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| Hey Insider! The week has started with the echoes of the bail revocation of the former CEO of bankrupt crypto exchange FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF). Today's issue covers the aftermath of the revoke decision as well as several other biggest stories from the crypto market, including troubled crypto custodian Prime Trust's massive layoff plans, PayPal's upcoming Cryptocurrencies Hub feature, former U.S. President Donald Trump's Ether (ETH) holdings, and more. Enjoy your reading, and if you find this newsletter useful, do not forget to share it with your friends and colleagues! Doğa
p/dogayurduneri | |
| 1 | | Lawyers for the bankrupt crypto exchange FTX's former CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), appealed U.S. District Judge Lewis A. Kaplan's decision to revoke his bail less than an hour after he was sent to jail. During a hearing in Manhattan, Judge Kaplan said the 31-year-old former executive tried to influence two witnesses in the case, violating his bail terms. More: - The lawyers' application to stay Kaplan's order was immediately denied.
- The revocation came shortly after SBF spoke to The New York Times about the personal writings of the former Alameda Research CEO, Caroline Ellison, who pleaded guilty to the charges against her.
- Following the article, the court issued a gag order against the former FTX CEO, restricting him from disclosing any information about the lawsuit to the public before his trial in October.
- However, Judge Kaplan stated that the gag order is not a workable solution with someone showing a willingness to cross the line in his bail terms.
- The decision resulted in SBF being taken from house arrest at his parents' home in California to the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn pending trial.
- Meanwhile, his legal team will try to overturn the revocation in the appeals court.
- Prosecutors expect him to be moved to the Putnam County Correctional Facility in New York, where he can use a laptop for internet access and review legal materials while preparing for his upcoming trial.
Zoom Out: - FTX, previously the third-largest crypto exchange, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in November 2022, with all the 130 entities under the roof of FTX Group.
- The downfall followed the claims that SBF used customer funds in FTX to compensate for losses at the sister company Alameda Research.
- SBF will appear in court in October to defend himself against eight charges, including money laundering and misappropriation of customer funds, to which he pleaded not guilty.
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What the numbers say: Largest U.S. crypto exchange Coinbase's Ethereum-powered Layer-2 blockchain network, Base, has onboarded nearly 200,000 new users within the first five days after its opening to the public on Aug. 9. The blockchain also ranked fourth in daily transactions per second among other Layer-2 solutions behind zkSync Era, Arbitrum, and Optimism. Relevance: Coinbase first introduced Base in February, defining it as a bridge between its users and other blockchain-based projects like Ethereum and Solana. At the time, the firm said Base promises a secure and low-cost area for developers to build decentralized apps (dApps) on blockchains and Layer-2 networks. The network went live for developers in July, allowing them to test their applications on the blockchain, but it was opened to the public on Aug. 9. The move made Coinbase the first publicly-traded company to launch its own decentralized blockchain. Simultaneously with the public launch, the company also started a series of events, Onchain Summer, to let participants, such as Coca-Cola, Atari, and OpenSea, make art or build applications on Base. However, the event caused issues with the Coinbase app's user interface and experience, increasing the network activity. Following reports, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong admitted problems with the user experience on the app, pledging that they would improve it. Brands that should care: Binance, one of the most powerful rivals of Coinbase, also has its own blockchain network called BNB Smart Chain. However, the network features a token called BNB, as opposed to Base, with no plans to release a native token. | | | |
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| 3 | | The troubled crypto custodian Prime Trust has decided to conduct a massive layoff, according to reports citing sources who have heard from inside the company. The claims have pointed out that the firm is preparing to cut as much as 75% of its headcount. More: - The decision came nearly one month after the U.S. state of Nevada's financial regulator, the Nevada Financial Institutions Division (NFID), put Prime Trust into receivership, halting its operations.
- The NFID initially alleged the company of using customer funds to buy cryptocurrency and cover lost deposits after losing access to digital wallets containing tens of millions of dollars.
- The agency also pointed out that the firm used customer money to satisfy withdrawals from December 2021 to March 2022, underlining that the custodian was at a substantial deficit or was insolvent.
- Prime Trust's LinkedIn page shows that the company currently employs 224 people.
- Earlier in 2023, the crypto custodian also laid off one-third of its staff.
Zoom Out: - Prime Trust held funds in dollars and crypto on behalf of its customers, including FTX, Binance.US, and Celsius Network.
