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Sharp drop in Bitcoin raises caution in the market

Bitcoin (COIN:BTCUSD) faced a significant 8% drop yesterday, the largest since the FTX bankruptcy, increasing caution among investors. Despite recovering above $63K after hitting a low of $60,951.91, the price has recorded a -11.77% drop over the last 7 days. This volatility altered the Crypto Fear and Greed Index from “Extreme Greed” to “Greed.” Anticipation for the Federal Reserve’s interest rate announcement adds uncertainty, with most investors not anticipating immediate cuts. The central bank’s policy and its influence on BTC remain a focal point for the market. Fernando Pereira, an analyst at Bitget, commented on the situation: “looking at the 4-hour chart, it is possible to notice that buyers have started to appear in the $63,000 region, but they are unlikely to hold the price there for long. I believe a bullish rebound may occur, but the higher probability in the coming days is a drop below $60,000.”

Anticipation grows for Bitcoin’s next halving

The cryptocurrency community is anticipating Bitcoin’s next halving, an automatic adjustment that occurs every four years, halving the rewards per mined block. This event, an essential part of the bitcoin protocol, is scheduled to occur in mid-April, earlier than previously expected. The last time this happened, a similar pattern was witnessed, suggesting a historical repetition. The halving, which will reduce the block reward to 3.125 BTC, is seen by many as a potential driver of bitcoin’s value, under the premise that reduced supply and constant or increasing demand will raise the price. However, the increase in hashrate, driven by technological advancements and mining profitability, accelerates block production, influencing the halving schedule.

Drop in Grayscale Ethereum Trust discount signals pessimism about ETF

Grayscale Ethereum Trust (USOTC:ETHE) faced a drop in the discount to -20%, the lowest since November 2023, due to decreasing optimism regarding the approval of an Ethereum ETF by May. Converting the Trust into an ETF would allow direct Ether redemptions, eliminating the discount. However, the reduction suggests that the market does not expect imminent approval. Analysts have also adjusted their expectations, reflecting a more negative overall sentiment regarding the approval of an Ethereum ETF soon.

Government investigation and uncertainties about the future of Ether ETFs

The Ethereum Foundation, based in Switzerland and a cornerstone of the Ethereum universe, is under investigation by an anonymous state authority, reveals GitHub. Details of the investigation remain uncertain. An announcement on GitHub on February 26, 2024, mentioned a “voluntary investigation” involving secrecy. The removal of a transparency notice on the Foundation’s website suggests possible regulatory developments, with speculation about the involvement of Swiss regulators and the U.S. SEC.

Rise in AI tokens this month

In the last 30 days, tokens linked to artificial intelligence, such as SingularityNET (COIN:AGIXUST) and Fetch.ai, have seen significant increases. Fetch.ai, focused on automating business tasks with AI, saw its value skyrocket by 166% in the last month, and SingularityNET rose by 99%. Most top-market AI tokens appreciated, except for two slight declines. Also noteworthy are Render (COIN:RNDRUSD) and AIOZ Network (COIN:AIOZUSD), with significant monthly gains of 79.8% and 307%, respectively, suggesting a trend of AI tokens reflecting technological advancements in the field.

Solana experiences sharp drop after record high

Solana (COIN:SOLUSD) recorded a 15.9% drop on March 19, hitting a five-day low of $166, after a recovery that almost reached $210, setting a new market cap record of $92 billion. As of the latest update, SOL was trading at around $167.78, with a market value close to $74 billion. Despite the recent pullback, Solana still has a 11.38% gain for the week, even with an overall downward trend in the crypto market.

Starknet’s 2024 roadmap aims to enhance efficiency and reduce costs

Starknet, a ZK-Rollup platform focused on optimizing dApps, announced its roadmap for 2024, highlighting improvements in efficiency and cost reduction for its Ethereum Layer 2 network. Among the updates, parallel transaction execution, scheduled for the second quarter, promises to accelerate processing by allowing the sequencer to execute multiple transactions simultaneously. The initiative aims to eliminate bottlenecks and facilitate more agile and cost-effective transactions on the network.

Sam Bankman-Fried’s defense refutes heavy sentencing request

Sam Bankman-Fried’s defense vehemently criticized the Department of Justice’s suggestion of a 50-year sentence, calling it excessive and inhumane. In a letter to the judge, the lawyers accused the sentencing memo of painting an unfair picture of Bankman-Fried, portraying him as a villain and ignoring his philanthropic contributions. The lawyers argued that there were no actual losses due to the bankruptcy proceedings and proposed a maximum sentence of 6.5 years, emphasizing Bankman-Fried’s low likelihood of recidivism.

