Happen[in]Crypto has scoured the crypto industry for major stories that have resonated over the past week. There are stories ranging from a weak reserve risk indicator for bitcoin, crypto personalities going side by side with individuals from Tradefi, 3AC founders going dark, Vault being bought by Nexo and the Uniswap v3 phishing saga.
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hard times for bitcoin
Bitcoin had another troublesome week, with lower prices and an unfavorable stance from regulators. The mining hashrate of the network has dropped by 26% over the past 30 days, triggering a winter for the mining industry. Leading mining firms have been forced to lay off some employees, while others are selling their bitcoin holdings as a coping strategy for falling revenue.
According to the latest data from Glassnode, the Bitcoin Reserve Risk Indicator has dropped to new lows. The indicator measures long-term holder confidence, and current metrics suggest that the price of the asset could drop significantly in the near term.
The community’s enthusiasm was further dampened after the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) delayed a decision on the ARK 21Shares Spot bitcoin fund. The regulator extended its decision by 45 days after Grayscale’s application was rejected a few days ago.
Big picture shows growth in crypto adoption
Far from low prices, crypto adoption continues to reach new heights. Last week, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand received over $150,000 in donations from crypto executives including Sam Bankman-Fried and Brett Harrison.
Top crypto personalities make the cut to the list of the most popular figures in finance. MicroStrategy CEO and bitcoin maximalist, Michael Sayer, and Dogecoin enthusiast Elon Musk were part of an exclusive list of respondents looking for investment advice.
In the UK, a judge has approved legal documents to be offered via non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on the blockchain. The landmark decision came during a case between a gambling company owner and top crypto exchanges and will serve as a precedent regulation service of process in the UK and other common law jurisdictions.
Crypto adoption is on steroids in Indonesia, as the governor of the country’s top bank praised crypto’s potential for the economy. At the top of his list was reform of financial inclusion, but he warned stakeholders about its major and systemic risks.
3AC Saga
3AC’s liquidator scored a significant victory in court after issuing a subpoena for the hedge fund’s beleaguered founders. Reports indicate that the founders are not cooperating with the liquidators as they attempt to uncover investors’ reserves of funds.
The industry was stunned after a filing indicated that the hedge fund’s founders had gone into hiding. 3AC founders Kyle Davis and Su Zhu ordered the company’s offices in Singapore to be evacuated and used the evasive strategy of “turning off audio and video” in a Zoom call.
3AC, once a major force in the cryptocurrency ecosystem with over $3 billion in assets, is struggling to stay afloat. The company moved more than $25 million worth of stablecoins to KuCoin as it struggled to survive.
Celsius and Wald face steep odds
The troubled Celsius was slammed with a class-action lawsuit that threatened to expose the firm as a major Ponzi scheme. Part of the claims of the aggrieved parties in the lawsuit includes the fact that Celsius sold unregistered securities through Celsius Earn Rewards.
Arkansas resident Taylor Goins said the company adopted an unethical strategy of using new investors’ money to settle old investors.
Another troubled firm, Wald, announced a $70 million shortfall in an effort to settle his home. Wald filed for a moratorium that would “protect” the company from legal attacks amid reports of a takeover from Nexo.
law breakers
A Reuters report shook the backbone of the industry as it alleged that Binance was bypassing US sanctions and allowing users from Iran to access the exchange. In response, Changpeng Zhao stated that his company is not a US company and that Binance blocked services in Iran, out of respect for regulations, but acknowledged that it was possible for users to use VPNs to bypass the protocol.
Uniswap V3 users were the victims of a phishing attack that resulted in the loss of over 7,500 ETH. Harry Denly, a blockchain security expert, said the malicious tokens were given as a ploy to steal 73,399 addresses.
Experts advised investors not to click on suspicious links, while Uniswap’s team clarified that the breach was “completely out of protocol.” Phishing attacks are becoming increasingly common in the industry, with results running into the billions of dollars.