TOP STORIES OF THE WEEK
US Chamber of Commerce Slams SEC, Backs Coinbase in Legal Fight
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, a heavyweight in the business industry representing the interests of more than 3 million organizations, called out the SEC on Thursday in a show of support for Coinbase, slamming the financial watchdog's regulatory approach toward the digital asset industry. It filed an amicus brief in support of Coinbase, which took the SEC to court last month. The exchange wants a court to force the SEC to respond to its so-called “petition for rulemaking” filed last July, which asks the SEC to propose and adopt rules for digital assets and answer questions related to regulation. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce said, “The SEC has deliberately muddied the waters by claiming sweeping authority over digital assets while deploying a haphazard, enforcement-based approach,” further stating that the "regulatory chaos is by design, not happenstance.”
Top Market Makers Jane Street and Jump Crypto Pare Down US Crypto Operations Amid Regulatory Pressure
Two prominent market-making firms, Jane Street Group and Jump Crypto, are cutting back their digital asset trading activities in the US due to heightened regulatory pressure. Jane Street is also scaling back its global crypto ambitions due to the uncertainty, which makes it difficult for the company to operate in a way that meets regulatory standards in the US, according to a Bloomberg report. While both firms are still actively making markets in cryptocurrencies, they are doing so on a smaller scale than before. Additionally, other prominent high frequency trading firms such as Tower, HRT, and Radix have been rumored to be scaling back crypto activity as well.
Arkham says US government not moving Bitcoin; labeling issues continue
After once again being blamed for a sharp liquidation-driven selloff,
Arkham Intelligence confirmed it did not observe funds moving from wallets connected to the U.S. government in a series of tweets on May 10. In a now-protected account, Twitter user beetle (@1kbeetlejuice) suggested that Arkham data indicated “[U.S. government] Bitcoin wallets are on the move” after an address transferred ~9,820 BTC in a single transaction. The issue seems to have emerged from community labels. Arkham explained that users can manually add labels to wallet addresses and edit data collections called Entities. Arkham said that such manual changes “do not reflect associations” made by Arkham itself. Nevertheless, this is the second time in a matter of weeks that Arkham has found itself blamed for large liquidations due to issues with community tags.
Arkham Intelligence confirmed it did not observe funds moving from wallets connected to the U.S. government in a series of tweets on May 10. In a now-protected account, Twitter user beetle (@1kbeetlejuice) suggested that Arkham data indicated “[U.S. government] Bitcoin wallets are on the move” after an address transferred ~9,820 BTC in a single transaction. The issue seems to have emerged from community labels. Arkham explained that users can manually add labels to wallet addresses and edit data collections called Entities. Arkham said that such manual changes “do not reflect associations” made by Arkham itself. Nevertheless, this is the second time in a matter of weeks that Arkham has found itself blamed for large liquidations due to issues with community tags.
Big breath as Beacon Chain stops finalizing… and then recovers
An unidentified issue on Ethereum’s Beacon Chain led to an issue with transaction finality for nearly half an hour on May 11. Around 3:15pm EST, a number of Ethereum core developers announced that the Beacon Chain was having issues finalizing recent epochs. New blocks were able to be proposed, but an unknown issue was preventing them from being finalized for a few minutes longer than usual. Importantly, Ethereum never went offline and transactions and blocks continued to be processed despite much misreporting. See GSR's daily market update for a deeper review of the implications of yesterday's brief finality delay. Note: Similar Ethereum consensus challenges popped up in real time again this afternoon and delayed finality for about an hour.
Former Coinbase Product Manager Gets Two Years For Insider Trading
A former Coinbase product manager was sentenced to two years in prison for insider trading—the first of its kind in the crypto world. Ishan Wahi, 32, and his associates—including his brother, Nikhil—made over $1.5 million by using inside information to invest in new digital assets just before they were listed by America’s biggest crypto exchange. U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said, “Today’s sentence should send a strong signal to all participants in the cryptocurrency markets that the laws decidedly do apply to them.”
