Hodler’s Digest, January 5 – 11 – Cointelegraph Magazine

Top news of the week

New Hampshire, North Dakota Introduce Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Bill

New Hampshire and North Dakota have become the latest US states to introduce legislation for strategic Bitcoin reserves, marking a continued push by lawmakers to diversify their treasuries with the cryptocurrency.

The New Hampshire bill was introduced by Rep. Keith Ammon, a Republican representing the 40th District, according to Satoshi Action Fund CEO Dennis Porter.

The New Hampshire bill does not explicitly mention Bitcoin, instead referring to “digital assets.” Porter said this is a way for state lawmakers to advance legislation without causing political friction.

On the same day, legislation for a strategic Bitcoin reserve was also introduced in North Dakota, with support from Rep. Nathan Toman, Rep. Josh Christy, and Sen. Jeff Barta.

Bitcoin Corporate Treasury Shareholder Proposal Submitted to Meta

The Meta shareholder proposal submitted by Ethan Peck requested that the social media company convert a portion of its $72 billion in cash and near-term cash equivalents into Bitcoin as a hedge against currency declines.

Peck wrote that Meta is losing 28% of its cash assets over time due to inflation, and as evidence of asset adoption, he noted that Bitcoin has outperformed bonds by 1,262% over the past five years. Peck also wrote in his proposal:

“Mark Zuckerberg named his goats ‘Bitcoin’ and ‘Max.’ Meta director Marc Andreessen has praised Bitcoin and is also a board member of Coinbase. Don’t Meta shareholders deserve the same kind of responsible asset allocation for the company that Meta’s directors and management implement themselves?”

Peck is an associate at the National Center for Public Policy Research, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank that promotes free market policies, which submitted a Bitcoin treasury shareholder proposal to Microsoft and Amazon in 2024. no see. However, Peck submitted a Meta proposal on his own behalf. The family’s share.

Bybit exchange discontinues India services due to regulatory pressure.

Bybit, a global cryptocurrency exchange, announced that it will temporarily suspend its cryptocurrency trading services in India, citing regulatory developments.

From 8:00 AM (UTC) on January 12, Bybit will restrict several services, including cryptocurrency trading, account opening, and ordering through other exchange products.

In its January 10 announcement, Bybit said the decision was driven by its operational goal of “fully complying with all applicable rules and regulations,” adding:

“Due to recent developments by Indian regulators and the continuation of previously implemented restrictions (…) Indian users are temporarily unable to initiate new transactions or access any products on the Bybit platform.”

User fund withdrawals will not be affected while trading services are suspended, according to the announcement.

56% of advisors are more likely to invest in cryptocurrencies after Trump’s election: Bitwise survey

More than half of U.S.-based financial advisors responding to a Bitwise survey said Donald Trump’s victory in the U.S. presidential election made them more willing to invest in cryptocurrencies.

Bitwise’s latest survey, conducted from November 14 to December 20, asked 430 financial advisors about their attitudes towards cryptocurrencies, with 56% saying they were unlikely to invest in cryptocurrencies this year following the US election results on November 5. I answered higher.

The cryptocurrency industry is widely counting on President-elect Donald Trump’s help in moving the United States toward a cryptocurrency-friendly environment. Jack Mallers, founder and CEO of Strike, said President Trump is likely to issue an executive order designating Bitcoin as a US reserve asset on his first day in office.

British judge dismisses $770 million Bitcoin buried hard drive case

James Howells, an IT engineer from Newport, Wales, lost his legal battle to recover a hard drive containing $770 million worth of Bitcoin.

In 2009, a hard drive containing mined bitcoins was accidentally thrown away and ended up in a landfill. Newport City Council has refused access to the landfill due to environmental licensing restrictions.

According to a January 9 BBC report, Wales’ circuit commercial judge, Judge Keyser KC, dismissed Howells’ legal challenge seeking access to the Newport landfill to recover the hard drives.

Keyser said the legal case had “no realistic prospect” of succeeding in a full trial.

Since 2013, Howells has repeatedly requested permission from Congress to access the site, offering a portion of the missing bitcoins once the hard drive is found.

winners and losers

Bitcoin this weekend (BTC) The price is $94,691, Ether. (ETH) for $3,271 XRP For $2.34. According to CoinMarketCap, the total market capitalization is $3.31 trillion.

Among the top 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers of the week are XDC Network. (XDC) 14.56%, Bitcoin SV (BSV) 10.95% and Bitget tokens (BGB) 7.89%.

