Extreme greed is propping up the cryptocurrency market, Sam Bankman-Fried is taking a stand, and Binance is eating a huge chunk out of its founder’s net worth. But how much? Stick around. This week we bring you these stories and more in cryptocurrency.
Bitcoin at 18-month high
Optimism fueled by expectations for spot ETFs has pushed Bitcoin to its highest level since May of last year, recording a stunning daily gain of 14%. At the same time, the Crypto Fear & Greed Index, which measures market sentiment, also reached its highest level since Bitcoin’s all-time high in November 2021. Higher numbers in this index reflect overall market greed.
Bitcoin ETF Ticker Has Disappeared
The ticker for IBTC, BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF, disappeared and reappeared on the Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation’s website, causing the price of Bitcoin to suddenly fall 3%. The excitement surrounding spot ETFs was so intense that the DTCC website crashed. One senior ETF analyst quipped that the heightened interest speaks to the uniqueness and strength of the overall ETF story.
SBF, private testimony in FTX trial
Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried testified privately to a judge to decide which parts of his testimony could be presented to the jury. The 31-year-old was accused of defrauding investors and tampering with evidence. Bankman-Fried defended his questionable decisions, including setting some group chats to be automatically deleted, saying this complied with record-keeping policies set by his legal department.
SEC Cryptocurrency Enforcement Totals Revealed
SEC Chairman Gary Gensler said the agency’s enforcement actions this year have resulted in $5 billion in judgments and orders. Gensler specifically called the cryptocurrency industry “non-compliant” and said he “won’t even name all of the individuals” who have been indicted. In 2023, the SEC initiated more than 780 enforcement actions, with $930 million of the $5 billion in judgments returned to affected investors.
Turkey plans crypto framework
Turkey’s Presidential Annual Program for 2024 has set the goal of establishing cryptocurrency regulation, including a cryptocurrency asset definition plan, and laying the foundation for future taxation rules. The plan also aims to provide legal definitions for cryptocurrency providers such as exchanges. The ongoing inflation crisis in the Turkish lira has sparked significant interest in cryptocurrencies in Turkey. A 2022 study found that Turkey is the second-largest country in the world in terms of cryptocurrency-related search requests, with 5.5% of the population making cryptocurrency-related searches.
Australia’s largest money laundering operation uncovered
Australian money transfer company Changjiang Exchange is under investigation for allegedly laundering $145 million in funds. Four Chinese nationals and three Australians were arrested following a 14-month investigation in a 300-strong police operation across major cities including Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane. Police said the exchange helped launder dirty funds and tainted cryptocurrencies from investment scams and unregistered cryptocurrency exchanges.
Binance Founder Lost Billions of Dollars in 2023
The Bloomberg Billionaires Index reduced Binance’s revenue estimates by 38% due to lower trading volume, which reduced founder Changpeng Zhao’s net worth by a whopping $12 billion. Binance once held a significant market share, peaking at 62% during its commission-free promotion for top trading pairs, but its market share fell to 51% after the promotion ended.
This is what happened in the cryptocurrency market this week. See you next week.