- The regulatory tension around the firm followed the digital asset trust company BitGo's decision to terminate its acquisition deal with Prime Trust.
- The two firms initially reached an agreement after Prime Trust faced financial difficulties due to its exposure to the bankrupt crypto lender Celsius.
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| 4 | | The U.S.-based financial technology (FinTech) company PayPal has hinted at its plans to launch a new feature dubbed Cryptocurrencies Hub in its updated terms and conditions. The feature will allow users to hold, sell, purchase, send, and receive cryptocurrencies through their PayPal account while viewing market data and educational information. More: - The service will also make it easier for PayPal users to make payments with funds they have saved from cryptocurrency sales.
- In addition, users will be able to convert between PayPal's new stablecoin, PayPal USD (PYUSD), and other cryptocurrencies through the new feature.
- Only users with a personal PayPal account and a Balance Account in good standing will be able to access the new service.
- Users will also have to provide the required identifying information, including name, physical address, date of birth, and taxpayer identification number, to be eligible for Cryptocurrencies Hub.
- As soon as the feature is available, it will be immediately linked to the users' PayPal accounts and accessible with their current login information.
Zoom Out: - The move came soon after PayPal launched a new stablecoin pegged to the U.S. dollar (USD), PYUSD, becoming the first major financial services company to introduce its own stablecoin.
Q: Do you think that PayPal's recent efforts toward the crypto industry would contribute to expanding its user base worldwide? Share your thoughts with us in the comments box. | | | |
| 5 | | Netherlands-based crypto exchange Txbit has announced that it would permanently halt its operations, citing uncertain regulatory conditions and adverse market shifts. The firm said the current regulatory environment, rising compliance costs, and increasing pressure have made it difficult to turn a profit and operate. More: - Txbit's website was immediately shut down to cancel all open orders and halt its trading services after the announcement.
- However, the firm will open the website again for withdrawals following the planned outage.
- Users will have time to withdraw their funds on the exchange until Sept. 14.
- Any remaining funds that are not withdrawn by Sept. 14 will not be retrievable.
- The exchange's own token will be available for trading on the decentralized exchange (DEX) PancakeSwap in the future.
Zoom Out: - Txbit, founded in 2016, started offering its crypto exchange services in 2019.
- In 2018, the company praised the Netherlands for having favorable laws and regulations for the crypto market.
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| 6 | | A recent financial disclosure form submitted to the federal ethics agency, the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, has revealed that former U.S. President Donald Trump holds an Ethereum wallet with a value between $250,000 and $500,000. The document has pointed out that the wallet is connected to an NFT series released by Trump. More: - The collection, dubbed Trump Digital Trading Cards, was launched in December 2022 with a floor price of $99 and sold out within hours of its debut, reaching $3.53M in sales.
- The NFTs in the collection, featuring illustrations of Trump in various poses, significantly decreased in value after Trump released a second batch.
- However, the digital collectibles saw a massive increase in sales after the former U.S. president appeared in court in New York City in April on 34 felony criminal charges of falsifying business records.
- Trump has long been famous for his skeptical approach to crypto.
- While on duty in 2019, the former president tweeted that he was not a big fan of Bitcoin (BTC) and other cryptocurrencies.
- After losing the election in 2020, he also said Bitcoin felt like a scam, and he did not like the popular cryptocurrency because it was another currency competing against the U.S. dollar (USD).
Zoom Out: - Last month, U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (RFK Jr.) also confirmed that he bought 14 Bitcoin in May for his seven children, though he previously claimed that he was not an investor in the leading cryptocurrency.
- Before RFK Jr.'s confirmation, a financial report uncovered that the politician was a Bitcoin investor with $100,001 to $250,000 holdings.
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Term of the Day Metaverse commerce: Metaverse commerce involves individuals using AR or VR headsets to shop for a product within a platform. Question of the Week Do you share details about your salary with your coworkers? Join the conversation |
INSIDE CRYPTOCURRENCY LEADERBOARD (30 DAYS) |
 | Staff Writer | | Doga is a tech and science editor who has been writing news for nearly 10 years. She worked for leading tech platforms and mainstrem media channels as an editor and presenter throughout his career. Then, she carried her know-how to more than one platform. She is a part-time cat lover and binge-watcher, and also fond of science, space, and emerging tech. She always has a story to tell. She is a bit addict to the laughter and -unfortunately- the '90s culture. | | This newsletter was edited by Aaron Crutchfield | |
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