The top three altcoin losers this week are THORChain. (rune) 32.05%, ai16z (AI16Z) 31.64% and dogwifehat (WIF) 27.47%. For more information on cryptocurrency prices, read Cointelegraph’s market analysis.

most memorable quotes

“It’s 2035. Bitcoin price is $1.5 million.”

Timothy Petersonnetwork economist

“We believe AI can lead to explosive growth for enterprises and tokenized enterprises.”

Hunter HorsleyBitwise CEO

“There are many variations of the scam, but one in particular involves connecting people to a cryptocurrency machine and tricking them into depositing and transferring money to the scammer. “If you receive a call from someone asking for payment in cryptocurrency or Bitcoin, hang up.”

Springfield, Massachusetts police office

“Unlike in previous years, there is little chance of a Trump-related catalyst until after his inauguration on January 20th. Front-end volume also remained soft with a relatively neutral bias indicative of similar sentiment.”

QCP Capital

“Disappointment over the pro-crypto and pro-business legislation proposed by the Trump team may be offset by an extremely positive dollar liquidity environment, which increased by up to $612 billion in the first quarter.”

Arthur HayesBitMEX Co-Founder

“Bitcoin’s decline primarily stems from strong U.S. economic data pointing to a potential interest rate hike.”

Ryan LeeSenior Analyst at Bitget Research

Predictions of the Week

Cryptocurrency Heading for a ‘Banana Singularity’ Where Everything Rises: Analyst

According to Raoul Pal, co-founder and CEO of Real Vision, the cryptocurrency market is in a “banana zone” and heading towards a “banana singularity,” a period when “everything is going up.”

“Banana zone” is a term coined by Pal to describe a period of significant price increases.

“Yes,” Pal said in a Jan. 10 X post. We are still in the banana zone,” Pal said, adding that the first step in this bull market was the breakout in November last year.

This was followed by the current consolidation period, similar to the 2016/2017 cycle. “This won’t last long,” Pal added.

Looking ahead, Pal said the next phase of the “banana zone” is the “banana singularity,” an altcoin season where “everything goes up, followed by greater consolidation.”

FUD of the week

Blender and Sinbad operators indicted on money laundering charges in US

The U.S. Department of Justice has indicted three Russian nationals on charges of money laundering for their involvement in operating cryptocurrency mixers Blender.io and Sinbad.io.

U.S. authorities said in a January 10 notice that a federal grand jury for the Northern District of Georgia returned indictments against Roman Vitalievich Ostapenko, Alexander Evgeniyevich Oleynik, and Anton Byaklavovich Tarasov.

The indictment alleges that a cryptocurrency mixing service operated by the trio allowed criminals to launder funds “stolen from victims of ransomware, virtual currency theft and other crimes,” according to U.S. Attorney Ryan Buchanan.

Russia seizes $10 million in Bitcoin from former government official on bribery charges

According to local reports, the Russian government has seized $10 million worth of Bitcoin from a former law enforcement officer.

Russian court bailiffs have begun seizing Bitcoin from former employees of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation (ICRF) in a large-scale cryptocurrency-related bribery case.

TASS news agency reported on January 8 that officers seized 1 billion Russian rubles ($10 million), or approximately 103 BTC, from Marat Tambiev, a former ICRF employee who was convicted of cryptocurrency bribery in 2023. It was reported that the process for

The seized bitcoins will be added to Russia’s national revenues as part of legal proceedings. Police reportedly accessed Tambiev’s hardware cryptocurrency wallet, Ledger Nano X, to seize the assets.

Thai police arrest nearly 1,000 Bitcoin miners in raid: Report

Thai police and electricity authorities have reportedly seized 996 pieces of Bitcoin mining equipment from a company they claim was illegally converted for mining purposes.

Bitcoin mining equipment was confiscated from JIT Co’s facility in Panat Nikom, Chonburi Province, on January 8, Major General Montree Theskhan, head of the police’s crime suppression unit, told the Bangkok Post on January 9.

JIT reportedly had an estimated “hundreds of millions of bahts” worth of electricity stolen, with at least 100 million bahts worth at current rates, amounting to at least $2.88 million.

The operator was registered to carry out digital asset trading but reportedly used modified power meters to operate mining equipment at night. Nation Thai reported on January 9 that power meters were used correctly during the day “to avoid any doubt”.

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Cointelegraph Magazine writers and reporters contributed to this article.