PA Daily | US$6.5 billion Silk Road Bitcoin approved for sale; President of El Salvador and Arthur Hayes are ready to buy at low prices
Reprinted from panewslab
01/09/2025·1MToday’s news tips:
DOJ approves sale of $6.5 billion worth of seized Silk Road Bitcoins
LLM briefly broke through 0.1 US dollars, rising 58.88% in 1 hour
El Salvador buys 11 more Bitcoins for its strategic reserves
Analog announces 1:100 ANLOG token split
Binance will launch Dar Open Network (D) perpetual contract, supporting up to 75x leverage
Regulation/Macro
IMF recommends Kenya develop clear cryptocurrency regulatory framework
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has recommended that Kenya create a clear and predictable regulatory environment for the cryptocurrency market to protect consumers and address anti-money laundering (AML) and countering the financing of terrorism (CFT)-related risks. The IMF pointed out that Kenya currently relies on outdated regulations in the traditional market and lacks legally binding supervision of the encryption market, resulting in an increase in encryption-related fraud and criminal activities. The IMF recommends that Kenya develop a crypto regulatory environment that is consistent with international frameworks and standards, while taking into account the unique challenges and opportunities of the local market, ensuring that the regulatory framework can both protect consumers, maintain financial stability, and promote innovation.
According to information related to the X platform, Musk once again blocked Zhao Changpeng on the X platform. Previously, in December last year, Changpeng Zhao interacted with Musk on the acquisition of the Twitter platform. Musk expressed his gratitude to Changpeng Zhao for supporting his acquisition of Twitter, and refocused on Changpeng Zhao after replying to Changpeng Zhao's tweet. Update: Musk did not cancel Zhao Changpeng on X, because the X platform is concerned about a system error.
According to the Hong Kong Government Press Release, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority launched the Distributed Ledger Technology Regulatory Incubator (Incubator) to assist banks in responsibly exploring the potential of distributed ledger technology (DLT), aiming to assist banks in fully realizing the potential of DLT. Effectively manage associated risks. It is reported that the incubator will enhance the risk management capabilities of individual banks and the banking industry as a whole, especially the risks that may arise when banks launch services that involve both DLT banking infrastructure and traditional banking infrastructure (such as deposits and loans). For individual banks, the incubator will provide a one-stop regulatory platform, allowing banks to confirm that relevant risk management measures have been fully implemented before fully launching DLT projects, communicate with the HKMA’s dedicated team and obtain regulatory advice, and provide regulatory advice as needed. Choose to conduct real-world testing to verify and improve risk management measures in a pragmatic and continuously evolving manner. The incubator will also launch a series of targeted measures to promote the banking industry's awareness and understanding of DLT risk management best practices, including regulatory guidelines, industry sharing sessions and forward-looking research projects. These projects will help enhance the banking industry's introduction of DLT in the long run. program capabilities.
According to information shared by eric.eth, the co-author of EIP-1559, on the Coinbase said in an email to customers: "You do not need to take any action, but Coinbase may be required to send information related to your account to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission in response to a subpoena, unless before the close of business on January 15, 2025. Coinbase has formally received a motion to quash a subpoena or other legal document preventing Coinbase from sharing such information.”
FTX says Backpack’s acquisition of EU subsidiary has not received court approval
According to Cointelegraph, bankrupt crypto exchange FTX said that the acquisition of its European unit FTX EU by crypto exchange Backpack has not been approved by the bankruptcy court, and Backpack has not been authorized to distribute funds to FTX creditors. Backpack announced on January 7 that it had acquired FTX EU and said it would assume responsibility for repaying debts to EU customers as part of a court-approved bankruptcy proceeding. Backpack founder Armani Ferrante said his exchange would not conduct any trading in the EU until it can repay FTX creditors, adding that it could be ready as early as February. However, in a statement on January 8, FTX said that the transaction "purported" by Backpack to acquire FTX EU has not yet occurred and has not been approved by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware, adding that all statements issued by Backpack have This was done without the knowledge of FTX. FTX said the FTX Debtors had previously agreed to sell FTX EU to a number of "former insiders" of FTX Europe under a bankruptcy court-supervised settlement, but said only that it had been informed that these former insiders had agreed to an indirect transfer of FTX EU to Backpack. . FTX also noted that Backpack was not granted authority to manage creditor repayments.
