Trump: Strategic US BTC Reserve Incoming

XRP slips, Grayscale fees really suck, and a huge hack

Author

Jonathan Morgan
July 18, 2024

OVERVIEW

Trump: Strategic US BTC Reserve Incoming

The only thing bearish about today is the price action. Why? Because the CEO and co-founder of the SatoshiActFund notified listeners on Spaces that Trump will announce a Strategic US BTC Reserve during next week’s Bitcoin 2024 conference. 🤯

In today’s Litepaper, XRP’s big dip and Grayscale’s WTF ETH ETF fees.

Also on deck: a look at the massive, massive hack that occurred last night. 📰

Before we dive in, here’s today’s crypto market heatmap:

And here’s a look at crypto’s total and altcoin market cap YTD:

XRP
XRP Tumbles Over -10% After SEC Cancels Ripple Meeting 🚫

$XRP took a nosedive after the SEC canceled a highly anticipated meeting, leaving the community in disarray. Hopes for a Ripple lawsuit resolution were dashed, sending XRP tumbling over -10%. 📉

What Went Down

The SEC was supposed to hold a closed-door meeting, fueling speculation of a potential settlement with Ripple. Instead, the meeting got scrapped, sparking theories that the SEC's focus might have shifted to approving more spot $ETH ETFs.

The XRP and broader crypto community had hoped this meeting would clarify and potentially close the issue. Instead, the sudden cancellation has returned XRP to a state of WTF and banging heads against walls in frustration.

The SEC is probably just trolling us at this point.

Analysts believe the SEC might be prioritizing Ethereum ETFs, leaving Ripple’s case in limbo. While the long-term belief in XRP remains strong, the short-term outlook is, well, annoying as hell. 🌫️

NEWS
Grayscales ETH ETF Fees: WTF 🤔

Grayscale is facing backlash over the 2.5% fee on its Ethereum Trust, with analysts questioning the strategy behind such high costs. I mean, that fee isn’t even on the planet Stupid; it took off from the planet Stupid and is now orbiting one of the moons of Moron. That’s how dumb it is. 🥟

The Fee Debate

Grayscale’s updated filings reveal a 2.5% fee for its flagship Ethereum Trust, significantly higher than competitors like BlackRock and Fidelity, which charge 0.25%. Analysts argue this high fee could deter investors and lead to substantial outflows - ya think?

As new spot Ethereum ETFs hit the market with lower fees and higher liquidity, there's concern that investors will flee Grayscale’s pricier options. Eric Balchunas and Nate Geraci, big-name ETF analysts, criticized Grayscale's approach, calling it a short-term revenue grab. 🤌

Future Implications

Grayscale is probably just trying to leech out as much moola as possible. The $BTC and $ETH ETFs are pretty much the only things the parent company, Digital Currency Group, has, and once everyone leaves, well, that’s it.

Despite the potential for short-term outflows, some experts believe the long-term outlook remains positive.👍️

STOCKTWITS “TRENDS WITH FRIENDS”
The Bull Market Bonanza And Road To AGI 🤑

Stocktwits co-founder Howard Lindzon chops it up with pals JC Parets and Phil Pearlman every Thursday on "Trends With Friends."

This week, technology expert and investor Michael Parekh is back to discuss Robinhood and Goldman Sachs’ comeback, the growing influence of AI content generation, OpenAI’s five stages of AI development, and advice on how to keep your head during major bull runs.

Watch it on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple, and subscribe to catch each episode when it goes live!

NEWS
WazirX Security Breach: North Korea's Lazarus Group Strikes Again 😠

Blockchain sleuths are pointing fingers at North Korean hackers for the $235M WazirX hack. Elliptic and other on-chain analysts noted distinct patterns in the exploit, linking it to the infamous Lazarus Group. 😡

The Heist Unfolds

On July 18, WazirX halted withdrawals after detecting unauthorized movements from their Safe Multisig wallet. The hackers made off with about $235M in various digital assets, including $100M worth of $SHIB, which they quickly started offloading. 🚨

Expert Insights

Source: Elliptic

Elliptic's analysis suggests North Korean hackers due to the specific techniques used.

Crypto investigator ZachXBT also linked the hack to the Lazarus Group, notorious for major crypto heists like the $600M Ronin Bridge exploit.

Source: ZachXBT

WazirX is still reeling from the breach, which saw 45% of its total reserves drained. 😱

Shiba Inu prices dropped 10% following the hack as the attackers sold off billions of SHIB tokens. Despite the turmoil, the WazirX team is working to secure assets and address vulnerabilities, with the Indian Financial Ministry keeping mum on the incident's broader implications. 🤐

NEWS
Crypto News In Three Sentences 📰

📉BlockFi to Start Crypto Refunds in July

BlockFi will begin distributing refunds to creditors this July, following an agreement with Coinbase ($COIN) to manage the process. The once-prominent crypto lender collapsed in 2022 due to its exposure to FTX's implosion. Now, $10 billion in crypto assets are set to be returned to 10,000 creditors. Full story at Cryptonomist.

⚔️ Cardano Founder Challenges Buterin on Pro-Crypto Politicians

Charles Hoskinson, founder of Cardano ($ADA), disagreed with $ETH's Vitalik Buterin on supporting pro-crypto politicians. While Buterin warned against backing candidates solely for their crypto stance, Hoskinson stressed the importance of political support to counter restrictive regulations. He stressed the need for politicians who genuinely support crypto to avoid industry-damaging policies. From Bitcoinist.

🚀Chainlink Launches Digital Asset Sandbox

Chainlink ($LINK) has introduced the Digital Asset Sandbox (DAS) to accelerate digital asset innovation for financial institutions. The platform allows rapid tokenization trials and proof of concepts, aiming to shorten development times from months to days. Chainlink’s DAS provides a secure environment for experimenting with blockchain applications and creating new financial products. CryptoBriefing has more.

🪙Mt. Gox Creditors Opt to Hodl Bitcoin Payouts

A Reddit poll revealed that most Mt. Gox creditors plan to hold onto their Bitcoin payouts rather than sell. The poll showed that 56% of creditors intend to hodl their BTC, reflecting a long-term investment strategy. Mt. Gox, once the largest Bitcoin exchange, collapsed in 2014, but has now distributed 36% of owed Bitcoin to creditors. More from U.Today.

💰 Judge Orders Robinhood to Pay $9M Settlement

A U.S. judge has ordered Robinhood to pay a $9 million settlement over its referral program, which violated consumer protection laws. The lawsuit alleged that Robinhood's program sent unsolicited advertising messages to users' contacts. The settlement covers attorney fees, litigation costs, and payments to affected individuals. Full story at Cryptopolitan.

🔻Andrew Tate’s Crypto Down 50% Since June

Andrew Tate's cryptocurrency, Daddy Tate (DADDY), has dropped 50% in value since its launch in June. Despite initial rallies, the coin has struggled to maintain its price amid market volatility. Tate's controversial foray into crypto has included attacks on Solana ($SOL) and claims of abandoning fiat for Bitcoin. From Finbold.

🛑Reddit Sunsets Animated Collectible Expressions for NFTs

Reddit will discontinue its Collectible Expressions feature for Polygon ($MATIC)-based NFTs starting August 5, 2024. The feature allowed animated expressions for users' Collectible Avatars in comments, but will no longer be supported. Despite this change, Reddit promises new community partnerships and events for its NFT ecosystem. Decrypt has more.

Links That Don’t Suck 🔗

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