1. SpaceX’s Past Sale of $373 Million Worth of Bitcoin link

On August 18th, according to The Wall Street Journal, SpaceX recorded holdings of $373 million worth of Bitcoin on its balance sheets in 2021 and 2022, which were subsequently sold. Additionally, another company owned by Elon Musk, Tesla, liquidated over 30,000 Bitcoins worth $936 million in the second quarter of 2022, accounting for 75% of its initial $1.5 billion Bitcoin holdings.

Perhaps in response to this news, Bitcoin briefly dropped to $25,166 on the Binance exchange, experiencing an intraday decline of 13.50%, while Ethereum dropped to a low of $1,550, marking a maximum intraday decline of 14.80%. According to coinglass data, within the last 12 hours since August 18th in UTC+8 timezone, a total of $1 billion worth of positions were liquidated across the entire network, with $483 million in Bitcoin liquidations and $300 million in Ethereum liquidations. 81.3% of these were long positions. As per parsec data, on August 18th, DeFi on-chain liquidations exceeded $75 million, marking a peak for the year. Among these, Ethereum worth over $54 million was liquidated.

Furthermore, if ETH were to drop to around $1,480, approximately $268 million worth of collateral could face liquidation. As of the time of writing, the price of Bitcoin stands at $26,466, marking a 24-hour decrease of 7.43%, while the price of Ethereum is $1,686, indicating a 24-hour decrease of 6.08%.

2. US Securities and Exchange Commission Plans to Approve Inaugural Ethereum Futures ETF Listing link

On August 18th, according to Bloomberg, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is reportedly planning to approve the first Ethereum futures exchange-traded fund (ETF). The specific funds that will receive approval have not been immediately determined. Several ETFs are reportedly likely to be listed before October, according to informed sources. Previously, around 12 companies including Volatility Shares, Bitwise, Roundhill, and ProShares had applied to launch Ethereum futures ETFs.

3. Minutes of the Federal Reserve Meeting: Some Officials Growing Cautious about Further Interest Rate Hikes link

On August 17th, according to The Wall Street Journal, the minutes of the Federal Reserve’s July meeting mentioned that some officials believed that the risks of both excessive and insufficient rate hikes have become more balanced. As a result, the committee’s decision must find a balance between not overly tightening policy and not raising rates too little, in order to avoid the cost of inadequate tightening. At the same time, the minutes also indicated that officials remained concerned that inflation may not decline as expected. This could prompt them to raise rates again later this year. The risk factors for these rate hikes include stronger economic growth and a reversal of recent supply chain improvements or declines in commodity prices, which are the main reasons for the slowdown in inflation.

4. People’s Bank of China Initiates Second Key Policy Rate Reduction within Three Months link

On August 15th, according to Reuters, the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) unexpectedly reduced key policy rates for the second time in three months on Tuesday, aiming to boost economic recovery. The central bank lowered the interest rate on some one-year Medium-Term Lending Facility (MLF) loans for certain financial institutions by 15 basis points, from 2.65% to 2.50%. This move could pave the way for a reduction in China’s Loan Prime Rate (LPR) next week. Analysts suggest that the slowdown in credit growth and the rise in deflation risks in July, along with default risks among some real estate developers, prompted the adoption of more monetary easing measures. This rate cut stands in stark contrast to the tightening policies of other central banks worldwide and could exert greater pressure on the renminbi.

5. Monetary Authority of Singapore Concludes Finalization of Regulatory Framework for Stablecoins link

On August 15th, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) announced a new regulatory framework for stablecoins. This framework will apply to Single-Currency Stablecoins (SCS) that are pegged to the Singapore Dollar or a G10 currency. Issuers must meet key requirements regarding value stability, capital, redemption at par, and transparent disclosure. Only stablecoin issuers that satisfy all these criteria can apply for their stablecoins to be recognized as “MAS-regulated stablecoins.”

6. United Kingdom to Implement Travel Rules for Cryptocurrency Transfers Starting September 1st link

On August 17th, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) of the United Kingdom announced that starting from September 1st, 2023, crypto asset businesses in the UK will be required to collect, verify, and share information about crypto asset transfers, known as “Travel Rule.” The Travel Rule aims to enhance transparency in crypto asset transfers, making it more difficult for criminals to utilize crypto assets for illicit activities.

7. Cryptocurrency Media Outlet CoinDesk Implements Workforce Reductions this Week link

On August 14th, The Block reported that cryptocurrency media company CoinDesk has laid off 45% of its editorial staff, amounting to 20 people, due to its parent company DCG’s plan to introduce strategic investors. It is reported that CoinDesk will hold an all-staff meeting to discuss the layoffs. Previously, it was reported that DCG, the parent company of CoinDesk, is set to finalize a $125 million deal with a consortium. DCG will retain a stake in the media assets, which provide services such as events, data, and indices.

