Hong Kong has launched its first batch of ETFs focused on cryptocurrencies, marking potential competition for the popular Bitcoin products in the United States. 

Harvest Global Investments Ltd., the local unit of China Asset Management, along with a partnership between HashKey Capital Ltd. and Bosera Asset Management (International) Co., listed Bitcoin and Ether ETFs in the city on Tuesday. 

Hong Kong ETFs Could See $300M in First-Day Inflows

In the US, spot Bitcoin ETFs from issuers like BlackRock Inc. and Fidelity Investments were launched in January, accumulating a historic $52 billion in assets so far. 

Bloomberg Intelligence’s Rebecca Sin estimates that Bitcoin and Ether funds in Hong Kong could amass around $1 billion over the next two years.

However, Han Tongli, the CEO of Harvest Global, believes that the estimate is too conservative. 

He argues that financial products and services in Hong Kong are accepted by investors both in the West and the East, whereas the US primarily caters to the former. 

As a result, issuers are expecting approximately $300 million in combined first-day inflows for the six new Hong Kong spot-crypto ETFs, with a preference for Bitcoin funds.

OFFICIAL: SPOT #BITCOIN ETFS COMMENCE TRADING IN HONG KONG pic.twitter.com/yI8HsqRECf

— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) April 30, 2024

Potential sources for these inflows include Chinese wealth parked in the city, as well as active crypto exchanges and market makers in the Asia Pacific region. 

While crypto trading is banned in mainland China, the new funds fall outside the scope of the program that grants Chinese investors access to some Hong Kong ETFs, which raises the question of whether the program could be expanded in the future.

The adoption of an in-kind ETF subscription and redemption mechanism sets Hong Kong apart. 

It allows for the underlying assets to be exchanged for fund units and vice versa, unlike the cash redemption model used by US Bitcoin funds. 

Han believes this in-kind approach enhances the appeal of Hong Kong’s products and could result in the eventual uptake of the ETFs being three times larger than that of the US funds.

Hong Kong’s Smaller Financial Sector Could Impact Demand

Meanwhile, some caution that expected demand must be adjusted considering Hong Kong’s smaller financial sector. 

While the city already permits crypto-futures-based ETFs, their total assets of around $164 million are a fraction of the $2.3 billion held by the ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF, which is a derivatives-based product in the US.

Despite potential challenges, Hong Kong’s local products are appealing due to easy access, particularly during Asian trading hours. 

Bosera Asset Management (International)’s Head of Products, Ethan Li, expressed confidence in the appeal of the Hong Kong ETFs and mentioned the company’s plans to expand its team and digital-asset product pipeline. 

While digital assets have experienced a significant rebound since the market collapse in 2022, the recent revival has stalled. 

Bitcoin’s price sits at around $63,540, approximately $10,000 below its record high in March. 

The post Hong Kong ETF Issuers Anticipate $300 Million First-Day Inflows: Bloomberg appeared first on Cryptonews.

The United States Justice Department had charged Rodriguez and his co-founder, William Hill, with various offenses related to their involvement with Samourai Wallet. 

On April 29, Rodriguez appeared before the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, where he pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money-transmitting business and money laundering charges. 

Rodriguez Released on $1 Million Bond

As part of the bail agreement, Rodriguez was released on a $1 million bond. 

However, his movements are now restricted, and he is required to wear a location monitoring device. 

He will primarily be confined to his residence in Harmony, Pennsylvania, with limited travel permitted in parts of New York and Pennsylvania.

The terms of Rodriguez’s bail also explicitly prohibit him from conducting any activities related to Samourai Wallet or engaging in any cryptocurrency transactions without prior approval. 

These measures are aimed at ensuring compliance with legal requirements and preventing any potential continuation of alleged illicit activities.

Samourai Wallet co-founder Keonne Rodriguez pleaded not guilty to two criminal charges tied to creating and marketing the privacy-focused bitcoin wallet application and mixing service.

The charges carry a maximum sentence of 20 years and five years, respectively.

He was… pic.twitter.com/kmWFsKMhhM

— ICO Drops (@ICODrops) April 30, 2024

Meanwhile, William Hill, the chief technology officer of Samourai Wallet, was arrested on the same day as Rodriguez, but he has yet to appear in a U.S. courtroom. 

Hill’s arrest took place in Portugal, and authorities are currently navigating the process of extradition. 

Rodriguez is scheduled to appear in court again on May 14, where further developments in the case are expected to unfold.

Both individuals face serious consequences if found guilty. 

The money laundering charge carries a potential prison sentence of up to 20 years, while the conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money-transmitting business charge could result in a maximum of five years behind bars. 

As part of the ongoing investigation, authorities have already taken control of Samourai Wallet’s servers and domain located in Iceland.

US Crack Down on Crypto Mixers

The arrests are part of a broader crackdown by the U.S. government on cryptocurrency mixers, which have been implicated in facilitating money laundering activities linked to hacker groups and terrorist organizations. 

The Office of Foreign Asset Control, under the U.S. Treasury Department, has sanctioned platforms like Blender and Tornado Cash, despite facing criticism from industry leaders and lawmakers who argue that such actions could stifle innovation and hinder the legitimate use of privacy-enhancing technologies

Last week, the DOJ rejected Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm’s motion to dismiss criminal charges, arguing that the defense’s filing presented disputed facts that should be weighed by a jury rather than being resolved in an early-stage motion. 

Storm, along with fellow developer Roman Semenov, was charged by the DOJ with conspiracy to commit money laundering, conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitter, and conspiracy to violate sanctions laws through the creation and operation of Tornado Cash.

US authorities have alleged that Tornado Cash has been used by criminal entities, including North Korea’s Lazarus Group, for money laundering purposes.

The post Samourai Wallet Co-Founder Pleads Not Guilty to Money Laundering Charges, Released on Bail appeared first on Cryptonews.

Zodia Custody will offer secure, institutional-grade custody solutions for Marathon’s crypto holdings located outside the United States, Monday’s announcement said.

The need for secure and reliable storage of digital assets is driving crypto companies to seek out crypto custodians. These specialized institutions offer a comprehensive solution, safeguarding assets from theft, loss, or misuse.

Crypto custodians wield advanced security measures to achieve this protection. These safeguards include multi-signature wallets, requiring multiple approvals for any transaction. They also offer cold storage, which keeps the majority of assets offline and out of reach of online hackers.

Zodia Custody Joins Marathon’s Roster of Trusted Crypto Custodians

Marathon is expanding its risk management strategy by choosing Zodia Custody as its fourth custodian. This partnership strengthens Marathon’s security posture by providing additional assurances like secure cold wallet storage that’s accessible 24/7 and protection against custodian insolvency.

“As Marathon’s fourth custodian, we bring in greater diversification, and risk management – exactly what the ecosystem needs,” said Julian Sawyer, CEO of Zodia Custody.

The company already counts Anchorage Digital, Fidelity Digital, and another unnamed provider as custodians. This strategy ensures its Bitcoin treasury is spread across multiple custodians for increased security and risk management.

Zodia Custody is incubated by Standard Chartered and Northern Trust, two established financial institutions. By combining their experience with a startup’s flexibility, Zodia Custody aims to be a leader in the digital asset custody industry. It offers secure wallets for institutions to trade digital assets, as well as services to help clients earn rewards on their holdings.

Marathon CEO Warns of Financial Strain for Smaller Miners

Marathon Digital CEO Fred Thiel issued a warning last month. According to him, smaller Bitcoin miners are in for financial trouble after the recent halving event. Thiel spoke to CNBC about the uneven playing field in the mining industry. Larger miners have been able to secure funding, while smaller miners are struggling to grow because they can’t get the financing they need, he said.

“Post halving I think you’ll see the smaller miners come under financial stress, which will enable the bigger miners to consolidate the industry,” he said.

The post Marathon Digital Chooses StanChart-Backed Zodia Custody as Crypto Custodian appeared first on Cryptonews.

