Category: Crypto market

Solana Co-Founder accused of Crypto Misappropriation

Posted on by Olumide Adesina

Co-founder of Solana Stephen Akridge and his ex-wife Elisa Rossi are involved in a legal battle over the alleged theft of significant profits from Solana (SOL) tokens.

 

According to Rossi, Akridge drains her digital wallet’s staking rewards using his sophisticated knowledge of blockchain and cryptocurrency. Rossi lost “millions of dollars” in revenue because of his actions.

She claimed that Akridge received all the staking commissions allotted to her SOL holdings and had complete control over her accounts from early March to mid-May.

The couple filed for divorce in February 2023 after ten years of marriage. Rossi’s lawsuit seeks damages for the alleged financial losses she sustained and alleges fraud, unjust enrichment, and breach of contract.

Rossi has called the amounts “significant” and asked that some parts of the complaint be kept private although the precise value of the contested tokens is still unknown. Solana Labs and the lawyers for Rossi and Akridge have refrained from making any public remarks.

Akridge worked closely with co-founders Raj Gokal and Anatoly Yakovenko to develop the blockchain platform. Akridge was earlier working with Qualcomm before his involvement with Solana.

He currently serves as the CEO of the cybersecurity company Cyber Grant, based in California.

Various platforms claim that staking SOL tokens yields an annual percentage yield (APY) between 5 and  12 percent.

The liquid staking market accounts for about half of Solana’s total TVL. In addition to the platform’s APY, users who engage in liquid staking receive a proxy token worth the same amount when they staked. This increases the potential rewards because the newly created token can be used on various decentralized finance protocols.

 

XRP Defrosts Under Crypto Sun

Posted on by Olumide Adesina

XRP is presently consolidating over a longer time frame.  The market affirms a consolidation phase within an overall uptrend by moving sideways. As of this writing, XRP is trading at $2.17, down more than 1.7 percent.

XRP retreated from its peak of $2.9 on December 3 on expectations that the SEC would file its opening brief on the appeal by the deadline.

 

SEC Chair Gensler will depart the agency on January 20 but the SEC chair strengthened his position on the crypto industry after elevating crypto-enforcement attorneys to senior executive roles. Paul Atkins, the new SEC chair, has a difficult start. Markets project Trump’s pro-crypto stance and the agency’s ingrained enforcement procedures will take some time

The price chart’s wedge formations, which frequently indicate breakouts, support XRP’s continued resilience. The general trend for XRP is still bullish despite the current consolidation.

Recent price action appears to be a brief pullback rather than marking the beginning of a downtrend. It is important to remember that XRP is still above its 2021 high of $1.96. If the price keeps rising, it may challenge its all-time high of roughly $3.25 to $3.30, which also coincides with a crucial Fibonacci level. This is a clear indication of a robust market.

The market outlook is still positive as long as the price remains above this, and maintaining this level is essential for XRP’s ongoing upward momentum.

Ripple is still a leading cryptocurrency player. The token’s market valuation is valued at $123 billion, making it the fourth-largest cryptocurrency. Ripple keeps moving forward with new projects despite legal obstacles.

The recurrent cycles of growth and consolidation that characterize liquidity-driven assets are also evident in Ripple-based tokens. These trends demonstrate how effective technical analysis is at forecasting market movements. However, experts advise a concentrated investment strategy in high-performing cryptocurrencies and caution against diversifying portfolios across too many assets.

Ethereum’ Co-Founder Supports Thailand Wild Life Program

Posted on by Olumide Adesina

Vitalik Buterin, a co-founder of Ethereum,  donated almost $300,000 to Thailand’s Khao Kheow Open Zoo in exchange for adopting Moo Deng. The Russian-born programmer wrote to Khao Kheow’s director in a letter posted on X, explaining that he became involved after visiting the facility recently and being enthralled by its dedication to animal welfare and community involvement.

 

ETH co-founder emphasized Moo Deng’s special position as a cultural ambassador for Thailand and thanked the zoo for having him. Buterin stated the significance of enhancing the pygmy hippo’s habitat while applauding the animal sanctuary’s efforts.