BITCOIN
Bitcoin spot trading volume falls to lowest level since 2019
Bitcoin premium on Binance.US is symptom of illiquid market: Kaiko
Bitcoin’s ‘BRC-20’ Explosion Sends Users Scrambling for Options, Including Lightning
Liechtenstein Plans to Accept Bitcoin for Payments to State, Prime Minister Says: Report
BRC-20 tokens approach $1B market cap
The new “flippening”: Bitcoin fees surpass block reward for miners
'Attack on Bitcoin’ Claims Circulate as Transaction Fees Climb Higher
ETHEREUM
Meet ‘Dencun.’ Ethereum Developers Are Already Planning Next Hard Fork
Ether Selling Pressure Post-Shanghai Upgrade Was 'Non-Event,' Says Nansen
Ethereum validators earn a record $46M as staking rewards rate surges
Ethereum’s OFAC-compliant blocks fall to 27%, marking a drop in potential for protocol-level censorship
Ethereum Staking Deposits Outpace Withdrawals by $189M in ETH
ALTCOINS
Smash Hit Meme Coin $SPONGE Pumps 67% Higher on Bitget and Gate.io Listings Excitement
Milady memecoin surges 5,250% after Musk tweet, exchange listings
Worldcoin’s new app to migrate from Polygon to Optimism’s ecosystem
Aragon’s ANT Rallies After Cofounder Proposes Token Buybacks to End Activist Crisis
Uniswap Weighs Proposal to Enrich Token Holders, Switch on Liquidity Pool Fees
Crypto Derivatives Protocol Vega's Mainnet Goes Live for Futures, Options Trading
Crypto Whales Accumulate Millions in Pepecoin as Trading Volume Shifts to Binance
Aragon Cancels Planned Community Control of $200M Treasury Amid Battle With Activist Investors
Cetus DEX's IDO oversubscribed after Sui mainnet launch
Sam Altman’s Crypto Project, Worldcoin, Releases First Major Consumer Product
Aave DAO Passes Proposal to Deploy on Ethereum Layer 2 Metis Network
Pepecoin Drops Nearly 50% From Highs as Traders Likely Taking Profits for Ether
Binance listing pushes Floki, Pepe up more than 50%
STABLECOINS
Tether Reports $1.48B Profit in Q1, Reveals Bitcoin, Gold Reserves
MakerDAO launches Spark Protocol, a new DeFi lending solution for DAI users
CRYPTO ECOSYSTEM
Crypto Lender Nexo Moves to Disband UK Subsidiaries
MetaMask rolls out ETH purchases via PayPal to US users
Gaming Dominates On-Chain Transactions in April as Arbitrum Users Surge
New wallet uses Amazon hardware security modules to eliminate seed words
DCG settlement with Genesis still undecided as 30-day mediation period proceeds
Crypto Derivatives Market Share Hits All-Time High
Harnessing the Power of Blockchain Technology in Supply Chain Management and Traceability
Jaredfromsubway.eth’s MEV bot rakes in millions of dollars in three months
DCG is ‘in discussions’ with capital providers amidst Genesis mediation
Xapo Bank to Enable Tether Deposits, Withdrawals
Bankrupt Crypto Lending Firm Celsius Targeted for Acquisition by Apollo and NovaWulf
Digital Asset Will Start Global Blockchain Network With Deloitte, Goldman Sachs and Others
Crypto Options Liquidity Provider OrBit Markets Offers Bitcoin and Gold-Hybrid Derivative
Paxful restarts marketplace operations for the first time since April
Tencent-backed Everledger collapses amid lack of funding: Report
Crypto Options Exchange Deribit's Ether Volatility Index Hits Record Low
NFTS / GAMING / METAVERSE
Roblox Users Surge 22% to New Peak Despite Fading Metaverse Hype
Elon Musk sends Milady NFT price soaring with Twitter meme
Pudgy Penguins secures $9 million months after CEO denied raising money, called notion ‘fake news’
Binance to Bring Bitcoin NFTs to Its Marketplace Through Ordinals Support
Britain’s fourth largest newspaper offers free King Charles coronation NFTs
MINING
Texas embraces greener Bitcoin mining with approval of flare gas emission bill
Bitcoin Miners Earning $40M Daily Revenue as Ordinals Debate Splits Devs
CleanSpark Eyes Expansion Plans Ahead of Bitcoin Halving
SEC issues new subpoena to bitcoin miner Marathon
Marathon Digital announces immersion crypto mining operations in Abu Dhabi
Cipher Strikes Deal With Canaan to Purchase 11,000 New Bitcoin Miners
Hut 8's Alberta Bitcoin Mine Running at 15% Installed Hashrate Due to Electrical Issues
Ordinals Upend Bitcoin Mining, Pushing Transaction Fees Above Mining Reward for First Time in Years
Vortex doubles mining capacity to combat inflation
EXCHANGES
Decentralized Exchange Uniswap Trading Volume Outpaces Coinbase for 4th Consecutive Month
Bittrex Processed $425 Million in Withdrawals Since April 1, Claims Attorney Amid Bankruptcy Proceedings
