The biggest crypto news and ideas of the day |
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Marathon to HODL $100 Million BTC |
Marathon Digital (MARA), one of the largest bitcoin (BTC) miners, bought $100 million worth of BTC in the open market and said it will readopt its strategy to hold all mined bitcoin on its balance sheet. The miner said in a statement on Thursday that it now holds over 20,000 bitcoin, worth nearly $1.3 billion based on current prices, on its balance sheet and plans to buy more in the open market. "Bitcoin’s recent price decline, coupled with the strength of our balance sheet, afforded us an opportunity to add to our holdings. We look forward to continuing to leverage our technological expertise to support Bitcoin and distributed digital asset ecosystems,” said Marathon's CFO Salman Khan. The decision to HODL or holding onto bitcoin comes almost year after Marathon started to sell its mined digital assets to pay for the company's operating expenses. Prior to the crypto winter, most miners adopted the strategy to hold on to all the mined bitcoin in their balance sheet, which paid off during the bull market rally. However, as market imploded last year, most miners started to sell their mined bitcoin to pay for operating expenses and Marathon was one of the last one to start monetizing their digital assets in early 2023. "Adopting a full HODL strategy reflects our confidence in the long-term value of bitcoin," said Fred Thiel, Marathon’s chairman and CEO. "We believe bitcoin is the world’s best treasury reserve asset and support the idea of sovereign wealth funds holding it. We encourage governments and corporations to all hold bitcoin as a reserve asset.” |
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Russians Behind Most Ransomware |
Illicit use of crypto for ransomware, drug sales, and sanction evasion was rife in Russia in 2023 according to a report by TRM Labs on Thursday. Russian-speaking ransomware groups were responsible for at least 69% of all crypto proceeds from ransomware in 2023, which exceeded $500 million. Ransomware is a type of malware that prevents a user from accessing a device until a sum is paid. The two largest ransomware operators in 2023 were Lockbit and ALPHV/Black Cat, both Russian-speaking groups. However, in February the U.K. National Crime Agency said it had managed to take control of Lockbits services "compromising their entire criminal enterprise," according to an article at the time. In 2023, Russian exchange Garantex accounted for 82% of the crypto volumes from sanctioned entities internationally, the report said. Due to Russia's war on Ukraine, nations around the world placed sanctions on the country leading to some turning to crypto to evade them. U.S. sanctions watchdog, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) blacklisted a bitcoin and ether address last year tied to sanctions evasion. Plus, U.S. federal prosecutors alleged in 2022 that five Russian nationals had laundered millions of dollars worth of crypto. |
EigenLayer Staking Drops Off |
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Billions of dollars worth of ether (ETH) has been withdrawn from restaking protocols over the past month as the once trendy sector gets its first taste of the fickle nature of crypto investors. On June 25, ether (ETH) was trading at $3,300, a shade higher than Thursday's price of $3,200. During that period, however, the total value locked (TVL) on EigenLayer – a protocol that links restaking protocols – slumped by $2.28 billion to $15.1 billion. Restaking protocols like Renzo and Kelp have lost 45% and 22% of their TVL, respectively, data from DefiLlama shows. A portion of the outflows can be attributed to depositors looking to harvest points that will eventually be converted to airdrops subsequently moving on to another project to maximize returns. For others, the yield is too low when compared with specific yield-generation protocols like Ethena. Renzo offers an annual yield of 3.43%; Ethena offers more than 10%. Restaking is a strategy that investors use to secure an additional yield on ETH that is already staked on the main Ethereum blockchain. Protocols like Ethena generate a yield by harvesting funding rates, which can be more volatile. One restaking project that has managed to buck the trend is ether.fi, which has seen a $100 million increase in TVL. |
Eight newly approved spot ether (ETH) exchange-traded funds got off to a busy start following their debut this week, despite lacking a key feature of Ethereum's native token: staking income. While the Grayscale Ethereum Trust (ETHE), which has existed in non-ETF form for years but just converted into an ETF, has seen about $811 million of outflows, new products from the likes of BlackRock saw almost $800 million deposited in the first two days. Issuers say they're pleased. This early success wasn't a given, especially after several issuers announced that they would not stake ether for yield, which they had initially planned to do in earlier filings. This was likely due to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission telling them to remove the feature as staking could potentially violate federal securities laws as it constitutes unregistered securities offerings, as the SEC had previously argued in other cases. With a new administration taking office in January, things could change quickly and issuers remain hopeful that the feature could eventually become part of the products. |
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Being Compliant is the Key: Understanding the Growth of Fastex There’s a new art gallery in Yerevan, Armenia. You’ll find a sleek space, tasteful lighting, and creative works of art. Sculptures that look like eyeballs are emblazoned with bursts of color — fiery reds, bold yellows, soothing blues. But there’s a twist. Each eyeball is linked to a corresponding NFT, meaning it’s a blend of the physical and the digital. The art galleries are “phygital.” Continue reading. |
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The Takeaway: Kamala's Crypto Agenda |
Guest post by Penn State law professor Tonya Evans: Under Biden, cryptocurrency regulation has been marked by a confusing and confounding enforcement-heavy approach, largely influenced by Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA). Known for her skepticism of the crypto industry, Warren has advocated for strict regulatory measures to protect consumers and maintain financial stability. Her influence is evident in the administration's "Chokepoint 2.0" strategy and in the stance of her ally SEC Chair, Gary Gensler, as well as prudential regulators who restricted the crypto industry’s access to traditional banking services, effectively “de-banking” the sector. Fueled by misinformation and a kernel of truth, Warren’s approach has focused on addressing the risks associated with cryptocurrencies, including fraud, money laundering, and terrorism financing without right-sizing the discussions to balance risks with the considerable economic justice opportunities and separate fact from fiction. Vice President Harris's prior approach to technology regulation is characterized by a more moderate tone compared to the current administration’s approach. Throughout her career, she has forged strong relationships with major technology companies such as Facebook and Google. She has been a notable presence at their headquarters and has enlisted employees and allies from these companies to advise her campaign on tech policy. Her approach emphasizes finding a balance between regulation and allowing technological advancement. A strategic policy shift to incorporate past openness to innovation coupled with her campaign’s focus on economic empowerment of the middle class may create an opportunity for a both/and approach that optimizes investor and consumer protections with the support of robust development of the Web3 economy on the rails of blockchain and powered by cryptographically secured digital assets. But what signals that she would be open to a pivot on crypto policy? For one, billionaire Mark Cuban noted on X this week that Harris’ team has been asking numerous crypto-related questions. That, added to her pro-innovation record and entertaining discussions of appearing at Bitcoin 2024 all bode well for a different approach in a Harris Administration. As the Democratic presidential nominee, Harris has the unique opportunity to chart a new course for crypto policy, one I am calling "New Economy 2025," which balances sensible and transparent regulation with robust innovation for investors, consumers and businesses alike. This approach would ensure that the U.S. remains a leader in the digital asset economy while promoting financial inclusion and protecting consumer interests. To that end, here are ten policy shifts that could redefine the Democratic party’s stance on digital assets and foster a more inclusive financial ecosystem under a Harris presidency. Read the full op-ed here. |
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