Additionally, he praised Thailand’s hospitality to the Ethereum community, particularly during last November’s Devcon SEA in Bangkok. In Moo Deng’s honor, the 30-year-old promised to donate at least 10 million baht, or roughly $300,000, to be paid in two installments. The date of the second contribution will be announced later.

The first contribution was made on December 26. Additionally, Buterin pledged an additional 88 ETH to guarantee continued funding for the zoo’s initiatives.

Moo Deng,  a well-liked symbol in Thailand, rose to international prominence.  The token has drawn interest from the cryptocurrency community despite recent market correction,  In the past, Buterin donated more than $1 million worth of meme tokens, including 10 billion MOODENG, to different charities.

He recently criticized the meme coin market, criticizing the spread of tokens with celebrity inspiration. He maintained that it would be preferable if they had a public objective to support a particular cause, or at the very least, included entertaining features rather than speculation

US Government Not Buying More Bitcoin

Posted on by Olumide Adesina

According to Galaxy Digital’s research division, the US government will not purchase Bitcoin in 2025, but it will protect its current supply. “In 2025, the US government will not buy Bitcoin,” stated Alex Thorn, the head of Galaxy Research, in a Dec 27 Report

The US government will instead use the Bitcoin it currently owns to build up a stockpile while talks on a reserve policy for the cryptocurrency continue. Thorn stated there would be some movement among the departments and agencies to look into a more expansive Bitcoin reserve policy

The proposed Bitcoin Act 2024 by Senator Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, if approved, would allow the US government to add Bitcoin as a reserve asset to its treasury by purchasing 200,000 BTC every five years, resulting in a total of one million Bitcoin that would hold for at least 20 years.

There is a chance that up to five nation-states and five Nasdaq 100 companies will include Bitcoin in their sovereign wealth funds or balance sheet.

The US government owns 183,850 Bitcoin, valued at approximately $17.36 billion, spread across several known addresses.

Shigeru Ishiba, the prime minister of Japan, stated that he does not fully comprehend the “movements” being made by nations such as the United States and others to adopt Bitcoin reserves. “The government finds it challenging to voice its opinions,” Ishiba stated.

Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, Binance founder, stated that China would be among the nations to establish a strategic Bitcoin reserve.  Although the shift might occur gradually, Zhao highlighted that  “smaller countries” would probably be the first to adopt a Bitcoin reserve.

Japan Uninterested In Bitcoin

Posted on by Olumide Adesina

The Prime Minister of Japan stated that his government does not have enough information about the plans for a Bitcoin strategic reserve in other countries to decide whether Japan should establish one.

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba stated that he does not fully comprehend the “movements” that nations such as the US and others are making to embrace Bitcoin. “The government has a hard time expressing its opinions,” Ishiba stated.

The response followed a query about Japan’s “movement of introducing Bitcoin reserves that the United States and other countries are proceeding with” from Satoshi Hamada, a member of the House of Councilors from the Party to Protect the People from NHK.

“I believe Japan should take a cue from the United States and think about converting some of its foreign exchange reserves into cryptocurrency assets like Bitcoin,” Hamada stated

According to Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru, the government admitted that while there is talk about Bitcoin reserves abroad, it is unclear what the concept of such reserves means. The government also made it clear that since they are still in their early phases.

The response added that Japan’s foreign exchange reserves are intended to keep foreign exchange markets stable and liquid. A cryptocurrency like Bitcoin is not regarded as a foreign exchange asset under current regulations.

The Japanese government also claimed that because stability and liquidity had to be guaranteed, digital currencies could not be included in Japan’s reserve holdings due to their volatility.

MicroStrategy, Riot Platforms, Bitcoin fall On Boxing Day

Posted on by Olumide Adesina

U.S stock futures and Treasuries fell as trading resumed following the Christmas break with investors focusing on the first jobless claims data and a government bond auction later Thursday

The S&P 500 futures dropped 0.4 percent, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.5 percent.  Stocks linked to the crypto market, such as Riot Platforms and MicroStrategy, fell in tandem with a decline in Bitcoin. Bitcoin bears ended a $7,000 rally that had brought the price of Bitcoin ($BTC) above 99K on Wednesday. Europe’s major markets are still closed on holidays.

