Daily | CFTC Chairman will step down on Trump’s inauguration day; Backpack Exchange has acquired FTX EU; Binance Alpha has added HAT, AIXCB, and NEUR

Organized by: Fairy, ChainCatcher

Important information:

• U.S. court documents suggest Do Kwon case may have more than 1 million victims
• CFTC chairman to step down on Trump's inauguration day, says regulation of digital assets remains inadequate
• Backpack Exchange has acquired FTX EU, and Backpack EU is expected to be launched in the first quarter
• Musk: USD prices for buying cryptocurrencies will actually fall after USD inflation is addressed
• Upbit will list Sonic SVM (SONIC) Korean Won, Bitcoin, USDT trading pairs
• Binance Alpha adds HAT, AIXCB, and NEUR
• Ripple CEO: The company’s original $11 billion valuation is “seriously outdated”
• 14th US state is preparing to introduce “strategic Bitcoin reserve” legislation

"What important events happened in the past 24 hours?"

[CFTC chairman to step down on Trump's inauguration day, says regulation

of digital assets remains inadequate](https://www.chaincatcher.com/article/2161129)

According to the Financial Times, CFTC Chairman Rostin Behnam will step down on January 20, the day President-elect Donald Trump is inaugurated.

Behnam is concerned that regulation of digital assets, including Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, remains insufficient. Behnam said: “There is still a large part of the digital asset space that is unregulated in the U.S. regulatory system, and given the huge demand for these products from retail and institutional investors that we are seeing adoption by some traditional financial institutions, it is very important to fill this gap. important."

He said the CFTC remains “well-positioned to be the spot regulator for digital commodity assets.”

[Musk: USD prices for buying cryptocurrencies will actually fall after

USD inflation is addressed](https://www.chaincatcher.com/article/2161125)

Musk posted on

[Binance will launch COOKIE, ALCH and SWARMS 1-75x USDT perpetual

contracts](https://www.chaincatcher.com/article/2161112)

The Binance Futures platform will launch perpetual contracts at the following times, with a maximum leverage of 75x:

January 7, 2025 19:30 (East 8th District time): COOKIEUSDT Perpetual Contract

January 7, 2025 19:45 (East 8th District time): ALCHUSDT perpetual contract

January 7, 2025 20:15 (Eastern Eighth District time): SWARMUSDT perpetual contract.

[Backpack Exchange has acquired FTX EU, and Backpack EU is expected to

be launched in the first quarter](https://www.chaincatcher.com/article/2161099)

FTX EU, the European arm of FTX, has been acquired by Backpack Exchange for $32.7 million. FTX EU previously held a MiFID II license issued by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC).

The company’s new European entity will offer a range of crypto derivatives services across the EU, including perpetual futures. As part of the transaction, Backpack EU will be responsible for allocating funds to FTX EU clients subject to court-approved bankruptcy claims proceedings.

Following license reactivation, Backpack EU is expected to go live in the first quarter of 2025.

[Upbit will list Sonic SVM (SONIC) Korean Won, Bitcoin, USDT trading

pairs](https://www.chaincatcher.com/article/2161093)

According to the official announcement, Upbit will list Sonic SVM (SONIC) Korean Won, Bitcoin, and USDT trading pairs.

Deposits/withdrawals are expected to start at 20:00 on January 7, and the start time of transaction support will be announced later.

[Binance Alpha adds HAT, AIXCB, and

NEUR](https://www.chaincatcher.com/article/2161087)

According to official news, Binance Alpha has added HAT, AIXCB, and NEUR.

• Top Hat is the artificial intelligence agent distribution platform on the Solana chain;
• aixCB Capital provides community-backed, AI-powered venture capital projects;
• Neur is an open source full-stack application that integrates LLM models and blockchain technology.

[The person in charge of the Reddit collectible avatar NFT project

resigned, causing users to worry about the future of the product.](https://www.chaincatcher.com/article/2161084)

"My journey at Reddit has come to an end," Bianca Wyler, director of Reddit's collectible avatar project, said on LinkedIn. "While I'm sad about this transition, I'm incredibly proud of what I've accomplished during that time. Proud.” After learning about the Reddit Collectible Avatars (RCA) NFT holders, they expressed concerns about the future prospects of the product.

Some Reddit users noticed that Wyler's recent comments on her Reddit account had been deleted, raising further concerns that her seemingly sudden departure could be a harbinger of upcoming changes to the social platform's avatar program. Wyler said in an interview that her departure reflects a natural shift at social media companies as they explore new technologies and adjust priorities. Although unsure about the direction of the RCA project, she believes Reddit will continue to benefit the community.