On August 18th, Marc Hochstein, the event planner at the crypto media platform CoinDesk, tweeted that CoinDesk had conducted layoffs this week. The list of layoffs includes several journalists and editors, such as Tracy Wang, who had previously received the Polk Award for reporting on the FTX explosion news, and investigative reporter Anna Baydakova. CoinDesk’s official account also confirmed the matter by retweeting the post.

8. Coinbase Granted Authorization to Offer Cryptocurrency Futures Trading link

On August 16th, Coinbase announced that Coinbase Financial Markets, Inc. has obtained regulatory approval from the U.S. National Futures Association (NFA), a self-regulatory organization designated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), to operate as a futures commission merchant (FCM) and offer federally regulated cryptocurrency futures trading to eligible U.S. customers. Coinbase stated that its customers will soon be able to directly access futures products through Coinbase Financial Markets.

9. Txbit Exchange Announces Closure, WhiteBIT Exchange Suspected of Facing Financial Shortfall

a. Prominent Exchange Dealing in POW Mining Coins, Txbit, Declares Shutdown link

On August 14th, the cryptocurrency exchange Txbit, which primarily traded Proof-of-Work (POW) coins, announced its closure. The exchange has instructed all its customers to withdraw their funds before 12:00 noon UTC on September 14th, 2023. Additionally, the remaining unsold supply of Txbit tokens will be destroyed, accounting for approximately 95.6559% of the total supply. Some comments suggest that KAS was initially traded on Txbit.

b. WhiteBIT Exchange Offers High-Value, High-Yield Rate Products link

As of August 18th, the cryptocurrency exchange WhiteBIT offers a remarkably high annual interest rate on Tether USDT, reaching up to 24.8%, with a maximum limit of $600,000. The annual interest rates for BTC and ETH are equally impressive at 23.19%, with the highest limits being 120 BTC and 1000 ETH respectively. Based on historical patterns, when exchanges provide such high annual interest rates with substantial limits, it could indicate a potential shortage of funds.

While WhiteBIT has not yet released any proof of asset reserves, according to Arkham, among the WhiteBIT addresses with a combined asset value of over $1.62 billion, nearly $1.61 billion consists of the platform’s native token WBT issued by WhiteBIT. Furthermore, among the addresses engaging in frequent financial transactions with WhiteBIT, the Huobi deposit address ranks second, with a total transaction value exceeding $1.39 billion.

10. SBF Faces Criminal Trial

a. US Judge Repeals SBF’s Bail, Remanded in Custody Awaiting Criminal Trial link

On August 12th, US Federal Judge Lewis Kaplan revoked SBF’s bail during a hearing at the Southern District Court of New York. SBF is now in custody awaiting his criminal trial scheduled for October 2nd. SBF’s legal team has expressed intentions to appeal this decision. Fox Business reporter Eleanor Terrett tweeted that Judge Kaplan denied the defense’s request to postpone detention during the appeal process, resulting in SBF’s imprisonment today. Prior to this, the US Department of Justice sought to revoke SBF’s bail due to his sharing of private diaries belonging to his former girlfriend, Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison, with The New York Times.

b. SBF Accused of Diverting $100 Million Stolen Client Funds for Political Donations link

On August 15th, according to Watcher.Guru, in the latest lawsuit against FTX founder SBF, prosecutors allege that he used over $100 million of stolen customer funds for political donations. These funds are reported to have been used for campaign contributions ahead of the 2022 US midterm elections. SBF’s lawyers have requested approval for medications related to depression and ADHD, which has been granted.

According to Bloomberg, former FTX executive Ryan Salame will not testify about his role in the alleged illegal campaign donation scheme at FTX. His lawyer stated that if subpoenaed, “Salame will invoke the Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination and will not appear to testify.” Ryan Salame donated over $24 million to Republican campaign efforts and has been accused of making bribes on behalf of SBF to influence cryptocurrency policy in Washington.

Fundraising

• Cryptocurrency custody firm BitGo raises $100 million in funding, valuing the company at $1.75 billion. link

• Metaverse project ZepetoX secures $13 million in seed funding.link

• Jada AI, an AI project utilizing blockchain technology, successfully raises $25 million in funding. link

• Web3 equity trading company Dinari successfully raises $7.5 million in seed funding. link

• DeFi yield protocol Affine announces the completion of a $7 million funding round. link

• Web3 security company Aegis completes a multi-million dollar seed funding round. link

• Ellipsis Labs announces $3.3 million in seed funding led by Electric Capital. link

• Music royalty investment marketplace MasterExchange raises $2.7 million in funding. link

• Blockchain analytics platform Lore Explorer, developed by Shuttle Labs, completes a $2.3 million funding round. link

Learn more, check out crypto-fundraising.info.

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