3AC co-founder Kyle Davies unapologetic after bankruptcy

Kyle Davies, co-founder of the now-defunct Three Arrows Capital, expressed no remorse for the fund’s bankruptcy during an interview on the Unchained Podcast. He rationalized that bankruptcies are common in business and emphasized the importance of learning and improving from failures. Despite significant losses suffered by 3AC during the 2022 crypto crisis and legal consequences faced by its co-founder Su Zhu, Davies maintains a perspective of future building and value addition.

Montenegro court denies Do Kwon’s extradition appeal

Montenegro’s appellate court denied Terraform Labs creator Do Kwon’s request to overturn authorization for his extradition to South Korea, as officially announced. Kwon will face charges there for the collapse of his stablecoin TerraUSD in 2022. His attempt to appeal against extradition was unsuccessful, and his lawyer confirmed that the decision is final, with no possibility of appeal from Kwon or the U.S. The date of his extradition has not yet been determined.

Money laundering charges in crypto against developer Alexey Pertsev

Russian developer Alexey Pertsev faces allegations from Dutch prosecutors of laundering $1.2 billion in cryptocurrencies using Tornado Cash, according to the indictment filed before the March 26 trial. The case, which also involves other Tornado Cash developers accused in the U.S., revolves around Pertsev allegedly moving over 500,000 Ether of dubious origin between 2019 and 2022. The indictment links suspicious transactions to major crypto thefts, suggesting that Pertsev should have been suspicious of the illicit origin of the funds.

Controversy over distribution of EtherFi’s ETHFI tokens

EtherFi faced challenges after its airdrop, especially due to the sale of ETHFI tokens by one of its early investors, Arrington XRP Capital, allegedly exploiting the distribution system for personal profit. Arrington is said to have split a 5,000 ETH investment into ten wallets to claim more ETHFI tokens, leading to accusations of manipulation. Despite a 32% drop in token price after the airdrop, both EtherFi and Arrington defended the legitimacy of the actions, emphasizing that the linear distribution did not provide additional advantage to multiple wallets.

Kraken launches custody service for institutions in Wyoming

Kraken, one of the leading cryptocurrency exchanges, announced a new custody service for institutional clients in Wyoming, a state known for its crypto-friendly stance, using its state banking license acquired in 2020. The service, called Kraken Institutional, will ensure that deposits are held in segregated and fully reserved accounts, highlighting Wyoming’s commitment to regulatory clarity in crypto since 2016.

Quantum challenges to Bitcoin security

The evolution of quantum computing poses a potential challenge to Bitcoin (COIN:BTCUSD), the largest cryptocurrency in terms of market capitalization. Due to its reliance on Proof-of-Work (PoW) for transaction validation and elliptic curve cryptography (ECC) for security, Bitcoin is exposed to significant risks with the advancement of this technology. Quantum computers, capable of solving complex calculations quickly, threaten Bitcoin’s decentralization and can compromise transaction security, especially in legacy addresses.

BlackRock launches tokenized asset fund

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK), a global leader in asset management, announced the creation of a new fund focused on tokenized assets, according to a recent SEC filing. Named the BlackRock USD Digital Liquid Institutional Fund and based in the British Virgin Islands, the project is a collaboration with San Francisco-based Securitize, specializing in asset tokenization. With an initial investment of $100 million in USDC on Ethereum, specific details of the fund have not yet been disclosed. This initiative underscores the growing interest in tokenizing real assets and marks a significant step for BlackRock in integrating blockchain technologies into the traditional financial sector.

Startup Ooga Booga raises $1 million for aggregator on new blockchain

Even before the activation of its mainnet, Berachain, which has yet to engage in commercial activities, has already inspired investments like that of Ooga Booga. The company, with an unusual name, raised $1 million, valuing itself at $10 million. Nineteen-year-old co-founder Kevin Liu aims with his “decentralized exchange aggregator” to facilitate traders in finding the most advantageous crypto exchange by exploring various exchanges. The project relies on Berachain’s innovative “liquidity proof” to optimize asset usage in DeFi.

Launch of Inevitable Games fund to boost Web3 gaming

Immutable, Polygon Labs, and King River Capital have joined forces to raise $100 million for the Inevitable Games Fund (IGF), dedicated to investing in emerging Web3 gaming startups. Led by King River Capital, the fund is ecosystem-agnostic and aims to support the development of Web3 games. It has already reached $30 million of its goal, with significant contributions from investors like Alpha Wave Ventures. This year is seen as a milestone for Web3 games, with the fund aiming to boost the industry both in the short and long term.