Launching in July 2022, RCA is billed as a limited edition piece of art created in collaboration with independent creators. Data from Dune Analytics shows that the total number of holders of these NFTs currently exceeds 33.5 million. Sales of these NFTs have failed to keep up since their peak in late 2022, with monthly secondary market trading volumes hovering around $100,000 in the last three months of 2024, while trading volumes have also fallen since their peak in late 2022. dropped.

[Bitwise Research Director: The number of Bitcoins held by companies

increased to 590,649, a year-on-year increase of 63%](https://www.chaincatcher.com/article/2161072)

Ryan Rasmussen, director of research at Bitwise, posted that over the past year, the number of Bitcoins held by companies has increased from 262,635 in the fourth quarter of 2023 to 590,649 in the fourth quarter of 2024, an increase of 63%.

[Ripple CEO: The company’s original $11 billion valuation is “seriously

outdated”](https://www.chaincatcher.com/article/2161053)

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse announced that the company's original $11 billion valuation is "seriously outdated" as the price of XRP rises and demand for Ripple's blockchain solutions grows. In the interview, he mentioned that the value of XRP held by Ripple has exceeded US$100 billion, becoming the key to reshaping the company's valuation prospects. Ripple was last valued at $11 billion in early 2024, when the company bought back $300 million worth of stock.

Garlinghouse pointed out that compared to cryptocurrency-related companies such as MicroStrategy, Ripple trades at a much lower price than its net asset value in private markets. He said: "The value of our XRP holdings has exceeded 100 billion US dollars, while MicroStrategy's trading price is 3 times its net asset value, and Ripple has always been undervalued." In the interview, Garlinghouse reiterated the company's focus on the B2B field, Including banks, payment providers and enterprises, where Ripple provides solutions such as custody and cross-border payments. Garlinghouse also emphasized that its stablecoin RLUSD will leverage XRP rather than replace it, increasing its liquidity and opening up more possibilities for leveraging Ripple’s decentralized exchange (DEX) and automated market maker (AMM) capabilities.

Ripple’s growth has also benefited from changes in the legal environment. Garlinghouse believes that the departure of SEC Chairman Gary Gensler and the clarity of new government regulations have brought a "turning point" for Ripple. "The wind has changed, and although 95% of customers are outside the United States, I expect U.S. interest to return in the coming months," he said.

[14th U.S. state is preparing to introduce “strategic Bitcoin reserve”

legislation](https://www.chaincatcher.com/article/2161020)

According to Dennis Porter, co-founder of Satoshi Action Fund, he posted on X that the 14th state in the United States is now preparing to introduce "strategic Bitcoin reserve" legislation.

[Nasdaq applies to increase holding limit of BlackRock Bitcoin Spot ETF

to 250,000 shares](https://www.chaincatcher.com/article/2161018)

According to a public regulatory filing, Nasdaq has submitted an application to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to increase the position limit of the BlackRock Spot Bitcoin ETF (IBIT) from 25,000 to 250,000. It should be noted that this application also requires SEC approval to take effect. The position limit refers to the maximum share of the ETF that a single investor or institution can hold.

The director of Bitwise Alpha Strategies said: "Considering the increasing trading volume of this ETF, it is reasonable to at least increase the position limit to 400,000 shares. The appeals of Nasdaq and BlackRock are reasonable and supported by factual basis ”

[Crypto exchange Gemini agrees to pay $5 million to end CFTC

lawsuit](https://www.chaincatcher.com/article/2161010)

Gemini Trust Co., the crypto exchange founded by the Winklevoss twins, has agreed to pay $5 million to end a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). The lawsuit claims that Gemini misled derivatives regulators when it attempted to launch the first U.S.-regulated Bitcoin futures contract. The settlement, disclosed in documents signed by both parties on Monday, avoids a trial that was scheduled to begin on January 21, the day after Trump was inaugurated for a second term as US president. Gemini has neither admitted nor denied liability in this case.

In 2022, the CFTC filed a lawsuit against Gemini in Manhattan federal court, alleging that the exchange "made false and misleading statements about how to prevent Bitcoin price manipulation." U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein approved the settlement on Monday last year. In November, Judge Hellerstein rejected Gemini's request, ruling that the jury must determine whether 32 statements made by Gemini executives to regulators were misleading.