According to DB News, a U.S. official confirmed that a federal judge ruled on December 30 that the Department of Justice can sell 69,370 Bitcoins seized from the Silk Road darknet market. A years-long dispute over ownership of seized bitcoins has finally been settled after Battle Born Investments failed in its bid to delay the sale. The group had claimed the bitcoins belonged to its bankruptcy estate and lost a recent Freedom of Information Act case. Lawyers for Battle Born called this "yet another egregious example of the Department of Justice's abuse of its civil asset forfeiture process" and claimed the government "relyed on procedural subterfuge to ensure the facts are never known." The Justice Department cited Bitcoin’s price volatility in seeking permission to sell the assets. When asked about next steps, a spokesperson for the Department of Justice said: "The government will continue to move forward based on the judgment in this case." Currently, the seized Bitcoins are worth approximately US$6.5 billion.
According to CoinDesk, Rostin Behnam, chairman of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), focused on cryptocurrency and its regulatory issues in his last public speech before leaving office, and emphasized the need to enhance the CFTC as a cryptocurrency regulator. Behnam will step down on January 20 to make way for future appointees from President-elect Trump. In a speech at the Brookings Institution, he said cryptocurrencies have “been present at every stage of my tenure.” Behnam noted: “In the absence of federal legislation, customer protection, increased fraud and market abuse, market resiliency, and financial stability have become increasingly problematic. History has repeatedly shown that leaving large swaths of financial activity outside of regulation will ultimately lead to Leading to poor outcomes,” he directly called on the industry to “innovate.” “The role of market regulators is critical in ensuring that financial innovation is integrated into a regulatory and compliance culture that protects consumers and provides legal certainty,” he said. ” He also said that he has never supported a law enforcement-led supervision approach. In contrast, U.S. SEC Chairman Gary Gensler has long been criticized by the industry for adopting an approach of “enforcement instead of regulation.” Earlier today, U.S. SEC Chairman Gary Gensler reiterated that the encryption field is “riddled with bad actors.”
US judge sets start date for Do Kwon's trial to January 26, 2026
According to The Block, Terraform Labs founder Do Kwon appeared in court for the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York on Wednesday. This was his second appearance, marking the beginning of the discovery of evidence in the high-profile and repeatedly delayed federal case. display stage. If found guilty in connection with the collapse of the TerraUST stablecoin, he faces up to 130 years in prison. Wednesday's "initial meeting" is intended to determine whether the U.S. case can be resolved without a trial and to iron out other pre-trial details. U.S. District Judge Paul Engelmayer set a trial start date of January 26, 2026 and encouraged plea negotiations. The U.S. government pointed out that the parties to the lawsuit submitted 6 terabytes of evidence for discovery, including four mobile phones, social media accounts and other non-public information that Kwon had when he was in prison in Montenegro, Montenegro, much of which required translation and Decrypt. Prosecutors said some of the data may have been collected without a search warrant and that encryption keys appeared to be "lost." Prosecutor Jared Lenow noted that the trial could last up to six weeks, with the prosecution alone taking four weeks. The judge also questioned whether securities laws would play a role in Kwon's case, saying "the jury needs to be extremely clear-eyed." Prosecutors said it was immaterial to their case whether Bitcoin or USDT were commodities, noting that District Judge Jed Rakoff ruled in a previous case that "Terraform's crypto assets are investment contracts."