According to an official announcement by Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX), the Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs were welcomed on Tuesday, April 30, marking the introduction of the first spot virtual asset (VA) ETFs in Asia.

Expanding Virtual Asset Investment Choices

The announcement stated that Investor interest in virtual asset ETFs has significantly increased since the launch of VA Futures ETFs in late 2022.

By the first quarter of 2024, the combined average daily turnover for the three VA Futures ETFs listed in Hong Kong surged to $51.3 million from $8.9 million the previous year. These ETFs also attracted $529 million in net inflows during the same period.

The range of exchange-traded products (ETPs) on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange continued to grow, with ETFs and Leveraged and Inverse Products (L&I Products) among the fastest-expanding segments.

“The introduction of Spot VA ETFs in Hong Kong is the latest exciting addition to HKEX’s diverse and vibrant ETP ecosystem, providing investors with access to a new asset class,” said HKEX Head of Equities Product Development Brian Roberts.

“Following the success of VA Futures ETFs, the listing of Asia’s first spot VA ETFs will further enhance the product diversity and liquidity of the Hong Kong ETP market,” said Roberts.

Bitcoin and Ethereum ETF Competition in Hong Kong

China Asset Management Co. (China AMC), Harvest Global Investments, and Bosera International and HashKey Capital are the issuers of the spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs. They could lead a new round of ETF competition according to a previous report.

In 2023 and the first quarter of 2024, HKEX introduced 16 new ETFs, increasing the total offerings to 179. HKEX planned to diversify its product offerings and enhancing its position in the global market.

“We look forward to continue working closely with our stakeholders with a view to launching more products to our international marketplace,” stated Roberts.

The post Hong Kong Launches Asia’s First Spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs appeared first on Cryptonews.

In its first-quarter earnings report, the software firm reported operating expenses included impairment losses on the company’s digital assets, which stood at $191.6 million during the first quarter of 2024, compared to $18.9 million in the first quarter of 2023. Impairment is an expense that reflects the fact that the value of an asset has dropped below its cost basis.

MicroStrategy reported revenue of $115.2 million, down 5% year-over-year. The firm reported operating expenses for the first quarter of 2024 were $288.9 million, a 152.8% increase compared to the first quarter of 2023.

MicroStrategy Bitcoin Holdings in 2024

The vast majority of the company’s wealth is held in Bitcoin. MicroStrategy’s total Bitcoin holdings now stand at 214,400 at a total cost of $7.54 billion, or $35,180 per Bitcoin, as of April 26, 2024. The firm reported since the end of the fourth quarter 25,250 Bitcoins have been acquired for $1.65 billion, or $65,232 per Bitcoin.

In April, @MicroStrategy acquired an additional 122 BTC for $7.8 million and now holds 214,400 BTC. Please join us at 5pm ET as we discuss our Q1 2024 financial results and answer questions about the outlook for #BusinessIntelligence and #Bitcoin. $MSTR https://t.co/h40yyrgEb0

— Michael Saylor (@saylor) April 29, 2024

“In the first quarter, we raised over $1.5 billion by executing again on our capital markets strategy including two successful convertible debt offerings. We acquired 25,250 additional Bitcoins since the end of the fourth quarter, our 14th consecutive quarter of adding more Bitcoin to our balance sheet,” said said Andrew Kang, Chief Financial Officer, MicroStrategy in a press release.

In its earnings report, MicroStrategy acknowledged that the approval of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the U.S. played a significant part in the price of Bitcoin price appreciating and has increased institutional demand and resulted in further regulatory clarity.

In March, MicroStrategy executive chairman and co-founder Michael Saylor said he sees no reason to sell any of his Bitcoin anytime soon, adding that the approval of a spot Bitcoin ETFs is a rising tide that is going to lift all boats – this phrase is metaphorically associated with the idea that as the market improves this will benefit all participants.

The post MicroStrategy Reports Net Loss of $53.1M in Q1 of 2024 and Yearly Revenue Decline of 5% appeared first on Cryptonews.

In an announcement, Omnity said its interoperability protocol is built on the Internet Computer (ICP). This is integrated with Runes, an Unspent Transaction Output (UTXO) Bitcoin metaprotocol that allows for the trade of fungible tokens on Bitcoin.

Bitcoin Halving Brought an Unprecedented Spike in Fees

Since the Bitcoin halving it is estimated Runes have contributed to up to 68% of Bitcoin transactions, however, the fees earned by Bitcoin miners have started to dwindle.

Like BRC-20s, Runes is a protocol that uses the Bitcoin network. It pays fees in Bitcoin to generate new tokens.  Runes uses the UTXO model to “etch” new tokens on Bitcoin. This contrasts with Ordinals’ “inscription” account model, according to a protocol explainer from Rodarmor. 

Omnity Protocol said this integration aims to allow the trading of Rune tokens without gas or transaction fees. It allows for token swaps without having to rely on risky cross-chain bridges.  Omnity claims to be the first protocol to support Runes interoperability. The protocol integrates Runes and offloads the burden of native Bitcoin transactions onto ICP.

Since its launch on April 20th, Runes has processed more than 2.38 million transactions, according to a Dune Analytics dashboard shared by blockchain research firm Crypto Koryo.

“As champions of blockchain’s mission to protect public goods, we’re proud to leverage the Internet Computer to alleviate congestion on the Bitcoin network,” said Louis Liu, founder of Omnity, in a press release.

“This enhances Runes transaction efficiency and also cuts costs, which supports the scalability and economic functions of Bitcoin,” said Liu.

Understanding Internet Computer (ICP)

ICP is the native cryptocurrency for Internet Computer. Omnity said its cross-chain integration uses ICP’s “Chain Fusion Technology” which allows the network to read and write to Bitcoin. 

“ICP’s on-chain Bitcoin integration is essential because it brings smart contract functionality to Bitcoin without having to trust wrapped BTC from centralized bridging services, opening up new possibilities for DeFi and Dapp development without congesting the Bitcoin network and driving up transaction fees,” said Omnity in a press release.

The post Omnity Protocol Launches New Integration for Low Fee Runes Trading appeared first on Cryptonews.

This latest funding will be used by GFAL to expand its core team and speed up its production plans. The investment round builds on the $4.4 million in capital from token pre-sales that the company said it obtained in 2023 through GFAL’s token offering.

The team behind GFAL team includes team members who held positions at King Entertainment, Activision Blizzard, Electronic Arts, Netflix and Digital Chocolate. 

GFAL’s token, $GFAL, is currently sitting at a fully diluted valuation (FDV) of $254,717,017 after one of the most impressive token launches of 2023, said the firm.

Elemental Raiders Showing Growth 

Funding will go towards the launch of GFAL’s mobile game, “Elemental Raiders ” which soft-launched in March 2023. Elemental Raiders has a growing community of players and is seeing a steady improvement in the performance and the metrics of the game, said the gaming firm.

 “I’ve been very impressed with the GFAL team’s design-centred approach to Web3 gaming, and I am delighted to join my friends Trip Hawkins and Ilkka Paananen [CEO of Supercell Ltd] in this financing round to support Elemental Raiders and other titles,” said VC Mitch Lasky in a press release. 

Web3 Gaming Growth 2024

In 2024, web3 gaming is growing rapidly with the space attracting more VC investment. In 2023, it is estimated that the blockchain gaming-related rounds reached $1.7 billion which is a significant part of that has flowed to the 270 blockchain games in development on Immutable.

Recently King River Capital, blockchain gaming firm Immutable and Polygon Labs announced they had teamed up to launch a $100 million gaming fund.

Web3 gaming platform Elixir Games raised $14 million in a seed funding round from Square Enix, the Solana Foundation, Shima Capital, and others. The funding will be used by Elixir Games to launch its native token “$ELIX” and its “Launchpad & Incubation Program” which go live later this year.