Gemini is still facing a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which accuses the exchange and cryptocurrency lending firm Genesis Global Capital of illegally raising billions of dollars in crypto from investors through the so-called Gemini Earn scheme. assets. In February, Gemini agreed to return at least $1.1 billion to customers as part of a separate settlement with New York regulators.

[U.S. court documents suggest Do Kwon case may have more than 1 million

victims](https://www.chaincatcher.com/article/2161006)

U.S. government prosecutors overseeing the criminal case against Terra form Labs co-founder Do Kwon estimate that Do Kwon may have caused more than a million victims worldwide following the collapse of the Terra ecosystem. On January 6, Acting U.S. Attorney Daniel Gitner of the U.S. Federal Court for the Southern District of New York notified the court of the process for informing Kwon's victims of their rights in the criminal case. The government will set up a website about the public proceedings in Kwon's case because other methods of protecting the victims' rights are "impractical," according to U.S. prosecutors.

Gitner said: “While it is difficult to precisely quantify Kwon, given the sheer volume of trades in the Terraform cryptocurrency and the manner in which those trades were conducted (many of which were conducted on foreign exchanges through digital asset wallets or cryptocurrency trading accounts without personally identifiable information) , but the government estimates the number of victims in this case exceeds hundreds of thousands of individuals and entities and may total more than one million.”

According to previous news , Kwon is expected to appear in court again on January 8 to answer the lawsuit.

“What are some great articles worth reading in the past 24 hours?”

[Arthur Hayes’ new article: How will U.S. dollar liquidity drive new

trends in the crypto market in 2025?](https://www.chaincatcher.com/article/2161081)

In this article, Hayes analyzes how U.S. dollar liquidity affects the cryptocurrency market, especially the trend of Bitcoin. By explaining the Federal Reserve’s reverse repurchase operation (RRP) and the flow of funds from the U.S. Treasury Account (TGA), he explores how the increase in U.S. dollar liquidity Fueling gains in cryptocurrency and stock markets. About $612 billion in U.S. dollar liquidity will be injected in the first quarter of 2025, which may have a positive impact on the market. Finally, the author mentioned that Maelstrom Fund is investing in the DeSci field and has a bullish attitude towards the future market.

[Aave team publicly disses Ethereum Foundation: founder and team "don't

just focus on shipping"](https://www.chaincatcher.com/article/2161111)

Aave, the largest lending protocol in the Ethereum ecosystem, launched a "diss Ethereum Foundation" statement in the community yesterday (6). Marc Zeller, the founder of the Aave contribution team, published an article on X criticizing the Ethereum Foundation's inaction in recent years. Zeller believes that most of the casualties and team leaders of the Ethereum Foundation should be fired immediately. Although V God, the founder of Ethereum, was not mentioned, many people in the post believed that V God should also be held responsible.

[The next Dogecoin and SHIB? A brief discussion on Murad’s SPX and

GIGA](https://www.chaincatcher.com/article/2161146)

He has a muscular body, a wide and plump chin, and a toothy grin, showing off a mysterious smile.

Yes, this is just such a thing. It may not meet your definition of a "sporty man", but on the current Internet, its hardware conditions are related to the definition of a "sporty man", and he is "Gigachad".

We all know that "Meme theologian" Murad became famous because of SPX. Gigachad's Memecoin GIGA is also one of the Memecoins recommended by Murad. Recently, Murad stated on his social media that "#SPX6900 and GIGA will become the DOGE and SHIB of this cycle."

In the past week, SPX and GIGA had good performances. According to Coingekco data, SPX currently has a market value of approximately US$1.4 billion and is one of the top 10 Meme coins. In the past week, it has increased by more than 80% among the top 10 Meme coins, leading the growth rate and even surpassing the currently popular ai16z. The performance of $GIGA is slightly weaker. The current market value is about 800 million US dollars, which happens to be the 15th largest currency in Meme. It has risen by about 40% in the past week.

Meme Hot List

According to the Meme token tracking and analysis platform GMGN market data, as of 19:50 on January 7:

The top five popular Ethereum tokens in the past 24 hours are: KEKIUS , SEN , POPPY , GATSBY, SPX

The top five popular Solana tokens in the past 24h are: sCat, PEPECLUB , RANDOM9 , FLSHR , KEKE

The top five popular tokens in the past 24h Base are: VIRTUAL , CATOF , BRIAN, AIXBT , AKUMA