Crypto Signals Announces Partnership with Bybit Crypto Exchange to Offer Copy Trading for VIP Members
Justin Sun admits Huobi ownership, calls Binance a partner rather than rival
Uniswap Volume Leapfrogs Coinbase Thanks to Pepe and Meme Coins
Bittrex’s U.S., Maltese Arms Processed $425M in Withdrawals Since April 1, Attorney Says
Binance moves bankrupt Voyager, FTX tokens to innovation zone
Binance launches ‘Capital Connect’ platform for VIP users
Bankrupt crypto exchange QuadrigaCX to start ‘interim distribution’ of funds
Bitcoin Trades at Nearly $650 Premium on Binance.US
Bittrex Goes Bankrupt with US Treasury Its Largest Creditor
Coinbase Targets UAE as Strategic Hub for Cryptoeconomy Expansion; Executives Attend Dubai Fintech Summit
Binance Calls Bitcoin Withdrawal Pause 'a Learning Opportunity'
Voyager Digital Plans to Liquidate Assets, Wind Down After Sale Dreams Crushed
CAPITAL RAISES
BNB NFT marketplace Tabi raises $10M in angel funding
Crypto Media Outlet Blockworks Raises $12M at $135M Valuation
Zero-Knowledge Privacy Startup Webb Protocol Raises $7M
INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT
Polychain Snubs Lucrative Crypto Arbitrage, Prepares to Trade $6M of ROOK Token on Uniswap
Grayscale Seeks ETF Expansion Amid Ongoing Legal Battle over Spot Bitcoin Fund
Third Time the Charm for a Spot Bitcoin ETF? Cboe Tries Again To Find Out
Heavyweight Hedge Fund Arca Joins Activist Fight Against DAO Builder Aragon
Private equity tokens aim to bring greater liquidity, transparency and accessibility
32% of family offices invest in digital assets — Goldman Sachs
TRADFI / TECH
Silvergate begins NYSE delisting process as it readies to cut 230 staff
Elon Musk announces he will step down as Twitter CEO
PayPal customers increase crypto deposits to $943M
Spotify reportedly deletes thousands of AI-generated songs
Stripe tackles ‘cold start problem’ with the launch of fiat-to-crypto on-ramp
CBDC
Federal Reserve's FedNow will integrate with Metal Blockchain
BIS issues comprehensive paper on offline CBDC payments
REGULATORY / COUNTRIES
US lawmaker questions SEC about GBTC redemptions
US House financial committee tells SEC they don’t like custody proposal
US House Financial Services Committee Chair Rep. McHenry Accuses SEC Chair of Avoiding Answering Questions
'The SEC’s actions have crippled a nascent industry' — Paradigm requests amicus brief for Coinbase
IRS, Chainalysis and Ukraine Targeting Russian Crypto Sanctions Evaders Jointly
US House Lawmakers on Both Sides Seemingly Agree on Need for Crypto Legislation
US Chamber of Commerce Backs Coinbase in Fight for Regulatory Clarity
Europe’s Crypto Regulations Can Be a 'Model' for Rules in US, Says Hester Peirce
Coinbase legal chief sends letter to SEC on RIA rulemaking
Estonia squeezes out 400 crypto firms after new laws
Ripple pegs SEC lawsuit costs at $200M; plans Dubai expansion
South Korean lawmaker allegedly cashed out while legislating on crypto: Report
Coinbase cuddles up to UAE policymakers as tensions with US regulators grow
Argentina's central bank halts cryptocurrencies from payment apps
ENVIRONMENTAL, SOCIAL, GOVERNANCE
EY Announces Ethereum-Based Carbon Credit Traceability Platform – How Does it Work?
The Debate Over the Environmental Impact of Cryptocurrency Mining
SURVEYS, HACKS, MISC
‘We Screwed Up’: Coinbase Apologizes for Pepe Comments as #DeleteCoinbase Trends
Solana Labs Opening 25,000-Square-Foot Office Space in NYC
Justin Sun to start trading memecoins, donate profits to charity
Su Zhu of Three Arrows Capital Gets Restraining Order Against Billionaire Arthur Hayes Amid Dispute
Terraform Labs CEO Do Kwon Pleads Not Guilty to Forged Passport Charges
Backlash ensues as Coinbase labels PEPE alt-right hate symbol
IRS claiming $44B from FTX bankruptcy: Report
$176M of Do Kwon's assets are frozen: Report
ParaSpace team clashes with CEO over alleged whereabouts of protocol funds
‘Kim Jong-Un’ gets approved for Gate.io crypto account
South Korean Assembly Member Under Fire for Alleged Crypto Insider Trading
Shaq Still Not Served in FTX Lawsuit, Lawyers Claim
SBF’s Defense Seeks to Dismiss Most Criminal Charges Against FTX Founder
Ben 'Bitboy' Armstrong Shills BEN—A ‘Ben DAO’ Token for Dudes Named Ben
The Impact of Elon Musk's Tweets on the Crypto Market
DEUS Finance loses $6M following stablecoin hack