Illuvium announced it had raised $12 million in a series A funding round with contributions from investors such as Australian venture capital firm King River Capital, Arrington Capital and Animoca Ventures.

The post Web3 Gaming Startup GFAL Raises $3.2M in Funding Round Led by Supercell and Mitch Lasky appeared first on Cryptonews.

The cautionary words came from Kim Dae-kyung, a tax accountant at the Hana Bank Asset Management group’s Asset Management Consulting Center. Kim published the warning in an article for the media outlet Money S.

South Koreans Warned: Declare or Face Consequences

Crypto trading profits are not subject to any form of taxation in South Korea, provided this trading is done on domestic platforms.

As of next year, that is slated to change. A new law will require traders to file capital gains declarations and pay tax on profits over a threshold of around $2,100.

However, Kim explained that cryptoassets held on platforms outside South Korea are already considered “overseas assets.”

Failure to declare these assets on Financial Year 2023-2024 tax declarations could be considered tax law violations, Kim wrote.

The tax expert wrote that “overseas financial account” declarations must be completed by the end of June this year.

These such declarations were mandatory per the terms of the Income Tax Act.

The act stipulates that “if the total balance of overseas financial institution accounts exceeds [$363,000],” South Korean residents “must fulfill the obligation to report overseas financial accounts by June 30.”

Failure to Declare Crypto Could Result in Fines or Prosecution, Expert Warns

The expert added that until recently, tax bodies were relatively powerless to identify overseas assets. They relied entirely on voluntary declarations for their information, Kim wrote.

However, Kim noted that as of 2014, South Korean tax bodies have been exchanging data with their counterparts in the USA and other OECD nations.

As such, Kim wrote that the National Tax Service can now access all of “an individual’s overseas account information.”

Tightening global regulation of crypto exchanges has extended this to token wallets. Data sharing between international exchanges is now mandatory in many areas.

Kim noted that fines for “non-reporting” are“very large,” at “approximately 10-20% of the [wallet] balance.”

If crypto traders fail to report details of wallets containing over $3.6 million worth of assets, they could face criminal prosecution.

Lawmakers added crypto-specific clauses to the tax code in December 2020. These specifically cover “accounts opened overseas to trade cryptoassets.”

https://t.co/0ODFiUuW3F delays Korean market entry indefinitelyhttps://t.co/0wH9g3SCmZ

— The Korea Times (@koreatimescokr) April 24, 2024

President Yoon Suk-yeol has previously pledged to raise the tax threshold for domestic crypto trading profits to around $41,000.

The post South Koreans Warned to Declare Overseas Crypto Exchange Holdings appeared first on Cryptonews.

Dogecoin was last changing hands in the mid-$0.14s, having bounced from $0.14 support on Monday.

The subdued tone to trade will have disappointed some. Monday was actually the day that Dogecoin futures launched on Coinbase, the largest US crypto exchange.

Today is the amended date Coinbase is supposed to launch #Dogecoin futures pic.twitter.com/qJMHP6G9I4

— Crypto Daily Trade Signals (@cryptodailyTS) April 30, 2024

For now, with macro risks in focus, price could continue ebbing lower. Recent data out of the US has shown weaker-than-expected growth, but hotter-than-expected inflation.

That’s a bad combination for risk assets and complicates the outlook for Fed rate cuts.

Indeed, fading rate cut bets has been one reason for major cryptos losing bullish momentum in recent weeks.

Dogecoin could easily retest its mid-March and mid-April lows in the $0.12-13 area.

That being said, the long-term outlook remains robust for the meme coin.

Can Dogecoin Hit $3.80?

Dogecoin remains the undisputed king of meme coins and is unlikely to lose this position thanks to Musk’s ongoing backing.

Its not unsurprising then that traders continue predicting big things for Dogecoin.

One X user predicted that the coming bull cycle could launch DOGE as high as $3.80.

In all of #Dogecoins bull cycles it has never failed to meet or surpass the 1.618 Macro FIB extension measured from previous bull market highs to bear market lows. The current 1.618 FIB on #DOGE currently sits at $3.80. While I think this can be more difficult to achieve then… pic.twitter.com/9UE0rE3zCY

— Kevin (@Kev_Capital_TA) April 26, 2024

That’s based on analysis that Dogecoin has always hit the 1.618 Fibonacci extension measured from the prior bull market high to the most recent bear market lows.

While the outlook for Dogecoin is strong, traders are still eager to diversify into other high-potential projects.

One project that Dogecoin investors are turning to is exciting virtual reality ICO 5thScape. Here’s why 5thScape is generating excitement.

5thScape – Is This Exciting Virtual Reality ICO 2024’s Best Opportunity?

5thScape has been attracting a lot of attention recently, with

5thScape is a first-of-its-kind crypto-powered VR/AR project, and investors are betting it will become a market leader.

At least, that’s what the project’s surging presale seems to suggest. 5thScape has already raised north of $5.6 million.

The token is priced at $0.00327, a steep discount from its planned launch price of $0.1. Investors who get involved now can lock in potential gains of 200%.

Given its total token supply of 5.1 billion, investors who get in now are essentially buying into the project at a market cap of $16 million.

If 5thScape starts to gain traction as a market leader, it could easily become a $100+ million market cap coin.

If it was to reach a $300 million market cap, which isn’t that much to ask midway through a crypto bull run, that would mean over 1,700% gains for presale investors.

$5SCAPE token can be bought today with ETH, MATIC, USDT, BNB, or card.

80% of the total token supply is available for purchase in the presale.

Buy 5SCAPE Here

Here’s why 5SCAPE is one of popular crypto presale analyst Michael Wrubel’s top picks for 2024.

The post Dogecoin Investors Turn To This Exciting Virtual Reality ICO, Chasing Potential 1,700% Profits appeared first on Cryptonews.

An executive at China AMC was confident that Hong Kong’s first day of issuance could best that of the US.

China AMC is pretty confident that HK can outdo the US in bitcoin ETF flows and volume on Day One (which starts in a few hrs). Also says other regions like Singapore and Middle East could seek out the ETFs altho confirmed off limits for China mainland invs https://t.co/J2YwF9LMZU pic.twitter.com/TRXRNNthBC

— Eric Balchunas (@EricBalchunas) April 29, 2024

China AMC is one of the issuers of the new ETFs in Hong Kong.

Whether that will be enough to drastically shift the narrative for Bitcoin and Ether remains to be seen.

Bitcoin remains locked near the mid-point of its multi-month $60,000-$74,000ish range.

Ether, meanwhile, remains locked in a gradual downtrend from its March highs.

Macro remains a headwind for crypto right now. Recent data out of the US has shown weaker-than-expected growth, but hotter-than-expected inflation.

That’s a bad combination for risk assets and complicates the outlook for Fed rate cuts.

Indeed, fading rate cut bets has been one reason for major cryptos losing bullish momentum in recent weeks.

With blue-chip cryptos likely to continue trading with a lack of impetus, on-chain markets are becoming more attractive.

That’s because on-chain markets are highly illiquid and volatile. Traders can quickly lose everything.

But just as quickly, if they are smart/lucky, traders can make a small fortune.

On-chain markets refer to the tokens that are issued directly on-chain.

Most are scams and pump-and-dumps. But hidden in the mountain of excrement, traders can sometimes stumble across gems and bag big gains.

Here are some top crypto gainers today that traders will be monitoring, as per DEX monitoring DEXScreener.

Top Crypto Gainers Today

Three Protocol Token (THREE)

An overly complicated and difficult-to-understand AI shitcoin called Three Protocol Token (THREE) is pumping since its Monday launch.

It was last up over 280,000% in the past 24 hours, as per DEXScreener, with $15 million market cap.

The token has around $570,000 in locked liquidity.

Liquidity Locked!

