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Presented every Sunday, the Weekly Market Recap offers a comprehensive overview of the latest headlines in the crypto market. This week’s edition, covering the period from Sep 17th to 23rd, features a roundup of significant events and developments as follows:
Federal Reserve Maintains Benchmark Interest Rate at 5.25%-5.50%
On September 21st, the Federal Reserve decided to keep the benchmark interest rate steady within the 5.25% to 5.50% range, aligning with market expectations. The Federal Reserve’s statement noted steady economic growth, moderated employment growth, and elevated inflation.
While twelve officials anticipate another rate hike this year, seven expect it to remain unchanged. The median projection suggests two rate cuts in 2024. Chairman Powell emphasized the need for data monitoring and the potential for prudence.
Bitcoin Network Faces Longest Continuous Block Congestion
On September 21st, data from @Data_Always revealed that the Bitcoin network is currently experiencing its lengthiest period of sustained block congestion. This ongoing congestion impacts transaction confirmations, especially for low-value transactions.
Miners may prioritize higher-fee transactions during congestion, leading to potential delays for low-fee or low-value transactions. The Bitcoin network presently has over 458,000 unconfirmed transactions in its mempool.
Grayscale Submits New Ethereum Futures ETF Application
Grayscale Investments submitted a fresh application for an Ethereum futures ETF to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on September 20th, as The Wall Street Journal reported.
This ETF is filed under the 1933 Securities Act, which governs commodity and spot Bitcoin ETF filings. Grayscale previously succeeded against the SEC in its Bitcoin spot ETF application, prompting a reevaluation.
Mt. Gox Extends Repayment Deadline by One Year
On September 21st, Mt. Gox announced an extension of the repayment deadlines for basic repayment, early lump-sum repayment, and interim repayment from October 31, 2023, to October 31, 2024.
Repayment, commencing by year-end, will follow a specified order for creditors who have provided their information. Mt. Gox will distribute its holdings, including 142,000 BTC, 143,000 BCH, and 69 billion JPY.
Binance’s Weekly Market Recap
Binance’s Wallet Consolidation Causes Ethereum Gas Spike
On September 21st, Ethereum gas fees suddenly surged from under 10 to approximately 300 Gwei. This uptick resulted from heightened transfer activity, specifically involving a Binance address that processed 94,000 transfers and consumed 362 ETH in gas, notably above its usual volume. Binance clarified that they were consolidating funds during a period of low gas fees.
Binance to Delist European Stablecoins by June 30, 2024
During an online hearing organized by the EBA, Binance’s legal head in France, Marina Parthuisot, announced plans to delist all stablecoins in Europe by June 30, 2024, citing the lack of approval under the MiCA regulation. However, CZ, Binance’s CEO, responded by stating they have compliant partners preparing to launch Euro and other stablecoins.
FTX’s Weekly Market Recap
FTX Sues SBF’s Parents Over Funds Misappropriation
On September 19th, FTX filed a lawsuit against SBF’s parents, Joseph Bankman and Barbara Fried, seeking to recover funds allegedly misappropriated. The lawsuit claims millions of dollars in damages for fraudulent transfers and malicious conduct. SBF’s parents’ legal representatives counterattacked, calling it an intimidation attempt.
Stanford University to Return $5.5 Million FTX Donation
On September 20th, Stanford University acknowledged over $5.5 million in donations from the FTX Group, made by Joe Bankman, SBF’s father. The university pledged to refund the money to creditors.
FTX Sues Former Employee of Salameda for $157.3 Million
On September 22nd, FTX filed a lawsuit against former employees of its subsidiary, Salameda, to recover $157.3 million. The filing alleges preferential transfers within the 90 days preceding FTX’s bankruptcy application, with some withdrawals occurring just hours before FTX halted withdrawals on November 8, 2022.
Zodia Custody, Supported by Standard Chartered Bank, Introduces Crypto Asset Yield
On September 19th, The Block reported that Standard Chartered Bank’s cryptocurrency arm, Zodia Custody, will now offer institutional clients the opportunity to earn returns on their cryptocurrency assets.
Zodia Custody has partnered with OpenEden to connect custody of crypto assets with real-world yield opportunities. Additionally, institutions will gain access to staking services.
Tether Acquires $420 Million Worth of Nvidia H100 GPUs
Forbes reported on September 21st that Tether had acquired 10,000 Nvidia H100 GPUs valued at $420 million. This investment secures Tether a 20% stake in Bitcoin mining firm Northern Data.
Northern Data intends to lease these chips to artificial intelligence startups, following a trend among mining companies exploring income diversification through AI chip rentals.
Balancer Faces BGP or DNS Hijacking Attack
On September 20th, the DeFi liquidity protocol Balancer experienced a BGP or DNS hijacking attack. Balancer urged users not to interact with its user interface.
The attacker behind the Balancer front-end breach profited approximately $238,000, with the stolen funds stored in an address starting with Ox6457. On September 21st, the official Balancer Protocol Twitter account confirmed the protocol’s return to normal operation.
Wintermute Critiques DWF Labs in Blockbeats Interview
In a Blockbeats interview on September 18th, Wintermute criticized DWF Labs again. Wintermute argued that DWF Labs had mislabeled over-the-counter trading as an investment, emphasizing the distinction between long-term investments and short-term trading.
He called for some light regulation in the industry to deter bad actors. DWF Labs responded in their BlockBeats interview, denying any manipulative behavior and attributing market dynamics to participants’ actions rather than manipulation. They noted that market makers often face criticism for market manipulation but claimed that these roles evolve with market cycles.
Fundraising – Weekly Market Recap
Project Name | Amount (USD) | Notes |
---|---|---|
Mesh | $22 million | Series A funding round. |
Proof of Play | $33 million | Seed round funding for a blockchain gaming startup. |
Lens-based Web3 Social App | $2.3 million | Seed pre-funding for a Web3 social app based on the Lens protocol. |
BeWater | $1 million | Angel funding round for a decentralized hackathon service. |
Afterparty | $5 million | Funding secured for Web3 creator community. |
Freatic | $3.6 million | Funding round led by a16z crypto for a decentralized information marketplace protocol. |
Fuze | $14 million | Seed funding round for a Middle East crypto asset startup. |
Jiritsu | $10.2 million | Funding secured by blockchain technology company Jiritsu. |
Stoïk | $10.7 million | Funding round with participation from a16z for the French startup Stoïk. |
Bastion | $25 million | Seed funding round for cryptocurrency startup Bastion. |
Bubblemaps | $3.2 million | Seed funding round for blockchain data visualization company Bubblemaps. |
To learn more, please check out crypto-fundraising.info.
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