Trump-themed digital cards debut on Bitcoin network via Ordinals protocol
According to Cryptoslate, an NFT series backed by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has launched its first 160 pieces on the Bitcoin network using the Ordinals protocol, called the Trump Bitcoin Digital Trading Card. Trading Cards)”. Users who receive 100 NFT cards from the "Mugshot Edition" are eligible to claim through the NFT marketplace Magic Eden after submitting their Bitcoin wallet. As of press time, users have minted 19 of the 119 available Ordinals, and the claiming period will last until January 31st. The Trump Bitcoin digital trading card uses “Alpha sats.” Users have listed 11 Trump-inspired Ordinals on Magic Eden, with the lowest current base price being 0.1988 BTC, while the most expensive Ordinals in the series are priced at 20 BTC. Although this is the first Trump-related Ordinals series, the president-elect has a track record in the NFT space, having launched multiple series over the years, including four sets of the "Trump Digital Trading Cards" series, which showcase Photos of him holding BTC and doing his signature dance.
According to Bitcoin Magazine, U.S. Senator Dusty Deevers of Oklahoma has submitted the “Bitcoin Freedom Act” numbered SB325, which will allow Oklahoma employees to choose to receive wages in the form of Bitcoin and allow supply The merchant accepts Bitcoin payments. SB325 ensures that participation is completely voluntary, respects free market principles, and empowers employees, employers, and businesses to choose the payment method that works best for them. SB325 is eligible for consideration in the 60th legislative session, which begins on February 3.
According to the Financial Associated Press, on Wednesday local time, the Federal Reserve released the minutes of its December monetary policy meeting on its official website. The minutes showed that Fed officials took a new stance on interest rate cuts and decided to slow down the pace of interest rate cuts in the coming months, considering that the risk of inflation remains high. The minutes of the meeting stated that participants stated that the committee believed that the interest rate level was close to or at a point where it was appropriate to slow down the pace of interest rate cuts. They believe that the pace of interest rate cuts may slow down in the future and enter a more cautious operating stage. And a series of factors indicate that in the current complex economic environment, Fed policymakers believe that it is necessary to carefully adjust monetary policy to avoid the possible negative effects of overly radical policy adjustments. For example, cutting interest rates too quickly could lead to a renewed rise in inflationary pressures. Participants expected inflation to continue moving toward 2%, although they noted that recent higher-than-expected inflation data, as well as the impact of potential changes in trade and immigration policy, suggested that the process may be longer than previously expected. Some participants noted that the disinflation process may have been temporarily stalled or pointed to possible risks. "Fed spokesperson" Nick Timiraos pointed out that the Fed meeting minutes further showed that officials are generally willing to keep interest rates unchanged at the upcoming meeting at the end of this month. "Participants indicated that the Committee is at or near an appropriate level to slow the pace of policy easing," the minutes said. Officials believed that based on their current outlook for economic activity, the Fed is likely to continue to move at a slower pace than in recent months. rate cuts.
AI
Kava plans to become a DeAI blockchain and will announce its AI development roadmap in January
L1 blockchain Kava officially announced that it plans to become the first DeAI (decentralized artificial intelligence) blockchain in 2025 and will launch relevant important updates in January 2025, including DeAI Lightpaper, 2025 AI development roadmap and A product that supports users to embed AI functions into dApps. According to previous news, Kava launched the decentralized Memecoin Launchpad platform HARD.fun.
Project news
Analog announces 1:100 ANLOG token split
Analog, the full-chain interoperability protocol, announced that it will implement a token split, increasing the total supply from 90,579,710 to 9,057,971,000 $ANLOG tokens. Officials stated that this adjustment will not affect the value distribution of existing token holders and is designed to support the sustainable development and expansion of the ecosystem. It said that by increasing the supply of tokens, Analog can achieve low-cost cross-chain transaction fees, which is more in line with user needs. Previously, it was reported that Analog, a full-chain interoperability protocol, completed US$16 million in financing, led by Tribe Capital.
