026, with a further 3.8 billion tokens unlocked by March 15, 2027.
Coinbase Denies Being Banned in Nigeria
According to CoinDesk, a spokesperson for Coinbase confirmed on Thursday that Coinbase is still accessible in Nigeria. Earlier reports suggested that the Nigerian government had instructed its telecom companies to block access to cryptocurrency exchanges, including Binance, OctaFX, and Coinbase. A Coinbase spokesperson stated, "We are continuing to investigate these reports, but based on preliminary investigations, it appears that Nigeria can still access Coinbase.com."
Circle Announces USDC is Now Live on Celo Mainnet
According to the official blog, stablecoin issuer Circle announced that USDC is now live on the Celo mainnet, accessible to developers and users without the need for bridging. Circle's minting and its API now fully support USDC on Celo, providing easy access to USDC liquidity and benefiting from Celo's low-cost, instant settlement transactions.
USDC issued by Circle is the native token of Celo and joins the stablecoin use cases in the ecosystem, including remittances, savings, lending, aid payments, peer-to-peer (P2P), and cross-border payments.
OP Labs: OP Goerli to be Retired on March 7, Urges Migration to OP Sepolia
OP Labs stated on X platform, "Optimism will retire OP Goerli on March 7, and for months, we have been working with partners to simplify this transition. This is the final call to migrate to the fully supported OP Sepolia testnet to meet any testing and development needs."
Bitcoin Cats: Bitcoin L2 Network 1CAT Chain Testnet Now Live
The Bitcoin chain game project Bitcoin Cats announced on X platform that the Bitcoin L2 network 1CAT Chain testnet is now live. Testnet activities, Dapps, and more will be launched within 2 weeks. Users can connect to 1CAT Chain via MetaMask, OKX Wallet, and WalletConnect.
1CAT Chain is an EVM-compatible Bitcoin L2 network aimed at building a decentralized entertainment ecosystem centered around meme culture. The mainnet of 1CAT Chain will be launched in March-April.
Block Achieves $207 Million Profit in Bitcoin Investment through its Cash App
According to Decrypt, financial technology company Block, led by former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, achieved a profit of $207 million in Bitcoin investment through its Cash App. Block's Bitcoin sales through Cash App in the previous quarter generated $66 million in gross profit, a 90% increase year-over-year. After the company's earnings report for the fourth quarter of 2023 was released, its stock price rose by 12.35% in after-hours trading.
Axie Infinity co-founder Jihoz.ron stated on X platform that his personal two addresses have been compromised. This attack is limited to his personal accounts and is unrelated to the validation or operation of the Ronin chain. Additionally, the leaked keys are unrelated to Sky Mavis' operations. He assured everyone that strict security measures have been taken for all related activities.
Today, it was reported that Ronin Bridge was suspected to be attacked, losing 2790 ETH, and the stolen funds are being transferred to Tornado Cash. Axie Infinity co-founder Psycheout.ron retweeted, stating: "There is no issue with the bridge, and Ronin has not been compromised." Subsequently, Beosin stated: Whale Address on Ronin Chain Suspected Private Key Leak, Loss Exceeds $10 Million.
L1 blockchain Injective collaborates with DEX DojoSwap to launch "CW-404" standard
According to CoinDesk, Layer 1 blockchain Injective has introduced the CW-404 standard to benefit from the popularity of the ERC-404 standard and transition it to its own network. Injective has partnered with decentralized exchange DojoSwap to provide the CW-404 standard, which is a ported version of the ERC-404 standard, combining CW-20 and CW-721 standards.
The parent company of the Bitcoin Layer 2 scaling solution Merlin Chain, Bitmap Tech, announced on X platform that 1. The VOYA airdrop is ongoing, and if users do not claim it in time or did not get a snapshot, the airdrop will be sent directly to their address, which will take 2-3 days to complete.
The Merlin Chain bridge function is now live. To ensure early security, it takes about 3 days for Bitcoin to settle to Layer 1 wallet addresses. Other Layer 2 solutions, such as OP, require 7 days for settlement, but this will be faster in the future. Bridge fees include gas fees and UTXO merge/split fees, which will be reduced in the near future.
Based on users' early-stage online activities, such as transferring on MerlinSwap, trading tokens, or providing liquidity, 16.8 million MERL (0.8%) will be distributed to users. All previous activities participated in will be included. Announcements and details will be released in March.
The situation with the AA wallet is currently good, but if there are any blockages, please be patient. This will be completely resolved when the new ZKEvm CDK is launched in a few days.
Ordinals developer: Runestone airdrop window expected to be between this Friday and next Wednesday
Ordinals developer Leonidas stated on X platform that the Runestone airdrop window is expected to be between this Friday and next Wednesday.
It is reported that Runestone is an experimental project inspired by the RISC project, and the snapshot for Runestone has been completed at block height 826,600 (Ordinals' first anniversary).
Pandora: 349 Palette tokens to be airdropped to Pandora holders, snapshot taken this morning
ERC-404 project Pandora announced on X platform that the snapshot of all PANDORA holders was taken at 09:06:23 on February 22, Beijing time (block 19279784). 349 Palette tokens (a generative ERC404 art collection) will be airdropped to Pandora holders, with eligibility for any holder with at least 0.01 PANDORA. This airdrop, along with others announced, will soon be claimable through the official claim portal, which is preparing to launch and will be released ahead of the official main dApp release.
Investment and Financing
a16z invests $100 million in Ethereum re-staking protocol EigenLayer
According to Bloomberg, venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) has invested $100 million in the Ethereum re-staking protocol EigenLayer, indicating that despite the sharp decline in crypto venture capital, some top supporters of the industry are still betting on blockchain.
