Hodler’s Digest, December 15-21 – Cointelegraph Magazine

Top news of the week

Hawk Tuah Influencer Speaks Out After Allegations of Memecoin Rug Pull

Haliey Welch, the influencer behind the viral ‘Hawk Tuah’ video clip, issued a statement after her handle-bearing memecoin was quickly pumped and abandoned following its December launch.

In a December 20 post, Welch said he was “fully cooperating” with lawyers representing investors in Hawk Tuah (HAWK) tokens.

Cryptocurrency users filed a lawsuit against the project’s founders and partners. Welch himself was not named as a defendant in the suit. They alleged that they were involved in the promotion and sale of unregistered securities products.

Cathie Wood predicts surge in startup M&A under Trump and Bitcoin reaching $1 million

Cathie Wood, founder of ARK Invest, predicts a surge in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) following the election of Donald Trump and expects this influx to “support innovative strategies.”

In a Bloomberg interview, Wood said changes at the U.S. Federal Trade Commission could ease regulatory barriers that previously hindered M&A.

Wood also reaffirmed his stance on Bitcoin, predicting that the cryptocurrency will surpass $1 million by 2030 and explaining his optimistic sentiments about BTC’s fixed supply and scarcity compared to gold.

With high expectations for the incoming Trump administration, Wood foresees a dual impact: a boom in M&A among technology startups and reduced regulatory friction, resulting in potentially parabolic price movements.

Bankrupt Cryptopia Exchange distributes $225 million to hacking victims

The liquidators of bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange Cryptopia have begun distributing millions of dollars to users affected by a hack that occurred nearly six years ago.

Cryptopia’s clearing firm, Grant Thornton, announced on December 20 that it would begin distribution to over 10,000 verified account holders affected by the 2019 Cryptopia hack.

The liquidator said verified account holders of Bitcoin and Dogecoin received at least 400 million New Zealand dollars ($225 million) worth of cryptocurrency distributions over the past two days.

This payment marks a significant milestone in the Cryptopia liquidation process since Grant Thornton launched its Cryptopia claims portal in 2020.

Grant Thornton said that after the first distribution, the liquidator will continue to follow approved processes, including providing deadline notices, before distributing the remaining BTC, DOGE and other coins to account holders.

Craig Wright sentenced to one year probation for contempt of court

Australian computer scientist Craig Wright, who for years falsely claimed to be Bitcoin founder Satoshi Nakamoto, has been sentenced to one year of probation for contempt of court in the United Kingdom.

At a hearing on December 19, Judge James Mellor sentenced Wright for filing a lawsuit against Bitcoin developers in violation of a court order. Wright was sentenced to 12 months in prison, suspended for two years, after being found guilty of five counts of contempt of court and fined £145,000 (about $180,000 at the time of publication).

The contempt ruling was part of a case by the Crypto Open Patent Alliance, which sued Wright for violating a July court order to stop filing lawsuits against the company on the grounds that he is Satoshi.

Bitfinex hacker speaks after sentencing

Hacker Ilya Lichtenstein, who stole and laundered Bitcoin from cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex, released a statement on social media after being sentenced to five years in prison.

In a December 19 X post, Lichtenstein reaffirmed many of the statements he made in court leading up to his imprisonment. He confessed to hacking Bitfinex and laundering “thousands of bitcoins” in 2016, but suggested he wanted to take full responsibility rather than his wife, Heather Morgan, who was sentenced to prison for her role in bitcoin laundering.

“I knew what I was doing was wrong and I did it anyway,” Lichtenstein said in a video message from prison. name.

winners and losers

Bitcoin this weekend (BTC) It’s in $97,321; ether (ETH) to $3,464 and XRP to $2.28. The total market capitalization is $3.63 $1 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.

Among the top 100 largest cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers this week are Pudgy Penguins. (hostage) 492.34%, Hyper Liquid (hype) 56.23% and movement (move) 38.42%.