Binance will launch Dar Open Network (D) perpetual contract, supporting up to 75x leverage
Binance will launch Dar Open Network (D) leverage, contracts, financial management, one-click currency buying, and flash swap functions. In addition, D’s USDⓈ-M perpetual contract will be launched at 18:00 on January 9, 2025 (Beijing time), supporting up to 75 times leverage.
Meme project BABYSHARK officially released a video on the X platform, suggesting that it may reach a strategic cooperation with Pinkfong, a world-renowned children's entertainment IP company. It is understood that Pinkfong is a global family entertainment company that owns a number of world-renowned IPs, including Pinkfong, Baby Shark, Hogi, Ninimo, etc. Among them, the original children's song video "Baby Shark Dance" has been played more than 10 billion times on YouTube, making it one of the most viewed videos in the world. In addition, Meme project BABYSHARK will be listed on Kucoin at 8pm today and has been listed on many mainstream exchanges such as Gate Pilot and MEXC. According to CoinMarketCap data, as of press time, the market value of BABYSHARK is currently approximately US$140 million, with the highest market value reaching US$240 million.
Stablecoin issuer Avalon Labs announced in its official blog that the TGE event for its governance token AVL will be held at the beginning of the first quarter, and the claim process will also open shortly thereafter. AVL will be on the centralized exchange (CEX) at the same time as TGE. Go online. AVL’s circulating supply will continue to evolve based on strategic factors, ensuring consistency with the growth of the platform and expansion of the ecosystem. Key drivers of AVL supply include: token vesting plans, protocol growth, revenue incentives, strategic partnerships, growth-oriented funding. The total supply of AVL tokens is capped at 1 billion, of which community incentive allocation accounts for 30%, airdrop allocation accounts for 20%, ecosystem and treasury allocation accounts for 16%, team allocation accounts for 10%, and consultant allocation accounts for 10%. The ratio is 4%, the initial liquidity allocation is 2%, and the investor allocation is 18%. Previously, it was reported in December last year that stablecoin issuer Avalon Labs completed a US$10 million Series A financing, with Framework Ventures leading the investment.
Blast’s mobile platform will launch later this month alongside a tokenomics update
Ethereum Layer 2 network Blast announced on the There will be no gold distribution. All users should also make sure to log into the Blast website with their own wallets. An official release date will be announced soon.”
According to Cryptoslate, Fox Business News reporter Eleanor Terrett reported that U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team is looking for a cryptocurrency-friendly candidate to serve as the next chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). Competing for the position include current CFTC commissioner Summer Mersinger, a16z crypto policy director and former CFTC commissioner Brian Quintenz, and Kraken’s chief legal officer Marco Santori. According to people familiar with the matter, they call Quintenz and Mersinger the "top candidates" for the position. Both purported top candidates have extensive experience and encryption policy qualifications. Mersinger is considered a thought leader at the intersection of crypto innovation and consumer protection. She is a frequent speaker at industry events and has been an advocate for balanced regulation to promote growth in the industry. Mersinger, meanwhile, has been a vocal advocate for a regulatory environment that is accommodating of crypto innovation, a stance he honed during his time as a CFTC commissioner and his current role at a16z. If elected, either candidate could steer the agency toward policies that prioritize clarity and innovation in the U.S. crypto industry. Although Quintenz and Mersinger are leading the way, several candidates are still on the shortlist, including Republican CFTC Commissioner Caroline Pham, who has a strong regulatory background, Neal Kumar and Josh Sterling, who have held senior positions at the CFTC and are considered regulatory experts. . The Trump transition team has reportedly vetted at least six candidates for the position, reflecting the administration’s focus on finding a leader who fits its vision for the crypto industry.
point of view
When El Salvador President Nayib Bukele commented on the X platform that "the U.S. Department of Justice was allowed to sell $6.5 billion worth of Bitcoin related to the Silk Road case," he said that maybe we all have the opportunity to buy Bitcoin at a discount.
