Top10 News

1. Some OTC merchants reject TRC20 USDT link

Recently, some OTC merchants in the Chinese market said that they no longer accept TRC20 USDT, and need users to go to the exchange to exchange for ERC20 USDT before trading. It is suspected to be related to the Justin Sun and TRON FUD spread by the community. Regarding the reason why OTC merchants refused to accept TRC20 USDT, there is an explanation that it did not meet the anti-money laundering requirements of tools such as Chainalysis, so it was rejected by institutions and relatively compliant OTC merchants.

Justin Sun responded that one of the key features that sets USDT-TRC20 apart from other stablecoins is its decentralization, enough to ensure that no single entity controls the flow of funds, reducing the risk of any potential attacks or breaches.

2. DCG & Genesis’ weekly summary

a. Gemini founder releases open letter asking DCG to remove Barry Silbert as CEO link

The founder of Gemini issued the latest open letter stating that Genesis lost $1.2 billion in the 3AC accident, but has been deceiving Gemini and user DCG to fill this gap; he asked the DCG board of directors to remove Barry from his post and replace him with a new team. DCG responded by saying that this was Cameron’s way of deflecting criticism from them and Gemini, who were solely responsible for running Gemini Earn and marketing the program to their customers.

b. DCG released a detailed question and answer to explain Genesis’ problems link

DCG released a detailed question and answer to explain Genesis’ problems: DCG currently owes Genesis $447.5M and 4,550 BTC, which matures in May 2023; DCG has never had a relationship with Three Arrows Capital. Genesis assigned to DCG its claims against 3AC and any recovery received by DCG in respect of The 3AC liquidation will go directly to paying down the $1.1B promissory note.

c. DCG’s cryptocurrency broker Genesis owes over $3 billion to creditors link

Genesis owes creditors more than $3 billion, and DCG is considering selling some of its venture capital assets to raise cash. Genesis’ debts include $900 million owed to Gemini clients, €280 million owed to Dutch exchange Bitvavo, and crypto savings firm Donut.

d. SEC charges Gemini and Genesis with selling unregistered securities to retail investors link

The SEC charged Gemini and Genesis with selling unregistered securities to retail investors through their loan product EARN. The SEC is investigating other violations of securities laws by the two companies.

3. Crypto.com has delisted USDT trading pairs for Canadian users link

The cryptocurrency exchange Crypto.com has delisted USDT trading pairs for Canadian users in accordance with the instructions of the Ontario Securities Commissio. Tether said that Canada is not a core market for Tether and will comply with regulatory requirements.

4. Bybit launches Revamped Broker Program with 100% rebates link

From Jan. 10, all spot trading fees generated from the broker platform on Bybit will be returned via a 100% rebate — the highest in the major crypto exchanges.

5. Layoffs’ weekly summary

a. Coinbase announced another 950 layoffs link

In June 2022, Coinbase laid off 1,100 people, accounting for 18% of the total number of employees. Coinbase said it will shut down several projects with a low probability of success and will provide at least 14 weeks of basic salary compensation, health insurance and other benefits to the fired employees.

b. Crypto brokerage Blockchain.com lays off 28% of workforce link

Cryptocurrency brokerage Blockchain.com said it’s letting go of 28% of its workforce, or about 110 employees. All impacted employees are receiving severance packages, the details of which vary by country, the company said.

c. Crypto exchange Crypto.com announces 20% layoffs link

Crypto exchange Crypto.com has announced a 20% layoff, primarily due to current market conditions and some recent industry events. Crypto.com has previously laid off 2,000 employees in October 2022, representing approximately 30–40% of its workforce.

6. He Yi said that employees of Binance must hold the position for more than 90 days before trading link

He Yi, the co-founder of Binance, said that no employee of Binance, regardless of level, is allowed to conduct personal short-term cryptocurrency transactions, and must hold the position for more than 90 days before trading.

7. Binance CEO outlines ambitions to grow headcount by up to 30% in 2023 link

Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao said the crypto exchange giant will continue to scale in 2023, with headcount growth goals of between 15% and 30%. Plans for the year ahead include improving technology and making the expansive crypto exchange-operator more efficient, as well as investing in customer support.

8. U.S. December unadjusted CPI was in line with expectations link

The annual rate of CPI in the United States without seasonal adjustment in December recorded 6.5%, the sixth consecutive month of decline, the smallest increase since October 2021, and the previous was 7.10%.

9. Robinhood to end support for Bitcoin SV (BSV) on January 25 link

Robinhood issued an email to users stating that it has decided to end support for Bitcoin SV (BSV) on January 25 based on latest review. After the deadline, any BSV still in Robinhood Crypto account will be sold for market value. BSV has lost 7% in 1 hour.

10. The Bulgarian offices of crypto lending platform Nexo have been raided link

The Bulgarian offices of crypto lending platform Nexo have been raided by authorities in the presence of prosecutors, counter-intelligence officers and investigators, Novinite reports. The official spokesman said the investigation began several months ago.

Fundraising

• Indian lending platform KreditBee closes second tranche of $200m funding round with a $100m investment from private equity giant Advent International link

• Crypto market maker CyberX raises $15 million led by Foresight Ventures link

• C14, a fiat-to-crypto payment flow, has raised $2.5 million led by General Catalyst link

• The Easy Company which provides a Web3 social wallet Easy has raised $14.2 million in a seed round link

• Open Forest Protocol, an open on-chain measurement, raises USD 4.1m in pre-seed round link

• DeFi startup Quasar Finance has raised $5.4 million in a round led by Shima Capital link

• Alkimiya, a decentralized capital markets protocol, raises $7.2M in a funding round led by Castle Island Ventures and 1kx link

Learn more, check out crypto-fundraising.info.

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