The liquidity on UniSwap for the $THREE token has just been locked for 18 months on @UNCX_token

Locker: https://t.co/NyNlMPJ3Cf

Trade $THREE with complete confidence: https://t.co/dHyZhuiDfX pic.twitter.com/pA46L7kyN0

— Three Protocol – Jobs3 (@ThreeProtocol) April 29, 2024

But that doesn’t mean the token won’t be a rug pull or scam. Indeed, it has three concerning aspects to its smart contract, including a 100% sell tax.

BNDR ($SWIPES)

Project discovery app BNDR ($SWIPES) had a strong first day of trade on Monday.

Some Numbers

Within 3 hours $Swipes has reached:

+$1,500,000 Volume
+250 Holders

Discover Your Next Project, In Just A Few $Swipes pic.twitter.com/25rWPcwhZI

— Bndr.ai (@Bndr_AI_) April 29, 2024

As per DEXScreener, it already has a market cap of $26.6 million and $560,000 in locked liquidity.

Liquidity successfully locked!

This move demonstrates our dedication to transparency and building a strong foundation for $Swipes

Liquidity Locked: https://t.co/oZYq61hDXr pic.twitter.com/pMcC9nsb3D

— Bndr.ai (@Bndr_AI_) April 30, 2024

Over 300 unique wallets have already traded the token, which has already seen over $1.6 million in 24-hour trading volumes.

But the token has a concerning seven issues with its smart contract, as per Go+ Security. It could easily be a highly sophisticated and well-executed pump-and-dump scheme.

America (AMERICA)

A new meme coin based on the USA has seen a 13,000% pump since its launch, as per DEXScreener.

It last had a market cap of around $660,000, with $85,000 in locked liquidity.

The meme coin doesn’t appear to have any major smart contract issues and liquidity is locked.

That being said, this token has no clear utility and is probably just a pump-and-dump. Traders who buy this token could quickly lose everything.

Alternatives to Consider – Crypto Presales

Investing in the on-chain markets is fraught with risk.

An alternative often overlooked but frequently profitable crypto investment strategy is investing in presales.

Up-and-coming web3 projects often conduct ICOs in order to raise funds for project development.

To attract early interest/investors to their project, they usually sell these tokens at a very low market cap.

That offers presale investors the chance to make big gains.

With so many projects vying for investor funds, it can be tough to know where to start.

Luckily, analysts at Cryptonews.com spend a lot of time combing through the altcoin market in search of high-potential projects.

Here are some of their favorite picks in the market right now.

21 Best Crypto Presale Projects for April 2024

Alternatively, see Cryptonews analyst Crypto Arjay’s top picks in the below video.

The post Top Crypto Gainers Today on DEXScreener – THREE, $SWIPES, AMERICA appeared first on Cryptonews.

Mollars initial coin offering is surging in presales while on it’s way to the event’s closeout. The new store-of-value asset, deemed  the ‘Bitcoin for Ethereum blockchain,’  will complete its ICO stage on May 1st.  But before the deadline,  the founder is now stirring up controversy over the ‘secret’ wallets of Satoshi Nakamoto and Ryoshi; founders of Bitcoin (BTC) and Shiba Inu (SHIB) cryptocurrencies.

It’s only a single one-line question, but it’s powerful. 

“Everytime you cash out those free tokens, someone has to lose. Doesn’t that bother you?”

That’s the question posed in a video short reel, shared on the Mollars YouTube channel today.

Bitcoin & Shiba Inu Founders Disappeared On These Questions

In the new animated video, Bitcoin’s founder Satoshi Nakamoto disappears before responding.    

Ryoshi, founder of Shiba Inu (SHIB) token, responds to the question with another question; he diverts the focus of the topic by asking Mollars’ founder can he refer the question to Shiba Inu’s lead developer, Shytoshi.

This question is being posed because Mollars will be one of the first tokens of its kind and the creator  nor developers involved will be issued free tokens.   The complete total minted supply of $MOLLARS tokens will be sold.

Someone has to lose for #Bitcoin & #ShibaInu founders to cash out their tokens. This is why the total token supply of Mollars will be sold on an equal opportunity basis.

Nobody gets tokens free from the #Mollars supply. Everyone has equal interests in the project.… pic.twitter.com/qyONGWuiwU

— Mollars (@mollarstoken) April 29, 2024

Why is it a good thing that Mollars total token supply is being sold?

This is a significant topic because all tokens that are liquidated [sold] must be paid for by someone’s cash.     

If cryptocurrency founders stash massive amounts of tokens for themselves during the creation process of a cryptocurrency, free of charge,  other peoples’ investments into the brand will give those tokens value.   The money invested will be split between the total token supply, suddenly giving that founder the ability to withdraw the value of each token sold. 

Since the founder paid nothing for the tokens, they lost nothing.

However, the investor that bought into the cryptocurrency will see a fraction of their token(s) value disappear from that owner selling his stashed coins.   Now in the hole, the only way for that investor’s funds to recover is a new crypto seafish swimming in and buying tokens, adding to the market cap of the cryptocurrency.

In layman’s terms, if the crypto founder held 2 tokens, then an investor comes and buys 2 tokens, the value of the 4 tokens becomes half of the 2 the investor paid.  Not exactly, but that’s the gist.   The owner gains something for nothing and the investors’ lose.

How much money does Satoshi Make From Bitcoin?

Mollars token founder is calling this topic out to highlight the 1-million Bitcoins that Satoshi Nakamoto kept for himself and the 17% of Shiba Inu (SHIB) token’s supply that Ryoshi and Shytoshi kept for themselves in stashed wallets.     

Bitcoin traders are now funding the $62-billion-dollar wallet of Satoshi Nakamoto.  Everytime he cashes in 1 Bitcoin, at today’s rate, some $BTC Investors will lose $62,0000 — a slow rug pull.

What’s Ryoshi & Shytoshi making from Shiba Inu?

Shiba Inu’s founder and lead developer held a token supply that was worth around $1-Billion dollars at one point..  If Ryoshi and Shytoshi decide to completely cashout their ‘secret’ wallets, that $1,000,000,000 would have to be drained from the wallets of investors who know nothing about these stashed, owner self-gifted coins.

Mollars token will have none of this ‘murky’ underlying instability.    Instead, the team of professionals behind the rival for Bitcoin, will get paid an appropriate salary from ICO funds.   Neither during nor after the Mollars token presale, will anyone be gifted tokens.

Expect a sellout

THere will be 10-million $MOLLARS tokens minted for eternity.  All of these tokens will be sold through equal opportunity buying exchanges.   WIth over 2.6-Million ‘coins’ of the Mollars brand already acquired, it’s likely the full 10M will sell out, and rather faster than slower.

Mollars is also set to launch a decentralized cryptocurrency exchange via Mollars.CC that should add to the scarcity and value of the token as well.    Set to launch shortly after the first crypto exchange listing, the new DEX will depend on $MOLLARS to complete cross-chain exchanges.

Watch the controversial video released by Mollars below.  It’s been viewed thousands of times on social media platform X already..

The post Mollars token creator sends animated ‘warning’ about Shiba Inu & Bitcoin founders appeared first on Cryptonews.

Per the media outlets Finam and RBC, Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Information Policy Anton Gorelkin confirmed that the State Duma will debate a new mining law in the current session.

Russian Law to Change Nation’s Crypto Mining Sector?

It appears that the mining bill will be bundled with proposed crypto regulation that would effectively ban crypto exchanges from operating in Russia.

Certain exceptions will be made for companies operating in a Central Bank-supervised sandbox.

However, the bank appears to have made this concession exclusively for international trade firms that use crypto in place of USD in international trade deals.

Industrial miners, it appears, may also be allowed access to these Moscow-controlled exchanges under the new proposals.

But they will only be allowed to use these platforms to sell their tokens.

Gorelkin explained that the new bill proposes that “only Russian firms and business operators who have obtained permission” will be allowed to continue mining.

Lawmakers have previously said they hope the bill will be adopted in the coming weeks, and that it will come into force on September 1.