Regarding the fact that "the U.S. Department of Justice was allowed to sell $6.5 billion of seized darknet Silk Road Bitcoins," BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes posted on the X platform that diamond players are ready to buy the bottom.
Regarding the fact that the U.S. Department of Justice was allowed to sell $6.5 billion of seized darknet Silk Road Bitcoins, CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju posted on About $1 billion. The $6.5 billion (Bitcoin) sold by the U.S. government could be absorbed within a week.”
Ripple President: XRP ETF is expected to launch in the United States soon
According to Bitcoin.com, Ripple President Monica Long said in an interview with Bloomberg on Tuesday that the XRP ETF may soon become a reality as favorable U.S. cryptocurrency legislation could bring huge benefits to domestic companies. Long said: “I think we will see more spot ETFs launched in the United States this year, and I think after Bitcoin and Ethereum, XRP is likely to be next. We think, especially with the change of government, these applications The approval will be accelerated.” In addition, Long also revealed that Ripple’s new RLUSD stablecoin will be listed on more exchanges, and the company expects it to play an important role in its currency and payments business.
Opinion: It may take months for the US government to start selling BTC seized from Silk Road
On-chain analyst Trader T said on the In addition, according to Spot On Chain, the U.S. government currently holds approximately 197,000 BTC. Because the previous sales were completed through over-the-counter transactions, it did not directly affect the price, but the market panic caused may cause the price to drop temporarily. HODL15Capital also issued a statement stating that it has confirmed on the chain that the BTC held by the United States has not been transferred or sold.
important data
LLM briefly broke through 0.1 US dollars, rising 58.88% in 1 hour
According to GMGN.AI market data, the Solana ecological meme currency Large Language Model (LLM) briefly exceeded 0.1 US dollars, rose 58.88% in 1 hour, and is now quoted at 0.0939 US dollars. The market value briefly exceeded 100 million US dollars and then fell back, now at 93.9 million US dollars. .
According to Spot On Chain monitoring, just before the news of the U.S. government’s approval of the sale of BTC came out, a whale with a $234 million investment portfolio deposited 300 WBTC ($28.5 million) to Binance and allegedly made a profit of 998 million dollars. This whale has been trading WBTC since March 2023, often buying low and selling high. Currently, this giant whale holds 195 WBTC ($18.4 million) on Aave, with an estimated total WBTC profit of $33.7 million (+33.2%).
According to SoSoValue data, the total net outflow of Bitcoin spot ETFs yesterday (January 8, EST) was US$583 million. Yesterday, the Grayscale ETF GBTC had a single-day net outflow of US$8.9376 million. The current historical net outflow of GBTC is US$21.580 billion. Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust ETF BTC had a single-day net outflow of US$0.00. The current total historical net inflow of Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust BTC is US$924 million. As of press time, the total net asset value of Bitcoin spot ETFs is US$106.815 billion, the ETF net asset ratio (market value as a proportion of the total market value of Bitcoin) reaches 5.74%, and the historical cumulative net inflow has reached US$36.366 billion.
PANews reported on January 9 that according to on-chain analyst @ai_9684xtpa’s monitoring, “the whale that bought low and sold high PEPE made a profit of US$6.24 million” added another US$7.14 million in PEPE positions 12 hours ago. The number of positions opened this time has reached 791.3 billion. pieces, approximately US$14.23 million. During the period from 2024.12.20 to 2025.01.03, the whale withdrew 610.6 billion tokens from Kraken at an average price of US$0.00001732; the current average cost of the position is US$0.00001769, with a floating profit of US$103,000.
El Salvador buys 11 more Bitcoins for its strategic reserves
According to Cointelegraph, El Salvador has just purchased another 11 Bitcoins as its strategic reserves, worth more than $1 million.
When El Salvador President Nayib Bukele commented on the X platform that "the U.S. Department of Justice was allowed to sell $6.5 billion worth of Bitcoin related to the Silk Road case," he said that maybe we all have the opportunity to buy Bitcoin at a discount.
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