The two companies plan to announce this investment on Thursday. EigenLayer founder Sreeram Kannan stated that Andreessen Horowitz is the sole supporter of this round of financing. The startup raised $50 million in a round led by Blockchain Capital in March. Kannan declined to provide the current valuation of the company.
According to Fortune magazine, Solana infrastructure company Helius has announced the completion of a $9.5 million Series A financing, led by Foundation Capital, with participation from Reciprocal Ventures, 6th Man Ventures, Chapter One, and Propel, among others.
Helius is a vertically integrated developer platform that helps build crypto applications on Solana. The company was founded by former software engineers from Coinbase and Amazon Web Services in 2022. The platform provides a set of tools that enable developers to build applications quickly and easily on Solana. Additionally, in October 2022, Helius completed a $3.1 million seed round financing.
Ethereum money streaming protocol Superfluid completes $5.1 million strategic financing
According to The Block, the Ethereum money streaming protocol Superfluid has announced the completion of a $5.1 million strategic financing, led by Fabric Ventures, with participation from Multicoin Capital, Circle Ventures, Safe Foundation, The LAO, Taavet+Sten, and other companies. The financing round concluded at the end of last year and has a structure similar to the company's seed round financing, with equity accompanied by token warrants.
Binance Labs announces investment in Ethereum re-staking protocol Renzo
According to the official blog, Binance Labs has announced an investment in the Ethereum re-staking protocol Renzo, with the specific amount undisclosed.
According to reports, Renzo was established in August last year and currently helps users re-stake Ethereum through EigenLayer. The protocol also plans to support liquidity staking tokens (LST) in the future. In January, Renzo completed a $3.2 million seed round financing, led by Maven11 Capital, with a post-investment valuation reaching $25 million. According to DeFiLlama data, Renzo's TVL is currently around $372 million.
According to official sources, the decentralized perpetual contract trading platform Ox.Fun, initiated by Zhu Su, co-founder of Three Arrows Capital, has announced the completion of a $4 million new round of financing, led by Foresight Ventures, with participation from Double Peak Group, EmChain, Genblock Capital, and other institutions. This round of financing will be used for product iteration, team building, market expansion, and more.
It is worth noting that Ox.Fun uses OX as the underlying collateral for contracts and adopts the OX&MILK dual-token model, where investors receive tokens regardless of profit or loss. Since its launch, the platform has seen a trading volume of over 20 billion OX and deposits exceeding 1.5 billion OX.
Mining News
Crypto mining company Riot Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ: RIOT) has announced its full-year financial results as of December 31, 2023. The company generated a record-breaking total revenue of $280.7 million, produced 6,626 bitcoins, and achieved a peak hash rate of 12.4 EH/s. CEO Jason Les stated that 2023 was another milestone year for Riot, with significant progress made through the completion of the 700-megawatt Rockdale facility expansion, successful expansion of its power strategy, long-term fixed-price supply agreements with MicroBT, and the development of the 1-gigawatt Corsicana facility.
Important Data
Bitcoin L2 network Merlin Chain's TVL surpasses $1.97 billion within 14 days of launch
The Bitcoin Layer 2 network Merlin Chain has announced that within 14 days of the launch of its mainnet staking activity, the total value locked (TVL) has exceeded $1.97 billion. This figure includes $1.18 billion worth of BTC, $270 million worth of BRC-20 native assets, and $170 million worth of Ethereum and stablecoins, among others. The participation of the Ordinals ecosystem in Merlin Chain is high, with SATS, ORDI, and Bitmap accounting for 12.5%, 5.1%, and 26% of its total supply, respectively. Additionally, Merlin Chain's BRC-20 token VOYA has become the top altcoin in terms of total trading addresses.
According to Arkham monitoring, Grayscale transferred 2,315.557 BTC to a Coinbase Prime address at 22:26 on February 22, Beijing time, worth approximately $1.18 billion. In addition, Grayscale also transferred 1,650.121 bitcoins (worth approximately $84.29 million) to two new addresses, suspected to be new custody addresses for Grayscale.
According to SoSoValue data, the total net outflow of Bitcoin spot ETFs was $35.66 million on February 21 (US Eastern Time), marking the first net outflow in a single day since January 25. Grayscale's ETF GBTC saw a net outflow of $199 million on that day. The Bitcoin spot ETF with the highest net inflow on that day was BlackRock's ETF IBIT, with a net inflow of $96.52 million, which has been decreasing for 4 consecutive trading days. IBIT's total historical net inflow has reached $5.62 billion. Following that is Fidelity's ETF FBTC, with a net inflow of approximately $71.74 million on that day, and FBTC's total historical net inflow has reached $3.9 billion. As of the time of writing, the total net asset value of Bitcoin spot ETFs is $37.13 billion, with an ETF net asset ratio (market value as a percentage of total Bitcoin market value) of 3.71%, and the total historical net inflow has reached $5.14 billion.
US Bitcoin spot ETF sees net inflow of $251.4 million on February 22
According to Farside Investors' statistics, the US Bitcoin spot ETF experienced a net inflow of $251.4 million on February 22. Within this, Grayscale's GBTC witnessed an outflow of $55.7 million, while BlackRock's IBIT and Fidelity's FBTC achieved net inflows of $125.1 million and $158.9 million, respectively.
According to Lookonchain monitoring, on February 22, Grayscale's GBTC reduced holdings by 2,652 BTC (approximately $135.8 million). 8 ETFs increased holdings by 3,301 BTC (approximately $169 million), with BlackRock increasing holdings by 1,891 BTC (approximately $96.8 million).
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