Permit System to Roll Out

Gorelkin added that “individuals who do not exceed energy consumption limits established by the government” would be free to mine coins “without applying for permits.”

This would be a step back from previous efforts to ban all forms of non-industrial crypto mining.

However, it remains to be seen what the proposed energy consumption caps would be. Russian energy providers have been cracking down on illegal mining operations in recent months, an indication that their tolerance threshold for home-based miners may already be low.

Industrial miners will also be obliged to provide reports on their activities to Rosfinmonitoring, the nation’s anti-money laundering agency.

Overseas Crypto Exchanges to Play a Role?

Interestingly, perhaps, Gorelkin also made remarks about industrial miners being allowed to sell coins “without the use of Russian information infrastructure.”

This could be a reference to overseas crypto exchanges. Previous efforts to regulate crypto mining in Russia centered around the idea of forcing domestic firms to sell their coins on foreign trading platforms.

The Central Bank thinks that this policy would help keep crypto “out of the domestic economy.”

The bank has made this a priority demand, as it attempts to fast-track its digital ruble project.

Exclusive: As China's big banks pull back from financing Russia-related transactions, some Chinese companies are turning to small banks on the border and underground financing channels such as money brokers and banned cryptocurrency https://t.co/GLmIBNPaHR

— Reuters (@Reuters) April 29, 2024

The bill also appears to hand a certain degree of power to energy providers and local government bodies.

In the past, officials in mining hotspots like Irkutsk have complained that miners are placing excessive pressure on their grids.

Gorelkin explained that the proposed law “includes the possibility of giving the Russian government the right to ban mining activities in certain regions.”

However, he conceded, there is still much to “debate” about the possible “terms and scope” of such “bans.”

Cryptominers rack up big B5m unpaid electricity bill https://t.co/fbR8ywG3Uc

— Malcolm Carter (@MalcolmThailand) April 29, 2024

Experts Unsure About New Bill

Russian law experts expressed mixed opinions about the news. RBC quoted Yuri Brisov, a partner at the legal consultancy Digital and Analogue Partners, as noting that lawmakers have tried – and failed – to regulate mining before.

The latest effort appears to be the result of intensive lobbying from the industrial mining sector.

And despite talk of adopting the bill in time for a September rollout, Brisov said that lawmakers would need to revise the draft law before a vote. He explained:

“This bill is already the eighth attempt to create a mining law. It is very crude, even the definition of mining is hastily set out. The writing is terrible. There is little chance that it will be accepted in its current form.”

The post New Russian Law Will Legalize Industrial Crypto Miners, Limit Private Mining appeared first on Cryptonews.

The investigation examined over 25 exploits across various blockchains and traced illicitly gained funds through mixers, peer-to-peer marketplaces, and centralized exchanges to show how the funds were removed from the crypto ecosystem.

North Korean Lazarus Group Implicated in Laundering Over $200 Million in Stolen Cryptocurrency

1/ How Lazarus Group laundered $200M from 25+ crypto hacks to fiat from 2020 – 2023https://t.co/s8zNFwlamb

— ZachXBT (@zachxbt) April 29, 2024

These illicit funds were obtained through over 25 crypto hacks allegedly orchestrated by the Lazarus Group, which has gained infamy since its emergence in 2009. The group reportedly stole over $3 billion in crypto assets over the six years leading up to 2023.

“Thousands of people in the space have been impacted directly and indirectly by Lazarus Group attacks, and it seems that number will only continue to increase,” ZachXBT wrote on X.

The North Korean hackers allegedly laundered the stolen digital assets using a combination of crypto mixing services and peer-to-peer (P2P) marketplaces. 

The crypto sleuth pointed out that at least $44 million of stolen cryptocurrency has been laundered through the Paxul and Noones P2P marketplaces, utilizing usernames such as “EasyGoatfish351” and “FairJunco470.” These usernames exhibited deposit and trading patterns consistent with the movement of stolen funds.

Further analysis indicates that the hacked funds were predominantly converted into the USDT stablecoin before being exchanged for fiat currencies and subsequently withdrawn. The Lazarus Group has historically relied on over-the-counter traders in China to convert cryptocurrency into fiat currencies.

In November 2023, Tether blacklisted over $374,000 worth of stolen funds associated with the Lazarus Group. Additionally, three out of four stablecoin issuers have reportedly blacklisted an additional $3.4 million sitting in a cluster of addresses linked to Lazarus, as per ZachXBT’s findings.

North Korea-Linked Hacks Account for $2.4 Billion in Cryptocurrency Losses Since 2020

According to data from the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and DeFiLlama, more than 70% of the cryptocurrency lost to North Korea-linked hacks since 2020 was attributed to exploits involving compromised private keys.

The combined findings indicate that North Korea was implicated in approximately $2.4 billion worth of crypto heists since 2020, with $1.69 billion attributed to thefts resulting from compromised private keys.

Exposing Lazarus: The Group That Stole $200 Million in Crypto

Lazarus Group Crypto Heists Uncovered

Who Are They?
#Lazarus Group, linked to North Korea, known since 2009 for major cyberattacks (e.g., Sony Pictures).
Shifted focus to crypto-sector from 2020-2023.
… pic.twitter.com/fA5LCST6Yz

— Crypto Patel (@CryptoPatel) April 29, 2024

In a report published last month, the UNSC documented investigations into 58 crypto heists with suspected North Korean involvement dating back to 2017. These hacks amounted to approximately $3 billion, with $700 million stolen during 2023 alone.

Blockchain forensics firm Chainalysis reported a higher figure in January, however, estimating that North Korea-linked hacks accounted for $1 billion of the $1.7 billion total stolen in 2020. Interestingly, despite increased activity by North Korean hackers in 2023, they absconded $700 million less than the preceding year.

Approximately $1.7 billion worth of funds were stolen from the cryptocurrency space across 231 hacks. DeFiLlama and UNSC data analysis also revealed a decline in the overall amount of crypto hacked from protocols, dropping to $1.53 billion in 2023 from $3.28 billion in 2022. This trend also contrasts with 2021’s figure of $2.34 billion.

The decrease in losses could signify project security improvements or be influenced by market conditions. Experts caution that hacking volume may surge again with favorable market conditions and the continued growth of the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector, however.

The post North Korean Lazarus Group Allegedly Laundered Over $200 Million in Stolen Crypto from 2020 to 2023 appeared first on Cryptonews.

ALGO was down around 2% on Monday, just below $0.19, having reached as high as $0.2650 last Wednesday.

The Algorand Foundation, the group behind the development of the Algorand blockchain, hosted the closing party for ETH Boston 2024.

Hey Boston #AlgoFam!

The @AlgoFoundation is cohosting the closing party for@ETHBoston 2024 alongside @TheBostonDAO!

Join us for a fun night with passionate, multi-chain developers and crypto enthusiasts!

Register for free https://t.co/GDz32s3elD pic.twitter.com/al4lHvKkep

— Algorand Foundation (@AlgoFoundation) April 25, 2024

Despite Algorand taking center stage at ETH Denver, Algorand’s price didn’t react much.

The token has been more or less glued to its 21DMA in the past few days, which is around $0.1930, and the ALGO price is currently just below it.

Wednesday’s sudden spike appears to have been a fake-out.

The Algorand price continues to hold to the north of a key technical level that could signal an imminent upside, however.

Here’s what to keep an eye on.

Algorand Price Prediction – Watch This Key Level

The Algorand price has lost bullish momentum since last week’s spike.

Indeed, it has even now fallen all the way back to last week’s opening levels.

The technical picture has brightened since last week, however, when the Algorand price surged above a downtrend that had been in play since mid-March.

Despite losing momentum in subsequent days, ALGO has been able to hold above this prior downtrend.

This downtrend appears to have flipped from resistance to support, and the ALGO price risks now appear tilted to the upside.

Of course, upcoming macro risks this week could dampen optimism and weigh on the price.

