Hodler’s Digest, April 28 – May 4 – Cointelegraph Magazine

Top news this week

Former Binance CEO Zhao Changpeng sentenced to 4 months in prison

Former Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao was sentenced to four months in prison for failing to maintain an effective anti-money laundering program at the cryptocurrency exchange. Judge Richard Jones of the Western District of Washington sentenced Zhao on April 30 after he pleaded guilty last November. Prosecutors initially sought a three-year prison sentence, but Judge Jones sentenced Zhao to a shorter sentence, noting that there was no evidence that Zhao had been directly notified of specific illegal activities by Binance.

The SEC and Gensler believed that Ether would be a security for at least another year.

A lawsuit filed by Consensys against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) details the commission’s view of Ethereum as a security. The SEC and its chairman, Gary Gensler, have reportedly deemed Ethereum an “unregistered security” that has not complied with federal regulations for at least a year, according to court documents. The disclosures are part of Consensys’ response to the SEC’s notice of Wells, which contained an unamended complaint in federal court in Texas.

FBI warning against cryptocurrency transfer companies ‘appears’ to be aimed at mixers

An advisory issued by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) against the use of unregistered cryptocurrency transfer services may be targeting smart contract privacy tools, a legal expert has revealed. On April 25, the FBI issued a public service announcement advising Americans to only use registered cryptocurrency businesses that comply with know-your-customer and anti-money laundering regulations. The FBI emphasized that it has taken action against unlicensed cryptocurrency services, warning that users of such services could face financial chaos, especially if their funds are mixed with illegally obtained funds.

Price consolidation after Bitcoin halving could last 2 months — Bitfinex

Bitfinex analysts predict that Bitcoin could enter a price consolidation period of one to two months after the halving, with potential price swings of up to $10,000. According to the report, Bitcoin remains the main benchmark for price action in the cryptocurrency market throughout May and is expected to serve as a key indicator for overall market capitalization. Lastly, the report adds that the Bitcoin price will see a positive impact after the halving.

Hong Kong Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs attract more than $200 million on day one

Hong Kong’s spot Bitcoin and Ether exchange-traded fund (ETF) raised more than $200 million in total assets when it launched on April 30. The Bosera HashKey Spot Bitcoin and Ether ETF has amassed 964 Bitcoin (BTC) and 4,290 Bitcoin (BTC), according to Arkham Intelligence data. Ethereum (ETH) has $71.94 million in assets under management as of its launch date. Additionally, ChinaAMC’s spot BTC and ETH ETF gained $123.61 million in assets. According to a survey conducted on April 28 by OSL, a Hong Kong-regulated cryptocurrency exchange, 76.9% of respondents who were familiar with cryptocurrency in Hong Kong were willing to invest in a new cryptocurrency fund.

winners and losers

Bitcoin this weekend (BTC) It’s in $61,769ether (ETH) In ~ $3,081 and XRP In ~ $0.52. The total market capitalization is $2.29 $1 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.

Among the top 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers this week are Helium. (HNT) 25.86%, wormhole (W) 24.16%, optimistic (OP) 22.34%.

The top three altcoin losers this week are Stacks. (STX) -17.57%, Pendle (pendle) -12.90%, Neo (Neo) -12.89%.

For more information on cryptocurrency prices, read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.

most memorable quotes

“I will take my time to finish this phase and focus on the next chapter of my life (education).”

Zhao ChangfengBinance Founder

“Good. (Roger Ver’s) had a negative impact on Bitcoin.”

and heldbitcoin supporter

“We do not expect the slowdown in Bitcoin ETFs to become a worrying trend, but we do believe it will be a short-term pause before ETFs become more integrated with private banking platforms, wealth advisors and more brokerage platforms.”

Gautam Chhugani and Mahika SapraBernstein Analyst

“The judge sent a message to the industry as a whole, not just to CZ individually, that anti-money laundering compliance must be taken seriously.”

Aaron LaneSenior Legal Lecturer at RMIT Blockchain Innovation Hub, Melbourne

“The (United Arab Emirates) government is increasingly doing for cryptocurrency what Silicon Valley did for technology. “This country is quickly becoming the Coachella of the cryptocurrency world.”

Vlateith himselfMENA Catalysts CEO

“Anything that increases the use and adoption of the Bitcoin blockchain is good for miners and good for the Bitcoin ecosystem as a whole.”

Adam SwickMarathon Chief Growth Officer

This week’s predictions

Bitcoin has bottomed and is now headed for a ‘slow rise’ — Arthur Hayes

Former BitMEX CEO Arthur Hayes believes Bitcoin has hit a domestic bottom and will slowly rebound over the coming months. Hayes argued in his May 3 blog post about the recent market downturn that “price action has been as expected.”

Bitcoin hit a local low of about $58,600 earlier this week, but will rebound above $60,000 and remain in a range between $60,000 and $70,000 until August, he said.

Hayes expects the cryptocurrency market to slowly rise after the recent sell-off due to increased dollar liquidity due to the Federal Reserve’s easing of quantitative tightening and the U.S. Treasury’s debt issuance plan.

“As billions of dollars of liquidity are slowly added each month, negative price movements will weaken going forward,” he said, predicting that prices will “bottom, split, and slowly start to rise.”

FUD of the week

U.S. Department of Justice indicts Roger Ver on tax fraud charges

U.S. Justice Department officials announced charges against early Bitcoin investor Roger Ver, known to many as “Bitcoin Jesus.” The Justice Department said in an April 30 notice that Spanish authorities arrested Ver on U.S. criminal charges, including mail fraud, tax evasion and filing false tax returns. Ver allegedly defrauded the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) of approximately $48 million by failing to report capital gains from the sale of Bitcoin and other assets. The government plans to extradite Burr to the United States for trial.

United States, Jack Dorsey’s Block, Inc. for financial transactions. Investigation: Report

U.S. federal prosecutors are investigating Jack Dorsey’s fintech company Block Inc. This comes after a whistleblower alleged compliance breaches within its payments divisions Square and Cash App. According to documents submitted by a former employee to the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, the company processed transactions for users in sanctioned countries, including Iran, Russia, Cuba and Venezuela, and facilitated cryptocurrency transactions for terrorist groups. According to NBC News, some small transactions were not reported to the government.

Nigerian court postpones money laundering trial against Binance and its executives

The trial of Binance executive Tigran Gambaryan, detained in Nigeria, has been postponed to May 17 due to delays in court proceedings. According to the report, Binance’s lawyers did not receive the documents needed to proceed with the money laundering case involving Gambaryan and regional manager Nadeem Anjarwalla. This trial is different from a separate tax evasion charge to which Binance and its executives all pleaded not guilty.

Best magazine articles of the week

Memecoins: A betrayal of more than just cryptocurrencies… Or its true purpose?

There is a big difference between memecoin fans and those who hate that memes tarnish the ideals and public image of cryptocurrencies.

68% of runes are red. Is this really an upgrade for Bitcoin?

Bitcoin Loons are ‘overvalued’ and have mostly fallen in price, but the token opens up a whole new world for Bitcoin.

Pickup artists using AI, making deepfake nudes illegal, Rabbit R1 failure: AI Eye

AI Tupac vs. AI Drake, fake nudity outlawed, Rabbit R1 failure, AI priest sexual harassment, heart disease deaths down 31%: AI Eye.

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editorial staff

Cointelegraph Magazine writers and reporters contributed to this article.