Mind The Block is Your Weekly Dose of Web3 News and Insights
Mind The Block Headlines This Week
- Grayscale Aims for Bitcoin ETF
- Tether and Bitfinex Settle FOIL Request
- G20’s Digital Currency Roadmap
- Fnality Raises £77.7 million
- Vitalik to Redesign Ethereum Staking
- Illuvium Arena Launches on Epic Games
- Bitcoin Stable at $37k with Strong Accumulation
- Smart Money: Weekly Finance Overview
News
Table of Contents
- Crypto asset manager Grayscale has submitted a new prospectus for converting its Bitcoin Trust into a spot Bitcoin ETF.
- Canada and Germany have dominated crypto ETP inflows, with a record $346 million added to funds last week.
- Former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao is challenging the US government’s motion to reverse his bail conditions.
- Inferno Drainer is shutting down after helping phishing scammers steal nearly $70 million in crypto this year.
- El Hippo (HIPP), a young meme coin, has reached new heights with a $23,000 airdrop and a Bitget listing.
- DEMAND has launched the world’s first Stratum V2 Bitcoin Mining Pool, built on the open-source Stratum Reference Implementation (SRI).
- Bitcoin’s performance has been historic, with a 60% surge in just a quarter.
- BIS General Manager Agustin Carstens highlighted the importance of tokenization in modernizing the current financial system.
- Xumm Wallet is launching a Xumm + Tangem card with a prepaid XRP balance of up to $50.
- dYdX is set to unlock $500 million worth of tokens in its first significant emission, marking 30% of its supply.
- Cardano GPT has successfully deployed the first internet-enabled generative chatbot, Girolamo, in beta testing.
- Indexed DAO, hacked for $16 million in 2021, has successfully defended against two hijacking attempts by attackers.
- MakerDAO’s Spark protocol has dominated the lending market with over $629 million in active loans.
- ZetaChain is a revolutionary crypto platform that connects various blockchains, promoting flexibility and user-centricity.
- Creditors of CoinFLEX are accusing OPNX of wrongfully using CoinFLEX assets without their consent.
- Wallet of Satoshi, a popular wallet for Bitcoin’s Lightning Network, ended support for U.S. customers on November 24.
- RocketX has launched its developer application programming interface (API) in beta, allowing developers to integrate its hybrid aggregator.
Major Companies Making Moves
- Circle is partnering with Tokyo-based financial services firm SBI Holdings to increase USDC circulation in Japan.
- TIES CAPITAL GLOBAL has launched an innovative cryptocurrency trading platform.
- Wietse Wind, the founder of XRPL Labs, has hinted at integrating debit MasterCard into the Xumm wallet.
- Coinbase is expanding its workforce in India despite regulatory setbacks for its products.
- Tether and Bitfinex have agreed to settle a FOIL request filed by journalists, including Bloomberg Businessweek.
- Binance’s new CEO Richard Teng, surrounded by Khabib and Ronaldo at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, sparks collaboration talk.
Government, SEC & Regulation
- G20 nations have developed a comprehensive roadmap for digital currencies, balancing innovation and regulation.
- A court in Montenegro has approved the extradition of disgraced crypto entrepreneur Do Kwon to either South Korea or the United States.
- Crypto exchange Zipmex has temporarily suspended trading in Thailand to comply with local regulations.
- The Japanese National Tax Agency (NTA) has launched 615 investigations into Japanese residents’ crypto holdings.
- Hong Kong government has accelerated cryptocurrency product approvals following the JPEX incident.
- South Korea is set to launch a pilot program in Q4 2024 to modernize its financial infrastructure with digital currency.
- Grayscale has submitted an updated prospectus for its pending spot Bitcoin ETF to the U.S. SEC.
- The UK has approved a project allowing authorized funds to develop tokenization in the investment sector to improve efficiency.
- Australia’s tax agency has not clarified its rules on decentralized finance (DeFi) despite Cointelegraph’s request for answers.
- OKX has launched its Web3 wallet platform and cryptocurrency exchange in Brazil.
- South Africa is leading the crypto revolution with the strategic partnership between VALR and Luno.
- US presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy claims the US government is hesitant to fully embrace Bitcoin due to its perceived threat to its existence.
Raises & Major Investments rounds
- Fnality International has raised £77.7m in a Series B funding round.
- BlockFi has secured a $21M agreement with Vrai Nom Investment in its bankruptcy proceedings.
- Mozaic, a startup founded in 2015, has raised $20 million to develop a payment-splitting solution for creators.
- Open Campus, a cryptocurrency-focused educational startup, has raised $3.15 million from Binance Labs to double down on NFTs.
- GameStop Memes raised $2 million in a presale to shock Chainlink and TRON, reshaping the crypto market.
- Matr1x, a web3 gaming studio, has raised $10 million for its NFT mobile game, Matr1x Fire.
Trends & Narrative
- Mark Cuban is exploring the use of blockchain technology in real estate development.
- Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin plans to redesign Ethereum’s staking mechanism to improve staking pools.
- The mystery surrounding Satoshi Nakamoto, the creator of Bitcoin, remains a significant enigma in the cryptocurrency landscape.
NFTs, Gaming, Metaverse
- Farcana, a UAE-based Web3-powered gaming startup, has secured a strategic investment from Animoca Brands.
- Illuvium is a sci-fi fantasy NFT gaming IP with four games in development: Illuvium Arena, Overworld, Zero, and Beyond.
- SquareEnix is set to launch an NFT auction for its new Web3 game, “Symbiogenesis,” built on Ethereum and Polygon.
- SK Telecom has formed strategic collaborations with Malaysian telecommunications firm CelcomDigi Berhad.
- Magic Eden is launching a cross-chain NFT and crypto wallet browser extension in closed beta to support a multi-chain crypto future.
- The Sandbox and Nuqtah have partnered to promote Web3 and metaverse adoption in Saudi Arabia and the MENA region.
- Web3 game developers are aiming to gain mainstream attention for their future, according to three former gaming executives.
- Animoca Brands has sold out Season 2 of Publisher NFTs, involving 720 Publisher NFTs and yielding 538,560 EDU tokens.
Onchain Data
- Bitcoin’s resilience at $37k is backed by a strong accumulation trend.
- XRP’s price may experience a 20% rally by New Year’s due to a bullish continuation setup.
- Polkadot (DOT) and Polygon (MATIC) are gaining attention in the crypto market due to their innovative features.
- Chainlink (LINK) price increased rapidly, reaching a yearly high of $16.60 two weeks ago.
- Optimism (OP) price has reached a pivotal level, approaching $2.
Educational Guides and Tips
- Smart Money provides a weekly overview of finance, focusing on Forex, Stocks, and Crypto Currencies.
- Top 10 Crypto and Stock Trading Strategies You Need To Know:Larry Brenner.
- Finding Your Way: A Guide to Easily Swapping Aave Cryptofor ETH.
- Develop your Web3 skills with the help of useWeb3.
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