Recent data has shown inflation running uncomfortably hot in the USA, hurting the outlook for Fed rate cuts.

There are signs of a slowing economy, but this isn’t yet helping inflation.

This week’s US PMI/US jobs reports will be closely watched in the Fed rate cut debate context.

The Fed is also set to meet on Wednesday and is likely to reiterate its patience regarding cuts.

Macro may still be a headwind this week. And the above-noted optimistic technical outlook could easily break down if ALGO falls back to its April lows.

Can ALGO Reach $2.0?

Macro risks aside, things could fall into place for an altcoin rebound.

Ethereum gas fees recently hit six-month lows, a lead indicator of a possible altcoin rebound.

“Traders historically move between sentimental cycles of feeling that #crypto is going “To the Moon” or feeling that “It Is Dead”, which can be observed through transaction fees,” the crypto analytics firm Santiment argued. “The lack of demand and strain on the network may help turn $ETH and associated #altcoins around sooner…”

#Ethereum's average fee level has dipped to just $1.12 per network transaction, the lowest average cost in a day since October 18th.

Traders historically move between sentimental cycles of feeling that #crypto is going "To the Moon" or feeling that "It Is Dead", which can… pic.twitter.com/8b8rLMLyIf

— Santiment (@santimentfeed) April 28, 2024

So, could the next altcoin pump launch the Algorand price all the way to $2?

Algorand’s market cap is currently around $1.5 billion. A 10x rally to a market cap of $15 billion is certainly not out of the question.

Algorand will need to see growth in its network activity and adoption to deserve such appreciation, however.

As per DeFi Llama, the blockchain currently has just below $180 million in trade value locked (TVL).

This will need to push above $1 billion for an ALGO rally to really get going.

ADA Alternative to Consider – Mega Dice Casino (DICE)

Crypto investors looking for investments with greater upside potential should consider presale investing.

Up-and-coming web3 projects and protocols often sell their native tokens at a discount to early investors to raise funds.

Presale investing is a risky game, similar to start-up investing. A project could fail to deliver on its vision for any reason, ranging from bad management to bad fortune.

If presale investors can find a good project that gains traction in the market, 10x is easily possible.

One project that analysts at Cryptonews are a big fan of is Mega Dice Casino.

This already well-established crypto casino has just launched a presale of its utility token DICE.

DICE holders get big cashback benefits on their wagers and can generate passive income via DICE staking.

The crypto casino is also running a series of exciting airdrops to reward early presale investors.

How to qualify:

– Register or have an account with https://t.co/xVgEFmzqv1 or https://t.co/QhS5uUOKEb.
– Wager in any cryptocurrency to meet the $5000 wagering requirement.
– The more you wager, the bigger your airdrop will be – capped at $37 500 per player.

— Mega Dice Casino (@megadice) April 22, 2024

The project is already close to raising $500,000. Potential investors might want to move quickly, as the DICE price will increase when the $1 million milestone is hit.

$DICE has raised over $500,000 in presale so far!

Thank you to each and every one of you for being part of our journey!

Next up, $1 million! pic.twitter.com/N94CDeHBOh

— Mega Dice Casino (@megadice) April 25, 2024

Check Out Mega Dice Casino’s Presale

Alternatively, see why well-respected crypto presale analyst Michael Wrubel is bullish on DICE for 2024.

The post Algorand Price Prediction as Community Gathers At ETH Boston – Can ALGO Reach $2? appeared first on Cryptonews.

USDC Stablecoin Recorded $456 billion in transaction volume

The adjusted stablecoin metric data reveals that Circle’s USDC stablecoin has been gaining market share, recording a transaction volume of $456 billion last week compared to Tether’s USDT at $89 billion.

USDC stablecoin also accounted for a 50% share of total transactions since January.

The data report did not specify the reasons behind the surge in USDC transaction volume, however.

Despite the increase in USDC transaction volume, Tether is still the dominant force in the stablecoin market. The USDT stablecoin accounts for over 68% of the market share with a market cap of over $100 billion.

Crypto analyst Noelle Acheson offered Bloomberg an insight into USDC’s meteoric rise in transaction volume, noting that USDT is primarily held outside the US as a dollar-based store of value. In contrast, USDC stablecoin is predominantly used within the US as a transaction currency.

USDC Stablecoin Continues Growth Rebound After 2023 US Banking Setback

The increase in USDC volumes follows a series of back-to-back stablecoin adoption.

Stripe, a major player in digital payments, reintroduced cryptocurrency payments recently, with a specific focus on the USDC stablecoin. The USDC payment integration is set to launch in the summer of 2024.

Stripe’s announcement, coupled with PayPal’s launch of its stablecoin PYUSD and Shopify’s acceptance of stablecoin payments, indicates a growing adoption of USDC and other stablecoin assets in mainstream transactions.

Meanwhile, Binance converted its $1 billion Secure Asset Fund for Users (SAFU) to USDC stablecoin on April 18 in a bid to bolster the fund’s reliability and ensure SAFU balance value remains the same despite market volatility.

Meanwhile, the US Congress is considering stablecoin legislation, with the potential for stablecoin adoption to continue to increase as the regulatory environment solidifies.

The post Circle’s USDC Stablecoin Surpasses Tether’s USDT in Transaction Volume appeared first on Cryptonews.

According to a complaint made by Consensys Software Inc., the SEC Director of Enforcement Gurbir Grewal launched an investigation into “Ethereum 2.0” on March 28, 2023, over “possible offers and sales, since at least 2018, of “certain securities, including, but not limited to ETH, as to which no registration statement was or is in effect … and for which no exemption was or is available.”

SEC And Gary Gensler Thought ETH Was A Security

The filing seemingly contradicts the federal agency’s prior stance on ETH, which included approving ETH Future ETFs in October 2023.

1/14

Some folks are confused, as to why the SEC "Eth is a security timeline" and the "Futures ETF" is bad for the SEC.

Here's a quick breakdown of why it paints Gensler into a corner:

— Adam Cochran (adamscochran.eth) (@adamscochran) April 29, 2024

Gensler, who has previously stayed quiet over ETH’s classification status, has long faced scrutiny for the agency’s regulation-by-enforcement approach.

Most notably, in June 2028, the SEC’s then-Director of Corporation Finance, Bill Hinman, gave an infamous speech alleging that ETH was not a security.

“The SEC staff has communicated to Consensys that the agency is investigating whether Consensys’ current offers and sales of ETH — transactions carried out from its own holdings as part of its normal treasury operations — are securities transactions,” the filing read. “And the staff recently requested that Consensys make a “proffer” to the SEC to state why Consensys believes its ETH sales are not securities transactions.”

After Ethereum 2.0 Investigation, Will The SEC Take Action?

Prior to the news of Monday’s court filings, blockchain development company Consensys formally filed litigation against the commission for its attempt to regulate ETH as a security.

Today, Consensys filed a lawsuit against the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The goal behind this is to ensure that Ethereum remains a vibrant and indispensable blockchain platform and to preserve access for the countless developers, market participants, and institutions…

— Consensys (@Consensys) April 25, 2024

In a blog post by Consensys founder Joe Lubin, the Ethereum founder argued that “the SEC should not be allowed to arbitrarily expand its jurisdiction to include regulating the future of the internet” and that the federal agency’s “reckless approach is bringing chaos to developers, market participants, institutions, and nations who are building or already managing critical systems running on Ethereum.”

In recent weeks, reports emerged that numerous companies linked to the Ethereum Foundation have been subpoenaed to provide information on the Swiss non-profit.

Similarly, in March, a comment posted in the foundation’s GitHub repository showed that the organization had been contacted by an unnamed “state authority.”

Having received a Wells notice on April 10, it appears to be only a matter of time before the SEC comes after Consensys legally.

The post SEC And Gary Gensler Believed Ether Was A Security For At Least A Year, New Court Docs Reveal appeared first on Cryptonews.