The top three altcoin losers this week are Aptos. (appropriate) At 28.28%, dYdX (native) (DYDX) 28.05% and Curve DAO tokens (CRV) 28.18%. For more information on cryptocurrency prices, read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.

most memorable quotes

“We expect $MARA to be next.”

michael sailorMicroStrategy Co-Founder

“Markets will immediately realize that they have at most a year before President Trump enacts policy changes on or around January 20th. This realization will lead to a vicious sell-off in cryptocurrency and other Trump 2.0 stock exchanges.”

Arthur HayesBitMEX Co-Founder

“No to the digital euro. Yes to the strategic Bitcoin reserve.”

Sarah KnafoFrench member of the European Parliament

“Welch’s involvement and reputation as a trusted public figure signaled to her followers and potential investors that the project was poised for success.”

Attorney for Hawk Tuah memecoin investors

“We heard optimistic stories last month about how markets were completely unprepared for bad news. “Now we are seeing indiscriminate selling.”

Pav HundalSenior Market Analyst at Swyftx

“Today, I am leaving Aptos Labs and starting a new chapter.”

Mohammad ShaikhCo-founder and CEO of Aptos Labs

Predictions of the Week

Bitcoin Correction Is ‘Almost Complete’ as Realized Losses Increase Above Weekly Average

On December 20, Bitcoin’s daily chart produced three consecutive red candles for the first time since the first week of November, which coincidentally was the period leading up to Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential election.

Another similarity to the last time we observed three or more red candles on the daily chart is that Bitcoin has retested the 50-day EMA level.

With the price of BTC down more than 15% since its all-time high, one analyst said most of the decline for the largest cryptocurrency is potentially over.

As the price of Bitcoin fell below $93,000 on December 20, Captain Faibik, an anonymous independent cryptocurrency trader, said that BTC’s correction was nearing a conclusion.

In the This difference typically results in an 8% to 10% decline, which is considered a “healthy reset.”

FUD of the week

Suspected SEC hackers were allowed to travel. vacation

Eric Council Jr., who is accused of hacking the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s Done.

In papers filed Dec. 13 in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, Judge Amy Berman Jackson said the council could travel to North Carolina with a third-party custodian between Dec. 23 and 29. Pretrial services that include information about his exact itinerary and where he will be staying at least two business days before he travels.”

The commission pleaded not guilty on Jan. 9 to hacking the SEC’s The fake message, which included a quote from SEC Chairman Gary Gensler, rocked markets until the commission officially approved the investment vehicle about 24 hours later.

Arthur Hayes said Trump’s inauguration could trigger a cryptocurrency sell-off.

Cryptocurrency market commentators and observers have predicted positive market trends associated with the inauguration of US President-elect Donald Trump in January 2025, but BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes has a different view.

Hayes warned against high expectations for the rapid cryptocurrency policy changes promised by Trump, highlighting the gap between market expectations and the reality of policy implementation.

In a “Trump Truth” blog post published Dec. 17, Hayes said his investment fund, Maelstrom, plans to reduce some positions early and buy them later at lower prices in the first half of 2025.

Unlike many forecasters, Hayes doubts that the United States and other countries will start creating national Bitcoin reserves any time soon.

Bybit to discontinue French cryptocurrency services by January 2025

Global cryptocurrency exchange Bybit announced that it will discontinue withdrawal and storage services for French users from 8 AM (UTC) on January 8, 2025, amid heightened regulatory scrutiny from French financial authorities.

The company advised affected users to withdraw their funds before the deadline to avoid issues with accessing their accounts or transferring funds.

Bybit plans to transfer unclaimed assets exceeding 10 USD Coin to French cryptocurrency custodian Coinhouse. Users must complete a verification process on Coinhouse to regain access to their holdings. For accounts with a balance of less than 10 USDC, Bybit will charge a termination fee equal to 10 USDC and deduct it from your available assets.

The move reflects growing regulatory pressure on global cryptocurrency exchanges as regulations on cryptocurrencies tighten in many jurisdictions.

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editorial staff

Cointelegraph Magazine writers and reporters contributed to this article.