The U.S. Federal Reserve made lower-than-expected interest cut projections for next year.

The Fed announced that it is reducing its main interest rate for the third time this year, completing the dramatic recovery in September when it began reducing rates from a two-decade high to boost the labor market.

Even though Wall Street loves lower interest rates, most people already anticipated that cut. The larger question is how much more the Fed will cut in the upcoming year. The stakes are high, especially after the U.S. was aided by projections of several cuts in 2025.  The stock market has risen 57 times so far in 2024.

All three of the major indexes saw steep declines in the past week. However, most of the ground lost last week was regained by major stock indexes, which surged on Monday and continued to rise on Tuesday.

The Fed indicated a cautious approach to monetary policy adjustments by highlighting the necessity of ongoing progress on inflation before contemplating additional rate cuts.

Markets reduced their expectations for rate cuts, pricing in only two more this year following the Fed’s meeting. Wall Street gradually dismissed worries about the rate outlook following slightly weaker-than-expected PCE inflation data.

Floki Plans Exchange-Traded Product

Posted on by Olumide Adesina

Floki DAO, the company that oversees Floki, has suggested giving a portion of its treasury to an asset manager in an attempt to introduce an exchange-traded product (ETP) in Europe that would give institutional investors exposure to the meme coin

 

Floki DAO members are now debating whether or not to allow liquidity for the ETP in an application filed on Christmas day. A portion of the 16 billion FLOKI, or about $2.1 million at current prices, will be used as liquidity for the fund.

The Floki team reported that they have been launching an ETP for the meme coin in Europe in collaboration with an undisclosed asset manager. The holder who proposed the Floki ETP stated, “We have been informed that the project is on track to go live in early Q1, 2025.”.

They added that the Floki ETP is now in a developed stage and will soon be tradable on the SIX Swiss Exchange, the biggest stock exchange in Switzerland and the third-largest in Europe.

The team stated that non-disclosure agreements prevented them from disclosing additional details about the ETP, when approved, it will be “executed in line with the Floki DAO’s mandate.”.

The proposal barely affected Floki’s price, which has since dropped by 6% in the past week. according to Binance data. The meme has a $1.07 billion market capitalization, making it the seventh-largest meme coin in total value.

However, the atmosphere on FLOKI, like on most meme-coins, is still unquestionably positive in the long run, and this euphoric trend is likely to continue, though some accidents are unavoidable. It is reasonable to question what further upward potential the most well-known tokens in this category may have, even though they have been exhibiting amazing gains in 2024.

 

BONK Burns 2% Of Market Supply

Posted on by Olumide Adesina

An ambitious plan to burn 1.69 trillion BONK, or $54 million as part of the community holiday celebration known as “BURNmas.”. This intentional action aims to increase BONK’s scarcity and could impact its market dynamics by reducing the quantity in circulation.  BonkDAO will carry out the burn through a multi-signature vote, highlighting the project’s community-driven governance

Although token burns frequently result in short-term price spikes, increased trading activity, and increased investor interest, their long-term effects are contingent upon its strong community and general market conditions. BonkDAO is demonstrating its continued innovation in the meme-token space with “BURNmas.”. BONK has achieved a significant milestone with this event, solidifying its standing as a key component of the Solana ecosystem and one of the most active meme tokens available.

The meme coin had a market valuation of $2.4 billion, its 24-hour trading volume is roughly $275 million, and its current price is $0.000031.

The token’s dynamics have changed as investors bet ahead of the burn event, , BONK has frequently seen price increases when Solana sees growth because of its strong connections to the Solana (SOL) ecosystem. The impending burn may intensify these factors, setting BONK up for heightened market interest from cryptocurrency investors.

The cryptocurrency market frequently uses token burns as a bullish strategy to reduce supply and induce scarcity. If demand remains constant or rises, the value of the remaining tokens may increase when fewer tokens are available, according to the fundamental economic principle of supply and demand.