Here is our weekly collection of digital asset listing and delisting, trading pair-related announcements by crypto exchanges that we found last week and today.

Have we missed something? Do you have information about new listings and/or delistings? Let us know here.

_________________________________________

MEXC
Listings:
Nyan Cat (NCAT)
Vitruvian Nexus (VNPT)
BitMin Wallet (BMN)
Bowled (BWLD)
Evercraft (ECET)
KittenWifHat (KITTENWIF)
Breach Bitsat (AIBIT)
GODZ DAO (GODZ)
Gaimin (GMRX)
Defispot (SPOT)
Playbux (PBUX)
BRC-20 DEX (BD20)
Y8U.AI (Y8U)
BlackCardCoin (BCCOIN)
Hemule (HEMULE)
Ready to Fight (RTF)
Exverse (EXVG)
Speedy (SPEEDY)
Gummy (GUMMY)
Panda Swap (PANDA)
TrumpCat (TRUMPCAT)
Safe (SAFE)
Planet Mojo (MOJO)
Drive3 (DRV3)
Maneki (MANEKI)
Slerf NFT (SLERFNFT)
Cosmic Network (COSMIC)
RieDog (RIE)
StoryFire (BLAZE)
Letit Trade (LETIT)
PointPay (PXP)
Stake Vault Network (SVN)
EarlyFans (EARLY)
Worldwide Stablecoin Payment Network (WSPN)
AcornBits (ACORNBITS)
Ace Dog (AOG)
Digital Sat (SATXAI)
Star Fate (SFE)
Radiant (RXD)
Meson Network (MSN)
The Dork Lord (DLORD)
Shimmer (SMR)
Durov (DUROV)
CampusAI (CMAI)
Garfield Cat (GCAT)
WLDT Chain (WLDT)
Renzo (REZ)
Fluffys (FLUFF)
SNORT (SNORT)
Game of Memes (GOME)

KuCoin
Listings:
Playbux (PBUX)
LightLink (LL)
Safe (SAFE)
Gameta (HIP)
Meson Network (MSN)
Realio Network (RIO)

Bitrue
Listings:
Safe (SAFE)
Pulsara (SARA)
Satoshi Nakamoto (SATOSHI)
Dog Go to the Moon (DOG)
Runecoin (RUNE)
Maneki (MANEKI)

OKX
Listings:
Safe (SAFE)
Meson Network (MSN)

Poloniex
Listings:
Maneki (MANEKI)
Safe (SAFE)
Artrade (ATR)
Ski Mask Dog (SKI)
Noggles (NOGS)
Vulcan Forged (LAVA)
Ducke (DUCKE)
Elon (ELONETH)
Meson Network (MSN)
Yes But (YESBUT)
CatGPT (CATGPT)
Fluffys (FLUFF)
Based Bunny (BUNNY)
Coolman (COOL)
Michi (MICHI)

CoinEx
Listings:
Safe (SAFE)
Maneki (MANEKI)
Apeiron (APRS)
Pyrin Network (PYI)
Fjord Foundry (FJO)
Pacmoon (PAC)
Ore (ORE)
Fren Pet (FP)
Dog Go to the Moon (DOG)
Karrat (KARRAT)
Playbux (PBUX)
Keyboard Cat (KEYCAT)

Gate.io
Listings:
Safe (SAFE)
Dog Go to the Moon (DOG)
Meson Network (MSN)

BitMart
Listings:
CatGPT (CATGPT)
Seal (SEAL)
Layer One X (L1X)
Garfield Cat (GARFIELD)
GTA Token (GTA)
Britt (BRITT)
Orbitt (ORBT)
Playbux (PBUX)
TrumpCat (TRUMPCAT)
BeaVer (BVR)
Dogita (DOGITA)
Maneki (MANEKI)
Safe (SAFE)
KittenWifHat (KITTENWIF)
Baby Slerf (BABYSLERF)
Speedy (SPEEDY)
Fjord Foundry (FJO)
Doland Tremp (TREMP)
SOLBULL (SOLBULL)
Scorpion (SCORP)
Quby AI (QYAI)
Elon (ELON)
Basenji (BENJI)
Bitbama (BAMA)
Pandacoin Inu (PANDAS)
DOG•GO•TO•THE•MOON (DOG)
Meson Network (MSN)
Added Trading Pairs:
AKTIO/USDC

LBank
Listings:
Hedera Hashgraph (HBAR)
Theta Token (THETA)
Merlin Chain (MERL)
CatGPT (CATGPT)
Meson Network (MSN)
IZE Fintech Blockchain (IZE)
Renzo (REZ)
Golden MagFi (GMFI)
WebMind Network (WMN)
Bitcoin EDen Rich (BITBEDR)
Columbus (COBS)
Safe Token (SAFE1)
Maneki (MANEKI)
Ripplereum (RPRM)
MO (MO)
BitMinerX (BMX)
Golden MagFi (GMFI)
Renewable Energy Token (RETTOKEN)
Pepe Neko (PEKO)
Bitcoin 2 (BII)
Godefi Swap (GO20)
Electric Vehicle Direct Currency (EVDC)
SpacePi (SPACEPI)

P2B Crypto Exchange
Listings:
Certicos (CERT)
Black Card Coin (BCCOIN)
Elon Cat Finance (ECAT)
Solbull (SOLBULL)
Worldwide USD (WUSD)
AITTCOIN (AITT)

AscendEX
Listings:
Gummy (GUMMY)
Maneki (MANEKI)
DOTA (DOTA)
Nub Cat (NUB)
Father Of Meme Origin (FOMO)
Keyboard Cat (KEYCAT)
Noggles (NOGS)
Fluffys (FLUFF)
UBIX Network (UBX)
Meson Network (MSN)
RoboAI (RBAI)

CEX.io
Listings:
The Open Network (TON)
Dogwifcoin (WIF)

Crypto.com
Listings:
Karrat (KARRAT)
Safe (SAFE)
Maneki (MANEKI)
Crow with knife (CAR)

Crypto.com Institutional
Listings:
Karrat (KARRAT)
Crow with knife (CAW)

DigiFinex
Listings:
Real Carbon Zero Integration (RZI)

FINEXBOX
Listings:
Arbitrum (ARB)
Diamond Token (DIMT)

ProBit
Listings:
Unify Platform Token (UPT)
Delistings:
Askobar Network (ASKO)
Atari (ATRI)
Esports Players League (ARENA)
ShipItPro (SHPP)
Topcoin (TCT)
U-Pick (UPK)

VinDax
Listings:
Puppy Coin (PUP)
SD Coin (SDC)
Worldwide USD (WUSD)

WazirX
Listings:
Cat in a dogs world (MEW)
 

XT
Listings:
Nolus Protocol (NLS)
Flare Fox Inu (FLX)
Space Floki (SPACEFLOKI)
QuBy AI (QYAI)
Property System Platform (PS)

The post Crypto Exchange Listing and Delisting Announcements: April 29, 2024 appeared first on Cryptonews.

The April 29 achievement establishes Lido Finance as the largest decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol, boasting one million Ethereum validators and surpassing major players like Coinbase exchange, which holds 13.6% of staked Ether, according to Dune.

This surge in popularity can be attributed to the unique advantages liquid staking protocols like Lido offer users.

Users who stake their Ether with Lido receive the staked ETH (stETH) in return.

1 million validators pic.twitter.com/fELATWQPIu

— Lido (@LidoFinance) April 29, 2024

If they were to stake their Ether conventionally, their tokens would be locked and unusable for a certain period.

Liquid Staking is Fueling the Rise of DeFi

In the last quarter, the Total Value Locked (TVL) in Decentralized Finance (DeFi) increased by 65.6%, surging from a low of 436 billion in Q4 of 2023 to $97 billion in Q1 of 2024.

Currently, the price of DeFi TVL sits at $92.17 billion, according to DefiLlama.

Ethereum’s TVL growth of nearly 71% played a major role, primarily fueled by asset price increases and the practice of liquid restaking.

The total value locked (TVL) in liquid skating protocols has reached an impressive $47.7 billion, with Lido leading the pack by securing over $29.9 billion of that amount.

Concerns Regarding Lido Validators and Centralization

Crypto founders have recently voiced their worries about Lido’s growing dominance.

If a single staking token, like Lido’s stETH, becomes dominant under the DAO model, it creates a centralized point of control that is potentially vulnerable to attacks and governs a substantial portion of all Ethereum Lido validators.

Ethereum Co-Founder Vitalik Buterin has previously pointed out the potential centralization risks with Lido.

“With the DAO approach, if a single such staking token dominates, that leads to a single, potentially attackable governance gadget controlling a very large portion of all Ethereum validators,” he said.

The post Lido Finance Just Hit 1M Validators, But Can DeFi Really Take Over TradFi? appeared first on Cryptonews.

The recent price movement has sparked discussions and speculation among traders about the possibility of an upcoming altcoin season.

Is Bitcoin’s Price Recovery Enough to Fuel the Next Altseason?

Ahead of the April 28 weekly close, Bitcoin bounced past $64,000, and data indicates a strengthening of Bitcoin’s price over the weekend.

At the time of writing, Bitcoin hovers around $62,600, while the total altcoin market capitalization has seen a modest 1% increase, hinting at a potential positive trend for these alternative cryptocurrencies.

Trader and commentator Moustache predicted a full-fledged altcoin season, rivaling anything since the all-time highs in 2017.

Responding to the altcoin activity, popular trader Skew noted on X (formerly Twitter) that “Alts bounced nicely, but breaking the pattern of setting weekly highs on Mondays and Tuesdays remains crucial.”

Skew suggested that there is a possibility of sell-side pressure hindering Bitcoin’s progress towards its near-range highs.

The trader suggested that Tether is attempting to reclaim its position after breaking below a rising trendline earlier this year. This dip was merely a backtest.

According to his statement, there is an inverse relationship between the USDT (Tether) value and the value of altcoins.

Ethereum’s Possible Contribution To The Next Altcoin Season

Ethereum’s price has experienced a substantial drop over the past six months due to gas fees skyrocketing.

ETH has dropped 10.46% this month alone from its April 9 high of $3,722.

In the past week, Ether has seen a slight increase of 4.3% in the market, but still not enough to bounce back.

Analysts from crypto analytics platform Santiment suggested that the drop in Ethereum gas fees could potentially signal an upcoming altcoin season.

#Ethereum's average fee level has dipped to just $1.12 per network transaction, the lowest average cost in a day since October 18th.

Traders historically move between sentimental cycles of feeling that #crypto is going "To the Moon" or feeling that "It Is Dead", which can… pic.twitter.com/8b8rLMLyIf

— Santiment (@santimentfeed) April 28, 2024

According to Santiment’s X post, Ethereum’s average transaction fee has fallen as low as $1.12.

Santiment predicts a quicker turnaround for Ethereum and associated altcoins than expected due to the recent retracement and reduced demand on the network.

The post  Is the Next Altcoin Season Around The Corner? Some Traders Believe So appeared first on Cryptonews.

Bitcoin (BTC) slipped to fresh 10-day lows under $62,000 on Monday, now down nearly 7% from last week’s peaks.

It has since rebounded to $63,000, but a short-term downtrend remains in play.

Last week’s US GDP report for Q1 showed growth slowing to 1.6% annualized, down from 3.4% in Q4 2023.

But at the same time, inflation picked up in Q1, as shown in the latest US Core PCE report.

Moving a bit towards stagflation. Tough place for policy. pic.twitter.com/N4VHFp0toa

— Joseph Wang (@FedGuy12) April 25, 2024

That could force the Fed to keep interest rates high despite a slowing economy.

Bitcoin traders will be closely monitoring US economic events this week, including a Fed policy announcement, ISM manufacturing and services PMI reports, and April jobs data.

The Fed will likely stick to its hawkish message that it will wait for further inflation progress before cutting rates.

The economic data, meanwhile, will further inform the stagflation debate.

Risks seem tilted toward Bitcoin testing the lower bounds of its recent $60,000-$70,000ish range.

Bitcoin, thus, might not be the best crypto to buy today for investors looking for quick gains. So, if not Bitcoin, which coin is best to buy now?

Investors will have to be more selective as they pick altcoins with strong narratives.

Here are some strong performers on Monday that could be the best crypto to buy today.

Best Crypto to Buy Today

Wormhole (W)

Investors mulling over which crypto to invest in on Monday should check out Wormhole (W).

Wormhole is the top-performing coin in the top 100 by market cap on Monday, as per CoinMarketCap.

W was last up 14% in 24 hours and just hit two-week highs above $0.69.

Wormhole is a multi-chain protocol that facilitates the movement of assets and data between blockchains.

Wormhole's W token is now natively multichain using the Wormhole Native Token Transfers (NTT) framework

Native W is now available in SPL format on @Solana and ERC20 format on @Ethereum, @arbitrum, @Optimism, and @buildonbase. pic.twitter.com/pwaJohYGXT

— Wormhole (@wormhole) April 25, 2024

The token launched in early April and hit highs at $1.85.

W could post 3x gains if it can return to its past highs. That means it could be the best crypto to buy today.

Sei (SEI)

Finance-focused blockchain Sei (SEI) is another strong performer on Monday, up 6% in 24 hours.

Parallelizing the EVM does not stop with launching Sei v2. It’s time to think even bigger.

As part of Sei Labs' mission to scale the EVM, it is creating an open sourced framework for maximally performant, parallelized L2 chains.

Introducing: the Parallel Stack.…

— Sei (@SeiNetwork) March 13, 2024

According to CoinMarketCap, SEI was trading at $0.64 with a market cap of $1.8 billion.

SEI is attempting to establish its presence above the resistance around $0.60, where its 21DMA also resides.

Assuming SEI can push above here, a rally back toward recent highs above $1.10 is possible.

Bulls will be hoping Thursday’s strong performance is the start of a pushback to 2024 highs around $11.0.

The prospect of quick 80% gains means that SEI could be the best coin to buy now.

Helium (HNT)

DePIN project Helium (HNT), a network that leverages a decentralized global network of wireless hotspot providers and doubles up as miners, is pumping on Monday.

According to CoinMarketCap, HNT went up 12% in 24 hours, trading around $5.70. The token had even pushed as high as $6.0 in recent trade.

HNT’s market cap was last around $920 million. This is still a bargain valuation for believers in the project’s long-term DePIN vision.

If HNT can push above its 50DMA at $5.70, a rally back to 2024 highs above $11 is possible. Given that it could quickly be 2x, HNT could be the best crypto to buy right now.

Alternatives to Consider – Crypto Presales

Investors looking to add some risk to their portfolios should check out an often overlooked but frequently profitable crypto investment strategy – investing in presales.

Up-and-coming web3 projects often conduct ICOs in order to raise funds for project development.

To attract early interest/investors to their project, they usually sell these tokens at a very low market cap.

That offers presale investors the chance to make big gains.

Of course, presale investing isn’t risk-free. The success of a project depends heavily on its management team.

Presale investors could lose all their initial investment should things go wrong.

But if they can reliably identify projects with great teams and a strong use case, presale investing can bring big profits.

With so many projects vying for investor funds, it can be tough to know where to start.

Luckily, analysts at Cryptonews.com spend a lot of time combing through the altcoin market in search of high-potential projects.

Here are some of their favorite picks in the market right now.

21 Best Crypto Presale Projects for April 2024

Alternatively, see Cryptonews analyst Crypto Arjay’s top picks in the below video.

The post Best Crypto to Buy Today April 29 – Wormhole, Sei, Helium appeared first on Cryptonews.