 

XRP Roasts like Christmas Chicken On Boxing Day

Posted on by Olumide Adesina

XRP posted high selling pressure amid market correction on Boxing Day.  XRP is down 7% over the past 7 days, likely because traders are taking the opportunity to lock in profit but it remains popular with crypto investors. The token lost the $2.2 support line and crashed as low as $2.15 on December 26th.

Ripple’s prospects in the mid-term are still cloudy. , Ripple is under increasing pressure to innovate in light of heightened regulatory scrutiny and competition in the digital asset market. More regulatory clarity, especially in light of Ripple’s ongoing legal disputes and the changing legislative environments in major economies, may coincide with the launch of an XRP stablecoin.

However, the Ripple-based token still shows strong fundamentals despite the recent sell-offs. Traders remained composed despite the bearish run that began after the Federal Reserve’s announcement.

Data from Binance showed the altcoin has increased by more than 250 percent since President-elect Donald Trump was elected last month.

The declining trend in XRP Dormant Circulation across all coin age categories shows that most XRP holders decided to keep their tokens, unlike many other cryptocurrencies where investors quickly dumped their holdings.

Traders anticipate that Ripple Labs, the company that issues the cryptocurrency and uses it to settle and facilitate transactions on its digital payments platform, will be less subject to legal pressure.

Bulls hope Trump will end the Securities and Exchange Commission’s long-running case against Ripple after appointing crypto-friendly Paul Atkins to succeed Gary Gensler as head of the agency last week.

The SEC accused the business of selling investors an unregistered security in 2020. In October, it appealed a court decision that said Ripple’s sales of XRP had not broken any investor protection laws.

Charles Hoskinson Bets on Cardano, XRP & Bitcoin 

Posted on by Olumide Adesina

Charles Hoskinson recently stated that XRP, Cardano, and Bitcoin all had a bright future in the digital ecosystem. The founder of Cardano recently voiced this opinion, affirming that these blockchains’ ecosystems are robust because they have surmounted numerous difficulties.

Charles Hoskinson claims that Cardano has more partnership opportunities than ever before, pointing to the network’s most recent collaboration with BitcoinOS, a provider of interoperability solutions and Bitcoin smart contracts, to enable Bitcoin liquidity on the Cardano network.

Hoskinson also talked about the conflict that has recently emerged in the Cardano community as the network works toward community governance between the Cardano Foundation, a nonprofit organization based in Switzerland tasked with encouraging the widespread use of the blockchain, and Input Output Hong Kong, the primary development company behind the network.

He emphasized that what has made Cardano strong is its capacity to overcome challenges such as these. He rejected assertions that the recent conflicts might affect Cardano’s capacity to form and sustain external alliances, directly echoing the opinions of prominent community member Rick McCracken.

Cardano Plomin Hard Fork Update 

Cardano Mainnet hard fork has been put forward on-chain for ICC and SPO ratification, according to a recent update from Intersect, a membership-based organization for the Cardano ecosystem.

The most recent on-chain governance features of Cardano will be made available by the Plomin upgrade.  This will enable full governance for the Mainnet as outlined in CIP-1694.  The delegate-approved Constitution will then be put up for community review on the chain after this upgrade.

A more decentralized decision-making process may result from this upgrade. The Voltaire era seeks to build a self-sustaining blockchain with strong governance features. A stable ecosystem depends on decentralized processes and increased community trust, which can be achieved with these features.

Cardano, XRP  Under Attack

The usefulness of two well-known layer-1 blockchains, XRP Ledger and Cardano, has been criticized repeatedly. Recent comments made by Ryan Selkis, a co-founder of Messari, have rekindled the debate and brought their communities back into the spotlight.

Ryan Selkis of Messari rekindled criticism of the XRP and Cardano communities’ utility and influence by referring to them as “the loudest, least valuable groups of bots.”. This is not the first time that Selkis has attacked Cardano and XRP supporters.

His strong views have garnered a lot of criticism over the years, but his standing in the cryptocurrency industry guarantees his remarks are taken seriously. However, Cardano and XRP communities have remained resilient. , data-driven rebuttals, and expanding transaction records point to a more promising future for them even though detractors like Selkis continue to minimize these networks’ potential